I know that the late Mr. Traugott did most of the mastering of the Connoisseur series, but did he do anything from the Blue Note Rare Groove series that was released around the same time (1995)?
I do believe he did some of them. I think I may even have one with "Mastered by Capitol" and also "KEV" in the deadwax. Kevin Reeves, perhaps...
I was playing Baby Face Willette's Stop & Listen from the first Conn group last night, it was mastered by Larry Walsh.
Can we get a Wally thread going on his Blue Note LP re-issue titles only? I have two, and they sound incredible.
I went through a batch of Blue Note titles recently looking at the deadwax. All bought in the UK from 1990 to 1997 roughly. Most are these French mastered ones, but there was quite a few with 'Mastered by Capitol' and 'Wally' in the deadwax. But what I discovered is that it is very difficult to determine from the sleeve credits exactly who mastered them and where. Perhaps there is some logic to it but it seemed very random.
CONNOISSEUR SERIES Do we know if the source is digital or analogue for the LPs in the Blue Note CONNOISSEUR SERIES????
The first batch of 6 titles (or was it the first two batches?) were made from digital masters. The later ones were from analog. They stopped doing Connoisseur LPs after only 3 or 4 batches (of 6) of releases. These LPs did not sell well at all. Vinyl was not a big seller back then. I was never able to get confirmation of exactly when the switchover was made. However, I have heard several of the suspected "digital" LPs and they sound very good to me. If you want to spin vinyl, these should suffice.
I bought a SEALED copy of "Ready for Freddie" Connoisseur Series LP and was hopping it was completely analog.
The Connoisseur Series CDs (as remastered by Walsh and McMaster) are the best-sounding of all US-issued Blue Note CDs, with the exception of (or prior to) the APO SACDs. You get hi-res without the narrowing of the stereo spread and diddling that mars many of the RVGs.
Blue Note did vinyl for the first three batches of Connoisseur titles (and they are generally excellent): SERIES I (1994) Ornette Coleman – The Empty Foxhole Don Cherry – Symphony for Imrovisers Cliff Jordan and John Gilmore – Blowing in from Chicago Kenny Dorham – Whistle Stop Freddie Redd – “The Connection” Andrew Hill - Judgement J.R. Monterose – S/T Bobby Hutcherson – Components Wayne Shorter – The All-Seeing Eye Johnny Griffin – The Congregation Tina Brooks – True Blue Baby Face Willette – Stop and Listen SERIES II (1995) Jackie McLean – Destination Out! Grant Geen – Green Street Grachan Moncur III – Some Other Stuff Wayne Shorter - Schizophrenia Andrew Hill – Smokestack Lee Morgan - Leeway Ike Quebec – Heavy Soul Pete La Roca - Basra Dizzy Reece – Blues in Trinity Freddie Hubbard – Ready for Freddie Lou Donaldson – Sunny Side Up Walter Davis Jr. – Davis Cup SERIES III (1995) Lee Morgan – The Procrastinator Grant Green - Solid Wayne Shorter – Etcetera Bobby Hutcherson - Patterns Hank Mobley – A Slice of the Top
Lonson's a big fan of RVGs, I know.... I think Connoisseurs like Andrew!!! and Etcetera are great-sounding CDs. That said, I'm a big fan of DSD, over and apart from the Hoffman/Grey contribution.
But they were issued in batches of 6, spaced about 6 months apart. Here are the dates: 1994-07-12 Ornette Coleman - The Empty Foxhole Andrew Hill - Judgment Bobby Hutcherson - Components Freddie Redd - The Connection Wayne Shorter - The All Seeing Eye Baby Face Willette - Stop And Listen 1994-09-20 Tina Brooks - True Blue Don Cherry - Symphony For Improvisers Kenny Dorham - Whistle Stop Johnny Griffin - The Congregation Clifford Jordan & John Gilmore - Blowing In From Chicago J. R. Monterose 1995-05-30 Grant Green - Green Street Pete LaRoca - Basra Jackie McLean - Destination Out Grachan Moncur III - Some Other Stuff Lee Morgan - Lee-Way Ike Quebec - Heavy Soul 1995-07-18 Dizzy Reece - Blues In Trinity Freddie Hubbard - Ready For Freddie Lou Donaldson - Sunny Side Up Shorter, Wayne - Schizophrenia Andrew Hill - Smokestack Walter Davis, Jr. - Davis Cup 1995-10-24 Lee Morgan - The Procrastinator Grant Green - Solid Wayne Shorter - Etcetera Hank Mobley - A Slice Of The Top Bobby Hutcherson - Patterns I know that at least the 1st batch of 6 were cut from digital masters. After that, I was never able to get a definite answer, just that by the end, they were back to analog. As for the sound quality of these Connoisseur CDs, I am not all that fond of many of the ones with "SBM" on the back. Something about CDs mastered with SBM just doesn't sound right. This includes the Dexter Gordon & Herbie Hancock boxes.
A few of these are sonic standouts: Bobby Hutcherson - Patterns Grant Green - Solid Grachan Moncur III - Some Other Stuff Jackie McLean - Destination Out Pete LaRoca - Basra The early records sound a bit too bright for my liking. The series was hitting its stride just as it was cancelled. There was also a truly dreadful pressing of Lee Morgan's Sidewinder.
They are some of the finest mastered Jazz CDs available. I would say on par with analogue productions SACDs.
My goodness, how incredibly cool is that list of conn. blue note lps? Cripes-- I'm looking at Andrew Hill, Shorter, Moncur, McLean, Cherry, all in that incredible sweet spot of mid-1960s Blue Note where these folks are really figuring how to come to terms with the Ornette Coleman paradigm-shift, the post-Monk magic of Andrew Hill, the serpentine mysteries of Shorter and Hutcherson, all alongside the wild ferment of the anti-racist revolution generating titles like LET FREEDOM RING. I've bought a few of those lps used and always look out for them. The originals are of course outrageously priced and for orthodontists only, at this point.But one can find these Conn lps for not much more than the recent Scorpio reissues that can be very sketchy.
Any ones particular that you can recommend? (Thanks in Advance) I just purchased my first Blue Note Connoisseur CD of Freddie Hubbard/Ready For Freddie and I think its sounds excellent!
thanks for the quick response! I'll listen to some sound bites and see if its to my liking....any other suggestions?
Don't think these have been mentioned yet: I have Wally-mastered LPs of Let 'em Roll by Big John Patton and Point of Departure by Andrew Hill. They're t'riffic. Not sure whether they were Connoisseur Series releases or not, since I got 'em used and they were without those OBI-type things that the Connoisseur series had.
I believe "Let 'Em Roll" was issued in the Rare Groove series which was separate from the Connoisseur Series. Believe it or not, they issued these titles on vinyl for the "scratchers" of the day. "Point of Departure" was part of an all analog reissue series from the early 90s. There were 10 or 15 titles issued, all big sellers like "Blue Train, "Soul Station", "Maiden Voyage", "The Sidewinder", "Point Of Departure" , "Something Else" and others. Kevin
Last week I picked up a used copy of the Johnny Griffin album from Series 1, mastered by Wally and supposedly transferred from digital. Sounds pretty darn good to me, very warm and natural.
