Saturday Night In San Francisco, Al Di Meola, John McLaughlin, Paco DeLucia (IMPEX Records - 33 RPM)
This is an outstanding release that should be a strong consideration for all vinyl fans and record collectors—regardless of your favorite genre! From a performance, recording and production perspective, when you put together a team from IMPEX Records, Elusive Disc, Bernie Grundman Mastering, Stoughten Printing, RTI and last but not least Producer Al Di Meola himself, what you get is an absolute classic. The track record and reputation proceeds for all of these players. The results are wonderful!
My apologies to the many others who supported this project and deserve additional praise, as the list of industry leading professionals is endless. Please see the liner notes listed on the cover, the extensive multi-page booklet, and the video clips on the IMPEX Facebook page for an upcoming documentary. The comments by Al Di Meola and Bernie Grundman are especially informative and interesting. Bottom line. The final product will surely make this LP a leading candidate for several of the highest industry awards in 2022.
Recorded on the Saturday night of the same weekend in 1980 as the iconic and much praised release Friday Night in San Francisco, some may just consider this as a follow up or complementary effort. That would be a big mistake! This recording can stand on its own and deserves its own benchmark and legacy. Di Meola, McLaughlin and DeLucia were some of the leading magazine poll candidates back in the day for Jazz, Rock and Flamenco guitar. Individually and collectively on this recording, this all star cast on one stage verifies all the accolades and rankings. The talent and musicianship just explodes off the vinyl for all three.
Most impressive to me are the Side 2 tracks that include participation by all three players on stage at one time. The individual styles somehow manage to both compliment and inspire the intensity of the playing. This is not really a competition, but a driving force by each to reach or push each other to a collective new pinnacle of their art. You can hear the joy in their interaction and almost see the smiles on their faces as the fire and passion continues to grow as the music moves forward. I especially like Side 2's Track 2 "Meeting By The Spirits." So much energy. So much emotion. Great stuff!
Bernie Grundman has stepped up his game on this one. I have seen several of his interviews where he claims that his mastering lab continues to upgrade the available mastering tools and components whenever possible—a never ending commitment to excellence. The results here are easy to hear. Fasten your seat belts as the dynamic headroom and lifelike presence will have you giggling throughout. There is also a very natural harmonic structure and tone to the instruments that in some ways exceeds the multiple audiophile Friday Night pressings that have been rolled out over the years. Congrats to the entire team on a job well done! Highly recommended!
El Mocambo 1977, The Rolling Stones (Polydor Records - 33 RPM)
This Rolling Stones four LP offering has been a long time coming. Fans got an earlier taste via four songs on the 1977 release Love You Live and various bootlegs, but this is the first time that we get a full set from the March 5 concert and three bonus tracks from March 4. Recorded at the 300 seat Mocambo Club in Toronto Canada, the stage was well set for a new level of intimacy and expression by a superstar rock group that more typically performed at stadiums and large scale venues.
The production team is pretty much elite from all perspectives so the quality of the final product makes a bunch of sense. Mixed by Bob Clearmountain, mastered by Stephen Marcussen and Stewart Whitmore, and cut by Bernie Grundman, the proof is in the pudding. Vinyl was pressed by MPO International in France, which I have had limited experience with but never any problems. Vinyl was flat and quiet after a few good cleanings. No complaints there. The two gatefold design and various pictures on the record sleeves were nothing special but this was not a priority for me. Expectations for such an important musical event might be different for the very serious collector.
On this 1977 tour, the original line up minus the late Brian Jones included Mick Jagger on vocals, Keith Richards on guitar, Bill Wyman on bass, and Charlie Watts on drums. Additional band members at that time included Ronnie Wood on rhythm guitar, Billy Preston on keyboards and Ollie Brown on percussion.
Lets cut to the chase. Sound quality is superb and this baby really rocks! If like me, you can sometimes be disappointed by the sound quality of the early Rolling Stones records, but many would argue that this is not the point. The music shines through regardless on most of the catalog. However, hearing several of the classic songs up close and personal in a first class venue for sound is a real treat! There is a fantastic level of energy and excitement by this iteration of the band and they are having a ball. Everything is greatly enhanced by a strong foundation of low end and midrange weight that at least I always yearned for in these songs. The proverbial "they are right there in your listening room" is an appropriate statement for this recording.
