u/Between_Outside

Picked up my first tone poet pressing this week. Legendary musicians, historic recording, can’t lose!

Currently I think my favorite modern pressing to date is Kevin Gray’s Craft pressing of Bill Evans Trio - Sunday at the Village Vanguard. That record is so crisp and alive (I’m sure it will be the first record I wear out from repeat plays). Somehow jazz trios are the best sounding records in my current listening setup. So here’s another classic jazz trio album featuring a genius on bass.

With this album I’ve heard complaints that the piano is harsh or distorted, but I believe that’s how it was originally recorded and it seems that’s how Duke played sometimes. The bass and drums sound amazing. I admire these musicians individually and this album has always drawn me in and repelled me at the same time. An ambivalence. But not anymore… it finally makes sense and sounds amazing thanks to this pressing.

What’s the next tone poet I should add to my wishlist?

Outstanding music right here. Excellent pacing from de Larrocha and Previn (I find most versions of Rach 3 to be too rushed). I’ve been on an Alicia de Larrocha kick lately, but this has to be my favorite recording of hers that I’ve heard so far. Delighted to get this clean copy in the mail recently, giving its first spin this morning.

Any other Alicia de Larrocha fans out there?

Hi everyone, I’m probably wrong or crazy, but after getting the Yamaha A-S501 amp a few months ago, I experimented with the Loudness knob position and found that when turned down 90 degrees with the volume turned up quite loud, it sounds best to my ears. Whether it’s a placebo or not, the silence feels more silent and the music feels more alive this way. Especially with more acoustic music like small ensemble Classical and Jazz. Occasionally I use Pure Direct mode for certain Rock records. But when spinning most records, this is my counterintuitive go-to settings. Reduce Loudness, and then crank up the volume. Is there any trace of valid audio science here? Or am I just amp nuts?

Current setup:
-Audio-Technica AT-LP3XBT Turntable
-Yamaha A-S501 Amp
-Polk ES20 Speakers

Hits the spot tonight. Blue vinyl to boot!

Oh man, what a gorgeous record...

Nothing quite like late-era Billie Holiday with a small group of jazz all stars. This album is her first of three to include Ben Webster, Harry “Sweets” Edison, Barney Kessel, Jimmy Rowles. So chill, so beautiful. Acoustic Sounds Series is typically out of my preferred budget, but they do such an excellent job that occasionally I’ll splurge with my favorite LPs.

Have a nice weekend everyone, happy spinning 🎵

Day off = visiting my favorite local-ish record shop, Human Head Records in Brooklyn, NY. Plus I got a bonus discount and free gift, super nice of them. Some of this is 100% jazz, some jazz adjacent, and some just out there… These pickups put a big smile on my face, so I figured why not share. Happy listening y’all

Spun these four beauties today. Scratches on the vinyl and beat up sleeves, but these well-loved records still sound great. Sometimes a bit of crackle but no skips! Very glad my dad introduced me to jazz years ago and that I received some gems from his collection. Happy Father’s Day y’all 🎵

He’s in my top 5 jazz piano list. Creative, unique and soulful player. 91 years is a good, long life. Grateful we are left with a good, long discography as well. RIP ❤️

Obligatory post! Tonight I’m listening to Kind of Blue (2010) and 3 Giants! (1964) (AKA Sonny Rollins Plus 4). The look of these album covers blend quite well in my opinion. After my wonderful visit to Harlem yesterday and the positive response on r/Jazz, I had to say hello to my favorite sub r/Vinyl_Jazz. RIP Sonny and Happy 100 Miles 💚💙

As most of us know, today is the 100th birthday of the cool Miles Davis. But last night gave us a colossal loss… Sonny Rollins died. RIP to a legend and the last living member of A Great Day in Harlem, a world famous photo of 57 iconic jazz musicians taken by Art Kane for Esquire magazine in 1958.

This afternoon I decided to take a work break, bought some flowers and headed to the Great Day in Harlem location as an homage to Sonny, the other jazz musicians and to say thank you for the music.

After leaving the flowers, I see a lady come down the stairs to take a look. We start talking and she’s been the building owner since 1999. Luckily she’s also a jazz fan and somehow I was the first to tell her the news of Sonny’s passing (who she always wanted to meet). She met Benny Golson a few years back, as well as Bill Clinton and various others. We spoke about Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, Mary Lou Williams, Gene Krupa, Etta Jones, Duke Ellington, Gerry Mulligan, Dizzy Gillespie, Charles Mingus and many others. It was lovely to hear many of her stories.

At the end, she gave me a small postcard of the famous picture and invited me to come back with my dad (who introduced me to jazz + he saw Sonny live in NYC in the 60s). This little postcard just became one of my favorite possessions.

Thanks for reading, just felt like sharing. I hope y’all are enjoying lots of Miles and Sonny records this week.