James Brown - 20 All-Time Greatest Hits! CD

20 All-Time Greatest Hits! CD music The finest example of perfect disco pop, and a record that should be prescribed to musical snobs and manic depressives. The album is a true ambassador of what pop music can be. Jackson whoops and dances through a suite of unforgettable melodies that should be danced to with a smile on your face. Each track offers at least one musical hook, whether it is the beauty of 'Human Nature' (who can resist the 'dada dada da da da') or the 'whoo whoo' of 'Billie Jean'. It's all too good. Principally recorded at Westlake Audio, Los Angeles, California. Additional Tracks Personnel: Vincent Price (rap vocals, spoken vocals); Steve Lukather (guitar, electric bass); Dean Parks, Eddie Van Halen, Paul Jackson, Jr. , David E. Williams (guitar); Larry Andrew Williams (flute, saxophone); Gary Grant, Jerry Hey (trumpet, flugelhorn); William Frank "Bill" Reichenbach Jr. (trombone); David Paich (piano, synthesizer); Greg Phillinganes (Fender Rhodes piano, keyboards, synthesizer, hand claps); Bill Wolfer (keyboards, synthesizer); Tom Bahler (keyboards, Synclavier); Michael Boddicker (synthesizer, vocoder); Greg "Frosty" Smith, Rod Temperton, Steve Porcaro, David Foster, Brian Banks (synthesizer); Jeff Porcaro, Leon "Ndugu" Chancler (drums); James Ingram (hand claps, background vocals); Louis Johnson, Steven Ray (hand claps); Paulinho Da Costa (percussion); Becky Lopez, Howard Hewett, Janet Jackson, Julia Waters, La Toya Jackson, Maxine Willard Waters, Oren Waters, Bunny Hull (background vocals). Audio Mixer: Bruce Swedien. Audio Remasterer: Bernie Grundman. Recording information: Westlake studios. Editor: Stuart Brawley. Photographers: Stephen Vaughan; Dick Zimmerman; Sam Emerson; Ralph Nelson; Lester Cohen. Arrangers: David Paich; James Ingram ; Quincy Jones; Rod Temperton; Steve Lukather; Steve Porcaro. Personnel includes: Michael Jackson (vocals, percussion); Paul McCartney (vocals); Vincent Price (spoken vocals); Steve Lukather (guitar, bass); Eddie Van Halen, Dean Parks, Paul Jackson (guitar); Larry Williams (flute, saxophone); Jerry Hey (trumpet, flugelhorn); Bill Reichenbach (trombone); David Paich (piano, synthesizer); Greg Phillinganes (Fender Rhodes piano, synthesizer, programming); Steve Porcaro (synthesizer, programming); David Foster, Rod Temperton (synthesizer); Tom Bahler (Synclavier); Louis Johnson (bass); Ndugu ...

20 All-Time Greatest Hits! album for sale With Birth of the Cool, Miles Davis distilled a new tonal palette for jazz. As early as 1954, Davis reacted to the escalating chordal complexity of hard bop by fashioning an evocative blues based on a simple scalar pattern ("Swing Spring"). Kind of Blue was the ultimate fulfillment of this approach, with Davis providing his collaborators little more than outlines for melodies and simple scales for improvisation. By emphasizing the blues and the improvisor's melodic gifts, Kind of Blue precipitated a major stylistic development: modal jazz. Charles Mingus had experimented with pedal points throughout the '50s, and the melodic freedom of Ornette Coleman's Atlantic sides was also predicated on freedom from chord changes. But Kind of Blue was to prove the most influential, enduring work of its kind. There was just such a vibe about these 1959 sessions -- Davis' lyric genius and burgeoning stardom, the innovative voicings and rarefied touch of pianist Bill Evans, the electrifying presence of John Coltrane, and Cannonball Adderley --that some 50-plus years after its initial release, Kind of Blue is still recognized as Davis' point of departure toward jazz's less-explored regions. Bill Evans' translucent chords and Paul Chambers' famous bassline herald the revolution that is "So What": Davis and Evans' taut, coiled lyricism stands in sharp relief to the saxophonists' labyrinthine elation. The fat, shimmering beat of the classic Evans/Chambers/Jimmy Cobb rhythm team is an oasis of calm throughout the childish blues of "Freddie Freeloader." Often credited to Davis, "Blue in Green" is an Evans masterpiece, in which the rhythmic oasis becomes a smoky mirage for Davis' minor reveries on muted horn. The waltzing "All Blues" is one of the smoothest, most swinging grooves in the history of jazz, while "Flamenco Sketches" reflects Davis' fascination with the earthy melodies and brooding metaphors of the Iberian peninsula; a harbinger of his next masterpiece, Sketches of Spain. Kind of Blue remains Miles Davis' most evocative piece of musical haiku. Liner Note Authors: Bill Evans ; Robert Palmer; Nat Hentoff; Robert Palmer . Recording information: Columbia 30th Street Studio, New York, NY (03/02/1959-04/22/1959); Columbia Street Studio, New York, NY (03/02/1959-04/22/1959). Photographers: Don Hunstein; Jay Maisel. Unknown Contributor Roles: Cannonball Adderley; John Coltrane; Bill Evans ; Wynton Kelly; Paul Chambers; Jimmy Cobb . Personnel: Miles Davis (trumpet); Miles Davis; Paul Chambers (double bass); Cannonball Adderley (alto saxophone); John Coltrane (tenor saxophone); Wynton Kelly, Bill Evans (piano); Jimmy Cobb (drums). Audio Remixer: Mark Wilder.

