| 2001: a space odyssey (1968)(original motion picture soundtrack) (1981)[***] | ||
| Got some really wierd stuff in here. | ||
| Try: MICHAEL STEARNS Sacred Site | ||
| Try: ALAN PARSONS I Robot | ||
| 2002 | ||
| [group 1: These albums sound so much alike I can't tell them apart] | ||
| Chrysalis(1997)[***] Gentle calm music. | ||
| Land of Forever(1998)[***] Gentle calm music. | ||
| Wings(1999)[***] Gentle calm music. | ||
| Savitri(1999)[***] Gentle calm music. | ||
| River of Stars(2000)[***] Gentle calm music. | ||
| Track 6 is a lot like ENYA | ||
| AIRSCULPTURE | ||
| Europia(1997)[***] | ||
| Recorded live at Hudzen, Amsterdam, March 1st | ||
| Quark Soup(1999)[****] 2 CDs | ||
| Recorded live at E-Live festival, Njmegen, Netherlands (2 CD set) 1997. | ||
| Try: KLAUS SHULTZ Moondawn, Timewind | ||
| Try: NEURONIUM Digital Dream | ||
| Try: STEVE ROACH Stormwarning:live in concert | ||
| IAN ANDERSON | ||
| Divinities: Twelve Dances with God(1995) | ||
| Flute music with acompanyment. | ||
| CRAIG ARMSTRONG | ||
| The Space Between Us(1997) | ||
| Partly instrumental, partly some female singing. | ||
| Melankolic CAR 9627-2; | ||
| Contact: 104 W. 29th St., | ||
| New York, NY 10001; FAX 212-643-5573 | ||
| http://associated.caroline.com (This site no longer exists) | ||
| ASHRA | ||
| Ashra, Ashra Temple, a.k.a. Manuel Gottsching and whoever else makes the band. There are many other Ashra albums by Manuel Gottsching which I never chose to buy after listening to them, although many of them are quite good in their own way. | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| New Age of Earth (1977)[****] | ||
| Some very beautiful pieces on this album. | ||
| If you like the exquisitly beautiful music of track 2
"Ocean of Tenderness" then try
BRIAN ENO Apollo track 5 "An Ending (ascent)". Also try KITARO Millennia. Try RICK MILLER Limberlost (also called Starsong) track 5 "The Ascension". Try VANGELIS Chariots of Fire track 7 "Chariots of Fire" is a very long piece exquisitely beautiful. | ||
| If you like track 4 "Nightdust" then try Klaus Schulze Mirage which is quite similar. | ||
| Try: Cosmic Jokers Cosmic Jokers | ||
| Try: Klaus Schulze ...Live...(1980) "Sense"(31:10) Body Love "P:T:O:"(27:12), "Blanche"(11:14) Body Love Vol. 2 "Moogetique"(13:15) Silver Edition (1994 limited edition) | ||
| Paul recommends: Ashra Inventions for Electric Guitar Ashra Blackouts | ||
| Paris Downers(1974 double CD, bootleg) | ||
| Poor quality recording of what sounds like an outdoor concert. True Ashra fans should like it still. Live at Salle Wagrem, Paris December 6th, 1974. Disk 1: Echo Waves. Disk 2: Night Dust. | ||
| Ashra(1998) | ||
| Live, but you wouldn't know it except they applaud at the beginning and end. | ||
| [group 2] | ||
| Belle Alliance (1979)[*] | ||
| Much different from "New Age of Earth". More rock/jazz, more a collection of short pieces. | ||
| [compilation] | ||
| Sunrain: The Virgin Years(1996)[**] | ||
| Your typical compilation album. A lot of variety. The only blemish is the otherwise beautiful track "Sunrain" has a glitch about half way through. I'm convinced this isn't just a defect in my particular CD. It's recorded that way. | ||
| PAUL AVGERINOS | ||
| Bliss(2011) | ||
| Designed especially for Relaxation, Massage, Meditation, and all the Holistic arts, BLISS flows for 75 minutes of graceful soothing serenity. Grammy nominated & Award winning, Paul Avgerinos returns with album number 12, BLISS. Like Liquid Mind and Deuter, BLISS is a deeply expansive space of unconditional peaceful love . Without obvious melodies, bass and drums, BLISS helps you to release resistance and open more fully to your own inner natural state of BLISS. | ||
| Garden of Delight(2007) | ||
| Gnosis(2006) | ||
| Law of Attraction(2010) | ||
| Love | ||
| Muse of the Round Sky(1992) | ||
| Phos Hilaron(2005) | ||
| Sky of Grace(2001) | ||
| Words Touch(2001) | ||
| STEPHEN BACCHUS | ||
| Pangaea(1990) | ||
| If you like track 2 "Ocean Blue" then try Jalan Jalan Bali which is quite similar. | ||
| If you like tracks 3,4,5,6 then try: any KITARO | ||
| Ancient Mysteries(1993) | ||
| Contact: 76 Cadorna Ave, | ||
| Toronto, Ontario CANADA M4J 3X1 | ||
| Email: oasispro@ican.net | ||
| JEFF BECK | ||
| The other Jeff Beck albums are a bit different and I never cared to buy them. | ||
| There and Back (1980)[***] | ||
| Good active fast heavy instrumental rock album with the traditional electric guitar leading. Electric guitar doing some quick paced interesting pieces. No vocals. I like it. One part used in the movie "Risky Business": | ||
| 7. The Pump [get that Porche started and back out of the garage] (Jeff Beck: There & Back, track 4: "The Pump") | ||
| Paul suggests- Blow by Blow his favorite. | ||
| FRED BECKER/JEFF FILBERT | ||
| Enterphase: Phase One(1994) | ||
| JAY SCOTT BERRY | ||
| These 3 are similar. Simple easy synth music. Sounds like he uses a keyboard synthesizer to create a small symphony of long flowing notes. Nothing complicated, OK to listen to once in a while. | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| Symphony of Light (1990)[**] | ||
| Concept for a Dream (1992)[**] | ||
| Sun Dance (1993)[**] | ||
| WOLFGANG BOCK | ||
| Biscaya Sunset(1995) | ||
| Cycles(1980)[****] Classic. | ||
| Try: Klaus Schulze Moondawn, Timewind, and "X." track 1 "Friedrich Nietzsche" | ||
| TIM BOONE | ||
| Swimming In The Clouds Of The Summit(1994) | ||
| KEVIN BRAHENEY | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| The Way Home (1984, originally titled Perelanda)[****] | ||
| A fine quiet piece. Long flowing notes take you on an ambient like journey through tranquility. Music to play when you take a nap. | ||
| Galaxies (1988)[**] | ||
| Similar to The Way Home but weaker, doesn't move as much, gets boring. | ||
| Try:STEVE ROACH/PATRIC O'HEARN/VIDNA OBMANA/STEPHEN BACCHUS/VIR UNIS - The Ambient Expanse Can order from: www.steveroach.com | ||
| [group 2] | ||
| Lullaby for the hearts of space I never bought after listening to it. | ||
| Secret Rooms(1990,HOS) | ||
| Definitely different from group 1. This music has a plot and uses instruments that are more obtrusive. | ||
| KEVIN BRAHENY/TIM CLARK | ||
| The Spell(1996,HOS) | ||
| BAS B. BROEKHUIS | ||
| The Escher Drawings(1991)[****] | ||
| If you like track 1 try KLAUS SCHULZE Moondawn and Timewind. Also try WOLFGANG BOCK Cycles. If you like track 4 try WOLFGANG BLOCK Cycles. | ||
| HAROLD BUDD | ||
| See AMBIENT MUSIC CATEGORY | ||
| RICHARD BURMER | ||
| Treasures of the Saints(1996) | ||
| A bit medevil sound updated to modern newage music style. | ||
| CEREDWEN | ||
| Or Mabinogi: Legends of the Celts(1997) | ||
| Mysterious Welsh voice and ancient musical threads. | ||
| CHAR-EL | ||
| Worlds Without End(1996) | ||
| Contact: 116 W. 6th Street; Fostoria Ohio, 44830 E-Mail: charel196@aol.com | ||
| HANS CHRISTIAN | ||
| Surrender(1996) | ||
| SUZANNE CIANI | ||
| The Velocity of Love(1986) | ||
| CIRQUE DU SOLEIL | ||
| (Circus of the Sun) | ||
| Alegria (1994)[***] | ||
| Let's see, these french gymnasts awe the crowd in Las Vegas by performing artistic arial stunts of grace and wonder to this music. Not bad actually. I should buy some more of these albums some day. | ||
| Mystere Live in Las Vegas(1996) | ||
| THOMAS CIUFO | ||
| Sun At Midnight(????)[***] | ||
| Try: SUZZANE DOUCET OM & HUM. (Originally both on one cassette tape. Now each is a separate CD. | ||
| THE COSMIC JOKERS | ||
| A group of great historical importance, featuring Klaus Schulze, Manuel Gottsching, Dieter Dierks, Jurgen Dollase, and Harald GroBkopf, just about everyone went on to become legends of newage music. | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| The Cosmic Jokers (1974)[****] | ||
| Side 1: "Galactic Joke" (22:38), | ||
| Side 2: "Cosmic Joy" (19:24). | ||
| A rare yet classic album of very spacey newage background music. Rereleased on CD! | ||
| Try: TANGERINE DREAM Zeit"Nebulous Dawn", Phaedra. | ||
| Paul suggests- Wolfgang Bock Cycles(Produced by Schulze) rare yet fantastic. I had forgotten about this spacey classic. Excellent. | ||
| [group 2] | ||
| Galactic Supermarket[**] | ||
| Sounds like a garage band on a sugar high just playing away with no rhyme or reason, improvising the whole thing as they go along, and getting rather carried away with wierdness. Who would have guessed these guys would eventually become legends? The consensus seems to be The Cosmic Jokers is a better album. The Cosmic Jokers is quiet and stable, rather spacey music, whereas Galactic Supermarket is louder, faster, and off the wall weirder. Recently rereleased on CD. | ||
| [not rated] | ||
| Sci Fi Party (FR CD) | ||
| Gilles Zeitschiff (FR CD) | ||
| CUSCO | ||
| Apurimac(1985) | ||
| "Apurimac" is a dynamic blend of contemporary electronic instrumental music with traditional Peruvian rhythms. Synthezised andean music. | ||
| MYCHAEL DANNA | ||
| Skys(1992) | ||
| track 9: Tranquility series | ||
| track 10. Vangelis | ||
| CONSTANCE DEMBY | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| Sunborne (1980)[**] | ||
| Skies Above Skies (1978)[**] | ||
| Sacred Space Music (1982,HOS)[**] | ||
| Hammered Dulcimer, a stringed instrument with a tinny sound, played rather rapidly. Other Constance Demby albums don't use this except Constance Demby at Alaron. | ||
| Try: Constance Demby at Alaron | ||
| Constance Demby at Alaron (1983,Live Concert Recording)[***] Good music but some hiss due to live recording, and I've never seen this on CD. | ||
| Try: Sacred Space Music. | ||
| [group 2: If you like any one of these try the others in this group!] | ||
| Novus Magnificant (1986)[****] | ||
| I consider this a masterpiece. A synth generated symphony and choral, enhanced with special electronic images and effects by Los Angeles synthesist Michael Stearns. The two 25-minute pieces soar with emotion. Another reviewer says "an inspired fusion of traditional sacred and symphonic Western classical influences with contemporary / futuristic electronic imagery." (whatever that means). {Note: Originally released on cassette, when the first batch of CDs came out track 2 had been recorded at the wrong speed, making it play back slower than it should, giving it a sour sound. I brought this to their attention and they corrected it with a new CD. The correct playing time for part 2 as displayed by the CD player is 27:14 even though the label on the CD and jacket still says 28:22} | ||
