The Now Spinning/Recent Purchases Thread

[Rudy]

Those Living Stereo discs in particular sound magnificent, even more so with this cartridge. The imaging is at times holographic, especially on the Red Seal discs (classical). It is a good demonstration of how a performance that uses a simple mic setup sounds so much better than multitrack. One in particular that audiophiles have lusted after (aside from all the Red Seal "shaded dogs") is Belafonte's Carnegie Hall concert. You get a sense of not only the performers up on a stage, you experience the reverberations in the hall that sometimes spread beyond the speakers, and have actual depth to them.

Capitol had some wonderful sound as well from the same era, even on some of the mono albums. The Sinatra two-fer "Swing Easy/Songs For Young Lovers" puts Frankie right in the room, no processing on his voice. His and Nat King Cole's albums had big "productions" that came through nicely with the simple mic setups. The sad thing with Capitol is that some of their stereo LPs are worse than the mono equivalents--some are awash in reverb, others have balance problems (like Kenton in Hi-Fi, where a phase cancellation nearly wipes the bass out), and some are just...wonky (like Come Dance With Me by Sinatra).

The saddest part of both of these labels is that it is harder with each passing year to find clean copies of any of these albums on vinyl. They are well worth finding though!

Yet I've been sitting here tonight listening to a Charisma pressing of the Genesis Wind and Wuthering album that arrived today.

 

[KentTeffeteller]

I am also the lucky owner of the Stereo original of Belafonte/Carnegie Hall Concert. It's near mint. flat and quiet. I paid $.99 for it. It's one of the best sounding LP discs I own and natural, you are there sonics to die for.

 

[Rudy]

This one just rolled in today. Before I do a formal review, I thought I'd mention this one. It's from the Warner "Because Sound Matters" LP reissue program, and this is a Bernie Grundman-cut, Pallas-pressed reissue of Dire Straits' Love Over Gold remastered from the original analog masters. Bernie really nailed this one. Way more detail than I've ever heard from any digital version out there, impressive dynamics, nearly silent surfaces...demo quality for certain. Anyone who doubts vinyl can sound better than digital deserves to hear this on a good rig.



Another that rolled in here recently is the Elvis 24 Karat Hits on three 45RPM records. I admit to not being a huge Elvis fan, but this set is also remastered from the original tapes, and you hear every little thing on those tapes. Closest thing to the master tape you can hear at home. (The SACD is of similar quality, but the vinyl takes it to the ultimate.) It's amazing how good these old tapes can still sound--crank this one up and rattle the rafters! A lot of fun, even if you have to flip sides every four songs.

 

[Rudy]

This one only works if I can include a photo of it.


(Click to enlarge if you can't read the label. )

 

[Vinylalbumcovers]

Two words: Dirty Loops.

Ed

 

[Rudy]

Two different words here: Led Zeppelin.



I'm listening to the 24/96 hi-res downloads I grabbed yesterday. I'll have a formal, full review posted elsewhere, but for now, I have to say I'm really liking how these sound.

I only owned LZ IV on the original "target" CD and never was really sold on it being all that good. The catalog was remastered in 1990 for the 4-CD box set. In 1993, a two-CD "completer" set came out, giving all of the studio tracks across six CDs, along with some extras. The same remasters I believe were also used for the later "complete studio albums" box set. These 1990 remasters were a bit forward--they had a bit of harshness in the upper mids that gave Page's guitar a push into the foreground, and at times these could be a bit grating to listen to. They were decent for car or boombox listening (where a bit of "crunch" actually helped things along a bit), but on a decent system they could get tiring. (I tend to play a few albums in sequence.)

These new ones are more subdued, more natural sounding, and while part of it may be due to the high-resolution files, the clarity is much improved. The sound quality is still all over the map, but that is how these were recorded. Some sound rather sloppy--leakage all over, a buzzing guitar amp...it's all there, clearer than ever. On acoustic songs like "Bron-Yr-Aur Stomp," the acoustic instruments come through really clear. As I said elsewhere (on our vinyl-related G+ page), Robert Plant's voice, and testosterone, come across clear as ever.

I'm awaiting vinyl copies of these albums for review. My high-res files include the bonus tracks, but I am only getting the single-LP original album configuration.

The big downer to all this is that a couple of my favorite Zep albums won't be reissued for another few months yet. Rumor has it that a second batch of three albums might be released in October, and the final batch earlier next year.

