Reviews

I have always been on a quest for the perfect pillow. My husband teases me that I am a pillow addict with my collection that I have now. I ordered this pillow because it was way out of my norm. And it was a good risk. My neck problems went away and I am sleeping through the night. But there are a few things you will need to get used to. You can't flop down on the pillow like a fiber filled one. It doesn't give like that. The filling is made up of those little beads you find in a bean bag. It has a soft and stretching covering. Sometimes during the night the beads have shifted to the top of the pillow and I need to push them back into place but I have gotten used to it now so I am not aware that I even had to do it. This pillow is a good purchase but understand that it takes some getting used to.

This is by far the worst pillow I have ever had the displeasure of owning. I read some of the reviews and was really looking forward to finally having a good nights sleep. This pillow is like sleeping on packed down sand. It is so hard and uncomfortable my neck and shoulder actually hurt more the next day. I will be sending it back immediately. P.S. the first pillow that arrived had a broken zipper on the cover, I should have taken that as a sign. If you want a good nights sleep - DO NOT BUY THIS PILLOW!!!

I bought the pillow for my husband and he loves it. Gives him great support. Highly recommend!

started out alot harder than i thought. after a month now much more comfortable and better support. It's not what i thought it would be, but better than a standard pillow. still trying to decide if i liked my foam contour pillow better or this one. If it breaks down much more ill go back to the foam.

After 1 year of daily use, I can claim that this is the best pillow I have used ever! Very comfortable, and durable. Pillow cover that comes along with it is useless though.

Reviews

I have a Chamilia necklace and this is perfect for it. It was very inexpensive and looked great for the purpose I purchased it for. I ordered several at a time and had a problem with one but it was easily fixed.

Reviews

Most of my life I've always deeply admired Laura Nyro's work. Before Joni and Paul (Simon) Laura was out there doing her own thing with the jazz and R&B music she loved and combining them into these little pop masterpieces. With albums like Eli & The 13th Confession (Exp) she was doing it pretty much to death. On this album things get a little different. She knew her earlier stuff was making a killing for the Fifth Dimension and,by this time for Babs. Here Laura is just creating her art and reveling in what was inside her. Miles had done it,and so had many other people who valued their art. Because she was also one of several handfuls of pop artists in her era who knew an awful lot about music and on "Brown Earth","Upstairs By A Chinese Lamp","Map To The Treasure" and both "Beads Of Sweat" and "Christmas In My Soul" with their impressive piano work that is just what comes out;the chordal voicings and quality of the reverb create this stripped down soulful kind of ambience that,while they seek a certain type of lyrical expansiveness are beautifully non sentimental. She's doing longer songs here and with the extended runs,sometimes into 8 minutes she's able to expand her dynamics and harmonic range. "Been On A Train" is a really tragic story.I am not sure whether it's from first hand experience or not but it's riveting non the less-kind of a tone poem. "Brown Earth" links that ethereal quality with her pop smarts together with this great bass layoring at the end. On "When I Was A Freeport And You Were The Main Drag" and "Blackpatch" she's more in her uptempo,horn fueled jazzy pop/R&B vein with a somewhat more happier tale where her less then known sense of humor comes out. Miles Davis described Laura is rather shy and,even unlike my folks who saw her in concert I don't know for sure but it's apparent she keeps her emotions largely in check-saving them largely for musical expression. There's an R&B cover here that anticipates her next work Gonna Take a Miracle (Exp) to a degree with "Up On The Roof" where she takes the R&B classic and Laura-fies it with her pleading,slow drag she's so great at. This is of course her least remembered album of her early career and isn't everyone's favorite. At the same time,in terms of her coming not only of age musically this album takes yet another couple steps for sure and is perfect for anyone interested in the art of great pop music.

The service was great!! I got the item i oprdered in less than a week!

This is my favorite Laura Nyro album, a favorite among favorites. Many cite New York Tendaberry as her best work but for me that album is less accessible, whereas the songs on Christmas blend together better. That's just my two cents, of course, but I would say that this is not only my favorite Laura Nyro album, it's my favorite album, period. That's not the main reason for this review, however. I bought the CD thinking that it was a remastered version since Amazon lists it as being released in 2008. In case anyone is interested, this is exactly the same recording as the original CD issued several years ago so if you have that one, don't bother buying the 2008 release. And as for Ms. Nyro - if you like her works and don't have this particular album, by all means get it. You will not be disappointed.

