Month: March 2019

David Bowie – Lodger

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  • A KILLER copy with Triple Plus (A+++) sound on the first side and solid Double Plus (A++) sound on the second
  • This copy was doing it all right — bigger, richer, more full-bodied, more present, better bass and the list goes on
  • Exceptionally quiet vinyl throughout — Mint Minus to Mint Minus Minus
  • “Lodger is the most accessible of the three Berlin-era records David Bowie made with Brian Eno, simply because there are no instrumentals and there are a handful of concise pop songs. Nevertheless, Lodger is still gnarled and twisted avant pop… It might not stretch the boundaries of rock like Low and Heroes, but it arguably utilizes those ideas in a more effective fashion.” — All Music

White Hot Stampers for Lodger — this wasn’t easy, folks! We’ve been trying to find a great sounding copies of Lodger for years and this is only the second time we’ve ever managed to get a big shootout going, which should tell you just how tough it is to get a killer copy of this album. (more…)

Bee Gees – 2 Years On

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  • The Bee Gee’s 1970 release makes its Hot Stamper debut with outstanding Double Plus (A++) sound throughout
  • Tubey Magical, with strong midrange presence, the sound here is worlds away from the dubby domestic pressings sitting in the bins at your local record store
  • This album marked the musical reunion of the Gibb brothers, and the band returned with this “surprisingly hard-edged… more progressive” sound
  • 4 stars: “…[with 2 Years On] the Bee Gees suddenly found themselves right back in the thick of popular music, and as close to the cutting edge of pop/rock as they’d ever been.”

Why does no one ever mention that the song Lonely Days that starts off side two, which is surely one of the best tracks these boys ever recorded, had its arrangement, structure and harmonies stolen and reworked by Jeff Lynne throughout the entire time he was fronting ELO? That’s his sound, but the BeeGees had it first! (more…)

David Bowie / Scary Monsters – Bigger and Clearer, Yet Still Rich and Smooth

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One of the qualities that we don’t talk about on the site nearly enough is the SIZE of the record’s presentation. Some copies of the album just sound small — they don’t extend all the way to the outside edges of the speakers, and they don’t seem to take up all the space from the floor to the ceiling. In addition, the sound can often be recessed, with a lack of presence and immediacy in the center.

Other copies — my notes for these copies often read “BIG and BOLD” — create a huge soundfield, with the music positively jumping out of the speakers. They’re not brighter, they’re not more aggressive, they’re not hyped-up in any way, they’re just bigger and clearer.

And most of the time those very special pressings just plain rock harder. When you hear a copy that does all that, it’s an entirely different listening experience.

TRACK LISTING

Side One

It’s No Game (Part 1) 
Up The Hill Backwards 
Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps) 
Ashes To Ashes 
Fashion

Side Two

Teenage Wildlife 
Scream Like A Baby 
Kingdom Come 
Because You’re Young 
It’s No Game (Part 2)

AMG 5 Star Rave Review

David Bowie returned to relatively conventional rock & roll with Scary Monsters, an album that effectively acts as an encapsulation of all his ’70s experiments. Reworking glam rock themes with avant-garde synth flourishes, and reversing the process as well, Bowie creates dense but accessible music throughout Scary Monsters.

Though it doesn’t have the vision of his other classic records, it wasn’t designed to break new ground — it was created as the culmination of Bowie’s experimental genre-shifting of the ’70s. As a result, Scary Monsters is Bowie’s last great album. While the music isn’t far removed from the post-punk of the early ’80s, it does sound fresh, hip, and contemporary, which is something Bowie lost over the course of the ’80s.

Letter of the Week – “…the sound of the vocals on this thing are just incredible!”

One of our good customers had this to say about some Hot Stampers he purchased recently:

Hey Tom, 

I just had to write in appreciation of a killer Beach Boys pressing I bought from you last year. It’s so funny to me because it’s the Beach Boys Christmas Album, which is the kind of thing I’m sure audiophiles tend to dismiss. But wow, the sound of the vocals on this thing are just incredible! So much presence and texture in them; and this from a mid 70s pressing in stereo! I only wish I could find more sound like this for the Beach Boys, especially from Pet Sounds, but that presents a completely different set of problems I’m sure. Anyway, I was completely impressed by the A+ sound on these sides. I can only imagine what the White Hot Stamper holds in its grooves.

