LATEST ADDITIONS

After a decade-long battle with cancer, pioneering pianist/instrumentalist extraordinaire George Winston sadly passed at age 73 on June 4, 2023. For his part, Winston begat an instrumental artform initially known as “folk piano,” best exemplified by seasonally flavored LPs like 1980’s Autumn, 1982’s December, and 1982’s Winter Into Spring. In a previously unpublished interview with AP editor Mike Mettler, Winston discusses how he first came up with that folk piano playing style, how The Doors became one of his major influences in addition to his favorite New Orleans jazz players, and the key differences between what his left and right hands were charged with doing on the piano. . .

Rufus Wainwright has pretty much followed the beat of his own musical drum since Day 1. Over the course of his multi-decade career, his impeccably ingrained singer/songwriter chops have often fused alt-rock proclivities with the compositional scope of George Gershwin and Franz Schubert. And now, Wainwright has returned to his other true roots with a new 2LP set dubbed Folkocracy, which was released via BMG today, June 2. The four-sided, 60-minute song cycle runs the gamut of a modern-yet-vintage blend of traditional folk and more contemporary fare alike. In a recent Zoom interview with AP editor Mike Mettler, Wainwright discusses why Folkocracy belongs on 2LPs instead of one and confirms the only song on the album he knew he had to go back and redo the vocal for, emphasizes the importance of maximizing his family connections on the second LP, and reveals his “secret dream” for how he’ll be able to thwart A.I. artistically. . .

Nope, we’re not done yet — hence, here’s another installment of our extended takes on some of the coolest gear seen and heard at High End Munich 2023. Today, we delve into all the great new Soundsmith cartridge and phono preamp offerings that were on display in the company’s always impressive booth (plus another notable item or two). Read on to find out more about the latest and greatest from the mind and hands of Soundsmith chief engineering domo Peter Ledermann and company. . .

Good news! Craft Recordings — the boutique vinyl arm of Concord Music, who control the catalogs of Fantasy, Riverside, Milestone, and many other related labels — has duly revived the Original Jazz Classics series as a brand imprint for the now times. One of the first titles being reissued by Craft under the vaunted OJC umbrella is out today, May 26, in a new, 180g 1LP all-analog remastered edition: Thelonious Monk With John Coltrane. Read Mark Smotroff’s review to see why this seminal mid-century collaboration between two jazz giants immediately belongs in your vinyl collection. . .