B'ismillah- Highlights From The Fes Festival Of World Sacred Music [1997]

I woke up one sunny morning a few months back and there was a beautiful golden crescented dome that had appeared on the skyline behind my flat - it cheered me up no end (http://www.alrahma-mosque.com/) and today at home for lunch they were practicing the Muezzin which again made my day. Now I'm no muslim but trust me when I say if there's any good in this world it's embodied in the Sufi way. So here's a taster of the beauty of Sufism and Islam

Purchase: CD only as far as I can tell
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Gioachino Rossini - Petite Messe Solonnelle beginning [1863]

I'm getting married this December so I've been attending to my soul a bit more lately and am pleased to say that the C of E has lightened up/modernised a fair bit since my school days (i mean the vicar basically flogged us a DVD called Evan Almighty (it is a good film, mind you) and we even had a hymn to the tune of Dambusters to finish the service on in high spirits. But that was the only good him the rest where solemn latin dirge's that are about as connected with Jesus as capitalism is. And given that Jesus (if nothing else) was at heart a progressive rebel and worldchanger, it's always disappointeed me that his followers are so conservative. Which brings me to this little number, Rossini was an Italian master of Opera but like me (and anyone sane) he thought church needed jazzing up a little bit and so he created this take on mass. And boy is it so much better than anything less modern than a 20th century gospel choir of course whether or not its for you may depend on how against religion you are but Rossini said it best when discussing the work:

Have I just written music for the blessed or just some blessed music?

I'd say both, you?

Purchase: emusic, amazon, 7digital

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DJ Shadow - What Does Your Soul Look Like [1995]

Probably the best single CD single purchase I have ever made.

Whilst DJ Shadow is by no means underscovered (in fact very few of the stuff here really is - perhaps I just mean hard to get a hold of via the Freewave) I feel that no music blog of mine could be complete without this album, and since this shit is 13 years old maybe you haven't heard it.

Anyway, these tracks are all available on the 98 album Preemptive strike which you should go buy right now.

Why? Well like some of the other posts here this qualifies as, if I can be so pretentious (and I can because I always am), spiritual/moving and all the rest of it. I mean the title says it all so listen to it all in one go and go to a better place. Serious beats, vocals, atmospheric instrumentation, whimsy and emotion you name it its go it. Deep, deep, deep, phat ph*cking sh*t

Purchase (album not single): mp3fiesta plong

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Cleveland Watkiss - Victory's Happy Songbook [2002]

You'll probably have heard Cleveland Watkiss's voice already (he gets around) but his album is a rare example of how a more or less entire album dedicated to God can still be interesting, contemporary and a pleasure to listen to even if you don't share the singer's spiritual sentiments. Soulful in every sense of the word, a solo album by this guy was long overdue

mp3: plong emusic(US)
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Keith Jarrett Trio - Changeless [1989]

Keith Jarrett isn't exactly underscovered, his Koln Concert album is one of (if not the) best selling albums of all time and a must have album. But whilst a lot of his work is improv and a bit too plinkety plonkety and jazz nerdish for many (and dare I say it me too). Changeless bucks that trend but seems to be largely ignored. Philosophically and musically perfect put this on loud, close your eyes and feel the music. Recorded live you can here the artists/audiences musical orgasms as Keith pushing the boundaries of experience. Or in the insert's words, this is:

D A N C I N G
E N D L E S S

L I F E L I N E

E C S T A C Y

Mp3 purchase: 7digital, itunes

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