My pleasure, Rushton. I am now onto "Chicken Fat" by Mel Brown - this one is not letting me down! |
Jerico, thanks for posting your impressions of the Rumours 45rpm reissue. I've read a number of reactions similar to yours. Since I can enjoy my various 33rpm copies, I think I will now put to rest my interest in this 45 version.
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I just got the 2 LP, 45 RPM pressing of Fleetwood Mac, Rumors. I'd read so much about it but frankly, it sounds lifeless and sterile to me. Am I the only one? I have an original pressing of the album lying around somewhere - I'll have to A/B later. But this really isn't doing anything for me, for $45. |
Junior wells, jack white, and madlib. If you know all three of these you know what kind of night it was 'round here. |
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Tonight I have been playing a head-to-head comparison of Albeniz "Suite Espanola" ORG 45 rpm reissue against the Tape Project version (TP-005) 15 ips reel to reel.
First, the only other version I have extensive experience with other than these two is the Super Analogue Disc reissue at 33 rpm. I'll just say right off the bat that the ORG 45 has the Super Analogue beat by a mile on my system. I listened to the tape first to give my ears a benchmark and I am surprised at how well the ORG holds its own against the tape with respect to the separation and layering of instruments, including the castanets and celeste.
This is by far the best of the ORG reissues I have listened to with respect to sound quality and lack of surface noise.
If this piece is to your liking I would strongly recommend, investing the money to secure a copy before they are all gone. Those of you who have had the opportunity to hear the Tape Project version of this will find the ORG 45 close in presentation. |
Having listened to the Tape Project tape of the Albeniz, I think I am pretty comfortable with how it "should" sound. I agree that overall, the Super Analogue 33 is pretty good, it does lean toward the midbass and below. Backing off the VTA helps but it's at the expense of the other frequencies. If I get enough time tonight, I will clean it and give the ORG a spin and report back. |
Joe, if the Albeniz you're referring to is that wonderful Decca recording of the Suite Espanola, I would be interested in your impressions as well. The Super Analog disc version sounds a bit tilted towards the bass frequencies in my system (as do a lot of those reissues)compared to the Speakers Corner reissue, I'd be interested in how it (and the other versions) sound on your Walker. |
Thanks, Joe! I look forward to your comments on these. I heard the Albeniz on a friend's system recently. It sounded very good but I'm not familiar enough with his system to assess the LP and guess what it might sound like at my place.
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Rush, I subscribed to the series of the first 10 releases. The first four arrived on Friday, but I have only had the time to clean and listen to the De Falla (Walker Prelude 4 step x 2 LPs)
The recordings are "high, wide, and well articulated" the sound overall is very good, Grundeman's new cutting lathe clearly living up to the hype. My copy has some surface noise, even after cleaning, on side 1.
I am looking forward to giving a thorough listen to the Albeniz next, as I can compare it to the Tape Project version and the "Super Analogue Disc" 33rpm reissue as well. I will post my impressions here. |
Joe, can you share any comments on the sound quality of the De Falla and any of the other ORG London Classical 45s that have been released thus far you've heard?
My point of reference will be the Speakers Corner reissues of these at 33rpm, which were good but seemed to be missing life and energy. My guess is that they are missing some of the low level detail and resolution that I've heard, for example, on the Tape Project R-t-R dub of the Albeniz.
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De Falla "Three Cornered Hat" (Ansermet/L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande) ORG 45 rpm reissue of the London CS6224
(last night) |
Mendelssohn, Symphony No. 3 (Scottish), Maag/LSO, Decca (45rpm Speakers Corner reissue)
Brahms, Violin Concerto, Szell/ClevelandO/Oistrakh, EMI
Walton, Cello Concerto, Berglund/BournmouthSO/Tortelier, EMI
(last night's listening...)
. |
Ray Charles Singers "Command Performances"
Sade "Diamond Life"
Robert palmer "Rip Tide" |
Running the gamut today/tonight!
AC/DC- Powereage
Cheap Trick- Debute/Heaven Tonight/Special One
Pink Floyd- WYWH
SRV- Texas Flood
Lyle Lovette- Debute/Pontiac
Eagles- Hotel CA.
