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AUDIOPHILE NEWS
"Audiophile" refers to records that are specifically manufactured to a standard that is higher than the norm - e.g. either remastered or "re-stored" sound, original master pressing or recordings, or as is becoming increasingly common, 45 RPM speed albums. Usually they are of a heavier duty, high quality vinyl (usually 180 gram) to ensure a flat playing surface. We are blessed these days in that there are quite a few specialist Audiophile companies, where once they were few and far between - Pure Pleasure, Speakers Corner, Mobile Fidelity and others including newcomers Boxtar and Original Recording Group are but a few. Even the major companies are having a go with specialist deluxe pressings from Sony, EMI and Warners (Rhino Label). You can pay a premium for some labels, but if you want the best...... We deal on a wholesale basis with these companies as agent and distributor, therefore our prices are comparable to their cost overseas without you having to worry about postage, insurance, and if (god forbid) you have any problems, we are here right here to sort things out - not a million kilometres away.
About Quality Record Pressings
As an example of the increasing resurgence of vinyl is the story of Quality Record Pressings. As much as we would love to claim this as our own, it in fact belongs to long established audiophile label, Analogue Productions. In the past they have had to have their record releases pressed elsewhere - usually by the excellent RTI - but with the increased demand for records, this has meant delays and potential problems with maintaining quality. The answer was to press their own records and so they bought a record pressing plant and after spending millions refurbishing the equipment, the results have been simply (so far) magnificent. The initial records pressed were Analogue Productions masterings with titles from Cat Stevens, Tony Joe White, Freddie King, Dusty Springfield and others which are of the very highest standard from a sonic point of view. In addition, the records themselves are among the best we've heard - or at least NOT heard - what happened to the crackle? They have also started pressing for other companies with new titles from re-issue specialist Sundazed wearing the QRP badge. Congratulations to all involved.
Tony Joe White "Homemade Ice Cream"
Among the initial releases from Analogue Productions new Quality Record Pressings is this title. You may or may not know of Tony Joe White, but we all know some of his most famous songs - "Polk Salad Annie" and "Rainy Night In Georgia"- the former a hit for White and also Elvis, and "Steamy Windows", a hit for Tina Turner from an album with tracks written and produced by him. "Homemade Ice Cream" was originally released in 1973 on Warner Bros. and was co-produced by White and legendary Atlantic producer Tom Dowd. It's White's sixth overall record and his third for Warner Bros. This is very much back porch - a mixture of gentle soul and the blues. Quality says : The album is a soulful groove - reflective and simple with songs of love, environment and, yes, ice cream. As one of the first pressings from the new Quality Record pressing plant, it is everything one could dream of with near silent surfaces, and the mastering by Kevin Gray and Zan Zanev is exemplary, presenting the music in its original rich textured clarity without interferance. Highly recommended - a desert island disc. Our Price $35
Cat Stevens Tea for the Tillerman
Another of the initial releases from Analogue Productions new Quality Record Pressings is this title. “Tea For The Tillerman” is one of Cat Stevens' finest albums and a gem in the crown of early 1970s singer/songwriterdom. Stevens manages to have his cake and eat it too, simultaneously achieving pop accessibility and artistic relevance. The feel is decidedly gentle and spare. Apart from the occasional string section, Stevens is accompanied only by a three-piece band as he sings his introspective lyrics with appreciable favour. Quality says: As wonderful as Universal's "Back to Black" version of this record is (among the best of the series), this is even better. Perhaps the only reasons is the use of the original tapes which give it a warmer sound. A beautiful recording.
Dusty Springfield Memphis
Another title from Analogue Productions and pressed by Quality Record. Dusty's albums were horribly recorded. Someone heard Phil Spector, and thought his production sounded good. Tthey were wrong!! So when Dusty went to Memphis we at last heard her voice at it's best and the album was a worthy legacy to a great singer. 2 x 45 RPM on heavy vinyl does it justice.
Audiophile's Rejoice Patricia Barber - Cafe Blue is back
Quality says : Among the best re-issues this past year is this record from Premonition Records. Patricia Barber is special – a great singer, keyboard player, songwriter, arranger and producer. And “Cafe Blue” is a special recording and has won more than 15 awards from international major magazines to music institutions. We were initally wary - "remastered" and "remixed" could mean something different from the original. Also a line up that looked like the U.S. audiophile mafia - Jim Anderson who was the original engineer, Bob Ludwig who did the mastering , and vinyl mastering by Doug Sax - made one fear that the music might be incidental! Barber and band stamp their personality all over the record and the level of creativity is astounding. Sonically it is also astounding. It’s been out of print for a while, so sit back enjoy. It's expensive and worth every cent! Recorded music does not come much better than this and another desert island disc.
