Album Reviews

Los Lobos’ benchmark 1992 album Kiko reigns supreme on its 30th anniversary tri-gatefold 3LP Record Store Day set that features an expanded 2LP version of the original album plus a bonus third LP of outtakes and studio jams. Read Mark Smotroff’s review to see why you need to find a copy of this special 3LP edition of Kiko for your collection, ASAP. . .

Still raw from 9/11? It's difficult to believe a decade has passed. So imagine this Louis Armstrong concert from 1956. For most of the audience, and for much of America, except for the "Baby Boomer" youngsters too young to remember, World War Two and the enormous human toll it took on families across the country was still a current event.

While Four Sail was an obligation owed to the old label (Elektra) after Lee had signed a new contract with Blue Thumb, and while Lee shows signs of losing his muse, the album has actually added luster over the years, as in hindsight, the brilliance of Lee’s eclectic, restless mind comes through with greater clarity, even as the originality hangs mostly on his arranging skills.

Todd Garfinkle’s simply miked, spacious-sounding 96K DAT recordings have earned him a following among audiophiles, even though most of the music Garfinkle prefers to record is anything but traditional audiophile fare.