If you have the US box of Consecration and The Last Waltz, I would like to ask if they have different pitch. It may be a little (almost quarter tone) higher on The Last Waltz. I don’t own and have not listened to the US Consecration.
You have it sealed?! I have the Last Waltz, but went too late for Consecration. The prices are just..... So you have the Japanese version?! I always thought this was the "official" one(US): OK, @yasujiro, now when no one is looking into this thread... You have both boxes. Tell me: Which one is the best in your opinion?
My TLW is not sealed. And Yes, I have the Japan first edition of Consectarion. I bought it new many years ago. The first edition is almost flat transfer while the US version is taken from the Japan reissue edition which is heavily compressed, smiley faced EQ and no-noised as well as the pitch corrected. And TLW is heavily compressed, smiley faced EQ and no-noised tbw. If there were flat transferred TLW, either boxes would be equal. But there is only one futzed mastering of TLW. So, to me the sound of the first Japan edition of Consecration is much better than TLW.
I bought the original Alfa label version of Consecration on release when the US importer said there were only a handful of copies available to the USA. I did buy the USA version at that $29 price, but never opened it. When the Alfa version was available, I think it may have been only about $80 from North Country Distribution (Cadence), the only source. Literally a small number of copies. I convinced another friend to buy the last copy. I still think it is the ultimate Bill Evans recording. I do not know about pitch issues, but if you want, you can buy a professional CD player with pitch control.
I have both. The MFSL One Step really is a “you are there” experience. It’s as if you have a front-row seat, and those tinkling glasses in the background add a holographic dimension. The XRCD truly is the best digital to date for this album, but it’s still no competition, you can’t beat the MFSL One Step.
I assume that the Timeless CDs of Consecration use the un-futzed master, too, though they are not the complete set.
‘The Last European Concert', recorded just before the Keystone Korner dates, is also essential. The performance is just out-worldly.
Thanks. I would love to have the wherewithal to pursue vinyl, but acquiring the best possible CD editions is my best option (although I did wonder if I should've just bought the MFSL and tucked it away somewhere). If I go for vinyl someday, I'll still want the digital editions, so at least there is that. Interesting, you may be the first to comment on this. Someone recently told me they were thrilled with the recent 3CD set of this (they have APO CDs, XRCDs, etc.), and that surprised me.
According to Discogs both of these box sets cover 1980.08.31 ~ 09.07 (or 09.08). And yet the track listings appear to be quite different. Is there an overlap in content, or does one need both boxes?
Different sets from the same week, so many similar tunes though different performances. He did several sets each night.
@yasujiro @Tribute So it looks like you agree that Consecration has a better sound than Last Waltz. But what about the music itself. Which one you think is best? I really don't understand why they decided to split the boxes in first and second sets. Why not entire days ?! There would be less repetition of the same tracks.
Though I did not compare the sound myself, I would say the performances are so closely intertwined (similar setlists on the very same nights), that distinguishing which is better musically is not worthwhile, and likely impossible. The Alfa set came out years before the USA editions. It was absolutely remarkable that an 8CD set of one gig ever came out at all at that time. This was years before other companies started putting out such sets for other artists. It was a marketing stretch, and the thought of a 16 CD box at a time when even a double CD was prohibitively expensive for most customers was likely out of the question. Maybe the sets from the gig were selected almost at random, maybe the producer fretted over it endlessly. Either way, Bill Evans fans who could get it (not many! it was very limited) were thrilled Just like "The Complete Bill Evans on Riverside" box started the trend of such sets, the Alfa "Keystone" box started the trend of sets from one gig. Bill Evans - a leader! I would just buy according to the best price of the moment you decide to try. But these will exist for a long time, as collections are liquidated, so you can be patient.
I’ve got the Japanese Alfa 2 disc version, if you don’t want to spring for 8 discs worth it's a good compromise, there’s a reasonably priced set on the ‘bay at the moment Bill Evans Trio - Consecration - The Last, 2 CDs, the final sets 1980 | eBay .
Consecration contains the matinee sets and The Last Waltz does the night sets. There is no superiority or inferiority in the performances. However, the trio played a bit ‘wilder’ in the night sets. For the reason alone, it is pity that the mastering of The Last Waltz was futzed (compressed). Bill has been really popular in Japan and the record manufacturers enjoyed very good sales even in jazz back in 1989, which made it possible to sell such a expensive box set. As for Consecration, Alfa released the selected versions (2CD and then 1CD) at first and they sold quite well. They often turn up in the used CD bins even today. And it led to the release of the complete set.
In 1997 Alfa remastered the whole set of Consecration. It is said that the new mastering became the standard and was used for the US release. If I am right, the liner of the US Consecration should have the names of Japanese like Takagi as the mastering staff. At the point, we knew nothing of the existence of the tapes that would become The Last Waltz at all.
Too bad they ignored his Riverside albums. His best IMO and not one Grammy. Another example of why the Grammys are a joke.
The very fact that a relatively obscure artist like Bill Evans (even within the world of jazz) received 7 Grammy Awards over that time span is a demonstration that they are not a joke. He was even more obscure in the 1950's Riverside period and the Grammy Awards did not even start until 1959, with the jazz category only starting to pick up interest in 1960. It is easy to criticize the awards, but your points are off the mark. In fact, it was not until 1990 that Chick Corea passed Bill Evans as the most frequent jazz Grammy winner. Had Bill survived another ten years, his record would likely have never been passed
