k.d. lang - Recollection (2010) 2CD / FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Since 2006’s Reintarnation chronicled k.d. lang’s alt-country beginnings, there was a need for a compilation that focused on her smoky prime, the recordings from Ingénue on, the recordings that turned her into a crossover star. Recollection, available as either a double-disc or a deluxe set that expands that pair with a disc of live recordings and a DVD of music videos, does just that, painting a portrait of lang the modern-day torch singer. In doing so, it repeats a little of Reintarnation, but even those tunes don’t quite possess the wild, almost campy retro-swing of lang’s early years. Nothing about Recollection is camp: this is all smooth and assured, accentuating lang’s nuance if not her range, and if this winds up being a little too streamlined, at least it offers a better overall introduction to lang’s music than her previous compilation. by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Tracklist 1 :
1     Trail of Broken Hearts 3:25
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
2     Constant Craving 4:37
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
3     The Air That I Breathe 6:14
Albert Hammond / Michael Hazlewood
4     Helpless 4:15
Neil Young
5     You're OK 3:03
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
6     Western Stars 3:14
Chris Isaak
k.d. lang feat: The Jordanaires / The Nashville String Machine      
7     The Valley 5:30
Jane Siberry
8     Summerfling 3:52
David Piltch / k.d. lang
9     Miss Chatelaine 3:49
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
10     I Dream of Spring 4:02
David Piltch / k.d. lang
11     Hallelujah 5:08
Leonard Cohen
Tracklist 2 :
1     Help Me 4:00
Joni Mitchell
2     Hush Sweet Lover 4:06
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
3     Beautifully Combined 2:43
Joshua Grange / k.d. lang
4     Crying 3:48
Joe Melson / Roy Orbison
5     Love for Sale 5:26
Cole Porter
6     Golden Slumbers/The End 4:17
John Lennon / Paul McCartney
7     Barefoot 4:17
Bob Telson / k.d. lang
8     Moonglow 4:34
Eddie DeLange / Will Hudson / Irving Mills
9     So in Love 4:35
Cole Porter
10     Calling All Angels 5:19
Jane Siberry
11     Hallelujah [New Version] 5:36
Leonard Cohen

k.d. lang and the reclines - A Truly Western Experience (1984) FLAC (tracks), lossless

Recorded for a small Canadian independent label, k.d. lang's debut album, A Truly Western Experience, didn't receive much exposure outside her homeland upon its initial release, and while it's a strong and confident piece of work, it also sounds like the product of an artist who was still figuring out just where she stood along the boundaries between pop and country. A Truly Western Experience is easily the most band-oriented album lang and her combo the Reclines would ever make; the group not only gets co-star billing, but pianist Stewart MacDougall even takes the lead vocal on one tune, "Up to Me," something that would never happen again on one of lang's albums. This edition of the Reclines was hardly the strongest group lang would ever work with (and guitarist Gord Matthews was the only musician who would still be on board when lang cut her major-label debut three years later), but the bandmembers are clearly sympathetic and their soulful blend of roots rock and country certainly plays to the sly side of lang's musical personality, and they can switch gears from the manic rockabilly of "Bopalena" and the lively country two-step of "Hanky Panky" to the slinky, blues-influenced "Tickled Pink" and "Busy Being Blue" with assurance. As for lang, she already had a superb voice and knew just what to do with it, but while there was usually a touch of irony in her approach to vintage country styles, the poke in the ribs threatens to leave a bruise on tunes like "Pine and Stew" and "Tickled Pink," and "Hooked on Junk" is easily the most self-consciously arty thing lang would cut prior to All You Can Eat, and not in a flattering way. In some respects, A Truly Western Experience sounds more personal and engaging than Angel with a Lariat, the 1987 album that introduced k.d. lang to an international audience, but by then she had a much clearer notion of where she was going with her music, and that's the one real flaw of her first album. by Mark Deming  
Tracklist :
1     Bopalena 2:30
Webb Pierce
2     Pine and Stew 3:25
k.d. lang
3     Up to Me 3:06
Stewart MacDougall
4     Tickled Pink 3:22
Stewart MacDougall / Gordie Matthews / Frank Scott / k.d. lang
5     Hanky Panky 1:59
Stewart MacDougall / Gordie Matthews / Frank Scott / k.d. lang
6     There You Go 2:23
Durwood Haddock / Eddie Miller / W.S. Stevenson
7     Busy Being Blue 4:00
Stewart MacDougall
8     Stop, Look and Listen 2:13
Patsy Cline
9     Hooked on Junk 3:35
G. Elgar
Credits :
Backing Vocals – Ian Oscar, Michael Shellard
Bass – Farley Scott
Drums – Dave Bjarnason
Guitar, Slide Guitar – Gord Matthews
Piano, Vocals – Stewart MacDougall (pistas: 3)
Producer, Organ, Engineer – Jamie Kidd
Producer, Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, Design [Cover Design] – k.d. lang
Steel Guitar – Gary Koliger

