The ART of capturing the music..... :}

Here are some more of my favorites that I have recently listened to via the KT66 Gold Lions:

1. Chris Rea....Fool If You Think It's Over, and Texas (note:this one must be enjoyed with a glass of wine)
2. Bob Seger....Fine Memory (Bob is at his best here I think)
3. Foghat....Take It Or Leave It (great production on this one)
4. Mathews Southern Comfort...Woodstock (light em up dudes)
5. Emmerson Lake & Palmer....From The Beginning (only tubes can give this the treatment it deserves)
6. Stevie Wonder....Superwoman(where were you when I needed you) (I'll call this his hands down his best work)
7. Earth Wind & Fire...After The Love Is Gone (wow, the production here is first rate)
8. Mannfred Mann....Spirits In The Night (Bruce Springsteen wrote this one and Mannfred did excellent with it)
9. Badfinger....Perfection (aptly named, Todd Rundgren mixed this one up for them in the studio after George Harrison pulled out of the Straight Up project to work on the Bangladesh commitments)
10. Robbie Robertson...Somewhere Down The Crazy River (this is Robbie at his finest hour, the mix is unbelievable)
11. David Bowie...Ashes to Ashes (fantastic work here by the production team and Davy Jones)

I know this is basically a Tech site, but guys when you put the soldering iron down at the end of the day it's all about the music. I spent a lot of years playing guitar and making music in front of people that were drunk and thought I was fantastic, and I suck LOL.

What I did do however in all those years was learn an appreciation for the production team that made the sounds of our lives. Music is more then sine waves, it's more then anode or cathode or bias settings, it's feelings and emotions.

Music can pull you into a different time, a different place, take you where nothing else can. A great production is a once in a lifetime event. It's a snapshot of history. It can never be repeated in exactly the same way ever again, so many factors are involved in the production of a great sound. The temperature in the room, the instruments, the tape used, the alignment of the tape heads, etc; etc;the performance itself can never be exactly the same twice in a row.

How many times have you personally seen a band live and thought that they just don't measure up to the album? Never forget the genius that goes into the sound. The guys that capture a performance to perfection. Artists get old and quit or pass away, but those moments in time when everything was "just right" are what it's all about. This is what we are seeking. To hear and relive that moment in time when everything was perfect and the God's smiled down upon a single moment in time.... :}

wolverine

WOW ...I'm taking today off.

Thanks

Hey Wolverine Et Al,

Great thought - in the end , it is about the music. Some of us are music lovers but balk at paying $2,000 - $3,000 for an equivalent off-the-shelf tube amp, end up building an ST-70 or equivalent...

Anyway, here is my selection, in no particular order:

1. Sophie Milman - album: "Take Love Easy" - An astounding deep, rich voice for such a young Jazz vocalist (all tracks)
2. Al Di Meola - album: "Elegant Gypsy" - Some of the best Jazz Guitar work around, the tones on "Midnight Tango" and "Elegant Gypsy" is absolutely mind-blowing
3. Compilation Album: "The Art of the Ballad" With the exception of track 2, this is a good example of modern recording technique on traditional Jazz ensemble (Avant Garde - style mostly - Track 2 must have been mistakenly included on this album, it is rather bizarre even in Modern Jazz terms!)
4. Compilation album: "More of the Most Relaxing Jazz music in the universe" (!!!) Yes I know it sounds like rubbish, but all albums in this series are from Denon sound studios and are amazing examples of how well old original recordings can be "reworked" to sound absolutely excellent.
5. Wynton Marsalis Septet - album: "The Marciac Suite" - Wynton Marsalis mentions in the blurb leaflet that several techniques were used during recording to preserve the "Wood" sound of the instrumentation. This comes through especially well on the track "B is for Boussaget (and Bass)" - almost feels like you can "hear" the wood grain on the upright bass!
6. Jerome Richardson - album: "Midnight Oil" - This is a new release on VINYL of an older recording done in the late 1950s. Somehow this album makes you believe all the claims made for music on vinyl - for some arcane and strange reason, the performance totally suck you in and makes you feel as if you are really THERE, listening to Jerome playing (my vinyl playback equipment is a Thorens TD 160 turntable equipped with a Denon DL160 cartridge - not bad, but nothing special either)


I have tons more music that I can bring up, but for now, that is my favourite list.

-- JunkyJan in BC, Canada