I'm continuing to post some of the email that I have gotten on this Great Albums of the Last Ten Years question that I popped on Monday. But before I do, I want to congratulate Mike Duquette of The Second Disc for his article post over at Popdose. He's pretty proud of it and I have to admit to being proud of him as well. Hard work pays off and Mike has put in some hours. Check it out when you get an opportunity.

Without holding you hostage for too long, here's a few more email responses:

• Excellent selections! How could I not mention some of these on my previous email? It seems I was stuck on Porcupine Tree.

  After combing through my collection, I did find another gem that changed the way I feel about trying out new bands. After listening to this one I was amazed and worried that I may be truly missing some fabulous music. This one just sneaks into the past ten years.

  Released in August of 2000.   Spock's Beard  " V "

  Since trying this group out, I have managed to buy everything that they recrodred and have tried other similar groups such as Transatlantic and the Flower Kings.

  I have just purchased Spock's Beard " X " and am waiting to give it a spin this weekend.

  Spock's Beard, a very talented group !

• 1. Kick Axe's album from 2007, I believe, called IV.   Almost like they just finished making Rock The World, many, many years ago (1987)-pretty hard to do, from the evidence of other bands not being able to continue to sound like they are even the same band: Night Ranger, Foreigner, Winger, I'm talking about you.  In those cases, some key members aren't in the bands any longer, of course.
  
  2.  Roger Hodgson Open the Door (2000)  At least he had a good reason for not putting albums out for a while (broke both his wrists in an accident)
  
  3. Axe-V Just as good as the older Axe material from over 20 years before, very consistent band.
  
  4. Ray LaMontagne- Trouble
  
  5. Just about anything by Loreena McKinnett
  
  6. There are several instrumental/New Age-type mellow-out-type albums, where a lot of my new music searches are heading, as I already have a collection of 7,000 or so CD albums that are rock/pop oriented:  The group 2002, 
  
  7. Vangelis-Voices  His very latest albums like Mythodea and the expanded Blade Runner 25th anniversary soundtrack I haven't liked almost immediately as much as the stuff before those.  Perhaps I need to listen to them a bit more.  Reprise, a greatest hits of his 90s or so stuff sequenced together by Vangelis himself, was really stunning to me how he put together songs from different albums and made it flow like the album was composed as one regular album.
  
  8. Billy Idol-Devil's Playground wasn't too bad, still sounded like Billy
  
  9. John Mayer-John Mayer Trio, Continuum, etc.  The guy is really talented.
  
  10. Journey's album (Revelation) released on Wal-Mart's label was not too bad, even from first listen.
  
    I was disappointed by The Eagles' latest, I haven't given it much more than a couple of listens, I may try the "distillation" from the email you posted.  Wish they would at least make it available in hi-rez surround.  Also really disappointed by Bob Seger's latest album.
  
    I have several of the ones listed in your posting such as several Porcupine Trees (in DVD-A), and Morph the Cat, but haven't had time to listen to them yet.  Also have the Rush MVI Snakes and Arrows but haven't listened to it yet, although I really look forward to it.  I tend to buy several that sit waiting for me to really have time to savor them.
  
    A lot of the things I get are remasters/gold CDs of old favorites, and specialist labels like Retrospect Records that release tons of rock/hard rock/metal albums from the mid 80s to the mid-90s that were released in very small numbers (low-budget labels) or not at all because of the changes brought by grunge's rise.  They also release some new albums through their label from the older bands if they are wanting to make new music.  Rock Candy Records in Britain is another good label remastering good rock albums from the 80s or so like Autograph's or Rick Springfield-Living In Oz in 24 bit remasters.
  
    Not new stuff, but I was really pleased by the DVD-A of Red Rider's stuff, Trapeze.  There were a couple I'd like to have had on this greatest hits disc like Ships and Caught in the Middle, but it has Lunatic Fringe, and it is amazing how good it sounds, and has well over an hour's worth of stuff, and some solo Tom Cochrane like Life Is a Highway.
  
    I would never have believed that I would have wound up with 2 different versions of Lunatic Fringe on DVD-A (one is on the Inside the Music-New Wave collection by Silverline-It also has She's A Beauty by The Tubes, and Mexican Radio by Wall of Voodoo as well as some Blondie, The Knack (My Sharona!), Billy Idol-a little treasure chest of pop/rock DVD-A songs on the Silverline music collections.).
  