k.d. lang and the reclines - Angel With a Lariat (1987) FLAC (tracks), lossless

k.d. lang's first major-label album (and debut American release) was a bit of a switch from the polished retro-country of her best-known work; with Dave Edmunds in the producer's chair, Angel with a Lariat often sounds more like rockabilly or roots rock than classic C&W, with a big, snappy drum sound, plenty of guitars mixed upfront, and lots of slapback of lang's vocals (a production decision lang mentioned with little enthusiasm several years after the album came out). "Turn Me Around" and "High Time for a Detour" rock significantly harder than most of lang's body of work, and "Watch Your Step Polka," "Diet of Strange Places," and "Tune Into My Wave" find lang and her band (who are in fine form throughout) indulging her sly sense of humor, which tended to get lost in the shuffle on later albums such as Ingénue. While the production and arrangements tend not to focus on the subtleties of lang's voice (with the exception of the weepy closer, "Three Cigarettes in an Ashtray"), she's one heck of a belter on this set, with a set of pipes as big as all outdoors. And the cover of the old Lynn Anderson chestnut "Rose Garden" actually tops the original. Fast, fresh, and funny, Angel with a Lariat may not be k.d. lang's best album, but it's probably the best one to put on at a party -- it's got a good beat, and you can dance to it. by Mark Deming  
Tracklist :
1    Turn Me Round 3:13
Banjo – Keith Nelson
Written-By – Ben Mink
2    High Time For A Detour 4:09
Banjo – Keith Nelson
Written-By – Ben Mink, k.d. lang
3    Diet Of Strange Places 3:53
Steel Guitar – B.J. Cole
Written-By – k.d. lang
4    Got The Bull By The Horns 3:03
Written-By – Amos Boyd, Billy Jones
5    Watch Your Step Polka 2:01
Written-By – Dennis Marcenko, Gordon Matthews, Teadeuz Borowiecki, k.d. lang
6    Rose Garden 3:19
Written-By – Joe South
7    Tune Into My Wave 3:32
Acoustic Guitar [Additional] – Dave Edmunds
Written-By – Ben Mink
8    Angel With A Lariat 3:08
Written-By – k.d. lang
9    Pay Dirt 2:09
Written-By – k.d. lang
10    Three Cigarettes In An Ashtray 2:25
Arranged By [Strings] – Anne Dudley
Drums – Roy Dodds
Written-By – Eddie Miller, W.S. Stevenson
Credits :
Accordion, Keyboards – Ted Borowiecki
Backing Vocals [Background Vocals] – k.d. lang, the reclines
Bass – Dennis Marcenko
Drums – Miche Pouliot
Guitar, Lead Guitar – Gordie Matthews
Guitar, Mandolin [Electric], Violin – Ben Mink

k.d. lang - Shadowland (1988) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

On her first two albums, k.d. lang took a witty and playful approach to the sounds and traditions of classic country music, and while it was obvious she truly loved the music, she also seemed to be having a bit of fun at its expense at the same time. But in 1988, lang proved beyond a doubt that she was serious about country (as well as her own talent) with Shadowland, an homage to the polished countrypolitan sounds of the 1950s and '60s that was produced by Owen Bradley, the iconic Nashville producer who was behind the controls for many of Patsy Cline's most memorable recordings. lang herself sought out Bradley to work on the album, and luring him out of retirement proved to be a masterstroke; rather than try to re-create the lush textures and deep atmosphere of Bradley's sides for Cline or Brenda Lee herself, lang went to the source, and Bradley gave her studio settings that referenced his work during Nashville's golden era while adding an ever-so-slight contemporary sheen. Bradley also brought aboard an all-star crew of legendary Nashville studio hands and invited Loretta Lynn, Brenda Lee, and Kitty Wells to sing with lang on the closing "Honky Tonk Angels' Medley." In the hands of many artists, this sort of project might have been an exercise in misplaced, nostalgic fandom, but on Shadowland, lang taps into the sound and style of her most vital musical influences while at the same time putting her stamp on the music -- this isn't k.d. lang trying to be Patsy Cline, but rather lang demonstrating what she learned from Cline and where those lessons took her. lang's lush, expressive voice has rarely sounded better or more emotionally powerful than it does on Shadowland, and it presents her meeting the cream of Nashville's greatest era not as a wide-eyed acolyte, but as a gifted artist collaborating on equal terms. It's a magnificent achievement. by Mark Deming  
Tracklist :
1    Western Stars 3:12
Written-By – C. Isaak
2    Lock, Stock And Teardrops 3:28
Written-By – Roger Miller
3    Sugar Moon 2:26
Ukulele – Harold Bradley
Written-By – Bob Wills, Cindy Walker
4    I Wish I Don't Love You So 3:07
Written-By – Frank Loesser
5    (Waltz Me) Once Again Around The Dance Floor 2:35
Accordion – Tony Migliore
Banjo – Harold Bradley
Fiddle – Buddy Spicher
Written-By – Don Goodman, Jack Rowland, Sara Johns
6    Black Coffee 3:17
Written-By – Paul Francis Webster, Sonny Burke
7    Shadowland 2:28
Guitar [Gut String] – Harold Bradley
Written-By – Charles Tobias, Dick Hyman
8    Don't Let The Stars Get In Your Eyes 2:20
Written-By – Slim Wallet
9    Tears Don't Care Who Cries Them 3:03
Written-By – Charles Tobias, Fred Tobias
10    I'm Down To My Last Cigarette 2:46
Written-By – Billy Walker, Harlan Howard
11    Busy Being Blue 3:40
Written-By – Stewart MacDougall
Honky Tonk Angels' Medley    (2:55)
12a    In The Evening (When The Sun Goes Down)
Written-By – D. Raye, L. Carr
12b    You Nearly Lose Your Mind
Written-By – E. Tubb
12c    Blues Stay Away From Me
Written-By – A. Delmore, H. Glover, R. Delmore, W. Raney