20 All-Time Greatest Hits! buy CD music Barry White's ALL-TIME GREATEST HITS contains the original single versions of his classic solo hits, as well as two songs White performed as the lead vocalist of the Love Unlimited Orchestra. All tracks were previously released on the 20th Century Records label. All tracks digitally remastered by Gary Mayo (Polygram Studios). It took quite a while for a definitive Barry White compilation to hit the market, but All-Time Greatest Hits -- part of Mercury's Funk Essentials series -- finally filled the bill in 1995. Boasting a full 20 tracks from White's heyday of 1973-1978, more than half of which made the R&B Top Ten, All-Time Greatest Hits is easily the most generous single-disc White collection on the market. It includes the edited single versions, not the full-length album tracks, which actually makes for a more digestible introduction to White's achievements. Like his forebear Isaac Hayes, White was not just a deep-voiced crooner, but a talented producer and arranger who'd spent years honing his craft behind the scenes in the industry. And like Hayes, White spent a great deal of time setting up moods on his albums, using lush, sweeping orchestrations to build very gradually to climaxes. (Actually, that probably explains a good deal of his effectiveness.) But White was not simply a Hayes disciple; his swirling productions were less complex than Hayes', but more in tune with the emerging disco sound, which certainly boosted his popularity. Plus, he took full advantage of R&B's new lyrical permissiveness in the wake of Marvin Gaye's Let's Get It On. If his voice was limited, it was also a tremendous asset for the kind of music he recorded -- deep, resonant, caressing, but always suggestively masculine. The total package made White an R&B love-man icon not just for the disco era, but all time. For all but the most dedicated fans, All-Time Greatest Hits is one-stop shopping. ~ Steve Huey Includes liner notes by David Ritz. Personnel includes: Barry White (vocals). Compilation producer: Harry Weinger. Personnel: Barry White (vocals). Liner Note Author: David Ritz.

20 All-Time Greatest Hits! songs It is impossible to overrate Otis Redding. This Rhino compilation, while in no way comprehensive, is nonetheless an outstanding sampler of songs by one of soul music's all-time titans. There's not a dud among these 16 songs, and some, like "These Arms Of Mine," "(Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay," and "Try A Little Tenderness," rank among the greatest pop songs ever recorded. Redding's performances are mesmerizing and seem to embody the perfect balance between acute sensitivity and sheer overwhelming emotional strength. The combination of Redding's magnetism and the quality of such songs as "Mr. Pitiful," "I Can't Turn You Loose," and "Respect" is almost too good to be true. The album's only shortcoming is that there aren't more tracks to savor. A perfect introduction to this phenomenal singer. Includes liner notes by Kevin Phinney. Digitally remastered by Bill Inglot & Dan Hersch. Live Recording Personnel: Otis Redding (vocals); Carla Thomas (vocals). Liner Note Author: Kevin Phinney.

