Music Genres

Sly & The Family Stone / There’s A Riot Going On

More Sly and the Family Stone

  • You’ll find solid Double Plus (A++) grades or BETTER throughout this early Epic Yellow Label pressing of this famously compromised recording – fairly quiet vinyl too
  • The sound is huge – big, wide, deep, and open, with a punchy bottom end and rhythmic energy to spare, as well as cleaner, smoother, sweeter upper mids and a more extended top
  • You just don’t see too many clean copies of this one around – DJs and the like tend to snap them up as soon as they hit the bins (what’s a good party without a little “Family Affair”?)
  • 5 stars: “And damn if this music isn’t funk at its deepest and most impenetrable — this is dense music, nearly impenetrable, but not from its deep grooves, but its utter weariness. Sly’s songwriting remains remarkably sharp, but only when he wants to write — the foreboding opener ‘Luv N’ Haight,’ the scarily resigned ‘Family Affair,’ the cracked cynical blues ‘Time,’ and ‘(You Caught Me) Smilin’.’ Ultimately, the music is the message, and while it’s dark music, it’s not alienating — it’s seductive despair, and that’s the scariest thing about it.”

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Commodores – Natural High

More of the Music of Commodores

  • This vintage Motown pressing boasts outstanding Double Plus (A++) sound from start to finish – exceptionally quiet vinyl too
  • Spacious, full-bodied and Tubey Magical with a solid bottom end and driving rhythmic energy, this is the right sound for this music
  • “… even if ‘Three Times a Lady’ isn’t your cup of tea, Natural High still has a lot to offer R&B fans. ‘X-Rated Movie,’ ‘Such a Woman,’ and ‘I Like What You Do’ are exhilarating examples of hardcore funk, and those who appreciate artists like Heatwave and the Brothers Johnson will find a lot to admire about ‘Fire Girl’ and ‘Flying High’ (both of which are sleek examples of the sophisticated funk style).”

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Frank Sinatra – Ol’ Blue Eyes Is Back

More of the Music of Frank Sinatra

  • Ol’ Blue Eyes Is Back debuts on the site with a KILLER Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) side one mated to a solid Double Plus (A++) side two
  • On a copy this good, Frank will appear as living, breathing (albeit disembodied) person right in your very own listening room – we call that “the breath of life,” and this record has it in spades
  • “Frank Sinatra returned from his brief retirement in 1973 with the appropriately titled Ol’ Blue Eyes Is Back. Released amidst a whirlwind of publicity, the album was a commercial success, earning gold status and nearly climbing its way into the Top Ten…. ‘Send in the Clowns’ and the moving ‘There Used to Be a Ballpark,’ both featuring sublime, subtle arrangements from Gordon Jenkins and outstanding singing by Sinatra.”

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Kenny Dorham – Quiet Kenny

Hot Stamper Blue Note Albums Available Now

  • You’ll find solid Double Plus (A++) sound throughout this New Jazz recording pressed on exceptionally quiet OJC vinyl
  • It’s tubier, more transparent, more dynamic, with plenty of that “jumpin’ out of the speakers” quality that you won’t find on the average pressing
  • We guarantee there is dramatically more richness, fullness and presence on this copy than anything you have ever heard, and that’s especially true if you made the mistake of buying whatever godawful Heavy Vinyl pressing is currently on the market (which you can find discussed later on in the body of this listing)
  • 4 1/2 stars: “Cool and understated might be better watchwords for what the ultra-melodic Dorham achieves on this undeniably well crafted set of standards and originals that is close to containing his best work overall during a far too brief career.”

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Gil Evans – Into the Hot

More Jazz Recordings of Interest

  • Into the Hot debuts on the site with INSANELY GOOD Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) grades on both sides of this vintage ABC Impulse pressing
  • A tough shootout, as no other copy earned a 3+ grade on either side, which simply means that when you find a top copy, it sets such a high standard that everything else ends up getting marked down
  • These sides are big and rich, with loads of Tubey Magic, wonderful transparency and lots of space around the players
  • Exceptionally spacious and three-dimensional, as well as relaxed and full-bodied – this pressing was a big step up over every other copy we played

