Not a surf record, but a ski record – one recorded in a style that's very much in the best surf instrumental mode of the time – with guitars from Tommy Tedesco and Billy Strange, plus super-tight drums from the legendary Hal Blaine! Given the power of the group in the studio, the sound is plenty darn great – tightly focused and very well recorded at Gold Star Studios – with a sound that's arguably even better than most of the other straight surf groups on the market at the time. A few tracks are surf-styled versions of "winter" tunes – like "Canadian Sunset", "Sleigh Ride", "Baby It's Cold Outside", and "Winter Wonderland" – and others are originals, or familiar covers redone. Additional titles include "Avalanche", "Ski Surfin", "Winter Evening Nocturne", and "Midnight Sun". CD

One of the most iconic rock and roll shows of all time – the late 70s farewell to The Band – and quite famously, much more final concert by an esteemed band, it's actually a rock, pop, folk, blues and soul summit that features The Band as the house band. This landmark document of the event has always been one of rock's more opulent releases – but this 4CD box set edition nearly doubles the original 1978 release – including more tracks with Muddy Waters, Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, Dr. John – plus other previously unreleased Band-only tunes, rehearsal pieces and more. The last version of the Last Waltz you'll ever need! (Probably. . .right?) 54 tracks on 4CDs: "The From The Last Waltz", "Up On Cripple Creek", "The Shape I'm In", "Down In South New Orleans" with Bobby Charles, "Forever Young" with Bob Dylan, "I Shall Be Released (Finale)", "Rag Mama Rag", "Further Up The Road" with Eric Clapton, "Dry Your Eyes" with Eric Clapton, "Evangeline" with Emmylou Harris, "The Weight" with The Staples", "Caravan" with Van Morrison, "King Harvest (Has Surely Come)", "Shadows And Light" with Joni Mitchell, "This Wheel's On Fire", "Caldonia" with Muddy Waters and much more! CD

The fourth nearly flawless album of heavy genius from Black Sabbath – featuring some of the mightiest rock riffs ever! Vol 4 is just the tiniest of notches below Master Of Reality and Paranoid in overall greatness – which is the tiniest of possible complaints given that those previous two albums are among the few truly perfect rock and roll albums ever recorded! But this one has "Supernaut". Enough said. Other titles include "Wheels Of Confusion", "Tomorrows Dreams", "Changes", "FX", "Snowblind", "Cornucopia", "Under The Sun" and more. CD

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Quite possibly the greatest moment of genius ever from Black Sabbath – and a genre-changing record that influenced generations! The group are at their lean, raw best here – free from any cliches at all, and working in an incredibly heady brew of fuzzy guitar, romping bass, and dark drums – all topped by the instantly recognizable screech of the young Ozzy Osborne! Guitarist Tony Iommi virtually redefines rock use of the guitar with this record alone – and the Oz follows suit with some of the creepiest vocals set to record ever. Titles include the classics "Paranoid" and "Iron Man", plus "War Pigs", "Planet Caravan", "Electric Funeral", "Hand Of Doom", and "Rat Salad". CD

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Alice Cooper at his most sinister – crossing over big, but still keeping plenty of the lean, mean edge from the early days! The package does more than enough to live up to the hype that was building around Cooper at the time – building hip up as much as a baby-chopping monster as much as a hard Detroit rocker – and the album's filled with well-focused tunes that definitely helped propel hard rock into the American mainstream! Titles include the classic "No More Mr Nice Guy" – plus "Elected", "I Love The Dead", "Hello Hurray", "Sick Things", and "Billion Dollar Babies". CD

Pure early genius from Alice Cooper – a set that might not have been as big of a hit as some of his other early 70s albums, but which also shows the singer to be very much at the top of his game! Some of the tracks here follow familiar Cooper territory – sinister, hard-rocking energy with a no-nonsense approach – but there's also some deeper elements handled nicely by Bob Erzin – with qualities that now feel years ahead of their time, and maybe even an influence to later folks who never would have admitted such a link! Titles include the fantastic "Halo Of Flies" – plus "Under My Wheels", "Be My Lover", "You Drive Me Nervous", "Yeah Yeah Yeah", "Dead Babies", and "Killer". CD

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One of the crowning classics from the early years of Deep Purple – and a set that will forever be remembered for giving the world the classic rock anthem "Smoke On The Water"! Yet the record as a whole is even better – and is filled with some long-burning, hard-wailing tracks that easily put Deep Purple in the company of the heaviest groups of their generation – thanks to some killer contributions from Ritchie Blackmore's guitar! The whole thing packs a hell of a punch when taken in a full dose – from the start of "Highway Star", to the last notes of "Space Truckin" – and all the great in-between sounds from "Pictures Of Home", "Maybe I'm A Leo", "Never Before", "Lazy", and "Smoke On The Water". CD

Titles include "Brothers In Arms", "Walk Of Life", "The Man's Too Strong", "One World", and "Money For Nothing". CD

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Includes "What A Fool Believes", "Minute By Minute", "Sweet Feelin", "Open Your Eyes", "Here To Love You", "You Never Change", and "Dependin On You". CD

David Axelrod takes on Handel's Messiah – and the result is an amazingly complex set of music – very similar to his earlier albums on Capitol Records, and his Warner work with the Electric Prunes! If you love the Axe, you'll find plenty to love here – spare, dark orchestrations, often with a subtle hint of funk in the rhythms, some jazzy flourishes, and this bold sense of studio majesty that marks Axelrod as one of the most inventive producers of his time! The sound's one that gave birth to a whole generation of hip hoppers and beatheads – and the proceedings are conducted by Cannonball Adderley, with a feel that's similar to other Adderley/Axelrod high-concept sets – like Soul Of The Bible or Soul Zodiac. Titles include "Overture", "Worthy Is the Lamb", "Behold Recitative", "Comfort Ye My People", and "And The Angel Said Unto Them". (Jazz, Rock) CD

The title's a mouthful, but it's also a key calling card for the legendary Stereolab – a group who effortlessly compressed the space between the 60s and 90s with this major label debut – and set a course for mainstream music well into the 21st Century! After the space of many years, the set still blows us away – and really lasts a lot longer than most of the supposed classics by their contemporaries – proof that the group were always using the past to see far far into the future! And although they got their start in the indie world, they really used the platform of Elektra to refine and focus their message – instead of being swallowed in the maw of Warner Brothers, Stereolab take up the challenges of greater professionalism – and hone their skills to an impeccable edge, crafting beautiful little tunes that are every bit as compelling as the promise of the album's title makes them out to be! Titles include "Tone Burst", "Golden Ball", "Pack Yr Romantic Mind", "Paus", "Jenny Ondioline", and "Analogue Rock". CD