Hey folks. Well, my weekend was all baby. As some of you already know, My daughter (Concert Girl), gave birth to our first grandchild. The baby's name is Mikayla Ann. Mikayla was born on Saturday, March 21 at 12:27p after an all night labor session. She weighed in at 6 pounds, 3 ounces, and measured 19 inches. We spent most of our day on Saturday with Mikayla and her proud parents, Shari and Craig. To be sure, it was a magical day. We're quite happy with our new little introduction. Here's a picture so that you can see why we just can't quite get enough of her charm as of yet.

Apparently, I have lost quite a few Albums You MUST Hear Before You Die! as a few more emails found their way home to us. And so we have a few more to post for you before it is retired.

We promised three reviews for you and I'm holding one back because it is a dual review. It will be here on Wednesday. Today, we discuss the new Ten reissue by Pearl Jam; and Waste/Gracelands by Pete Doherty. Check those out if you find interest.

We're always talking about the best of this and the best of that. Why not a 'worst of' selection? It can be a song or it be an album. But I KNOW that someone has one or a hundred. For the purpose of this Poll, let's keep it at one reviled album or song. We'll run it through the week and post results of the awful mess on Monday, March 30. Send 'em at this link.

You'll note that we have removed the Twitter widget (too big). But you'll also note that we have replaced it with a smaller button that will not only allow you to navigate to our Twitter page, but also to retweet it if you find it important.But the BEST thing that you can do is to join Twitter and get some instant news as we get it, some of which might never make it to this page. There might even be a contest or two on that distribution method. I encourage you to join it. Hell, there are lots of fun Twitter channels that are great to follow. Trust me on this.

The winner of the autographed Dreamweaver CD by Gary Wright is Cale Guthmiller. Congratulations, Cale!

Finally, Rhino is releasing the 'best of' from Filter on March 31. They have provided us with a listening party link for you to listen to. Enjoy the music.

Listening Party

See you on Wednesday.

Last month, we retired our Albums You MUST Hear Before You Die! I had lost two emails and could not locate them for the life of me. Last week, several of our lost emails came back to us via the authors and so we're posting their selections now. This is #41! It comes from David, who thoroughly discusses his selections of 10 'MUST hear' album classics:

1.) Ambrosia/Ambrosia--This is my all time favorite recording, and it would be on this list on any day.  Most folks know this band from their late '70s top 40 mega hit, How Much I Feel.  But back in 1975  Ambrosia was something a bit more off the beaten path.  They were a  progressive rock band with a gift for melody and song craft.  They also had the ability to show their musical chops without show-boating--thus avoiding the self-indulgence that had really started to plague the genre around this time. Ambrosia knew when to be concise and when to go with the flow.

All of these strengths came to bare with their debut recording.  To me, the music contained within is almost magical, and words really can't express the way this album makes me feel when I sit down for a listen.  Everything is here.  You want good melodies. They are here.  You want lush harmonies and interesting instrumental play.  They are here.  You want a pretty ballad or a stomping rocker. Both are here.  And anyone out there who still believes that prog rockers take themselves too seriously needs to listen to the track, Mama Frog.  The sense of humor is quite apparent.
 
Unfortunately, Ambrosia never did quite scale to such lofty musical heights again. Their followup recording, Somewhere I've Never Travelled, was a worthy successor that was just lacking a bit of the old magic from the debut album.  The band went mainstream afterward.
 
2) Porcupine Tree/Stupid Dream--My favorite current band,  Porcupine Tree is led by guitarist/producer  Steven Wilson: a song writer with a knack for taking his (many) influences and creating music that acknowledges the past without riding on its coattails.   Stupid Dream is a perfect example.  One can hear the sad resignation and majestic sonics of  Pink Floyd in the opening track, Even Less, without being able to link it to any particular tune from the Gilmour/Waters/Wright/Mason camp.
 
Steven Wilson is also quite the tunesmith.  Witness the catchy bounce of Piano Lessons and Stranger By The Minute.  The effect on the ear is subtle, but subversive.  Repeated listens to Stupid Dream are amply rewarded. Porcupine Tree are a talented group of musicians capable of some stunning music.  I look forward to each release.  The last band to make me feel this way was...
 
