CTI Japan 2013 "Supreme Collection" Series (Direct from Masters- No EQ Added)

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by noname74, Dec 16, 2013.

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  1. Harry Hood

    Harry Hood Forum Resident

    Location:
    England
    Woo-hoo, welcome aboard to the Power Of Soul fanclub! Where the hipsters scratch their chins, give barely perceptible nods to each other, lean back and just gently say "aaah".

    That's my favourite CTI/Kudu album, and I've championed it on various threads here. Loran's Dance gives me the fizz, and I'll take this version ahead of the one on Grover's Reed Seed. That's not one of his best albums either.

    Mister Magic and Feels So Good tend to get the best reviews (and you'll like them if you like this Idris album), but my Grover recommendation would go to the Soulbox cd release which compiles both vol's 1 & 2 of the original vinyl. The lengthy 10mins plus stretch-outs on Trouble Man and Masterpiece are the business!
     
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  2. Yesternow

    Yesternow Forum pResident

    Location:
    Portugal
    Every thread I go people share the same taste... What's going on ?

    My post from last friday (jazz & conversation thread):

    Yesternow
    Grover Washington Jr, SoulBox (1973)
    [​IMG] [​IMG]

    This was a double LP, so nice to have it on a single CD. Masterpiece and Trouble Man are the ones I listen the most.

    Wish there was a box set for all his KUDU records.
     
  3. Harry Hood

    Harry Hood Forum Resident

    Location:
    England
    This one's great, even though it was just a one off album. In fact, I've got a different version, titled Beck & Sanborn, which has 2 extra tracks, both of which are great. It's slick and funky, but Beck throws in some very nice guitar tones, a bit more rocky than usual maybe, and some delicious wah-wah. Ooooooh!

    Beck [Blu-spec CD] Joe Beck CD Album
     
  4. leshafunk

    leshafunk Forum Resident

    Location:
    Moscow, Russia
    12 days after the release, any hands-on experience?
    (I still hope to get mine this year)
     
  5. liv3evil

    liv3evil Forum Resident

    Location:
    Upstate NY USA
    I've ripped half of them; 20 more to go. Once I'm done ripping, it's going to be a smorgasbord! While scanning inserts and annotating I'm casually listening to a track here or there, but most of these releases are new to me, so I don't know what to expect. Especially the releases past circa 1976.

    That said, I did listen to Gabor Szabo's "Rambler" a few days ago, and I dug it a lot. I was never able to track it down in good condition on vinyl, or find it on CD until this series. As expected, it was very (CTI) vinyl-sounding. Maybe a little dull, muffled, or otherwise lacking in bright 'excitement', but I'd wager that's the sound of the original vinyl.

    I'm ripping in catalog order so I haven't gotten to it yet, but one CD I'm sure to audition against its vinyl counterpart is Milt Jackson w/Hubert Laws' "Goodbye". I know the original and the 2002 Legacy remaster well.

    I'm going to try to listen to a bunch of these between Xmas and New Years. Maybe I'll put the content of all 120 CDs on shuffle! Though I may never come back...
     
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  6. danomar

    danomar My spoon is too big.

    Location:
    Atlanta, GA
    I love Power of Soul so much that I have two LP versions (different covers) as well as the first CD pressing.

    In case anyone is interested, Visit Venus (Mario von Hacht) sampled a part of "Piece of Mind" on his "First Man on the Moog" from Music for Space Tourism Vol. I. You can hear other nicely integrated samples from excellent jazz-funk artists in his other works, too.

    I have been trying to avoid getting duplicates, but these CTI releases are tempting me something awful...
     
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  7. Yesternow

    Yesternow Forum pResident

    Location:
    Portugal
    Question for the "Power of Soul" fan club:
    Anyone notices similarities between "piece of mind" and George Duke's song "feel" ?

    They were recorded almost at the same time.

    Coincidence?!
     
  8. Harry Hood

    Harry Hood Forum Resident

    Location:
    England
    Sorry, can't help. I've been tempted a couple of times to delve into George Duke stuff. But I don't like jazz with vocals, so I've never bothered.

    Same applies for Roy Ayers.
     
  9. Yesternow

    Yesternow Forum pResident

    Location:
    Portugal
    Well Mr Idris just got invited into my new years eve play list. "Hard to face the music", " Could heaven ever be like this" and others - great soul/funk tunes.

