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Carmen Gomes Inc.: "Thousand Shades of Blue"
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March 2013
American Blues from the Netherlands
Sound Liaison Studio Showcase Series No. 1
Format: 24-bit/96kHz FLAC (download)
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I've been among the prophets saying that high-resolution downloads are the future of audiophile music sales. Surely it will benefit the majors to make high-quality downloads a first choice rather than an MP3 extra, but I believe that individual artists can benefit as well. Most new-to-the-scene performers have little money for middlemen and disc manufacture, yet can get things together for the Internet.
"KlipschTape"
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May 2012
Pioneering Audio Still Sounds Fine 58 Years Later
KlipschTape/HDTT
Format: 24-bit/96kHz FLAC (download)
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Paul W. Klipsch (1904-2002) was one of the most important pioneers in the history of audio reproduction. So was John Eargle (1931-2007). The two giants crossed paths in the early 1950s when they were just starting out. Klipsch initiated his speaker manufacturing company in 1946, which makes it the oldest company still making the same model (and many, many more). He hired his first employee in 1948, and by the early 1950s his Klipschorn speaker had become a symbol of excellence in the audio community. His folded horn, designed to be placed in the corner of a room, was big and expensive. I remember it being something of a status symbol. I had one friend in high school, a Canadian transplant, whose Dad had a pair of the monster speakers and a few of us would go listen whenever we could. At that time I preferred Tannoy speakers, but I remember that the Klipsch sound was clean and clear, perhaps a tiny bit too forward, and big with lots of bass!
At that time there were no stereo discs and LPs were monaural. But there was stereo from commercially recorded two-track tapes. RCA had them, and so did Mercury, EMI, and a few other companies. With his forward thinking and exacting taste, Klipsch thought to make his own stereophonic tapes, mostly to have some reliable software to demonstrate the abilities of his Klipschorns. His tapes were made at 15 inches per second (ips) to achieve the highest fidelity possible, and the first ones were sold in 1954. Within about two years he'd stopped making them.
Recently, Klipsch and High Definition Tape Transfers made a deal to produce a sampler with the best of the Klipsch recordings. The master tapes were in miraculously good shape, so Bob Witrak of HDDT transferred them directly to digital and is offering them as 16/44, 24/96 and 24/192 downloads, and on CD, HQCD, and 24/96 DVD. The result sounds as much like a demonstration disc today as it did 59 years ago. There aren't any hokey ping-pong stereo demonstrations. The program is all music and presents selections from KlipschTape KST 1000, Demonstration Tape, with introductions by John Eargle; KST 1002, An Organ Recital by John Eargle; and KST 1001, Flem Ferguson and His Dixieland Jazz. The disc formats all include the entire 13 tracks, but if you download you can pick and choose from among the three programs and the closing interview.
John Eargle? Yes, that John Eargle, who went on to become a legend himself at JBL and Delos Records. But Eargle was also a very fine organist, and his portion of this tribute is very strong. The Toccata section of Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D Minor receives an excellent performance, but it's the recording of Jehan Alain's dramatic Litanies that is exciting to the max and completely satisfying, both in sound and performance. Eargle played on a large Aeolian-Skinner organ in Texas, and its different choirs of pipes were situated left and right of the performer so it's ideal for stereo. And the stereo separation is amazingly good, with a solid phantom center channel and bass that would have been achievable back then on only a 15-ips tape.
The Dixieland jazz sounds great, too, with all the instruments evenly spread from left to right, again with a strong phantom center channel. In short, these tracks don't sound at all experimental, they sound like tracks that were produced with an honest effort to sound like the original instruments. HDTT includes the original notes by Klipsch, and you can easily read that he eschewed any unnecessary fiddling around. He was bent on getting the most natural sound possible. He succeeded.
Whatever format you choose, one can't help marveling at these early efforts by two men who would become legends in the industry. Talk about a good start!
Be sure to listen to: Track 2 of Demonstration Tape presents "The Yellow Rose of Texas" played on a Wurlitzer pipe organ. Note how clean the opening drums and pipe stops are and how the recording has not only stereo spread but also very fine depth. As a bonus, there's a 1954 television interview (audio only) with Klipsch that's a lot of fun.
Find out more about HDTT's released of KlipschTape at their site.
. . . Rad Bennett
radb@soundstagenetwork.com
Claire Martin and Richard Rodney Bennett: "Witchcraft"
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June 2011
Two of Britain's Top Musicians Team Up for an Impeccable Album
Linn Records
Format: 24-bit/88.2kHz FLAC (download)
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Music lovers have always perceived Claire Martin as a talented singer, but this disc proves she has arrived as an impeccable master artist and one of the greatest living voices in jazz. Listen to "Would You Believe," the last cut from this download, if you have any doubts. Richard Rodney Bennett, film-music composer, concert-hall composer, and jazz pianist-singer, is a true musical everyman. You never feel like he's a serious musician "playing down," as his multifaceted talents form an inseparable whole. He and Martin have been performing together for years, and their partnership has created a rare and special collaboration where the superlative product is truly more than the sum of its parts.
