Hot Pressings

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Got it a few days ago. Excellent on every level: the song selection, the arrangements, the quality of the pressing, and the sound.
 
The epitome of cool and some of the greatest music laid down on wax. Beautiful, huge mono sound...expensive but worth every penny for an original

'Round About Midnight, 1955, CL 949. Miles' first record with Columbia recorded while still under contract to Prestige...a masterpiece. My personal favorite Miles Davis recording...

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Milestones, 1958, CL 1193. Awesome music. Better album cover.

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Kind of Blue, 1959, CL 1335. Best selling jazz LP of all-time and arguably the 3rd best record of this group...You haven't really heard this until you've experienced an early mono pressing with a dedicated mono set up...magical

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Doc, I found a pretty decent copy of Round Midnight, the jacket is intact and unmarked but it is beginning to split at the top seam; the vinyl is not quite mint, but surprisingly good so far, one noticeable tick on side one, a little surface noise, but overall, extremely good sonically. Just alive! The playing is something else- I understand why you like this record musically. Came with the original inner liner. I think I paid about 30 dollars for it. It's pretty much hit and miss on old vinyl, or any used vinyl, but I'm enjoying the hell out of this.
I also fired up side one of that Saturnalia album, but want to listen to it more carefully because the system was in warm up mode at the time. The inner sleeves are like styrofoam- I had a hell of a time getting the record out. Of course I cleaned it and replaced the sleeve on album one. More later. Thanks for the heads-up on both records.
 
Doc, I found a pretty decent copy of Round Midnight, the jacket is intact and unmarked but it is beginning to split at the top seam; the vinyl is not quite mint, but surprisingly good so far, one noticeable tick on side one, a little surface noise, but overall, extremely good sonically. Just alive! The playing is something else- I understand why you like this record musically. Came with the original inner liner. I think I paid about 30 dollars for it. It's pretty much hit and miss on old vinyl, or any used vinyl, but I'm enjoying the hell out of this.
I also fired up side one of that Saturnalia album, but want to listen to it more carefully because the system was in warm up mode at the time. The inner sleeves are like styrofoam- I had a hell of a time getting the record out. Of course I cleaned it and replaced the sleeve on album one. More later. Thanks for the heads-up on both records.

Glad you are liking 'Round Midnight'!

I don't remember the issue with the inner sleeves of 'Saturnalia'? I'll be interested to get your take on the LP.
 
Have been playing that Simply Vinyl release of Roxy Music - Avalon and I have to say it's sublime. If you're a fan I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this reissue at all.
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The Gutter Twins "Saturnalia"

From the Amazon website:
"The first album from the collaboration forged in late 2003 by Mark Lanegan and fellow maverick singer-songwriter Greg Dulli. "Saturnalia" finds the Dulli nicknamed "Satanic Everly Brothers" going even deeper into the shadows than ever before. It proves rootsy but baroque, handmade yet modernist, teeming with siren melodies that don't resolve. The cumulative effect proves internal yet epic: the netherworld symphonics of Mogwai, Sigur Ros, and Bohren und der Club of Gore are touchstones, alongside the sprawling emotions of Pink Floyd, the melodically catchy paranoia of the Beach Boys, the primal confessionals of John Lennon. Still, what Dulli and Lanegan achieve ultimately feels like the determinedly individual product of two auteurs coming together."

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A really great double LP on a demo quality recording.

This is a cool set of records Doc. If I had to explain it to somebody, I'd say, take the melodic sensibility of Green Day's 'American Idiot,' have Trent Reznor render the performances and have Rob Zombie produce it! It's strangely wonderful- I'm on side 2, cranked up. And yes, it's sonically a spectacular set of recordings. Side 3 is very cool.
 
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This is a cool set of records Doc. If I had to explain it to somebody, I'd say, take the melodic sensibility of Green Day's 'American Idiot,' have Trent Reznor render the performances and have Rob Zombie produce it! It's strangely wonderful- I'm on side 2, cranked up. And yes, it's sonically a spectacular set of recordings. Side 3 is very cool.

Glad you like it Bill. Definitely of demo disc quality and not the usual audiophile crap you hear over and over and over again at shows. I love the description "Satanic Everly Brothers"...really catpures the flavor of the band!
 
