What are you listening to and WHY might anyone be interested? (Vol. XI)

Listening to Abbey Road for the first time in 36 years; they're quite good aren't they

Some delicious early Dire Straits.

Streaming | WAV

(1997)

Brilliant album

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPOj58fNwrA

Crowded House, Woodface, excellent album from a group that great things were expected from.  Flac via audirvana/hugo

Coo coo ca choo!

On vinyl.

Ricky Nelson. Legendary Masters Series #2.  2LPs on the Liberty label from 1971. Ricky's pre-Garden Party hits. Very immediate and open sounding mono recordings. A fun listen, although the cover is a bit scary looking.

Wayne Shorter: Nigh Dreamer  1964 Release

• Wayne Shorter – tenor saxophone
• Lee Morgan – trumpet
• McCoy Tyner – piano
• Reggie Workman – bass
• Elvin Jones – drums

Shorter's Blue Note solo debut with all original tunes.

The album opens with a gorgeous piano intro by Tyner ( pity that RVG's recording of piano here sounds muffled and canned ), and maintains waltz like tempo with flowy fluid melody line. The way the album is made up Side A consists of slower numbers and Side B is more upbeat bop tunes lively interplay with Morgan's trumpet and groovy striding bluesy tune. Brilliant playing but this reissue has nowhere near the realistic tonal colours of Music Matters pressing. I think that missing digital bits show up in note decays of cymbals the most. Also vague imagery and horns and drums are less vivid. ( Piano are lost cause on almost all RVG recording unfortunately ) And that the bass line is almost non existent.

This is my second try of a Don Was Blue Note digital reissue remastered by Bernie Grundman. This time no off centre hole or torn outer jacket. But the vinyl is on a noisy side ( altho I suppose it's better than a stark digital black void of so many misguided DMM digital recording ) and that I had to do a *needle trick* to dislodge a schmutz stuck on a record to avoid skipping. 

Here's a lovely Virgo. ( eat your heart out Coltrane! ) Simple melody line with just a minimum accompaniment and clever time keeping. Gorgeous.

Thanks for the info ewe. Coincidentally, I just picked up the Nov 5 issue of Rolling Stone and in it is an article on the expansive release; a four-CD/three DVD box set. From the LA Times: "Two CDs include the original double album, a third CD features the single-disc version of "The River" that Springsteen first considered releasing as the follow-up to “Darkness,” but then rejected. A fourth CD includes the outtakes and other extras. In all the CDs contain 52 tracks." Selling for $130.

All too much for me as I don't really watch music DVDs anyhow. Hopefully the third and fourth CDs will be offered in a separate package at a later date.

Kinks. The Singles Collection. On CD from 2004. Inspired by recent posts of the Kinks. An extensive 25-track compilation that preserves the band's authentic garage sound.

Classic album, one that I need to dig out and play again.

Cheers

EJ 

Rodzinski/Philharmoia: Strauss

Death and Transfiguration/Dance of the Seven Veils/Dance Suite After Couperin  1958 Recording

Since his close association with Toscanini, I was expecting some wild man on these Strauss pieces. Alas, this is rather bland and too civilised to make these vivid tone poems come alive.

For 'Death and Transfiguration' by the time Death arrives, the subject is already dead, there's no point for the finale.

A heavy orchestration on Couperin's piano pieces is interesting. Strauss is said to be a great fan of French music but their styles are so far apart. 

These pieces are well orchestrated like backdrop for opera but perhaps as a material they might be better of remain small and precious.

Streaming | WAV

(1989)

Streaming | Deezer Elite

(2012)

I fancied something guitar driven and heavy, their dual guitars will do nicely.