Top Artists – Carlos Montoya

Carlos Montoya – From St. Louis to Seville

Living Stereo Titles Available Now

  • Flamenco meets Jazz in this extraordinary Living Stereo all analog recording from 1958
  • Both of these sides are exceptionally big and rich, with clear guitar transients, an abundance of three-dimensional space and Tubey Magic that will have your jaw on the floor
  • …”Carlos Montoya, the great flamenco guitarist, played for the first time on record with a jazz rhythm accompaniment, giving his unique and expressive interpretation of five pop tunes, best of which is a virtuoso treatment of ‘St. Louis Blues.’ The rest of the album spotlights the exciting flamenco guitar work on three Montoya originals, and a couple of Spanish popular gypsy songs.” – Fresh Sound Records.com
  • The three-dimensional space and Tubey Magic are superb on this copy
  • An amazing Webster Hall Living Stereo all analog recording from 1958 – nothing else sounds like it
  • It’s yet another recording we’ve discovered with (potentially) excellent sound
  • When you’ve played as many Living Stereo titles as we have (250+ and counting), you’re bound to run into this kind of Demo Disc sound from time to time – it’s what makes record collecting fun

Ed Begley is the engineer here and he knocked this one out of the park. What an amazing sounding Living Stereo recording.

Need a refresher course in Tubey Magic after playing too many modern recordings or remasterings? This record is overflowing with it. Rich, clear, natural, sweet, overflowing with space and ambience, absolutely correct tonality — it’s all here.

The rhythm accompaniment is made up of three top players from New York. Sally Montoya noted at the time: “Carlos just recorded the first Flamenco jazz record for Victor, with Osie Johnson and Milt Hinton and Barry Galbraith on electric guitar. A most relaxed and informal session. The other musicians said it was unique in their experience.”

It’s certainly a unique record in my experience, with mind-blowingly good sound and engaging music.

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This Phenomenally Well Recorded Montoya Album Is an Amazing Find

Hot Stamper Pressings of Living Stereo Titles Available Now

Flamenco meets Jazz in this extraordinary Living Stereo all analog recording from 1958 (only the second copy to hit the site in years).

Ed Begley is the engineer here and he knocked this one out of the park. The sound is shockingly real – proof positive that the cutting systems of the day are capable of much better sound than many audiophiles might think. If more evidence is what you’re after, see here and here

Need a refresher course in Tubey Magic after playing too many modern recordings or remasterings? This record is overflowing with it.

Side One

Track One

    • Tubey and 3-D
    • Jumping out
    • Lots of room and depth and width
    • Dynamic guitar

Track Three

    • Rich and present
    • Extending high and low

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Carlos Montoya – Flamenco Concert

More Carlos Montoya

More Living Stereo

  • You’ll find seriously good Double Plus (A++) Living Stereo sound throughout this early White Dog pressing
  • The overall sound here is incredibly big, rich and Tubey Magical with tons of space and plenty of energy; Montoya’s guitar is really jumping out of the speakers!
  • “Montoya is credited with having transformed flamenco guitar music into a separate music style, beyond being a traditional dance accompaniment. He adapted flamenco to other genres of music to create his own recognizable style, becoming an international star.” – Wikipedia
  • If you’re a fan of the music of flamenco, this title from 1964 is clearly one of Montoya’s best, and one of his best sounding
  • The complete list of titles from 1964 that we’ve reviewed to date can be found here.

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