A two record set on 180 gram vinyl. $75.00
NEW from Speakers Corners
Tchaikovsky Sleeping Beauty
Ernest Ansermet was first and formost a ballet conductor who worked with famed Ballet Russe conducting the world premieres of many masterpieces written for the company (think Stravinsky, Ravel, de Falla, etc,). His recordings for Decca with his own orchestra, the Suisse Romande, were recorded in a Geneva church. One again Speakers Corner Records have dug out the master tapes and produced a sonic blockbuster on a par with the previously released "Nutcracker" and "Swan Lake". These recordings might be over 50 years old, but they are unsurpassed sonically. A 3 record boxed set. Our price $99.
Tchaikovsky 1812 Overture Speakers Corner Decca
Quality Says : This performance of Tchaikovsky's "1812" Overture was recorded in the late 1950's. It carries the catalogue number SXL 2001 which means it was the second stereo record they ever released, the first being a stereo sampler complete with train noises. Ok, so this isn't great music, but it is infectious and fun and the "Capriccio Italien" on side two is truely delightful, and as a performance, there are few (if any) better as Kenneth Alwyn believes in the music and the LSO play their hearts out. And as for the sound - forget turgid drudge Fests with great canons and little else, this "rocks". Strap yourself in (a helmet is advisable) and prepare to be physically battered. And at the end of the piece when you think the record cannot offer any more, the Grenadier Guards Brass Band comes in, and oh the lift, the lift. Be Amazed! Be Awesomed. OMG! Our Price $44.00.
"Pink Panther" and "Breakfast at Tiffanys" Original Henry Mancini Soundtracks
Two film soundtracks written and performed by Hanry Mancini and considered to be his best work in the genre. Also the best recordings, as these were issued on RCA's Living Stereo Label. These vinyl releases from Speakers Corner at last give them back the superb sound quality they were once famous for, and which a number of ordinary CD masters have done their best to disguise. 
Ellia Fitzgerald and Louis Armstong "Ella and Louis Again"
It's impossible not to praise these recordings to the skies. The two musicians Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong are a sure guarantee for swing and expressiveness, for musicality, and for mutual understanding. One might even go as far as saying that they were the very epitome of jazz between 1930 and 1960, that they were the best of the best as regards quality, that they achieved remarkable success, and were extremely popular. And to crown it all, Oscar Peterson and his Trio, a fantastically groovy rhythm group, were invited to join them in the studio.
The numbers are all from the Great American Songbook and are easily recognizable; the introduction has hardly got underway before your feet are tapping to the beat of "Don't Be That Way" right up to "Learnin' The Blues". And it is between these two poles – swing and the blues – that music is made. Producer Norman Granz certainly had a stroke of genius when he signed Ella and Louis to his Verve label.
Verve MG V-8252
Herb Ellis: Nothing But The Blues
Although guitarists played an important role in rhythm groups ranging from swing to hard bop, they are an exception as bandleader. Among the most successful are George Benson, Wes Montgomery and Herb Ellis who passed away this spring. The present blues LP was the second recording made under his direction for the Verve label.
»My mother tells me I always played the blues«, said Herb Ellis in thinking back to his childhood. And this is exactly what he did on this LP from 1957: blues in every shape and form, in every mood, in every tempo. There’s not a dull moment with this range of variation; that’s simply impossible when his fellow musicians are called Ray Brown and Stan Levey. He freed himself quite simply from the piano (and maybe also from the omnipresence of Oscar Peterson) – the piano stool remained unoccupied. Just listen to this LP as far as "Royal Garden Blues" and with the hot-blooded Roy Eldridge, nicknamed 'Little Jazz', on the trumpet and Stan Getz, the cool and relaxed musician on the tenor saxophone, you will certainly know why blues is the talk of the town.
Recording: October 1957 in Los Angeles
Production: Norman Granz
Philips 835204 AY
Shostakovich: 6 Preludes & Fugues from Op.87
As little as Shostakovich’s Preludes and Fugues conformed to Soviet musical dictates, these ambitious works were all the more highly regarded by the experts. What appeared as decadent and formalistic to Stalinist augurs is no less than an homage to Bach’s "Well-tempered Clavier" in the form of 24 miniatures, in the major and minor keys around the circle of fifths. Shostakovich dedicated his compositions to Tatiana Nikolayeva whom he got to know at the Leipzig Bach Festival in 1950. Little did he know that she would promote his musical gems right up until her very last breath, when she died on stage while performing his Opus 87 in 1993 in San Francisco.