k.d. lang - Absolute Torch and Twang (1989) FLAC (tracks), lossless

Absolute Torch and Twang was the last bona fide country album of k.d. lang's career, and while external circumstances may have forced her hand in exploring other musical avenues, this set suggests she may have already been headed that way. Absolute Torch and Twang is the definitive statement of lang's country period; by this time, she'd moved past the slightly kitschy Patsy Cline homages of her earliest work and developed a strong musical personality of her own, using her rich and supple voice to approach material both witty and heartfelt. lang's collaboration with producer and songwriter Ben Mink was reaching its peak as well, with the performances and arrangements hitting a superb grace note between polish and passion. lang's songwriting had matured, most notably on "Nowhere to Stand," a powerful number about child abuse, and she'd developed a knack for writing about misfits, both defiant and otherwise; as a Canadian lesbian vegetarian performance artist trying to work within mainstream country music, you have to know her heart was with the heroines of "Big Boned Gal" and "Wallflower Waltz." And while lang had embraced vintage countrypolitan sounds on Shadowland, Absolute Torch and Twang found her bridging a gap between Cline-style balladry and polished lounge styles on "Trail of Broken Hearts" and "Pullin' Back the Reins," and finding a comfortable home in the middle ground. While some fans were disappointed when lang retreated from country music on her next album, Ingénue, it's hard to imagine her (or anyone else) topping an album quite as strong as Absolute Torch and Twang. by Mark Deming  
Tracklist :
1    Luck In My Eyes 4:13
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
Claves [Clavé] – Graham Boyle
Slide Guitar – Greg Leisz
2    Three Days 3:18
Written-By – Faron Young, Willie Nelson
3    Trail Of Broken Hearts    3:26
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
4        Big Boned Gal 3:09
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
Bass [Bowed Basses] – Ben Mink, David Piltch
5    Didn't I    3:40
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
6    Wallflower Waltz 4:23
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
Acoustic Guitar – k.d. lang
Strings – Ben Mink
7    Full Moon Full Of Love 2:50
Jeannie Smith, Leroy Preston
Double Bass [Upright Bass] – David Piltch
Drums – Ed Thigpen
8    Pullin' Back The Reins    4:24
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
9    Big Big Love 2:29
Kenneth Carroll, Wynn Stewart
10    It's Me    2:20
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
11    Walkin' In And Out Of Your Arms 3:05
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
Spoons – Graham Boyle
Voice [Voices] – The Five Blind Boys Of Alabama
12    Nowhere To Stand 4:27
k.d. lang
Credits :
Acoustic Guitar – Ben Mink (pistas: 1 to 11), Gordie Matthews (pistas: 3, 10)
Arranged By [Strings] – Ben Mink (pistas: 3, 8, 12)
Bass – John Dymond (pistas: 1, 2, 4 to 6, 8 to 11)
Bass [Fretless] – Graham Boyle (pistas: 5, 8)
Drums – Michel Pouliot (pistas: 1 to 11)
Electric Guitar – Ben Mink (pistas: 4, 10), Gordie Matthews (pistas: 1, 2, 4, 5, 7 to 9, 11)
Lap Steel Guitar – Greg Leisz (pistas: 2, 7, 9)
Mandola – Ben Mink (pistas: 1, 4, 9 to 11)
Mandolin – Ben Mink (pistas: 6, 11)
Percussion – Graham Boyle (pistas: 3, 5, 10)
Piano – Michael Creber (pistas: 2, 3, 5, 7 to 10)
Steel Guitar – Greg Leisz (pistas: 3, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11)
Tambourine – Graham Boyle (pistas: 4, 9)
Violin – Ben Mink (pistas: 1, 4, 5, 7)

k.d. lang - Ingénue (1992) FLAC (tracks), lossless

On her early albums, k.d. lang was a country traditionalist with a difference -- while she had a glorious voice and could evoke the risen ghost of Patsy Cline when she was of a mind, there was an intelligence and sly humor in her work that occasionally betrayed her history as a performance artist who entered the musical mainstream through the side door. And while the three years between Absolute Torch and Twang and Ingénue were full of controversy for lang that may have encouraged her to seek out new creative directions (among other things, she came out as a lesbian and her outspoken animal rights activism alienated many fans in the C&W mainstream), the former album suggested lang had already taken her interest in country music as far as it was likely to go. Ingénue presented lang as an adult contemporary artist for the first time, and if she felt any trepidation at all about her stylistic shift, you'd never guess after listening to the record; lang's vocal style is noticeably more subtle on Ingénue than her previous albums, but her command of her instrument is still complete, and the cooler surroundings allowed her to emotionally accomplish more with less. lang's songwriting moved into a more impressionistic direction with Ingénue, and while the literal meanings of many of her tunes became less clear, she also brought a more personal stamp to her music, and the emotional core of "Save Me," "Constant Craving," and "So It Shall Be" was obvious even when their surfaces were evasive. And the production and arrangements by lang and her longtime collaborators Ben Mink and Greg Penny were at once simple and ambitious, creating a musical space that was different in form and effect than her previous albums but one where she sounded right at home. Ingénue disappoints slightly because while lang was a masterful and thoroughly enjoyable country singer, she was a far more introspective adult contemporary singer/songwriter who seemingly demanded the audience accept her "as is" or not at all. However, the craft of the album is impressive indeed, and few artists have reinvented themselves with as much poise and panache as lang did on Ingénue. by Mark Deming  
Tracklist :
1    Save Me 4:33
Acoustic Bass – David Piltch
Lap Steel Guitar – Greg Leisz
Tambura [Tamboura] – k.d. lang
2    The Mind Of Love 3:48
Steel Guitar – Greg Leisz
3    Miss Chatelaine 3:48
Strings [Guest Pizzicato] – Martin Laba
4    Wash Me Clean 3:17
Acoustic Guitar – k.d. lang
Acoustic Guitar [Solo] – Ben Mink
Electric Guitar – Ben Mink
Marimba – Gary Burton
Pedal Steel Guitar – Greg Leisz
5    So Shall It Be 4:29
Drum Machine [Beat Box] – Greg Penny
Guitar – k.d. lang
6    Still Thrives This Love 3:33
Acoustic Bass – David Piltch
Acoustic Guitar – Ben Mink
Cello – John Friesen
Clarinet – Myron Schultz
Mandolin – k.d. lang
Marimba – Gary Burton
Percussion – Sal Ferreras
Santoor [Santur] – Teddy Borowiecki
Strings [Guest Pizzicato] – Ingrid Friesen
7    Season Of Hollow Soul 4:56
Cello – John Friesen
Clarinet – Myron Schultz
Timpani – Graham Boyle
Vocals [Additional] – Rosel Zech
8    Outside Myself 4:57
Electric Bass [Fretless] – David Piltch
Keyboards – Teddy Borowiecki
Steel Guitar – Greg Leisz
Tambourine – Graham Boyle
9    Tears Of Love's Recall 3:48
Acoustic Guitar – Ben Mink
Cello – John Friesen
10    Constant Craving 4:38
Vocals [Additional] – Sue Leonard

k.d. lang - Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1993) OST / FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