 

[AM Matt]

The song "Your Time Is Gonna Come" from the debut Led Zeppelin remastered CD has between the 3:50 till 3:54 mark which the tape is ruined which you hear on the left speaker if you are listening to it on headphones!! The Paris concert is indeed in MONO sound. Matt Clark Sanford, MI

 

[AM Matt]

By the way, the live version of "Moby Dick" runs 9:21 NOT 9:51 & "How Many More Times" runs 11:13 NOT 10:43. They made a mistake in the booklet. Just finished "II" & "III" (with the bonus material). Hard to believe we had to wait another 19 years for the unreleased material!! I also bought Soundgarden "Superunknown" (20th Anniversary Deluxe Edition 2 CD set) which has Demos, Rehearsals, B-Sides & More which also came out Tuesday, June 3. Also Soundgarden has a complete 4 CD & a blu ray box set plus a booklet of "Superunknown" but I decided NOT to get that though. Matt Clark Sanford, MI

 

[Rudy]

The song "Your Time Is Gonna Come" from the debut Led Zeppelin remastered CD has between the 3:50 till 3:54 mark which the tape is ruined which you hear on the left speaker if you are listening to it on headphones!! The Paris concert is indeed in MONO sound. Matt Clark Sanford, MI

I'm not a fan of the bonus tracks so I probably won't even listen to those.

I'll have to check that song out. I really am anxious to get the vinyl in--just waiting for my shipment(s) to arrive. Other accounts I've read are saying that these sound really nice.

 

[Captain Bacardi]

I have the 1993 studio album box set that Jimmy Page and George Marino remastered. Don't really need anything more myself.



Capt. Bacardi

 

[Rudy]

The 1990 box set was done by Zal Schreiber under Page and George Marino at Atlantic, so I'm almost certain the studio album box set is that same mastering, which they've used for everything since (including the Mothership vinyl box). That is all I've had over the years. This new one sounds better--more "analog" or natural, if you will. Barry Diament mastered the original CDs in the mid 80s, using the same tapes.

I'm actually on my 2nd 4CD box set; the first one I carried in the car so much (in a disc wallet) that the label side started peeling and made the discs unplayable. I have a decent Houses of the Holy on vinyl, and a $1 copy of In Through The Out Door that has seen better days.

 

[Rudy]

Led Zep II and III arrived Saturday, and Led Zep I on Monday. The vinyl pressings are for the most part well made, with quiet surfaces and minor ticks that are largely unnoticed. These LPs compare favorably to the digital high-res downloads. They have the same sonic characteristics--they are sonically more relaxed, yet still pack the punch when needed. This afternoon, I had to thank each and every one of my several hundred watts of power for the gift that is "Dazed and Confused", cranked up to obscene levels. Everything sounds pretty good so far. I need to do more in-depth listening, but these new remasters have nice detail, without being bright or forward. Page did a nice job helping to preserve these!

In other news, I have some estate sale finds. (I'm blogging the whole experience elsewhere in the near future, so this is a short version.) I went to a local estate sale where supposedly they had 3000+ records, primarily 45s, but also well over 1000 LPs. Sadly, the condition was at best VG- for just about everything (scratched, scuffed, dirty, full of fingerprints), but I still found some LPs that looked nearly unplayed, and an RCA 45RPM EP that I never thought I'd see in my lifetime. (Although I've had one in my Discogs cart for two months and never bought it.)

My estate sale record crawl resulted in the following:

Simon & Garfunkel: Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme; and Sounds of Silence. The former is a mid 80s reissue LP and looked like it never left the sleeve; the latter is an early 80s reissue, still looking good.

Frank Sinatra: Sinatra at The Sands. With Basie, and Quincy Jones. Looked good, and cleaned up rather nicely.

Dionne Warwick: Greatest Hits Vol. 1. This also cleaned up nicely and plays back without noise, although it looks like there are a couple of scuffs. Nice sounding copy!

Bee Gees: Children of the World. This looked clean, but has a lot of background noise. I'll try a re-cleaning on it. Problem is, it's on RSO but pressed by Polydor, which was sometimes known to not have the quietest pressings. Beyond the noise, it's a nice sounding disc.

The RCA EP I picked up is a Harry Belafonte record with "Man Smart, Woman Smarter" and "Jerry (This Timber Got To Roll)" on one side, and "Shenandoah" and "Scarlet Ribbons" on the flip side. I grew up with this one, and the copy from back then is badly worn--scratched quite a bit, dull, and has a small chip out of the side. This one was covered in fingerprints but cleaned up really nice (took three heavy duty cleanings and a rinse on the record vac). Still not perfectly quiet, but it's better. I'd probably grade it VG. It also still has the original thick paperboard sleeve.

Here is the Belafonte; the record is before the cleaning:



And here is the copy I'd played as a kidlet. Talk about "love crackles". Zoom in to see how grotty it is...