Although Sviatoslav Richter never recorded the complete cycle of Preludes and Fugues, the present recording with his personal selection is one of the most distinguished interpretations of these works. Richter’s refined performance brings out the strict form found within the modern compositional style, allowing the biting sarcasm or ludicrous melodies to sparkle, and explores archaic rhythms. But Richter, the experienced romanticist, is also a master of Schumannesque expression in the form of languid melodiousness in the middle range of the keyboard. At long last this hard-to-find, yet easy to listen to, recording is available once more.
Recording: July 1963 in Paris
Verve V6-8474
Jimmy Smith: Bashin'
Right up until today rumour has it that Creed Taylor enticed the organist Jimmy Smith to leave Blue Note and change to the Verve label by means of a very large fistful of dollars. One things is clear, however: that Jimmy Smith never revealed a single word about this delicate matter; but it is also clear that the whole concept of his music took on new dimensions when he changed over to his new backer. Recordings with Wes Montgomery were just the beginning; large ensembles, superb arrangements by Oliver Nelson, and fine contributions by his soloists created a magnificent background for the 'new' Jimmy Smith on this and subsequent LPs.
Despite its title, "Bashin’", there is absolutely nothing to criticise on this LP. The A side presents the new concept: a wonderful, swinging background against which Jimmy Smith can develop his full potential. Oliver Nelson’s light and airy arrangements further enhance the standard themes: soloists are never confined within set limits but are gently guided; the riffs are presently precisely and cleanly, without ever sounding overloaded.
The use of the organ is also quite fascinating: beautifully relaxed in "Beggar For The Blues" which is arranged for a trio; swinging in the title number "Bashin’", and cheerful in the style of an old cowboy song – "I’m An Old Cowhand", whereby this version has no need to stand in the shadow of Sonny Rollins’s almost classical version.
The old Hammond B3 organ has experienced a revival over the past few years. Jimmy Smith, on the other hand, can look back on a great musical and commercial success story ever since the Fifties – as with "Bashin’"!
Recording: March 1962 in New York by Rudy Van Gelder
Production: Creed Taylor
RCA LSP-2750
The World Of Miriam Makeba
t was Miriam Makeba’s destiny to broadcast an image of South Africa to the world without actually being in the country. She fought against Apartheid and the Regime in South Africa by means of persistent political agitation and, of course, lots of music. But it took a good deal of perseverance and the ups and downs of appearing in clubs and shows until the songs of the South African singer, who was expatriated in 1959, were heard in her new adopted country, the USA.
The good old formula, whereby protest in music only reaches its objectives through entertainment, also holds good for this early song compilation, which is filled with artistic originality and brought great commercial success. Alongside the rousing, melodic and groovy Afro-World music numbers, there are several 'global players' such as the cleverly arranged ballad "Forbidden Games", the bluesy spiritual numbers "Little Boy" and "Wonder Of Things", and a cracking Latin number entitled "Tonados De Media Noche". The wonderfully bright sound of Hugh Maeskela and his band enhance the highly varied characters of the selected pieces. Here we have a musical vista of at least half of our world, which fits perfectly on one LP.
Recording: June and July 1963 by Mickey Crafford in RCA Victor's Studio A and Webster Hall, New York
Production: Hugo Peretti & Luigi Creatore
Philips PHS 2-920
Beethoven: Sonatas For Piano & Cello
Rostropovich & Richter
Possessing a complete recording of Beethoven’s Cello Sonatas gives far more satisfaction than merely having the set to fill the shelves. On the one hand it offers one the opportunity to compare Beethoven’s art of composition at various stages in his life. And on the other hand one can already recognise in the early Opus 5 how he breaks with the traditional sonata in which the solo instrument merely provides an accompaniment and treats the two instruments as equal partners in the creation of the movements.
Richter and Rostropovich devote themselves to their task with verve and freshness. The two early works are marked by the rich and full sound of the cello and an elegantly performed piano part, while the two Russian musicians foster a contemplative, introverted style in the A major Sonata. This respectful approach also lends itself well to the C major Sonata where the free, fantasia-like character with wide-ranging shading is shown off to advantage. Beethoven’s break with the traditional sonata-form layout is carried to extremes in the D major Sonata, where the cello ignores the powerful theme on the piano in the first movement. The work’s brittleness is effectively revealed by the two musicians in the transition from the sensitive Adagio to the austere, freely worked final Fugato, while their resolute and analytical approach to the work and technical prowess on their instruments is highly rewarding.