By most accounts not a real album, k.d. lang's soundtrack to Gus Van Sant's adaptation of Tom Robbins' novel is a mostly experimental work, landing halfway between the torch songs of Ingénue and the country of her earlier albums. Most fans will find Even Cowgirls Get the Blues interesting, although they won't return to it often. by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Tracklist :
1    Just Keep Me Moving    4:42
2    Much Finer Place    0:57
3    Or Was I    3:07
4    Hush Sweet Lover    4:05
5    Myth 4:08
6    Apogee    0:37
7    Virtual Vortex    0:44
8    Lifted By Love    3:02
9    Overture    2:03
10    Kundalini Yoga Waltz    1:07
11    In Perfect Dreams    3:07
12    Curious Soul Astray    3:40
13    Ride Of Bonanza Jellybean    1:47
14    Don’t Be A Lemming Polka 2:17
15    Sweet Little Cherokee 2:48
16    Cowgirl Pride    1:47
Credits :
Accordion, Keyboards – Teddy Borowiecki
Banjo – Chris Stephens
Bass – David Piltch, Dennis Marcenko, Jeff Berlin, Less July, Mike Lent*
Cello – John Friesen
Drums – Randall Stoll
Flute – Steve Kujala
Guitar – Dean Parks, Greg Leisz
Guitar, Strings – Ben Mink
Percussion – Greg Wells
Performer [Music Performed By] – k.d. lang
Producer, Composed By [Music Composed By] – Ben Mink, k.d. lang
Saxophone – Lincoln Adler
Trombone – Tom Ralls
Trumpet – Ann Patterson

k.d. lang - All You Can Eat (1995) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

k.d. lang followed through on the promise of her adult contemporary changeover Ingénue with All You Can Eat. A more experimental and realized record than its predecessor, there are more daring production touches on All You Can Eat -- it's clear that she has been listening to contemporary pop, not just torch songs. It isn't immediately accessible -- the production is low-key, the melodies are gentle and subtle (although her cutesy, tongue-in-cheek song titles suggest otherwise), and lang gives a nuanced, sophisticated performance. Though it lacks a standout song like the aching "Constant Craving," All You Can Eat has a more consistent set of songs and, given time, is a more rewarding listen. by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Tracklist :
1    If I Were You 3:59
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
Keyboards [Additional] – Teddy Borowiecki
2    Maybe 4:11
Piano – Teddy Borowiecki
3    You're OK 3:03
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
Synthesizer – Teddy Borowiecki
4    Sexuality 3:24
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
5    Get Some 3:37
E-Bow [E-bow] – Ben Mink
6    Acquiescence 3:33
Piano – Teddy Borowiecki
7    This 4:02
Keyboards – Ben Mink
Piano – Teddy Borowiecki
8    World Of Love 3:44
9    Infinite And Unforeseen 2:57
Piano – Teddy Borowiecki
10    I Want It All 3:39
Keyboards – Teddy Borowiecki
Strings – Ben Mink
Credits :
Bass – David Piltch
Cello – John Friesen (pistas: 2 to 4, 6 to 8)
Drums – Randall Stoll
Guitar, Violin, Viola – Ben Mink
Organ – Teddy Borowiecki (pistas: 1 to 6, 8 to 10)
Percussion – Graham Boyle

k.d. lang - Drag (1997) FLAC (tracks), lossless

Returning, however tentatively, to the torch stylings that made Ingénue her most successful album, k.d. lang crafted an odd commercial comeback with Drag. A collection of covers that are somehow related to smoking, Drag is far more ambitious than the average cover record. She recasts Steve Miller's "The Joker" and the Hollies' "The Air That I Breathe" as slow, bluesy cabaret numbers, while traditional '50s pop like "Don't Smoke in Bed" and "Smoke Rings" act as seductive counterpoints. lang's rich voice and the measured arrangements make Drag a ringer for Ingénue in places, but the tone is considerably lighter and more humorous, which certainly makes it an enjoyable listen. Nevertheless, the very presence of a tongue-in-cheek, all-covers tribute to smoking is a little disheartening in the wake of the wonderful, if severely underappreciated, All You Can Eat, which found lang pushing herself forward. Drag, in comparison, can't help but sound like a retreat. by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Tracklist :
1     Don't Smoke in Bed 3:22
Willard Robison
2     The Air That I Breathe 5:58
Albert Hammond / Mike Hazelwood / Michael Hazlewood
3     Smoke Dreams 3:49
John Klenner / Lloyd Shaffer / Lois Steele
4     My Last Cigarette 4:09
Gary Clark / Boo Hewerdine / Neill MacColl
5     The Joker 4:44
Eddie Curtis / Ahmet Ertegun / Steve Miller
6     Theme from the Valley of the Dolls 3:02
André Previn / Dory Previn
7     Your Smoke Screen 2:29
David Barbe
8     My Old Addiction 6:39
David Wilcox
9     Till the Heart Caves In 3:30
T-Bone Burnett / Bob Neuwirth / Roy Orbison
10     Smoke Rings 3:36
Gene Gifford / Ned Washington
11     Hain't It Funny 6:23
Jane Siberry
12     Love Is Like a Cigarette 4:45
Walter Kent
Credits :
Orchestrated By [Strings], Conductor [Strings] – Jimmie Haskell
Vocals - k.d. lang

