Hello, Lee. I see that Amazon will be releasing it on June 12, 2012. Is there another place to where one could obtain this or is that the official release date? I haven't heard of this cat but I'm always open to recommendations just like this. If I'm not mistaken, it looks like it will be available on 3-disc vinyl and a 2-CD set. The CD's are at 18 smackers and the vinyl is at roughly 60 smackers. I haven't seen what the digital and e-booklet offerings cost. I'd be interested in the vinyl and/or the CD.
I've had my vinyl set for about a week and listened to it twice. It's a terrific box set, I would rate the sound quality about a 7 out of 10. I think the claims from the producer that it could be one of Bill Evans finest from a sound quality point of view is a bit exaggerated. The Steve Hoffman remastered 45 rpm vinyl from the Complete Riverside Recordings sounds better.
As far as the music goes it is absolutely a 10, and it's wonderful to hear Bill play at a more frantic pace than usual. He really gels with this live band.
I've had my vinyl set for about a week and listened to it twice. It's a terrific box set, I would rate the sound quality about a 7 out of 10. I think the claims from the producer that it could be one of Bill Evans finest from a sound quality point of view is a bit exaggerated. The Steve Hoffman remastered 45 rpm vinyl from the Complete Riverside Recordings sounds better.
Basically agree. Don't think the sound is anything to write home about (5/10 for me) and far superceded by many of Evans' other recordings [the standard of course it TTP 15 ips reissue of Waltz for Debby; only question is when the hell are they going to give us the companion recording Sunday at the Village Vanguard????). The 45 rpm reissues or the original black Riverside are the ones to look for (good luck finding a used jazz LP in playable shape! ).
Sadly, the miking technique sucks and is amateurish and the sound varies from track to track. That said, the piano sounds like Schroeder's piano, the stand up bass barely comes across and the drums sound flat.
I think the dumbest thing said is that quote from the recording engineer about how most jazz recordings are not recorded close enough. Yeah let's put that mike inside the piano. Let's shove that mike inside the bell of the sax. And where's the mike on the bass? Not a whole lot of low frequencies on this recording, snap, etc. We know who's had the last laugh when it comes to jazz recordings. Can't believe the reviewer for Stereophile bought this BS hook, line and sinker.
As far as the music goes it is absolutely a 10, and it's wonderful to hear Bill play at a more frantic pace than usual. He really gels with this live band.
When I read the Stereophile review I don't get the impression at all that he approves of the recording technique. He quotes from the liner notes and comments on improving sound quality the farther not the recording you go; I didn't read anything indicating he was impressed with the recording method.
When I read the Stereophile review I don't get the impression at all that he approves of the recording technique. He quotes from the liner notes and comments on improving sound quality the farther not the recording you go; I didn't read anything indicating he was impressed with the recording method.
I don't think he criticized the sound at all but I'll read it again. The passage you're pointing out is when Baird (?) mentions that the due to having to set the mikes up very quickly for the first set, the recording engineer didn't have very much time to test it out. So the first two cuts are really subpar but the sound improves as the engineer fiddles with the miking, balance, etc. Still not good enough. A Rudy van Gelder it isn't. A Roy Du Nann it isn't. A Val Valentin, Bob Simpson, Jack Higgins or Columbia jazz recording team it isn't.
I don't think he criticized the sound at all but I'll read it again. The passage you're pointing out is when Baird (?) mentions that the due to having to set the mikes up very quickly for the first set, the recording engineer didn't have very much time to test it out. So the first two cuts are really subpar but the sound improves as the engineer fiddles with the miking, balance, etc. Still not good enough. A Rudy van Gelder it isn't. A Roy Du Nann it isn't. A Val Valentin, Bob Simpson, Jack Higgins or Columbia jazz recording team it isn't.
He gives a 2 (out of 5) star overall rating, close to 4 star by the end. Perhaps better than you would have rated it, but hardly an enthusiastic sonic recommendation. I haven't heard this release at all (yet), so I can't comment.
But in general both TAS and Stereophile for the past couple of years have been poor judges (in print at least) of sound quality of recordings. Again, I tried to take Harley to task about this, specifically with regard to Paul Simon's most recent album. His published response to my letter is a masterpiece of avoidance; anyone with ears or an audio editing program can hear (and see) that it is very compressed and peak-limited. I then pointed out to him that the dynamic range on the 24/96 HDTracks version was less than the CD of Bookends (just a handy example), hardly an example of wel-recorded or dynamic music itself, and he declined to respond.
The sound quality on the first two songs of the first set is truly dreadful. The bass and drums sound like they are played on paper instruments. After those two songs it does improve considerably, but it's still not a reference recording. I enjoy the music quite a bit and can oversee the mic'ing short comings.
Definitely not Evans' best trio, but still a cooking date.
