| Artist |
Title |
Description |
Buy
at Amazon USA or UK
|
Suggested
By
|
| Adventures
in Stereo |
Adventures
in Stereo (1st album) |
One
of the ultimate musical definitions of Dreambeat .... just get lost
in Adventures in Stereo,in the garden, in the country on a late summers
evening. You'll never want to wake up from the halcyon dreams of a
lost childhood this music draws you into. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Air |
Moon
Safari |
Apart
from a deceptively unimaginative album title which sounds more like
a cheap perfume, this is otherwise an ingenious blend of supersmooth
melody and psychedelic, thematic lounge.... "All I Need"
being one of the finest, deep cutting songs of the 1990's. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Air |
The
Virgin Suicides (sound track) |
Still
swimming in a sea of major/minor melancholy but no sign of the voices
from Moon Safari
which gave that extra dimensional edge... but still brilliant. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Alex
Reece |
various
(temporary generalization) |
A
general listing for a fine craftsman of sub atmospheres blended with
classy club syncopation, however the instrumental tracks take precedence
in this listing. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Allegri |
Miserere
Mei, Deus |
The
inclusion of choral works in these listings has nothing to do with
any religious context whatsoever. The point is that this ancient music
can produce some of the most stunning harmonics in the history of
creative sound ... and Allegri's Miserere is one of the most haunting,
moving and melancholic of such pieces. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Andy
Williams |
Music
To Watch Girls By |
Recently
rediscovered for a car commercial... but why can't fashion victims
enjoy past M.O.R for what it is, instead of it having to be reboxed
as trendy retro, lounge, cool? Reason is that a lot this type of music
including Bacharach
was considered nylon-polo-neck-naff during the afghan clad 60's and
70's but in fact Stairway-To-Heaven-Heads were subconsciously or secretly
loving it... but hey... er... man..., who would have dreamed of telling
your greasy mates then that you loved the new David
Cassidy single? |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Anna
Karina (with Serge Gainsbourg) |
"Anna"
(notably "Sous le Soleil Exactement" |
In
1961 Serge made a French TV film musical, which featured the acting
and musical talents of little known Anna Karina (by the way Anna played
one of the models in Blow Up). This soundtrack, which sounds incredibly
advanced for its time is truly a lost classic for those lounge trippers
out there, but has now been re-released. The Japanese import version
(thru amazon.com) comes with the original release artwork cover. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Apples
in Stereo |
Her
Wallpaper Reverie |
Beatle-ish
artists laced with West Coast feelgood flavours. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Art
Blakey |
Soundtracks
for "Des Femmes Disparaissent" and Les Liasons Dangereuses |
Ultra
cool, slightly quirky, catchy, thematic late 50's Paris jazz. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Astrud
Gilberto |
The
Girl From Ipanema |
Smoky
melancholy, sublime and distant. The fragile, unpretentious voice
of A Gilberto made famous by the cocktail classic The Girl from Ipanema. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| B52's |
Bouncing
of The Satellites |
More
bubbly but also more offbeat than their later "Loveshack"
commercial success. You could listen to Bouncing of The Satellites
driving along a coast road on sunny days forever ... Are you searching
for another great summer? |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Bach,
J.S |
Sonatas
and Paritas for solo violin. Performed by Arthur Grumiaux |
Grumiaux
was one of the finest violinists to ever record Bach. This is a double
CD treat. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Bach,
J.S |
General
|
These
Amazon links lead you to a selection of Bach CDs. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Bacharach,
Burt |
General
|
Yeah yeah... over the last few years
it's become very trendy to mention Burt...king of contemporary cool.
But strip away any pseudo references made and respect the quality
songwriting of Bacharach (and David) for what it is... he may become
"passé" in pretentious circles, but those with
unaffected taste can enjoy these songs forever.
