Jazz Collection

Here are more than 100 well recorded jazz albums which should be part of any audiophile’s jazz collection.

Weather Report – Heavy Weather

More of the Music of Weather Report

  • Both sides of this vintage copy have excellent sound for the band’s 1977 Masterpiece, earning top grades
  • “Birdland” on this pressing has some of the most dynamic, wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling, jam-packed sound ever committed to vinyl
  • Joe Zawinul and Jaco Pastorius are both here and at the absolute peak of their creative powers – this is a work of genius
  • 5 stars: “‘Birdland’ is a remarkable bit of record-making, a unified, ever-developing piece of music that evokes, without in any way imitating, a joyous evening on 52nd St. with a big band.”
  • We’ve compiled a list of records we think every audiophile should get to know better, along the lines of “the 1001 records you need to hear before you die,” but with the accent on the joy these amazing audiophile-quality recordings can bring to your life. Weather Report’s seventh (!) album is a good example of a record many audiophiles may not know all that well but do well to find the time to get to know better.
  • As is sometimes the case, there is one and only one set of stampers that consistently wins our shootouts for Heavy Weather.  Click on this link to see other titles with one set of stamper numbers that always come out on top

The hottest of the hot stamper pressings demonstrate that this is a truly amazing recording, with some of the most dynamic, wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling jam-packed sound ever committed to vinyl. The grit, grain and grunge of most pressings is nowhere to be found on these killer sides, and that alone puts them in a very special league indeed. (more…)

Miles Davis / Basic Miles – Here Is the Hot Stamper Sound of Kind of Blue

More of the Music of Miles Davis

  • Demo Disc Jazz sound for this wonderful collection, with both sides earning killer Nearly Triple Plus (A++ to A+++) grades, just shy of our Shootout Winner – fairly quiet vinyl too
  • Opening side two, the 9+ minutes of “On Green Dolphin Street” has some of the coolest jazz you will ever hear, on any record, at any price
  • We’re talking Bill Evans, John Coltrane and Cannonball Adderley in their prime, 1958, with top 1958 sound to match
  • If you want to know what the better copies of Kind of Blue sound like, this pressing will tell you, because it has that sound
  • And that means it is absolutely NOTHING like the MoFi 45 RPM 2 LP set that some audiophiles (and the reviewers who cater to them) seem to like so much, why, we cannot begin to fathom

Want to know how good our Hot Stamper Kind of Blue pressings sound?

Listen to this very record.

If you play the tracks that were recorded in 1958, the year before Kind of Blue, you will hear practically the same lineup of musicians.

That means Stella By Starlight and Little Melonae on side one, and Green Dolphin Street and Fran-Dance (Put Your Little Foot Right Out) on side two. 

The nine-minute plus Green Dolphin Street that opens side two is nothing short of amazing, some of the coolest jazz you will ever hear. With Fran Dance on the same side, that gives you about 17 minutes of great-sounding jazz by Miles’ classic Kind of Blue lineup.

Side one has the same cats playing for more than 12 minutes. By my calculation, that’s close to another album’s worth of material from the group. The rest of the material on this compilation is best seen as gravy; maybe not essential, but never less than interesting. (more…)

Frank Zappa / Hot Rats

More of the Music of Frank Zappa


  • Here is a vintage Bizarre pressing with two solid Double Plus (A++) sides
  • The overall sound here is musical, natural and balanced with an abundance of Tubey Magic that only the better early pressings can offer
  • If you know the album well – and I know it very well, having played it literally hundreds of times – the Classic Records reissue is positively unlistenable and will never come close to the big, rich analog sonics of the real deal we’re offering here
  • 4 1/2 stars: “Hot Rats still sizzles; few albums originating on the rock side of jazz-rock fusion flowed so freely between both sides of the equation, or achieved such unwavering excitement and energy.”
  • This is a Must Own album from 1969, one that should have a place in any audiophile’s collection

It takes us years to find copies that sound like this one. Bernie’s version for Classic beats a lot of copies out there, but it can’t hold a candle to this one.

I’ve been listening to Hot Rats since I was in high school. It’s still remarkably fresh and original, even now. This is not music for the faint of heart. Audiophiles who prefer a steady diet of Patricia Barber and her like will find little of interest here. But for those of you who want to explore something completely original and a bit “out there,” this should be right up your alley — and be sure to check out Waka Jawaka, too.

Reading in the liner notes today, I see that one of the engineers on this album is Jack Hunt, the famous half-speed mastering engineer who cut records for Mobile Fidelity and Direct Disc Labs. Oh how the mighty have fallen.

