Labels We Love – Hi Records

Al Green – The Belle Album – Our Shootout Winner from 2011

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SUPER HOT STAMPERS and QUIET VINYL on BOTH sides of this fun ’70s Al Green album! This AMG 4 Star-rated album is the last secular music Green put out for a long time, and it sure is funky! We played a ton of these and found that the best copies such as this one are incredibly lively, clear and fun! 

The typical copy is dull up top and small in size. We played copy after copy and wondered “Where’s the energy?” until a Hot Stamper pressing finally hit the table and showed us how great this music can sound. While the typical copies put us to sleep, the Hot copies such as this one are so lively, present and balanced that it’s hard not to move your body to the beat.

It’s tough to find great sounding copies of Al Green’s great music, but it’s always a thrill to hear one of the best voices in soul when the sound is right. These shootouts are a labor of love — the records never come very cheaply and almost always disappoint, but it’s all worth it when you get to hear a pressing that presents the music with the kind of sound you know the musicians and engineers were going for. (more…)

Al Green – Let’s Stay Together

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  • Two insanely good sides each earning Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) grades and the first copy to hit the site in over two years!
  • Both sides here are incredibly big, rich and Tubey Magical yet still clean, clear and spacious; the bottom end is punchy and solid and the vocals are wonderfully breathy and present
  • One of our favorite soul albums that sounds OUT OF THIS WORLD on a copy like this; I can’t imagine this music sounding any better than it does here
  • “Green’s ingenuity produced one of the all-time classics, which has the bounce of a dance cut and the passion of a ballad.” – All Music

It’s very rare that we have copies of this brilliant record up on our site, and it’s not for a lack of effort on our end.

It’s tough enough to find any copies of Green’s early LPs out in the bins, let alone clean copies with great sound. I wish we were able to find more copies of this album, because when you stumble on a good one it’s an absolute thrill. The best pressings give you a big, spacious soundfield and put Green’s vocals right up front. If you’ve got a pressing of your own around, throw it on for comparison’s sake — odds are pretty good that the sound will be dry and grainy, particularly on the strings. We found the sound on most pressings to be either too harsh to enjoy or overly smooth. Hot Stamper copies give you richer, smoother sound but without smearing away all the texture and detail.

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Al Green – I’m Still In Love With You

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  • You’ll find outstanding Double Plus (A++) sound on both sides of this superb pressing of Al Green’s 1972 release
  • One of the fullest, richest, smoothest, cleanest and most energetic copies we played in our shootout – this is how good the album can sound
  • 5 stars: “[It] shares many surface similarities with its predecessor, from Al Green and Willie Mitchell’s distinctive, sexy style to the pacing and song selection. I’m Still in Love With You distinguishes itself with its suave, romantic tone and its subtly ambitious choice of material. There isn’t a wasted track on I’m Still in Love With You, and in many ways it rivals its follow-up, Call Me, as Green’s masterpiece.”

This is The Memphis Sound at its best — big Hammond organs with whirring Leslie speakers, funky drums, punchy brass blasts, and lovely string arrangements.

Al Green’s vocal performance is superb, of course, but one thing that really stands out after hearing the best Hot Stamper copies is the quality of the musicians’ performances. The rhythm section on this album really drives the music. Just listen to the punchy kick drum and deep, note-like bass on a song like Love and Happiness — the band is rockin’.

The Hodges Brothers — the house band at Hi Records, known for their “telepathic interplay” — deliver rock solid musicianship just brimming with energy and soul. The brass is handled by the truly great Memphis Horns, of Stax Records fame.

Just play the beginning of I’m So Glad You’re Mine to hear what we’re talking about. The drummer opens with a tight, funky beat that gets the song going right out of the gate. The kick drum is as punchy as they come, and just listen to that big room around the rimshots.

When the rest of the band joins in, you’ll be treated to some of the best Hammond organ sound you’ll ever hear. You can really hear the effect of the rotating Leslie speaker. When Al joins in on vocals with a very emotional, expressive performance, you’ll understand just why we’re so crazy about this record — it’s pure soul magic, baby! (more…)

Al Green – Gets Next To You

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  • Incredible sound throughout for this Hi Records pressing with each side earning Top Honors — Triple Plus (A+++) from start to finish
  • These sides are both stunning — clean, clear, dynamic and spacious with tons of bottom end weight 
  • “Al Green and producer Willie Mitchell established their classic sound with Green’s second album… Alternating between Sam Cooke’s croon and Otis Redding’s shout, Green develops his own distinctive style, and Gets Next to You only touches the surface of its depth.” – All Music 

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Al Green – Let’s Stay Together

It’s rare that we have copies of this brilliant record up on our site, and it’s not for a lack of effort on our end.

It’s tough enough to find any copies of Green’s early LPs out in the bins, let alone clean copies with great sound. I wish we were able to find more copies of this album, because when you stumble on a good one it’s an absolute thrill. The best pressings give you a big, spacious soundfield and put Green’s vocals right up front. If you’ve got a pressing of your own around, throw it on for comparison’s sake — odds are pretty good that the sound will be dry and grainy, particularly on the strings.

We found the sound on most pressings to be either too harsh to enjoy or overly smooth. Hot Stamper copies give you richer, smoother sound without smearing away all the texture and detail.

(more…)

Al Green – I’m Still In Love With You

xxxxx

This is The Memphis Sound at its best — big Hammond organs with whirring Leslie speakers, funky drums, punchy brass blasts, and lovely string arrangements. 

Al Green’s singing is superb, of course, but one thing that really stands out after hearing the best Hot Stamper copies is the quality of the musicians’ performances. The rhythm section on this album really drives the music. Just listen to the punchy kick drum and deep, note-like bass on a song like Love and Happiness — the band is rockin’.

The Hodges Brothers — the house band at Hi Records, known for their “telepathic interplay” — deliver rock solid musicianship just brimming with energy and soul. The brass is handled by the truly great Memphis Horns, of Stax Records fame. (more…)