Bones Howe, Engineer

Tom Waits – Small Change

More of the Music of Tom Waits

  • You’ll find an INCREDIBLE Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) side two mated to a solid Double Plus (A++) side one of this vintage Asylum pressing
  • Recorded live to 2-track by audio legend Bones Howe in 1976, no wonder the sound is so big, full-bodied, clean and clear
  • A tough record to find in the bins these days – Tom Waits still has plenty of die-hard fans here in L.A. and nobody wants to part with their copy
  • 4 1/2 stars: “Small Change proves to be the archetypal album of his 70s work. A jazz trio comprising tenor sax player Lew Tabackin, bassist Jim Hughart and drummer Shelly Manne, plus an occasional string section, back Waits and his piano on songs steeped in whiskey and atmosphere…”

According to Wikipedia, when asked in an interview by Mojo magazine in 1999 if he shared many fans’ view that Small Change was the crowning moment of his “beatnik-glory-meets-Hollywood-noir period” (i.e. from 1973 to 1980), Waits replied:

Well, gee. I’d say there’s probably more songs off that record that I continued to play on the road, and that endured. Some songs you may write and record but you never sing them again. Others you sing ’em every night and try and figure out what they mean. “Tom Traubert’s Blues” was certainly one of those songs I continued to sing, and in fact, close my show with.

This is a wonderful album, considered by many to be Waits’s masterpiece. He’s backed with a real jazz combo here, including Lew Tabackin on sax and the great Shelley Manne on drums.

Bones Howe does a great job gettin the kind of beatnik-jazz sound out of these songs that they need. On a copy like this, the presence and clarity are absolutely stunning. The Association, The Mamas and the Papas, The Fifth Dimension, and of course Tom Waits — all their brilliant recordings are the result of Bones Howe’s estimable talents as producer and engineer.

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Tom Waits / Heartattack and Vine

More Tom Waits

  • Both sides of this vintage Asylum pressing (the first copy to hit the site in years) have superb sound for Waits’s 1980 release, earning STUNNING Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) grades or close to them
  • The overall sound is exceptionally rich and full with wonderful immediacy to the vocals
  • Waits’s music is an acquired taste and certainly not for everyone, but those of you who appreciate Randy Newman, just to take one example, are likely to get a lot out of this one
  • “…Heartattack and Vine reveals just how much Waits had grown during his tenure with Asylum. …almost every song stands on its own as a dusty gem.”

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Tom Waits – The Heart of Saturday Night

More Tom Waits

  • Excellent Double Plus (A++) sound brings Waits’s sophomore LP to life on this vintage Asylum pressing
  • Forget that critical listening stuff and just notice that these Hot Stamper copies are simply more relaxed, musical and involving than anything you’ve heard – guaranteed or your money back
  • This music ain’t for everyone, but when you find good sounding Tom Waits pressings like this one the sonics can be out of this world
  • Bones Howe brilliantly recorded this music — a copy that sounds as good as this one will surely let you appreciate his work in the clearest possible way: by hearing it
  • “Musically, the album contains the same mixture of folk, blues, and jazz as its predecessor, with producer Bones Howe occasionally bringing in an orchestra to underscore the loping melodies… ‘(Looking For) The Heart of Saturday Night’ and ‘Semi Suite’ are the equal of anything on Closing”

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Bob Florence / Here And Now – So Tough to Find in Stereo, We Finally Just Gave Up

More of Our Favorite Recordings By Bones Howe

Recordings Engineered by Bones Howe Available Now


A Five Star Album in the All Music Guide. This lively big band LP has excellent sound. We loved the music too.

Wish we could find some. It apparently sold very poorly, so poorly that there simply aren’t any copies around.

At 32, Florence already largely had his writing style together. He utilized top L.A. studio players for this set including such soloists as altoist Bud Shank, the tenors of Bill Perkins and Bob Hardaway, and trombonist Herbie Harper, but it is the tricky charts on the four originals and four standards (including “The Song Is You” and “Straight No Chaser”) that make this an LP worth searching for.” – AMG

This is an older jazz review.

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The Association – Insight Out

More of The Association

  • An Insight Out like you’ve never heard, with solid Double Plus (A++) grades or BETTER from start to finish – fairly quiet vinyl too
  • Side two was sonically very close to our Shootout Winner – you will be amazed at how big and rich the sound is
  • The Tubey Magical sound, the lively, tight playing by The Wrecking Crew, not to mention some killer chart topping 60s pop, make this the Association album to own
  • With this copy the Sound of the Sixties will fill your room like never before – wall to wall, floor to ceiling, with layers upon layers of analog depth
  • These original Gold Label stereo pressings are potentially the best sounding, with the ideal balance of richness and transparency
  • Potentially – again, the label is no guarantee of top quality sound, only proper cleaning and careful shootouts can do that
  • “The harmonies and choruses are among the most beautifully textured singing in a rock outfit this side of the Beach Boys.”
  • One of our favorite Sixties pop records

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Tom Waits – Blue Valentine

More Tom Waits

More Singer-Songwriter Albums

  • Blue Valentine returns to the site for the first time in years, here with killer Nearly Triple Plus (A++ to A+++) grades from start to finish – just shy of our Shootout Winner
  • Both of these sides are remarkably rich, full, sweet and warm
  • The strings have wonderful texture, the voice is exceptionally present and breathy – you’d be hard pressed to find a better sounding copy
  • “Two welcome changes in style made Blue Valentine a fresh listening experience for Tom Waits fans. First, Waits alters the instrumentation, bringing in electric guitar and keyboards and largely dispensing with the strings for a more blues-oriented, hard-edged sound. Second … he expands beyond the musings of the barstool philosopher who previously had acted as the first-person character of most of his songs. These are not radical reinventions, but Waits had followed such a rigidly stylized approach on his previous albums that for anyone who had followed him so far, the course correction was big news.”