The set list includes a nice combination of the hits and some gritty down to earth standard Blues tracks. When it comes to the Blues, the Stones are clearly very comfortable with if not highly skilled interpreters. The concert starts off with "Honky Tonk Woman," "All Down The Line," and "Hand of Fate" while whipping the audience into a frenzy. Then the band melds into "Mannish Boy" and "Worried Life Blues," and we are quickly on an emotional roller coaster ride that will delight most fans. Soon to follow are "Tumbling Dice," "Rip That Joint," and "Brown Sugar," which might be my favorite versions ever! No need to go track by track, this was a once in a life time concert experience with sound to match that exceeds most expectations!
Even with the supply and demand of vinyl at an all-time high, I see that this release is still available and the price has dropped significantly on the Internet. I put it in the same class as several other of my favorite live multiple LP releases for sound and performance. Examples include Wilco's Kicking Television, LCD Soundsystem's The Long Goodbye, and Kraftwerk's Minimum Maximum. All were fairly obscure, very limited edition pressings that did not receive much attention when they dropped. Now they command obscene prices and are greatly coveted. I'd act quickly on this one.
Eye In The Sky, The Alan Parsons Project (Mobile Fidelity – 45 RPM)
Originally released in 1982 on the Arista label, Eye In The Sky is considered by many dedicated fans as the premier release in the entire TAPP catalog—maybe even more important and respected than the group's very popular album I Robot. Both are true audiophile quality recordings that have been used for many years at major high end audio conferences and by high end audio dealers for their excellent demonstration qualities.
Alan Parsons is possibly even better known for his legacy as an audio engineer and producer at Abbey Road Studios. This includes his efforts on such iconic albums as Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon, The Beatles' Abbey Road, and Al Stewart's Year of the Cat. Parsons was an audio engineer and producer by profession, but he was also and an accomplished composer with excellent skills as a vocalist and musician on keyboard, bass, guitar and flute.
Over the years, band membership continued to evolve as many highly respected sessions players joined and departed TAPP for each major recording. But what remained consistent, was a partnership between leaders Alan Parsons and Eric Woolfson who were the primary song writers and composers. It would be difficult to label the music, but most would identify the musical genre as an extension of Progressive Rock or Art Rock with a variety of multiple instruments including synthesizers, orchestra and choral arrangements.
One reason that I personally identify with this album is the hit single "Sirius," which many might remember as the opening sound track used to kick off the home games and lineup announcements for my hometown NBA Chicago Bulls. This track was extremely notable during the Michael Jordan NBA Championship years. As a player in both high school and college during those years, I wore the original Nike Jordon basketball shoes. I can only smile now as my son just gave me a new pair for my recent birthday. At my age, I get plenty of attention when worn with a nice sport coat and slacks when we go out for dinner at the local hangouts (LOL).
This Mobile Fidelity pressing is a 45 RPM two LP release on 180 gram vinyl. It was mastered and cut by Krieg Wunderlich and pressed at RTI. My copy was flat and extremely quiet. All the right boxes for success have been checked based on several recent successful efforts by Mobile Fidelity. Only appropriate comparisons would tell the real story.
In addition to the MoFi, I have an original 1982 33 RPM USA Arista and the 33 RPM 2007 Speakers Corner in my collection. I do not have the 2017 45 RPM Sony Legacy Box Set. The original was quite impressive from the get go. Extremely dynamic though slightly muddled in the mids. Bass performance was very good but not as muscular and tight as the other two. There was plenty of air and space around instruments, but not as three dimensional as I had remembered. These criticisms might not have been as noticeable without the other comparisons. Still a fantastic pressing!
I could live with the 33 RPM Speakers Corner without complaint as I never thought this recording could sound any better. Via the Speakers Corner, I was quickly reminded how impactful a quiet pressing and a deep black background could enhance the listening experience. Expansive with a huge soundstage, detailed imaging, and a superbly extended bass performance, this was clearly the champ before the MoFi arrived.
The 45 RPM MoFi was a decisive step forward. This pressing was flat, quiet and with a jet black background—even beyond the playback qualities of the Speakers Corner. Bass performance was similar to the Speakers Corner but with slightly more detail, texture and impact. Yes, I am talking about bass with detail and texture—something only realized with the very best pressings! There was also a three dimensionality and naturalness to the sound that the others just could just not touch. Overall dynamics were off the chart—still another improvement that I would not have thought possible. The MoFi filled my listening room from floor to ceiling with a glorious presentation that few other LPs in my collection could match.
Is it worth another purchase of still another pressing? That's a tough call. Again, I don't have the discontinued 45 RPM Sony Legacy Box Set for comparison, but if this is your first purchase of the title, the MoFi is readily available now at the MSRP price and you might just want to grab it before the flippers go crazy on Discogs!
