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Solid Air
''Solid Air'' is the fourth studio album by Scottish folk singer-songwriter John Martyn, released in February 1973 by Island Records. Background The album was recorded over eight days and features instrumental contributions by bassist Danny Thompson and members of Fairport Convention. "Solid Air", the title track, was dedicated to a friend of Martyn's, Nick Drake, who would die of an antidepressant overdose 18 months after the album was released. Martyn said of the track "It was done for a friend of mine, and it was done right with very clear motives, and I'm very pleased with it, for varying reasons. It has got a very simple message, but you'll have to work that one out for yourself." The album features an avant-garde cover of Skip James' "Devil Got My Woman", here retitled "I'd Rather Be the Devil" and performed with heavy use of Martyn's Echoplex tape delay effect. "May You Never" became something of a signature song for Martyn, becoming a staple of his live performances. Re ...
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John Martyn
Iain David McGeachy (11 September 1948 â€“ 29 January 2009), known professionally as John Martyn, was a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist. Over a 40-year career, he released 23 studio albums, and received frequent critical acclaim. ''The Times'' described him as "an electrifying guitarist and singer whose music blurred the boundaries between folk, jazz, rock and blues".Obituary: "John Martyn: guitarist and singer"
''The Times'', 30 January 2009, pg. 75.
Martyn began his career at age 17 as a key member of the British scene, drawing inspiration from American

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Nick Drake
Nicholas Rodney Drake (19 June 1948 – 25 November 1974) was an English singer-songwriter known for his acoustic guitar-based songs. He did not find a wide audience during his lifetime, but his work gradually achieved wider notice and recognition. MacDonald, IanExiled from Heaven. ''Mojo Magazine'', January 2000. Drake signed to Island Records when he was 20 years old and a student at the University of Cambridge. He released his debut album, ''Five Leaves Left'', in 1969. He recorded two more albums—''Bryter Layter'' (1971) and ''Pink Moon'' (1972). Neither sold more than 5,000 copies on initial release. His reluctance to perform live, or be interviewed, contributed to his lack of commercial success. There is no known video footage of the adult Drake; he was only ever captured in still photographs and in home footage from his childhood. Drake experienced depression, particularly during the latter part of his life, a fact often reflected in his lyrics. On completion of his th ...
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Omnibus Press
Omnibus Press is a publisher of music-related books. It publishes around 30 new titles a year to add to a backlist of over 250 titles currently in print. History Omnibus Press was launched in 1972 as a general non-fiction publisher to complement the sheet music published and distributed by its parent company Music Sales Group. Music Sales had launched a separate company called Book Sales Ltd and the earliest Book Sales catalogue, issued in the early 70s, included compilations of underground comic strips, art and photography titles and one of the earliest books on the then newly discovered art of video. After former ''Melody Maker'' music journalist Chris Charlesworth joined as Omnibus editor in 1983, it was decided to concentrate exclusively on music books, and among its earliest acquisitions was Rock Family Trees by music archivist Pete Frame which remains in print and have been the basis of two BBC TV series. Over the succeeding decades Omnibus has published many biographies ...
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Encyclopedia Of Popular Music
''The Encyclopedia of Popular Music'' is an encyclopedia created in 1989 by Colin Larkin. It is the "modern man's" equivalent of the '' Grove Dictionary of Music'', which Larkin describes in less than flattering terms.''The Times'', ''The Knowledge'', Christmas edition, 22 December 2007- 4 January 2008. It was described by ''The Times'' as "the standard against which all others must be judged". History of the encyclopedia Larkin believed that rock music and popular music were at least as significant historically as classical music, and as such, should be given definitive treatment and properly documented. ''The Encyclopedia of Popular Music'' is the result. In 1989, Larkin sold his half of the publishing company Scorpion Books to finance his ambition to publish an encyclopedia of popular music. Aided by a team of initially 70 contributors, he set about compiling the data in a pre-internet age, "relying instead on information gleaned from music magazines, individual expertise ...
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American Songwriter
''American Songwriter'' is a bimonthly magazine covering songwriting. Established in 1984, it features interviews, songwriting tips, news, reviews and lyric contest. The magazine is based in Nashville, Tennessee. History The ''American Songwriter'' staff concentrates on fulfilling the original objective of the magazine as set forth in the first issue in August 1984: producing an insightful, intellectually intriguing magazine about the art and stories of songwriting. ''American Songwriter'' covers all musical genres. Over the years, issues have featured Garth Brooks, Bob Dylan, Poison, Clint Black, John Denver, Smokey Robinson, Wilco, Bon Jovi, Willie Nelson, Billy Joel, Kris Kristofferson, John Mellencamp, Richard Marx, Drive-By Truckers, Paul McCartney, Elton John, Beck, Dolly Parton, Eric Clapton, R.E.M., Weezer, Death Cab for Cutie, Ryan Adams, Jimmy Buffett, Merle Haggard, Rob Thomas, Toby Keith, Eddie Rabbitt, Roger Miller, Public Enemy, Sheryl Crow, James ...
