Chosen by Claude Lemaire
Part-1
For this first installment, I selected six albums as if I was starting from scratch my own vinyl collection. I wanted to vary the genres while insuring each one represents a musical milestone or key album. All are essential musically and historically from start to finish with no filler material. If you find my recommended pressings too expensive, you can usually replace them by other more affordable pressings but be aware that the sound quality may differ quite a lot from my sonic descriptions and be wary of any digital intermediates in the complex chain.
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Frank Sinatra counts several superb albums in a career spanning five decades. Generally divided between his 'Columbia years', 'Capitol years', and 'Reprise years'. My favorite–and many would agree–remain the 'Capitol years' lasting from 1954 to 1962. With a few exceptions, they are almost all worth getting over time but having to pick only one for jump starting a collection, I would definitely go with Come Dance with Me!. Accompanied by Billy May and His Orchestra, there are no filler material, nearly all twelve tracks under May's arrangements are swingin' like crazy! Sinatra is in full swagger and command of his vocal chops, while the "Chairman of the Board" is at his peak performance, and without peer. Both mono and true stereo versions are good but I prefer the stereo on many counts. As is typical with Capitol in this period–benefitting from some of the best studio equipment, room acoustics, and keen-eared engineers in the industry–the sound is excellent and well balanced between orchestra and singer. It is not at the level of Analogue Productions' remasterings of Nat King Cole's catalogue–done in the same studios–but I'm sure given the same treatment or a MoFi 'one-step' reissue, there is no reason it wouldn't reach the same level.
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One of the most important figures in jazz, it would be easy to recommend at least a dozen milestone albums by Miles Davis. KoB is without doubt his best known masterpiece as well as the biggest-selling jazz album of all time, influencing countless other musicians in many musical genres, and even finding a place among non-jazz aficionados. Having signed with Columbia three years earlier, Miles continued to surround himself with the top musicians at the time, like every single era he took part of. At this musical stage of his four decade career, he was exploring modal jazz–i.e. modulating between musical modes or scales instead of improvising on chord changes–which contributes to the album's unique ambiance underlying the free flowing melodic style as opposed to his previous hard bop recordings for Prestige. The acclaimed sextet features the pairing of Coltrane and "Cannonball" Adderley on sax, Bill Evans on piano–with Wynton Kelly on one track–Paul Chambers on bass, and lesser-known drummer Jimmy Cobb. They were given only scale sketches and melodic lines to improvise on with nearly no rehearsal beforehand. What arose from the latter is a timeless portal onto five unsurpassed jazz classics. I don't have the original US 'six-eye' which it seems is hard to surpass at leasts in cymbal extension and air but do have the Classic Records cut by Bernie Grundman from the original 3-track session tape recorded by engineer Fred Plaut, first on 180g in 1995 and later on 200g in 2002, and both are excellent. I don't have the rarer Classic (4x45 rpm) released in 1999. My favorite version is the MoFi double 45 rpm remastered and cut by Krieg Wunderlich and Rob LoVerde which has more bass weight–though not the last word in precision–better brass tone especially on the saxes, and a larger soundstage than all other pressings I've heard, making it close to outstanding. Plus there's an 8-page booklet included.
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The first truly heavy metal album, Sabbath's second release fortified the formula newly-developed on their self-titled debut seven months prior, prioritizing the heavy metal elements over the blues rock and stoner seeds implanted within its soil. Always a fan favorite, it comprises the band's most popular tracks: "War Pigs", "Paranoid", and "Iron Man" occupying side A, while side B contains no less classics "Electric Funeral", "Hand of Doom", the instrumental "Rat Salad"–heavily inspired by Led Zep's "Moby Dick" a year earlier–and "Fairies Wear Boots". Produced by Roger Bain and recorded at Regend Sound Studios and Island Studios in London, I place it on par with their debut, with the following Master of Reality and final full album 13 close behind. They provided the template for future metal acts such as Judas Priest, Maiden, Metallica, Slayer, and Soundgarden just to name a few. The original UK first pressing sounds very good with generous bass and low mids, and plenty of punch from the pounding drums but unfortunately is a bit veiled in the top because of too much attenuation in the treble, making the hi-hat lacking detail and clarity. The recording and mixing seem well engineered, making the mastering the probable weak link. It's too bad Hoffman and Gray never remastered it for DCC. It deserves a quality double-45 rpm remaster by MoFi's team to get the most out of it.
