What Are You Listening To?
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Dennie
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Telarc SACD Sampler 1 SACD
Various Artists
2002 Telarc
This is Telarc's first Stereo / Multichannel SACD sampler. It offers a wide variety of Jazz and Classical selections recorded in Analog, PCM and DSD so it made for an interesting comparison of the three main types of recording.
From the liner notes on level differences on this Telarc Sampler SACD: "Our goal in compiling this sampler was to present the listener with a variety of differing approaches to creating a surround sound experience, using various musical examples.
The Selections included in this SACD are presented with no alternation in overall level or dynamic range from the original masters. The apparent levels, therefore differ greatly from track to track. Telarc's masters are optimized for maximum peak levels during the recording sessions and subsequent mastering. When we attempted to match the relative volume between these tracks, we found it significantly degraded the sonic integrity of the original masters, resulting in out decision to leave them alone.
To make it easier to play these unleveled tracks, we chose to group them from loudest to softest. There is roughly a 45 percent difference in apparent level from the first track to the last so you will undoubtedly want to increase the volume as you play through the disc."
All tracks are Telarc recordings with the exception of Tracks 3 and 4 which are from their sister label Heads Up.
Selections and source recording type.
1. Moanin' - Monty Alexander from "Monty Meets Sly and Robbie" (Source: Analog)
2. Badia - Jason Miles, etc. from "Celebrating the Music of Weather Report" (Source: PCM 24/44.1)
3. Nature Boy - Philip Bailey from "Soul On Jazz" (Source: Analog / PCM 24/44.1)
4. Feelin' Fine - Spyro Gyra from "In Modern Times" (Source: Analog / PCM 24/44.1)
5. Give Me One Reason - Junior Wells from "Come On In This House" (Source: Analog / PCM 24/44.1)
6. Anthony's Blues - Michel Camilo from "Triangulo" (Source: Analog with DSD)
7. Harcourt Nights - Oscar Peterson Quartet and the Michel Legrand Strings from "Trail of Dreams: A Canadian Suite" (Source: DSD)
8. Pride And Joy - Kevin Mahogany from ""Pride and Joy" (Source: DSD)
9. Simple Gifts - Erich Kunzel & Cincinnati Pops Orchestra from "A Celtic Spectacular" (Source: DSD)
10. September In The Rain - Erich Kunzel & Cincinnati Pops Orchestra from "Nice 'N' Easy, Celebrating Sinatra" (Source: DSD)
11. Across the Universe - King'singers, Erich Kunzel & Cincinnati Pops Orchestra from "Music of the Beatles" (Source: DSD)
12. Cuban Landscape With Rain - Los Angeles Guitar Quartet from "Latin Album" (Source: DSD)
13. Dupre: Magnificat VI - Michael Murray from "Dupre, Franck, Widor: Organ Works" (Source: DSD)
14. Song For All Seas All Ships - Robert Spano, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus from "Vaughan Williams: Symphony No. 1 "A Sea Symphony" (Source: DSD)
15. O Fortuna - Donald Runnicles, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra & Chorus from "Orff: Carmina Burana" (Source: DSD)
Dennie
Well-Known Member
...and that Boz used to be with "The Steve Miller Band"!Botch said:
Bought this one as so many of you recommended it, THANK YOU!
Really nice, I'll be listening to this one a lot. Did you guys know that most of BScaggs band left (I believe it was after Silk Degrees) to form Toto?
Dennie
Shhhh, he has a Ronco DVD rewinder too....
Kazaam
Well-Known Member
Dennie said:
Telarc SACD Sampler 1 SACD
Various Artists
2002 Telarc
Selections and source recording type.
4. Feelin' Fine - Spyro Gyra from "In Modern Times" (Source: Analog / PCM 24/44.1)
5. Give Me One Reason - Junior Wells from "Come On In This House" (Source: Analog / PCM 24/44.1)
8. Pride And Joy - Kevin Mahogany from ""Pride and Joy" (Source: DSD)
15. O Fortuna - Donald Runnicles, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra & Chorus from "Orff: Carmina Burana" (Source: DSD)
I've got the albums that these four songs come from. Really liked the Kevin Mahogany disc and I highly recommend it if you don't yet have it (jazzy versions of Motown songs).