 

[Rudy]

Two other recent finds in new vinyl. One was a 2013 pressing of Genesis, The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway. This one is the Nick Davis remix. Just to be clear, the albums he remixed when Phil took over lead vocals sound horrid. The dynamics are gone, the sound being very smashed and lifeless. (Listen to "Mad Man Moon" from Trick Of The Tail, the original mix vs. the remix, and there's no contest.) But on the Peter Gabriel era albums, the new mixes actually add a bit of clarity. They sometimes tend toward the slightly bright, and perhaps a slight extra dose of compression here and there, but the original five albums sound pretty good. I already had Selling England By The Pound, so it was time to get Lamb. It sounds nice, and the surfaces are clean.

Musically it is a difficult album to get into. Some say it's the best Genesis album of that era, but I go with Selling England. With Lamb, Peter acted solely as lyricist/storywriter, and the band created the instrumentals. It seems more like Gabriel's first solo album, using Genesis as his backing band. Lamb OTOH was a far more collaborative effort, and has some of their best songwriting.

Nursery Cryme and Foxtrot are next.

The other LP that arrived, which I was anxious to receive: Dire Straits, On Every Street. Good news: it is a very nice sounding cut by Bernie Grundman and Chris Bellman. Bad news? Noisy as hell. The title track is my favorite on the album, and I've heard quieter used records from estate sales... So now I have to deal with an exchange or whatever. The first LP is noisier than the second. Even after a cleaning it did not sound any better. Likely a pressing defect.

 

[Rudy]

I located a copy of this recently, and I have to say that it is an engaging performance:

http://www.amazon.com/Rachmaninoff-Piano-Concerto-No-Prokofiev/dp/B0009U55QU/

The only problem is that if you want the SACD version, it is not going to be cheap. The least expensive copies are just shy of $20, before shipping. I lucked into a deal of three sealed Living Stereo SACDs for $35, and this was among the three. (I'm selling off the other two, as I already have them.) If you want this one, I'd suggest getting it ASAP as prices on some of these less-popular titles are starting to escalate.

As hinted at, the Rachmaninoff concerto, a live recording, is very engaging--as a friend of mine says, this one just draws you in. The sound on the live recording isn't perfect (to me the strings sound a bit odd and closed-in, yet the rest sounds very natural), but otherwise it is a nice recording. It is very much worth getting, even on a standard CD or the original vinyl (good luck with that ), just for the performance alone.

 

[Rudy]

Just finished "II" & "III" (with the bonus material). Hard to believe we had to wait another 19 years for the unreleased material!!

Having had more time to listen, it's hard to believe we lived with the sound of those 1990 remasterings for almost a quarter of a decade. On the USB drive in the car, I've loaded in these new remasters, but left the others in place. Quite a jump in sound quality--I found I had to turn off LZ IV after a track or two since it was grating on my nerves. I can't stress how much smoother these new remasters sounds. Definitely a more relaxed, more laid back sound (but not in a negative way). There is maybe a hint less detail than I'd like, but overall I can listen to these all day. I'm really looking forward to LZ IV, Presence, and...well yeah, I want the rest of these now. I've played through all three of the LPs at least four times each, and I'm pretty much happy with them. It's nice to have the 24/96 downloads as well--they sound very good on the Oppo.

 

[Rudy]

And it's Elvis Night again.

Yes it's a bit of a stretch to be changing sides so often, but the vinyl is so incredibly detailed and clean that it's worth it. At 45RPM, this is as good as Elvis will ever sound in Analog IMHO.

 

[Rudy]

Bernie Grundman worked his magic on another set I've received recently. The Metallica Load 4 LP/45RPM set. The sticker on the cover had said it was mastered for LP from the original analog tapes, but I thought Metallica recorded digitally...? At any rate, the analog reproduction takes the edge off of the rather shrill sounding CD. True it's a pain to flip sides every two songs, but the bulk of my favorites are on the first two LPs. "King Nothing" and "While It Sleeps" have all of the dynamics intact--quite an impressive cut IMHO.

 

[Rudy]

This is a favorite album that I finally located on a clean LP, and have been spinning for the past month or so:



Ira Stein plays oboe, and Walder the piano on this duet album, Elements. On this album, Walder is playing a 1932 Baldwin grand piano. Musically, yes, it is similar to a lot of new age, but I have noticed that in these duets, it is not uncommon for them to suddenly take off into improvisations once the theme has been established. Walder sometimes really stretches things, even playing with the time. I haven't heard of either musician prior to buying these albums on CD originally (way back in the 80s), but I have a feeling they both come from a jazz background based on their performances here. The follow up album, Transit, is also good, although it adds percussion and some light synthesizer sequences as accompaniment.

One notable thing about the vinyl: I noticed that it is the purplish--blue KC-600 virgin vinyl formula. Looking at the dead wax, I noticed a familiar inscription, JH/2. Jack Hunt, of Mobile Fidelity fame. And sure enough, it was cut at the same place as the MoFi LPs--at JVC/Victor in Japan. Most other Windham Hill LPs that I own were cut by Bernie Grundman here in the US.