k.d. lang - Invincible Summer (2000) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The k.d. lang who played tribute to Patsy Cline seems a millennium away from the smooth, pop-infused chanteuse on this album. Glowing with happiness and lovey bliss, this lush album is dripping with the kind of bright, slick production that hasn't seen much light since the Brill Building's heyday. Swelling strings, electronic bubbles and warbles, and the occasional mandolin combine to create a sound that manages to evoke a warm feeling of nostalgia without sounding retro. Topping it all off is lang's smooth-as-maple-syrup voice, which shows even greater range than before, occasionally issuing the bell-like tones more often heard from fellow Canadians Jane Siberry and Sarah McLachlan. If there is a fault to this album, it's that it's too smooth; while the listener is surfing these waves of happiness and cushiony pop, an occasional desire for edges and bones surfaces. While "The Consequences of Falling," "Love's Great Ocean," and "Simple" are all fine songs, this recording also lacks the kind of hooky, knockout singles that have been featured on her best albums. by Stacia Proefrock
Tracklist :
1    The Consequences Of Falling 3:52
Guitar – Rusty Anderson
Guitar, Pedal Steel Guitar – Greg Leisz
Written-By – Steinberg, D'Ubaldo, Nowels
2    Summerfling 4:15
Arranged By [Additional Vocal Arrangement] – Alex Gifford, Propellerheads
Guitar – Smokey Hormel
Harp – Gayle Levant
Keyboards, Loops [Loop], Baritone Guitar – David Piltch
Mixed By – Rob Brill
Producer [Additional Production], Mixed By – David Kahne
3    Suddenly 3:32
Cornet, Synthesizer [Moog Bass Pedals], Baritone Guitar – David Piltch
Guitar – Abe Laboriel Jr.
4    It's Happening With You 2:48
Guitar – Smokey Hormel
Keyboards, Guitar, Mandolin, Whistle – David Piltch
5    Extraordinary Thing 3:35
Bass, Guitar – Abe Laboriel Jr.
Guitar – Jon Stewart
Harp – Gayle Levant
6    Love's Great Ocean 5:40
Cello – John Friesen
Pedal Steel Guitar – Greg Leisz
Violin, Keyboards, Viola, Arranged By [Strings] – Ben Mink
7    Simple 2:44
Trumpet – Jon Hassell
8    What Better Said 3;47
Drum Programming – Eric White
Guitar – Abe Laboriel Jr.
9    When We Collide 4:22
Arranged By [Brass] – Damian LeGassick
Guitar – Jon Stewart
Guitar, Vocals [Vocal] – Abe Laboriel Jr.
Trumpet – John Fumo, Jon Lewis, Rick Baptist
10    Curiosity    
k.d. lang
11    Only Love 3:52
Accordion – Teddy Borowiecki
Cornet – David Piltch
Drum Programming – Eric White
Guitar – Damian LeGassick
Credits :
Arranged By [Strings] – Damian leGassick (pistas: 1 to 5, 9, 11)
Bass – David Piltch (pistas: 1 to 4, 6 to 11)
Cello – Dan Smith, Larry Corbett, Suzie Katayama
Drums – Abe Laboriel Jr.
Guitar – Wendy Melvoin (pistas: 2, 4 to 6, 8 to 11)
Keyboards – Damian leGassick (pistas: 1 to 5, 7 to 11), Teddy Borowiecki (pistas: 2 to 6, 8 to 11)
Viola – David Stenske, Denyse Buffum, Vickie Miskolczy
Violin – Armen Garabedian, Berj Garabedian, Bob Peterson, Eddie Stein, Joel Derouin, John Wittenberg, Mario De Leon, Peter Kent

k. d. lang - Live by Request (2001) FLAC (tracks), lossless

Live by Request is a series of occasional television specials broadcast on the A&E cable network, conceived by Tony Bennett's son and manager Danny Bennett. It works well for musical artists with loyal followings and established catalogs who may no longer be at the forefront of the record industry but are anxious to promote new albums. Viewers and fellow celebrities call in carefully screened requests that allow the performers to revisit their old favorites and mix in some new ones. k.d. lang was a good choice for such a show, and here she becomes the first artist to use the Live by Request rubric for a corresponding album. lang usually makes concept albums with distinctive themes that can be quite different from each other stylistically and, of course, she moved toward an adult contemporary pop sound after beginning her career as a country singer, so her discography sometimes seems to be all over the map. By mixing songs from her different albums here, she is able to demonstrate the similarities in them, suggesting that the apparent diversity in her music is not as extreme as it might have seemed. Also, never having released a compilation, she compresses her catalog into an excellent introduction here. All that's missing is another important aspect of the Live by Request shows -- the spontaneous personal interaction they tend to provide between artist and audience. lang just goes from one song to another on the disc, never saying anything more elaborate than "Thank you so much" in between. No requests from fans are heard, no comments by the singer. In that sense, the album is just a straightforward (and somewhat cut and dried) live album, with none of the special flavor of the TV show. by William Ruhlmann  
Tracklist :
1     Summerfling 4:03
David Piltch / k.d. lang
2     Big Boned Gal 2:55
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
3     Black Coffee 3:44
Sonny Burke / Paul Francis Webster
4     Trail of Broken Hearts 3:19
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
5     Crying 4:32
Joe Melson / Roy Orbison
6     Don't Smoke in Bed 3:44
Willard Robison
7     The Consequences of Falling 3:55
Marie Claire D'Ubaldo / Rick Nowels / Billy Steinberg
8     Miss Chatelaine 3:25
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
9     Three Cigarettes in an Ashtray 2:52
Eddie Miller / W.S. Stevenson
10     Barefoot 4:20
Bob Telson / k.d. lang
11     Constant Craving 4:32
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
12     Wash Me Clean 3:50
k.d. lang
13     Pullin' Back the Reins 4:41
Ben Mink / k.d. lang
14     Simple 3:29
David Piltch / k.d. lang
Credits :
Backing Vocals – Amy Keys, Kate Markowitz, Windy Wagner
Bass – David Piltch
Drums – Abe Laboriel, Jr.
Guitar – Gregg Arreguin
Guitar, Pedal Steel Guitar – Greg Leisz
Keyboards – Teddy Borowiecki