Glad you like it Bill. Definitely of demo disc quality and not the usual audiophile crap you hear over and over and over again at shows. I love the description "Satanic Everly Brothers"...really catpures the flavor of the band!

Yep, I listened to all 4 sides, it was very engaging, the review comment about unresolved melodic lines was spot on, there were a number of melodies that they could have developed into complete songs, but that wasn't the point. I then switched over to Shelby Lynne's Tears, Lies and Alibis (which I noticed you had also recommended in the SL thread elsewhere). Great record. Unfortunately the copy i got was extremely warped, although playable. I'm going to stop buying new, standard issue vinyl from Amazon, because it seems like they don't know how to store this stuff (if in fact they are warehousing it). I've had a number of warped, new issue non-audiophile records from them. bummer.
 
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Yep, I listened to all 4 sides, it was very engaging, the review comment about unresolved melodic lines was spot on, there were a number of melodies that they could have developed into complete songs, but that wasn't the point. I then switched over to Shelby Lynne's Tear, Lies and Alibis (which I noticed you had also recommended in the SL thread elsewhere). Great record. Unfortunately the copy i got was extremely warped, although playable. I'm going to stop buying new, standard issue vinyl from Amazon, because it seems like they don't know how to store this stuff (if in fact they are warehousing it). I've had a number of warped, new issue non-audiophile records from them. bummer.

That's been my experience with Amazon...lots of warped records. Thank goodness they are good with returns.
 
More Mono Fun with Trumpets

Miles Davis "Sketches of Spain", 1959, Columbia (6-eye), CL 1480
I absolutely did not get this album, until I acquired an original mono pressing. Beautiful music and a great test of system resolution...

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Roy Eldridge "Little Jazz", 1955, Clef MGC-683
Killer LP with "Stormy Weather" and "Sweet Georgia Brown". Backed by a few obscure sidemen, Oscar Peterson, Ray Brown, Herb Ellis and Buddy Rich ;)
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Art Farmer "Perception", 1961, Argo LP 738
Great cover of Ray Bryant's "Tonk"

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Freddie Hubbard "Backlash", 1967, Atlantic
Features Hubbard's classic "Little Sunflower"

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Blondie "Parallel Lines"

Pulled this one from the stacks recently and it's a great trip down memory lane and a fantastic recording. I had a huge crush on Deborah Harry in high school...sigh. I remember how pissed off the punks were when this one came out because the band admittedly was trying to write hit songs and groups like the Ramones felt that they had sold out..

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Clem Burke must have slipped the engineer a $20 because this LP has a very well recorded drum kit. The deep bass is a little shy but otherwise a brilliant recording and Blondie's best selling record. Features "Hanging on the Telephone", "One Way or Another" and "Heart of Glass"


"Plastic Letters" is my favorite Blondie LP and has an all time great cover. It's also well recorded but not the sonic spectacular of "Parallel Lines"

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Pulled this one from the stacks recently and it's a great trip down memory lane and a fantastic recording. I had a huge crush on Deborah Harry in high school...sigh.

I think most men of our generation had a crush on Debbie Harry back then! There are a couple of repressings of Parallel Lines that are worth looking out for.
 
This 2012 release by Dirty Projectors "Swing Lo Magellan" made a number of top ten lists and is an excellent pressing:

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Sonny Stitt Plays, Roost LP 2208, 1956

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Featuring:
Sonny Stitt (as)
Hank Jones (p)
Freddie Greene (g)
Wendell Marshall (b)
Shadow Wilson (d)

Although often thought of as a Charlie Parker imitator, both acknowledged that they came to their similar styles independently. Stitt had a more melodic sound than Bird, but still had impressive bop credentials. He recorded over 100 LPs and this early date is one of his best. The sound is extraordinary for 1956 and for 2013. You'll have to pay up for an original in good condition but well worth it. IMO, one of the most evocative LP covers of all time.
 
Flip Phillips, "A Real Swinger", Concord, CJ 358, 1988.

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Flip Phillips was best known for his work on Norman Granz' JATP recordings and subsequently with Woody Herman. He also released a series of great LPs on Clef in the 1950's. He had a late career revival and recorded a series of terrific LPs including this date from 1988 on Concord records. Flip plays tenor and bass clarinet and is backed by among others, Butch Miles on drums and Dick Hyman on Piano. Killer sound and typically can be had for <$25 on Ebay.
 

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