But I absolutely hated "Orff: Carmina Burana". Granted, I'm totally not into classical music; but I didn't think it sounded as good as some of the other few classical titles I have. Plus, I just didn't like the music---not purty enough. On the bright side, I think the lyrics to one of the songs translate into singing about having a big ol' drunken party!!!!
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Kazaam said:
***Stereophile Test CD 3***
I've moved onto this album now, as was briefly mentioned in the WALL OF TEXT that I posted above. I think I should seek out some more of the recordings on this sampler as they sound quite good and I really like many of these tracks. (So far the only one I've picked up was from Sara K.) There are some calibration tests, too. I mostly never use those, but I did use it within the past year to test how much lower my new subwoofer played compared to my old sub.
3. Sibley (Empire Brass)
4. Topsy for piano, guitar & bass (Dick Hyman)
5. History Repeats Itself, song (Sara K)
6. Blue Bird, song (Jimmy Rogers)
7. Rollin' & Tumblin', (Doug MacLoed)
8. Nevermind, song (Airto Moreira)
9. Lord's Tundra, for bass guitar (Deen Peer)
12. Christe qui lux es, third setting (Robert Whyte)
13. Waltz for piano No. 7 in C sharp minor, Op. 64/2, CT. 213 (Chopin)***
That's a really good point. If you don't know if you like Jazz or not, pick up one of these "Samplers". If your looking for new artists or a new genre, this is a great way to sample some very good ones.
This one is OOP (out of print) and now going for $30 used.......
It's a great collection, compiled by Ken Richardson of S&V mag. He was given access to Telarc's Library and made some great choices.
This Review is pretty "spot on"......
The must have SACD!, February 8, 2006
By Ramanesh Keith Nair "aceedburn®" (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)
(REAL NAME)
This review is from: Telarc Sacd Sampler: Sound & Vision (Audio CD)
Without a doubt, this is the quisessential SACD for all SACD lovers. The sound on this disc is mindblowing and the warmth and clarity of the recording is flawless in all aspects. The discrete 5.1 surround mixing is done very tastefully and it's almost like being right there in the recording studio with all the instruments/vocals surrounding you in sheer bliss. All tracks on this SACD are brilliant and I think Ken did a great job in picking these selections from the magnificient Telarc/Heads Up SACD range. What's more, Ken gives you detailed info on the surround recording of each track telling you which instrument goes into which channel and the highlights to look out for in each track too. Check out the track from Ladysmith black mamboza, and also the spyro gyra and yellowjackets tracks. To sum it up, this is the only SACD you'll ever need if you want to show off your 5.1 surround SACD system. Well done sound & vision!
Telarc SACD Sampler: Sound and Vision
1 Icarus / Los Angeles Guitar Quartet 3:38
2 Flesh on Flesh / Al di Meola 5:58
3 Don't Ever Let Nobody Drag Your Spirit Down / Eric Bibb 3:27
4 Wenyukela (Raise Your Spirit Higher) / Ladysmith Black Mambazo 4:54
5 The Twelfth / Manhattan Transfer 4:15
6 Viven / Hiroshima 4:50
7 The French Fiddler / Oscar Peterson 3:05
8 Hallelujah I Love Her So / Kevin Mahogany 3:06
9 Why Are People Like That? / Junior Wells' Chicago Blues Band 3:57
10 Let's Go Back / Junior Brown 2:57
11 Teen Town / Victor Wooten 4:13
12 Funky Tina / Spyro Gyra 5:20
13 I've Grown Accustomed to His Face / Tierney Sutton 6:27
14 Village Gait / Yellowjackets 5:33
15 Cocowalk / Michel Camilo 5:58
Dennie
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Kazaam said:Dennie said:
Telarc SACD Sampler 1 SACD
Various Artists
2002 Telarc
Selections and source recording type.
4. Feelin' Fine - Spyro Gyra from "In Modern Times" (Source: Analog / PCM 24/44.1)
5. Give Me One Reason - Junior Wells from "Come On In This House" (Source: Analog / PCM 24/44.1)
8. Pride And Joy - Kevin Mahogany from ""Pride and Joy" (Source: DSD)
15. O Fortuna - Donald Runnicles, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra & Chorus from "Orff: Carmina Burana" (Source: DSD)
I've got the albums that these four songs come from. Really liked the Kevin Mahogany disc and I highly recommend it if you don't yet have it (jazzy versions of Motown songs).