Marshall Tucker- Carolina Dreams
Ted Nugent- Ted Nugent
City Boy- Book Early
Rush- Moving Pictures |
Lonnie Johnson with Elmer Snowden, "Blues, Ballads and Jumpin' Jazz" (Analogue Productions reissue)
Paul Simon, "Still Crazy After All These Years" (Columbia)
Pink Floyd, "Wish You Were Here" (Columbia)
Ar Log, "Ar Log" (Dinkle's)
King's Galliard (Opus 3)
Mathias, "Harp Concerto" /Atherton/Osian Ellis (Decca)
. |
Fleetwood Mac - Fleetwood Mac (good original pressing)
Queen - Queen's Greatest Hits (nice clean record)
The Pixies - Surfer Rosa
Nirvana - Unplugged (the great new pressing)
The Beach Boys - Made in USA (absolutely mint album)
Drive By Truckers - Southern Rock Anthem
INXS - Kick (awesome new MOFI pressing)
Stevie Wonder - Innervisions (great new pressing) |
And now for s'more grooves that aren't micro or stereo! Spinning my way through stacks of mostly 60's soul 45's, that I'm slowly winnowing towards recording to a comp CD-R (or two)...
Eddie & Ernie - "Outcast"/"I'm Gonna Love You Always" [Eastern]
The Shar-mels - "Tell Me Why"/"I'd Love To Be Loved" [Palm]
Cash McCall - "S.O.S."/"I'm In Danger" [Checker]
The Jive Five - "You'll Fall In Love"/"Crying Like A Baby" [Musicor]
The Vontastics - "Never Let Your Love Grow Old"/"You Can Work It Out" [St. Lawrence]
The Caper Brothers - "I Ain't Gonna Write You"/"There Goes My Heart Again" [Roulette]
Yvonne Fair - "Baby, Baby, Baby"/"Just As Sure (As You Play, You Must Pay)" [Smash]
The Accents - "Better Watch Out Boy"/"Tell Me" [Challenge]
The Epsilons - "The Echo"/"Really Rockin'" [Stax]
James Carr - "Gonna Send You Back To Georgia"/"I'm A Fool For You" [Goldwax]
June Edwards - "Heaven Help Me (I'm Falling In Love With You)"/"My Man (My Sweet Man)" [South Camp]
The Elgins - "We're Gonna Have A Good Time"/"Here In Your Arms" [Congress]
Sharon Soul - "How Can I Get To You?"/"Don't Say Goodbye Love" [Wild Deuce]
Ocapellos - "Anytime"/"The Stars" [Checker]
Otis Clay - "Show Place"/"That's How It Is" [One-derful!]
Delores Lynn - "The Big Search Is On"/"Just Tell It Like It Is" [Junior]
The Flamingos - "Since My Baby Put Me Down"/"Brooklyn Boogaloo" [Philips]
The Dynamic Tints - "Rosemarie"/"Be My Lady" [Twinight]
Little Richard - "I Need Love"/"The Commandments Of Love" [Okeh]
Springers - "I Know Why" [Way Out promo]
Barbara Wilson - "Make Me Happy"/"On The Other Hand" [Aura]
Vernon Harrell & Little Gigi - "Baby Don'tcha Worry"/"All That's Good" [Decca]
Nella Dodds - "P's And Q's"/"Your Love Back" [Wand]
The Lovejoys - "Payin' (For The Wrong I've Done)"/"It's Mighty Nice" [Tiger]
Jackie Ross - "New Lover"/"Jerk And Twine" [Chess]
Linda Jones - "Hypnotized"/"I Can't Stop Lovin' My Baby" [Loma]
Charles Farren - "You Got Everything"/"Alone" [Limelight]
The DC Playboys - "Too Much"/"You Were All I Needed" [Arock]
Lorraine Ellison - "Don't Let It Go To Your Head"/"I Dig You Baby" [Mercury]
The Freeman Brothers - "Beautiful Brown Eyes"/"My Baby" [Soul]
Lee Holland - "Give Me Back My Heart"/"Let's Stay Together" [King promo]
The Dreams Band - "(They Call Me) Jesse James"/"Charge" [D.C. Sound Ltd.]