| Set Free (1989)[****] | ||
| Aeterna(1995)[****] | ||
| Another beautiful masterpiece. | ||
| Try: Novus Matnificant | ||
| [group 3] | ||
| Light of this World (1987)[***] | ||
| "Best of" album. | ||
| SUZANNE DOUCET | ||
| A good friend of Constance Demby, Suzanne Doucet is a superb musician from Germany where quite a few superb newage artists come from. Her music should be widely available but it often isn't. The music is available from the web site. | ||
| Contact: www.newagemusic.com (Only New Age Music. Sound clips available on website.) | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| Om and Hum (1989)[****] | ||
| A superb classic that still hasn't been released, but if you ask her as I did she might sell you a copy. Om is now Available as "The OM Sound" at www.newagemusic.com! Includes a 2 minute sound clip. One low base synth organ like chord held constant throughout the piece, with small variations in the background barely perceptible, almost subconscious. My non 'New Age Music' friends just stare at me blank and say "I could have done that with one finger!". It's the small variations in the background that hold it together. This is music that's always changing yet always the same. An interesting paradox that she has superbly mastered. If you just glance at it it's just a base chord, but if you listen closely, there's always things happening, so it never gets stale. Hypnotic music to meditate by. (Very hypnotic) | ||
| Try: SUZANNE DOUCET Tantra Zone | ||
| Try: RICK MILLER Starsong | ||
| GILES REAVES Sea of Glass | ||
| Tantra Zone (2005)[***] | ||
| [group 2] | ||
| Reflecting Light (1987)[****] | ||
| Two 26-minute tracks. Track 1 is a masterpiece in my opinion. Beautiful slow quiet music. The piano takes the lead with some synth sounds holding together in the background. Five carefully chosen piano keys are played one at a time in sequence, followed by a brief pause. The sequence then repeats itself, but each time it repeats it's different, there's a change somewhere, it's never exactly the same sequence. The sound is nice. Good music to unwind with. In a different version she is toying with combining Reflecting Light with some environmental sounds. I prefer the original without the wind sound added. Track 2 is a bit faster with keyboards and some flowing sounds. | ||
| Try: [group 4 below] | ||
| [group 3] | ||
| Resonance (2000)[****] | ||
| Another masterpice of ambient music. | ||
| Try: ... | ||
| [group 3.5] | ||
| Shasta (2001)[***] | ||
| Another excellent one with that special Suzanne Doucet touch. | ||
| ONLY NEW AGE MUSIC (I combine these albums here under SUZANNE DOUCET since these albums all sound similar, the musicians all seem to know one another, and they're all on the same label: "Only New Age Music". The musician's names on each album follow the date.) | ||
| [group 4: These all sound quite similar even though the artists names are all different.] | ||
| Nightflight (1987,Christian Buehner & Helge Schroeder)[***] | ||
| Transmission (1987,Suzanne Doucet & Christian Buehner)[***] | ||
| Mystic Traveler (1987,Christaal)[**] Good stuff but short pieces. | ||
| Visions from Atlantis (1987,Christian Buehner & Helge Schroeder)[***] | ||
| The Voyage Beyond... (1987,Selected pieces from the above CDs)[***] | ||
| [group 5: More "World Music" like. An East-West blend.] | ||
| Divan I Khas (1990,Al Gromer Khan)[*] | ||
| Birds of Passage (1990,Karl Schaffner & Lothar Grimm)[*] | ||
| [group 6] | ||
| Heart Life (1990,Only New Age Music) | ||
| SUZANNE DOUCET & CHUCK PLAISANCE | ||
| Sounds of Nature series | ||
| Tranquility series | ||
| Sounds of Nature series: The Song of the Whale (1997, Suzanne Doucet & Chuck Plaisance) | ||
| Tranquility series: Voice of the Wind (1998,Suzanne Doucet & Chuck Plaisance) | ||
| Tranquility series: Sampler A good one to start with. My copy doesn't include the track listing, so here is the Track listing for Tranquility sampler. | ||
| 1. "Zen Garden" (Suzanne Doucet) New music never released before. | ||
| 2. "Morning in the Forest" from Transformation "The Neverending Path" never released on CD. | ||
| 3. "Mountain Song" (Suzanne Doucet) New music never released before. | ||
| 4. "Cypress Magic" (Suzanne Doucet/Tajalli) New music never released before. | ||
| 5. "Tijuca Falls" (Suzanne Doucet) Music from Reflecting Light"...and here" | ||
| 6. "Bayou Plaisance" (Suzanne Doucet & Christian Buehner) Music from Transmission "Moonlight". | ||
| 7. "Sacred Forest" (Suzanne Doucet) New music never released before. | ||
| 8. "Secret Lake" (Suzanne Doucet) New music never released before. | ||
| 9. "Desert Dreams" (Suzanne Doucet) New music never released before. | ||
| 10. "Enchanted Rainforest" (Chuck Plaisance) New music never released before. | ||
| 11. "Thunder over Shasta" (Suzanne Doucet) New music never released before. | ||
| 12. "Forever Rain" Music from Transformation"Transformation" never released on CD. | ||
| 13. "Moonlight in the Canyon" (Suzanne Doucet & Christian Buehner) Music from Transmission "Shiva's Dance" | ||
| 14. "River of Life" Music from Brilliance "Crystal flight" never relaesed on CD. | ||
| 15. "Cosmic Night" Music from Transformation "Cosmic Consciousness" never released on CD. | ||
| 16. "Malibu Beach" Music from Transmission "Good Friday" | ||
| 17. "Dancing Waves" (Suzanne Doucet) Music never released before. | ||
| 18. "Whale's Lovesong" (Suzanne Doucet & Christian Buehner) Music from Transformation "Love", another never released album, but available on The Voyage Beyond "Love", which is itself a good sampler album. | ||
| 19. "Voice of the Wind" (Suzanne Doucet) Music never released before. | ||
| 20. "Deep Thunder" (Suzanne Doucet) Music from Reflecting Light "Forever..." | ||
| GERT EMMENS | ||
| Elektra(1999)[**] | ||
| Asteroids(2001)[***] | ||
| E-mail gert.emmens@zonnet.nl | ||
| www.quantumproductions.nl (this site no longer exists) | ||
| ENIGMA | ||
| Enigma I: MCMXCa.D. (1990) | ||
| Enigma II: The Cross of Changes (1993) | ||
| Enigma III: Le Roi Est Mort, VIVE Le Roi! (1996) | ||
| Enigma IV | ||
| BRIAN ENO | ||
| See AMBIENT MUSIC CATEGORY | ||
| ENYA | ||
| Vocals without words. Unlike songs, where the lyrics are the main part of the music, the vocals here blend in with the music to create a very soothing overall effect. Enya has an utterly heavenly perfect pitch and gentle high soprano. Most of her music is sung in Gaelic, (her native language) with a couple in English and some in Latin. Close attention does reveal the words she sings (at least for her songs in English, I don't recognise Gaelic), but the music can also play in the background and the lyrics just become a part of the musical texture, as if it was just beautiful vocals without words. | ||
| [Group 1: These 3 are similar] | ||
| Enya (1986)[***] | ||
| Shepherd Moons (1991)[***] | ||
| Watermark (1988)[***] | ||
| Try: RONAN HARDIMAN Solas. It's a lot like ENYA. | ||
| HERB ERNST | ||
| [group 1: All these albums sound so much alike I can't tell them apart.] | ||
| Dreamflight (1986) | ||
| Dreamflight II (1987) | ||
| Dreamflight III (1990) | ||
| Angels & Ecstasy (1997) | ||
| Try: LIQUID MIND Ambience Minimus, Slow World, Balance. | ||
| EXCHANGE | ||
| Into the Night(1988)[***] | ||
| Try: Yanni Keys to Imagination | ||
| THIERRY FERVANT | ||
| Music with a unifying theme to hold the album together. I like albums that have a theme flowing through them from beginning to end that ties the album together. THIERRY FERVANT does very well with his instrumental works. Somewhat like JEAN-MICHEL JARRE in the sounds he makes. I think group 1 is the best, followed by groups 2 & 3. | ||
| [group 1: Try: Jean-Michel Jarre Oxygene,Equinox. Tangerine Dream Tangram.] | ||
| Univers (1980)[****] | ||
| Seasons of Life (Les Saisons de la Vie) (1981)[****] | ||
| [group 2] | ||
| Blue Planet(1984)[***] | ||
| Vocals on the first and last track tell the sad story of people who travel to Blue Planet Earth searching for a peaceful place to live, but find only turmoil. The rest is good instrumental. | ||
| Try: GANDALF Tales From A Long Forgotten Kingdom. | ||
| [group 3] | ||
| Legends of Avalon (1988)[**] | ||
| Panpipe which sounds out of tune to me towards end. So I don't play this disk as much. | ||
| SCOTT FITZGERALD | ||
| Thunderdrums (1990) | ||
| MICHAEL FLATLEY | ||
| Lord of the Dance (1996)[***] | ||
| Dare I include this in a list of newage music? Well it is celtic and instrumental. Only the last two bonus tracks do we hear him actually dance. | ||
| Try: Riverdance (1996) Bill Whelan instead of Michael Flatley. | ||
| PINK FLOYD | ||
| The early instrumental works of Pink Floyd are spacey newage like music, even though their later works are primarily pop rock. (See Hearts of Space program #600 at www.hos.com) | ||
| [These albums are mostly instrumental.] | ||
| Atom Heart Mother (1970) Not bad. | ||
| Ummagumma-Studio Album (1969)[*] kinda wierd. A few nice pieces. | ||
| Ummagumma-Live Album (1969)[***] a completely different album. Not bad. Starts with "Astronomy Domine" which is also on the live Pulse album. | ||
| Try: TANGERINE DREAM Atem. | ||
| Meddle (1971)[****] | ||
| "Echoes" is an excellent 20-minute primarily instrumental spacey piece. | ||
| Wish You Were Here (1975)[****] | ||
| Mostly instrumental, about 1/3 vocals. | ||
| [group 2] | ||
| Dark Side of the Moon (1973)[****] | ||
| OK everyone knows this is a timeless classic of rock, but there's also some excellent instrumental parts that are quite spacey. | ||
| [group 3: These later Pink Floyd albums are all vocals, typical rock, nothing really newageish about it.] | ||
| Animals (1977) dark acquired listening | ||
| The Wall (1979)[****] | ||
| For fans of The Wall try The Wall Live in Berlin by Roger Waters and a huge cast of mega-stars (1990)[****] | ||
| A Collection Of Great Dance Songs (1981) a "best of" album. | ||
| The Final Cut (1983) dark & depressing about war & death. | ||
| Works (1983) | ||
| A Momentary Lapse Of Reason (1987) | ||
| Delicate Sound of Thunder (1988,live)[****] a good live album of their best stuff. | ||
| The Division Bell (1994) | ||
| The classic Pink Floyd sound. Partly vocals, partly instrumental. Pink Floyd fans should like it. | ||
