Album Reviews

Speakers Corner has unearthed an unlikely gem here: a 1957 blues set by a stellar assemblage of jazz musicians  that's been obscured by time—at least I've never seen or heard of it before.

A more pleasant pairing of musical icons you’re not likely to hear and the backing by The Oscar Peterson Trio (Ray Brown on bass, Herb Ellis on guitar plus Buddy Rich on drums) completes the setting. Add a superb monophonic recording and a literally astonishing 45rpm re-mastering that just about brings them all back to life in your listening room and you have something truly special that’s clearly stood the test of (a long!) time.

Dad did love his work, more than his family and marriage to Carly Simon, or more accurately put,  forced to choose between the two by Simon, he chose the road and his career.

First of all the back cover photo doesn't include Brian Wilson! What's that all about?

I’ve heard and read complaints about the unadventurous reissues coming from Analogue Productions, especially now that the parent company Acoustic Sounds owns its own pressing plant, Quality Record Pressing.

Still, some might find the new records too aggressive. I’m not in that group, but it sounds as if Mr. Grossinger mastered the original LPs, manipulating the tonal balance as he saw fit, whereas it sounds as if the GZ folks just took the files they were sent and cut. I’m just surmising that. It could be the ‘soft’ lacquer versus the ‘hard’ copper.

It's almost laughable to think they were complaining about “commercialization” of the Newport Jazz Festival back in 1960 given what's happened to the venerable jazz festival, not to mention Wynton Marsalis doing ads for Movado and corporate sponsorships of bands, and festivals. We've got McCartney hawking some mutual fund or other, the Stones selling their music for commercials (I'm waiting for “Start Me Up” in a laxative ad). It's reached the point where nothing surprises, nothing shocks, and there's not a damn thing you can do about it except shake you head, and even that's really a waste of energy, so as they say, just lie back and enjoy it.