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Count Basie – 88 Basie Street

More of the Music of Count Basie

  • Outstanding big band sound for one of Basie’s best records for Pablo, with both sides earning solid Double Plus (A++) grades or close to them – exceptionally quiet vinyl too
  • This is a top Pablo title in every way – musically, sonically, you name it, 88 Basie Street has got it going on!
  • With 18 pieces in the studio, this is a real powerhouse – the sound is is rich, lively, dynamic and huge (particularly on side two)
  • 4 stars: “One of Basie’s final albums, the very appealing title cut seems to sum up his career, a lightly swinging groove with a strong melody.”
  • If you’re a Count Basie fan, and what audiophile wouldn’t be?, this title from 1983 is surely a Must Own

This album can be a real powerhouse — if you have the right copy — and this superb pressing can show you just how lively and dynamic this music can be. It’s a true Demo Disc, no doubt about it.

Both sides here have real strength down low, nice extension up top, and incredible clarity and transparency. Play this one good and loud and put yourself front and center for a rip-roarin’ performance led by the king Bill (The Count) Basie.

We’ve become huge fans of these Basie big band records. Allen Sides knew just how to record this stuff by the time Basie came around to Pablo — on the better pressings you can hear that this is big band music recorded just right. The sound is clean and clear with excellent transparency and the kind of separation between the instruments that lets you appreciate the contributions of each player.

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Paul Desmond / Take Ten – Living Stereo Tubey Magical Sound from 1963

More Living Stereo Titles

  • Paul Desmond’s 1963 Cool Jazz Classic returns to the site for the first time in years, here with INSANELY GOOD Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sound from start to finish
  • These are just a few of the things we had to say about this amazing copy in our notes: “fully extended from top to bottom”…”big and rich and 3D”…”very full and rich sax”…”jumping out of the speakers”…”3D and lively guitar and snare”…”texture and space all there!” (side two)
  • The brilliant Ray Hall engineered – anyone hearing this copy will understand exactly why we love to find his fabulous 60s recordings here at Better Records
  • Desmond joins forces here with Jim Hall, whose guitar stylings perfectly complement Paul’s velvety sax tone
  • This is a lot of money for a somewhat noisy copy, but the sound is so awesome and quiet pressings of the album so hard to come by that we hope someone will take a chance on it and get the thrill we did from hearing it sound right for once
  • 4 1/2 stars: “Everyone wanted Desmond to come up with a sequel to the monster hit Take Five; and so he did, reworking the tune and playfully designating the meter as 10/8. Hence Take Ten, a worthy sequel… There is not a single track here that isn’t loaded with ingeniously worked out, always melodic ideas.”

For us audiophiles both the sound and the music here are enchanting. If you’re looking to demonstrate just how good 1963 All Tube Analog sound can be, this killer copy will do the trick.

This vintage pressing is spacious, sweet and positively dripping with ambience. Talk about Tubey Magic, the liquidity of the sound here is positively uncanny. This is vintage analog at its best, so full-bodied and relaxed you’ll wonder how it ever came to be that anyone seriously contemplated trying to improve it. (more…)

Jimmy Smith / Bashin’ – The Unpredictable Jimmy Smith

More of the Music of Jimmy Smith

  • This Big Band Jazz classic led by Jimmy Smith returns to the site for only the second time in four years, here with solid Double Plus (A++) grades from start to finish
  • If you own only one Jimmy Smith album, make it this one – with Oliver Nelson‘s arrangements ferociously blasting away, at good loud levels the first side here has the power to swing like you will not believe
  • 5 stars: “On the first half of the program, Smith was for the first time joined by a big band. Oliver Nelson provided the arrangements, trumpeter Joe Newman and altoist Phil Woods have a solo apiece, and “Walk on the Wild Side” became Smith’s biggest hit up to that point.”
  • It’s hard to imagine that any list of the Best Jazz Albums of 1962 would not have this record on it

This is tube mastering at its finest. Not many vintage tube-mastered records manage to balance all the sonic elements as correctly as this copy does.