    But I agree that it is harder to hear anything new that is good on the radio, it has been affected by the dumbed-down "try to appeal to the lowest common denominator"/creativity-by-consensus/bean-counter/focus-group/fix-it-in-the-mix-down/compress-it-to-the-limit approach of most music labels.  I do get a lot of great leads from Pandora, but my pop or rock stations on Pandora are heavily weighted to old favorites.
   

• Marillion have been a favourite band of mine for 20 years. Their "Marbles" album is a great piece of work and in particular, the opening track "The Invisible Man" is possibly one of favourite tracks ever. A masterpiece. I never tire of hearing it. Their recent "Happiness Is The Road" is the next best thing they've put out in the last 10 years, especially "Volume 1: Essence". One of those albums that has to be listened to in one sitting and is incredibly rewarding in doing so. "Wrapped Up In Time" and "This Train Is My Life" are just sublime tracks.
  Porcupine Tree are a recent find for me and "In Absentia" is one album that I keep returning to. Time will tell if "The Incident" is one I keep returning to in the future - there's certainly enough good moments on it to have kept me going back to it since its release.
  
  Peter Gabriel's "Up" is one of those albums that got a lot of plays when I first got it and I still rate some of the tracks on it as amongst his finest - "Darkness", "No Way Out", "Signal To Noise". The SACD with 5.1 mix will ensure I always have an SACD player and surround sound system.
  
  Another new discovery for me is The Pineapple Thief. I'm amazed they don't sell shedloads of CDs. Whilst it's early days, their most recent "Someone Here Is Missing" is superb and has been a regular in the CD player since its arrival.
  I really liked Elbow when they first appeared, but then lost interest in them following their 2nd and 3rd albums. I didn't bother with "The Seldom Seen Kid" when it first came out. I don't even recall what made me buy it eventually, but I'm so glad I did. Probably the only reason I don't play it more than I do is because they released the even better live at Abbey Road version of it.
  
  Finally an old band with a new album - U2's "No Line On The Horizon". Great songwriting and playing. I find that the albums that take a few plays to get into them tend to last the longest. This is certainly one of them. It's also probably the reason that it wasn't one of their biggest sellers. I suspect I'll be pulling this one off the CD rack in several years time, much like I do for the likes of "Achtung Baby" and "Pop".

• Derek Trucks Band - Live at the  Georgia Theatre
  Is it southern rock & soul, or jam band blues-jazz explosions? Thanks to the leadership of the Duane Allman / John Coltrane / Ravi Shankar influenced wunderkind, the answer is a wondrous "yes" to both.

  Jeff Coffin Mu'tet - Bloom
  An instrumental tour-de-force of styles in one cohesive package, from the Flecktones / DMB reedman. You name the genre, it is represented well in this set.

  Andras Schiff's Beethoven Piano Sonata series on ECM (8 volumes)
  I am no classical snob - but something about the way he approaches the piano reaches me the way no other keyboardist has (including Gould). Amazing - !

  Pat Metheny Group - The Way Up
  One sixty-five minute piece of music. Perhaps my favorite album of all time.

  King Crimson - The Power to Believe
  Porcupine Tree and Tool owe it all to Fripp & Co. Their latest studio album which shows that they can blow doors harder than ever.

  Johnny Cash - American IV: The Man Comes Around
  Plaintive and uplifting. A must.

  Over The Rhine - Ohio; Drunkard's Prayer
  Two releases with two very different feels - haunted; redeemed. Smart and strong, Karin and Linford are old souls in young bodies. Put Neil Young and Vince Guaraldi in a blender, then serve with a side of Margo Timmins.  

  Crimson Jazz Trio - Volume One
  Piano, bass and drums attack the King Crimson Songbook. And emerge victorious. Swing Crimson, not quite - !

  Christian McBride - Live at Tonic
  A 3 disc set of CMcB's electric band recorded over two nights at New York's Tonic, featuring both night's improvised second sets. Heavy and joyful; includes Charlie Hunter and Eric Krasno and a host of others!

  Robert Plant & Alison Krauss - Raising Sand
  A beautiful body blow.

  Ray Barbee Meets the Mattson 2
  Skate dudes embracing the sixties Blue Note aesthetic. An antidote to the heavies above, but not a light snack.

  Great site - - thanks for the great coverage and recommendations.

