Classical
Recent Classical Highlights
Interviews
Suzanne Vega Doesn’t Mind Explaining Her “Weird” Songs, As Long As You Applaud Afterwards
May, 1966
Recorded near the bitter end of the original Animals' lifetime, Animalisms found this edition of the group going out in a blaze of glory. The Animals generally fared better on singles than LPs, but Animalisms is their one "all killer, no filler" long player, with Eric Burdon's vocals sounding seasoned but spirited, and the band as tight and ferocious as any of their rivals in British blues. Rest in peace, guitarist Hilton Valentine.
Herbie Hancock / Herbie Hancock Quartet
1982
This is an extremely symbolic album, for Herbie Hancock and the V.S.O.P. rhythm section essentially pass the torch of the '80s acoustic jazz revival to the younger generation, as personified by then 19-year-old Wynton Marsalis. Recorded during a break on a tour of Japan, a month before Marsalis made his first Columbia album, the technically fearless teenaged trumpeter mostly plays the eager student, imitating Miles, Freddie Hubbard, and Clifford Brown, obviously relishing the challenge of keeping up with his world-class cohorts.
