Tag Archives: 2015

Rosanne Cash: The River & The Thread

On January 14, 2014, “Blue Note” label released “The River & the Thread”, the thirteenth Rosanne Cash studio album. It was recorded in 2013, and was produced by John Leventhal. In 2015, the album won three “Grammy Awards” for “Best Americana Album”, “Best American Roots Song” and “Best American Roots Performance”.

Personnel:

  • Rosanne Cash – lead and backing vocals
  • John Leventhal – guitar, bass guitar, organ, celeste, mandolin, electric sitar, drums, percussion, harmony vocals, string arrangements, mixing
  • Derek Trucks – slide guitar
  • Jon Cowherd – Wurlitzer piano
  • Tim Luntzel – bass guitar, upright bass
  • Dan Rieser – drums
  • Shawn Pelton – drums
  • Rick DePofi – percussion, backing vocals, mixing
  • Jake Leventhal – percussion, backing vocals
  • Gabe Witcher – fiddle
  • Larry Farrell – trombone
  • David Mansfield – violin, viola
  • Dave Eggar – cello
  • Allison Moorer – harmony vocals
  • John Paul White – harmony vocals
  • Cory Chisel – harmony vocals
  • Donivan Cowart – recording
  • Reuben Cohen – mastering
  • Tawatha Agee – backing vocals
  • Tabitha Fair – backing vocals
  • Catherine Russell – backing vocals
  • Amy Helm – backing vocals, choir
  • Kris Kristofferson – choir
  • John Prine – choir
  • Tony Joe White – choir
  • Rodney Crowell – choir
  • Bobby Tis – recording
  • Gavin Lurssen – mastering
  • Jill Dell’Abate – production co-ordination

Track listing:

All tracks by Rosanne Cash and John Leventhal.

  1. A Feather’s Not a Bird
  2. The Sunken Lands
  3. Etta’s Tune
  4. Modern Blue
  5. Tell Heaven
  6. The Long Way Home
  7. World of Strange Design
  8. Night School
  9. 50.000 Watts
  10. When the Master Calls the Roll
  11. Money Road

Benjamin Clementine: At Least For Now

On January 12, 2015, “Behind Records” label released “At Least for Now”, the debut Benjamin Clementine studio album. It was recorded May – August 2014, at “RAK Studios” in London, “Marlon B Studios” in Paris, and was produced by Jonathan Quarmby and Benjamin Clementine.

Personnel:

  • Benjamin Clementine – vocals, piano, keyboard, percussion, foot stamping, design
  • Manu Sauvage – bass guitar, keyboard bass
  • Jonathan Quarmby – bass guitar
  • Alexis Brossard – drums
  • Richard Woodcraft – engineer
  • Akatre – photography

Track listing:

All tracks by Benjamin Clementine.

  1. Winston Churchill’s Boy
  2. Then I Heard a Bachelor’s Cry
  3. London
  4. Adios
  5. St-Clementine-on-Tea-and-Croissants
  6. Nemesis
  7. The People and I
  8. Condolence
  9. Cornerstone
  10. Quiver a Little
  11. Gone

Alfa Anderson

On December 17, 2024, Alfa Anderson died aged 78. She was singer and educator, founding member (together with her husband Eruliel Barfield) of the band “Voices of Shalom”, but was best known as the lead singer of the band Chic. She recorded with many famous musicians, among them with Luther Vandross, Lou Rawls, The B-52’s, Jaheim, Roberta Flack, The Roches, Marvin Sease, Odyssey, Doc Powell, Martha Wash, Debbie Gibson, Jennifer Holliday, Ashford and Simpson, Nat Adderley, Roy Buchanan and Dionne Warwick. In 2014, Anderson received the “Global Entertainment Media Arts (G.E.M.A.) Foundation’s Golden Mic Award”, and Citation from the City of Philadelphia for her contributions to music  “Le Freak” (song by Chis) featuring Anderson on the lead vocals, was inducted into the 2015 “Grammy Hall of Fame”. In 2018, the song was added to the “National Recording Registry” by the “Library of Congress”. In 2018, Mayor Hardie Davis Jr. of Augusta, Georgia gave Anderson the Keys to the City and declared May 5 as “Alfa Anderson Day”.