But I absolutely hated "Orff: Carmina Burana". Granted, I'm totally not into classical music; but I didn't think it sounded as good as some of the other few classical titles I have. Plus, I just didn't like the music---not purty enough. On the bright side, I think the lyrics to one of the songs translate into singing about having a big ol' drunken party!!!!
Yeah, they're really not meant for us to enjoy EVERY song. I do like them for the variety of Artists, but I don't always like all of the Artists.
In general, I've found the sound quality to be really good on most of these "samplers". I used to avoid them because I too thought of them as "albums", but now I look for them and use them to lead me to "new" or "different" Artists. I am usually impressed with the ones I find. Keep in mind, I have a pretty open mind when in comes to music and enjoy most of what I listen to.
Dennie
Kazaam
Well-Known Member
Dennie said:
That's true. Though, if we're lucky we do! :banana-dance:
Too bad I didn't have that Telarc comp of yours so that I could've given it a sample listen before I bought the "Orff: Carmin Burana" SACD. Not sure whatever possessed me to buy it.
As for buying more samplers, I do definitely like the idea of these SACD comps as being a good way to hopefully get a variety of good music in surround since there's not much new stuff coming these days and other stuff is OOP. And if I learn to like some new artists along the way, then it's even better!
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Watershed -- Deluxe 2 CD Edition
K.D. Lang
2008 Nonesuch Records
Amazon.co.uk
Watershed is the first major project from celebrated Canadian chanteuse k.d. lang since 2004's Hymns of the 49th Parallel. Where Hymns explored the music of fellow Canadians such as Ron Sexsmith, Neil Young and Joni Mitchell, Watershed represents the first set of original songs from lang in around eight years. Self-produced and arranged by musicians she has worked with a lot in the past, the most striking aspect of the album is its intimate, homely feel. Adding to the cozy ambience is the fact that Watershed brings most of lang's musical passions and influences--jazz, country, folk, bossa nova--under one roof, lending the project a dreamy, mellifluous coherence. But if the musical landscape is mellow and easy to traverse, Lang's lyrics can be less comfortable. Using her laid-back, often ethereal arrangements as sugar-candied coating for thornier topics, the singer serenades with stories of broken love, occasionally harsh self-analysis and the obligatory forays into existential angst. These contrastive elements only serve to make the album stronger, adding emotional weight to the airless arrangements of "Once in a While," and the delicate "Close Your Eyes," and conjuring up images of beauty on the string-laden "I Dream of Spring," and the wonderfully lazy "Sunday". Intelligent, mature and sophisticated, Watershed is the kind of perfect pop album it's difficult not to fall in love with immediately and forever. --Paul Sullivan
No. Title Length
1. "I Dream of Spring" 4:00
2. "Je fais la planche" (lang, Ben Mink) 2:51
3. "Coming Home" 3:26
4. "Once in a While" (lang) 3:27
5. "Thread" 3:38
6. "Close Your Eyes" (Teddy Borowieski, lang, Greg Leisz, Piltch) 4:26
7. "Sunday" (Borowieski, lang) 4:17
8. "Flame of the Uninspired" (lang, Mink) 3:30
9. "Upstream" 3:37
10. "Shadow and the Frame" (Borowiecki, lang, Meredith) 3:07
11. "Jealous Dog" 2:32
Bonus live tracks
No. Title Length
1. "I Dream of Spring" 3:45
2. "Wash Me Clean" (lang) 4:11
3. "The Valley" (Jane Siberry) 6:20
4. "Hallelujah" (Leonard Cohen) 5:22
Been listening to this a lot more since Gerry's passing. I used to listen to City to City all the time when I was a kid. My mom had it on 8-track.
I might have to look up some of his other albums. The best of above is a great album, but it doesn't have all his hits. "Stuck in the Middle of You" is one example. You think that song would be a staple on best of comps like with "Baker Street".