Both sides have a wonderful bottom end — check out all the weight to that rich, meaty bass. Many copies we played had a tendency to sound somewhat dull, but this one has all the extension up top you need.

Drop the needle on “Romeo Is Bleeding” for some of the best music on here. When you’ve got the kind of bass definition that this copy offers, the sound for that song can be killer, as it is here.

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Tom Waits – Foreign Affairs

More Tom Waits

  • Foreign Affairs is back on the site after a six month hiatus, here with a KILLER Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) side one mated to a solid Double Plus (A++) side two
  • These are just a few of the things we had to say about this incredible Triple Plus side one in our notes: “tubey sax and bass”…”vox jumping out [of the speakers]”…”sweet and rich and 3D”…”deep bass”
  • This early Asylum label pressing will put Tom Waits right in front of you, with a batch of great session players behind and to the side, all playing live in the studio
  • “Foreign Affairs is one of the most unjustifiably overlooked titles in Waits’ catalog. It holds its appeal – and sounds less dated – than many of his more popular entries.”
  • “Produced and engineered by Bones Howe, Foreign Affairs was recorded live in studio by a quintet that included West Coast jazzmen Jack Sheldon on trumpet, saxophonist Frank Vicari, bassist Jim Hughart, and drummer Shelly Manne.”

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The Fifth Dimension – The Age of Aquarius

More of The Fifth Dimension

More Sixties Pop

  • A vintage pressing that was doing pretty much everything right, with both sides earning excellent Double Plus (A++) grades – EXCEPTIONALLY quiet vinyl too
  • Tubey Magical sweetness and richness is key, and here you will find plenty of both, with virtually no sacrifice in presence, clarity or resolution
  • You can thank legendary engineer and producer Bones Howe, the man behind the amazing recordings of The Association, The Turtles and even the likes of Tom Waits(!)
  • 4 stars: “The Age of Aquarius, the 5th Dimension’s fourth album, was the group’s commercial peak… The 5th Dimension were the successors to the L.A. vocal group mantle passed on by The Mamas and the Papas… their work had a sheen and a zest that sometimes contrasted with the original tone of the material.”

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Tom Waits – Nighthawks At The Diner

More Tom Waits

  • Excellent sound for this Tom Waits classic, with Double Plus (A++) grades on all FOUR sides of these vintage Asylum pressings – exceptionally quiet vinyl too
  • A superb recording, with much credit due to Waits’ constant collaborator Bones Howe, who produced and engineered
  • It’s a live-in-the-studio romp through Los Angeles with Waits playing the role of tour guide, and the results are wonderful
  • “As entertainment, Nighthawks at the Diner is one of Waits’ most thoroughly enjoyable albums … it’s hard to imagine anyone not being charmed by it.”

At its best, this album has the immediacy and energy of a real live performance, but the typical copy just doesn’t bring it to life. This one is a big step up on all four sides, with the kind of life and clarity we just don’t hear often enough.

This album was recorded live at The Record Plant back in 1975, and while I can’t be certain, it sure seems there are no overdubs or post-performance additions. There’s a touch of hardness to the vocals at times, but it was on every copy we played and it’s obviously on the tape. It’s the kind of sound we hear on Johnny Cash records and it just seems like a by-product of the microphones these guys used. It doesn’t seem to far a reach to imagine that an iconoclast like Waits might prefer an old-timey microphone sound that doesn’t soften or smooth his vocal style. (For those in search of buttery vocals, there’s usually an Al Stewart record or two on the site. This ain’t the one for you.)

We played quite a few copies and while we were absolutely blown away by the better pressings; the typical copies left us cold. When you have a copy that’s veiled and lacks presence, the magic is gone.

I’m not very familiar with the musicians that make up the backing band here, but they are a top-notch crew. The way they interact with Waits as he spins stories, songs, and even a few jokes is in the very best jazz tradition. Waits actually hooked up with the great drummer Shelley Manne to record his next album (the classic Small Change) so this is a man who clearly knows how to pick a band.

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Marty Paich Big Band – What’s New

More Marty Paich

More Jazz Recordings of Interest

  • Discovery may not have produced or released a lot of top sounding titles, but this record by itself puts them well ahead of Classic Records, Mobile Fidelity and the dozens of other remastering houses who have turned out close to zero records of this sonic quality
  • If you’re looking to demonstrate just how good 1957 All Tube Analog sound can be, this killer copy should be just the record for you – the music and sound are enchanting.
  • This copy is super-spacious, sweet and positively dripping with ambience – the liquidity of the sound here is positively uncanny
  • With engineering from the legendary Bones Howe at Radio Recorders, this record’s audiophile credentials are fully in order
  • If you’re a fan of brilliant West Coast Jazz charts, this All Tube Recording from 1957 belongs in your collection.
  • The complete list of titles from 1957 that we’ve reviewed to date can be found here.

This is a wonderful example of the kind of record that makes record collecting FUN.

If you large group swinging West Coast Jazz is your thing – think Art Pepper Plus Eleven – you will really get a kick out of this one.

Albert Marx was the producer of the original sessions back in 1957. Fast-forward to the ’80s and Marx is now the owner of his very own jazz label, Discovery Records. Who would know the sound of the original tapes better than he? Working with Dave Ellsworth at KM, Marx has here produced one of the best jazz reissues we’ve heard in years.

The Original

We finally got hold of an original, and sure enough, it had some of the qualities we might have guessed it would have.

It was big and rich, as expected, but it was also crude and gritty, like a lot of old jazz and pop vocal records from the ’50s are.

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