| Pulse(1995,live)[****] | ||
| Another excellent live album of their best stuff, includes all of Dark Side of the Moon. | ||
| [Not Rated. Hopefully next time I'll be able to rate these other early Pink Floyd albums and find which ones have good spacey newage music.] | ||
| Piper At The Gates Of Dawn (1967) | ||
| The Best Of Pink Floyd [aka MASTERS OF ROCK](1973) | ||
| A Saucerful Of Secrets (1968) | ||
| Soundtrack From The Film MORE (1969) Paul's favorite. | ||
| Relics (1971) | ||
| Obscured By Clouds (Music from the Film "THE VALLEY") (1972) | ||
| Paul's other favorite. More early 70's rock like with vocals and heavy electric guitar. Not really newageish. | ||
| CHRISTOPHER FRANKE | ||
| Former long time member of Tangerine Dream. Left TD in 1987. Universal Soldier and New Music for Films: vol. 1 are similar as a bunch of short pieces nothing special. The London Concert is quite good, and Pacific Coast Highway is sort of a studio version of same, but I and most everyone I've met like The London Concert best. | ||
| [Group 1 : Just can't seem to like these two] | ||
| Universal Soldier (1992)[*] | ||
| New Music for Films: vol. 1 (1993)[*] | ||
| [Group 2: Pacific Coast Highway has some studio versions of pieces which were later played on The London Concert, including "Purple Waves", but I prefer the live album.] | ||
| Pacific Coast Highway (1991)[***] | ||
| Studio version of music similar to The London Concert. Several tracks later done live on The London Concert, including a short 5-minute version of "Purple waves". | ||
| The London Concert(1992 live)[****] | ||
| This album sounds more like Tangerine Dream than Tangerine Dream sounds like Tangerine Dream. This is an excellent album that a lot of people seem to like. Includes a wonderful 16-minute version of "Purple Waves". | ||
| Try: Klemania. TANGERINE DREAM Tangram, Logos Live | ||
| Klemania (1993)[****] | ||
| Paul says "New Klemania is surpurb". I agree. | ||
| Try: The London Concert | ||
| Babylon 5 (1995)[**] Soundtrack. | ||
| Good but it all sounds alike after a while and it's time to move on to a new CD of something different. | ||
| Babylon 5: The River of Souls(1996)[**] | ||
| Same as the other Babylon 5. Sounds like music that would accompany a movie well except you're missing the movie and plot part and are just left with just this music. | ||
| The Celestine Prophecy(1996) [**] | ||
| Again good but it all sounds alike after a while. Not enough variation. | ||
| PETER GABRIEL | ||
| Birdy (movie soundtrack,1985)[***] | ||
| All instrumental, no vocals, sort of like his (oh great, the album appears to be untitled, 1982) album the song "Wallflower". Painful music, in that you can feel the emotional pain of the sufferer the composer tries to convey. The album cover says "Warning: This album contains recycled material and no lyrics." 5 of the 12 pieces are instrumental versions of previously released material. | ||
| GANDALF | ||
| All Gandalf albums sound similar. If you like one you'll probably like them all. | ||
| Contact: Eurock | ||
| P.O.B. 13718 Portland, OR 97213 | ||
| Tel/Fax (503)281-0247 | ||
| www.eurock.com | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| Journey to an Imaginary Land (1980)[***] | ||
| To Another Horizon (1982)[***] Paul's favorite | ||
| Visions (1982)[***] | ||
| Magic Theatre (1983)[***] Paul's favorite | ||
| Tales From a Long Forgotten Kingdom (1984)[***] Paul's favorite | ||
| Fantasia (1987)[***] | ||
| Compilation stuff from the early 80s retrospective of his earlier work. | ||
| The Universal Play (1987)[***] | ||
| More Than Just a Seagull (1988)[***] | ||
| Very quiet and beautiful. Ocean sounds and gentle guitar flow. | ||
| From Source to Sea (1988)[****] Powerful | ||
| On Wings (1989)[***] | ||
| Invisible Power (1989)[***] | ||
| Labyrinth (1990)[***] | ||
| Gallery of Dreams (1992) New album with Steve Hackett of Genesis. | ||
| [don't have:] | ||
| reflection | ||
| Compilation of his late-80's 90's stuff. Masterworks collection 1986-1990 | ||
| The Shining (Gandalf & Galadriel) -1986- Seagull Music 041254-2 Austria | ||
| Symphonic Landscapes 1990 CBS 466990-2 Austria | ||
| MICHAEL GARRISON | ||
| All Michael Garrison albums sound similar to me. If you like one you'll probably like them all. | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| In the Regions of Sunreturn (1979)[**] | ||
| Prisms (1981)[**] | ||
| Eclipse (1982)[**] | ||
| Point of Impact (1983)[**] | ||
| Images (1986)[**] | ||
| GORDON GILTRAP | ||
| [Group 1: These first 4 albums are good instrumental light acoustic guitar rock. The first 3 are now available on CD!] | ||
| Visions (1976)[***] | ||
| Perilous Journey (1977)[****] A favorite of mine. Also Paul's favorite. | ||
| Fear of the Dark (1978)[****] Also a favorite of mine. Also Paul's. | ||
| Live (1979)[***] | ||
| [Group 2] | ||
| The Peacock Party (1979) | ||
| Here I felt he had lost his touch, though Paul likes it quite a lot. Folkier with Richard Harvey of Gryphan. A collection of short pieces. Whereas the albums group 1 has long pieces and a unifying theme making a complete whole, this is just a collection of short pieces. I personally prefer longer pieces with a theme, which Perilous Journey and Fear of the Dark have. | ||
| Elegy (1987)[***] | ||
| More of a solo album without the band. | ||
| [Group 3] | ||
| Gordon Giltrap + Portrait (1993) | ||
| Very bad, he tries to sing. Use CD as frisbee. Sounds like he's been absorbed by a religious cult. Fail [0] | ||
| PHILIP GLASS | ||
| I only have a small fraction of his albums, but I like his work. I'd like to expand my collection if I can get some recommendations. | ||
| [Group 1: minimalism] | ||
| Koyaanisqatsi (1983 movie soundtrack)[****] | ||
| I think this is excellent, if you like the fast repetitive type of minimalism. I especially like "The Grid". The CD version is about 15 minutes. The movie version is about 20 minutes. The movie I thought was fabulous; all cinematography and music, no words. It compares the tranquil and grand beauty of undeveloped parts of the earth with modern city life. "The Grid" is the climatic part that depicts city life in fast motion. There is a message. The film starts off with slow motion of a rocket at liftoff. Very slow motion and very impressive. The film ends with the same rocket soaring upwards high in the air, and suddenly it explodes. The film ends with pieces of the rocket falling downwards in slow motion. Koyaanisqatsi, from the Hopi language, meaning "Life out of Balance". | ||
| Try: The Photographer | ||
| Powaqqatsi | ||
| If you like "The Grid" see STEVE REICH Music for 18 Musicians | ||
| Powaqqatsi (1988 movie soundtrack)[**] | ||
| Sequel to Koyaanisqatsi. Not bad, but I prefer Koyaanisqatsi. | ||
| The Photographer (1983)[***] | ||
| Somewhat like Steve Reich Music for 18 Musicians | ||
| Try: Koyaanisqatsi | ||
| [group 2: about the same as group 1 but slower] | ||
| 1000 Airplanes on the Roof(1989)[**] | ||
| A bit more mellow and slightly slowner than the previous ones. | ||
| [group 3: shorter pieces] | ||
| These are shorter pieces similar to the longer pieces of groups 1&2. | ||
| North Star (1976)[**] | ||
| Track "Etoile Polaire" (North Star) was also done by Mike Oldfield Platnum part 4 of track 1. | ||
| Glassworks (1982)[**] | ||
| [group 4] | ||
| Dance Nos. 1-5(double album)[**] | ||
| Some very fast minimalist organ music. This album is similar to groups 1 and 2, except it's more repetitive with less variations on the theme, making it somewhat tedious to listen to. | ||
| Philip Glass Music in Twelve Parts (1989)[*] | ||
| Endlessly repetitive.3CD set. | ||
| Low symphony by Philip Glass(1993) from the music of David Bowie & Brian Eno. (I have no idea what that's supposed to mean.) Definitely slower performed by The Brooklyn Philharminic Orchestra. | ||
| Operas: | ||
| Einstein on the Beach | ||
| Satyagraha | ||
| Akhnaten | ||
| Dances: | ||
| DancePieces | ||
| Dance Nos. 1-5 | ||
| Theater: | ||
| The Photographer | ||
| 1000 Airplanes On The Roof | ||
| Film music: | ||
| Powaqqatsi | ||
| Koyaanisqatsi | ||
| Mishima | ||
| The Thin Blue Line | ||
| Others: | ||
| Concerto for Violin and Orchestra | ||
| Music with Changing Parts | ||
| Two Pages / ... | ||
| Itaipu / The Canyon | ||
| North Star | ||
| Glassworks | ||
| Songs From The Liquid Days | ||
| Solo Piano | ||
| Low Symphony | ||
| Hydrogen Jukebox | ||
| Kronos Quartet Performs Philip Glass | ||
| Glass Organ Works | ||
| With other musicians: | ||
| Passages | ||
| Music from the Screens | ||
| More records with GlassMusic: | ||
| Virgin Classics: Minimalist | ||
| DAVID & STEVE GORDON | ||
| Sacred Spirit Drums (1998) | ||
| Yep, they're drums alright. | ||
| JEFF GREINKE | ||
| lost terrain (1992) | ||
| Jeff Greinke | ||
| P.O. Box 30932 | ||
| Seattle, WA 98103 | ||
| USA | ||
| www.hypnos.com/greinke | ||
| jgreinke@halcyon.com | ||
| GEORGES GRUNBLATT | ||
| K-Press (????) | ||
| Tracks 4,5 are jazzy and remind me of JEFF BECK Blow by Blow. | ||
| STEVE HACKETT | ||
| Watchers of the Skies (1996) | ||
| RONAN HARDIMAN | ||
| Solas (1997) | ||
| Try: ENYA. Solas is a lot like ENYA. | ||
| JON HASSELL | ||
| Vernal Equinox (1978) Some tracks wierd and irritating. | ||
| Try: Magic Realism. It is very similar. | ||
| Magic Realism. aka darbari java (1983) Also some tracks wierd and irritating. | ||
| If you like track 4,5,6 then Try: JON HASSELL/BRIAN Eno Fourth World Vol. 1 POSSIBLE MUSICS (1980) Similar but less irritating music. | ||
| MICHAEL HOENIG | ||
| A member of Tangerine for a brief time, so it's no accident the sound is similar. | ||
| Departure from the Northern Wasteland (1978)[****] | ||
| This is a masterpiece. The title track is a sublime 20-minute journey through ever-changing melodic and rhythmic phase relationships, creating the vivid sensation of a train ride through misty Northern European landscapes. Imagine Tangerine Dream's Risky Business theme music "The Dream is Always the Same" and "Love on a real train" being expanded into a 20-minute piece and mixed with Rubycon. | ||
| Try: TANGERINE DREAM Rubycon | ||
| Try: CHRISTOPHER FRANKE The London Concert | ||
| Try: KRAFTWERK Autobahn Take a journey on Germany's autobahn. | ||
| MARK ISHAM | ||
| Vapor Drawings (1983) | ||
| JEAN-MICHEL JARRE | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| Oxygene(1976)[****] | ||