• From the last ten years (funny enough), I could speak of several:
  In Absentia, Deadwing, Fear Of A Blank Planet, & The Incident-Porcupine Tree
  Snakes & Arrows-Rush
  Brave New World-Iron Maiden
  Drops Of Jupiter-Train
  Black Gives Way To Blue-Alice In Chains
  Rise AND Everyday Demons-The Answer
  Bang!-Thunder
  Wake The Sleeper-Uriah Heep
  Inferno-Motorhead
  Unbreakable-The Scorpions
  The Chair In The Doorway-Living Colour
  Endgame-Megadeth
  One Day It Will Please Us To Remember Even This-The New York Dolls
  Saudades De Rock-Extreme
  Driveblind
  Systematic Chaos-Dream Theater
  Bananas-Deep Purple
  Elocation-Default
  Folklore & Superstition-Black Stone Cherry

  To me, these are pretty much five-star discs. 

• My picks of albums from last 10 years:

   1) David Gilmour - On an Island. What a phenomenal album. David hadn't released any material on his own since 1984 and his first solo album since 1984's About Face was a winner. The title cut had help fromDavid Crosby and Graham Nash on backing vocals. Other standouts for me are "Take a Breath" (excellent rocker), the haunting "A Pocketful of Stones", the swinging "This Heaven" and the tranquil ending "Where We Start".

   2) Rush - Snakes and Arrows (you covered the bases on review)

   3) Judas Priest - Angel of Retribution. When I heard Rob Halford was returning to Priest I said, I hope it is a great album. The two albums without him were not Judas Priest. From the triumphant "Judas Rising" to the epic closer "Loch Ness", the band created its best work since Halford's departure with 1990's Painkiller.

   4) Iron Maiden - Brave New World. I was ecstatic when I heard Bruce Dickinson and Adrian Smith were rejoining Maiden. I bought the album on street date and easily the band's best album since Seventh Son Of a Seventh Son. Standouts are "The Wicker Man", "Dream of Mirrors", the title cut.

   5) Metallica - Dream Magnetic. Best Metallica album since The Black Album. When I heard that Bob Rock was gone and Rick Rubin was taking over, I said "I hope he can save Metallica". With a killer bass playerlike Robert Trujillo joining and the band reinstating songs in standard keys and Kirk Hammett unleashing guitar solos, the result is an album I kept in my disc changer for months after its September, 2008 release.

   6) AC/DC - Black Ice. AC/DC's second album of the 2000s is also one of its best. From the opener "Rock and Roll Train" to "War Machine", an excellent work. Also, Angus plays bottleneck for the first time on "Stormy May Day" which reminded me of "In My Time of Dying" from Zeppelin sans the fretless bass and being 8 or so minutes shorter.

  Radiohead I grew tired of (I didn't like them then liked them and then outgrew them by 2003 as I decided to go back to hard rock roots permanently). Nine Inch Nails was too depressing. I say the death of music was from those British skanks The Spice Girls and those pretty boys Hanson becoming popular in 1997 followed by rise in teen pop (Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears and so on) and the neuturing of gangsta rap with "the Porky Pig of rap" Eminem (who mocks everyone yet gets angry when people make fun of him) and Jay Z.

Enjoy your weekend, folks! I know I will!

Douglas Bice has turned in a review of Hey La Hey by Michael McDermott.

I want to alert TAP readers to the fact that I have finally put together a FaceBook fan page that you can access and join by clicking on the badge below.  What this offers is the exact same thing as my Twitter feeds provide and that is first buzz on upcoming releases and free offered downloads, many announcements  that beat our main post, sometimes by days.  We also provide a Google BUZZ page that expands on most of the Twitter/FB feeds. On Buzz, you can even hear the music stream if a stream is offered.  There are still things that I'm working on in the FB page, like calender notes as well as links to great sites like The Second Disc.  I invite you to join us at our FB page and bookmark it.  Visit it daily and you'll be rewarded with much news and info.  Of course, you'll still want to come to the main MusicTAP page for our noisy commentaries.  Remember, with our Twitter feeds, you can elect to receive the news bursts as text on your mobile phone keeping you effortlessly up to date with stuff.  Lots of choices.  Find one, or two, that fits.

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Blue Note Records will release a collaboration album of duets featuring Norah Jones and a large selection of participants that include Willie Nelson, Ray Charles, and others. The album, Featuring..., is set to release on November 2

MVD Video plans the addition of Kylie Minogue in their Rare and Unseen DVD series. This is being slated for release on October 19.

