Author: niu1970

James Horner – Glory (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

More Soundtrack Albums of Interest

Glory debuts on the site with STUNNING Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) grades or close to them from first note to last
This one is doing practically everything right – it’s bigger, bolder, richer and more clean, clear and open than nearly all others we played
As one might expect, the sound absolutely jumps out of the speakers on this recording
There are some bad marks (as is sometimes the nature of the beast with these vintage LPs) on “The Year Of Jubilee” and “Preparations For Battle,” but once you hear just how incredible sounding this copy is, you might be inclined, as we were, to stop counting ticks and just be swept away by the music
“The score met with critical acclaim, being assessed as…among Horner’s best works[;] it received a nomination for [the] Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score and won [the] Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition Written for a Motion Picture or for Television…” -Wikipedia

Etta Jones – Don’t Go To Strangers

More Pop and Jazz Vocal Recordings

This vintage Prestige recording pressed on fairly quiet OJC vinyl boasts two solid Double Plus (A++) or BETTER sides
The vocal naturalness and immediacy of this copy will put Etta in the room with you – more than anything else, it lets her performance come to life
Remarkably spacious and three-dimensional, as well as relaxed and full-bodied (thanks, RVG!) – this pressing was a solid step up over most other copies we played
4 1/2 stars: “…Don’t Go to Strangers is a perfect gem of a recording.”

Franck – Symphony in D Minor / Paray

More Mercury Classical Recordings

Frack’s Symphony in D Minor appears on the site for only the second time ever, here with lush, textured and powerful Double Plus (A++) sound throughout this Maroon Label Mercury Stereo pressing
The orchestra is big, rich and tubey, yet the dynamics and transparency are first rate
The first copy we got hold of was a good — our notes read: “Rich and full brass and strings”
I regret to say that unfortunately that puts this particular recording in the minority when it comes to Mercury’s 60s releases
This is the best sounding recording of the work that we know of, and the first recording of the Franck to hit the site in more than a decade
Some old record collectors (like me) say classical recording quality ain’t what it used to be – here’s all the proof anyone with two working ears and top quality audiophile equipment would need to make the case

Stanley Turrentine – The Sugar Man

More of the Music of Stanley Turrentine

The Sugar Man appears on the site for only the second time ever, here with a STUNNING Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) side two mated to a solid Double Plus (A++) side one
Rudy Van Gelder really knocked this one out of the park – the sound here is solid, punchy and present, just the way we like it
If you prefer a recessed, vague, washed-out presentation, may we recommend you find whatever Heavy Vinyl reissue pressing is currently available – it will surely be more to your taste than this one
Thanks to RVG and Creed Taylor, this is some very well recorded funky Jazz Fusion that we enjoyed the hell out of in our shootout
“…Turrentine’s playing is excellent, and the overall results certainly top most of the tenor’s upcoming Fantasy releases.”

The Band– Cahoots

More of the Music of The Band

The group’s fourth studio album debuts on the site with INSANELY GOOD Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) grades from top to bottom
These sides are rich, dynamic and natural sounding with low end weight, midrange smoothness and powerful, punchy bass
Forget all those vague, veiled, lifeless, ambience-free Heavy Vinyl pressings – this is the Cahoots that The Band recorded!
For those who need more convincing that the best copies sound amazing, here are our notes for this very copy. Hope you can read them!

John Coltrane – The John Coltrane Quartet Plays

More of the Music of John Coltrane

The John Coltrane Quartet Plays appears on the site for only the second time ever, here with solid Double Plus (A++) grades or close to them on both sides of this vintage Impulse stereo pressing – remarkably quiet vinyl too
No other copy earned 2+ on both sides, meaning this is the best Super Hot Stamper we have to offer this time around
Full-bodied, energetic, and tonally correct from top to bottom, this pressing is guaranteed to bring Coltrane’s music to life (particularly on side one) – it’s possible that you would not own any Coltrane record that sounds as good as this one
The sound is everything that’s good about Rudy Van Gelder‘s recordings – it’s present, spacious, full-bodied, Tubey Magical, dynamic and, most importantly, alive in the way that modern pressings never are (also particularly on side one)
4 stars: “One of the turning points in the career of John Coltrane came in 1965. The great saxophonist, whose playing was always very explorative and searching, crossed the line into atonality during that year, playing very free improvisations (after stating quick throwaway themes) that were full of passion and fury.”

Herold-Lanchbery – La Fille Mal Gardee (Excerpts) / Lanchbery

More Classical and Orchestral Recordings

This early London pressing (only the second copy to ever hit the site) of Lanchbery’s sparkling orchestral arrangement of Herold’s 1828 score boasts incredible Nearly Triple Plus (A++ to A+++) grades from start to finish – just shy of our Shootout Winner
It’s also remarkably quiet at the high end of Mint Minus Minus, a grade that even our most well-cared-for vintage classical titles have trouble playing at
So transparent, dynamic and real, this copy raises the bar for the sound of ballet music on vinyl
A record like this lets you get lost in the world of its music, and what could be more important in a recording than that?

The best sounding quiet copy we have ever heard!

If you are looking for quiet vinyl, you will have a hard time finding it on this title.

Robin Trower – Long Misty Days

More Rock and Pop

Trower’s fourth solo studio album debuts on the site with STUNNING Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sound from first note to last – remarkably quiet vinyl too
This glorious early UK pressing is huge, rich and powerful, with guitar solos that soar like few others you’ve heard
If you want to make your speakers disappear, this is the album that can do it
Brilliant engineering by Geoff Emerick at George Martin’s AIR studios – it’s shocking to contemplate the idea that he became an even better recording engineer in the 70s, post-Abbey Road (for which he won a Grammy!)

Terry Gibbs and Bill Harris – Woodchoppers’ Ball

More Jazz Recordings of Interest

Woodchoppers’ Ball makes its Hot Stamper debut on this rare Premier stereo pressing that boasts an INCREDIBLE Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) side one mated to a solid Double Plus (A++) side two
Full-bodied, warm and natural with plenty of space around all of the players, this is the sound of vintage analog – accept no substitutes
The sonics here are rich and Tubey Magical, which is the only way this music makes any sense on record
Problems in the vinyl are sometimes the nature of the beast with these early pressings, but once you hear just how killer sounding this copy is, you might be inclined, as we were, to stop counting ticks and pops and just be swept away by the music

Rachmaninoff / Dohnanyi – Rhapsody On A Theme Of Paganini / Variations On A Nursery Tune / Katchen

More Classical and Orchestral Recordings

This early London pressing (the first to ever hit the site) of Katchen and the London Phil’s performance boasts lush and tubey Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sound or close to it from first note to last
It’s also impossibly quiet at Mint Minus to Mint Minus Minus, a grade that practically none of our vintage classical titles – even the most well-cared-for ones – ever play at
The piano is huge and weighty, the strings rich and highly resolving, and the overall presentation is powerful, balanced, dynamic and exciting
These sides are doing practically everything right – they’re rich, clear, undistorted, open, spacious, and have depth and transparency to rival the best recordings you may have heard