| Excellent, Classic. Another review calls this an "Essential Collection" item, meaning it should be a part of any beginning collection. The review also says this is "A must for anyone interested in electronic music." | ||
| Try: Equinox | ||
| Oxygene 7-13 (1997)[****] Exellent sequel to Oxygene. | ||
| Equinox (1978)[****] Similar to Oxygene. Excellent. | ||
| [group 2] | ||
| Magnetic Fields / Les Chants Magnetiques (1981)[**] | ||
| A bit faster pace. Paul likes it a lot though. | ||
| The Concerts in China (Les Concerts en Chine) (1982)[***] | ||
| Live, double album. Also availabe as two single albums. Good stuff if you like him. | ||
| Hong Kong(1994,live) | ||
| Another live one. I personally prefer The Concerts in China. | ||
| [group 3] | ||
| Zoolook (1984)[***] | ||
| Cross between Jean-Michel Jarre and Laurie Anderson's Home of the Brave and Mr. Heartbreak. No vocals but a few words in various languages woven into the music in various Laurie Anderson like ways. | ||
| [group 4] | ||
| Rendez-Vous (1986)[****] | ||
| Very active. The album is dedicated to his friend Ron McNair and the other six astronauts who died aboard the Challenger Shuttle on January 28, 1986, when it exploxded 72 seconds after launch. Tracks 1-6 form a 17-minute continuous piece, active and emotional, which I believe is his tribute to the active and excited pace leading up to the Shuttle launch, followed by the great disbelief when it suddenly ended. | ||
| En Concert: Houston-Lyon (The Houston concert) [***] | ||
| Perhaps the biggest most extravagent live outdoor concert ever. The entire skyline of downtown Houston, all the skyscrapers and buildings, become the canvas for his lazer art. Just look at the back cover of the album. Fireworks shoot off from atop the skyscrapers. Searchlights scan the sky. Unfortunately not a contiguous live show, instead various parts of the concert separated by brief comments from radio stations and individuals. | ||
| Live (1989)[***] | ||
| Here we have more of a continuous concert with a lively audience. | ||
| Revolutions (1988)[***] | ||
| [group 5] | ||
| Waiting for Cousteau (1990) | ||
| Quite surprising is track 4 "Waiting for Cousteau" (46:53) is very Ambient, like BRIAN ENO, quite unlike any previous JEAN-MICHEL JARRE music (See the AMBIENT category above). For JEAN-MICHEL JARRE sounds I'd give it a [**], for ambient sounds I'd give it a [****]. Paul doesn't like it. He prefers Magnetic Fields. | ||
| [group 4 cont.] | ||
| Chronologie (1993)[***] | ||
| Back to regular Jean-Michel Jarre as in Revolutions. | ||
| EDDIE JOBSON | ||
| Theme of Secrets (1985) | ||
| KEVIN KERN | ||
| Beyond the Sundial(1997) | ||
| Easy piano accompanied by synth orchestra. See PIANO AND ACCOMPANING SYNTH ORCHESTRA | ||
| Try: Yanni In My Time | ||
| KITARO | ||
| All Kitaro albums sound similar, yet each one is unique. If you like one you'll probably like them all. My only problem is he's made so many albums, and they all sound similar even though each one is unique, I eventually got tired of buying them all. The earlier ones - From the Full Moon Story, Ki, have slightly more environment sounds and percussion. The classic ones are all excellent. Kitaro definitely has his own special sound. | ||
| [Group 1: early Kitaro, still sounds like Kitaro, still developing his specialty, good, but not as good as the masterpieces he went on to make.] | ||
| From the Full Moon Story (1979)[**] - More environments sounds | ||
| Ki (1983?)[**] | ||
| [Group 2: Classic masterpieces] | ||
| Silk Road (I & II) (1982)[****] (Paul agrees 4 stars.) | ||
| Millennia (1982 soundtrack to Japanese animated movie. Originally titled "Queen Millennia". Actually the original title was in Japanese.)[****] A favorite of mine, I think the entire album is a masterpiece of very beautiful touching music. Exceptionally beautiful. | ||
| Oasis (1983)[****] | ||
| Tunhuang (1983)[****] | ||
| Silver Cloud (1983)[****] | ||
| Paul's favorite next to Silk Road & Dreams | ||
| Live in Asia (1984)[****] | ||
| Kojiki (1986)[****] | ||
| Another review says "different from his other stuff - very dramatic and quite different", but I don't hear a significant difference. Sounds like more Kitaro to me. | ||
| The Light of the Spirit (1987)[****] | ||
| Another review says "different than kitaro's other work". Again I don't hear a significant difference. | ||
| Live in America (1991)[****] | ||
| An Enchanted Evening (1995,live)[****] | ||
| Tenku (1990)[****] | ||
| Mandala (1994)[****] | ||
| Kitaro's World of Music - Featuring Yu-Xiao Guang (1996) | ||
| Not Kitaro, but Kitaro discovered artists. "I'm always looking for new sounds and gifted performers" | ||
| Heaven & Earth(1993,soundtrack)[**] | ||
| A bit different. Symphony orchestra music, some Japanese singing, a few other instruments. This album definitely sounds like a soundtrack rather than a Kitaro album. | ||
| Cirque Ingenieux (1997)[***] | ||
| JEREMY LUBBOCK conducts LONDON NATIONAL PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA | ||
| Japanese Title World of Kitaro (1981)[****]. | ||
| Tracks: Mirage, Flight, Aurora, Fire, Aqua, Spring of Youth, Simmering Horizon, Oasis, Pilgrimage. Very beautiful orchestral version of Kitaro music. Unfortunately probably hard to find. {NOTE:1998-Rereleased on CD!} | ||
| LOS ANGELES SYMPHONIC ORCHESTRA arranged and conducted by Jeremy Lubbock | ||
| Symphonic Suite "Queen Millennia" (1982)[**] | ||
| Orchestral E-Z listening music version of "Queen Millennia" soundtrack. Probably hard to find. | ||
| ROYAL SYMPHONIC ORCHESTRA (Japanese Title)(1984)[*] | ||
| [tracks: Straight away to Orion, Caravan, Dreams Like Yesterday, Earth Born, Silk Road Theme, Noah's Ark, Return to Russia, Never Let You Go, Moon-Star] Orchestral rehash of Kitaro stuff. Nothing special in my opinion. | ||
| [Not Rated] | ||
| My Best (1986) | ||
| astral voyage another review says "more computery, not like most of his stuff". | ||
| india | ||
| asia | ||
| dreams | ||
| silk road suite - with l s orch | ||
| Heaven & Earth | ||
| Dream (with Jon Anderson) another review says "vocals by jon anderson on 3 tracks". Paul says "best yet". | ||
| JON JENKINS | ||
| Flow (1998) | ||
| GREG KLAMT | ||
| Fulcrum (1993,SPM) | ||
| Try: (more active) TANGERINE DREAM Tyranny of Beauty, Rockoon, 220 Volt Live, Tournado(live), Pergamon | ||
| Try: (more flowing) Constance Demby Aeterna | ||
| Fluxus Quo(1997) | ||
| BERNWARD KOH | ||
| Flowing (1989) | ||
| Try: RAY LYNCH Deep Breakfast, No Blue Thing, Nothing Above My Shoulders but the Evening. RAIN The Moon in my Shoe. | ||
| KRAFTWERK | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| Autobahn (1974)[****] | ||
| Track 1 "Autobahn" is an excellent 22-minute piece which takes you on a journey down Germany's autobahn. There's a little bit of German singing, though most if it is instrumental. At the beginning they sing in German, "We're driving driving driving down the autobahn". Then at the end they turn on the radio and what do they hear? They hear themselves on the radio singing "...we're driving driving driving down the autobahn..." It's a little joke. This is a fun piece. | ||
| Try: MICHAEL HOENIG Departure From the Northern Wasteland. | ||
| [Not Rated. After listening I never bought any of these. I believe they belong in a separate group from the Autobahn] | ||
| the man machine Paul's favorite. | ||
| the mix Paul says "Interesting newly recorded versions of best stuff." | ||
| computer world | ||
| electric cafe | ||
| radioactivity | ||
| trans europe express Paul says "Masterpiece". His favorite. | ||
| PASCAL LANGUIRAND | ||
| [group 1: OK spacey music.] | ||
| De Harmonia Universalia (1980)[**] Paul says this is best one. | ||
| Vivre Ici Maintenant (1981)[**] | ||
| ishtar (1993)[**] | ||
| untitled (1993)[**] | ||
| "A compilation from Minos and De Harmonia Universalia Plus one previously unreleased title. This CD has the best of both albums. | ||
| [Not rated] | ||
| minos (1975) | ||
| gregorian waves | ||
| LARAAJI | ||
| [not sure about these ones yet.] | ||
| Ambient 3: Day of Radiance (1980)[**] | ||
| Fast solo harpsichord music, as opposed to Cascade: Healing Music which is slow and gentle. | ||
| Flow Goes the Universe (1992)[**] | ||
| Gentle mixture, somewhat ambient. | ||
| Cascade: Healing Music (1997)[**] | ||
| Solo harpsichord music. Gently picking away at the strings. | ||
| DAVID LANZ | ||
| I only have the following 2 so far. Both are similar, easy moving solo piano music. | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| Cristofori's Dream (1988)[****] | ||
| The insert says "This album is dedicated to Bartolommeo Cristofori (1655-1731) the inventor of the piano - may his "Dream" live forever." This album has a theme to tie the album together. Another review calls this an "Essential Collection" item, meaning it should be a part of any beginning collection. It is good solo piano, active but not too loud. | ||
| Try: RAIN The Moon in my Shoe(1989,Ed Baum) | ||
| Return to the Heart (1991)[***] | ||
| More just a collection of nice pieces, including some pieces on Christofori's Dream. | ||
| [not rated] | ||
| Skyline firedance (1990) | ||
| heartsounds | ||
| nightfall | ||
| solstice | ||
| borderline | ||
| david lanz and paul speer: natural states | ||
| david lanz and paul speer: desert vision | ||
| LIQUID MIND | ||
| The three below are excellent flowing ambient music. Exquisitely beautiful. Chuck Wild Records CW86520-2; [March] 1999. Contact: PO Box 93036, Hollywood, CA 90093 | ||
| Ambience Minimus(1994)[****] | ||
| Slow World(1996)[****] | ||
| Balance(1999)[****] | ||
| Try: HERB ERNST Dreamflight, Dreamflight II, Dreamflight III, Angels & Ecstasy. | ||
| Also Try: KEVIN BRAHENY The Way Home | ||
| CRAIG LUREY | ||
| Soul Mates(1995)[***] | ||
| I'd like to hear more of him. | ||
| Craig Lurey | ||
| 2136 Williamsburg Drive | ||
| Palatine, IL 60074 | ||
| clurey@apollosolutions.com [no longer] | ||
| RAY LYNCH | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| Sky of Mind (1983)[****] | ||
| Very quiet and gentle. Much quieter than the rest of his albums. Pure bells, careful gentle notes on an acoustic guitar. | ||
| [group 2] | ||
| Deep Breakfast (1986)[****] | ||