3) King's X/Gretchen Goes To Nebraska--Another little ol' band from texas, power trio  King's X hit the mother load with their sophomore effort, Gretchen Goes To Nebraska.  A combination of excellent tunes and crunching riffs melded with harmonies channeled straight from the  Beatles set this band apart from the hair-metal crowd.  High points include the stomping (video) single, Over My Head (complete with gospel-influenced vocal chant before the closing guitar onslaught), the heart-achingly beautiful acoustic/vocal piece, The Difference (In The Garden Of St. Anne's-on-the-Hill), and Pleides--a slow-burning look to the stars that builds to a climax fit for any  supernova.
 
I would put Gretchen Goes To Nebraska up against any heavy album that came out in the '80s.  In fact, King's X may have been a bit too smart for their own good.  Much like  Todd Rundgren (for example), King's X had limited success in the rock and roll wars--despite their obvious talents.  But again, much like Todd Rundgren, King's X have a devoted following that continues to pull for the band.
 
4) King Crimson/Lark's Tongues In Aspic--In my opinion,  King Crimson are the pinnacle of 1970s era progressive rock, and Lark's Tongues is the pinnacle of this group's "me decade" albums.  What else is there to say.  The music speaks for itself.
 
5) Jethro Tull/Minstrel In The Gallery--My all time favorite band, Tull have quite an interesting discography--to say the least. Choosing a favorite  wasn't easy.  Thick As A Brick, Aqualung, Songs From The Wood,  A Passion Play and Stand Up all rate very highly on my personal Tull-o-meter.  But it is the guitar-heavy (as in,  Martin Barre) Minstrel album that gets the nod. Aqualung may indeed rock.  But--in certain places--Minstrel rocks HARDER.  It also does it in a more interesting manner. This is progressive ROCK--for sure.  The stinging guitar salvos released by Mr. Barre are worth the price of admission alone.  Ian was in excellent vocal form too.
 
6) Montrose/Montrose--Before there was  Van Halen there was Montrose: a hard rocking California band named after its guitar slinging leader and signed to Warner Brothers Records.  Their debut recording is a solid slab of grade A hard rock born and bred in the good old US of A.  Created back when hard rock was meant to be fun music, Montrose contains not one duff track in the lot.  HIGHLY recommended.
 
7) Led Zeppelin/Physical Graffiti--I consider this Led Zep's Exile On Main Street--in that the results of the  rock and roll lifestyle was starting to show around the edges.  However, I also consider  Physical Graffiti superior to the Stone's offering in that the musical magic hadn't been touched--yet.  Sure, Plant's voice wasn't quite what it had been, but his vocal passion was at its peak.  Witness  Kashmir, Trampled Underfoot and  In My Time Of Dying.  As for Bonham, Jones and Page?  They all brought their A-game.  A sprawling classic it is--this Physical Graffiti.
 
8) Deep Purple/In Rock--Choosing a MK II favorite is like trying to choose which one of my teeth I want pulled...without novocaine.  So, I went with their first studio album: the positively brutal, In Rock.  Easily  Deep Purple's heaviest offering, every punk rocker out there should be made to listen to this record/CD.  This is the proper way to peel the paint from the walls with your guitar--not to mention your voice.  Ian Gillan unleashes a vocal tour de force on In Rock.  Plant and  Ozzy come off sounding like gelded chihuahuas in comparison.
 
And Blackmore,  The electrified maelstrom he unleashed at the end of Hard Loving Man must still be vibrating around the planet.  As for  Ian Paice, Jon Lord and  Roger Glover?  Well, they weren't exactly holding anything back.
 
9) Col. Bruce Hampton &  The Aquarium Rescue Unit/Mirrors Of Embarrassment--I'm not sure how to classify this batch of tunes.  Is it southern funk?   Southern rock? Southern funk rock?  I don't know, and nor do I care.   All I know is that Mirrors Of Embarrassment contains a great batch of catchy tunes played by musicians of extremely high caliber.  There is also the ever-present "humor" of musical oddball Bruce Hampton to add some extra spice to the musical happenings.  This disk leaves a smile on my face every time.
 
10) Bela Fleck & The Flecktones/UFO TOFU--Do you like jazz?  Do you like bluegrass music?  Do you like the banjo?  Do you like excellent musicianship displayed in a tasteful manner?  Then you will love this disc of well-written bluegrass/jazz/funk music played by a group of four masters of their craft live to tape--all led by banjo player, Bela Fleck.  The sonics of this CD are excellent also.

If you have missed the last As The Disc Spins (updated), check it out here.

To access the previous site and catch up, click here.

