A&M

Styx – Pieces Of Eight

More of the Music of Styx

  • This vintage copy was doing just about everything right, with both sides earning solid Double Plus (A++) grades or close to them – exceptionally quiet vinyl too
  • Here is the kind of sound we want on our ELP, Yes and Queen-like multi-layered Proggy Pop Rock – big, full-bodied and lively (particularly on side one)
  • 4 stars: “Styx’s feisty, straightforward brand of album rock is represented best by ‘Blue Collar Man,’ an invigorating keyboard and guitar rush… reaching number 21, with the frolicking romp of ‘Renegade’ edging in at number 16 only six months later… the rest of the album includes tracks that rekindle some of Styx’s early progressive rock sound, only cleaner. Tracks like ‘Sing for the Day,’ ‘Lords of the Ring,’ and ‘Aku-Aku’ all contain slightly more complex instrumental foundations…”

Who likes their Wall of Sound small and closed-in? Certainly not big speaker guys like us. By all accounts this band wanted their records to sound good, or at least as good as their contemporaries (and the bands that inspired them, name-checked above). There’s no shortage of production polish here and on the best pressings, the sound really works.

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The Carpenters – Close To You

More of the Music of The Carpenters

  • With two KILLER Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sides or close to them, you’ll have a hard time finding a copy that sounds remotely as good as this vintage A&M pressing
  • A very hard album to find in audiophile playing condition – we must look at ten for every one we pick up
  • Here is the classic A&M sound we love – big, rich and Tubey Magical
  • On this copy you will find a healthy amount of the two qualities crucial to the sound of The Carpenters’ music: present and breathy vocals
  • “We’ve Only Just Begun” and “Close to You” are two of the better tracks here; perhaps you’re familiar with them?
  • 4 stars: “Close to You is a surprisingly strong album, and not just for those hits. Richard Carpenter’s originals ‘Maybe It’s You’ and ‘Crescent Noon’ are superb showcases for Karen Carpenter’s developing talent, the latter a superbly atmospheric, hauntingly beautiful art song of the kind that Judy Collins was doing well at the time, and gorgeously arranged.”

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Sting – Nothing Like The Sun

More Sting and The Police

  • A vintage copy of Sting’s killer double album from 1987 with solid Double Plus (A++) grades on all FOUR sides
  • The sound here is clearly bigger, richer, fuller, and livelier than most other copies we played it against
  • Features phenomenal contributions from legendary musicians, including Andy Summers, Eric Clapton, Mark Knopfler, and Hiram Bullock
  • 4 1/2 stars: “…the melodies are insinuating, slowly working their way into memory, while the entire record plays like a mood piece – playing equally well as background music or as intensive, serious listening.”

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Suzanne Vega – Solitude Standing

More of the Music of Women Who Rock

  • Suzanne Vega’s sophomore LP debuts on the site with INSANELY GOOD Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sound throughout this original A&M pressing
  • Both sides are big, rich and sweet with wonderfully breathy vocals, excellent clarity and a plenty of bottom end weight
  • Exceptionally present, real and resolving, this pressing is guaranteed to murder any remastering undertaken by anyone – past, present and future
  • 4 1/2 stars: “The songs on Solitude Standing, Suzanne Vega’s second album, had years listed beside them on the lyric sheet, so you could see that some of them dated back to 1978. But that bold admission heralded the album’s triumph – its diversity was what made it so good.”

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The Police – Reggatta de Blanc

More Sting and The Police

  • With solid Double Plus (A++) sound or close to it from start to finish, this copy is guaranteed to handily beat any other Regatta de Blanc you’ve heard – exceptionally quiet vinyl too
  • Most of the stuff we manage to acquire from overseas is in far worse playing condition – these were popular records in their day, and they got played plenty, so this one came as a pleasant surprise
  • Sting’s pulsing bass lines and the massive assault of Copeland’s kick really come to life here – you won’t believe how big and powerful the bass is on this record (particularly on side one)
  • Along with Ghost in the Machine, we think this album captures The Police at their songwriting and performing peak
  • “Reggatta de Blanc stands the test of time as one of the greatest albums of the post-punk and new wave era, improving in almost every way upon The Police’s debut album.”

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Supertramp – Even In The Quietest Moments (Domestic)

More of the Music of Supertramp

  • Boasting two seriously good Double Plus (A++) sides, we guarantee you’ve never heard Supertramp’s 1977 release sound this good – fairly quiet vinyl too
  • On side two, the recording quality of the solo piano at the start of the second track is nothing short of breathtaking
  • No piano on any Supertramp album sounds more powerful, more real or more present than the one on “From Now On”
  • The bottom end is big and punchy, the top is smooth and sweet, and the vocals are present and breathy
  • On a transparent copy such as this, the drums really punch through the dense mixes clearly, giving the music more life and energy
  • “…it’s a transitional album, bridging the gap between Crime of the Century and the forthcoming Breakfast in America… [it] has plenty of fine moments aside from ‘Give A Little Bit,’ including the music hall shuffle of ‘Loverboy,’ the Euro-artiness of ‘From Now On,’ and the ‘Fool on a Hill’ allusions on ‘Fool’s Overture.'”
  • If you’re a Supertramp fan like me, this art rock classic from 1977 belongs in your collection.

What To Listen For

The piano on “Give A Little Bit” can get buried in the dense mix. Side ones that are rich and tubey and smooth with a clear piano did very well in our shootout.

