It’s been almost two decades since Jerome Froese left his father‘s ensemble to concentrate on a solo career that would see this multi-instrumentalist go beyond TANGERINE DREAM brand of progressive rock and his previous efforts as a DJ. Quite a few albums later, the German artist has fully crystallized a method he called guitartronica, the method in the heart of the Berlin experimentalist’s forthcoming record.
It wasn’t false modesty that defined Danny Thompson‘s view of his capabilities; it was a measure of a genius that the English musician – who died on September 23rd, aged 86 – refused to see the profundity of what he created. A virtuoso whose mastery of contrabass seemed unequaled in folk rock circles and anchored a plethora of classic platters in most exquisite ways, Thompson also showed how sensual and sympathetic the electric instrument could be, which made him more than a mere accompanist to such unique talents as Nick Drake, John Martyn and Sandy Denny, to mention but three of those Danny worked with.
While reportedly working on new music, THE ROLLING STONES apparently decided to resume the stream of their archival releases which, somehow, come in spurts, especially when it concerns concert documents, but even the pace of the band’s reissue programme is quite puzzling. With the deluxe edition of “Goat Head Soup” emerging out of nowhere in 2020, the ensemble’s fans were hoping for a similar treatment of “Exile On Main St.” two years later or “It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll” in 2024, yet the veterans seemed reluctant to jump on the 50th anniversary bandwagon – until now that they announced, six months before the actual five-decade date of the album’s arrival, the “Black And Blue” box set, scheduled for November 14th.
1974 and 1975 were watershed years for THIN LIZZY who transformed from the trio of their initial phase into a fearsome foursome with signature twin-guitar sound that, between the band’s “Nightlife” and “Fighting” albums, shifted towards hard rock. In 2024, the quartet’s heavier incarnation has been anthologized in the "1976" box set – which marked a change from the one-longplay-focused approach of "Vagabonds Of The Western World" collection – and it will be followed on November 21st by “74-75” that includes seven CDs.
THIN LIZZY’s “Nightlife” album is yet to see a deluxe edition, and when it does it will hardly include a piece that Jan Schelhaas, the British keyboard player most famous for his stints with CARAVAN and CAMEL, has posted on his Bandcamp: a cut laid down with Phil Lynott which would become the title track of the aforementioned album. Jan was credited with playing organ on “Mama Nature Said” and “The Hero And The Madman” on the “Vagabonds Of The Western World” LP – the platter already turned into a box set – but not a lot of people know he stayed a while longer with the Irish group.