Tony Bennett & k. d. lang - A Wonderful World (2003) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Tony Bennett has sung with k.d. lang previously, notably on his MTV Unplugged album, and the two have meshed well together, largely because of lang's willingness to sublimate herself to Bennett's approach. The same thing can be said of the two on this full-length duet album (which also contains solos -- Bennett is heard alone on "That's My Dream," lang on "A Kiss to Build a Dream On" and "That Lucky Old Sun [Just Rolls Around Heaven All Day]"). It isn't just that lang joins in on material more suitable to Bennett's style than to hers. This is an album on which the musicians are the members of Bennett's backup group (plus strings), recorded in Bennett's studio. But one never gets the sense that lang is restricted by the approach. She is sufficiently versatile, or chameleon-like, to sound like she's enjoying herself, just as she did earlier in her career when she was working with producer Owen Bradley in Nashville and singing traditional country. At 76, Bennett sings with an easy, casual style, never seeming to work very hard for his effects, and lang, in her vocal prime, deliberately complements him, though she never seems quite as comfortable. Although there is no indication other than an uncredited painting (by Bennett, of course) inside the CD booklet, this is a tribute album to Louis Armstrong, who recorded these songs over the course of his long career. That doesn't mean that there's a trumpet to be heard anywhere on the disc or that either of the singers tries to re-create any aspect of Armstrong's vocal style. It simply provides an organizing principle that the listener can notice or not. (Well, it's hard not to notice during the title song, with Bennett's references to "Satchmo" and "Pops.") Like Armstrong, Bennett and lang are trying to make the music sound effortless and unstudied, and to a large extent they succeed. by William Ruhlmann  
Tracklist :
1     Exactly Like You 3:17
Dorothy Fields / Jimmy McHugh
2     La Vie en Rose 3:23
M. David / Édith Giovanna Gassion / Guglielmi Luis Guglielmo
3     I'm Confessin' (That I Love You) 4:46
D. Dougherty / Al J. Neiburg / E. Reynolds
4     You Can Depend on Me 3:00
Charles Carpenter / Louis Dunlap / Earl Hines
5     What a Wonderful World 3:23
R. Thiele / George David Weiss
6     That's My Home 3:05
Otis T. Rene Jr.
7     A Kiss to Build a Dream On 3:25
Oscar Hammerstein II / B. Kalmer / H. Ruby
8     I Wonder 3:48
C. Gant / R. Leveen
9     Dream a Little Dream of Me 3:52
Gus Kahn / Wilbur Schwandt
10     You Can't Lose a Broken Heart 3:14
J.P. Johnson / F.E. Miller
11     That Lucky Old Sun (Just Rolls Around Heaven All Day) 4:36
Haven Gillespie / B. Smith
12     If We Never Meet Again 3:52
Louis Armstrong / Horace Gerlach
Credits :
Arranged By [Vocals] – Rob Mathes
Bass – Paul Langosch
Drums – Clayton Cameron
Guitar – Gray Sargent
Orchestrated By, Conductor – Peter Matz
Piano, Arranged By – Lee Musiker
Tenor Saxophone – Scott Hamilton

k. d. lang - Hymns of the 49th Parallel (2004) FLAC (tracks), lossless

In 1988, Stompin' Tom Connors, the most fiercely patriotic Canadian musician to ever take the stage in the land of the Maple Leaf, wrote a song in tribute to fellow Canadian k.d. lang for continuing to hang her hat in Alberta after enjoying a commercial breakthrough in the United States. It's hard to say what Stompin' Tom thinks about lang these days, now that she's an out-of-the-closet lesbian, an animal rights activist, and (gulp) spending most of her time in America, but it's a good bet he approves of Hymns of the 49th Parallel, in which lang turns her attention exclusively to the work of Canadian tunesmiths. Anchored by classic songs from Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, and Leonard Cohen (all of whom rate two songs each), Hymns of the 49th Parallel is not so much a flag-waving celebration of Canada as an appreciation of the often spare and evocative style of its best-known lyricists (or at least that's the case with the material on board), and lang and frequent collaborator Ben Mink have matched the selections with production and arrangements that are simple and to the point, with only a piano/bass/drums trio for accompaniment (though a string section pops in every once in a while). With her phrasing subdued and her projection scaled back from the big-as-all-outdoors sound of her early days, lang seems to have kept her own instrument in check as well, though her best moments still inspire a very real awe. Though lang has chosen some superb songs (and written a fine one herself in the album's only original, "Simple") and performed them with obvious love and affection, Hymns of the 49th Parallel seems oddly lacking in passion; perhaps in deference to the frozen North, this album has a cool and frosty undertow that seems designed to hold the listener at arm's length, despite the inarguable beauty of its craft. Perhaps for the follow-up, she should bring in Stompin' Tom for a duet on "The Hockey Song" to liven things up. by Mark Deming  
Tracklist :
1    After The Gold Rush 4:00
Written-By – Neil Young
2    Simple 3:01
Written-By – David Piltch, k.d. lang
3    Helpless 4:13
Written-By – Neil Young
4    A Case Of You 5:10
Written-By – Joni Mitchell
5    The Valley 5:29
Cello – Armen Ksajikian, Larry Corbett
Written-By – Jane Siberry
6    Hallelujah 4:57
Written-By – Leonard Cohen
7    One Day I Walk 3:23
Fiddle – Ben Mink
Written-By – Bruce Cockburn
8    Fallen 2:55
Written-By – Ron Sexsmith
9    Jericho 3:44
Cello – Armen Ksajikian, Larry Corbett
Drums – Clayton Cameron
Written-By – Joni Mitchell
10    Bird On A Wire 4:27
Written-By – Leonard Cohen
11    Love Is Everything 5:39
Written-By – Jane Siberry
Credits :
Acoustic Bass, Electric Bass – David Piltch
Arranged By [Strings], Conductor [Strings] – Eumir Deodato
Cello – Cecilia Tsan, Stephen Erdody
Contractor – David Sherr
Piano, Keyboards, Accordion – Teddy Borowiecki
Viola – Brian Dembow, Cynthia Fogg
Violin – David Stenske, Sara Parkins, Tiffany Yi Hu
Violin, Concertmaster – Ralph Morrison