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Grant Green – Am I Blue

More Jazz Recordings Featuring the Guitar

  • Green’s 1964 release, here with very good Hot Stamper grades on both sides of this vintage Blue Note pressing
  • It’s richer, fuller and with more presence than the average copy, and that’s especially true for whatever godawful Heavy Vinyl pressing is currently being foisted on an unsuspecting record buying public
  • This is true of even our lowest-priced, lowest-graded copies – they are guaranteed to sound much better than any pressing you can find on the market today, as well as any pressing you may already own
  • Feel free to explore whatever reissues might suit your fancy, but one pressing you should probably steer clear of is anything on the Music Matters label — they really made a mess of Grant’s Green Street album, so unless you have return privileges, you are asking for trouble buying any of their records
  • Rudy Van Gelder was masterful at this kind of spacious, low-distortion, dynamic, energetic sound

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Astrud Gilberto – Gilberto With Turrentine

More Bossa Nova

  • Here is a vintage copy of Gilberto’s 1971 collaboration with Turrentine that boasts an INCREDIBLE Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) side one mated to a solid Double Plus (A++) side two
  • It’s rich, warm and natural with wonderful transparency, loads of ambience and – this is key – plenty of Tubey Magic
  • Rudy Van Gelder did an outstanding job as usual engineering these 1971 sessions – his live-in-the-studio approach is tough to beat
  • “The real treasures of this album though are the outstanding arrangements by Eumir Deodato, who once again proves he is the master of this type of music. Nearly every track is full of interesting, complex, yet beautiful instrumentation. He blends mellow low strings with lots of Fender Rhodes electric piano, plenty of electric and acoustic guitar, and a wide variety of Brazilian percussion instruments.”

This vintage CTI pressing has the kind of Tubey Magical Midrange that modern records rarely even 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…)

Clifford Jordan – Starting Time

More Jazz Recordings Featuring the Saxophone

  • This vintage Jazzland recording pressed on remarkably quiet OJC vinyl boasts solid Double Plus (A++) sound or BETTER from first note to last
  • Both of these sides are remarkably rich, clear and transparent with sound that positively jumps out of the speakers
  • 4 stars: “A stirring set, to be sure, with good solo work all around and a rhythm section that, in addition to its flawless time-keeping, is all spunk and fire” – Down Beat

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Willie Nelson – Without A Song

More of the Music of Willie Nelson

  • With two seriously good Double Plus (A++) sides, this was one of the better copies we played in our most recent shootout
  • As he did so brilliantly on Stardust, here Willie brings his inimitable singing style to classics of love and loss taken from The Great American Songbook
  • Top quality arrangements – drop the needle on “Autumn Leaves” or “A Dreamer’s Holiday” to hear Booker T and his bandmates at their best
  • Top tracks include “Autumn Leaves,” “As Time Goes By,” “Harbor Lights” and, of course, “Without a Song”
  • The critics may not have been impressed, but music lovers sure were – Amazon buyers award the album more than 4 1/2 stars
  • Without a Song is a well recorded album of excellent music, one that we feel should be more popular with audiophiles

Once again Willie is backed by a top-notch backing band fronted by the one and only Booker T. Jones. Drop the needle on “Once In A While” and dig the uncanny presence of the vocal and astonishing clarity of the ensemble.

Much like Stardust, a Hot Stamper pressing of this record is a real treat for we audiophiles. This is some amazingly soulful music with midrange magic to spare.

There’s lots of air up top, giving the instruments plenty of room to breathe. The vocals are breathy and full-bodied; if Willie’s voice doesn’t sound a bit gravelly, you’re probably playing an overly smooth or lo-rez copy, and we take away a lot of points for both.

This copy gives you everything you could ask for from this music — tight bass, clearly audible guitar transients, generous amounts of warmth and sweetness, vocal immediacy and studio ambience like no other.

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Michael Jackson – Bad

More of the Music of Michael Jackson

  • This vintage copy was giving us the big and bold sound we were looking for, earning solid Double Plus (A++) grades on both sides – exceptionally quiet vinyl too
  • The sound is huge, full-bodied, punchy and relatively smooth throughout, with real space and ambience around the vocals and instruments
  • Includes some of Jackson’s biggest 80s hits: “Man in the Mirror,” “Dirty Diana,” “Smooth Criminal,” and of course, the title track
  • 4 1/2 stars: “… essentially taking each portion of Thriller to an extreme, while increasing the quotient of immaculate studiocraft. He wound up with a sleeker, slicker Thriller, which isn’t a bad thing…”

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