    I've been turning this Muhammad On lately.
     
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  10. XISMZERO

    XISMZERO New Member

    All this and not one mention of David Matthews - Dune?!

    I waited many years for this release in any form and was elated to see it finally remastered on CD following the infamous controversy sparked by a poor managerial choice and clash with Herbert's "Dune" by Creed Taylor that kept this fantastic album from a re-release.

    I originally paid $135 (later sold it for $90) for the original 1994 first-time-on-CD issue from King Records after dealing with a fair vinyl rip.

    The 2016 edition is different, less hiss and a little more spaciousness that the already very well done 1994 version that stayed off the radar for many years. Not thrilled about any of the CTI Supreme releases (mostly because the mastering on many are dull and the packaging omits a lot of original vinyl art) but there was no question on this one.

    You all must have this one, a real gem from some of the final years of CTI.
     
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  11. XISMZERO

    XISMZERO New Member

    Try his MPS (early to mid 70s) material for more a jazz albeit rhodes and moog sound with less vox. You won't be disappointed with Faces In Reflection, Aura Will Prevail, especially if you want to hear the Zappa fever he was pounding out during this time/splitting his time with Zappa's band.

    Most of his Early Epic years have amazing instrumentals but you have to pick through them all.
     
  12. Chazro

    Chazro Forum Resident

    Location:
    West Palm Bch, Fl.
    Yr missing out on a Jazz/Funk essential! Very influential to this day; Roy Ayers Ubiquity - Everybody Loves The Sunshine - still sounds very hip and contemporary! A lot of the Jazz/Funk being created today borrows heavily from Ayers seminal sound.
     
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  13. leshafunk

    leshafunk Forum Resident

    Location:
    Moscow, Russia
    That was in 2016.
    Great album and the sound could be improved with a slightly brighter EQ.
     
  14. Yesternow

    Yesternow Forum pResident

    Location:
    Portugal
    [​IMG]

    On the sticker, left-top - "I love KUDU best 20".
    Anyone knows what it means ? I think I saw also another one saying "best 12".
    Is it a selection of the 20 best KUDU albums ?

    I think there was 39 in total from KUDU.

    Do you recommend any particular reissue/collection?

    Thanks
     
    Dan Steele likes this.
  15. Leroy Bad

    Leroy Bad Forum Resident

    Location:
    San Ysidro, CA
    Can anyone share their opinion on the 50th Anniversary releases at the end of 2017?
    I'm interested In the Beginning by Hubert Laws, the previous issues on Sony has muffled sound quality, and Canned Funk by Joe Farrell had a very harsh treble, and lacked low end. Were the sound quality of these releases improved?
     
  16. liv3evil

    liv3evil Forum Resident

    Location:
    Upstate NY USA
    I can't say I'll get to them immediately, but I'll put "In the Beginning" (which I kind of know) and "Canned Funk" (which I know well and have maybe 5 different versions of now) in my listening queue. If nothing else, everything I've listened to to-date sounds very similar to the original vinyl counterparts.
     
  17. It's great to have this series with a total of 3 x 40 = 120 CTI/Kudu albums available on CD with decent mastering at very reasonable prices.

    Not sure if the series will continue (I sort of doubt it), but one great album is still sorely missing:

    Stanley Turrentine - Don't Mess With Mr. T

    Fortunately, I have recently found a very nice vinyl copy of these album, but I would love to have it as part of this series.

    And there are still some nice albums by Grover Washington Jr. on the Kudu label which were not (yet?) released in this series.
     
  18. liv3evil

    liv3evil Forum Resident

    Location:
    Upstate NY USA
    I think you're probably right re: it being further continued, however I think there are still 40+ releases available? I mentioned further up-thread that the CTI Seawind, Bob James, and kUDU Grover Washington, Jr. albums are owned independent of King of JP, so they won't be part of the reissue series. Of those, I'd really like the James albums to be a part of this series.

    I also wish they were able to include the A&M CTI albums, as a great number have never been issued digitally, or are JP-only. I just picked up the the 2x Tamba 4 releases (Creed Taylor produced A&M LPs) minus the cost of shipping w/the 'bonus points' I accrued from buying the latest series.

    "Don't Mess with Mister T" was issued in CD in 2011 as part of the 2010—2011 Masterworks Jazz CTI reissue series, mastered by Mark Wilder & Maria Triana. You might be able to find a used copy relatively cheap?