k. d. lang - Watershed (2008) Limited Edition / FLAC (tracks), lossless

It seems very strange that Watershed is the first album of new -- as in self-penned -- material by kd lang in nearly seven years. Her last full-length, Hymns of the 49th Parallel, was a collection covers by fellow Canadians in 2004, and a compilation assembled from her country albums. Watershed also lists lang as producer, another first for the singer and songwriter. There are 11 songs here, including the beautiful single "Dream of Spring," that was released in December of 2007 and kicks off the set. There is a core band here that revolves around old friends Teddy Borowiecki (who not only plays organ, guitar, arranges strings, and does some programming, but also provides additional production in places), steel guitarist Greg Leisz, drummer Danny Frankel, bassist David Piltch (who also does some additional production), and some guests who include Ben Mink, trumpeter Jon Hassel, and Lynne Earls, who is also the recording engineer here. Lang plays guitars, banjo, piano, and assorted keyboards. There are bits and pieces of all of lang's best albums here. There is the elegance of Ingenue, the lush, restrained drama of Drag, and the earthiness of Shadowland with the contentment and joy of Invincible Summer. The songs are assembled as a sort of narrative. "Dream of Spring" opens with bluesy guitar, bass, and a drum loop that becomes a shimmering torch song with pedal steel guitar on its refrain. Lang's voice glides into a near swoon of longing from a reportorial, almost philosophical observation of places she'd inhabited before allowing herself to enter love openly and freely. The strings add a lushness that's in stark contrast with the steel, but it all works. While the song is sexy as all get out, there is a spiritual quotient in it; it's not enmeshed or entrenched. It's not desperate -- unlike some of the more blessed-out dream anthems on Ingenue.

"Comin Home" opens with a sparse, slightly jaunty pluck of strings, and lang simply croons right into them: "Oh, sweet sorrow/Let's write the book tomorrow/For I caught a glimpse/Been obsessed with it ever since/My eyes no longer weak amongst the clarity that you pronounce in me..." This is an homage, and perhaps even a love song, but it's a platonic one that is spiritual in nature, whose tenets are very close to the eight worldly dharmas in Tibetan Buddhism. Noam Pikelny's banjo adds a nice dimension to this track, adding itself to the growing presence of strings, simple percussion, Leisz's pedal steel, and a dreaminess that is rooted in the everyday life of what illumination looks like when it is as apparent as the blue of the sky. "Once in a While" is among the most straightforward and ultimately sane love songs to ever come from the tip of lang's pen. The wonderful chorus of backing vocals (all hers), with a simple drum loop, an array of guitars, and an underpinning bassline that glides rather than weights the tune through its changes. "Thread" certainly touches on the feel of the best material from Ingenue, and strangely enough, though it is basically a spiritual song, it's sparser than almost anything here -- and certainly more so than on her former album.

There is a small problem with Watershed (though on close reflection it reveals itself to be one of initial perception more than an actual flaw). Despite its wonderfully relaxed feel, an expert use of dynamics in individual songs, and the expert way of slotting different instrumental and stylistic elements next to one another and erasing the seams; it's that by about track six, "Close Your Eyes," the album seems to bleed into a whole, where the mood is so laid-back it makes one song more or less indistinguishable from another -- unless you are listening very closely. At under 39 minutes, it can simply go by you in a slow, dissolving blur. One reason is that lang doesn't stretch vocally the way she has in the past; there is a restraint in her vocalizing that is refreshing because nowhere does she over-emote and allow her natural mode of expression to handle the words, and she inflects enough heart (and only enough) to get the song across: she's not selling it, she's presenting it to the listener. That's new. She has a more disciplined approach to singing that's very attractive, but it is very different; one may mistake it for a kind of laziness on her part. On closer inspection, however, one can hear all the exceptions in these songs that prove this initial notion false. There's the single, of course, and the utterly steamy, jazzy, "Sunday," that feels like an afternoon of lovemaking; Borowiecki's vibraphone resembles Cal Tjader's light touch on the instrument, and the lithe, sinewy keyboard lines that intertwine and even embrace Piltch's basslines (acoustic and electric) are wan and hungry at once. "Flame of the Uninspired" is one place where lang allows her voice to go into its more readily expressive mode, and it's because the tune warrants it. "Shadow and the Frame" is a string heavy ballad where arrangement, and lang's harp (the classical one), bring that notion of travel, distance, reflection, and loneliness to the fore, but the words reveal something very different. Ultimately, it's simply that the sound on Watershed is defined, elemental to its songs. It carries itself with dignity and sensuality, and a sense of balance that none of her previous records have been able to achieve. It's a fine return for the artist, an album she will most likely be proud of years from now. Many of her fans will no doubt be delighted with this artful yet accessible return, and hopefully, those who embraced the younger, wackier, campy aspect of lang's persona will allow for the fact that there isn't anything close to that here. The overachiever has left the building; the seasoned artist remains. by Thom Jurek  
Tracklist :
1    I Dream Of Spring    4:01
k.d. lang
2    Je Fais La Plance    2:52
k.d. lang
3    Coming Home    3:26
k.d. lang
4    Once In A While    3:28
k.d. lang
5    Thread    3:38
k.d. lang
6    Close Your Eyes    4:26
Teddy Borowiecki / Greg Leisz / k.d. lang
7    Sunday    4:17
Teddy Borowiecki / k.d. lang
8    Flame Of The Uninspired    3:30
k.d. lang
9    Upstream    3:37
k.d. lang
10    Shadow And The Frame    3:08
Teddy Borowiecki / k.d. lang
11    Jealous Dog    2:32
k.d. lang
- Bonus Tracks -    
12    I Dream Of Spring (Live)    3:33
13    Wash Me Clean (Live)    4:07
14    The Valley (Live)    6:20
15    Hallelujah (Live)    5:08
All Credits