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A soul masterpiece for the ages, Marvin Gaye's utterly simple question to the world engulfing him and his fellow brothers and sisters did not necessarily provide him clear answers. What it did provide us though is a rich canvas of compositions, arrangements, and emotional performance that transcends through time–all the more relevant during these trying times. From the title-track through "What's Happening Brother", "Save the Children", "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)", "Right On", up to the final track "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)", we are both bound by the common thread of humanity and the environment. The unorthodox album–all the more coming from Hitsville U.S.A.'s headquarters–liberated Gaye from Gordy's Motown Sound shackle and artistic control, as well as other major singer-songwriters such as Stevie Wonder to formulate their own musical direction. Marvin never remotely came close to replicate nor approach this level of creativity, spiritual inspiration and sophistication. I don't have the original US but do have a first press Canadian Tamla 'Ampex' pressing which has very good sound with decent low weight, presence, and fine tonal balance. Not surprisingly the MoFi Ultradisc One-Step is a big step forward in every important parameter including frequency extension, dynamic expression, and delicate finesse just to mention a few. The only drawback of the latter version is the necessary reduction in song segueing due to spreading the album on four vs two sides.
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Part-2
For this second installment, I selected six albums from the 1970s that had some sort of impact on me during my early formative years. The first four more so while the two last selections more for lighter fun. A mix of rock, disco, and new wave, which were the three main musical branches driving that decade.
The British album that through its title and extraordinary energetic vibe resurrected Kiss from its demise. Along with Alice Cooper and Kiss, Slade were among the first rock bands I discovered at a young age via my best friend's older brother LP collection who was really into these harder-sounding rock records that strangely seemed ignored by most rock stations. We were unanimous in skipping side A altogether, finding side B's first two tracks more in line with our tastes. "Keep on Rocking" followed by a cover of the Bobby Marchan and Little Richard single "Get Down and Get with It", captured the Wolverhampton, Staffordshire quartet's unadulterated excitement on stage playing essentially hard, intense blue-eyed rhythm and blues borrowing liberally from Chuck Berry's guitar-driven rock 'n' roll. Produced by Chas Chandler, engineer Barry Ainsworth recorded it at Command Studios in Picadilly, London in front of alive audience, while Alan O'Duffy mixed it at Olympic Studios in Barnes, West London with handclaps and heavy stomping footsteps adding to the fun-filled ambiance. Lacquer cut and pressed at Phonodisc Ltd. in Greater London. I don't have the original UK but my Canadian first press sounds fairly good. The US first press cut by Robert Ludwig at Sterling Sound in New York could also be a contender worth checking out.
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Purchased at a Woolworth's Five and dime store sometime around spring 1977, Kiss' fourth release was either the second or third album entering my collection and definitely my first rock LP–live double LP no less. Ridiculed and rightly so for their mega-merchandising, cheezy made-for-tv fantasy film, and string of awful albums post-1970s, the maked-up quartet from Queens New York nevertheless–within a strict limited four year span–was the hottest and hardest band in the land but you wouldn't think so by listening to their first three studio albums. Signed to Neil Bogart's newly launched Casablanca label and paired up with producers and engineers at Bell Sound Studios that clearly had no idea how to capture the band's true live spirit and raw energy, it is shameful but not surprising that they weren't selling many records and were about to leave the label–itself on the brink of financial collapse. Come summer 1975 and suddenly Kiss came Alive! Saved in part by Bogart's late but bright idea to record the group in concert and taking strong inspiration from Slade's first live LP, it fell upon producer-engineer extraordinaire Eddie Kramer to capture Kiss, if not live, then at least the feeling of hearing the band play live but with a twist or two; rather make that many, many tweaks. Never one to put his stamp on something not worthy of his stature, Kramer crafted an unbelievable job recording the group between May and July 1975 during the Dressed to Kill Tour, then overdubbing, and mixing the group at Electric Lady Studios in NYC to iron out many performance and sonic shortcomings–ending up producing Kiss' best album by far and probably the best hard rock 'live' album ever, influencing so many rock musicians. Opening with "Deuce", followed by "Strutter", "Got to Choose", "Hotter than Hell", and "Firehouse" firing up the first side. Side's two and three are no slouch either, with "Nothin' to Lose", "C'mon and Love Me", the heavier "Parasite" and "Black Diamond". The last side is a winner with "Rock Bottom", "Cold Gin", and the arena staple "Rock and Roll All Night" that often closed the shows as an encore. There are several original US "dark blue" label pressing variants. My US copy mastered and cut by Robert Ludwig at Sterling Sound in New York is quite good–and better than the one cut by Brian Gardner at Allen Zentz Mastering in California pressed the same year–but could still use a bit of a bass boost. MoFi or someone like Chris Bellmann or Kevin Gray accompanied by Kramer should analog remaster this iconic album.