| Seems to be most people's favorite of his. Another review calls this an "Essential Collection" item, meaning it should be a part of any beginning collection. | ||
| No Blue Thing (1989)[****] | ||
| Similar to Deep Breakfast | ||
| Nothing Above My Shoulders but the Evening (1993)[**] | ||
| Starts off weak, with an out of tune guitar strum, (maybe I just don't appreciate it), but recovers later to come out OK. | ||
| VANESSA MAE | ||
| The Violin Player (1995) | ||
| Some active contemporary violin playing, starting with a lively contemporary version of "Toccata and Fugue in D minor", the famous organ piece by Johann Sebastion Bach. (In the middle there's a brief voiceover: "fasten your seat belts!") | ||
| MANNHEIM STEAMROLLER / Chip Davis | ||
| Everyone seems to have their own favorites in this group. My favorites are Fresh Aire II and Fresh Aire III, which I think are both masterpieces with every note perfect. Other people seem to prefer Fresh Aire V and Fresh Aire 7, even though I think those are rather mundane albums. Just about everyone has at least one album in this group they love, though each person seems to choose a different album as the best. | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| Fresh Aire (1975) more symphonic. | ||
| [Group 2: Orchestral/medieval music. II and III are similar, my favorites] | ||
| Fresh Aire II (1977)[****] A favorite of mine. | ||
| Fresh Aire III (1979)[****] Also a favorite of mine. | ||
| fresh aire VI (1986) | ||
| Beautiful siren-like soundes and stately melodies dominate on an album whose theme is "impressions of Greek mythology". | ||
| [Group 3] | ||
| Fresh Aire IV (1981)[*] | ||
| With this album I felt Mannheim Steamroller had lost their magic touch and I never bought any more Fresh Aire albums for many years. | ||
| [Group 4: Some people like V and 7 quite a lot. They're OK but I don't find anything special in them, though others do.] | ||
| Fresh Aire V (1983) | ||
| Fresh Aire 7 (1990) | ||
| Interludes (1981)[***] | ||
| A "best of" all their quiet interludes. Piano and accompanying strings. Very good if you like their quiet music. {NOTE:1998-unfortunately no longer available} | ||
| Try: DANNY WRIGHT Black and White II, GEORGE WINSTON Autumn, YANNI In My Time. | ||
| [Not Rated:] | ||
| Christmas Album termed "Essential Collection" item and "Good First Purchase" by "The All Music Guide" review book. | ||
| Fresh Aire Christmas Termed "a worthy successor to their first Christmas Album. | ||
| classical gas | ||
| saving the wildlife another review says "mostly 'fun' music" | ||
| yellowstone | ||
| the music of nature | ||
| To Russia With Love | ||
| Impressions | ||
| DEBORA MARTIN | ||
| Under the Moon (1995,SPM) | ||
| DEBORA MARTIN / STEVE GORDON | ||
| Ancient Power (1998,SPM, also Sequoia Records Inc. www.sequoiarecords.com) | ||
| Some newage ancient power of the indians with flute and drums in a newage way. From the CD insert: "It is dawn, and the people of the village have gathered to witness the power of the sun. Theelements of the earth call to the wind, the sacred spirit, and the people become one with the land... forever." | ||
| MICHAEL MANTRA | ||
| RNA:ribonucleic Ambience (1994) | ||
| GERALD MAY MARKOE | ||
| Music from the Pleiades (1989)[**] Easy going. | ||
| RICK MILLER | ||
| Starsong (1983 cassette)[****] | ||
| Rereleased on CD as Limberlost. Now available on CD under original title Starsong. | ||
| Listen to a clip: rick-miller-limberlost-the_ascension-excerpt.mp3 | ||
| Rick Miller website: http://www.soundclick.com/rickmiller | ||
| Purchase Rick Miller CDs at: http://www.gemm.com/q.cgi?forseller=rickmiller&table=ads&showall=1 | ||
| Contact Rick Miller at millerr@nexicom.net | ||
| Excellent very spacey music, long strung out flowing chords. There ought to be more of this wonderful music but I really haven't anything else similar in my collection, although it sounds a little like the touching pieces of Suzanne Doucet, Klaus Schulze, and Tangerine Dream. | ||
| Try: ANNA SJALV TREDJE Tussilago Fanfara | ||
| Try: JEFF DYKEHOUSE Jeff the Album II | ||
| For Jeff Dykehouse ask me. | ||
| Anthology (2000 CD)[] Really good. | ||
| Windhaven (1987 cassette)[] Also good. | ||
| MO BOMA | ||
| Myths of the Near Future: Part one (1993) Active jungle music. | ||
| FRANCIS MONKMAN | ||
| [Also a member of the group SKY. Not the current group SKY, an earlier group also named SKY.] | ||
| Energism (1980)[***] | ||
| Similar to the fast pieces of Vangelis Spiral & Albedo 0.39. Paul considers this particular album a ripoff of Vangelis, but hastens to add "I didn't say I didn't like it, though". I quite like the album. | ||
| Try: VANGELIS Spiral, Albedo 0.39. | ||
| MICHEL MOULINIE | ||
| Chrysalide | ||
| Rare. Like Tangerene Dream Phaydra which is a classic. | ||
| NEURONIUM | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| Digital Dream (1980)[****] | ||
| Classic. Excellent electronic keyboards. My favorite Neuronium album. Track 1 "Flying over Kai Tak" is a 26-minute masterpiece. Fabulous. A "macho downer" piece, "macho" in hard and heavy, "downer" as in lots of minor key notes. Yet not depressing. Very spacy. | ||
| Chromium Echoes (1981)[****] | ||
| The Visitor (1981)[***] | ||
| Try: MICHAEL HOENIG Departure from the Northern Wasteland [****] | ||
| [These other Neuronium and Mychael Huygen albums just didn't have that special something I like. Shorter pieces. Lost his touch?] | ||
| From Madrid to Heaven(1989,live in concert) | ||
| Vuelow Quimico | ||
| Invisible Views | ||
| Heritage | ||
| Supranatural | ||
| MYCHAEL HUYGEN - Absence of Reality, quasar 2c361 (another review has the single word "flute") Paul says "Live one is quite good. From Madrid to Heaven. | ||
| MICHAEL NEIL | ||
| Towards the Unknown Region(2000)[] | ||
| MICHAEL NYMAN | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| (untitled - I call the album "M-Work", 1982, tracks "Bird Anthem" (2:37), "In Re Don Givanni" (2:48), "Initial Treat/Secondary Treat (4:29), "Waltz" (5:55), "Bird List Song" (4:19), "M-Work" (21:09). [Piano Records 32 Alexander St London W2 Distributed through Sheet Records.] (Excellent)[****] | ||
| As far as I know all this album is impossible to find. Ask me to make you a copy. | ||
| The Draughtsman's Contract (1982)[**] | ||
| Drowning by Numbers (1988) | ||
| The Kiss and Other Movements (1985)[**] | ||
| Contains vocals. Somewhat like Philip Glass The Photographer as there's a small story in it. | ||
| Time Will Pronounce(1993. The 1992 Commissions)[*] | ||
| This is not like The Piano and The Piano Concerto at all. | ||
| [group 2] | ||
| Decay Music (1975)[**] | ||
| Experimental. Piano notes which decay into silence. Ambient, holographic. | ||
| [group 3] | ||
| The Piano (1993 movie soundtrack)[***] | ||
| Moderately quiet piano music. Still distinctively Michael Nyman style. | ||
| The Piano Concerto (1993 double.)[***] | ||
| Concerto for piano and small orchestra, based entirely on material selected from the soundtrack to the film "The Piano". If you liked The Piano then here's more of the same. | ||
| now have: | ||
| Michael Nyman - Live (1994) a mixture of group 1 and The Piano | ||
| A Zed and Two Noughts... (1990 score for the film by Peter Greenaway) | ||
| [Not rated] | ||
| the cook, the thief etc | ||
| * A Walk through H (1978) | ||
| * The Falls (1980) | ||
| * Michael Nyman (1981) | ||
| * Making a Splash (1984) | ||
| * A Broken Set of Rules (1984) | ||
| * Basic Black (1985) | ||
| * And Do They Do / Zoo Caprices (1986) | ||
| * 26 Bathrooms (1987) | ||
| * The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat (1988) | ||
| * Orpheus' Daughter (1989) | ||
| * Monsieur Hire (1989) | ||
| * Out of the Ruins (1989) | ||
| * The Cook, the Thief, His Wife and Her Lover (1989) | ||
| * La Traversée De Paris (1989) | ||
| * String Quartets 1 - 3 (1991) | ||
| * Le Mari de la Coiffeuse (1990) | ||
| * Les Enfants Volants (1990) | ||
| * Prospero's Books (1991) | ||
| * Songbook (1991) | ||
| * The Essential Michael Nyman Band (1992) | ||
| * Michael Nyman for Yohji Yamamoto (1993) | ||
| * Taking A Line For A Second Walk (1994) | ||
| * Anohito No Waltz (1994) | ||
| * A la Folie (1994) | ||
| * Mesmer (1994) | ||
| * The Cold Room (1995) | ||
| * Noises, Sounds & Sweet Airs (1995) | ||
| PATRICK O'HEARN | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| Between Two Worlds (1987) | ||
| Another review says "good bass - definitely not for relaxation." | ||
| [not rated. All comments are from "The All Music Guide" review book and other reviews.] | ||
| ancient dreams (1985) | ||
| A brilliant debut - spacey - the compositional beauty is nearly religious in its meditative intensity | ||
| rivers gonna rise (1988) | ||
| more melodic flowing stuff - more concise | ||
| eldorado (1989) | ||
| good bass - somewhat latin - some tracks with vocals | ||
| indigo (1991) | ||
| dark mood album - both melancholy and beautiful - intriguing, suspenseful and evocative - a darkly compelling album. | ||
| white sands great soundtrack | ||
| mixed up dance remixes of songs from his other albums | ||
| MIKE OLDFIELD | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| Tubular Bells (1973)[****] | ||
| A very good album which launched Mike Oldfield into prominence. Music was featured in the movie "The Exorcist" Starts out with some eerie attention getting piano tune that I've seen used in side shows, such as when the high diver is climbing up the ladder to do something really foolish like jump off the highest platform into the pool of water below, or when Shamu the whale is about to do some difficult stunt. The piece soon takes off from its eerie start and goes on to be quite interesting. Towards the second half of side one Mike Oldfield begins anew starting very quiet with just an electric guitar picking out the theme. Then one by one instruments are added and announced. Grand piano. Reed and pipe organ. Glockenspiel. Base guitar. Double speed guitar. Two slightly distorted guitars. Mandolin. Spanish guitar, and introducing acoustic guitar! And finally, to top off the wonderful piece that's been built up, tubular bells! Another review calls this an "Essential Collection" item, meaning it should be a part of any beginning collection. | ||
| Try: Tubular Bells II | ||
| Tubular Bells II (1992)[***] | ||