For this program, the remarkable duo turns its attention to songs by American composer Cy Coleman, mainly his pairings with lyricist Carolyn Leigh. Three of their biggest hits are here -- "Witchcraft," "The Rules of the Road," and "The Best Is Yet to Come" (performed with wit and a devilishly clever surprise ending) -- alongside lesser-known gems such as "Let Me Down Easy" (a poignant solo spot for Bennett), "On Second Thought," and "On the Other Side of the Tracks." Shifting away from Leigh as lyricist, we find "Nobody Does It Like Me," Coleman's stellar collaboration with Dorothy Fields, and "I'm Gonna Laugh You Right Out of My Life," one of the definitive torch songs of all time, written with Joseph Allan McCarthy.
A Linn spokesperson told me that this session was recorded and mastered at 24/192 and that the 24/88.2 versions (FLAC or WMA) were downsampled. The result here sounds effortless and natural. In the version I downloaded, piano and voices have appealing presence without a trace of shrillness, and subtle shadings and phrasings are delineated with clarity and accuracy. To suit your particular needs and equipment, Linn offers a wide range of downloads for this album. In addition to the ones already mentioned, there are also CD-quality FLAC and WMA, and MP3, not to mention a Hybrid Multichannel SACD! Prices vary from $11.00 for the MP3 up to $27.00 for the 24/192 download. The options are all made very clear in Linn's detailed listing, and as usual with Linn, there are audio previews of each track that you can audition before you buy.
Be sure to listen to: "That's My Style" (written with Peggy Lee) starts like it's going to be a solo for Bennett, but in the middle Martin comes in with "I'm in Love Again." It's an unexpected goosebump moment that will send a pleasant little chill down your spine.
. . . Rad Bennett
radb@soundstagenetwork.com
Peter Gabriel: "Scratch My Back"
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April 2010
Peter Gabriel Reinvents the Cover Album, Supported by Superlative Engineering
Society of Sound
Format: 24-bit/48kHz FLAC (download)
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It’s been a long time since Peter Gabriel’s last album, and Scratch My Back turns out to be quite a departure from his usual upbeat, percussion-driven fare. For this album, Gabriel recorded songs written by peers who he respects. And the second album, You Scratch Mine, will feature each of those artists performing one of Gabriel’s songs. The idea sounds good on paper, and it’s worked before, particularly in concerts where artists gather to pay tribute to a fellow performer. But Gabriel has stripped the music to its bare bones and has had it arranged by John Metcalfe for orchestra minus drums and guitar. The resulting cinematic sound has met with mixed reviews.
If I have one complaint, it’s that every song shares a similar tempo, making the overall album gloomy. Also, the occasionally effective orchestrations can be just as overbearing. Whether it’s David Bowie’s “Heroes” or Lou Reed’s “The Power of the Heart,” the build-ups can seem repetitive, like cloned waves crashing on the shore. But when Gabriel is left alone, or when he’s accompanied by just one instrument, his warm, battle-scarred voice convincingly conveys the lyrics.
Some of Gabriel’s covers are hair-raising. “My Body Is a Cage,” originally by Montreal’s Arcade Fire, starts with a brooding solo piano, followed by a wistful, almost painful French horn melody that’s carried over to string harmonics. Gabriel enters low key and lets the piece build until it slams you back in your chair. It’s the most intense cut on an album with plenty of powerful moments. In Neil Young’s “Philadelphia,” Gabriel changes the timbre of his voice so effectively that you’ll shiver.
Of course, this album has been out on CD for a while. But Gabriel is a founder of Society of Sound, a label owned by B&W, a company known for its audiophile loudspeakers. The site offers reasonably priced memberships that let you download two new albums a month, as well as back-catalog releases. You can also get a free sampler membership that lets you download a few tracks from each new album at no cost. Downloads are offered either as FLAC 24/48 or FLAC 24/96, FLAC 16, and Apple Lossless. Scratch My Back, for such a lushly scored set, scores with clarity and precision as a FLAC 24/48 download played through my Squeezebox Classic. The highs sound like good analog, with plenty of impact that never sounds harsh, and the bass is deep and forceful without losing focus. I’d rank this download as pretty near perfect. And because it’s DRM free, you can hear it however you prefer. I should also point out that the album will be released on vinyl, in case you’re a fan of the format.
Be sure to listen to: “Flume,” written by Justin “Bon Iver” Vernon. A sparsely scored opening for piano and voice is soon enriched by lower brass as the volume builds. The clear and emotional contrast between the smooth-as-silk brass and Gabriel’s raspy, honest delivery gave me chills. Heard in high resolution, this is singing and playing without a net.
. . . Rad Bennett
radb@soundstagenetwork.com
