Recently my wife, Ce, and I managed to grab a last minute break to Mallorca ~ we booked on a Thursday and flew out the following Tuesday. We went to a hotel in C’an Picafort on the north east of the island, we’ve actually stayed there a couple of times before so knew exactly what to expect. As soon as we booked I went looking for new albums, I never switch off completely on holiday but new music gives me something different to focus on even though I’m still checking my email and FaceBook pages regularly and staying in touch with my couples. I have over 30,000 tracks currently in my library but I’m always looking for something new and as music is a tool of my job the business pays … well that’s what I tell the myself!
So here are the four albums I spent my week relaxing in the sun with…
Hed Kandi ~ Tropical Nights
When we go away I always like to take a new dance compilation album with me, this time it was the latest from the Hed Kandi brand, released on 6th May. As well as all the individual tracks these compilations often come with bonus continuous mixes of the tracks – this album has two. I was already familiar with some of the tracks (like the Jonas Blue version of “Fast Car” and Sigala’s “Say You Do” but there were plenty of new ones to keep my toes taping. Among my favourites are the Yolanda Be Cool & DCUP cover of The Beatles “From Me To You” and Junior J’s “Keep It Comin'”.
A lot of current dance music seems to be at a slightly lower tempo than a few years ago and as well as what I think of as a marimba sound that has been evident for a while there seems to be some steel drum settings on the keyboards. For a quick taste of the album CLICK HERE to see an advert.
Recreations ~ Baby Boomers 2
This is the new album from Sam Duckworth who used to be known as Get Cape Wear Cape Fly. This album came out on 29th April.
My love of Get Cape Wear Cape is a dad and daughter thing. Our daughter Amy and I discovered him in 2007 when he was all over the Glastonbury coverage, so I treated her to the “Chronicles of a Bohemian Teenager” album and we’ve been fans ever since. I think we’ve seen him a couple of times, possibly once as a support act and definitely in a show at The Wedgwood Rooms.
Recreations is his latest incarnation (is that right word?), it’s the same but different and we love it. Stand out tracks for me are “Pipe Down” (CLICK HERE for video) and “Built To Last”.
CLICK HERE to find out more about Sam and Recreations.
Mary Chapin Carpenter ~ The Things That We Are Made Of
Also released on 6th May was this new album. Mary Chapin Carpenter is an American musician, she’s categorised as a Country artist but I think of her as a great singer songrwriter. I loved her 1992 “Come On Come On” and 1994 “Stones In The Road” albums, but I haven’t bought a new album from her for a long time.
The Huffington Post said “Beautifully written and lovingly paced, The Things That We Are Made Of is an uplifting and very human account of Mary Chapin Carpenter’s self-reflective consciousness.” and they are right.
Stand out tracks for me include “The Blue Distance” click for video and “Map Of My Heart”. I’ve just booked tickets for us to see Mary in Salisbury – we haven’t seen her before so this will be real treat. CLICK HERE to go to the MCC website
Gregory Porter ~ Take Me To The Alley
Another album that was much anticipated was this follow up to Mr Porters 2013 album “Liquid Spirit” ~ “Take Me To The Alley” which also came out on 6th May. Gregory Porter has worked very hard to establish himself as a big star in the Soul and Jazz worlds, this album confirms his position at the top.
From the opening bars of the first song “Holding On” the whole album is a real treat to the ears, it’s beautifully performed and produced. Here’s “Don’t Lose Your Steam” from a recent appearance on Later … with Jools Holland (CLICK HERE)
There you have it, four very different albums all released this year and all very good. I get a bit tired of people saying there is no good new music, I think they just aren’t looking. I also read this book about the wonderful Deaf School, it was a birthday present and this was the first chance I’ve had to really sit down and read it – absolutely brilliant.
Oh, and by the way, we had a fabulous time as well.
