Gil Scott-Heron's 1971 album Pieces of a Man set a standard for vocal artistry and political awareness that few musicians will ever match. His unique proto-rap vocal style influenced a generation of hip-hop artists, and nowhere is his style more powerful than on the classic "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised." Even though the media – the very entity attacked in this song – has used, reused, and recontextualized the song and its title so many times, the message is so strong that it has become almost impossible to co-opt. Musically, the track created a formula that modern hip-hop would follow for years to come: bare-bones arrangements featuring pounding basslines and stripped-down drumbeats. Although the song features plenty of outdated references to everything from Spiro Agnew and Jim Webb to The Beverly Hillbillies, the force of Scott-Heron's well-directed anger makes the song timeless. More than just a spoken word poet, Scott-Heron was also a uniquely gifted vocalist. On tracks like the reflective "I Think I'll Call It Morning" and the title track, Scott-Heron's voice is complemented perfectly by the soulful keyboards of Brian Jackson.

Here is an interesting and not paradoxical combination: Bennie Maupin on Cryptogramophone. Maupin hasn't been heard from as a leader since 1998 on his fine, funky, Driving While Black. That doesn't mean he hasn't been busy; he's played on records by Chick Corea, the Headhunters, George Cables, Victor Bailey, David Arnay, Mike Clark, and others. He was also part of DJ and producer Carl Craig's revolutionary Detroit Experiment. Penumbra is all his, however, and aside from Jewel in the Lotus, it may be the finest outing in his catalog as a leader. Maupin plays his usual array of instruments – tenor, soprano, flute, bass clarinet, and piano. He is joined by the excellent bassist Darek Oleszkiewicz (also known as "Oles"), drummer Michael Stephans, and Darryl "Munyungo" Jackson on percussion. Rhythm is the key here, as all of these 14 compositions are rhythmically propelled. Maupin's compositional frame has been informed by all of his teachers, most notably John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, and Yusef Lateef. Modal motifs can be heard in most pieces, and Maupin's playing around and through the rhythm makes for infectious and quietly dramatic listening. Restraint is a key element of all the tracks on this set. Tunes don't "swing" per se, but they are excellent examples of the deep interplay of the ensemble.

Liege & Lief is the fourth album by the English folk rock band Fairport Convention. It is the third and final album the group released in the UK in 1969, all of which prominently feature Sandy Denny as lead female vocalist. (Denny did not appear on the group's 1968 debut album). It is also the very first Fairport album on which all songs have either been adapted (freely) from traditional British and Celtic folk material (for example "Matty Groves", "Tam Lin"), or else are original compositions (such as "Come All Ye", "Crazy Man Michael") written and performed in a similar style. By introducing songs of this genre into the group's repertoire Denny, who had previously sung and recorded traditional folk songs as a solo artist, was instrumental in this transformation. Although Denny quit the band even before the album's release, Fairport Convention has continued to the present day to make music almost exclusively within the traditional British folk music idiom, and are still most strongly associated with it.

The magnificent Lebanese-Canadian soprano Joyce El-Khoury's debut recital album. Featuring Michael Spyres with Conductor Carlo Rizzi and The Hallé. Born in Lebanon and raised in Canada, Joyce El-Khoury studied in Ottawa and Philadelphia before graduating from the Metropolitan Opera's Lindemann Young Artist Development Program. Today she is one of the brightest young stars in the opera world, recently receiving universal acclaim for her landmark performance of Violetta in La Traviata at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Écho features music associated with the great 19th Century soprano Julie Dorus-Gras, including arias by Berlioz, Donizetti, Meyerbeer and Weber and features a duet with her co-star from Opera Rara's award-winning recording of Les Martyrs, Michael Spyres.

Keeping the same line-up from Henry's Dream, Nick Cave and company turn in yet another winner with Let Love In. Compared to Henry's Dream, Let Love In is something of a more produced effort – longtime Cave boardsman Tony Cohen oversees things, and from the first track, one can hear the subtle arrangements and carefully constructed performances. Love, unsurprisingly, takes center stage of the album.

GRAMOPHONE Magazine Editor's Choice - December 2015. Ondine’s fourth release together with star baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky features a program of sonnets by Dmitri Shostakovich (1906–1975) and Franz Liszt (1811–1886). Hvorostovsky is accompanied by his longstanding duo partner, the Estonian pianist Ivari Ilja.

Joe Hill Louis must have been Sun president Sam Phillips' favorite bluesman. He recorded him for The Phillips, Chess, and Sun. The Sun tapes (1952-'53) are here, including Joe Hill's original versions of Tiger Man, We All Gotta Go Sometime, and the incredible Hydramatic Woman. Also included are Sun recordings with Walter Horton and Mose Vinson that feature Joe Hill. Altogether, 26 titles including West Winds Are Blowing, 44 Blues, Worry You Off My Mind, and Little Walter's Boogie. Essential for Sun fans and for lovers of raw electric Chicago-styled blues. 1-CD with 24-page booklet.