This is another overlooked gem by Laura Nyro. I think I prefer her version of Carole King's "Up on the Roof" more than I do King's or James Taylor's. The subtitle to the title written on the CD is ("Laura Nyro Accompanying Herself on the Piano") and thus is similar in style to the "New York Tendeberry" album in that the performances are intimate - just Laura on piano, her voice, from tender to raging, yet the album isn't quite as dramatic as "New York Tendeberry." Every song is a standout - especially "Brown Earth," "When I Was a Freeport and You Were the Main Drag," "Blackpatch" and "Been on a Train" reminiscent of the intensity of the Eli and Tendeberry albums, and "Upstairs by a Chinese Lamp," "Beads of Sweat" and "Christmas in My Soul." I have to say this about all Laura Nyro and her albums, especially the early ones with which I am most familiar. Laura is one of the most overlooked and greatest of the female "confessional, "poetic" and hit making songwriter/singers of that generation. She belongs up there among the best, with Joni Mitchell, Carole King, Judy Collins, Phoebe Snow, Janis Ian, Roberta Flack and Rickie Lee Jones. I was shocked that Sheila Weller's book "Girls Like Us: Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon--and the Journey of a Generation" included Carly Simon and not Laura Nyro. No offense to Carly Simon, but Simon didn't come anywhere close to the talent of Laura Nyro in songwriting ability, or in Laura's searing, idiocratic, distinct, unique and heartbraking, haunting and unforgettable singing voice. As Nick Drake rightfully has been, Laura should be rediscovered and listened to intently for anyone who likes these other singers. She'll have you listening intently with your eyes closed, or about to get up sing, shout and dance along with her.

I first heard Laura Nyro when I was in my second year of high school. I was listening to an AM station and they were playing Laura's single "Up On The Roof." I thought it was wonderful. I knew of her for a couple of years as a songwriter for selections of the 5th Dimension and other artists but this was the first time that I had heard her sing. Someone that I knew told me that she had this album so I borrowed it. I loved it from the first time I listened to it. It also became the first of Laura's albums that I would buy. My favorite selections are "Upstairs by a Chinese Lamp" and "Map to the Treasure." The lyric to "Upstairs" give you such detail of what is going on and it makes you feel as if you are right in the scene. The vocals are perfect for the song and the instrumentation flows beautifully throughout the song. The wondrous moment comes when Alice Coltrane comes in with the harp and you are now transformed into the song "Map to the Treasure." It is not something you can stop. You have to stay for "Map" and hear it out. It starts slowly with two short verses and then Laura's piano work begins to take you on a journey as it starts slowly and begins to pick up the tempo as it goes until the crescendo where she starts singing again and you are totally hooked to it. The tempo has become very fast as you feel as though she is singing to you saying "Take my hand now." You can't let go and then the tempo slows and she repeats the first verse and close with the fading piano. You think you hear the last note and then there a few addtional short notes that close the song. "Up on The Roof" is a fresh version from the faster paced versions of the early Sixties. Carole King did a slower version on her album "Writer" and maybe Laura heard this version and used it as a basis for the slower tempo. This was the only Laura Nyro song that I ever heard on AM radio at the time and I never have heard it on FM stations. The song "Christmas in My Soul" is a beautiful tribute to some of the troubles of the time. Unfortunately it also dates the album but it is a strong testament of the times. "Brown Earth" is a great opener and then "Freeport" and "Blackpatch" come in followed by the haunting "Been on a Train." "Train" was also a testament of the times as deaths from heroin use were becoming epidemic. "Beads of Sweat" is a rocket paced tune not unlike "Eli's Comin'" from her earlier album. Like "Eli" it starts off slowly and then picks up a very fast pace with a great electric guitar along with Laura's piano playing. I highly recommend this recording to any fan of Laura Nyro. Laura has stood the test of time and never received the recognition that she deserved but maybe her songs by other artists that were played on the radio then and now gave her enough satsisfaction since recording a song written by someone else is a great reward in itself. Thank you Laura, you were a great writer and you are missed.

Reviews

I heard a review of The Glass Bead Game on National Public Radio and was very interested. It is an excellent counterpoint to my traditional classical collection in the care. The Piers Moktan review above nails it.