|
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Beach
Boys |
Good
Vibrations / God Only Knows |
Both
of these classics are bound to be found on a Best Of... |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Biber
(Heinrich Ignaz) |
Violin
Sonatas |
Biber
was one of the greatest violin composers of the 17th century. Incredibly
imaginative sequential arrangements. Baroque with an unusually contemporary
feel. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Billy
Cowie - Lucie and Cathryn Robson |
La
Chanson Bien Douce |
25
Verlaine settings beautifully sung by Lucie and Cathryn Robson, written
by Billy Cowie. |
UK
|
L-G |
| Bobby
Goldsboro |
Summer
(the first time) |
Song
for a rainy day. Classic West Coast smooth emotional cheese with the
ultimate, tear jerking, 7 note piano hook. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Bonzo
Dog Doo Dah Band |
I'm
The urban Spaceman...and others |
Jolly,
jolly, jolly fun. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Bran
Van 3000 |
Drinking
in LA |
Classic
cool groove of the 1990's. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Brian
Eno |
Music for Films
/ Music for Airports
|
The
godfather of ambient who has been an influence to many sound shapers
and synth-heads. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Bulgarian
State Radio /TV Female Vocal Choir |
Le
Mystere Des Voix Bulgares |
If you have never experienced this amazing
cultural phenomenon of vocal harmonic / dynamic perfection, now is
your chance. Expand your view of world music... this is the first
stepping stone and it will astound you. Click through to purchase. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Byrds |
the
Notorious Byrd Brothers |
Definitive
60's soft psychedelia. Classic summer road music. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Cardigans |
First
Band on the Moon |
There
are one or two tracks which really stand out on every Cardigans album
so listen through. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Carol
King |
Its
Too Late (from the album Tapestry) |
A
song and a voice you can never ever tire of. Tapestry is a classic
album of the 70's but timeless due to its un-effected and transparently-produced
qualities... a perfect balance. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Carpenters |
Close
to You |
Songwriting
perfection from the Bacharach School of Smooth. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Cat
Stevens |
The
Best Of |
Covers
a fair chunk of his intelligent, outstanding repetoire. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Catatonia |
Dead
from the Waist Down (from the album Equally Cursed
and Blessed) |
Like
the Cardigans there is always a couple of great tracks to find on
every Catatonia album. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Chicane
|
Offshore
/ Early |
Drift
into it... past the dawn. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Cibo
Matto |
Sugar
Water (from the album Viva! La Woman) |
Cute,
groovy and underrated. Underscored with intelligent sampling and production
which is complimentary to the main vocals. |
USA
CD
|
L-G |
| Corrs |
General
|
From
one brother and three perfect sisters comes all-perfect-pop with the
central dreamvoice of Andrea Corr being one the finest and uncontrived
in the current mainstream... |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| David
Bowie |
Space
Oddity |
Some
of the lesser known acoustic tracks on this album need dusting down
and reintroduced to those who might never have realized how earthy
and sensitive Bowie's songwriting could be. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| David
Cassidy |
(from the best
of album Daydreamer) eg. "I am a Clown"
|
You
may well cringe, but take a moment to review the musicality of this
screaming teens 70's pop throb. Songs like these are sometimes rediscovered
during weak pop-writing-periods, such as the present. So they roll
out the 60's and 70's formulae and flatten a great song into a limp
cover version sung by boybands and girlbands with horribly forced
voices. Why not just buy and listen to the original and best versions
instead? |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| De
La Soul |
Three
Feet Deep and Rising |
Slowly
forgotten masterheads of hip hop. Brilliant feels, edgy rhythms and
memory churning sample usage. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Deee-Lite |
Groove
is in the Heart |
Still
sounds and looks great on video... What ever happened to them? |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Delius |
In
A Summer Garden |
Perfect
afternoon tea side dish with the cucumber sandwiches |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Diana
Ross |
Do
You Know Where you're Going To (Theme from Mahogony) |
Kind
of song balance which brings the best out of Diana Ross. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Dodgy |
Home
Grown |
Songs
that, when played years on make you feel like the mid 90's was like
the mid 60's Summers of Love. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Dominique
Durand - from the band Ivy |
"Worry
About You" from the album Long Distance |
db
listing - top music choice
Ivy are a lo-fi gem from New York who have slipped almost unnoticed
into the top ten of favourite background music for tv shows and movies.
"Worry About You" is an outstanding offering from the band's album
"Long Distance", and surpasses even much of their probable influences
such as Portishead etc. Ivy make it into this listing on that one
track alone, but what gives them a place on the top of the Dreambeat
Essentials is Paris born singer Dominique Durand ... An ultimate
dream-voice laced with pure pop melancholy. Simple, sultry - radiating
natural, liquid-emotion. Classy, without sounding over-trained or
contrived … Anna Karina, Francoise Hardy, Stereolab and a touch of
St Etienne instantly spring to mind....