Quincy Jones

On November 3, 2024, Quincy Delight Jones Jr. died aged 91. He was musician (trumpet), music producer, songwriter, composer, arranger, and producer, with career spanned over 70 years. He was named one of the most influential jazz musicians of the 20th century by magazine “Time”.

For his work he received the following awards and honors:

  • Honorary Doctorate of Music from Berklee College of Music (1983)
  • Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement presented by Awards Council member Ray Charles in 1984.
  • Grammy Legend Award in 1992
  • Garfield High School in Seattle named a performing arts center after him.
  • Quincy Jones Elementary School, located in South Central Los Angeles, is named after him.
  • Humanitarian Award at the BET Awards in 2008.
  • John F. Kennedy Center Honors in 2001.
  • National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama on March 2, 2011.
  • Los Angeles Press Club Visionary Award in 2014.
  • Honorary doctorate from the Royal Academy of Music, London, in 2015.
  • Ahmet Ertegun Award in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2013.
  • In 2021, Jones was inducted into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame as a “foundational inductee”.
  • He won 28 Grammy Awards (third in the list of all-time Grammy award wins).

Quincy Jones was producer of “Thriller” by Michael Jackson (1982), the best sold album in music history (more than 51.3 million copies sold).

As leader, Quincy Jones released 40 albums.  

Van Morrison: Keep Me Singing

On September 30, 2016, “Caroline” label released “Keep Me Singing”, the 36th Van Morrison studio album. It was recorded 2015 – 2016, and was produced by Van Morrison.

Personnel:

  • Van Morrison – vocals, guitar, drums, piano, alto saxophone, blues harp
  • Dave Keary – acoustic and electric guitar
  • Johnny Scott – electric guitar
  • Nigel Price – acoustic and electric guitar
  • John Platania – acoustic guitar
  • Paul Moore – bass
  • Nicky Scott – bass
  • Jez Brown – bass
  • Laurence Cottle – bass, trombone
  • Paul Moran – keyboards, trumpet
  • Fiachra Trench – keyboards, strings arrangements
  • Enda Walsh – keyboards, percussion
  • Robbie Ruggiero – drums
  • Liam Bradley – drums, percussion
  • Paul Robinson – drums
  • Neal Wilkinson – drums
  • Kate St John – English horn
  • Anthony Kerr – vibraphone
  • Tony Fitzgibbon – fiddle
  • Ange Grant, Dana Masters, Lance Ellington – backing vocals.

Track listing:

All tracks by Van Morrison.

  1. Let It Rhyme
  2. Every Time I See a River
  3. Keep Me Singing
  4. Out in the Cold Again
  5. Memory Lane
  6. The Pen Is Mightier Than the Sword
  7. Holy Guardian Angel
  8. Shere Your Love with Me
  9. In Tiburon
  10. Look Beyond the Hill
  11. Going Down to Bangor
  12. Too Late
  13. Caledonia Swing

Christian Scott: Stretch Music

On September 18, 2015, “Ropeadope” label released “Stretch Music” (Introducing Elena Pinderhughes), the tenth Christian Scott album. It was recorded in December 2014, at “The Berklee College of Music’s”, “Shames Family Scoring Stage” in Boston, MA,
“The Parlor” in New Orleans, LA, and was produced by Chris Dunn.

Personnel:

  • Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah – trumpet, sirenette, reverse flugelhorn
  • Braxton Cook – alto, straight alto
  • Elena Pinderhughes – flute
  • Corey King – trombone
  • Cliff Hines – guitar
  • Lawrence Fields – piano
  • Kris Funn – bass
  • Corey Fonville – drums, SPD-SX pad
  • Joe Dyson Jr. – pan-African drums, SPD-SX
  • Warren Wolf – vibraphone

Track listing:

All tracks by Christian Scott, except where noted.

