iTunes is also selling the 2009 digital version of this album. I need a good digital copy, and it's only $8 there. Is the 2009 version good or terrible?
I believe it's sourced from the UMG CD (same as the 1998 Reprise EOTC version), which is available uncompressed for not much more. Amazon links in post #281.
Thanks! Is there a way to verify whether this is the same source as the 1998 EOTC version? If it is, I'll buy it right away. I need a good digital version. All I have is the Concord expanded set. I listened to my mono original pressing today. It showed up in the mail yesterday. Holy cow! It was SUBLIME.
I only know that all of the ex-Reprise Sinatra albums on iTunes which are not Mastered for iTunes (which this is not) are derived from the UMG CDs, and those in turn are nearly all digital duplicates of the earlier 1986-98 Reprise CDs (EOTC versions where applicable) except for occasional missing bonus tracks.
These are the US Apple and Amazon links... Apple Music: ℗ 2009: Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim ℗ 2010: Sinatra/Jobim: The Complete Reprise Recordings ℗ 2017: Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim (50th Anniversary Edition) iTunes Store: ℗ 2009: Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim ℗ 2010: Sinatra/Jobim: The Complete Reprise Recordings ℗ 2017: Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim (50th Anniversary Edition) Amazon MP3: ℗ 2009: Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim ℗ 2010: Sinatra/Jobim: The Complete Reprise Recordings ℗ 2017: Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim (50th Anniversary Edition)
I can confirm that the 180 g anniversary vinyl has the new mix, complete with ching-chings and vocal overload on "Ipanema". It somehow lacks the subtlety this album is so famous for. I think it also has some NR, apparent when massed strings come in.
Popmarket.com is listing the blue vinyl for $24.98 + shipping (less 15% off with checkout code WELCOMEBACK15 this week) : Frank Sinatra | Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim | 180g Blue Vinyl LP ( Note that the site is under new management. See thread: What's going on with Popmarket online store? )
Bob, the Frank Sinatra Estate should seriously be paying you big money for all of your input on websites like this. You're more enthusiastic than his own daughters. I, for one, am grateful for all of your knowledge. Thanks!
Just played Side 1 of the Kevin Gray mastered LP. What a beauty! Probably the best string tone of all editions I've heard. But I must say my two 1980s pressings are close contenders (I'd give the nod to the Specialty pressing). There seems to be a little more compression on Frank's voice, but it really blends gently into the mix. I also like the Mono, but I am not convinced that my pressing stems from a dedicated mix. The german 180 g pressing from 2004 which I played immediately after the KG pressing sounds very similar, but with a slight touch of glare - I could be wrong, but I think it was mastered from a digital copy of the safety Kevin Gray used to cut the Rhino LP.
Looking at the covers side-by-side reveals that the "50th Anniversary" cover is an abysmal job - at least for an overhyped release like this one. The photograph on the back looks like a copy of a copy of the original. The Rhino LP has the original cover.
My blue vinyl copy has just arrived and I was looking forward to hearing it but after reading so much negative comment here, I think I might just drop it in the bin on the way out.
Snap! Mines just arrived too. No download with it which is a shame as we miss the bonus tracks but boy is it Blue alright! Gonna play it now. Peace and love✌
Well it sounds nice to me the vinyl is very quite and flat and sounds nice. There's nothing on the cover , not even a sticker , to tell you it's blue vinyl or limited and it's nice to sit & read Mr Cornyn's notes again.. Peace and love✌
I'd go one step further than that: on Steve's advice I, of course, resisted the temptation to throw it and played it through last night. On my system it sounds incredible, full of subtle nuances and detail I hadn't picked up from playing the 1998 digital remaster of the remix (via the 2010 reissue) but crucially to my ears, it has a depth and richness the CD appears to lack slightly. It doesn't sound remotely hard, aggressive or compressed to my untrained ears. I really like the new LP and it will be my go-to copy from now on. The mix is more centred but again, I have no issue with that: it's more monophonic that way. If anyone is on the fence about the new reissue I'd suggest buying it and hearing it for yourself. Let's be honest here, this reissue isn't for people who have grown up with this album for the past 50 years and who may know it inside out. If you are lucky enough to own a clean quiet original pressing then you don't need it and you won't buy it. For the rest of us "kids" who weren't even born when it was originally released this latest version isn't going to strike any of us as offensive or a misjudged revisionist take on the officially signed off original. As Beaneydave says, the vinyl is dead silent all the way through - in fact no MFSL or Analogue Productions LP's I have can match this record for the absence of noise - it is a sheer pleasure to play an LP through and forget you're not playing a CD. Few used copies will match this and you'll need a mortgage to buy a clean original outside the States too. I unreservedly recommend it and pat UMe / FSE on the back.
Thanks SteveM, my blue vinyl arrived yesterday and I played it last night and really enjoyed it. Having read some previous reviews I assumed that I must now be tone deaf!