| Similar to Tubular Bells. Paul says this album was intended to be a parody, since the first album has been so popular. Another reviewer agrees: "No one else in the world could have recorded a more complete, biting parody of everything he has ever done. It's clear that he intended a content-wise parody of his subject matter, and it's a good bet that he also intended to parody the mindless electric-music world that he helped create, but he is most incisive in a music parody of the very style he's been using and maturing with all these years. This is not a work of growth, it is a work of sarcasm and destruction. It's like he got fed up with people telling him to do another Tubular Bells." (-Gunther Anderson) | ||
| Tubular Bells III (1999) | ||
| Not similar to Tubular Bells or Tubular Bells II | ||
| US Premier of Tubular Bells 2[***](bootleg. Ask me for a copy.) | ||
| [group 2] | ||
| Hergest Ridge (1974)[****] | ||
| I have the rare vinyl mix which is significantly different from all the later CD releases. It is especially noticeable after 2:40 into the piece. This rare mix is fuller with more instruments and is my preference. Restored and digitally remastered from vinyl LP by Martin Bartosik (Slovania). Ask me for a copy. | ||
| Try: Ommadawn | ||
| Ommadawn (1975)[****] | ||
| Nice, quiet, easy flowing, like the beautiful parts of Hergest Ridge and Tubular Bells. Paul says "masterpiece". | ||
| Try: Hergest Ridge | ||
| [group 3] | ||
| Platinum (1979)[****] | ||
| A bit more pop and active than the earlier albums. [NOTE: Part 4 of track 1 'North Star' is Mike Oldfield's version of 'Etoile Polaire (North Star)' by Philip Glass, album North Star.] | ||
| Try: islands? | ||
| Incantations (1978)[***] | ||
| Hiawatha ("by the shores of gitchie goonie") to music, although most of the double album is instrumental. Back to the soft nice music as in Ommadawn. Paul says "best ever". | ||
| Q.E.2 (1980)[***] | ||
| Back to the shorter pop as in Platinum. | ||
| Exposed (1979 Live performance of Incantations and Tubular Bells.)[***] | ||
| Real Rockin live ending to Tubular Bells Part 1. | ||
| The Orchestral Tubular Bells performed by The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra with Mike Oldfield on Guitar. Conducted by David Bedford. 1975. I didn't care for this orchestration. Fair [*] | ||
| Amarok (1990)[***] | ||
| Either his best album ever or his worst album ever, depending on your taste. This one is definitely an aquired taste. A very intricate playful piece, weaving in unusual sounds such as feet stomping down a hallway, an alarm clock ringing played backwards, stirring a cup of water, scratching one's beard, brushing one's teeth, a telephone ring. The composer didn't set out to make a serious traditional piece, he set out to have fun. I wasn't sure of this one at first but it grew on me and now I quite like it. Paul says "Return to form finally". This one is quite different from anything else. | ||
| Try: STEVE REICH Music for 18 Musicians | ||
| [There's many other Mike Oldfield albums which I never bought. I recall they were more vocal oriented.] | ||
| NOTE: Many Mike Oldfield albums come in more than one mix: | ||
| Tubular Bells Two different CD versions of this exist. The CD I chose to keep as being the slightly better recording has black letters on a blue background for the label side of the CD. The other CD I no longer have had traditional red letters on no background (just the natural silver CD color). The timings for the two CDs are slightly different. For the CD I kept they are: | ||
CD player CD label & case Record Label
Track 1: 0:00 - 25:29 25.00 25.48
gap -0:04 - 0:00
Track 2: 0:00 - 23:17 23.50 23.26
| ||
| Hergest Ridge The vinyl record I have has a significantly different mix which is fuller with more instruments, my preference. The CD mix is sparser, with less instruments. I have never found a CD containing the vinyl record mix, though I would like to. (Ask me for a copy.) A discography of Mike Oldfield shows the following releases of this album: | ||
| CD: 1990 UK (Virgin CDVP 2013) [matrix: CDV-2013 11] | ||
| CD: 1987 US (Virgin 7 90590-2) | ||
| CD: 1986 UK (Virgin CDV 2013 {MPO 01}) [Apr 1986] | ||
| 21:30 Hergest Ridge Part One | ||
| 18:49 Hergest Ridge Part Two | ||
| [Mix: No bass guitar entry at 1:17 of Part 1] | ||
| Platinum The CD I have replaced track 'Sally' with a different song: The original song on the vinyl record has the words "Sally, I'm just a gorilla. I'll say I love you evermore. Even an ape from manila, couldn't stop me knocking on your door." The CD has instead a completely different song with the words "Take my hand and we can softly go." A discography on Mike Oldfield has this note: "Richard Branson forced the reworking of this album's B-side, calling "Sally" "too boisterous". About 30,000-40,000 copies of the original pressing exist. Most pressings list "Sally" on the sleeve and disc but have "Into Wonderland" instead. (Ask me for an MP3 of the original vinyl with the "Sally" song.) | ||
| Incantations Some CD versions chop off the first few minutes of part 3. Unfortunately that's one of the best parts. | ||
| CD: 1986 UK (Virgin CDVDT 101) [Jul 1986; edits pt3 to 13:49] | ||
| CD: 1991 UK (Virgin CDVDT 101) [reissue; pt3 is complete] | ||
| CD: 1991 US (Caroline CAROL 1854-2) | ||
| 19:05 Incantations Part One | ||
| 19:34 Incantations Part Two | ||
| 16:59 Incantations Part Three | ||
| 16:59 Incantations Part Four | ||
| UPDATE(1999) I'm told the newer CDs of Incantations don't chop off the first few minutes of part 3. | ||
| THE ALAN PARSONS PROJECT | ||
| I Robot has some long instrumental pieces in it that could be considered newage music. | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| I Robot (1977)[***] | ||
| ...sounds a bit like the soundtrack to the movie 2001: a space odyssey Tracks 1:(Overture:Atmospheres), 3:(Requiem For Soprano, Mezzo Soprano, Two Mixed Choirs & Orchestra 5:(Lux Aeterna), 7:(Jupiter And Beyond) | ||
| [group 2] | ||
| The Alan Parsons Project Instrumental Works (1988)[**] | ||
| [group 3: Regular vocals. Nothing newage about these.] | ||
| Tales of Mystery and Imagination (1976)[***] | ||
| Eye in the Sky (1981)[***] | ||
| Amonia Avenue (1983)[**] | ||
| Vulture Culture (1984)[**] | ||
| Gaudi (1987)[***] | ||
| Try Anything Once (1993)[***] | ||
| The Very Best Live (1995)[***] | ||
| On Air (1996)[***] | ||
| JEFF PEARCE | ||
| [group 1. gentle,slow,calming music] | ||
| Tenderness and Fatality (1993) | ||
| Vestiges (1998) | ||
| The Hidden Rift (1995) | ||
| Contact: PO Box 387, Linden, IN 47955 | ||
| Email: pearce@tctc.com | ||
| PERU | ||
| constellations (1981)[*] | ||
| I think this record is uninteresting, though Paul claims its their best and really good and I'm insane not to give it 4 stars. Paul has all of them including newest The Prophecies. | ||
| Moon(1991) Reminds me of Tangerine Dream. | ||
| [group 5: music that rocks in a New Age way.] | ||
| ANTHONY PHILLIPS | ||
| Instrumental rock. This one has keyboard as lead whereas the Jeff Beck album There and Back has electric guitar as lead. I'm told all his other albums are different, not like this one. | ||
| 1984 (1981)[****] | ||
| Electric keyboards lead this instrumental rock album. | ||
| Try: JEFF BECK There and Back. | ||
| Sail The Wind (1994)[*] | ||
| synth drum beat so repetitive. | ||
| MICHEAL PLUZNIK | ||
| Where the Rain is Born (1989) | ||
| Jazzy. But track 6 is quite good in a more newage way. | ||
| QUARKSPACE | ||
| [group 1: Mostly instrumental. These Spacefolds CDs all sound similar and are inexpensive. The first four, Spacefolds 1,2,3,4, are short 30 minute CDs which can be obtained from www.mp3.com/quarkspace] | ||
| Spacefolds 1 (1996) | ||
| Spacefolds 2 (1997) | ||
| Spacefolds 3 (1997) | ||
| Spacefolds 4 (1998) | ||
| Spacefolds 5 (1999) | ||
| Spacefolds 6 (2000) | ||
| Spacefolds 7 (2001) | ||
| My favorite of this group is Spacefolds 6. | ||
| [group 2: Similar but slightly more experimental vocals whereas group 1 is more instrumental.] | ||
| Quarkspace (1996) | ||
| Live Orion (1998) | ||
| The Hidden Moon (Double CD) (1999) | ||
| Drop (2001) | ||
| Drop is available for free at their website www.quarkspace.com | ||
| RAIN (Ed Baum) | ||
| The Moon in my Shoe (1989)[***] | ||
| Solo piano, similar to David Lanz. Quite good actually, but it may be hard to find. The disk was recorded locally in Santa Barbara where I live, so there's usually some used copies available in local Santa Barbara CD stores. Ask me if you're interested maybe I can find a used copy for you. | ||
| Try: David Lanz Christofori's Dream. | ||
| ED BAUM A Million Minutes (1992)[**] | ||
| P.O. Box 90518, Santa Barbara, California 93190-0518 | ||
| Sequel not quite as good as The Moon in my Shoe. | ||
| RAPHAEL | ||
| Music to Disappear In (1988,HOS)[***] | ||
| Some rather pleasant music, primarily piano and synth combined. The first track is exquisitely beautiful. See the list of special exquisitely beautiful mustic. | ||
| Music to Disappear In II (1991,HOS)[***] | ||
| A nice sequel to #1. | ||
| GILES REAVES | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| Wunjo (1986)[****] | ||
| Long notes, low base tones, somewhat ambient like gentle music. Considered a classic. Out of print. Used copies are sometimes available. See my policy for obtaining copies of rare and out of print CDs. | ||
| [group 2] | ||
| Sea of Glass (1992) [***] | ||
| Space music. Was out of print. I think it has been rereleased now. See my my policy above for obtaining copies of rare and out of print CDs. | ||
| Try: SUZANNE DOUCET Om and Hum | ||
| GILES REAVES & JON GOIN letting go (1989)[**] | ||
| Reminds me somewhat of Tangerine Dream's 220 Volt with more synth drums. | ||
| new: [not rated] | ||
| nothing is lost (1988) Rereleased as "Something is Found" | ||
| REDSHIFT | ||
| Ether (1997)[****] | ||
| Space Music. | ||
| Try: TANGERINE DREAM Rubycon. | ||
| STEVE REICH | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| Music for 18 Musicians (1978)[****] | ||
| A single continuous 1-hour piece of slowly evolving, layered, minimalistic serialism. The music is active and moves, always changing, yet always the same. Another review says "His best. One composition and 60 minutes of wonder-filled music." | ||
| Try: Philip Glass Koyaanisqatsi. | ||
| Try: Terry Riley In C. | ||
| Different Trains / Electric Counterpoint (1989)[**] | ||
