Records To Die For

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Andrey Henkin

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Al Di Meola/John McLaughlin/Paco de Lucía: Friday Night In San Francisco
Di Meola, McLaughlin, de Lucía, guitars
Columbia FC 37152 (LP). 1981. Barrie Marshall, Philip Roberge, prods.; Rex Olson, Tim Pinch, Ray Bardani, engs.

If concerts had traffic stops, Al Di Meola, John McLaughlin, and Paco de Lucía would have been pulled over for breaking the California speed limit during this December 5, 1980, performance. No one should be able to play an acoustic guitar this fast and articulately while creating such transcendent music, even quoting The Pink Panther theme for fun. There are three duets based on music by the three principals, Chick Corea, and Egberto Gismonti. The set closes majestically with all three on Di Meola's Fantasia Suite. This is the all-acoustic set that shut the door on quality electric fusion.

King Diamond: Abigail
Roadrunner RR 9622 (LP). 1987. King Diamond, Michael Denner, Mikkey Dee, prods.; Roberto Johansson, eng.

There have been few figures more foundational than King Diamond, who was critical to several metal subgenres: thrash, death, black, progressive. After two albums with Mercyful Fate, the vocalist founded his eponymous band and made Fatal Portrait. But it was the followup that became one of the legendary albums of the canon. Abigail is the tale of a demonic child reborn, and it's 40 of the scariest minutes of music ever, with King Diamond's falsetto, growling, and frenzied laughter, Andy LaRocque and Michael Denner's anguished guitars, and Timi Hansen and Mikkey Dee's lugubrious rhythms digging into your psyche like the silver spikes used to destroy Abigail at the conclusion.

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Mark Henninger

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Sounds From The Ground: Binary
Upstream Records UP0017 (DL). 2019. Sounds From the Ground, prods.; Sounds From the Ground, engs.

Binary is a downtempo dub album that has become my morning soundtrack. It's a ritual. Most mornings, I cue it up with coffee and let all nine tracks play straight through. Binary is mixed for sonic immersion: deep, unhurried grooves, bass that blooms, and layered on top, melodies that take their time coming into focus. "Blaze Mountain" opens with spacious ambient-dub atmospheres, setting the chillaxing tone that's maintained throughout. The mix makes good use of a proper hi-fi, even when it's playing quietly, but nothing feels overworked. Binary is a digital-only release that sounds silky, smooth, and luxurious. By the time the sublime "Anniesland" eases out, I'm reset and ready for the day.

Negativland: Dispepsi
Seeland 017CD (CD). 1997. Negativland, prods., engs.

Dispepsi is the Negativland CD I play whenever I'm feeling cynical about commercialism. It's humorous and thought provoking. On the surface, it's almost approachable: real songs with a chorus you can hum. Underneath, it's a dense collage of soda jingles, talk-radio clips, and weaponized ad copy—in other words, classic Negativland. Sample edits are razor sharp. A never-ending montage of jokes and slogans flashes past so quickly that it verges on psychedelic, even when you're sober. What keeps Dispepsi grounded is how musical it is. Top-notch production, catchy bass lines, and memorable riffs glue the chaos together.

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Anne E. Johnson

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Queen: Innuendo
Parlophone Records CDP 79 5887 2. 1991. David Richards and Queen, prods.; David Richards, Justin Shirley-Smith, Noel Harris, Kevin Metcalfe, engs.

Queen made its 14th album, Innuendo, at Mountain Studios in Montreux, Switzerland. The beautiful, quiet town was a solace to Freddie Mercury, who was very ill with AIDS. He died less than a year after the album's release.

Yet Mercury managed to sing like the powerhouse he always was. The band created their richest, most ornate album in more than a decade, reminiscent of their work in the 1970s but now with synths, which they formerly reviled. Its best-remembered single is "The Show Must Go On." But there's more to this record.

The delicate verses of "Don't Try So Hard" leave me breathless, but then Mercury soars to the top of his range in the chorus. "Bijoux" shimmers and dissolves, "I'm Going Slightly Mad" smirks knowingly, and the title track's imaginativeness nearly matches that of "Bohemian Rhapsody."

Manitas de Plata: La Guitare d'or de Manitas
CBS FS 721 (LP). 1969. Ariane Ségal, Lucien Clergue, prods.; Claude Morel, eng

When I was a child, my father often put this record on the turntable. Manitas de Plata ("Little Hands of Silver" in Spanish) was French by nationality and Romani by culture. Musically, he was one of the world's greatest flamenco guitarists.

Unlike some of de Plata's albums, this one has no singer. Careful listening distinguishes various types of instrumental pieces: The stately "Fandango del Redon" contrasts with the floating, perpetual-motion tremolo of "Moresca" and the preposterously virtuosic "Soleares por Rhumbita." You can occasionally hear de Plata and someone else—probably the uncredited backup guitarist—shouting joyous encouragement in Spanish. Careful not to scuff the floor when you dance along.

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Sasha Matson

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The Complete Norman Granz Jam Sessions
Count Basie, Bennie Carter, Stan Getz, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, others
Verve Records B0003252-02 QS01 (CD). 2004. Norman Granz, prod.

Building on the groundbreaking Jazz at the Philharmonic series of live recordings, which he initiated in 1944, producer and impresario Norman Granz created a parallel series of studio recordings made from 1952 through 1954 capturing many of the same great jazz talents in improvisatory, open-ended settings. A session usually included a lengthy blues, a ballad medley, and a couple of uptempo standards. A total of 27 musicians appear, in various combinations. The LPs were simply titled Norman Granz Jam Session and numbered; there were nine all told. The Verve package fills five CDs. There's also a book you need to read, which I doubt you will find online. The music is killer.

Debussy: La Mer (The Sea)
Ibert: Escales (Ports of Call)
Boston Symphony Orchestra, Charles Munch, cond.
RCA Victor Red Seal/Analogue Productions AAPC 2111 (LP). 1957/2015. Ryan K. Smith, eng.

This great 1957 Living Stereo album has seemingly been with us forever, but it has never sounded better than on the remastered 2015 180gm vinyl pressing from Chad Kassem's Analogue Productions crew. There are hundreds of recordings of La Mer—it was Debussy's masterpiece, after all—but if there is a better performance than Munch and the BSO's, I'm not aware of it. The B-side with Ibert's Ports of Call is definitive, too. The sound on the LP is truly demo-level. Huge dynamic shifts, spectacular soundstaging and textures—this album has it all. I only recently acquired this state-of-the-art LP. You should have a copy, too. Live a little.