Dennie
Well-Known Member
North & South -- CD
Gerry Rafferty
1988/1990 Polygram Records
Gerry Rafferty's '80s and '90s albums were so low-key and infrequent that a rumor actually went around that the singer/songwriter had made so much money off his monster 1978 hit "Baker Street" that he'd simply bought an island and retired. He might not have made that much, but it's clear from the casual, relaxed vibe of 1988's North & South that Rafferty is a man with little to prove and no concern as to whether his sound is particularly commercially viable. As a result, North & South sounds remarkably like Mark Knopfler's post-"Money for Nothing" records. (The title track and the slide guitar-enhanced "Hearts Run Dry" are particularly Dire Straits-like.) The ten songs take their own sweet time to unfold -- six are over six minutes long -- but Rafferty's knack for simple but memorable melodies and his inimitable voice, which sounds as great as ever, are enough to keep even a casual listener interested. The unexpectedly Celtic-sounding "Tired of Talking" is a particular highlight, but the '70s-phobic should note that this album is as smoothly produced and utterly sweat-free as Rafferty's best-known work.
1. "North and South"
2. "Moonlight and Gold"
3. "Tired of Talking"
4. "Hearts Run Dry"
5. "A Dangerous Age"
6. "Shipyard Town"
7. "Winter’s Come"
8. "Nothing Ever Happens Down Here"
9. "On a Night Like This"
10. "Unselfish Love"
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Feel Like My Time Ain't Long - An A Cappella Gospel Collection CD
Various Artists
2006 Rebel Records
A cappella gospel is a Southern tradition, and a tradition that has lived on in the music of a number of traditionally minded musicians -- especially bluegrass musicians -- over the years. While groups occasionally specialize in the form, most ... Full Descriptionare satisfied to include an a cappella number to show off their vocal prowess and express their religious faith. Feel Like My Time Ain't Long collects 15 a cappella gospel favorites from Rebel's vaults and includes both well-known performers like Ralph Stanley and Blue Highway along with a number of lesser known ones like Appalachian Express and the Marshall Family. The Forbes Family delivers the fabulous title cut. "Feel Like My Time Ain't Long" has never sounded fresher, with the family taking a complicated four-way arrangement and making it sound simple and beautiful. Several of these cuts go back to the '70s, when Doyle Lawson -- later to specialize in a cappella singing -- was still a member of the Country Gentlemen and Ralph Stanley was still performing with Keith Whitley. The real revelations here, however, are the names who may be less familiar like the Forbes Family and the Marshall Family. Feel Like My Time Ain't Long is a rock-solid collection that will please anyone who loves gospel, bluegrass, and traditional music. ~ Ronnie D. Lankford, Jr.
1. Some Day -- (BLUE HIGHWAY)
2. Feel Like My Time Ain't Long -- (THE FORBES FAMILY)
3. When I Cross Over Jordan -- (IIIRD TYME OUT)
4. Gospel Train -- (LARRY SPARKS)
5. I'll Meet You in the Morning -- (APPALACHIAN EXPRESS)
6. Children, Go Where I Send Thee -- (THE MARSHALL FAMILY)
7. Calling My Children Home -- (THE COUNTRY GENTLEMEN)
8. My Homeward Journey -- (PAUL WILLIAMS & THE VICTORY TRIO)
9. It's Heaven On Earth (To Walk With the Lord) -- (RALPH STANLEY)
10. Jesus, I'll Never Forget -- (THE FORBES FAMILY)
11. I Need Jesus -- (LARRY SPARKS & THE MARSHALL FAMILY)
12. I Can't Sit Down -- (STEEP CANYON RANGERS)
13. Gloryland -- (RALPH STANLEY & THE CLINCH MOUNTAIN BOYS)
14. Amazing Grace -- (THE MARSHALLFAMILY)
15. I'm Working My Way -- (THE VIRGINIA SQUIRES)
Artists:
BLUE HIGHWAY
FORBES FAMILY
IIIRD TYME OUT
LARRY SPARKS
APPALACHIAN EXPRESS
MARSHALL FAMILY
COUNTRY GENTLEMEN
PAUL WILLIAMS
RALPH STANLEY
STEEP CANYON RANGERS
VIRGINIA SQUIRES
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Yola -- CD
Eleanor McEvoy
2001 Mosco Disc
Yola was Eleanor McEvoy's follow-up to the lavishly produced pop record Snapshots, but the two records could hardly be farther apart in instrumentation. ... Full DescriptionRecorded semi-live, set entirely in sparse piano-guitar-and-drum arrangements, and conceptually centered around McEvoy's partnership with classically trained pianist Brian Connor, Yola seems to find its guiding principle in its final song, which celebrates "something so wonderful, something so pure."