| "Electric Counterpoint" is similar to Music for 18 Musicians. | ||
| [group 2] | ||
| The Desert Music (1985)[*] | ||
| Parts of it are like group 1, but there's also dissonant sounds in this one I don't care for. | ||
| [not rated] | ||
| Music for a Large Ensemble... (1981) | ||
| Tehillim (1983) | ||
| A mesmerizing devotional work for female voices and chamber ensemble. | ||
| RELAXING DREAMS | ||
| Relaxing Dreams Vol. 1 Schönheit & Harmonie by Rainbow Vision (1994) | ||
| Exquisitely beautiful music. Absolutely a beautiful masterpiece. | ||
| Unfortunately out of print. Ask me for a copy. | ||
| Track 1: Peace of Water (9:04) | ||
| Track 2: Grace of Beauty (9:01) | ||
| Track 3: Infinity (8:58) | ||
| Track 4: Earth Rhythms (10:24) | ||
| Track 5: Waves of Harmony (10:20) | ||
| Track 6: Under Water (6:29) | ||
| ROBERT RICH | ||
| Numena & Geometry (1991) www.fathomusic.com (This site no longer exists) | ||
| ROBERT RICH/STEVE ROACH | ||
| Strata (1990) | ||
| TERRY RILEY | ||
| In C (Numerous releases and versions)[***] | ||
| Try: STEVE REICH Music for 18 Musicians. | ||
| A Rainbow In Curved Air (1969)[***] | ||
| Try: STEVE REICH Music for 18 Musicians. | ||
| STEVE ROACH | ||
| www.steveroach.com | ||
| stormwarning: Live in Concert (1989,live) space music. | ||
| Truth and Beauty: The Lost Pieces Volume Two (1999) | ||
| If you like track 1 "Aftermath" then try Klaus Schulze Moondawn and Timewind. | ||
| Light Fantastic(1999)[] | ||
| Storm Warning(1989)[] Live in concert. | ||
| STEVE ROACH/VIDNA OBMANA | ||
| STEVE ROACH/VIDNA OBMANA/THOM BRENNAN | ||
| Amplexus(1995) Collected works from the 1995 Ltd series. | ||
| STEVE ROACH/VIR UNIS | ||
| Body Electric (1999) | ||
| Warning: This album is quite different from other Steve Roach albums. Active with a jungle sound. Not soft and ambient like his other stuff. | ||
| MARK ROWND | ||
| Painting Twighlight (1998) | ||
| IRMIN SCHMIDT & BRUNO SPOERRI | ||
| Toy Planet (copyright on CD says 1990 but I know vinyl record dates back much earlier than that.) | ||
| This album, especially Track 2 "Toy Planet", deserves special mention, except I can't describe it and I can't come up with a category to put it in as I have no other music like it. I give track 2 "Toy Planet" [****] for creativity. (Schmidt was keyboard player for Can). | ||
| JOHANNES SCHMOELLING | ||
| Former member of Tangerine Dream. Left TD in 1985. | ||
| [group 1: Three albums are similar] | ||
| Wuivend Reit (1987)[***] | ||
| The Zoo of Tranquility (1988)[***] Similar to Wuivend Reit. | ||
| Songs no Words (1995)[***] I slightly prefer the first two. | ||
| [group 2:] | ||
| White Out (Original LP 1990. Remixed in 2000)[***] | ||
| This one is just different enough that I separate it from group 1. It is still in Johannes Schmoelling's unique style. | ||
| EBERHARD SCHOENER | ||
| [group 1: These two are also available together as a double album.] | ||
| Meditation (1973)[****] best space music | ||
| Try: SUZANNE DOUCET Reflecting Light, Om & Hum | ||
| Sky Music/Mountain Music (1984)[***] | ||
| [group 2] | ||
| Trance-Formation (1977)[**] | ||
| This album does not fall into the same meditation quiet ambient music as the above 2. It's a mix between tibetan sounds, gregorian choral, floating synthesizer sounds and ripping guitar featuring Andy Summers before joining The Police. Chant crazers might like it. | ||
| ROBERT SCHROEDER | ||
| [group 1: music with a theme.] | ||
| Both quite excellent. Also Try: Timewaves (1986)[****] CD is longer, too. | ||
| Harmonic Ascendant (1979)[****] (produced by Klaus Schulze) Paul's favorite. | ||
| Paradise (1983)[****] | ||
| Tracks 1-5 make a continuous 22-minute piece. | ||
| [group 2:] | ||
| These albums are in a separate group from the above 2. I never cared for these and never converted the record to CD. | ||
| Brain Voyager (1985)[*] | ||
| Computer Voice (1984)[*] | ||
| Galaxie Cygnus-A (1982)[*] | ||
| Floating Music (1980)[*] | ||
| Driftin' (1988)[*] | ||
| Audentity (1983,2 CDs) | ||
| Le Moulin De Daudet (FR CD) | ||
| KLAUS SCHULZE | ||
| (Excellent, excellent newage music) | ||
| [group 1: New Age very active] | ||
| ...Live... (1980 live double album)[****] | ||
| Star Action (1980) | ||
| A "best of" double album. "Death of an Analogue", "Weird Caravan", The Looper Isn't a Hooker", all from Dig it, "Crystal Lake" from Mirage, "Ludwig II. Von Bayern" from "X"., "Nowhere - NoHere" from Body Love Vol. 2 | ||
| Dziekuje Poland Live '83[***] (live double album) | ||
| "X" (double)[****] | ||
| Another review marks this as an "Essential Collection" item, meaning it should be a part of any beginning collection. If you like track 1 "Friedrich Nietzsche" then try moondawn,timewaind, Wolfgang Bock Cycles | ||
| Silver Edition (1994 limited edition 10 CD set of previously unreleased live recordings.)[***] A marathon of listening. | ||
| [group 2: Slower, smoother. Paul says "Essential".] | ||
| Body Love | ||
| (1977? Original Filmmusik aus Film von Lasse Braun. {an X rated movie. Paul adds "a good one too, especially the orgy scene".})[****] | ||
| Body Love Vol. 2 (1977)[****] | ||
| Mirage (1986)[****] | ||
| [group 3: Classic New Age] | ||
| Moondawn [****] | ||
| Paul says "Masterpiece - Best". Similar to Timewind. | ||
| Try: timewaind, Wolfgang Bock Cycles. | ||
| Timewind [****] | ||
| Similar to Moondawn Another review says "Two masterful sequencer essays that make effective use of minimalistic patterns to suspend and ultimately erase all sense of objective 'clock-based' time" | ||
| Try: groups 2 & 1 | ||
| Try: moondawn, Wolfgang Bock Cycles | ||
| [group 4] | ||
| Picture Music (1973)[*] Paul thinks it's good. | ||
| Angst (1984)[*] Primarily percussion | ||
| [group 5] | ||
| Trancefer (1981)[**] getting into his more recent stuff somewhat different | ||
| Dune (1979)[*] | ||
| More weird and spacey, wanders, meanders, vocals over last 16 minutes, lyrics not really good. | ||
| Babel (1987)[**] Paul quite likes this one. | ||
| Dreams (1986)[*] Some singing last 8 minutes of last track. | ||
| [not rated] | ||
| Inter*face (1985) Paul says "good one." | ||
| Beyond Recall (1991) Paul says "good". | ||
| Totentag (GER DBL CD) | ||
| Trancelation (GER CD) | ||
| Klaus Schulze: Goes Classic (GER CD) | ||
| Das Wagner Desaster- Live (GER DBL CD) | ||
| Conquest of Paradise (GER MAXI CD) | ||
| KLAUS SCHULZE / PETE NAMLOOK: Dark Side of the Moog (GER CD) | ||
| JONN SERRIE | ||
| [group 1. All similar] | ||
| Planetary Chronicles, Vol. I(1992) | ||
| Planetary Chronicles, Vol. II(1994) | ||
| Flightpath(1989) space music - extremely relaxational | ||
| And the Stars Go With You(1987) space music - space music | ||
| Midsummer Century(1993) | ||
| Tingri (1990) space music | ||
| SKY | ||
| (Not the same SKY as a newer group also called SKY) | ||
| Sky (1980, double album. John Williams, Herbie Flowers, Kevin Peek, Tristan Fry, Francis Monkman)[***] | ||
| "FIFO", a 22 minute piece, is quite good. They also do their contemporary eletric guitar version of "Toccata and Fugue in D minor", the famous organ piece by Johann Sebastion Bach. Similar to the version VANESSA MAE did on her album The Violin Player(1995) | ||
| Classic Sky (1989) | ||
| DON SLEPIAN | ||
| (June, 2004) Listen to Don Slepian live every Wednesday at http://artmusiccoffeehouse.com/ | ||
| Largos (????) [**] | ||
| Sea of Bliss (1981) [****] (Very Nice) | ||
| Sonic Perfume (1987) [***] | ||
| Electronic Music From The Rainbow Isle (2000) [**] | ||
| Introspection (2000) [**] | ||
| [Not rated] | ||
| computer don't breakdown a spacey classic | ||
| SOFTWARE | ||
| These albums are similar. Spacey sounds like Klaus Schulze, but lacking a creative tune so they just wander and I get bored after awhile. I never found anything I particularly liked in these albums even though they're not bad and some people may like them. | ||
| SOFTWARE Electronic-Universe (1985,double)[**] | ||
| SOFTWARE Chip Meditation [**] | ||
| SOFTWARE The-Third-Dimension: Live in Concert (1989) | ||
| PETER MERGENER, Michael Weisser Phancyful-Fire (1985)[**] | ||
| SCHWINGUNGEN New Age Music (1985,double)[**] | ||
| [not rated] | ||
| SOFTWARE marbles very good jazz fusion | ||
| SOFTWARE electronic universe i & ii a la td - excellent example of how electronic music should be done | ||
| SOFTWARE fragrance | ||
| SOFTWARE modesty blaze | ||
| SOFTWARE past present future i & ii a well-done compilation, with several new tracks. | ||
| SOFTWARE syn-code a la td from early 80's | ||
| SOFTWARE the third dimension, live in concert beautiful melodies; excellent synthesized guitar and sax solos | ||
| SOFTWARE visions loaded with sustained chords, exotic sounds, and intricate multi-part sequenced melodies | ||
| GARY STADLER | ||
| Fairy of the Woods (1996) | ||
| MICHAEL STEARNS | ||
| Encounter: A Journey in the Key of Space (1988)[*] | ||
| Outer space music, slow, quiet wandering, gets boring after awhile. Another review says "an evocative, moving aural experience - astronomy music - space music - pseudo-melodies, lack of rhythm - space music" | ||
| Sacred Site (1993,HOS) | ||
| Try: 2001: a space odyssey (1968)(original motion picture soundtrack) | ||
| [not rated] | ||
| m'ocean | ||
| chronos astronomy music - space music - space music - powerful music | ||
| jewel | ||
| planetary unfolding space music | ||
| floating whispers space music | ||
| Singing Stones | ||
| TIM STORY | ||
| The Perfect Flaw (1994,HOS) | ||
| Beguiled (1991,HOS) | ||
| Threads (1992,Eurock) | ||
| Three Feet From the Moon (1985,Eurock) | ||
| SYNCHESTRA | ||
| [Group 1] | ||
| Daydreams (1983)[**] | ||
| Mother Earth's Lullaby (1981)[**] | ||
| Electric Snowflake (1984)[**] | ||
| [not rated] | ||
| Silver Ships | ||
| Oasis: Ideas Vol. 1 | ||
| SYNERGY | ||
| [All synthesized music, like Tomita is all synthesized, but this is lively electronic instrumental rock. They got the sound, they just never came up with any memorable music to play. It's OK to hear once in awhile.] | ||
| [group 1: These 4 Synergy albums sound similar] | ||
| Electronic Realizations for Rock Orchestra (1975)[**] | ||
| Symphonic electronic works. | ||
| Sequencer (1976)[**] | ||
| Chords (1978)[**] | ||
| Paul says "Great, my favorite". I think it's my favorite too. | ||
| Games (1979)[**] | ||
| Paul says "Fine album, Deltaone especially". | ||