 

[Rudy]

Another recent arrival--for some reason, I've been quite fond of this album in recent years. It's nice to finally have a vinyl version of it. Despite the 80s sound on many of the tracks, I like Stewart's songwriting on this album. "Red Toupee" is a hoot, and of course, there are a few historically themed tracks that I find interesting like "Josephine Baker" and others.

BTW, if you've ever wondered about some of Al's songs and their historical context, his site has a nice rundown of those history-based tracks on all of his albums. I think that is why I find his music so interesting--there is a lot more "meat" to the lyrics.

 

[AM Matt]

Got the Al Stewart "Last Days Of the Century" when it came out on CD back in late 1988. Matt Clark Sanford, MI

 

[Rudy]

Got the Al Stewart "Last Days Of the Century" when it came out on CD back in late 1988. Matt Clark Sanford, MI

It's a good one. I'm also partial to Year Of The Cat, Time Passages and am starting to get into 24 Carrots. I've also been listening to his more recent albums like Down In The Cellar (his wine-themed album), Beach Full of Shells, and also a DVD I have from a recent "reunion" concert where he plays some of his better-known songs with a full band (including Peter White on guitar, and Eric Marienthal on saxes and flute). Normally he tours with David Nachmanoff as a guitar duet. (At those duet gigs, I've heard he is quite the storyteller.) His only Michigan gig this year is at The Ark on August 15th. I may be out of town then, however...

 

[jfiedler17]

I'm also partial to Year Of The Cat, Time Passages and am starting to get into 24 Carrots.

How is 24 Carrots? I've never heard that one, though I do quite like the single ("Midnight Rocks"). I consider him to be on the underrated side, particularly as a singles artist. He unfortunately tends to be frequently mislabeled as a "one-hit wonder" by people who only remember "Year of the Cat," but "Time Passages" actually charted even higher (#7 in the U.S. compared to the #8 peak of "Year of the Cat") and he actually put together a very respectable four-year run of singles that all either cracked the Top 40 or just barely missed it. "Year of the Cat" is great, but I probably listen to some of the others, like "On the Border" or "Song on the Radio," just as frequently.
[A fun little "A&M connection" piece of trivia, incidentally: "Year of the Cat" was co-written by Peter Wood, who later went on to serve as keyboardist in Tommy Shaw's backing band and plays the infectious synthesizer riff that serves as the basis of "Girls with Guns." No fooling!]

 

[Rudy]

24 PCarrots is in a similar style to the albums surrounding it, so the sound and vibe is very similar. "Running Man", which leads off the album, is immediately recognizable as an Al Stewart song. I haven't fully digested it yet, but I tend to play his albums a lot during the summer, and that one is on my bucket list.

I only discovered Al Stewart about a decade ago, although I'd seen his albums in stores previously. I was buying up some older Mobile Fidelity albums, and they had a copy of Year Of The Cat. After having explored his catalog further, I can say it was a great album to introduce myself to Stewart. The album isn't sleepy, but it is low-key, and there is a lot to discover in terms of his stories, the historical pieces, etc. It's more like a slow infection, if you will.

I also didn't realize that Peter White had played on the album...that Peter White. Once I saw his name in the credits and heard his guitar on "On The Border," it all made sense. I'd known him from his tours with Basia, and then afterwards when he went out in his own career. Turns out Peter was hired as a keyboard player for the album. They were sitting with Alan Parsons trying to figure out what to do with "On The Border," and someone mentioned that a Spanish guitar might sound nice. Peter said something along the lines of, "I'll make a go of it." They were unaware he played the guitar, and Al loaned him a nylon stringed guitar that cost him all of £30. Peter's first time playing a nylon-string guitar! And it just makes the song, IMHO.

This story is told on the live DVD, and Al actually borrowed back that original guitar so Peter could play it on the song at the gig. Al even commented that it might even have the original strings on it.

 

[AM Matt]

I just listened to Al Jarreau "The Very Best Of: An Excellent Adventure" (from 2009) & it seems that Rhino did another great job. The song "Spain (I Can Recall)" reminds me of Lani Hall singing that song with Herb Alpert playing the trumpet!! The songs "Breakin' Away" & "Teach Me Tonight" are missing from the CD though. The song "Just To Be Loved" has I think Stevie Wonder or somebody else playing the harmonica but the booklet doesn't say who plays it. I also thought the song "Boogie Down" was the 1974 remake of the late Eddie Kendricks song but it is NOT. Matt Clark Sanford, MI

 

[AM Matt]

I also listened to Steve Tyrell "Back To Bacharach" (from 2008). The song "This Guys In Love With You" has the sample of the Herb Alpert 1968 recording!! The song "What The World Needs Now" was playing on my radio last year (which is called "Americas Best Music" station) & got airplay. Matt Clark Sanford, MI