

Hi Everyone,
It’s Holiday time again and these are some of my favorite 2015 music CDs and DVDs that I recommend as great stocking stuffers, even to stick in your own stocking! 😉
These choices are in no particular order just music and videos that I feel are very special and worthy of your music collection.
1. Taste – What’s Going On – Live At The Isle Of Wight Festival 1970
For anyone out there who is a power trio fan, and especially a Cream fan, this is a must see and well worthy of your DVD collection. You will witness, in my opinion, a performance that, yes, rivals Cream. I know those are big words, and they would be fighting words for me, if it weren’t so amazingly true. These three incredible musicians will just blow you away!
The film is a story about a band just about to break huge, and as they are literally walking to the stage to play their biggest gig ever, one that could launch them to superstardom in front of thousands of people at The Isle OF Wight, they decide to break up! All true. Because of past gross misunderstandings fueled by a divisive manager the band can’t see the forest through the trees and this is their last concert.
But, because it is their last concert, and they know it will be, the fury of this live performance will absolutely stun you. This film footage has been a hidden treasure for years and finally has been released. What is captured is timeless, and will inspire both young and old to pick up the bass, drums, or guitar and wail!
2. Van Halen – Tokyo Dome Live In Concert
Well, I’ve been around rock all my life and I figure I know a few things myself. And guess what? You naysayers are wrong! THIS LIVE ALBUM IS OFF THE HOOK!!
And Diamond Dave sounds f*cking fine! In fact, he sounds better than fine—he sounds ROCK! Mixed by award-winning producer Bob Clearmountain, put this in the CD player, crank it to 11, and it will set your hair on fire! “Hot For Teacher” on this album (which is the only live Van Halen album that features Roth as front-man) is one of the all time live rock tracks ever recorded! After the song you can hear Dave say “Wow, where do we go from there??!” And as far as the live show—talk to anyone who went—absolutely ridiculous rock power and intensity by those killer musicians and Diamond Dave’s moves rivaled Mick Jagger. Most fun I’ve had at rock concert in a long time. Quote of the evening from Roth: “If Eddie is the guy that gets you into the building, then I’m the guy that sells you the bibles!”
3. Toto – XIV
If you like the Toto sound and you want to hear some new, great, refreshing stuff, you will find yourself playing this one over and over again. Check out the song “Running Out Of Time.” One listen and you’ll be hooked.
4. Michael Des Barres – The Key To The Universe
5. The Beatles – 1 + Deluxe
6. Jeff Beck – Live +
This simply is one of the finest pieces of music I have ever heard. You think you are supposed to be listening to an electric guitar, but all of a sudden you’re not sure what instrument you are listening to—could be a keyboard or could be Wayne Shorter playing sax—these notes are definitely from outer space!
And the band is simply one of the best on the planet. The bass player is Rhonda Smith, a legend in the making, and the drummer is Jonathan Joseph. When I met Jeff at a recent party (in the south of France no less), he was very humble. I was kind of gushing on him a bit since I’m a guitar guy, and he said, “Forget about me, how about that drummer!!!”
7. David Gilmour – Rattle That Lock
Here’s the best thing about Rattle That Lock. David didn’t try to remake any particular older sound or relive past Floydian travels. Instead, it’s all brand new. He still has his signature guitar sound and style of course, but he’s gone to an even higher level in music. It’s like when Monet all of a sudden decided to paint water lilies. You thought the guy was great before, but now you’re thinking genius.
This album is so refreshing because of how varied the song styles are. There is even a straight out jazz track. The bulk of the lyrics are by novelist/lyricist Polly Samson and they are her best work yet. It’s a must for all Pink Floyd fans, but beyond that, it’s a beautiful piece that played from beginning to end will bring anyone who loves great music a tremendous smile. Of course, if you are a guitar guy—it’s a must have.
8. AndersonPonty Band – Better Late Than Never
This CD and DVD package showcases rearrangements of classic YES hits like “Owner Of A Lonely Heart,” “Roundabout,” and “Wonderous Stories,” as well as some of Jean-Luc Ponty’s beloved compositions with Jon’s lyrical vocals and melodies enhancing the music and creating a very special unique sound. The DVD features some really beautiful performances by the band from a recent show at the Wheeler Opera House in Aspen, Colorado.