James Blackshaw is just so good that every time he releases something new I know I have to get it. And every time I introduce him to a friend I make a new convert. And so the word spreads, slowly but surely. So now Michael Gira has signed him upto his Young God label, and here Blackshaw builds on the move he made towards greater instrumentation on the excellent Litany of Echoes. It's still about 12 string virtuosity, and he's still innovating - surpassing all the great masters in my opinion. But this time the guitar playing is complemented by beautifully captivating choral arrangements, piano and cello. The tracks on The Glass Bead Game fulfill that greatest of musical accomplishments - they transport you to another place - they transform your state of being. I have no doubt I'll still be listening to this in 20 years time just as I have with John McLaughlin's Shakti. This is utterly brilliant music that deserves to find a diverse audience amongst lovers of disparate musical forms. Acquire a copy and enrich your life!

Reviews

if you grew watching the Ed Sullivan show, Garry Moore, Perry Como or other variety shows, this is the kind of music that you heard. This foursome does a nice job of blending there harmonies with big band music and backup singers. Its pre-Beatles music at its finest.

I grew up listening to this Album with my parents. After many years I still remember all the words and putting this CD in my changer brought back a flood of memories. Quality is better than the album, and the sound is great....I recommend it :)

The Kirby Stone Four,four messengers sent before Pop music and Rock music was even born to give notice to everyone of the approach of Pop music and Rock music to others.These 4 guys and gals never knew it at the time but they were one of the first Pop/Rock bands of the 1950's.They took the song,"Baubles,Bangles and Beads" to number 30 on the hits chart in 1958.However due to radio station politics at the time,this song was probably shunned from the airwaves on many radio stations because of its "different" sound and should have climbed higher on the charts.I honestly believe if this song was re-released by the KS4 today it would climb to number 1 on the Pop charts...the song is that good and sounds even better today than it did back in 1958.The lyrics,"Ring jing a ling,ring jing a ling will be in your head all day after you listen to this song in stereo.The women who sang on this album received no credit but they too are members of The Kirby Stone Four,along with the Four members of KS4 and sound super!The rest of the songs on this CD are also in stereo and sound fantastic."Zing!Went the strings on my heart" and "Whispering" also stand out as great tunes.Little is known about the The Kirby Stone Four and the gals who sang with them.Most Pop and Rock music fans have never heard of The Kirby Stone Four.Don't know if they are in the Rock Hall of Fame and Playboy Music Hall of Fame but if they are not, shame on those who never voted them in.They richly deserve to be in the Music Hall of Fame.Buy their CD's and you will hear what the first Rock and Pop music band sounded like :-)

I have listened to a little bit of every song on this disc and I must say, it is truly incredible. Every song has a cheery vibe, even the not as good songs. I truly recommend you buy this wonderful CD. I could only tell he has this amazing voice and I'm glad he mad this disc. Now, be appreciative and show how glad you are, too. 5 stars cause of music.

Was this used in the last episode of The Sopranos 11?

Reviews

After years of wanting to figure out this teechnique, at last I found someone else as crazy as I am who has managed to do it. This video comes with a chart and materials list for making your own bead knitted drawstring bag from 11/0 beads (the size most readily available in modern beads.) Alice Korach gives a concise review of knitting techniques and then shows you how to make your own bag, step by step. She employs a technique to eliminate the bias in your work (the tradeoff is that the beads alternate directions every other row, creating a herringbone pattern in their orientation-- all the antique bead knitted bags I've seen have the beads oriented in a single direction.) Korach's instructions are clear, precise, and easy to follow. If you don't know how to knit well, Korach recommends that you use "Mary Thomas's Knitting Book" as reference for knitting practice (I heartily concur, as knitting with beads is slow and difficult, and it's well worth learning to knit decently first!) I'm just in the preliminary stages of mastering this technique, but feel like I can proceed with confidence thanks to this video.

Reviews

This is a pretty simple tool, but every beader MUST have one. I have this particular model and it has never failed me. Basically one opening on the tool bends the crimp bead in to a kind of a "u" shape and the other opening closes the "u" to form a smooth, compact "o".

I bought this because my boyfriends mom had one! I loved it after the first use and had to get my own! Great tool and long lasting good grips!