  1. Sunrise in Beijing
  2. Twin
  3. Perspectives
  4. West of the West
  5. Liberation Over Gangsterism
  6. The Corner
  7. Of a New Cool
  8. Runnin 7s (For Fig Chief Donald Harrison)
  9. Tantric
  10. The Last Chieftain
  11. The Horizon

Oh Wonder: Same

On September 4, 2015, “Island” label released the self-titled, debut Oh Wonder album. It was recorded 2014 – 2015, and was produced by Anthony West and Josephine Vander Gucht.

Personnel:

  • Anthony West – instrumentation, recording, mixing
  • Josephine Vander Gucht – instrumentation, recording
  • William Vander Gucht – saxophone
  • Clifton Harrison, Miles Brett, Nerys Richards, Thomas Greed – strings
  • Antony Ryan – mastering
  • Casey Roarty – artwork, layout

Track listing:

All tracks by Anthony West and Josephine Vander Gucht.

  1. Livewire
  2. Body Gold
  3. Technicolour Beat
  4. Drive
  5. Lose It
  6. Landslide
  7. White Blood
  8. Without You
  9. The Rain
  10. Dazzle
  11. All We Do
  12. Midnight Moon
  13. Shark
  14. Heart Hope
  15. Plans

Enrico Rava Quartet with Gianluca Petrella: Wild Dance

On August 28, 2015., “ECM” label released “Wild Dance”, album by Enrico Rava Quartet with Gianluca Petrella (the 44th Enrico Rava album overall). It was recorded in January 2015, at “Artesuono Recording Studios” in Udine, Italy, and was produced by Manfred Eicher.

Personnel:

  • Enrico Rava – trumpet
  • Gianluca Petrella – trombone
  • Francesco Diodati – guitar
  • Gabriele Evangelista – double bass
  • Enrico Morello – drums
  • Stefano Amerio – engineer
  • Sascha Kleis – design
  • Jean–Guy Lathuilière – cover photography
  • Luca D’Agostino – liner photography

Track listing:

All tracks by Enrico Rava, except where noted.

  1. Diva
  2. Space Girl
  3. Don’t
  4. Infant
  5. Sola
  6. Not Funny
  7. Wild Dance
  8. F. Express
  9. Cornette
  10. Overboard
  11. Happy Shades
  12. Monkitos
  13. Improvisation – Enrico Rava, Francesco Diodati, Gabriele Evangelista, Enrico Morello
  14. Frogs

FKA Twigs: M3LL155X

On August 13, 2015, “Young Turks” label released “M3LL155X” (pronounced “Melissa”), the third FKA Twigs (Tahliah Debrett Barnett) EP. It was recorded in 2015, and was produced by Boots, FKA Twigs and Tic.

Personnel:

  • FKA Twigs – vocals, drums, keyboards, synthesizer, programming, vocal arrangements
  • Jordan “Boots” Asher – percussion, drums, programming, keyboards, synthesizer, vocal arrangements
  • Cy An – vocals, additional keyboards, drums, programming, edits
  • Happa – additional programming
  • Marco Pasquariello – additional engineering
  • Mark “Spike” Stent – mixing
  • David Wrench – mixing, vocal mixing
  • Stuart Write – mixing
  • Geoff Swan – additional mixing
  • John Davis – mastering
  • Matthew Stone – photography

Track listing:

All tracks by FKA Twigs, except where noted.

  1. Figure 8
  2. I’m Your Doll – FKA Twigs, Seiji, Tic
  3. In Time – FKA Twigs, Tic, Joel Compass
  4. Glass & Patron
  5. Mothercreep

Mac DeMarco: Another One

On August 7, 2015, “Captured Tracks” label released “Another One”, the second Mac DeMarco mini-LP. It was recorded in March 2015, at “Jizz Jazz Studios” in Far Rockaway, Queens, New York, and was produced by Mac DeMarco.

Personnel:

  • Mac DeMarco – all instruments, recording, mixing
  • Josh Bonati – mastering
  • Kiera McNally – cover art
  • Yuki Kikuchi – cover art
  • Stefan Marx – typography

Track listing:

  1. The Way You’d Love Her
  2. Another One
  3. No Other Heart
  4. Just to Put Me Down
  5. A Heart Like Hers
  6. I’ve Been Waiting for Her
  7. Without Me
  8. My House by the Water