Whats on your turntable tonight?


For me its the first or very early LP's of:
Allman Brothers - "Allman Joys" "Idyllwild South"
Santana - "Santana" 200 g reissue
Emerson Lake and Palmer - "Emerson Lake and Palmer"
and,
Beethoven - "Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major" Rudolph Serkin/Ozawa/BSO
slipknot1

Showing 11 responses by bdp24

@bslon: If you think the U.S. pressing (it’s on A&M Records, not Epic) of Tea For The Tillerman sounds great, wait until you hear the Analogue Productions LP!

For years the first pressing on UK Island Records (with a pink center label) was considered the best sounding version, but the AP pressing easily beats even it. One reason for that is that when mastering engineer Bernie Grundman got the master tape to cut a lacquer for the AP reissue, he discovered that the original mastering was done assuming the tape had been Dolby A encoded, Dolby therefore used in playback to the cutting head. Grundman further discovered that the tape had NOT been Dolby encoded, so the replay circuitry had drastically rolled off the high frequencies, thereby robbing Cat’s plastic-bodied Ovation acoustic guitar and drummer Harvey Burns’ cymbals of their harmonic overtones (and the upright bass and kick drum of their fundamentals).

Played back without Dolby engaged the recording sounded much brighter, and Grundman told AP owner Chad Kassem he wasn’t sure audiophiles would like that sound. He made a lacquer with some compromise high frequency roll-off, and sent a copy to Michael Fremer (who had long praised the sound of the UK Island pressing, as did Harry Pearson, who included it in his well known Super Disc list). Fremer advised Kassem to cut the lacquer flat, as that was presumably the sound Cat and producer Paul Samwell-Smith intended.

The Analogue Productions Tea For The Tillerman is available in both a 1-disc/33-1/3RPM pressing, and in a 2-disc/45RPM version. Both versions will cost you less than a pink label Island copy in good condition. The cost of either AP pressing is well worth it, because you're right: TFTT is an unusually good sounding recording.

@bslon: Yes! Moon Martin was (is?) fantastic! His run of four albums on Capitol Records are just great---the marriage of Rock ’n’ Roll, classic Brill Building songwriting, and Power Pop production. His first was produced by Craig Leon (Blondie, The Ramones, Talking Heads), with Phil Seymour of The Dwight Twilley Band playing drums.

He and his 3-pc. band were also great live; I saw them open for Rockpile in 1980. Around that time my ex-wife was running his fan club. Before he started his solo career, Moon had been in a band named Southwind (two albums on Blue Thumb Records). Southern Rock, basically.

Just a coupla days ago I was looking through the bins of newly received used LP’s at Music Millennium, and came upon a 1977 A & M Records solo album by Michele Phillips of The Mamas & Papas. I saw the album title---Victim Of Romance, and thought "Hey, that’s a Moon Martin song." I slid out the inner sleeve, and there was Moon, pictured with all the other people involved in the making of the album (Moon plays guitar and sings background vocals), including the album’s producer Jack Nitzsche (Buffalo Springfield, Neil Young, Crazy Horse, Phil Spector, The Stones, Graham Parker, Willy Deville---who covered Moon’s "Cadillac Walk" in a great version, the soundtrack to One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest). There are two other Moon songs on the album, so keep an eye out for a copy. Mine’s in NM condition, cost me five bucks.

 

Excellent @bslon!

Did you get to see either The Plimsouls or The Beat live? Power Pop at it’s finest!

The final time I saw The Plimsouls---at a tiny dive on Ventura Blvd. in the San Fernando Valley, the opening band was one whose name was unfamiliar to me. As they played their opening number my gal and I turned our heads and looked at each other in astonishment. It was Los Lobos, and they were utterly fantastic!

I saw The Beat live a few times at The Whiskey on Sunset Blvd., and they were as dynamic a live band as The Who, one of the best Rock ’n’ Roll bands I’ve ever seen. After their breakup (with only two albums to their credit), my gal and I were hitting all the vintage clothing stores on Melrose in L.A., and found Beat drummer Mike Ruiz (debut album only) manning the cash register at one. I don’t know why he left the band after only one album, and was never again seen on stage (by me at least).

 

 

I like other Fleetwood Mac albums, I love Kiln House. It has the most 1950's American Rock 'n' Roll sound and feel of all their albums. It was amongst my most-played albums in 1970.

 

 

@slaw: Congratulations on picking up the Rodney Crowell album, Steve. The Houston Kid has been in my Top 10 list of 21st century albums since it's release (on CD only) in 2001. I've been hoping for it to be released on LP, and bravo to VMP for doing so earlier this year.

By the way, they also released Iris DeMent, Tammy Wynette, Marty Stuart, John Prine, Townes Van Zandt, Guy Clark, Billy Joe Shaver, Waylon Jennings, Keith Whitley, and Sturgill Simpson albums, but just yesterday announced they are cancelling their Country Music "track". It was nice while it lasted.

 

 

@slaw: Rodney played at The Roxy on Sunset Blvd. in support of the release of The Houston Kid, just he playing an acoustic guitar accompanied by an electric guitarist (Steuert Smith) and bassist (the great Jerry Scheff, a favorite of mine and T Bone Burnett).

While I missed a drummer, they were of course fantastic. Sitting alone at the table next to mine---and watching & listening intently---was Dave Alvin (my gal was stoked; she’s a big fan of The Blasters). The show was not only very enjoyable, but also a master class in songwriting, singing, and musicianship. They were as good as it gets.

 

 

Dang @slaw, Giddens, Cooder, and The Band. Don't get no better than that! Follow it up with Bring The Family and The Houston Kid, and call it a day.

 

 

I picked up the two Jellyfish albums on LP in the 90’s, and only recently learned those LP’s are somewhat scarce (Tower Records had them back then). I also twice saw them live, and sympathize with those who didn’t. Absolutely a-ma-zing!

 

 

@bslon: That Band album contains one of my favorite Robbie Robertson songs, "It Makes No Difference". Just beautiful.

 

 

Absolutely @mofimadness!

Bring The Family is an all-time Top 10 album for me. I have in on a USA original, the UK pressing on Demon Records (with a bizarre alternate cover), and the MoFi.

The MoFi One-Step of Tapestry is the only version of that classic album that doesn't sound horrible. It was produced by Lou Adler, who obviously has no idea of how to record this type of music. He ran the meters deep into the red when recording Carole's vocals. Her piano also sounds pretty lousy.

  

 

@slaw, are you thinking of the T-Bone Walker album of the same title?