|
|
|
|
 |
Audiophile
Recordings |
|
|
| |
Bartok:
Dance Suite; Deux Portraits, Etc.
Dorati cond. Phil. Hungarica Orch.
Speakers Corner/Mercury SR 90183 Reviewed by RSF
This is one of my favorite Bartok records, making this re-issue especially
welcome. The original Mercury offers excellent sound and this SCR issue
does not disappoint. From the opening notes on the oboes, and then their
charming interplay with the ‘cello and violin sections, you immediately
realize Bartok is in very good hands. This Hungarian conductor and his
ensemble grew up with this music and the Mercury team really delivers
the sonic goods. These compositions span a period of some 14 years and
while the earlier Dance Suite is devoid of the Folk themes incorporated
in so much of Bartok’s work, they are clearly abundant in the Deux
Portraits. The two selections from Mikorokosmos are wonderful additions
to an
already great coupling – especially ‘From the Diary of a Fly’.
The Philharmonia and Dorati deliver performances that are extremely hard
to better in any medium. These are dramatic orchestral works that are
sure to please both the music lover and the audiophile. Bartok may not
be considered easy or accessible, but this disc suggests otherwise and
is not to be missed.
Supplier: www.speakerscorner.de |
|
   |
| |
|
|
|
| |
Ella
Fitzgerald - Sings The Jerome Kern Song Book
Speakers Corner/Verve V6-4060 Reviewed by DDD
Ella Fitzgerald recorded a vast amount of material from the “American
Song Books” including songs by Cole Porter, Duke Ellington, Irving
Berlin, Ira Gershwin, Rogers and Hart, Jerome Kern and Johnny Mercer,
between 1956 and 1964. By the time she recorded this entry in 1963 she
was running out of songwriters, but was by no means running out of steam.
Unlike most of the earlier titles, the Jerome Kern Songbook fits on a
single long playing disc. From a musical point of view, this songbook
may not be my absolute favorite (that would be Cole Porter) but then how
do you select your favorite child? What sets this entry in the songbook
group in a class of its own for me is its great sound. Verve recorded
Ella’s songbooks in almost uniformly excellent sound, but by 1963
they seemed to find a “sweet spot” of stereo recording and
many Verve recordings from this era are rightfully viewed as among the
best jazz stereo recordings ever made. I had forgotten how good this record
sounds, but within seconds of hearing the first song on side one, I realized
that this LP belongs among the elite of Verve’s stereo recordings.
Speakers Corner has done a fabulous job of re-mastering this classic.
|
|
 |
| |
|
|
|
| |
Shostakovich:
Symphony No. 5, Op. 47
Bernstein cond. NYP
Cisco/Columbia MS 6115 Reviewed by RSF
While the photograph on the cover shows the composer and conductor shaking
hands in the Great Hall at the Moscow Conservatory, this recording was
produced at Avery Fisher Hall, the NYP’s home in New York. This
wasn’t the first time this symphony was recorded, but this was the
one I grew up with and as such created an imprint against which I inevitably
compare all other performances. However, there was always a problem with
this, as with many other U.S. Columbia recordings: They are bright sounding
and lack a decent bass foundation. This recording is no exception in its
original 6-Eye release. The record sounded harsh with high C strings that
would have you running from the room (or would have done if my system
then went as high as this one). Now, at last, this has all changed. AcousTech
and Cisco have done a fabulous job in bringing one of the most insightful
performances of this great work to a new generation of music lovers.
You can take your 6-eye original and put it in with your Frisbees. There
are other performances that may be to your liking, however not many will
match the drama and emotion Bernstein is able to convey. Wonderful performance,
now with outstanding sound quality.
Supplier: www.ciscomusic.com |
|
  |
| |
|
|
|
| |
Stevie
Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble - Texas Flood
Pure Pleasure/ Epic Records 38734 Reviewed by RSF
While sides one and two are from the original Epic release, the second
LP in this set is made up of bonus tracks previously only available on
CD. This, the outstanding first album from SRV and DT is truly a knock-out,
must own record. If you have any interest in stunning guitar work and
heartfelt blues vocals, you are in for a real treat. My original was borrowed
a long time ago, so it was a great pleasure to receive this release from
Pure Pleasure – and one that maintains their tradition of providing
additional material on vinyl for the first time. The two records making
up this set are Stevie Ray at his best. Vaughan’s style was taken
from many of the ‘Greats’ that he so admired: Muddy Waters,
Albert King and Otis Rush, to name a few. If you think you’ve heard
the best in slide guitar action by other artists, just turn this LP to
side two and get into a ‘Rude Mood’. Not only does this cut
accentuate just how good Double Trouble really were, it also embodies
the greatness of Stevie’s guitar skills. This was a watershed album
for the Bluesy rock style this now deceased master established. Highest
recommendation.
Supplier: www.purepleasurerecords.com |
|
   |
| |
|
|
|
| |
Eric
Dolphy - Outward Bound
Analogue Productions/New Jazz 8236 Reviewed by DDD
This is a release from the fourth, and final, installment of Analogue
Productions’ Fantasy 45 Series—45-RPM re-masterings of jazz
classics by Steve Hoffman and Kevin Gray. Of this set of 25 albums being
doled out over the next year, this is my favorite title of the bunch.
This classic set features, in addition to Dolphy on alto, bass-clarinet
and flute, Freddie Hubbard, Jackie Byard, George Tucker and Roy Haynes.
This 1960 recording was Dolphy’s first record release as a leader.
It is far more accessible, or I might add, a far cry less out there than
Dolphy’s later titles. This is the place to start for music lovers
who would like to explore something a little more avant-garde, but are
not feeling comfortable enough to leap straight in at the deep end of
the pool. The LP was originally issued on the Prestige family label New
Jazz, and the master tapes seem to have survived intact though many of
years storage after they were acquired by Fantasy Records. Hoffman and
Gray have spun gold with these tapes. Prestige and New Jazz releases by
and large were recorded very well, and Outward Bound was no exception.
Like most of the titles in the Fantasy 45 Series, this new version takes
the sound quality up a couple of
notches from the original. Top recommendation.
|
|
 |
| |
|
|
|
| |
Little
Richard - Here’s Little Richard/Little Richard Specialty
Mobile Fidelity Reviewed by JK
Little Richard was the original King of rock’n’roll. He made
Elvis sound insipid by comparison and was the inspiration behind much
of the music of the fifties. If that sounds OTT just listen to the first
track on MoFi’s latest compilation – two albums on one SACD.
The power and energy that he could put onto record has rarely been equalled
and in their original mono form this music is shocking in its intensity.
These two albums contain all of Richard Penniman’s greatest hits;
‘Tutti Frutti’, ‘Reddy Teddy’, ‘Keep A Knockin’’
and ‘Long Tall Sally’. The familiarity of these and many of
the other 23 titles is testament to their staying power in a world full
of one hit wonders.
Richard is credited by James Brown among others as being the man who put
funk into rock’n’roll but it’s the boogie woogie element
that is clearest to contemporary ears – I guess I’ve heard
a lot more funk over the years. MoFi has done a superb job with the sound
here; I guess the energy had to be on the tape but by choosing SACD and
mono they have done a first class job of preserving it.
|
|
 |
| |
|
|
|
