Just received "Can't Buy a Thrill" by Steely Dan. Ordered the 180g LP from Soundstagedirect.com. On my turntable tonight. If you're a Steely Dan fan, then this album is a must purchase. The quality of the recording is excellent and I received it very quickly. Great album! Highly recommended. |
Tonight will be Pearl Jam Yield after it gets cleaned. |
For sure I am not playing any recent 45's redo's of same old stuff, it's just a cynical attitude of some in the Remastering Industry to vaste more of the foreign oil and my and your money. A culture cannot be converted into obsession with impunity - when we set out to describe a sound of things musical, we have thus defined the nature of apathy towards the essence of humanity, as all music is politically suspect (Plato).
In modern times we can prove this by having no high fidelity recordings of the sounds of the Omaha Beach, the battle of Stalingrad, even the Hitler's speeches are recorded somewhat lacking in bass, not to mention them being plagued with a lot of grunge. Do we need re-mastering there ? Where are those Master tapes ?
Wait, there's more....
Well Cheers |
Tonight:
Jan Garbarek : Esoteric Circle -Flying Fish, forget about "Folk Songs" and other NewAgey stuff by him, this is 1969 George Russell tight reign yet
John McLaughlin : Extrapolation - with John Surman adding some heat
Milt Buckner : Green Onions - some killer organ + piano tracks, never need to be remastered |
Back to swooning over Sade's "Promise," especially "Is It A Crime," "War Of The Hearts" and "Mr. Wrong." Great music and amazing sonics for a big, studio pop album.
Also, Bonnie Raitt, "Nick Of Time" on the original vinyl release - "Cry On My Shoulder" is mesmerizing. |
Allegri, Miserere, Guest/Choir of St. John's College Cambridge, Meridian E4577058 45rpm
Lars Erik Larsson:
..Concertino for Double Bass & String Orch
..Liten Serenad
Filharmonins Kammarensemble, SwedishSoc SLT 33187
Marcel Dupre:
..Prelude & Fge in g, op7,3
..Triptyque, op51
Marcel Dupre organ of St. Thomas Church NY, Mercury SR 90169 (Speakers Corner reissue)
Hank Mobley, Quintet, Blue Note BNLP1550-45 (45rpm Music Matters reissue)
The Who, Who's Next, Classic Records reissue
Queen, A Night at the Opera, Elektra 7E 1053
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Ian & Sylvia, So Much For Dreaming, Vanguard VSD 79241
Johnny Cash, Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison, Columbia CS 9639
A pleasure diving back so many years. |
Toto IV...old and purchased used. NOT an "a'phile reissue" but very quiet and dynamic. It sounds great. Really enjoying the harmonies on Side 1, Track 3 "I Won't Hold You Back".
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Chris Cornell Songbook. Not likely the best recordings as all were in small theaters along a small tour. Some tracks are brilliant. Mostly acoustic. Brought a turntable on stage for pre recorded segments rather than using dat Saw this tour live and the odd track gets the venue right |
Eric Bibb: 'Rainbow People' on the Opus 3 label. Just thinking, I have had this one for 30 years now, and it gets virtually no play. It is just perfect for those late Saturday nights. Must have been recorded with little or no compression and properly microphoned, as it is very lifelike. I'll start shuffling it more often. |
My Polk LSi9s image ambient/electronica/etc. really well, and the Parasound HCA-1500A that I recently picked up really makes them sing - a significant improvement over my old Adcom GFA-545.
As a result, I'm listening to a lot of the aforementioned genre(s)...there's a collaboration between Stephan Mathieu and Taylor Deupree called Transcriptions, that's really a pleasure to listen to, at low/moderate volume, in my smallish room. Kind of can't stop listening to it. Also listening to Mathieu's cd, Radioland. And other things in that vein.
And when I get up tomorrow morning, I'll crank up some Flipper to get my head on straight. |
Dire Straits - "On Every Street" - Vertigo 140g vinyl; much overlooked last Dire Straits studio LP. Great sonics, great music. "You and Your Friends" is down right spooky sonically!
Rob Wasserman - "Duets" MCA 140g vinyl; incredible recording, audiophile classic
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - "Best of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds". Mute 180g double LP; if you haven't heard some Nick Cave, you are missing out! |
Kate Bush - 50 Words for Snow - Snowed in on Wheeler Street
Bonnie Raitt - Streetlights - That song about the Midway and Rainy Day Man
Hall & Oates - Sara Smile |
John Abercrombie - Timeless
I have not listened to this for a while and forgot how good it sounds.