20 All-Time Greatest Hits! album for sale The Spinners were rivaled only by the O'Jays as the greatest Philly soul group, and for that matter the greatest vocal group of the '70s. For listeners who don't want to dig as deeply as the excellent double-CD anthology One of a Kind Love Affair, Rhino's The Very Best of the Spinners is a stellar single-disc career summary that offers a concentrated dose of the group's sweet soul magic. It also serves as a primer on the best work of Thom Bell, Philly soul's "other" great producer besides the legendary Gamble & Huff team. Incredibly, every one of the 16 tracks here -- culled from 1970-1980 -- reached the R&B Top Ten, and half went all the way to number one on either the pop or R&B lists. As this collection demonstrates, the Spinners' massive popularity was well-deserved. Built around the magnetic leads of Philippe Wynne, their records were tastefully, elegantly romantic, full of adult heartache and longings as complex as the group's shifting harmonies. The compilers also license the pre-Wynne Motown hit "It's a Shame," co-written by Stevie Wonder, and include two disco-tinged medleys that returned the Spinners to the Top Ten for the last time at the close of the '70s. But the Wynne material is really the backbone of their output, and Thom Bell's gorgeous production frames his voice with just the right amount of sweetness. There's more to discover on One of a Kind Love Affair, but The Very Best of the Spinners is so solid from top to bottom that it's hard to argue with; one or the other is a necessary purchase for anyone even remotely interested in '70s soul. ~ Steve Huey Additional personnel includes: Dionne Warwick (vocals). Includes liner notes by Kevin Phinney. Digitally remastered by Bill Inglot & Dan Hersch (Digiprep). The Spinners include: Phillipe Wynne, John Edwards (vocals); Henry Fambrough, Billy Henderson, Pervis Jackson, Bobbie Smith (background vocals).

20 All-Time Greatest Hits! CD music The title may not be 100-percent accurate, since the songs here are culled from Franklin's soul years, roughly between 1967 and 1974, and she's had lots more hits since then. That nit picked, however, this is a genuine embarrassment of riches, with Aretha's soaring voice and under-appreciated piano decorating one wonderful genre-defining song ("Respect," "Chain of Fools," "Natural Woman," "Since You've Been Gone") after another. The most revelatory cut is probably "I Say a Little Prayer," in which Franklin imbues the song with a spine-tingling gospel flavor without ever losing the pop delicacy of the original Dionne Warwick version. But just about everything else here is essential listening. Includes liner notes by Norma Edwards. Compilation producer: Kim Cooke. Producers: Jerry Wexler, Tom Dowd, Arif Mardin, Aretha Franklin, Curtis Mayfield. Compilation producers: Norma Edwards, David Nathan. Personnel: Aretha Franklin (vocals, piano, background vocals); Cissy Houston, Ellie Greenwich (vocals); Chips Moman, Cornell Dupree, Jimmy Johnson , David Spinozza, Duane Allman, Eddie Hinton, Hugh McCracken, Jerry Weaver, Charlie Freeman (guitar); Don Arnone (acoustic guitar); Joe Farrell (flute, tenor saxophone); Hubert Laws (flute); King Curtis (brass); The Memphis Horns (horns); Spooner Oldham (electric piano); Kenneth Lupper, Richard Tee (organ); Donny Hathaway, Jim Dickinson, Mike Utley, Barry Beckett, Billy Preston (keyboards); Kenneth Bichel (synthesizer); Al Jackson, Jr. , Ray Lucas, Rick Marotta, Roger Hawkins, Bernard "Pretty" Purdie, Sammy Creason (drums); Pancho Morales (congas); Dr. John, Robert "Pops" Popwell (percussion); Erma Franklin, The Sweethearts of Soul, Carolyn Franklin (background vocals). Liner Note Author: Larry LeBlanc. Director: James Cleveland. Unknown Contributor Roles: Eric Clapton; Joe South; King Curtis. Personnel includes: Aretha Franklin (vocals, piano); Chips Moman, Jimmy Johnson, Eddie Hinton, Jerry Weaver, Charlie Freeman, Hugh McCracken, Cornell Dupree, Don Arnone, David Spinozza (guitar); Joe Farrell (flute, tenor saxophone); Hubert Laws (flute); The Memphis Horns (horns); Spooner Oldham (electric piano, organ); Richard Tee, Ken Lupper (organ); Barry Beckett, Jim Dickinson, Mike Utley, Donny Hathaway (keyboards); Kenneth Bichel (synthesizer); Tommy Cogbill, David Hood, Tommy McClure, Eric Gale, Chuck Rainey (bass), Roger Hawkins, Sammy Creason, Al Jackson, Ray Lucas, Bernard Purdie, Rick Marotta (drums); Pancho Morales (congas); Robert Popwell, Doctor John, Ralph MacDonald (percussion); Erma Franklin, Carolyn Franklin, The Sweet Inspirations, The Sweethearts Of Soul, The Southern California Community Choir (background vocals); Joe South. Producers: Jerry Wexler, Tom Dowd, Arif Mardin, Aretha Franklin, Quincy Jones.