The Orb has enlisted the able guitars of David Gilmour to collaborate on a two-track ambient album that is being scheduled for release on Columbia Records, October 12. The album is called Metallic Spheres and is planned for a 2CD Deluxe Edition (which adds a disc with a 3D60 immersive "surround" Stereo mix), Digital Downloads (DD), and an LP (180g).

Seeland (from the UK) have an upcoming album called How To Live expected to be released on October 26. They have provided a download/stream for their first single from the album, which can be accessed at this link.

Jive Records plan the release of The Other Side of Down by Dave Archuleta on October 5 in both a standard CD and a Deluxe release.

BNA Records has Hemingway's Whiskey coming from Kenny Chesney in both a standard CD issue and a Deluxe package, both on September 28.

Joining the Playlist series is an October 12 release of The Very Best of Bob Dylan: 1980s on Legacy Recordings. Other "same-date" Playlist titles include music by The Isley Brothers, Julio Iglesias, Mat Kearney, Janis Joplin, Molly Hatchet, Dolly Parton 'Gospel', Elvis Presley 'Gospel', and Stevie Ray Vaughn.

Legacy Recordings in conjunction with Epic Records have a collection coming on October 5 for Dan Fogelberg called The Music of Dan Fogelberg. This is a chance to do something extra special. Here's hoping that it is done right. RCA is planning a similar title for Jefferson Airplane, and Columbia has one for George Jones and one for Merle Haggard, all on the same release date. Buddah has one for Gladys Knight.

Silvertone Records plan a 12" LP release for Living Proof by Buddy Guy, planning for September 28.

Masterworks Jazz has reissue albums coming on CD from Freddie Hubbard called Red Clay (1970), and Antonio Carlos Jobim with Stone Flower (1970). both planned for October 12.

Columbia plans an Expanded Edition of Battle Plans by John Mayer on October 5.

Columbia Records will release Let It Be Me - Mathis in Nashville by Johnny Mathis on CD, September 21.

Interestingly, Legacy will release Drive On (1975) by Mott (formerly known as Mott the Hoople) into the Digital realm (DD) on August 24. This is a hopeful sign that Legacy is reaching deep into vaults no matter how obscure and unpopular a title may have been. Keep your fingers crossed.

Mr 305 Records will release Armando by Pitbull on CD (PA/Edited) on October 12.

Columbia Records has Save Me, San Francisco by Train on CD planned for October 5.

This was sent in by TAP reader, Douglas B (thanks, Doug):

Paul McCartney’s album "Band on the Run" is widely considered as one of his best albums and has been No. 1 in charts when it was released in England, United States, Norway and Australia.

Possible Release Date: Nov 2, 2010

Different editions and track lists

1CD digipack – Standard Edition:

1. Band on the Run (2010 Remaster)
2. Jet (2010 Remaster)
3. Bluebird (2010 Remaster)
4. Mrs Vandebilt (2010 Remaster)
5. Let Me Roll It (2010 Remaster)
6. Mamunia (2010 Remaster)
7. No Words (2010 Remaster)
8. Picasso’s Last Words (Drink to Me) (2010 Remaster)
9. Nineteen Hundred and Eighty Five (2010 Remaster)


2CD+1DVD digipack – Special Edition: 

CD1 ditto Standard Edition 

CD2

1. Helen Wheels (2010 Remaster)
2. Country Dreamer (2010 Remaster)
3. Bluebird [from One Hand Clapping"> (2010 Remaster)
4. Jet [from One Hand Clapping"> (2010 Remaster)
5. Let Me Roll It [from One Hand Clapping"> (2010 Remaster)
6. Band on the Run [from One Hand Clapping"> (2010 Remaster)
7. Nineteen Hundred and Eighty Five [from One Hand Clapping"> (2010 Remaster)
8. Country Dreamer [from One Hand Clapping"> (2010 Remaster)
9. Zoo Gang (2010 Remaster)

DVD

Musical Videos:
1. Band on the Run (05:10)
2. Mamunia (04:52)
3. Album Promo (07:42)
Featuring Band on the Run, Mrs Vandebilt, Nineteen Hundred and Eighty Five, Bluebird
4. Helen Wheels (03:39)
5. Wings In Lagos (03:01)
Edit of mute black and white footage of a day out in Lagos during the recording sessions with a
soundbed based on an alternative version of Band on the Run
6. Osterley Park (15:20)
Edit of behind the scenes footage at the album cover photoshoot featuring all participants
7. One Hand Clapping (51:49)