...read
the rest of this Looking-Glass review |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Doors |
Riders
on The Storm / Light My Fire |
With
tracks like these never close The Doors behind you... |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Dreambeach |
Angels
Cry |
Dreambeach
are a dreambeat style, and refreshingly unpolished duo originally
discovered on the old MP3.com website. You can now buy their albums
via their own website. |
USA
|
L-G |
| Dusty
Springfield |
The
Look of Love |
Bacharach/David
masterpiece... the finest swansong for Dusty Springfield. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Elephants
Memory |
Old
Man Willow (from the soundtrack of Midnight
Cowboy) |
Eerie
psychedelic with an assorted arrangement of key and swing changes.
This is on the Midnight Cowboy soundtrack mainly by John
Barry. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Everything
But the Girl |
Eden
/ Love Not Money |
Both
these early albums shouldn't be forgotten since there are one or two
choice tracks between them both (UK Eden, USA Love Not Money as Eden
not available in USA). |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Fairport
Convention |
Meet
on The Ledge (Box Set) |
A
best of compilation which reflects the acid folk era in its best form. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Francoise
Hardy |
Le
Temps De Lamour / Comment Te Dire Adieu |
Unique
blend of distinct '60's French cool and offbeat melancholy, contemporary
pop. A little delicate around the edges, (which gives it such an endearing
dreambeat charm) |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Future
Sound of London |
Dead
Cities |
Clever
use of the musical canvas creating tonal perspectives to a very high
standard with no noticeable naff synth sounds. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Gary
Lucas |
Skeleton
at The Feast |
Includes
live soundtrack performance to Galeens gothic fantasy horror. See
The Golem
in film section for details or visit Gary
Lucas website |
USA |
L-G |
| Gibbons
(Orlando) |
General
|
Not
the "lets all join in hymns"... no way! but the alternativechoral
and instrumental compositions. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Glen
Campbell |
The
Witchita Lineman |
A
classic outstanding song striking all the right dreambeat harmonics. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Gong |
I Never Glid Before / Castle in the Clouds (from the
Album Angels Egg) |
A
quircky, bizzare musical off-roader refelecting UK and Europe's hive
of contemporary activities in the early seventies. Also an effective
guitar intermission by Steve Hillage. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Gordon
Lightfoot |
If
You Could Read My Mind / Daylight Katy / The Circle is Small |
Unfortunately
you won't find all these songs on one album... but we will guide you
to the best options on the click through... |
USA
CD1
CD2
UK
CD1
CD2
|
L-G |
| Grieg |
Peer
Gynt |
As
they say, no sensible classical collection is complete without this. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Handel |
General
|
The
dreambeat music listing generally doesn't go in for huge, raging orchestral
symphonies. Chamber works and solo pieces are preferential. Keep that
in mind when exploring Handel and other composers here. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Hefti |
Theme
from The Odd Couple |
ditto
description as Taxi. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| hJuliana
Hatfield |
Spin
the Bottle - from the album "Become What You
Are" |
Great
lyrics, guitar parts - bubbly beats and whirly tunes mixed with shades
of giddy US grunge. Juliana has the sweetest voice, which completes
a perfect equation of sublime girl-guitar-popdeliciousness! Ooh behave! |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Holst
|
The
Planets (Venus, the bringer of Peace) |
Holsts
masterpiece... but Venus stands alone as a the celestial body of eerie
emotion. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Hooverphonic |
2wicky |
Belgium
Subultracool drum n' bass team, which takes the best of all ambient
worlds with a splash of Portishead. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Isis
Project |
The
Isis Project - Guy Chambers and Sophie Hunter |
The
Isis project was released in mid 2005 and sung by UK based actress
Sophie Hunter, the niece of Jane Birkin.
Playing this CD from the beginning, the album promises to be a consistently
beautiful collection of tunes, written by Guy Chambers, that strongly
reflect the style and textures of 60's French singers, such as Francoise
Hardy, Anna Karina and Birkin herself. The first two tracks, 'Chère
Isis' and 'Les Amants d'Edimbourg' reflect this genre perfectly, but
by the third song the music bizarrely falls flat into an amateurishly
produced collection of meandering, self-absorbed, and often over-flourishing
compositions.
Programmed with a hotchpotch of uninspiring drum and synth samples,
the remaining tracks give the impression of scratch-pad demos rather
than professionally arranged studio productions.
