Double album featuring live performances by The Beatles, recorded in late December 1962 at the Star-Club during their final Hamburg residency. The performances were recorded on a home tape machine using a single microphone - resulting in a low fidelity recording. Ted "Kingsize" Taylor began to investigate possible marketing of the tapes in 1973. The tapes were eventually bought by Paul Murphy and subjected to extensive audio processing to improve the sound, leading to the 1977 album.
The album provides historic insight into the group's club act in the period after Ringo Starr joined but before the emergence of Beatlemania. The Beatles were unsuccessful in legally blocking the initial release of the album; the recordings were reissued in many forms until 1998, when The Beatles were awarded full rights to the performances.

Sakari Oramo is among the best known and most heavily recorded Finnish conductors on the international scene. In 2003, he was elevated to principal conductor of the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra (FRSO), where he remained until 2012. This release for Japanese Exton label includes Johannes Brahms' second & Ludwig van Beethoven's fifth symphonies.

Asahina Takashi (朝比奈 隆) was a Japanese conductor. He founded the Kansai Symphonic Orchestra (today the Osaka Philharmonic Orchestra) in 1947 and remained its chief conductor until his death in Kobe. For some, Takashi Asahina was "the Karajan of Japan"; for others, his eminence was derived at least in part from his being the oldest conductor on the international scene; for others yet, he was quite simply an excellent musician, with a special sympathy for the classics of the Austro-German repertoire.

Hideaki Ishi ( 石 英明 ), better known by his stage name DJ Krush, is a record producer and DJ. He is known for his atmospheric instrumental production which incorporates sound elements from nature and extensive use of jazz and soul samples. Aside from being considered one of the pioneers of Japanese hip hop, Ishi has established himself as one of the most respected artists and producers in the hip hop industry, both in Japan and abroad. He is prefers to exercise an ideological distance from the genres he is usually grouped into, while maintaining a healthy appreciation for all music forms and styles. "Jaku" is his eighth solo album. It features guest appearances from American rappers Mr. Lif and Aesop Rock, both of whom were signed to the Definitive Jux label at that time.