k. d. lang And The Siss Boom Bang - Sing It Loud (2011) Deluxe Edition / FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

k.d. lang turned her back on the country-influenced music that first earned her fame with 1992's Ingénue, and while she's been making consistently fine albums since then, lang's career has often seemed either eclectic or rudderless, depending on how you wish to look at it; she's made a series of albums that have jumped from one stylistic vantage point to another, never settling in one place for long, and while they all feature her genuinely remarkable skills as a vocalist and often impressive songwriting, one rarely gets a sense of stylistic growth from her work since Ingénue, if only because she seems to be starting from scratch each time out, without building on what she's done before. So 2011's Sing It Loud suggests lang is moving onto a new path that she plans to follow for a while; it features her working with a self-contained band, the Siss Boom Bang, for the first time since she dissolved her old combo the Reclines, and lang wrote or co-wrote all the songs (except for a cover of Talking Heads' "Heaven"), as well as co-producing the set with Joe Pisapia (formerly of Guster, who also leads the Siss Boom Bang). Since the album was recorded in Nashville and the band is heavy on guitars, and even features banjo and pedal steel, some have suggested Sing It Loud represent lang's belated return to country music; but if fact, it sounds more like the arty alt-country album she managed not to make in the '90s. This album is heavy with deep, mysterious melodic structures and arrangements that use country elements as signifiers, but more eagerly embrace a balance of traditionalism and joyful chaos as off-kilter noises and deep, echoing space punctuate the songs, with the results resembling nothing so much as Jay Farrar's post-Son Volt solo work. While the material suggests these similarities come from coincidence rather than design, lang and her new band do beat Farrar handily at this game; if the songs aren't as immediately memorable as her old country-style numbers, "Sugar Buzz," "The Water's Edge," and "Sorrow Evermore" are direct and purposeful in a way lang's music hasn't been in quite some time, and the music pushes her vocals in a direction that's fresh while still keeping one toe in the familiar territory she can draw on. Folks who were hoping Sing It Loud would be k.d. lang's return to the approach of Absolute Torch & Twang are going to be left wanting again, but if you've been eager to see her clear out a stylistic direction that's her own and make something of it, this album feels like a strong step in a bold, satisfying new direction. by Mark Deming  
Tracklist :
1    I Confess 4:25
Baritone Guitar, Resonator Guitar [Dobro] – Joshua Grange
Piano, Organ – Daniel Clarke
2    A Sleep With No Dreaming 3:31
Baritone Guitar – Joshua Grange
Organ, Glockenspiel – Daniel Clarke
Pedal Steel Guitar – Joe Pisapia
Recorded By [Additional Recording] – Lynne Earls
3    The Water's Edge 3:53
Baritone Guitar – Joshua Grange
Piano – Daniel Clarke
Ukulele, Mellotron – Joe Pisapia
4    Perfect Word 4:41
Drums, Percussion – Marc Pisapia
Keyboards, Pedal Steel Guitar – Joe Pisapia
5    Sugar Buzz 5:14
Drums, Percussion – Paul Griffith
Keyboards, Pedal Steel Guitar – Joe Pisapia
Piano – Tony Crow
6    Sing It Loud 5:25
Banjo, Mellotron – Joe Pisapia
Banjo, Pedal Steel Guitar – Joshua Grange
Organ, Piano – Daniel Clarke
7    Inglewood 3:30
Banjo – Joe Pisapia
Pedal Steel Guitar – Joshua Grange
Piano – Daniel Clarke
8    Habit Of Mind 4:13
Banjo – Joe Pisapia
Electric Piano [Fender Rhodes], Organ – Daniel Clarke
Pedal Steel Guitar – Joshua Grange
9    Heaven 4:10
Acoustic Guitar, Electric Piano [Fender Rhodes] – Daniel Clarke (2)
Slide Guitar – Joshua Grange
10    Sorrow Nevermore 3:33
Banjo – Lex Price
Bass – Daniel Clarke
Guitar [Tenor] – k.d. lang
Keyboards, Banjo, Mandolin – Joe Pisapia
Slide Guitar – Joshua Grange
11    Reminiscing 3:44
Organ – Daniel Clarke
Pedal Steel Guitar – Joshua Grange
12    I Am The Winner 2:25
Backing Vocals – Jennie Okon
Baritone Guitar – Joshua Grange
Organ – Daniel Clarke
13    Hollywood Kids 3:52
Baritone Guitar – Lex Price
Pedal Steel Guitar – Joshua Grange
Piano – Daniel Clarke
14    Hungry Bird 4:41
Bass Clarinet, Bass Trombone – David Ralicke
Guitar – Lex Price
Guitar, Piano – Joe Pisapia