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Schlieren Photography
Schlieren photography is a process for photographing fluid flow. Invented by the German physicist August Toepler in 1864 to study supersonic motion, it is widely used in aeronautical engineering to photograph the flow of air around objects. Classical optical system The classical implementation of an optical schlieren system uses light from a single collimated source shining on, or from behind, a target object. Variations in refractive index caused by density gradients in the fluid distort the collimated light beam. This distortion creates a spatial variation in the intensity of the light, which can be visualised directly with a shadowgraph system. Classical schlieren imaging systems appear in two configurations, using either one or two mirrors. In each case, a transparent object is illuminated with collimated or nearly-collimated light. Rays that are not deflected by the object proceed to their focal point, where they are blocked by a knife edge. Rays that are deflected by t ...
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Don't Look Back (concert Series)
Don't Look Back was a yearly series of concerts in which London-based promoters All Tomorrow's Parties would ask artists and bands to play one of their seminal albums live in its entirety. The season started in London in 2005, and has since spread its wings further each year, appearing from 2006 onwards in America and Europe (ATP has hosted stages of Don't Look Back performances at Barcelona's Primavera Sound festival and the Pitchfork Music Festival in Union Park, Chicago), and in 2008 onwards in Australia. Previous Don't Look Back Seasons Below is a listing of the years in which each album was first performed as part of the Don't Look Back concept. Some albums have seen repeat performances at later dates, while others, such as Sonic Youth, Slint, and The GZA, went on to tour with the concept. Melvins, inspired by their performance of the album Houdini recorded a CD performing it live entitled A Live History of Gluttony and Lust. (Info sourced from,) 2005 * Belle & Sebastian †...
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All Tomorrow's Parties (music Festival)
All Tomorrow's Parties was an organisation based in London that promoted music festivals, concerts and records throughout the world for over ten years. It was founded by Barry Hogan in 2001 in preparation for the first All Tomorrow's Parties Festival, the line-up of which was picked by Mogwai and took place at Pontins, Camber Sands, England. Named after the song "All Tomorrow's Parties" by the Velvet Underground, the festival exhibited a tendency towards post-rock, indie rock, avant-garde music, and underground hip hop, along with more traditional rock fare presented in smaller venues than typical stadium performances. It was at first a sponsorship-free festival where the organisers and artists stay in the same accommodation as the fans. It claimed to set itself apart from festivals like Reading or Glastonbury by staying intimate, non-corporate and fan-friendly. Another difference was the line-ups being chosen by significant bands or artists, resulting in unorthodox events wh ...
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Slowhand
''Slowhand'' is the fifth full-length studio album by Eric Clapton. Released on 25 November 1977 by RSO Records, and titled after Clapton's nickname, it is one of his most commercially and critically successful studio albums. ''Slowhand'' produced the two hit singles "Lay Down Sally" and "Wonderful Tonight", reached various international music charts and was honoured with numerous awards and recording certifications. In 2012, a deluxe edition was released to celebrate the album's 35th anniversary. Recording Clapton wanted to work with record producer Glyn Johns, because he thought Johns produced great work with famous groups like the Rolling Stones and Eagles and understood how to work with both British and American musicians. While in the studio with Johns, Clapton noted that the A-list producer was very disciplined and disliked jamming, because it would kill important recording time. Although Clapton and his band were intoxicated nearly all the time when recording, Johns like ...
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Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is often regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s list of the " 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" and fourth in Gibsons "Top 50 Guitarists of All Time". He was also named number five in ''Time'' magazine's list of "The 10 Best Electric Guitar Players" in 2009. After playing in a number of different local bands, Clapton joined the Yardbirds in 1963, replacing founding guitarist Top Topham. Dissatisfied with the change of the Yardbirds sound from blues rock to a more radio-friendly pop rock sound, Clapton left in 1965 to play with John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers. On leaving Mayall in 1966, after one album, he formed the power trio Cream with drummer Ginger Baker and bassist Jack Bruce, in which Clapton played sustained blues improvisations and "arty, blues-based psychedelic pop". After Cream br ...
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Echoplex
The Echoplex is a tape delay effect, first made in 1959. Designed by Mike Battle, the Echoplex set a standard for the effect in the 1960s—it is still regarded as "the standard by which everything else is measured." It was used by some of the most notable guitar players of the era; original Echoplexes are highly sought after. The original tube Echoplex Tape echoes work by recording sound on a magnetic tape, which is then played back; the tape speed or distance between heads determine the delay, while a feedback variable (where the delayed sound is delayed again) allows for a repetitive effect. The predecessor of the Echoplex was a tape echo designed by Ray Butts in the 1950s, who built it into a guitar amplifier called the EchoSonic. He built fewer than seventy of them and could never keep up with the demand; they were used by players like Chet Atkins, Scotty Moore, and Carl Perkins. Electronics technician Mike Battle copied the design and built it into a portable unit; anot ...
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Devil Got My Woman
''Devil Got My Woman'' is the fourth studio album by American blues singer Skip James, released in 1968. It was his last record before his death in 1969. The title track is featured in the 2001 film '' Ghost World''. Reception AllMusic critic Scott Yanow wrote: "One can easily hear the influence that Skip James' music had on the then flourishing folk music movement, and he still sang his country blues with great intensity." Track listing Personnel *Skip James Nehemiah Curtis "Skip" James (June 9, 1902October 3, 1969) was an American Delta blues singer, guitarist, pianist and songwriter. AllMusic stated: "This emotional, lyrical performer was a talented blues guitarist and arranger with an impressive ... – vocals, guitar, piano References {{Authority control 1968 albums Skip James albums Vanguard Records albums ...
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