Stan Getz - Jazz Samba
Say no more |
Zaphodbeeblebrox, can you post a review of it? I am thinking about that one too. |
Anne Akiko Meyers.... "AIR" The Bach Album ... with the English Chamber Orch. Sublime!!! |
Just bought the "new" rerelease of PINK FLOYD - WISH YOU WERE HERE on vinyl. So that will be on my turntable. |
Norah Jones, 'Little Broken Hearts'...Gets better each time I listen to it. A great record. |
U2 - Achtung Baby
Green Day - Dookie
Talk Talk - It's My Life
Queen - A Day at the Races
The Producers - You Make the Heat |
Listening to a fresh copy of the 10,000 Maniacs - In My Tribe that I ordered a few weeks ago. It sounds really good. It is the MSFL copy. I have always liked this album on CD but had never heard it on vinyl. Glad I bought it. I think it is head and shoulders above the CD copy. Bass seems quite a bit more punchy and it is far more open sounding. |
Ozark Mtn. Daredevils - Men From Earth |
Listened to this afternoon:
Dvorak, "New World Symphony," Leonard Slatkin conducting the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, Telarc DG-10053.
Very slow tempi in the first two movements; worked for me but won't be to everyone's taste. Wonderful sonics -- one of Telarc's best IMO.
Beethoven, "Hammerklavier Sonata," Paul Badura-Skoda performing on an 1824 Fortepiano, Astree AS47.
An absolute treasure, musically and sonically.
Best regards,
-- Al |
Last night I took the new 45RPM version of LA Woman out for a spin. Nope. I'd pass on this one if you own a nice original with the die-cut/cellophane cover. The original has the music in spades, whereas the 45 leaves something behind - it's rather clinical in its presentation, and I felt there were a few passages where they tried too hard to crank up level, resulting in overload bordering on distortion; the equalization of the low frequencies also seems too bloated for my taste. The original pressing has better balance top to bottom, and captures the essence of the performance better.
For my money, I like Morrison Hotel the best out of the four I bought, closely followed by Strange Days. The first album trails not too far behind, and LA Woman comes in a very distant fourth and is my only regret of the bunch. Good listening. |
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Rushton,
I also own the first Doors LP and Strange Days from the 45 RPM series, and I think they both make significant improvements over the originals. My impression of Morrison Hotel is that it may be the best of the lot (thus far) - it really parses the frequency extremes nicely, opens up the soundscape to let the recording breathe dynamically, and removes a lot of grunge I felt always vexed this particular recording. While I never owned any exotic pressings of Morrison Hotel, this 45 absolutely eviscerates the copy I do own. Just my 2 cents.
Tonight: LA Woman |
Palasr, any comments on the sound quality of the Doors - Morrison Hotel (45 RPM/Analogue Productions)?
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Tu Fawning - A Monument (LP)
Doors - Morrison Hotel (45 RPM/Analogue Productions) |
Brubeck - Time Out" - 90s Classic Records reissue. |
The Mars volta-Amputechture |
Mark Knopfler - Shangri-La. 180g double LP. Super quiet vinyl. Music 9/10; pressing/recording 10/10
Dead Can Dance - Toward the Within - 4AD double 140g LP. Great dynamics/small venue live recording; Music 9/10; pressing/recording 8.5/10
Ray Brown / Duke Ellington - This One's for Blanton - Analogue Productions/Pablo 45 RPM double LP; Music 8/10; pressing/recording 10/10. |
Listening to Snow Patrol's Final Straw right now. Just finished listening to Jack Johnson's Listen Through The Static but I think that I may finish up my listening tonight with either The Lumnieer's or The Moody Blues Days Of Future Past. Tough choice there. |
Grizzly Bear - Shields. 180g gold vinyl. Music 9/10; recording/pressing 6/10
Dead Can Dance -Anastasia 180g. Music 9/10: recording/pressing 7/10
Glenn Hansard - Rhythm and Repose 140g. Music 10/10; recording/pressing 10/10 |
Elgar, The Dream of Gerontius, Boult/NPO, Watts -sop, Gedda -ten - EMI SLS 987 - a Bishop/Parker masterpiece.