The Poets - "She Blew A Good Thing"/"Out To Lunch" [Symbol]
Betty & Rose - "That Twistin' Feeling"/"Doodle Doo Doo" [Press]
Jimmy Hughes - "You Might As Well Forget Him" [Fame promo]
Falcons - "(I'm A Fool) I Must Love You"/"Love, Love, Love" [Big Wheel]
The Incredibles - "Standing Here Crying"/"All Of A Sudden" [Tetragrammaton]
The Continental 4 - "I Don't Have You"/"The Way I Love You" [Jay-Walking]
Ollie & The Nightingales - "Girl, You Have My Heart Singing"/"I Got A Sure Thing" [Stax]
Kelly Brothers - "You're That Great Big Feeling"/"Falling In Love Again" [Sims]
Little Jerry Williams - "Baby, You're My Everything"/"Just What Do You Plan To Do About It" [Calla]
Bonnie & Lee - "I Need Ya (Gotta Have You For My Own)"/"The Way I Feel About You" [Fairmount]
The Ascots - "Miss Heartbreaker"/"This Old Heartache" [mir-A-don]
Sam & Bill - "I Feel Like Crying"/"I'll Try" [Decca]
Billy Hambric - "Talk To Me Baby"/"Human" [Fury]
Sam Hawkins - "Bad As They Come"/"Hold On Baby" [Blue Cat]
The Sensations - "Please Baby Please"/"Too Shy" [Way Out]
Billy Butler & The Four Enchanters - "Found True Love"/"Lady Love" [Okeh]
Roddy Joy - "Come Back Baby"/"Love Hit Me With A Wallop" [Red Bird]
Howard Tate - "Baby, I Love You"/"How Blue Can You Get" [Verve]
Sonny Warner - "Bell Bottom Blue Jeans"/"Been So Long" [Checker]
Rudy Lewis - "Baby I Dig Love"/"I've Loved You So Long" [Atlantic]
Irma And The Larks - "Without You Baby"/"Don't Cry" [Priority]
Willie West - "Hello Mama"/"Greatest Love" [Deesu]
Kenny Ballard - "It Sure Looks Good"/"I Wanna Love You" [Toy]
Freddy Scott And The Four Steps - "Same Ole Beat"/"Take A Rest" [Marlin]
Lavell Hardy - "Don't Lose Your Groove"/"Women Of The World" [Rojac]
Karen Small - "Boys Are Made To Love"/"Hey Love" [Venus]
Little Jewel - "I Want To"/"It Doesn't Matter" [Tay-Ster]
Jimmy Robins - "I Can't Please You"/"I Made It Over" [Jerhart]
Harold Burrage - "How You Fix Your Mouth (To Say What You Say)"/"Got To Find A Way" [M-Pac!]
The Gypsies - "Diamonds Rubies Gold And Fame"/"Jerk It" [Old Town]
Don Gardner - "There's Nothing I Want To Do (Unless It's With You)"/"Let's Party" [TNT]
The Volumes - "Gotta Give Her Love"/"I Can't Live Without You" [American Arts]
Marvin Smith - "Time Stopped"/"Have More Time" [Brunswick]
Spencer Wiggins - "Double Lovin'"/"I'd Rather Go Blind" [Fame]
Jimmy Dee - "Shanty Town"/"The Push" [Palm]
Jackey Beaver - "Jack-A-Rue"/"Silly Boy" [Checker promo]
Otis Leavill - "Let Her Love Me"/"When The Music Grooves" [Blue Rock]
Freddie Hughes - "I Gotta Keep My Bluff In"/"Natural Man" [Wand]
Danny White - "Taking Inventory"/"Cracked Up Over You" [Decca]
Johnson, Hawkins, Tatum & Durr - "You Can't Blame Me"/"Your Love Keeps Drawing Me Closer" [Capsoul]
'Nuff for tonight... |
The Ray Brown Trio "Soular Energy" on vinyl. The music and sound are both insanely good. |
Lloyd Cole - "Broken Record". 180g vinyl on some obscure German label. Cole's newest release gets him back to his earlier roots. As usual, his songwriting is superb and the LP is a great recording to boot. For Lloyd Cole fans - highly recommended. |
Harry James - Still Harry After All These Years LP |
The Marvelettes - "Return Of The Marvelettes" [Tamla LP '70] It was a short-lived return -- this is their swan song
Rudy Ray Moore/V.A. - "Dolemite" MP Sndtrk. [Generation International repro LP '75/?]