Recording: June 1962 at Rosenhügel Studios, Vienna, and July 1961 at Walthamstow Assembly Hall, London, by C.R. Fine
Production: Harold Lawrence
Madeleine Peyroux - Standing On The Rooftop
“Peyroux, who was named Best International Jazz Artist at the 2007 BBC Jazz Awards, has lost none of her compelling ability to reinvent a lyric and give it soul-shaking meaning through her intricately nuanced vocal shadings. But she’s broadened her musical palette here, embracing an organic, American roots sound. Listeners need look no further than the title track to hear the metamorphosis”. A two record set on 180 gram vinyl.
Mobile Fidelity Original Master Recordings
New from Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab, the MoFi Silver Label Vinyl Series is a cheaper product that their famous “Original Master Recording” series. Presumably this means they have not had (or been able too) access the original master, but they claim that they are mastered and cut using Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab’s state-of-the-art mastering system. The records are pressed at RTI on audiophile-grade standard vinyl and are numbered limited-editions. The feedback on these records from Quality Records…plus customers is that the sound quality is definitely up to standard with rave comments with regard to the Dead Can Dance records (superbly recorded) and even the B52’s (recorded) rated a mention from a few folks who love to party. Their version of Inxs’ “Kick” is an audio award, so these records could just be this years bargains.
Mobile Fidelity were once THE name in high quality Audiophile records and although the number of players in the top-end vinyl area has increased enormously in recent years. since their rebirth about five years ago, they have once again taken their place among the finest of Labels offering superior vinyl quality. After a slow start, a comparitive flood of titles have been issued in recent months. They include artist such as Frank Sinatra (5 titles so far including the iconic "Sinatra at the Sands"), Madeleine Peyroux (see below) and many others.
Dead Can dance "Into the Laberinth" and "Spiritchaser"
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Long overdue for re-release, Mobile fidelity have released this classic as a 2 x 45 RPM Original Master Recording. "Ethereal, textured, and deeply spiritual, Into the Labyrinth is one of the most gorgeous albums you will ever hear." (Highly recommended)
The sonic equivalent of an engaging journey down the Nile River, Spiritchaser is Dead Can Dance's unforgettable swan song. The percussive-based 1996 set find the world-fusion group fashioning thematic songs around rhythmic structures and tribal beats, creating atmospheric soundscapes that take the listener through Africa, South America, England and Europe - sometimes within the same movement. Blurring the lines between styles and genres so that they become irrelevant, Dead Can Dance members Lisa Gerrard and Gerald Perry generate the illusion of being lost amidst a peaceful rain forest that's yet to be discovered by man. Spiritchaser is the sound of a lost culture, where ethereal singing, overlapping harmonies and trance-like tempos serve to calm, relax and enchant. Gerrard's phonetic singing - often taking the form of prayer - is grand albeit understated, as much spiritual as it is natural. Just like the music itself.
Patricia Barber "Mythologies"
A singular jazz work, Patricia Barber's groundbreaking Mythologies is the result of the pianist becoming the only singer-songwriter to ever win a Guggenheim Fellowship. Allowed the time to craft a sophisticated album, the ambitious 2006 set is without peer in any musical genre. A cycle based on Greek mythology and Ovid's "Metamorphoses," Mythologies brings each of the 11 characters from Ovid's play to life in song. 2 x 45 RPM.
Patricia Barber "Cole Porter Mix"
A noted songwriter, superb pianist and vocalist and stunning producer. Barber is one of the foremost jazz artists of our time. This collection of Cole Porter classics will not disappoint. 2 x 45 RPM.
B52's "Self-titled"
The lyrics were stupid (well funny), the instrumentation basic to the point of minimilism, but this album was filled with catchy pop songs that have stood the test of time - one of the best albums of the post-punk era.
Plus these new titles...
Analogue Productions and Music Matters
The two Labels continue their superb 2 record Sets with new titles in the Blue Note 45 RPM Series. 
ORG
New Label, ORG (Original Recording Group) continues to please with a wide range of releases from Diana Krall to Nirvana.