This will be quite a discovery for those who know the music of Bedrich Smetana only through his grand and nationalistic cycle of tone-poems, Ma Vlast, even if they are yet familiar with his more painfully intimate string quartets or his folkloristic operas. For Smetana, like most composers, needed to eat; and to do so he was happy to make his own contribution towards satisfying the seemingly insatiable appetite of the bourgeois 19th-century public for piano music that they could perform at home. Music of no great difficulty but boundless charm, these miniatures are now seldom heard and even less often recorded, and this is a shame, for works such as the Op.3 Characteristic Pieces show how the pianistic extroversion of Brahms and Liszt (who was a great admirer and supporter of the young Smetana, giving him valuable introductions to publishers) could be adapted to a domestic context, and with the particular inflection of Czech and Bohemian character, derived not only from simple and song-like melodies but also irregularly stressed dance-rhythms that the young Italian pianist Roberto Plano relishes to the full on this welcome new survey.

The Hooters' first album of new material since 1993, TIME STAND STILL sounds as if the intervening 14 years had never happened. Featuring a full reunion of all five original members, as opposed to singer-songwriters Rob Hyman and Eric Bazilian simply resurrecting the name, the Philadelphia quintet's familiar blend of traditional folk instruments and glossy rock remains. This includes Hyman's trademark melodica solos that gave the band their name. Along with 10 new songs, the album also includes a faithful cover of Don Henley's "The Boys of Summer".

Chávez Ravine: A Record by Ry Cooder is the twelfth studio album by Ry Cooder. It is the first concept album and historical album by Ry Cooder which tells the story of Chávez Ravine, a Mexican-American community demolished in the 1950s in order to build public housing. The housing was never built. Ultimately the Brooklyn Dodgers built a stadium on the site as part of their move to Los Angeles. Chávez Ravine was nominated for "Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album" in 2006.

Quam Dilecta is the third album of the music project Music Nuda (Petra and Ferruccio Spinetti Magoni), published in 2006 by the label Radiofandango. A sacred music album recorded in the church of San Nicola in Pisa.

The career of the young Russian pianist Pavel Kolesnikov has taken off since he won the Honens Prize in 2012. He issued a live recording and then a fine album of Tchaikovsky pieces that, while pleasures all, are not really everyday items. With this set of 24 of Chopin's 58 mazurkas, he makes what might be regarded as his debut in mainstream repertory. Twisting and turning the slightly tense rhythm of the Polish folk dance in a dozen different directions, they're an excellent pick for Kolesnikov's deliberate yet playful style. Kolesnikov observes all of Chopin's repeats, daring the listener to find them tedious and delivering with readings that diverge in small but telling details from the first time through. It's in the small details that Kolesnikov excels. The temperature of the entire recording is low, and Hyperion's engineers set just the right level at their favorite venue for this kind of recital, the Wyastone Estate concert hall. But the listener is drawn into Kolesnikov's unique handling of the unusual technical devices in which these pieces abound.

This mostly ballad-oriented trio set with bassist George Duvivier and drummer Charlie Persip was pianist Joe Albany's final recording. Albany, whose career (especially on records) did not really get going until his final decade, is in generally good form on such tunes as "Autumn In New York," "They Say It's Wonderful" and "Confirmation." The album concludes with a brief interview that sums up some aspects of his episodic life.

Sometimes even the most consistent artists need to shake things up a bit. In Robert Cray's case, that means shuffling his lineup – he retained longtime bassist Richard Cousins but brought in drummer Les Falconer and keyboardist Dover Weinberg – and bringing in producer Steve Jordan, who last worked with Cray on 1999's Take Your Shoes Off. There's a reason this record is called In My Soul: Jordan assists Cray in moving toward Memphis soul, dedicating the entire record to slow, sultry burners that emphasize his mellow vocals and dexterous grooves. This may primarily be a mood record but the individual songs are also quite strong, whether it's the originals ("Fine Yesterday" is so gorgeous it makes heartbreak seem welcome) or sharply chosen covers. Among the latter is a cleanly funky reading of Otis Redding's "Nobody's Fault But Mine," which features Falconer on co-lead vocals, an unusual change of pace for Cray that also signals how the veteran guitarist has been revitalized by his change in companions.

Dena Derose's attractively sultry voice is a perfect fit with her septet, which also features her own excellent piano work. Bolstered by strong arrangements from Steve Davis, the group focuses mostly on standards, and the whole band joins in the fun. Steve Wilson is equally capable on soprano and alto saxophones, and he is given ample time to stretch. In addition to his writing, Davis blows a mean and dirty trombone, and trumpeter Ingrid Jensen continues to impress. It is DeRose, though; who makes the outing special. Her phrasing is immaculate, and she swings with abandon. At times, her voice seems influenced by vocalist Susannah McCorkle, but DeRose's style is sufficiently her own Her fine piano solos mark her as a jazz stylist, but it is her singing that sets her apart. With any luck, she should go far.