Dizzy Gillespie - "It's My Way" [Solid State LP '69] Actually, it's not, if Diz's way is bebop (or jazz period). A failed 'hip' commercial stab replete with strings and studio backing, but upon further listening, a few redundant pop-hits-of-the-day covers aside, I dig it anyway as really a pretty good joint of its type, taken on those terms...
Gregory Isaacs - "Soon Forward" [Virgin LP '79]
Prince Far I & The Arabs - "Cry Tuff Dub Encounter Chapter IV" [Trojan LP '81]
Game Theory - "The Big Shot Chronicles" [Rational/Enigma LP '86] The best thing about revisiting this, other than the towering hairstyles worn by the group, are the inserts touting stickers and tee-shirts as modeled by kids with yet more of that great 80's hair (and shades!) and advertising Enigma releases by this gob-smackingly improbable mix of acts: Poison, Agent Orange, Stryper, T.S.O.L., Allan Holdsworth, The Smithereens, and Peter Hammill; plus the Enigma Variations, featuring such old-time favorites as Channel 3, Green On Red, Redd Kross, Plasticland, The Pandoras, Rain Parade, The Effigies, Tex & The Horseheads, Jet Black Berries, Greg Sage (late of the above-mentioned Wipers), Leaving Trains, The Untouchables, 45 Grave, Get Smart, and so much more! Just enclose your check or money for $8.98 and send to Enigma Mailorder, El Segundo CA (please allow 3-4 weeks for delivery)
The Neanderthals - "In Space" [Munster LP '05] With Eddie Angel guitar, of Los Straitjackets fame |
Moussorgsky, "Night on Bald Mountain" & "Pictures at an Exhibition"; Chesky RC30 ("The Power of the Orchestra"); Rene Leibowitz conducting the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra; Gerhardt/Wilkinson, Producer/Engineer, recorded in 1964 for RCA.
Best regards,
-- Al |
New (old) acquisitions:
Joe Cocker - Joe Cocker
Cat Stevens - Teaser and the Firecat
Grateful Dead - Shakedown Street
The Byrds - Mr. Tambourine Man
I'm in the mood for some Ray Charles - that's my "hunt" for the w/e! |
Dengue Fever - "Cannibal Courtship" [Fantasy LP '11]
Dengue Fever - "Sleepwalking Through The Mekong" Sndtrk. [M80 CD '09]
Hawkwind - "Hall Of The Mountain Grill" [U.A. LP '74]
Raspberries - "Starting Over" [Capitol LP '74]
The Mixtures - "Stompin' At The Rainbow" [Linda/Minky Records CD expanded reissue '62/'10]
The Spinners - "Original Spinners" [Motown mono LP '67]
John Coltrane - "Ole Coltrane" [Atlantic LP repress '61/'69]
Alice Coltrane - "Journey In Satchidananda" [Impulse!/MCA LP reissue '70/'97]
Martinu/Symphonies Nos. 1 & 2 - Neumann/Czech Philharmonic Orchestra [Supraphon (Czech) CD reissue '78/'94]
Schubert/Complete Trios - Beaux Arts Trio/Grumiaux Trio [Philips 2CD reissue comp. '66-'69/'93] |
Elbow - "Build a Rocket Boys". Double LP 45 rpm Fiction label. great music and recording. Very textured. Guy Harvey is a genius.
Elvis Costello - "Get Happy!". MoFi 45rpm double LP. Great recording and music. Another MoFi winner.
Arctic Monkeys - "Suck It and See". 180g Domino release. Great music and the Monkeys release another solid LP. Average recording but still very enjoyable.