Diana Krall on ORG
Diana Krall : "Live in Paris"
The first in long promised releases by a new audiophile label, Original Recordings Group, of Diana Krall's early Verve recordings. "Live in Paris" offers listeners Diana Krall's understanding of the musical techniques of composition, piano, and vocal improvisation on 12 songs from the Great American Songbooks of Cole Porter, Harold Arlen, George and Ira Gershwin and contemporary artists Joni Mitchell and Billy Joel. Accompanied by the award-winning Anthony Wilson on guitar, John Pisano on acoustic guitar, John Clayton on bass, Jeff Hamilton on drums, and Paulinho Da Costa on percussion as well as the Orchestra Symphonies European on 'Let's Fall in Love' and 'I've Got You Under My Skin,' the lovely vocalist heightens your listening pleasures with distinctive phrasings and tangible pathways to inside the creative imagination by getting inside harmony, the changes, and melodic structures." - All Music Guide.
The series now includes....
Diana Krall - When I Look In Your Eyes
Grammy-nominated vocalist/pianist's Verve debut features orchestrations by Johnny Mandel. If artistry is about growth, then count Diana Krall as one of jazz's consummate artists. When I Look In Your Eyes is yet another step ahead for the vocalist/pianist. This gorgeous release breaks away from the standard piano trio setting of her two previous releases; several of the album's cuts feature the graceful orchestrations of maestro Johnny Mandel. When I Look In Your Eyes features Krall on piano and vocals with longtime trio mate Russell Malone on guitar. Ben Wolfe and John Clayton share bass duties and Jeff Hamilton and Lewis Nash alternate on drums.
Diana Krall - The Look Of Love
From the luxurious opening chords of the first track, even before Diana Krall has sung a single beautiful note, her new Verve release -- The Look Of Love -- has us hooked. After winning a Best Jazz Vocal Performance Grammy for 1999's platinum-selling When I Look In Your Eyes, Diana Krall delivers her best album yet -- a lush, cinematic collection of ballads and bossa nova tunes. The Look Of Love brings to mind such classic Frank Sinatra albums as In The Wee Small Hours and Only The Lonely. But the elegant piano solos, the sensual vocals and the wickedly-modern sense of humor are, inimitably, all Krall.
Diana Krall - All For You
All For You is a tribute to the Nat King Cole Trio by a woman who is better equipped than any other jazz musician of her generation to evoke the spirit of Nat Cole. Diana Krall, who listened eagerly to Cole's records as a child, grew up to be that rarest of birds: a singer-pianist as comfortable and distinctive in one role as the other. You couldn't prove it by her; Krall's modesty is a byword in the business. But her colleagues know better and are quick to say so. "She plays all that piano," guitarist Russell Malone says, shaking his head and grinning, "and then she sings like that! I don't think she knows how good she is."
Diana Krall - Love Scenes
All that Diana Krall has accomplished thus far is surpassed by the beauty, sensuality and humor she brings to her intimate new album, Love Scenes. In her own magical style, Diana interprets love songs from across the musical spectrum with a new and compelling maturity.
But wait, theres more...
Also in stock, "The Very Best of Diana Krall", a two record set from Universal at $49.00, and her latest, "Quiet Nights".
Krall, Gardot, Peyroux
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Madeleine Peyroux - Bare Bones
Having proven several times over that she's among the premier vocal jazz singers on the planet with Half The Perfect World and Careless Love - both available as limited-edition 180-gram LPs from Mobile Fidelity - Madeleine Peyroux makes her mark as a songwriter on the exquisite Bare Bones, her first album of originals. A thematic record that begins with wariness, moves to loss, builds to acceptance and finishes with hope, the critically acclaimed set is Peyroux's most soul-baring effort. 2 LP Original Master Recording. $79.00
Madeleine Peyroux - Half the Perfect World
Half the Perfect World is the much-anticipated follow-up to Peyroux's breakthrough album, Careless Love. The record focuses on songs written by contemporary artists such as Leonard Cohen, Tom Waits and Fred Neil. The album also features an unforgettable duet with K.D. Lang on the Joni Mitchell classic "River" and four co-written originals including the single "I'm All Right." 2 LP Original Master Recording. $79.00
Madeleine Peyroux - Careless Love
Madeleine Peyroux is the real deal. She brushes off comparisons to Billie Holiday, but it's certainly not bad company to keep. This is a beautiful record, flowing with sparse arrangements and sultry vocals. If you like Norah Jones, wait until you hear this! The 12 songs on Careless Love feature a mix of acoustic blues, country ballads and torch songs showcasing Peyroux's sultry alto. Original Master Recording. $65.00
More goodies from Speakers Corner
Quality Records... plus is proad to be the official Australian distributor of this fine record label. For our customers, this means a bigger and better range... at a lower price!!! For more information and catalogues visit our (other) website -
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