I've received some emails concerning the upcoming Rolling Stones reissues on UMe. There were concerns expressed. Well, I'm here to reassure you that not only are the titles I mentioned earlier (Sticky Fingers; Black and Blue; It's Only Rock 'n' Roll; Goat's Head Soup) will indeed be available to you on May 5 (On April 28 if you want DD). In fact, there are now new additions to those titles. On June 9, you'll be able to reacquire reissues for Emotional Rescue; Undercover; and Tattoo You (those three will be available as DD (Digital Download) on June 2). Let's hope these are title upgrades. More info to follow...

The upcoming Depeche Mode album, Sounds of the Universe, which is expected on April 21 from Capitol Records, will be issued in various forms.  The standard CD issue will contain the album’s 13 tracks, while upper-crust forms present greater bonuses.  The Deluxe Edition will be a CD/DVD set that includes not only the standard 13-track CD but also a DVD with a 10-minute film, a 5.1 Surround mix of the album, and three remixes.  There is a 3CD/1DVD Boxed set that includes the standard CD, a CD of 11 bonus tracks, a CD of demo tracks for the session, and the mentioned DVD.  Finally, there will be a 2LP vinyl issue with an included CD of the tracks. 

Swing band, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, will release an album of scattin’ covers by the legendary Cab Calloway called How Big Can You Get: The Music of Cab Calloway.  There’s “Minnie the Moocher,” “Jumpin’ Jive,” and 9 others.  It comes from Vanguard Records in conjunction with Big Bad Records on April 21.

Vanguard Records will also release the third album by The Boxmasters called Modbilly, planning for a release date of April 21.

Sugar Hill Records will release the fourth album from Nashville trio, The Greencards, scheduling for April 21.  The album will be called Fascination.

Virgin Records is releasing a 20th Anniversary Edition of Let Love Rule by Lenny Kravitz.  This reissue features re-mastered music on the 2CD set, with a collection of demos, rough mixes, and Bsides, while the second disc provides Let Love Rule in Live settings (The Paradise/Boston – 1990; The Paradiso/Amsterdam – 1989).  In addition, this set will contain an extended booklet with photos, liner notes, and other things of note.  This is set for release on April 21.

Capitol Records will be releasing a Special Edition of I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got (1990) by Sinead O’Connor on April 21.  This Special Edition will add a second disc of bonus tracks that include 2 previously unreleased Daniel Lanois-produced tracks (“Night Nurse,” “Mind Games”).  The set will be housed in a 6-panel digipak.

The debut solo album by Lynn Hilary (Celtic Woman) will be released on April 21.  It is being called Take Me With You and is being released by Manhattan Records.

Tooth & Nail Records will release a Rock title from As Cities Burn called Hell or High Water on April 21.  If you like Thrice, these guys may do the trick for you.  Check them out at their MySpace page.

Sparrow Records will release a 6-track S/T EP debut for the music of Danyew.  It is scheduled for April 21.

Other Sparrow Records releases scheduled for April 21 include Sweet Sweet Sound by Sarah Reeves, and Attention by Kristian Stanfill.

Astralwerks will release Walking on a Dream by Australian alternative duo, Empire of the Sun.  It is planned for release on April 21.

Century Media have a Lacuna Coil album on the calendar (yes, it’s April 21) titled Shallow Life.

Nuclear Blast will release the US version of The 13th Floor by Sirenia with three exclusive bonus tracks.  Again, we’re dealing with April 21.

Capitol Records have more Limited Edition vinyl LPs coming that include classic albums like: Sunflower (Beach Boys) – Remastered; Surf’s Up (Beach Boys) – Remastered; Live Peace in Toronto (Plastic Ono Band) – w/original 1970 spiral calendar; So Far, So Good…So What! (Megadeth) – w/gatefold jacket; Mama Tried (Merle Haggard); The Specials (The Specials); Stranded (Roxy Music) – w/new poster of cover included; Country Life (Roxy Music) – w/new poster of cover included; and three for Red Hot Chili Peppers (Freaky Styley; The Uplift Mofo Plan; Mother’s Milk).  All LPs will be pressed in 180g weight and are scheduled for – sit down for this – June 16.

And you were beginning to think that April 21 had all of the goodies.

Pearl Jam is in a class by themselves. With the release of their debut album, Ten, they positioned themselves as the premier talent defining the '90s. Packed full with great songs, this new reissue is the definitive representation with four versions.

The Library is making some very exciting music, showcased on their preceding 4-track EP whilst they cook up the real deal full length. But from what we've heard, we're gonna like the upcoming album quite a bit, maybe even more than that. Check out their music on MySpace (link in the review).