Cults -"Cults" Columbia Records release. 60's pop with 90's psych. Good song writing, great vocals. Recorded a little bright but great music. |
Beethoven sonata in E flat major, op. 81a - Ivan Moravec
Connoisseur Society ( issued by the Book-of-the-month club in the 60s )
Weiner Suite, op. 18 ( Hungarian folk dances ) Phil. Hungarica/ Dorati - Epic
The Who: Who's Next - Decca (U.S.) |
Listening with friends yesterday...
Alternate performances of the 4th movement of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, an interesting traversal.
Widor, Toccata from Organ Symphony No. 5, Murray, Telarc 5036
Davis, Kind of Blue
Railroad Sounds, Audio Fidelity LP from 1958
Ice Station Zebra Soundtrack, Michel Legrand
Porcupine Tree - not sure which album but dates from sound tracks created circa 1993 and remixed and re-released in 2004.
. |
Thurston Moore - "Demolished Thoughts". Sonic Youth front mans new solo record on Matador, Produced by Beck. kind of a Sonic Youth version of Beck's Sea Change LP. Great music, great recording. Unfortunately my copy has a few nasty right channel clicks and pops in the first song. Bummer. On Matador.
Wild Beasts - "Smother". On the Domino label. Fantastic, original music and phenomenal recording with great bass. Reminds me of Talk Talk records. One of my favorites of the year so far and comes on 180g virgin vinyl. |
Penderecki: Dies Irae, Polymorphia, De Natura Sonoris; performed by the Cracow Philharmonia Orchestra, Chorus, conducted by Czyz, with soloists Woytowicz, Ochman, Ladysz(Philips PHS 900 184, M7/1). Really powerful and interesting music. It's an excellent recording, but unfortunately my copy's in very rough shape.
Stravinsky: Concerto for Piano and Wind Instruments, Capriccio for Piano and Orchestra; performed by the L'Orchestre da la Suisse Romande, conducted by Ansermet, with soloist Magaloff (London STS 15048, Orange-silver label; reissue of CS 6035, no SXL pressing). Old Ernie does a great job on this record--at least I think so, since I'm no expert. One thing's for sure: soundwise, it's pretty much a demostration disc. I'd love to hear the original CS, but it's hard to imagine it would be significantly better than this STS. |
05-30-11: Rushton
Wonderful records, Al!
The Vivaldi is a Peter McGrath (recording engineer) marvel. Thanks, Rushton. Yes, they are wonderful indeed! I'm gradually working my way through the best sounding recordings in my collection that I haven't listened to since prior to the several major system upgrades I've made in the last couple of years. Best regards, -- Al |
Oliver Nelson - "More Blues And The Abstract Truth" [MCA/Impulse! LP reissue '64/8?]
Max Roach - "Deeds Not Words" [Riverside stereo LP reissue '58/'68]
"Murder, Inc." [Time Series 2000 stereo LP '60] Large band crime jazz
Barney Kessel - "Barney Kessel's Swingin' Party At Contemporary" [Contemporary stereo LP reissue '63/'7?, rec. '60] Um, like the title sez...
The Kinks - "Face To Face" [Reprise mono LP '66]
The Fallen Angels - S/T [Roulette stereo LP '67]
The Sopwith Camel - "Hello Hello" [Kama Sutra LP reissue '67/'73]
Van Dyke Parks - "Song Cycle" [Edsel LP reissue '86, orig. WB '68]
Julian Bream - "The Golden Age of English Lute Music" [RCA Victor Soria Series mono LP '61] The playing's great, alas if only the recording were as swell the deluxe packaging |
Jessica Lea Mayfield Tell Me -produced by Dan Auerback of the Black Keys. Check out the review on Pitchfork (although I'd give it a solid 8.5). They did a very nice job mastering it too. |
David Francey - Late Edition
Matthew Good - Vancouver |
Wonderful records, Al!
The Vivaldi is a Peter McGrath (recording engineer) marvel.
