Earth, Wind & Fire – All ‘N All (1977) [Japanese SACD 1999 #SRGS 4525] {PS3 ISO + FLAC}

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Earth, Wind & Fire – All ‘N All (1977) [Japanese SACD 1999 #SRGS 4525]
PS3 Rip | ISO | SACD DSD64 2.0 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 39:00 minutes | Scans included | 1,58 GB
or FLAC(converted with foobar2000 to tracks) 24bit/88,2 kHz | Scans included | 812 MB

Earth, Wind & Fire’s artistic and commercial winning streak continued with its ninth album, All ‘N All, the diverse jewel that spawned major hits like “Serpentine Fire” and the dreamy “Fantasy.” Whether the visionary soul men are tearing into the hardest of funk on “Jupiter” or the most sentimental of ballads on “I’ll Write a Song for You” (which boasts one of Philip Bailey’s many soaring, five-star performances), All ‘N All was a highly rewarding addition to EWF’s catalog. Because EWF had such a clean-cut image and fared so well among pop audiences, some may have forgotten just how sweaty its funk could be. But “Jupiter” — like “Mighty, Mighty,” “Shining Star,” and “Getaway” — underscores the fact that EWF delivered some of the most intense and gutsy funk of the 1970s. (more…)

Earth, Wind & Fire – Open Our Eyes (1974) [Official Digital Download 24bit/96kHz]

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Earth, Wind & Fire – Open Our Eyes (1974)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96kHz  | Time – 00:39:50 minutes | 848 MB | Genre: R&B, Soul, Funk
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download – Source: Qobuz | © Columbia Records
Recorded: August 1973, Caribou Ranch, Nederland, Colorado, U.S.

Open Our Eyes is the fifth studio album by Earth, Wind & Fire, released in 1974 on Columbia Records. The album went to number one on the R&B Charts and number 15 on the Pop Charts. Open Our Eyes contained the Billboard charting singles, “Mighty Mighty” (R&B #4, Pop #29), “Devotion” (R&B #23, Pop #33) and “Kalimba Story” (R&B #6, Pop #55). The album was made available in a digitally remastered version in 2001, which includes 4 previously unreleased bonus tracks. Open Our Eyes has been certified platinum in the US by the RIAA. (more…)

Earth, Wind & Fire – Open Our Eyes (1974) [Audio Fidelity 2015] {PS3 ISO + FLAC}

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Earth, Wind & Fire – Open Our Eyes (1974) [Audio Fidelity 2015]
PS3 Rip | SACD ISO | DSD64 2.0 & DST64 4.0 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 39:51 minutes | Full Scans included | 2,99 GB
or FLAC 2.0 Stereo (converted with foobar2000 to tracks) 24bit/88,2 kHz | 40:20 mins | Scans included | 770 MB
Features 2.0 Stereo and 4.0 multichannel surround sound | Mastered by Steve Hoffman | Audio Fidelity # AFZ5 202

Finally, after almost half a decade of serious dues-paying, Earth, Wind & Fire took off commercially with its fifth album, Open Our Eyes. EWF had been delivering great albums since 1971, but it wasn’t until 1974 that the public proved genuinely receptive to Maurice White’s mystical and unorthodox take on soul and funk. No longer would EWF enjoy only a small cult following. Thanks to treasures like “Kalimba Song,” the gritty funk smoker “Mighty Mighty,” and the unforgettable “Devotion,” Open Our Eyes became EWF’s first gold album and went to the top of the R&B charts. It’s also interesting to note that with this album, singer Jessica Cleaves was gone, resulting in the first time EWF had an all-male lineup. (more…)

Isaac Hayes – The Isaac Hayes Movement (1970) [Reissue 2004] {PS3 ISO + FLAC}

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Isaac Hayes – The Isaac Hayes Movement (1970) [Reissue 2004]
PS3 Rip | SACD ISO | DSD64 2.0 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 36:10 minutes | Scans included | 1,46 GB
or FLAC(converted with foobar2000 to tracks) 24bit/88,2 kHz | Full Scans included | 751 MB