Ben

George Harrison – Living In The Material World

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  • An excellent sounding early British Apple pressing with solid Double Plus (A++) sound throughout and reasonably quiet vinyl
  • If you want to hear the rich, Tubey Magical sound that was all over the Master Tape in 1973, these vintage imports are the only way to go
  • What Living in the Material World does show off far better than the earlier record, however, is Harrison’s guitar work… it does represent his solo playing and songwriting at something of a peak. Most notable are his blues stylings and slide playing, glimpsed on some of the later Beatles sessions but often overlooked by fans.” – All Music

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Frank Zappa – Apostrophe (‘)

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Reviews and Commentaries for the Music of Frank Zappa

  • An outstanding copy, earning seriously good grades of Double Plus (A++) or BETTER on both sides – exceptionally quiet vinyl too
  • The sound is super big and full-bodied with super present vocals, a big bottom end, and lots of energy/li>
  • Guaranteed to beat your old copy and the recent reissue or your money back (of course)
  • 4 1/2 stars on Allmusic and Zappa’s only album to crack the Top Ten

An excellent copy of Zappa’s legendary Apostrophe, one of his most commercially successful albums and, more importantly to folks like us, one of his best sounding. We’ve been picking up this album for years in the hope that we could find one with the kind of sound we’ve been hearing on the best copies of Waka/Jawaka and Hot Rats, but it took us until 2015 to get one up on the site.

Why is that? Well for starters, this is the only Zappa album to ever hit the Top Ten. More copies pressed equals more mediocre copies pressed, and most of them we’ve picked up over the years certainly have qualified for that designation.

The best copies really delivered, with superb clarity and transparency that were missing from most of the pressings we’ve played. The sound is bigger, richer and smoother than we’ve come to expect for this album. The bottom end is strong and there’s lots of space and separation between the various parts.

One of Zappa’s last good studio albums in our opinion, with great songs like Don’t Eat The Yellow Snow, Uncle Remus and the title track. (more…)

Townes Van Zandt – Delta Momma Blues

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  • Excellent sound throughout for this original Tomato LP with both sides earning Double Plus (A++) grades or BETTER
  • The overall sound here is rich, full-bodied and Tubey Magical with plenty of energy and bottom end weight
  • No one does beautifully spare and gut-wrenching country music quite like TVZ – this set contains two of his best songs — Tower Song and Nothin’

This vintage Tomato pressing has the kind of Tubey Magical Midrange that modern records can barely BEGIN to reproduce. Folks, that sound is gone and it sure isn’t showing signs of coming back. If you love hearing INTO a recording, actually being able to “see” the performers, and feeling as if you are sitting in the studio with the band, this is the record for you. It’s what vintage all analog recordings are known for — this sound. (more…)

Eric Clapton – Another Ticket

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  • With two seriously good Double Plus (A++) sides, this was one of the better copies we played in our recent shootout
  • Both sides here are clean, clear and super spacious with a punchy bottom end and lots of big rock energy
  • Exceptionally quiet vinyl throughout with both sides playing Mint Minus to Mint Minus Minus
  • “The first and last Clapton studio album to feature his all-British band of the early ’80s, it gave considerable prominence to second guitarist Albert Lee and especially to keyboard player/singer Gary Brooker (formerly leader of Procol Harum), and they gave it more of a blues-rock feel than the country-funk brewed up by the Tulsa shuffle crew Clapton had used throughout the 1970s.”

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Miles Davis – Nefertiti

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This Columbia 360 Label pressing has excellent sound on both sides and unusually quiet vinyl throughout. The music is wonderful too — Miles and his late ’60s quintet featuring Ron Carter, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter and Tony Williams are all in top form here, slowly working their way towards the electric fusion sounds that would be coming shortly. Many copies lack the kind of transparency and clarity you need to make sense of what each player is doing, but this Super Hot pressing gives you those qualities on both sides. (more…)

America / History: America’s Greatest Hits

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  • This outstanding pressing boasts solid Double Plus (A++) sound from start to finish
  • “Master Tape” sound lets this Greatest Hits compilation hold its own against the originals
  • 4 1/2 stars: “History: Greatest Hits perfectly spotlights both the polished and layered production of British studio legend George Martin and the West Coast tones of the band’s folk-pop style. Featuring the group’s many chart toppers from the first half of the ’70s, this definitive roundup includes Neil Young-style acoustic sides like “Lonely People,” the hippie MOR of “Muskrat Love,” and breezy acid rock like “Sandman.” An essential collection for fans who like their ’70s folk with a pop sheen, loads of hooks, and top-drawer arrangements.”

THE BIG SOUND on both sides lets this Greatest Hits compilation hold its own against the originals. They have plenty of bottom end that drives these songs with energy and life. Listen for the bells on ‘Tin Man’; they have the correct transients and harmonics. You never quite get back all of the Tubey Magic of the originals, but the detail and richness are enough to make you fall in love with this high quality George Martin (re) production.

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