Paul Chambers Quintet, Blue Note 1584, Music Matters 45 reissue
Wild Child Butler, Sho' 'Nuff, Analogue Productions 2015 45 rpm
Dead Can Dance, Into the Labyrinth, Mobile Fidelity reissue
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Bob James' Rameau album - a CBS digital lp |
Porcupine Tree, "In Absentia", tonefloat tf102,
Nora Jones, "Not too Late", analog productions,
Led Zeppelin III, Atlantic SD 19128,
The Original Trinidad Steel Band, Electra EKL 139 |
My Left amp is blowing fuses... I remain saddened but it is fun browsing over all the members' posts of gorgeous music! We are fortunate that the best music never really goes out of style! |
My goodness, I'd forgotten how incredibly good this LP is, from 1977:
Music for Percussion, Vol. 1 - John Elliott Gardiner and the Tristan Fry Percussion Ensemble, Gale GMFD 1-76-004. Music by Chavez, Hovhaness and Serebier.
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The recent 180 gram reissue of Paul Simon's Graceland is indeed a very significant improvement over the original DMM mastered LP. We started listening with the cut "Under African Skies" and my wife looked at me, grinned and held two-thumbs-up. I found myself agreeing with Fremer's assessment of the improved sonics: http://www.analogplanet.com/content/igracelandi-twenty-five
Ravel, String Quartet in F, Guarneri String Quartet, Lancia LMF7002 - Superb! Extremely well recorded and played. Lancia is an unknown label to me, and I bought this recent issue with some trepidation for what we might hear, but the lure of the Guarneri was strong. Wow, I am glad I made the leap!
D.Buxtehude, Organ Music, Opus 3, 8103 | played by Margaret Philips on the tracker organ at Lima Church, Sweden, this is a gorgeous recording. It has become very difficult to find these Opus 3 LPs. If you are familiar with this label, you know what to expect: direct to tape via 2-mics, marvelous acoustical environment, competent musicians, incredibly excellent capture of instrumental timbre. |
Dirty Projectors - "Swing Lo Magellan." on the Domino label.
New release on 180 gram vinyl. Fantastic music and recording. Quirky and surprises at every turn. Uses female vocalists almost like instruments. Will be one of indie's best of 2012. Like candy for your speakers and your ears! 10/10. |
All Led-ed night:
Led Zeppelin
II
IV (Ruins album)
Houses of the Holy
Physical Graffiti
all first pressings from Japan. I found a guy in Tokyo and bought most every Led Zeppelin album he had. They are all so pristine. Not a pop, click or hum in the lot. Very little yellowing on any of the covers, but the slight smell of age from the insides. Just a great find. I couldn't be happier. |
Diamond Head - 'Canterbury' |
Melvins "Houdini" and Melvins "Stoner Witch", blue vinyl. Got these plus Soundgarden "Superunknown", orange vinyl double lp, Queensryche "Promised Land", and Stone Temple Pilots "12 Gracious Melodies", purple vinyl, all for ten bucks at a yard sale. The guy said he never played them, only bought them to have them. I'm not into heavy metal, but couldn't pass them by. They are a little collectible, I guess. |
By golly Slipknot1! I must have been channeling you today, at least in part...
Ravel "Daphnis et Chloe" Monteux/LSO/Royal Opera House chorus (London CS6140 ORG 45 rpm reissue ORG 105)
Ravel "String Quartet in F" Guarneri Quartet, Lancia LMF7002 (recorded in 2000, this performance is an example of the Guarneri performing at their finest level. If you don't have this LP, get it! Fantastic music, exceptional performance, great recording and pressing)
Wagner "Parsifal" Solti/London Philharmic, London OSA 1510 (with a simply amazing cast - just luxuriate in the the voices and the music)
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Ravel "Daphnis et Chloe" Monteux/LSO/Royal Opera House chorus (London CS6140 ORG 45 rpm reissue ORG 105)
Rickie Lee Jones "It's Like This" (Analogue Productions APP 51056) 45 rpm
Dire Straits "Live Alchemy" (Warner Brothers 25085-1) |
Louis Armstrong, "The Great Chicago Concert, 1956," (Columbia reissue, 1996)
Altan, "The Horse with a Heart," Green Linnett SIF 1095
Ossian, "Seal Song," Iona IR 002
Paco Pena & his Group, "Flamenco puro 'live'," Decca (Speakers Corner reissue) |
Diamond Head - Makin' Music |
Come Away With Me -Norah Jones
Yes I've posted this LP before, but it is a real come-to LP when you're in the mood for something great. I really think, for myself, it does not get any better than this. |
My old MOFI of "Days of future passed" . |
I've always heard that this was a recording of a Land Rover, but may just be a myth. "The 'jalopy' pulling up at the end of the LP is stunning, but the entire LP is of reference quality." |
