ARTHUR RUSSELL Vinyl & CDs

Review: A posthumous release that furthers Arthur Russell's now legendary status. Recorded in Downtown New York City on December 20, 1985, it's an intimate, unedited solo live performance recorded at Phill Niblock's loft space known as Experimental Intermedia Foundation. The takes are very raw and unpolished that it makes you feel like one of the very few in attendance. 'That's the Very Reason' is a beautiful, tender experimental folk piece showing he needed very few materials in order to send listeners on a journey of transcendence. 'Too Early To Tell' is highly idiosyncratic and produces a sound not normally associated with cello. And 'Sunlit Water' has an oriental feel and provides beautiful resolve to a resplendent set.

Review: These legendary remixes of Arthur Russell's 'In The Light Of The Miracle' receive their first commercial release having long been deemed transcendent masterpieces and worthy of the title "holy grails." Clocking in at almost 30 minutes, these mixes fulfil long-held desires for their eternal presence in the music world, now accessible to every Arthur fan worldwide. Originally discovered by Phillip Glass for Another Thought in 1993, these remixes, overseen by Steve D'Aquisto, never saw a proper release until now. Both extending and enhancing the original, they elevate the music to new heights, defying genre labels and delivering pure sonic beauty.

Review: Where do you start with this epic collection? Arthur Russell should be no stranger to any music boffin, having been a tour de force on the New York underground during the 1970s and 80s. A maestro of disco, formative-era dance music, anything remotely avant-garde, despite having worked on some of the most iconic releases of the day, he only produced three albums before passing before time. "Iowa Dream" is what was left behind, or at least to some extent. Archived and - for years - never earmarked for release, thanks to the tireless efforts of composer Peter Broderick, this collection of demos, home recordings, and lost songs has been restored, edited and mixed, then carefully placed on this lovingly-conceived compilation. The result is a must-buy for fans and newcomers alike and will only serve to cement Russell's place in the pantheons.

Review: First released in 2004, nearly twenty years after much of the material was recorded in 1985, Calling Out Of Context reveals yet another facet of the ever-fascinating Russell, the New York polymath who defied generic categorisation even as he married pop melody and avant-garde abstraction in an aural outer space. This is an album that showcases the more melodious side of Russell's work, and for all the stylistic touches that may remind of its '80s origins, Russell's emotional voice and mercurial sleight-of-hand render these otherworldly ditties an experience unto themselves. An essential testimony of a talent never to be matched, yet also less a rarities collection than a dreamlike experience of considerable psychic charge.