Although this is Isaac Hayes’ third long-player, he had long been a staple of the Memphis R&B scene — primarily within the Stax coterie — where his multiple talents included instrumentalist, arranger, and composer of some of the most beloved soul music of the ’60s. Along with his primary collaborator, David Porter, Hayes was responsible for well over 200 sides — including the genre-defining “When Something Is Wrong With My Baby,” “Soul Man,” “B-A-B-Y,” “Hold On, I’m Comin’,” and “I Had a Dream.” As a solo artist however, Hayes redefined the role of the long-player with his inimitably smooth narrative style of covering classic pop and R&B tracks, many of which would spiral well over ten minutes. The Isaac Hayes Movement (1970) includes four extended cuts from several seemingly disparate sources, stylistically ranging from George Harrison’s “Something” to Jerry Butler’s “I Stand Accused” and even Burt Bacharach and Hal David’s “I Just Don’t Know What to Do With Myself.” These early Hayes recordings brilliantly showcase his indomitable skills as an arranger — as he places familiar themes into fresh contexts and perspectives. For example, his lengthy one-sided dialogue that prefaces “I Stand Accused” is halting in its candor as Hayes depicts an aching soul who longs for his best friend’s fiancée. Even the most hard-hearted can’t help but have sympathy pains as he unravels his sordid emotional agony and anguish. Hayes’ lyrical orchestration totally reinvents the structure of “Something” — which includes several extended instrumental sections — incorporating equally expressive contributions from John Blair (violin). Both “I Just Don’t Know What to Do With Myself” and the comparatively short (at under six minutes) “One Big Unhappy Family” are more traditionally arranged ballads. Hayes again tastefully incorporates both string and horn sections to augment the languid rhythm, providing contrasting textures rather than gaudy adornment. (more…)

Isaac Hayes – Shaft: Music From The Soundtrack (1971/2011) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

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Isaac Hayes – Shaft: Music From The Soundtrack (1971/2011)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 74:24 minutes | 2,59 GB | Genre: Soundtrack
Studio Master, Official Digital Download | Source: HDTracks | © Stax Records

Shaft, the motion picture soundtrack that garnered worldwide praise for Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Isaac Hayes remains one of the most successful soundtrack albums of all time. The well-crafted record composed and produced by Hayes spent over a year on Billboard’s pop album charts and earned Hayes a Grammy® Award for “Best Original Score Written for a Motion Picture.” The album features the critically acclaimed hit single “Theme From Shaft,” which reached #1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 and won Hayes an Oscar® for “Best Original Song.” The funky soulful jazz score full of cinematic instrumentation is a testament to Hayes’ undeniable genius.Hayes’ laid back delivery and gorgeous arrangements are still breathtaking, and the album remains a quintessential slice of ’70s soul. “ Trevor Maclaren, All That Jazz (more…)

Isaac Hayes – Shaft: Music From The Soundtrack (1971) [SACD 2004] {PS3 ISO + FLAC}

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Isaac Hayes – Shaft: Music From The Soundtrack (1971) [SACD 2004]
PS3 Rip | ISO | SACD DSD64 2.0 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 69:27 minutes | Scans included | 2,81 GB
or FLAC(converted with foobar2000 to tracks) 24bit/88,2 kHz | Scans included | 1,45 GB

Isaac Hayes was undoubtedly one of the era’s most accomplished soul artists. With the Theme From Shaft, Hayes delivered an anthem just as ambitious and revered as the film itself, a song that has only grown more treasured over the years, after having been an enormously popular hit at the time of its release. This CD features cinematic moments of instrumentation, composed and produced by Hayes while being performed by the Bar-Kays – some down-tempo, others quite jazzy. (more…)

Isaac Hayes – Hot Buttered Soul (1969) [MFSL 2003] {PS3 ISO + FLAC}

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Isaac Hayes – Hot Buttered Soul (1969) [MFSL 2003]
PS3 Rip | SACD ISO | DSD64 2.0 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 45:37 minutes | Scans included | 1,84 GB
or FLAC(converted with foobar2000 to tracks) 24bit/88,2 kHz | Scans included | 990 MB
Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab # UDSACD 2005

