BEST OF THE REST: The classical CDs we missed in 2022

THE GUARDIAN / Andrew Clements It took Maurizio Pollini more than 30 years to complete his recordings of the Beethoven piano sonatas for Deutsche Grammophon. The first instalment of that series, which appeared in 1977, was devoted to the last five sonatas, including magisterial performances of the two paired on this new release, which was […]

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HARVEY MANDELL: News

THOM DUREK / allmusic.com Who’s Calling is the 16th solo album by guitarist Harvey “Snake” Mandel, and his second for Tompkins Square. He is widely considered one of the most innovative guitarists to emerge from Chicago in the 1960s, alongside icons Charlie Musselwhite, Barry Goldberg, Steve Miller, Michael Bloomfield, Paul Butterfield, and Corky Siegel. Along […]

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INDIGO GIRLS: News

STEPHEN THOMAS ERLEWINE / allmusic.com Look Long, the title of Indigo Girls’ 15th album, appears to be an imperative to their audience and a creative challenge to themselves — an attempt to look beyond the internal and familiar. Reuniting with producer John Reynolds, who previously produced the duo’s 1999 LP Come On Now Social, Indigo […]

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VINYL REPLAY: News

A record-pressing plant on Teesside is to double production after a successful first year in business. Press On Vinyl opened in Middlesbrough in early-2022 with the aim of producing 50,000 records a month. Co-founder David Todd said the continued resurgence of vinyl records was due to factors including collectability for fans and profit margins for […]

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BACHMAN TURNER OVERDRIVE: Sad news

Robbie Bachman, the drummer for Bachman–Turner Overdrive and Brave Belt, has died age 69. His brother and bandmate Randy Bachman confirmed the news on Twitter, describing Robbie as “an integral cog in our rock’n’roll machine” and writing that “the pounding beat behind BTO … has joined mum, dad and brother Gary on the other side”. […]

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JOHN LYDON: News

THE GUARDIAN: Former Sex Pistol competing to represent Ireland with love letter to wife of 44 years who is living with the illness John Lydon has said he is competing to represent Ireland at this year’s Eurovision song contest primarily in order to raise awareness of Alzheimer’s disease. The former Sex Pistols frontman (once known […]

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SPOTIFY: Revenue and usage statistics

Spotify is the world’s biggest music streaming platform by number of subscribers. Users of the service simply need to register to have access to one of the largest collections of music in history, plus podcasts and other audio content. It operates on a freemium model. Free Spotify access comes with lower sound quality, advertisements and […]

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ANDY TAYLOR: News

THE GUARDIAN Last November, former Duran Duran guitarist Andy Taylor revealed that he had been diagnosed with incurable stage four metastatic prostate cancer, in a letter read aloud by the band at their Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction. Now, Taylor has opened up about his diagnosis in an interview with 5 News, saying […]

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BOB WEIR: News

While three Grateful Dead members released solo outings in 1972, Bob Weir’s Ace was ostensibly a solo album, with massive contributions from his bandmates, songs the Dead had been playing live or would soon incorporate into their repertoire, and a

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CHRISTINE McVIE: Eulogy by Mick Fleetwood

THE INDEPENDENT: Mick Fleetwood has shared the eulogy he wrote for Christine McVie, following her memorial service that took place on Monday (9 January). The service saw the remaining band members and Fleetwood Mac’s “extended family” gather to celebrate McVie, who died on 30 November after a “short illness”.  On 12 January, Fleetwood posted to […]

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JOHN CALE: News – Cale has never shied away from ugly subjects

THE GUARDIAN / Chal Ravens As he hits 80 and releases a softly raging album inspired by the ugliness of the pandemic years, the ever restless and eternally avant-garde musician unburdens himself John Cale is wearing a priest’s black cassock and a string of pearls where the dog collar should go. A shock of white […]

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TAYLOR SWIFT: Money news

THE GUARDIAN / Edward Helmore Taylor Swift’s Midnights album, released in October, helped to generate $230m in sales for her label Universal last year, according to a report on Wednesday. According to JPMorgan Chase, the music superstar raised close to 3% of the company’s revenues from recorded music in 2022. As a result, analysts at […]

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JEFF BECK: The long read

THE INDEPENDENT / Mark Beaumont Within hours of the news of his death, tributes to Jeff Beck from the guitar greats rang out like a 21-string salute. “Jeff could channel music from the ethereal… his technique unique, his imaginations apparently limitless,” said Jimmy Page of this “six-string warrior” and “the spell he could weave around […]

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