Michael Rother, Fernwärme (side A)

Michael Rother from Neu made some pretty and tasteful solo records in the late 70s on Sky, and then Fernwärme in 1982 on Polydor, which is my favorite of the bunch. (It got reissued in 1986 in the US, with inferior mastering and packaging as Silver Streak—I learned this by accidentally buying both records, if my memory is working I think my copy of Silver Streak left for Port Chalmers). The Rother solo records are pretty odd affairs, with drums sounding syntactically modern for the times (a friend mentions Dire Straits) played by Jaki Liebzeit. Rother always has a beautiful, rich guitar sound and immaculate playing. It's sometimes surrounded by lush atmospheric sounds, and the compositions evolve carefully and beautifully.