Released at the tail end of the ’60s, Hot Buttered Soul set the precedent for how soul would evolve in the early ’70s, simultaneously establishing Isaac Hayes and the Bar-Kays as major forces within black music. Though not quite as definitive as Black Moses or as well-known as Shaft, Hot Buttered Soul remains an undeniably seminal record; it stretched its songs far beyond the traditional three-to-four-minute industry norm, featured long instrumental stretches where the Bar-Kays stole the spotlight, and it introduced a new, iconic persona for soul with Hayes’ tough yet sensual image. With the release of this album, Motown suddenly seemed manufactured and James Brown a bit too theatrical. Surprising many, the album features only four songs. The first, “Walk on By,” is an epic 12-minute moment of true perfection, its trademark string-laden intro just dripping with syrupy sentiment, and the thumping mid-tempo drum beat and accompanying bassline instilling a complementary sense of nasty funk to the song; if that isn’t enough to make it an amazing song, Hayes’ almost painful performance brings yet more feeling to the song, with the guitar’s heavy vibrato and the female background singers taking the song to even further heights. The following three songs aren’t quite as stunning but are still no doubt impressive: “Hyperbolicsyllabicsequedalymistic” trades in sappy sentiment for straight-ahead funk, highlighted by a stomping piano halfway through the song; “One Woman” is the least epic moment, clocking in at only five minutes, but stands as a straightforward, well-executed love ballad; and finally, there’s the infamous 18-minute “By the Time I Get to Phoenix” and its lengthy monologue which slowly eases you toward the climactic, almost-orchestral finale, a beautiful way to end one of soul’s timeless, landmark albums, the album that transformed Hayes into a lifelong icon. (more…)

Isaac Hayes – Chocolate Chip (1975/2016) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

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Isaac Hayes – Chocolate Chip (1975/2016)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 40:25 minutes | 1,6 GB | Genre: R&B
Studio Master, Official Digital Download – Source: HDTracks | Digital Booklet | © Stax Records

“Chocolate Chip” is the seventh studio album by American soul musician Isaac Hayes. It was released in 1975 by ABC Records through Isaak’ own imprint, Hot Buttered Soul Records, marking Hayes’ first release after leaving the then-financially troubled Stax label. The album was segue into the emerging disco scene and featured horns and layered beats, while maintaining his traditional soulful vocals. (more…)

Isaac Hayes – Hot Buttered Soul (1969/2011) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

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Isaac Hayes – Hot Buttered Soul (1969/2011)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 56:50 minutes | 2,01 GB | Genre: R&B
Studio Master, Official Digital Download |  Source: HDTracks | © Stax Records

A staff songwriter with the legendary Stax label, Isaac Hayes, with partner David Porter, composed material for many of the company’s artists, including Sam And Dave, Carla Thomas and Johnnie Taylor. Frustrated with this backroom role, he began recording in his own right, and with Hot Buttered Soul, redefined the notion of soul music. Although the tracks were lengthy, there was no sense of self-indulgence, each one evolving over sensual rhythms and taut arrangements. Hayes’ vocal anticipated the ‘rap’ genre of Barry White and Millie Jackson without slipping into self-parody, lending an air of sophistication to a highly influential collection. (more…)

INXS – The Swing (1984/2014) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

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INXS – The Swing (1984/2014)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192kHz | Time – 42:49 minutes | 1,63 GB | Genre: Rock
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download – Source: AcousticSounds | © Atlantic Records
Recorded: September 1983, Power Station, New York City; December 1983, The Manor Studio, Oxfordshire

The Swing was released in 1984 and is INXS’ fourth studio album. The album features the single “Original Sin”, which was the first INXS single to go #1 in Australia and remained in this position for two whole weeks, shortly followed by reaching #1 in both Argentina and France. The Swing enjoyed long-term success on the Australian music charts, remaining in the top 50 selling albums for over 2 years. (more…)