The only thing that saves the remainder of this album is Hunter's
truly beguiling voice. What on earth went wrong with the direction
of this album after the first two tracks is anyone's guess, but the
Isis Project could so easily have been one of the finest concepts
of its kind to be released this decade. Buy the album all the same,
because along with a beautifully designed CD casing, the first two
songs are worth every penny, but the spell may easily be broken if
you play the rest. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
|
Jacky
|
White
Horses |
Surreal,
anomaly yet with rather cheesy "children's hour" vocals. |
USA
CD
|
L-G |
| James
Taylor |
Fire
and Rain (From the album Greatest Hits) |
Songs
in the same perfect melting pot as Carol
King. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Jan
Garbarek and The Hilliard Ensemble |
Parce
mihi domine (from the album Officium) |
The
follow up album to Officium is embarrassingly naff and should not
be put in context with this original experiment in ancient choral
/ jazz fusion production which worked very well. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| jAntonio
Carlos Jobim |
General
|
The
master of pink champagne lounge although be selective because he,
also, can go a bit heavy on the cheese. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| jBob
James |
Theme
from Taxi (Angela) |
There
are few TV themes which capture the ambience as a prelude to the program
itself...this is one such theme which does exactly that. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Jethro
Tull |
Life's
A Long Song EP |
A
period when this band where still relatively unaffected by over flashy
musology and still delivered emotional and heartfelt melodic textures.
(can only find "Life's A Long Song" most of Tull's stuff
after '79 misses the mark). |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Jimi
Hendrix |
Electric
Ladyland |
Only through the free spirit in Hendrix can true soul inspired guitar
artistry make sense... .It also confirms why so many third rate twiddly
fiddly rock lead guitar players down the pub just don't get it...
do they. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Jimmy
Smith |
A Walk on the
Wildside / The Organ Grinders Swing
(both featured
on the Compact Jazz album)
|
The
best and most dynamic interpretation of the Elmar Bernstien masterpiece.
A top down, October evening drive down to St Tropez.... turn it up
loud... Hammond heaven....mmm.... nice. "The Organ Grinders Swing"
will now be known to those familiar with the Renault Clio adverts.
|
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Jocelyn
Pook |
All
works |
Jocelyn Pook's assemblage of musical
perfection is achieved through intelligent use of sampling, intuitive,
flowing song structures and her own beguiling dream-girl voice.
This sonic montage exhibits incredibly imaginative drama and melancholy,
both light and shade. In fact nearly everything euphoric about genuine
musical emotion is derived through her works. Extraordinarily harmonious
with the core essence of the dreambeat definition. See also her
acclaimed soundtrack for "The Merchant of Venice"
|
USA
UK
CDs
Untold
Things
Flood
Blow
the Wind
|
L-G |
| John
Barry |
The
Best of... |
Well,
you can't have too much of a good thing. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| John
Barry |
Theme
from The Persuaders |
Classy,
super-cool, fantabulous theme of themes. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| John
Ireland |
General
|
Both
Ireland's early piano and chamber works are worth exploring... some
more accessible than others. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| jQuincy
Jones |
$
(The Heist) soundtrack |
Lost
classic, which is bound to be "rediscovered" by trendy media
spotters at some point... and thereby used in a car commercial as
has Bulitt and Jimmy Smith. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Julie
London |
Cry
Me A River |
Smoky,
sultry queen of cool lounge jazz. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Kaoma |
Lambada |
Forget
the holiday fever hype surrounding this track... the song itself was
really sooo cute. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Kate
Bush |
Wow
/ The Man With The Child in His Eyes |
The
Whole Story, (being "the best of") has these and a couple
of other memorable tracks. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Led
Zeppelin |
L-Z
III side two tracks 1 to 3 |
A
set of deeper, real and refined melancolic accoustic songs which seem
to have otherwise gone over the heads of the usual Stairway to Heaven
brigade. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Leftfield |
A
Final Hit... etc |
Headphones,
horizontal, summer night, empty field. Stir emotions with stunning
tracks like A Final Hit. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Lenny
Kravitz |
Mr.
Cabdriver (from the album Let Love Rule) |
Scratch
pad song of which its rehearsal studio style rawness makes it tireless. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
|
Lightning Tree
|
The Settlers |
Can
only be described as a song joined at the hip with
White Horses. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| Liquid
Alice |
(theme
from) The Liberec Affair / on Eclipse |
Retro
but timeless classic reminiscent of the 60's 70's cold war romance
themes... On Eclipse produces atmospheric filtrations and sonically
well animated title description. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| LL
Cool J |
Walking
With A Panther |
Back
track rapping with Cool... when mobile phones were the size of riding
boots. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
| lMichel
Legrand |
Theme
from Summer
of '42 |
Michel
Legrand's sensitive composition which melts in your mouth. |
USA
UK
|
L-G |
dreambeat
listings
essential mix