| [Not rated, probably the same] | ||
| Audion (1981) Album | ||
| Computer Experiments Vol I (1981) Album | ||
| Jupiter Menace (1982) Soundtrack | ||
| Semi-Conductor (1984) Compilation | ||
| Metropolitan Suite (1987) Album | ||
| JOHN TESH | ||
| [group 1. These two are similar] | ||
| Sax by the Fire | ||
| Jazz muzac instrumental remake of popular tunes. Good if you like this sort of thing. I don't care for it so I don't rate it. | ||
| Tour de France - The Early Years(1990) | ||
| I'd call it jazz. Saxophone is one of the leading instruments. Maybe like Shadowfax? Another review says "inspirational power - dynamic and powerful - pretty powerful stuff". | ||
| TOMITA | ||
| Synth remake of classic orchestral pieces in Tomita's own style. If you liked the original you may enjoy his entirely synthetic remake as welcome variety. I quite like his rendition of "A Night on Bare Mountain" on the Firebird album, but the rest is just uninteresting to me, I didn't care for the original, and I don't care for his remake of the original. Tomita's sound is entirely synthetic computer generated music. Probably no microphones were used. Paul says "Snowflakes are Dancing is his best (Debussey)". | ||
| [group 1: All Tomita sounds alike to me] | ||
| Firebird (1976) | ||
| Greatest Hits (1979) | ||
| Cannon of the 3 Stars (1984) | ||
| (There's a bunch more Tomita albums...) | ||
| COLIN TOWNS | ||
| Full Circle (1978? Virgin records)[****] | ||
| Soundtrack to the movie "The Haunting of Julia". Lovely haunting piano. Greatest keyboard synthesizer album. Rare album, but Excellent. Was available on CD from 101CD (www.101CD.com) | ||
| Try: If you like the piano on track one you might consider GEORGE WINSTON. His Autumn album is his best. Start with that one (solo piano). The piano music for Full Circle is rather haunting music, whereas GEORGE WINSTON Autumn is more cheerful. | ||
| ANNA SJALV TREDJE | ||
| Tussilago Fanfara[****] | ||
| Rare yet classic. Paul agrees. It's like Wolfgang Back Cycles. Fabulous, excellent. | ||
| VIR UNIS | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| The Drift Inside (1999)[****] | ||
| Aeonian Glow (2001?)[****] | ||
| Comments. | ||
| [group not 1: Albums quite different from group 1. Mostly very repetative beats that drives me crazy. I have Pulse n Atmo and have removed it from my collection. Good Morning Blowfish and Alpha State I have heard samples of and they appear to be similarly irritating. | ||
| Pulse n Atmo (2000?)[0] | ||
| Endlessly repetative in a very annoying way. I have removed this CD from my collection. | ||
| Good Morning Blowfish (2001?) | ||
| Alpha State (2001?) | ||
| VANGELIS | ||
| An exceptionally talented composer, every album is uniquely different. | ||
| [group 1: notes without a tune. Not to my liking i.e. I personally hate it, and most everyone else I know feels the same, but there must be someone out there who actually understands and likes this type of mindless gongs. Try: TANGERINE DREAM Electronic Meditation, Alpha Centauri, Zeit, Atem] | ||
| Beauborg I didn't care for this one at all and sold it. A bunch of gong notes with no music holding it together as I remember. | ||
| Invisible Connections Just a lot of rhythmic banging and flanged whooshing noises. | ||
| 2: Beautiful pleasant to listen to music] | ||
| Antarctica (1983 movie soundtrack)[****] | ||
| Very beautiful pleasant to listen to music, 8 pieces of about 6 minutes each. | ||
| Try: Chariots of Fire | ||
| Chariots of Fire (1981 movie soundtrack)[****] | ||
| Piano and synths blend together in a beautiful 20 minute masterpiece. | ||
| Try: Antarctica | ||
| If you like the piano try: GEORGE WINSTON Autumn (solo piano) | ||
| Opera Sauvage (1979)[****] 7 beautiful tracks. | ||
| La Fete Sauvage (1975 movie soundtrack)[**] | ||
| Side 2 is beautiful. Side 1 is active. | ||
| Ignacio (1977 movie soundtrack)[**] | ||
| First 21 minutes (side 1). The rest (side 2) is somewhat like what I remember Beauborg being; notes without a tune. | ||
| Themes (1989)[****] | ||
| A "best of" album including some previously unreleased pieces. Most of the pieces are quite pleasant so I list it here with the others. | ||
| China (1979)[****] | ||
| Has more of a New Age sound to it. In fact I listed "Himalaya / Summit" under the 'New Age Music Not To Talk Over' category, and "The Long March" under 'Quiet Piano Solos'. | ||
| Voices(1995) Another very nice pleasant album. | ||
| Oceanic(1996) Yet again, another nice album. | ||
| El Greco(1998) | ||
| Oh what can I say. A lot like Voices and Ocianic In fact Voices,Oceanic, and El Greco are very much alike. Not alike as in get one you don't need the others. | ||
| [group 3: Here we get to the serious active music] | ||
| Albedo 0.39 (1975)[****] Parts used in TV series "Cosmos" | ||
| Spiral (1977)[****] Paul's favorite. | ||
| Heaven and Hell (1975)[****] | ||
| Vangelis must have been trying to quit smoking when he made this album. This album deserves special recognition as the only album in my collection I can not play if I'm in an irritated mood as it will heighten my irritation. It's also the best album to play if I have a lot of energy to expel or need to soak up a lot of energy. Very energetic moving music you'll either love or hate. It also contains a 4 minute very soft and beautiful piano piece (starting 12:49 into disk) used in the TV series "Cosmos" (as the theme music I think), followed by a nice 5 minute piece featuring vocals by Jon Anderson who's done several albums together with Vangelis. | ||
| See You Later (1980) | ||
| Paul says "completely different - a good one". | ||
| [group 4: These next 4 albums by Vangelis seem to be similar. Brutal symphonic. Plus I include here the 2 albums with Irene Papas since the music seems similar.] | ||
| The City (1990)[***] | ||
| Direct (1988)[***] | ||
| Mask (1985)[***] (Not related to the movie Mask featuring Cher which came out at the same time.) Active, fierce. | ||
| Soil Festivities (1984)[***] | ||
| IRENE PAPAS & VANGELIS | ||
| Singing in Greek to music by Vangelis. Irene Papas is one of the most famous movie actresses in Greece. Odes is based on traditional Greek folk songs, while Rapsodies is based on traditional Byzantine folk songs. | ||
| Odes (1979)[**] | ||
| Rhapsodies (1987)[**] | ||
| [group 5] | ||
| Blade Runner by The New American Orchestra. | ||
| 1982 remake of movie soundtrack, since original soundtrack was never released, although "End Titles" and "Love Theme" are now on Themes album)[***] Basic remake of the music, trying to match the original as closely as an orchestra can. | ||
| Blade Runner by Vangelis (1994)[****] | ||
| 12 years after the movie Vangelis finally releases the real soundtrack. Blends together dialog from the movie with continuous music to create the whole Blade Runner experience. An excellent work. Much of the music here is new. This is quite different from the New America Orchestra version. Both disks complement one another. | ||
| Try: [group 2] | ||
| [group 6: a good album that should not disappoint Vangelis fans] | ||
| 1492 Conquest of Paradise (1992 movie soundtrack)[***] | ||
| [not rated] | ||
| Hypothesis (1971) | ||
| Jon and Vangelis Private Collection (1983) | ||
| Try: Jon Anderson Olias of Sunhillow (1976) now available on CD. | ||
| Try: Jon Anderson Song of Seven (1976) now available on CD. | ||
| POPOL VUH | ||
| Popol Vuh (Florian Frike) has his own distinct sound and style. Both The Best Soundtracks From Werner Herzog Films and Tantric Songs contain the 16 minute track "Bruder des schattens, Sohne des Lichts" ("Brothers of darkness, Sons of light") used in the Werner Herzog film "Nosferatu" (dracula)]. | ||
| [group 1: these two I recommend as ones to start with. They are beautiful, gentle, quiet, relaxing, haunting.] | ||
| Spirit of Peace (1985)[****] | ||
| Excellent beautiful music. (I'd love to find this on CD). | ||
| The Best Soundtracks From Werner Herzog Films (1982)[****] | ||
| [group 2] | ||
| Tantric Songs (1981)[***] | ||
| Liked most of it. A few short tracks I don't care for. | ||
| Affenstunde (1970 lp) | ||
| Aguirre (1975) | ||
| In the Gardens of Pharao/Aguirre (1972-1982, cd 1983) | ||
| Hosianna Mantra/In den Garten Pharaos (1986) | ||
| Sing, for Song Drives away the Wolves (1993) | ||
| For You and Me (1991) | ||
| Agape Agape Love Love (1983 lp) | ||
| cour de verre (1977 lp) | ||
| Einsjager & Siebenjager (1974) | ||
| Paul says "Yoga is great." | ||
| GEORGE WINSTON | ||
| Autumn (1980)[****] Piano solo. | ||
| Everyone I've talked to agrees this is the best of his seasons albums. Quite good, even excellent. | ||
| Try: Yanni In My Time piano with accompanying strings. David Lanz Christofori's Dream (solo piano, slightly faster) RAIN The Moon in my Shoe (1989,Ed Baum) Solo piano, slightly faster. | ||
| December (1982)[***] Piano solo. | ||
| Not quite as good as Autumn (my opinion). Good at Christmas time as a welcome relief from traditional Christmas songs. It does play some nice music of a Christmas time feel. | ||
| Winter into Spring (1982)[*] Piano solo. | ||
| I didn't care for (my opinion). I stopped buying his albums after this one. | ||
| DANNY WRIGHT | ||
| Black and White II (1989)[****] Piano solo. | ||
| The quietest piano music I have. Very quiet, soothing, and beautiful. Excellent. | ||
| Try: Beethoven "Moonlight Sonata" (First Movement of the Sonata quasi una Fantasia). | ||
| YANNI | ||
| [group 1] | ||
| Keys to Imagination (1986)[***] | ||
| A lot of people seem to like Keys to Imagination and Out of Silence and would give one or the other 4 stars. | ||
| Try: EXCHANGE Into the Night | ||
| Out of Silence (1987)[***] | ||
| Niki Nana (1989)[***] Slightly more overtly pop approach, dance rhythms. | ||
| [group 2] | ||
| In My Time (1993)[****] | ||
| Piano with accompanying strings. Unlike the other three listed above which are active. - all piano and violin-type stuff; very peaceful - very mellow all around, nothing like his first 3 albums - sweet, simple and beautiful gentle romantic sound. | ||
| Dare to Dream(1992)[] | ||
| Port of Mystery(1992)[] | ||
| [Not Rated] | ||
| Optimystique (1984) | ||
| Chameleon Days (1988) | ||
| Dare to Dream (1992) | ||
| ZINGAIA | ||
| Beneath the Veil (1997) | ||
| Like ENIGMA but with more voicing. | ||
| Try: Any ENIGA albums | ||