“Lover Boy” is a Demo Quality Track on the better copies. It can be huge, spacious and lively. Getting the strings to sound harmonically rich without sliding into shrillness may not be easy but some copies manage it. On the biggest, richest copies the breakdown at about 2:20 is a lot of fun.

On side two, the recording quality of the solo piano at the start of the second track is nothing short of breathtaking. No piano on any Supertramp album sounds as good.

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The Police – Outlandos d’Amour

More of The Police

  • This copy was giving us the sound we were looking for on the band’s debut album, with both sides earning very good Hot Stamper grades – exceptionally quiet vinyl too
  • Few audiophiles (I’m guessing) know how well recorded this album is – you need just the right UK pressing to show you what’s really on the tape
  • “Roxanne,” “So Lonely,” “Can’t Stand Losing You” all sound quite good on these two sides
  • 4 1/2 stars: “Although Sting, Andy Summers, and Stewart Copeland were all superb instrumentalists with jazz backgrounds, it was much easier to get a record contract in late-70s England if you were a punk/new wave artist, so the band decided to mask their instrumental prowess with a set of strong, adrenaline-charged rock, albeit with a reggae tinge.”

What’s amazing about this copy? There are sweet highs and ambience that we didn’t think were possible — and it rocks! Whatever it’s doing, it sure doesn’t take a pair of golden ears to hear it.

Not only does the high end exist, but it sounds sweet and doesn’t rip your ears out of your earsockets (trust me, I’m a doctor). This is vitally important in songs like “Roxanne,” where Andy Summers’ reggae influenced guitar can sound squawky and brittle if there is too much compression.

Sting’s vocals are detailed, present, and you can really hear his background vocals separate themselves away from the lead, obvious on this copy in a denser track like “So Lonely.”

There’s a ton of punchy bass which actually equates to a ton of life and energy on this album. If Stewart Copeland’s kick drum isn’t punching you in the chest, then you’re missing out on some of the fun. We even heard ambience around the cymbals, and that is information most copies of the album simply cannot resolve.

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Herb Alpert – Herb Alpert’s Ninth

More Sixties Pop

  • A vintage pressing with seriously good Double Plus (A++) sound from first note to last
  • It’s big, lively, clear and present, with the kind of Tubey Magical richness we flip out for here at Better Records
  • You get lovely extension up top, good weight down low, as well as remarkable transparency in the midrange, all qualities that were much less evident on the average copy we played
  • “[Alpert] gives the Supremes’ ‘The Happening’ a bouncy workout. There is also a touching memorial to the late Ervan Coleman (‘Bud’) and another underrated contribution from the Alpert songwriting team, Sol Lake’s swinging ‘Cowboys and Indians.'”

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Squeeze / Argybargy Rocks on UK Vinyl

More Squeeze

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  • Both sides of this vintage British import were giving us the big and bold sound we were looking for, earning solid Double Plus (A++) grades – exceptionally quiet vinyl too
  • The overall sonics are rich, full-bodied, lively, and warm, with solid bass and breathy, clear vocals
  • Forget the dubby domestic pressings and whatever crappy Heavy Vinyl record they’re making these days – if you want to hear this music right, the UK LPs are the only way to fly on Argybargy
  • 5 stars: “If any one album were responsible for sowing the seeds of Chris Difford and Glenn Tilbrook’s reputation as the new Lennon and McCartney, it’s Argybargy, Squeeze’s third album and undisputed breakthrough.”

If you think you might enjoy the mashup of Pub Rock and New Wave that this group unleashed on the pop music scene of the 70s and 80s I could not recommend any album of theirs more highly than Argybargy.

Squeeze’s prime period with Jools Holland on keyboards encompasses four albums, any of which is worth owning. The band really gets going with their second album, Cool for Cats (1979), pulls it all together and takes it to another level for their breakthrough third, Argybargy (1980), and produces two more of high quality, East Side Story (1981, produced mostly by Elvis Costello) and the darker but equally brilliant Sweets from a Stranger (1982).

I’m a huge fan of all four, as well as two from their later days, the amazing-to-this-day Cosi Fan Tutti Frutti (1985) and the weaker but enjoyable Babylon and On (1987). I play all of them on a regular basis.

If you’re a fan of Elvis Costello, Graham Parker, Nick Lowe, Joe Jackson and probably quite a few other lesser-knowns from this era, Squeeze is the band for you. I put them right up there with Elvis Costello and Peter Gabriel in the pantheon of British Pop Music of the era.

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The Tubes – Self-Titled

More of The Tubes

  • The Tubes’ self-titled debut returns to the site after an eighteen month hiatus, here with with INCREDIBLE Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sound or close to it from start to finish
  • This copy is simply bigger, richer, fuller, and livelier than practically all others we played
  • Their music is definitely not for everyone – I saw them live many years ago and they did put on one helluva show, but you have to be a fan of eccentric pop or none of it will make any sense
  • This is the band’s best sounding album as far as we know. Roughly 100 other listings for the best sounding album by an artist or group can be found here
  • In our opinion, the first album is the only Tubes record anyone needs. Click on the link to see more titles we like to call one and done
  • “Produced by Al Kooper, this debut by the notorious San Francisco group is best known for the blazing anthem ‘White Punks on Dope.’ Although the Tubes’ raison d’être was their shock-rock stage dynamic, Bill Spooner, Fee Waybill, and company could, on occasion, deliver some offbeat pop splendor.”

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