Documentary programme originally made for TV featuring studio performances
Filmed & recorded at Abbey Road Studios, London, August 1974
Directed by David Litchfield

7.1. One Hand Clapping Theme
7.2. Jet
7.3. Soily
7.4. C Moon
7.5. Little Woman Love
7.6. Maybe I'm Amazed
7.7. My Love
7.8. Bluebird
7.9. Let's Love
7.10. All Of You
7.11. I'll Give You A Ring
7.12. Band on the Run
7.13. Live and Let Die
7.14. Nineteen Hundred and Eighty Five
7.15. Baby Face

3CD+1DVD case – Deluxe Edition:

CD1 & CD2 ditto Special Edition 

CD3 21 tracks remastered from the original documentary produced for the 25th Anniversary Edition.

1. Paul McCartney (Intro) /Band on the Run (Nicely Toasted Mix)(2010 Digital Remaster)
2. Band on the Run (Original) (Background) /Paul McCartney (Dialogue Link 1)(2010 Digital Remaster)
3. Band on the Run (Barn Rehearsal – 21st July 1989) (2010 Digital Remaster)
4. Paul McCartney (Dialogue Link 2) /Mamunia (Original) (Background) /Denny Laine (Dialogue) /Mamunia (Original) (Background) /Linda McCartney(Dialogue) /Paul McCartney (Dialogue Link 3)(2010 Digital Remaster)
5. Bluebird (Live Version – Australia 1975) (2010 Digital Remaster)
6. Bluebird (Original) (Background) /Paul McCartney (Dialogue Link 4)(2010 Digital Remaster)
7. Paul McCartney (Dialogue Link 5) /No Words (Original) (Background) /Geoff Emerick (Dialogue)(2010 Digital Remaster)
8. No Words (Original) /Paul McCartney (Dialogue Link 6) /Tony Visconti (Dialogue) /Band on the Run (Original) (Illustration) /Tony Visconti (Dialogue)(2010 Digital Remaster)
9. Jet (Original from Picasso’s Last Words) (Background) /Paul McCartney (Dialogue Link 7) /Jet (Original from Picasso’s Last Words) (Background) /Al Coury(Dialogue)(2010 Digital Remaster)
10. Jet (Berlin Soundcheck – 3rd September 1993) (2010 Digital Remaster)
11. Paul McCartney (Dialogue Link 8) /Clive Arrowsmith (Dialogue)(2010 Digital Remaster)
12. Nineteen Hundred and Eighty Five (Original) (Background) /Paul McCartney (Dialogue Link 9) /James Coburn (Dialogue) /Paul McCartney (Dialogue Link 10) /John Conteh (Dialogue)(2010 Digital Remaster)
13. Mrs Vandebilt (Original) (Background) /Paul McCartney (Dialogue Link 11) /Kenny Lynch (Dialogue)(2010 Digital Remaster)
14. Let Me Roll It (Cardington Rehearsal – 5th February 1993) /Paul McCartney (Dialogue Link 12)(2010 Digital Remaster)
15. Paul McCartney (Dialogue Link 13) /Mrs Vandebilt (Original) (Background) /Michael Parkinson (Dialogue) /Linda McCartney (Band On The Run Photoshoot) (Dialogue) /Michael Parkinson (Dialogue)(2010 Digital Remaster)
16. Helen Wheels (Crazed) /Paul McCartney (Dialogue Link 14) /Christopher Lee (Dialogue)(2010 Digital Remaster)
17. Band On The Run (Strum Bit) /Paul McCartney (Dialogue Link 15) /Clement Freud (Dialogue)(2010 Digital Remaster)
18. Picasso’s Last Words (Original) (Background) /Paul McCartney (Dialogue Link 16) /Dustin Hoffman (Dialogue)(2010 Digital Remaster)
19. Picasso’s Last Words (Drink to Me) (Acoustic Version) (2010 Digital Remaster)
20. Band on the Run (Nicely Toasted Mix) /Paul McCartney (Dialogue Link 17) (2010 Digital Remaster)
21. Band on the Run (Northern Comic Version) (2010 Digital Remaster)

DVD ditto Special Edition 

2LP:
Disque 1 : ditto CD1 Standard Edition 
Disque 2 : ditto CD2 Special Edition 

http://www.maccablog.co.uk/news.php?news=7629

Source: Universal Music France
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