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After the release of her lackuster debut LP in February 1974 in The Netherlands only, American singer Donna Summer, then in Germany with producers Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte pitched the idea of recording their own (English) version of Serge Gainsbourgh and Jane Berkin's "Je t'aime... moi non plus". By replacing the late-1960s nonchalant vibe with something as sexually-charged but closer to an-early-1970s sultry soulful disco groove, they took inspiration from it and created the equivalent of a female Barry White fantasy with similar slow tempo, as found on such tracks as "I'm Gonna Love You Just a Little More, Baby" and "Never, Never Gonna Give Ya Up". Ironically they would release their (French) disco version of "Je t'aime..." in 1978 as part of the Thank God It's Friday soundtrack. Recorded at Musicland Studios in Munich in May-June 1975, her second album–first one internationally–hit the European markets at the tail end of August but the single version on Giorgio's own Oasis label, only started getting limited North American airplay due to its overtly explicit sensual-sexual moans and groans–the latter improvised by Donna in the vocal booth–in late November, and boosted by Bogart's enthusiasm and distribution deal with Casablanca. The much longer LP version, nearing seventeen minutes, occupies all of side A. With its sweeping string-laden instrumental chapters, lush arrangements, breakdowns and buildups, it single-handedly set the template for future progressive Eurodisco artists such as Cerrone, Costandinos, and Voyage. Engineers Hans Menzel and Reinhold Mack did an excellent job recording as well as Giorgio doing the mix-down. William C. Wysock mastered and cut the American Oasis pressing at Allen Zentz Mastering in California. It sounds pretty good but the original German Atlantic pressing mastered and cut by Günter F. Pfanz at Tonstudio Pfanz in Hamburg and pressed at Teldec-Press GMBH is better defined at both frequency extremes. My favorite by a small margin is the Italian Durium, cut in Milan in November 1975 for its warm-roundish bass and non-fatiguing sound but lacks a hair of top end air. Depending on the diverse country pressings, side B differs somewhat on song selection with only the proto electrofied "Need-a-Man Blues" worth listening to–forget the other tracks.
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Part-3For this third installment, I selected six songs from the early 1980s featured in their 12-inch format. The first three representing well the final peak of popularity of new wave before the genre rapidly declined and just about disappeared from the map while the last three represent more the last legs of electrofied disco prior to house and techno taking over the major club and dance scene.
As always, if you find my recommended pressings too expensive, you can usually replace them by other more affordable pressings but be aware that the sound quality may differ quite a lot from my sonic descriptions and be wary of any digital intermediates in the complex chain.
After experiencing great success with the harder-sounding top charter "Bad Case of Loving You (Doctor, Doctor)" in July 1979, singer Robert Palmer smoothed the rough edges the following year, switching styles to the emerging trend transitioning from new wave to synth pop–epitomized by bands such as The Cars, Soft Cell, and Depeche Mode. With its strong melodic structure and sensibility modulating over a simple fast-tempo repetitive synth run, I always had a soft spot for this particular track, preferring it to a large degree to his other hit single–"Looking for Clues"–taken from the same album, 1980s Clues. Side B features two tracks taken from the previous 1979 album Secrets, which are quite good but differ in style than side A, with a mild reggae flavor thrown in. The sound is slightly compressed but never fatiguing with a generous full-sounding bass, fine synth sweeps, crisp drums, clear guitar, and clean close up vocals. Engineer Alan Sadkin mixed the album so I am assuming–without certainty–that this is also the case here. The original UK twelve-inch single was lacquer cut by Graeme Durham at The Sound Clinic in Chiswick, London, England, and pressed by EMI Records.
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The second single emanating from Remain in Light. There are some similarities with the first single selected above regarding the complex rhythmic groove and Byrne's strange vocal dry delivery during the verses–the choruses being more melodic. As in the former case, this one also combines multiple musical ingredients, probably producing in the end an even more original song. It would remain their most memorable track, putting aside their highest North Amercian charting single–1983's "Burning Down the House" [Sire PRO-A-2057]. Like the previous selection, I don't have this promo twelve-inch single cut at Sterling Sound in New York and pressed at Allied Record Company in Los Angeles, CA, but given the higher speed format and short track duration it should surpass the sound of my original LP which is already good and well balanced, but slightly compressed and lacking a bit of top end air.
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Better known for her Bee Gees-penned megahit single "If I Can't Have You" from Saturday Night Fever's soundtrack in late-1977, Hawaiian-born singer Yvonne Elliman had a second but minor hit single two years later with the Steve Barri-produced "Love Pains". Fast forgotten, it took Moby Dick Records to release their re-edit version in 1982 done by Rob "Scissors" Kimbel to rekindle the flame. As mentioned this is not a remix of the original 1979 promo 12-inch single [RSO RPO 1019]–which was a "Special Dance Music Version" different from the one on her final LP Yvonne–but rather a re-edit meaning cutting, swapping, and looping certain key parts of the song such as a much longer and exciting intro and middle break with multiple drum punches. The sound is warm and very well balanced in tone with nice kick bass modulation permitting higher volume levels without ear-fatigue.
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