. |
Vivaldi "Flute Concertos"
Janet See, flute, with the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra conducted by Nicholas McGegan
Harmonia Mundi USA HMC5193
"Popular Masterworks of the Baroque"
Tafelmusik
Reference Recordings RR-13
Regards,
-- Al |
Allman Brothers - Fillmore East
Muddy Waters - Country Blues
Miles - Kind of Blue (yesterday, on my headphone rig - first time hooking up my TT to it, def not the last time!) |
Gill Scott-Heron, "Pieces of a Man" |
Brahms "Clarinet Quintet"
Thea King, Clarinet, with the Gabrieli String Quartet
Hyperion A66107
"Trompettes Royales"
The Aquitaine Brass Ensemble
Lyrinx 7602-002
Regards,
-- Al |
Psychedelic Furs - Mirror Moves : underrated Furs record
The Smiths - Meat is Murder : actually my least favorite Smiths release
Hank Mobley - Soul Station : Music Matters 45 RPM - outstanding! |
Last night I enjoyed these lps late at night in basement listening centre
Ben Webster, THE WARM MOODS OF..., lovely with strings; short and sweet; just a delight all around; an old lp from ebay
Rolling Stones, EXILE ON MAIN STREET, an old pressing cleaned at length, but still crackly; having not listened for a while, I'm shocked at how fresh this music is and how utterly cool "Ventilator Blues" is, among other tracks; is there a good vinyl version for under $50? |
Heath Brothers - Passin' Thru
Television - Marquee Moon (finally found an original printing - I don't care for the newer pressing I have, and my previous attempt at an original was a dud from eBay) |
LJ: Lyres, Wipers...nice! (Fun fact: The pink dress worn by the cover model on "Lyres Lyres" has a provenance connected to the fairer member of this household!) |
tonights records:
Linda Ronstadt: "what's new"
Joni Mitchell: "Song to a Seagull"
Christy Moore: "Smoke and strong Whiskey"
CSN: "Crosby,Stills and Nash"
Judy Collins: "Colors of the Day"
Phoebe Snow: "Phoebe Snow" |
Picked up today:
Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here
Brian Eno - Before And After Science
David Byrne/Brian Eno - My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts
Gram Parsons - Return Of The Grievous Angel
Okkervil River - I Am Very Far (actually got this mid-week) |
1. loudon wainwright iii, album ii--alternatively sad and hysterically funny; best one guy with a guitar folkie album by someone not named dylan. as far as i know, never released on cd. "motel blues" (later covered by big star) is on this record.
2. lyres lyres--hadn't heard this in 20 years or so and was surprised at how great it is--tough, hooky garage rockers and really pretty ballads. "she pays the rent" is a classic.
3. wipers, over the edge---sorta hardcore punk rock for grownups. i bet nirvana wore out 100 copies of this record. |
Yeah, not much 70's "power pop" (never have dug that term) featured memorable lyrics, Big Star and Cheap Trick excepted (bands who really transcended the label anyway). But a lot of the best of it did tend to come out of the Midwest. I'll keep a lookout... |
Off Broadway, AKA Off Broadway USA was a band that originated in the late 70's in Chicago. They released two albums, their debut 'On' and their sophomore effort, 'Quick Turns.'. Both were released on ATCO / Atlantic. Although they made some minor interest nationally, they were big in their native Chicago. They had 3-4 singles, all making Billboard top 100, but not cracking the top 40.
They were part power pop and part new wave. Lots of hooks, but sometimes corny lyrics. Surprisingly, both records were pretty well recorded. Rare and hard to find, if you come across either LP in the used bins, it will be worth the $5 to take a chance! |
Hi Philb7777, I'm not familiar with that last record or the band, but I am curious if it's "power pop at its best" what makes the pleasure guilty? Were they on a national label or is it a record one is unlikely to stumble across outside of Chicagoland?
Quincy Jones - "The Slender Thread" Orig. M.P. Sndtrk. [Mercury LP '65]
Dale Hawkins - S/T [Chess comp. LP '84, rec. late 50's]
Nilsson - "Aerial Ballet" [RCA Victor LP '68]
The Beau Brummels - S/T [WB LP '75] |
REM - Reckoning -original pressing on IRS
Branford Marsalis Trio - 'The Dark Keys' - great music, fantastic recording
Off Broadway - 'On' - guilty pleasure from 1979 Chicago band, power pop at it's best. |