    Stanley Turrentine - Don't Mess With Mister T.

    Of the 29 Masterworks Jazz reissues, all but 2 of them have been released by King JP in the 2013, 2016, or 2017 reissue series. The 2 albums not-yet-issued are "Don't Mess with Mister T" and Ron Carter's "All Blues".
     
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  19. liv3evil

    liv3evil Forum Resident

    Location:
    Upstate NY USA
    Leroy, I just listened critically to the King / CTI KICJ-2574 JP 2017 issue of "Canned Funk" and can report it sounds very much like the original vinyl release. Dynamic, uncompressed, good bottom/low end and p'haps a bit muted/muffled sounding in terms of highs. It's much easier to enjoy Farrell out-front when the high-end is restrained. By comparison, the Wounded Bird reissue sounds really bad, in addition to maybe too much compression, it's way too bright. Farrell's tone is fatiguing, borderline annoying, even.

    That said, and while I have yet to hear a King reissue that doesn't sound almost identical to an original vinyl release, this sound, or case of really non-mastering (i.e. reporting what's on the tapes w/little compression or EQ), may be disappointing due to their darker/muted sound. I don't mind turning the volume up a bit on my amp when I listen to them, or settling-in to the un-bright sound. I do most of my critical listening w/HD 600 headphones and a Marantz HD-DAC1 amp.

    I'll try to get to "In the Beginning" soon.
     
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  20. Chazro

    Chazro Forum Resident

    Location:
    West Palm Bch, Fl.
    Any of you guys ever hear the 'new' CTI releases that were released in the 90's? I own 3 of them, not sure how many more, if any, were released. These were CTI's in name only as they completely abandoned the formulaic approach (Jazz + overdubbubed strings and brass). The one thing that was retained was the all-star line ups!.

    Larry Coryell - Live From Bahia - mostly Brazilian musicians but also featuring a very subdued Billy Cobham, Donald Harrison, Dori Caymmi, and playing electric and acoustic guitar beside Coryell, the legendary Romero Lubambo.

    Rhythmstick - a compilation of sorts dedicated to Dizzy Gillespie (who used to have a walking stick that he called a 'Rhythymstick') - Check out this line up! Dizzy Gillespie, Art Farmer, Phil Woods, Bob Berg, Airto & Flora Purim, Tito Puente, Charlie Haden, Marvin 'Smitty' Smith, Anthony Jackson, Bernard Purdie, John Scofield, Robben Ford, Romero Lubambo, Hilton Ruiz, Jimmy McGriff, & Benny Golson.

    Lastly, my favorite, an unrecognized Fusion classic;
    Chroma - Music On The Edge - featuring Jim Beard, Bob Berg, Randy Brecker, Mino Cinelu Dennis Chambers, Mark Egan, Jon Herington, Mark Ledford and Mike Stern. Own it in CD, LD, & DVD. I brought my copy to a drum clinic I attended for Dennis Chambers to sign, he was surprised saying he wasn't even aware it was released (I always wondered if that meant he wasn't paid!?). Anyways, good records that I bought primarily due to the personnel but I gotta admit, also cause I saw the CTI label on them!;)
     
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  21. Leroy Bad

    Leroy Bad Forum Resident

    Location:
    San Ysidro, CA
    Thanks I'll definitely replace that wounded bird release.
     
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  22. liv3evil

    liv3evil Forum Resident

    Location:
    Upstate NY USA
    I haven't heard any of them, but the Chroma release sounds like it would be up my alley. Also, if Creed Taylor produced it, no matter what the time/year, it's probably worth giving a chance. I'll try to find a copy of "Music on the Edge". \../
     
  23. leshafunk

    leshafunk Forum Resident

    Location:
    Moscow, Russia
    I like the sound on the December'17 releases (I've bought mostly late-70s albums).
    Can't say sou about the packaging - the amount of inserts is minimal (e.g. there's no picture of the original album back cover) and no Blu-spec/SHM/HQCD tricks this time.

    BTW, with these series all 39 KUDU albums are on CD!
     
  24. robertawillisjr

    robertawillisjr Music Lover

    Location:
    Hampton, VA
    Where?
     
  25. leshafunk

    leshafunk Forum Resident

    Location:
    Moscow, Russia
    In every good CD shop, I guess.
     
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