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Oscar Peterson Trio – West Side Story

More Jazz Recordings Featuring the Piano

  • A West Side Story like you’ve never heard, with KILLER Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) grades or close to them throughout this early Stereo Verve pressing
  • Rich, solid bass; you-are-there immediacy; energy and drive; instruments that are positively jumping out of the speakers – add it all up and you can see that this copy had the sound we were looking for
  • Which wouldn’t mean much if the music wasn’t swingin,’ but it is – every track shows just how good this trio was in 1962
  • Credit engineer Bob Simpson, the man behind the legendary Belafonte at Carnegie Hall live recording from a couple of years before
  • An absolute Must Own – for sound and music, this is our pick for The Best Oscar Peterson Album of All Time
  • It’s hard to imagine that any list of the Best Jazz Albums of 1962 would not have this record on it

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Dexter Gordon – One Flight Up

Hot Stamper Pressings of Blue Note Albums Available Now

  • One Flight Up returns to the site for only the second time in years, here with solid Double Plus (A++) grades on both sides of this 70s Blue Note reissue pressing – exceptionally quiet vinyl too
  • With its presence, clarity, space and timbral accuracy, this is guaranteed to be one of the best sounding jazz records you’ve heard in a very long time
  • One of our very favorite Blue Note recordings for both music and sound, a Dexter Gordon classic of soulful hard bop
  • Turn it up good and loud and it’s as if you are right up front at one of the best 60s jazz concerts imaginable
  • According to my notes, we haven’t done a shootout for this title since 2018
  • I hope we can look forward to the next shootout winner showing up before 2032
  • This is a Must Own Jazz Album from 1964 that belongs in every jazz-loving audiophile’s collection

Both the sax and the trumpet sound unbelievably good — airy and breathy with lots of body and clearly audible leading edge transients.

It’s hard to find a Blue Note where the horns aren’t either too smooth or too edgy, but here they have just the right amount of bite. The overall sound is open, spacious, tonally correct from top to bottom and totally free from distortion.

The presence and immediacy on this copy are superb. Just listen to the snare drum at the beginning of Coppin’ The Haven — it sounds like someone is bangin’ on that thing right in your very own living room!

This copy has the power of live music. When we turned it up loud it was as if we were right up front at one of the best jazz concerts imaginable. The music is every bit as good — soulful hard bop played superbly and passionately.

Listen to Donald Byrd blowing his lungs out on his own composition, Tanya, or Gordon’s lyrical solo on Darn That Dream — these guys are pros at the top of their game.

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Caldera / Sky Islands

More Jazz Fusion

  • KILLER Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) grades or close to them bring Caldera’s amazing sophomore LP to life on this vintage Capitol pressing
  • Here are just a few of the things we had to say about this killer copy in our notes: “huge and weighty drums and bass”…”fully extended from top to bottom”…”jumping out of the speakers”…”big low end”
  • Demo Disco sound – this copy was just bigger and richer than any other we played, with rock solid energy to beat them all
  • If you like percussion instruments of all size and shape jumping out of your speakers, this is the record for you
  • Not only is this a phenomenally well-recorded album, it’s also one of the best Jazz Fusion albums of all time, and easily takes top honors in the sub-category of Latin Jazz Fusion

This White Hot Stamper Caldera album has Demo Disc sound, big and bold, wall to wall and then some! Listen to the monster drum at the opening of “Sky Islands” — it’s not deep like the bass drum in an orchestra, but it’s solid, punchy and way up front in the mix where it really grabs your attention right from the get go. It’s the perfect introduction to a band that wants to get in your face and knock you over with the power and energy of their music. The immediacy of the recording is like standing at the front of the stage where the music is its loudest and clearest, exactly where I like to be.

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Lee Morgan – Cornbread

More Jazz Recordings Featuring the Trumpet

  • With two STUNNING Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sides or close to them, this early pressing is doing practically everything right
  • The sound is everything that’s good about Rudy Van Gelder‘s recordings – it’s present, spacious, full-bodied, Tubey Magical, dynamic and, most importantly, alive in that way that modern pressings never are
  • Exceptionally spacious and three-dimensional, as well as relaxed and full-bodied – this pressing was a big step up over nearly all other copies we played
  • As is sometimes the nature of the beast with these early pressing, there are some bad marks that play (most notably on “Ceora”) but once you hear just how incredible sounding this copy is, you might be inclined, as we were, to stop counting ticks and just be swept away by the music
  • 5 stars: “[Morgan] performs with a perfectly complementary group of open-minded and talented hard bop stylists (altoist Jackie McLean, Hank Mobley on tenor, pianist Herbie Hancock, bassist Larry Ridley, and drummer Billy Higgins) and creates a Blue Note classic that is heartily recommended.”

This vintage Blue Note pressing has the kind of Tubey Magical Midrange that modern records can barely 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.

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