I had the pleasure of meeting and working with the guys, and they both were so nice and so caring about others as well—two very special souls. I saw the show in New York and it blew me away. If they tour your way, this is an experience you won’t want to miss—it’s a fabulous band loaded with superstar musicians and the music will sweep you into another plane.
9. Queen – A Night At The Odeon – Hammersmith 1975
One of my favorite parts is just hearing Freddie’s voice again talking to the audience—really very sweet. Man, I miss that guy. And Brian May continues to mystify me—he is playing all of those incredible guitar parts LIVE!!
10. Taken by Storm (Documentary)
This movie is quite personal to me because Storm was a good friend of mine and I miss him dearly.
It’s an extraordinary film about an extraordinary character who’s mind…well, you know the Led Zeppelin Houses Of The Holy album cover with the kids crawling up the rocks? That’s not computer generated, those are real actors in costumes on a real rock formation. You know Pink Floyd’s cover for A Momentary Lapse Of Reason? That’s not CGI either, that is 700 real beds on a beach! And, guess what? The first day of shooting it rained and they had to take all 700 beds off the beach and put them back on the next day. Do you remember the album cover for Animals where they took a picture of the floating pig between two giant power station chimneys? The story of the pig escaping its moorings and flying into London airspace amidst all the 747s is legendary. Do you remember Pink Floyd’s live Pulse album with the little blinking red light (which blinks to the beat of a human heart, by the way)? Storm again. I remember walking into the Tower Records store in London when the album was released and saw a giant rack of hundreds of red blinking lights—it was the only “alive” record in the store, the rest of the stock which would normally excite you looked dead by comparison. Genius.
And of course you are quite familiar with the most iconic album cover of all time, Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side Of The Moon.
Believe it or not, that’s just the very tip of the iceberg.
When you watch this movie you will not only see the iconic images of some of the best known album covers of all time from bands like Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Genesis, Peter Gabriel, Black Sabbath, Steve Miller, Paul McCartney and Wings, and so many more–you will hear the stories behind those covers from the artists, and from the man himself. You will meet and really get to know Storm–a pretty amazing fellow, quite eccentric, very funny, and insanely talented. The story of how Storm and his partner Aubrey (Po) Powell started the famed design company Hipgnosis is a warm and fuzzy human interest story that will put a big smile on your face and make you laugh out loud.
The movie features interviews with Robert Plant, David Gilmour, Peter Gabriel, and Steve Miller, just to name a few of the recording artists, and illustrators, photographers, graphic designers, and even yours truly has an appearance recalling the Pink Floyd airship with archival footage showing it flying in all its glory.
This DVD can be obtained through the director Roddy Bogawa at www.takenbystormfilm.com.
11. Adele – 25
I watched the recent NBC TV special and it put such a big smile on my face. Just when I thought most all was lost in a music business where marketing now seems to come before art, and the talk of the Grammy’s in the last few years has been who’s had the best production number and who had the most dancers on stage, etc.–along comes Adele–a savior for the authentic, of putting the accent back on the music.
Thousands of people were enraptured by a beautiful soulful voice and the stories (songs) told with that voice. It was a celebration of pure audio, very little extra visuals needed. Even though the band was large and the orchestral instruments many, it was all kept in the background just as a canvas for Adele to sing over. There were no super huge productions that overpowered any one song—simply Adele, and she was powerful and she was exquisite.
If that wasn’t enough her demeanor onstage was so refreshingly real and so wonderfully vulnerable. The way she spoke to the audience, which translated with ease to us the home viewers, made us all feel a great shared human experience. She doesn’t sing at her audience, she is very clear that the audience is her family and even though she’s the one doing the singing that all of us together being with her in the moment of re-living those stories of life is what makes the magic happen.
There are a lot of great songs on 25 but I would also urge you to go back and experience her other albums as well. There is so much great music and story there.
This is not to say that Adele is the only artist out there making authentic music, but having her as a beacon for others to aspire to can only help further the creation of more truly great art–music that will have more importance and add more meaning to our everyday lives.
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I hope this write up gives you some worthwhile help in selecting a few gifts and turns you on to some cool items you might like for yourself.
Judy, Brianne, and I really enjoy bringing you this website and our monthly newsletter and we wish you peace and all good things this Holiday season.
Best,
Rap~
© Paul Rappaport 2015