The purity of the arrangements is indeed wonderful. McEvoy sings "Seasoned Love" in a piano-only performance that sounds like a number from a Stephen Sondheim musical, and goes a step sparser on "Isn't It a Little Late?," which is backed only by drums. But despite the vast change in instrumentation, very little separates McEvoy's songwriting on Yola from her Snapshots work. Most of these songs could easily be padded with strings, electric guitar, and synthesizers and hold up well on the earlier album. The minimal settings on Yola demonstrate what so many other barebones efforts have shown: that good songs are still good when stripped to their essentials, that less is often more, and that complexity isn't always an improvement.
But then, neither is simplicity. Simple arrangements showcase an artist's fundamental strengths -- in McEvoy's case, her beautifully and skillfully crafted melodies and evocative vocals -- but they can also reveal an artist's weaknesses. Snapshots seemed an attempt to cast McEvoy as a new Sarah McLachlan, but the former lacks the latter's proficiency as a guitarist and intricacy of lyrical expression.
McEvoy seems to write about only two subjects, lost love and found love, and she tends to rely on well-worn clichés like rain as a symbol for hardship and "me and you" as a central rhyme. Still, those weaknesses only contribute to the directness and purity of the recordings, and McEvoy's melodies are easily strong enough to stand on their own. ~ Evan Cater
1. I Got You to See Me Through
2. Isn't It a Little Late?
3. Did I Hurt You?
4. Seasoned Love
5. The Rain Falls
6. Dreaming of Leaving
7. Easy in Love
8. Last Seen October 9
9. I Hear You Breathing In
10. Something So Wonderful
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Down The Old Plank Road - The Nashville Sessions -- CD
The Chieftains
2002 RCA Victor
Amazon.com
Now that bluegrass is (again) momentarily cool, leave it to the Chieftains to (again) plunge an all-star country cast into the Celtic wellsprings of old-time music, just as they did 10 years ago with 1992's Another Country. It's no surprise that the Chieftains can handle the rapacious rhythms of a hot fiddle tune; whether they can go toe-to-toe with the likes of Tim O'Brien, Béla Fleck, Ricky Skaggs, and Del McCoury is another matter. Rest assured they can, and they even coax some inspired jamming from Earl Scruggs--who sounds like he has something to prove on "Sally Goodin"--and a chilling vocal from Alison Krauss on "Molly Ban," the Celtic equivalent of "Fair and Tender Maidens." The Chieftains' only miscue comes in wasting Vince Gill's talents on a busily arranged "Dark as a Dungeon." While this set will likely appeal more to fans of contemporary Irish music than to hard-core twang fans, anyone who loves acoustic roots music will find these collaborations refreshing, if not down-right bracing. --Roy Kasten
1. Down the Old Plank Road (w/ John Hiatt, Bela Fleck, Jeff White and Tim O'Brien)
2. Country Blues (w/ Buddy & Julie Miller)
3. Sally Goodin (w/ Earl Scruggs & Glen Duncan)
4. Dark as a Dungeon (w/ Vince Gill)
5. Cindy (w/ Kentucky Thunder & Ricky Skaggs)
6. Molly Ban (Bawn) (w/ Alison Krauss)
7. Don't Let Your Deal Go Down (w/ Lyle Lovett)
8. Medley: Ladies Pantalettes; Belles of Blackville; First House in Connaught (w/ Bela Fleck)
9. Whole Heap of Little Horses (w/ Patty Griffin)
10. Rain and Snow (w/ The Del McCoury Band)
11. I'll Be All Smiles Tonight (w/ Martina McBride)
12. Tennessee Stud (w/ Jeff White)
13. Katie Dear (w/ Gillian Welch & David Rawlings)
14. Give the Fiddler a Dram