Official Release

Because of the Times is the third album by Kings of Leon. Because of the Times was released on March 30, 2007 in Ireland/Australia, April 2, 2007 in the UK and April 3, 2007 in the US (see 2007 in music).

The album has received generally positive reviews and has appeared in numerous Top-10 lists for « Album of the Year. In 2009, Clash named the album number 3 on the « Clash Essential 50 », a list of the most important albums released since the magazine’s inception in 2004.

The album was #6 in NME albums of the year, as well as #31 on Rolling Stone’s Top 50 Albums of 2007. NME said that the album « cements Kings Of Leon as one of the great American bands of our times » and Entertainment Weekly called Because of the Times « an epic wide-screen movie of a CD and the band’s best to date. »

Another reviewer described Because of the Times as, « an accomplished album of unbelievable beauty and familiar, loveable grit. Kings of Leon is maturing wonderfully and with patience, not forcing anything musically or lyrically that doesn’t sound natural. »

Blunderbuss is the debut solo album by Jack White, released on April 23, 2012 through White’s own label Third Man Records in association with XL Recordings and Columbia Records. The album was released in MP3, compact disc, and vinyl editions. The album was written, recorded, and produced entirely by White in 2011. The first single from the album, « Love Interruption », was released on January 30, 2012 through White’s website and Third Man Records website. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 138,000 copies. The album received Grammy Award nominations for Album of the Year and Best Rock Album at the 2013 Grammy Awards, while the single « Freedom at 21 » was nominated for Best Rock Song.

Blunderbuss has its roots in White’s recordings with several artists, including Tom Jones. White was in contact with Wu-Tang Clan member RZA and, when RZA couldn’t attend the session, White felt bad since there was a band that travelled to Nashville for apparently no reason.[citation needed] White decided to record several tracks that he wrote in the last 6 months of 2011, with the band. The tracks would later develop into songs that appear on the album. read more

The Big Come Up is the debut album by the American rock duo The Black Keys, released in 2002 on Alive Records. It was produced by drummer Patrick Carney. According to Nielsen Soundscan, the record has sold 139,000 copies.[5] In 2005, music critic Chuck Klosterman singled out The Big Come Up as one of 21 « high-quality albums » from the previous three years.[6]
The song « I’ll Be Your Man » was used as the theme song for the HBO series Hung. « I’ll Be Your Man » also appeared on the FX series Rescue Me. Alive Records re-presses this album regularly, often several times a year on different coloured vinyl or with altered sleeve artwork. These are usually marketed as limited editions.[7] As of January 2012, Alive Records had released The Big Come Up on vinyl on at least 14 separate occasions,[8] opening themselves up to criticism, particularly in regard to the marketing term « limited edition ».[9]
« 240 Years Before Your Time » becomes silent at about 1:39 into the track on the CD version. This silence lasts until 23:21.

Throughout a career that has spanned five decades, from the Yardbirds to solo stardom, landing him in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, guitarist Jeff Beck has continued to defy expectations. Steadfastly refusing to bow to convention, or even to straightjacket his performances into any critical pigeonhole, Beck’s sound is continuously in flux, skipping like a stone across a pond, dancing with hard rock, blues, jazz, and even flirting with the metallic.

Grammy winning guitarist and rock n roll legend Jeff Beck returns with his first album in seven years and what an album! The album is eclectic to say the least, it not only features the vocal talents of Grammy Award winner Joss Stone on 2 tracks but also a full blown orchestra on some tracks too. Joss Stone is an amazing vocalist with a gravelly voice way beyond her years and puts her stamp on the 1956 classic Screamin’ Jay Hawkins track “I Put A Spell On You” as does Jeff Beck with his wonderfully phrased blues licks.

Jeff Beck recorded Emotion And Commotion late last year at Sarm Studios in London with award-winning producers Steve Lipson and Trevor Horn. To create the album’s diverse sound, Beck used a number of musicians, including appearances by frequent collaborators Vinnie Colaiuta (drums), Jason Rebello (keyboards), and Tal Wilkenfeld (bass). The album also includes contributions from a trio of singers: Imelda May (“Lilac Wine“), Olivia Safe (“Elegy For Dunkirk“), and Grammy-winner Joss Stone (“I Put A Spell On You” and “There’s No Other Me“).

George « Buddy » Guy (born July 30, 1936) is an American blues guitarist and singer. Critically acclaimed, he is a pioneer of the Chicago blues sound and has served as an influence to some of the most notable musicians of his generation, including Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan. In the 1960s Guy was a member of Muddy Waters’ band and was a house guitarist at Chess Records. He can be heard on Howlin’ Wolf’s « Killing Floor » and Koko Taylor’s « Wang Dang Doodle » as well as on his own Chess sides and the series of records he made with harmonica player Junior Wells. read more

Not known for his acoustic work, Buddy Guy unplugs for a rare album-length excursion into folk blues. Continuing the rootsy, bare-bones approach that made 2001’s electric Sweet Tea (also produced by Dennis Herring) so gutsy and memorable, the guitarist gets down and dirty with 12 tracks that sound like they were recorded after hours in his living room or on his back porch. Guy’s stinging leads are still evident as is his emotive voice, but both are less flamboyant in the unplugged setting. Accompanied by spare stand-up bass and brushed drums, Guy sounds nearly possessed on covers from Skip James (« Hard Time Killing Floor »), Johnny Shines (« Moanin’ and Groanin’ »), Son House (« Louise McGhee »), and John Lee Hooker (« Sally Mae ») among others. It’s a low-key, low-down affair made for late nights, rainy days, and the saddest of moods. Guy is just as convincing here–arguably more so–as on his barnstorming electric albums, making Blues Singer one of the bravest and most poignant albums in his catalog.

–Hal Horowitz