I've seen a bit of news that BN is planning another reissue campaign to coincide with their 80th Anniversary. I copied the relevant details below. Has anyone heard any more details about this? If there's any truth to these rumors, I REALLY hope that they 1) use a top notch mastering engineer (apologies but Ron McMaster or Ian Sefchick do not meet this criterion in my book), 2) do NOT include a bunch of superfluous junk and jack the prices up, and 3) use a good pressing plant! These previous rumors-news items certainly give reason to be hopeful: From Don Was interview: "We have the 80th anniversary of the label coming up, and we’re planning to announce a very big vinyl campaign towards the end of the year. For our 75th anniversary we did 100 titles that were priced under $20. We tried to keep it reasonable so people could take a chance. We’ll be doing more of that, but also some extensive audiophile things." Full interview HERE Forum member SuperFuzz: “I talked with Don Was recently in NY at an event he was doing. I mentioned being a Blue Note fan... he then asked if I was an audiophile. I don't ever call myself that, but I said yes, and then we started talking about vinyl records. He said they have big plans for Blue Note's 80th anniversary... He is also aware that the 75th Ann. series did not please many audiophiles... he's been talking to people like Joe Harley a lot recently, and he now knows the importance of a good pressing plant. He went on to even say how he now knows that particular presses at plants sound different than others presses at the same plant... What was really interesting is when he said that the 75th Ann. records were cut ANALOG. He said he knows there's been chatter about them being digitally cut, and he didn't understand why. He said whenever they have the tape, he would cut from the tape, and that it was not cheaper to cut from a file, so there's no incentive to do it that way. Maybe he was mistaken, but he is the president of the company and he seemed adamant about it. He then flipped through photos on his phone and showed me a couple with him and Ron McMaster and someone else I believe, holding some master tape boxes. Not all of the 75th reissues were cut by Bernie... some were cut at Capitol, as you can tell by the stamp in the deawax. Ian Sefchick cut some that I have. And they sound excellent, like "Newk's Time" which I'm listening to now. As for the 80th Anniversary, I think his plans are to up the quality game, cut them 100% analog (and I told him he should add some hype stickers to the shrink wrap noting this), and have them pressed at a good plant. Possibly with a $33 price point. Sounds good to me.” Original post in THIS THREAD
How about some previously unreleased sessions from back in the day? For instance, Tyrone Washington's 2nd Blue Note leader-date, with complete alternate takes of all of the first 4 tunes (out of 5 total) -- ~70 minutes of material, iirc -- would make a wonderful CD if the entire session were issued in full. One observation about the session, that Herbie's playing sounds quite a bit like his approach on Wayne Shorter's All Seeing Eye (for reference), i.e. very percussive piano. T Y R O N E W A S H I N G T O N 1968 Blue Note [unissued] MUSICIANS --------- Tyrone Washington: Tenor Saxophone Herbie Hancock: Piano Herbie Lewis: Bass Jack DeJohnette: Drums TITLES ------ 1. Untitled (medium tempo) 2. Untitled (3/4) 3. Rene 4. T 5. Untitled (9/4) Recorded August 16, 1968, Englewood Cliffs
Echo the thought above about releasing some previously unissued sessions - Wayne Shorter has one from 1970 that I bet all of his fans would love to hear. Wayne Shorter Quintet Wayne Shorter, tenor sax; Barbara Burton, vibes, bells, percussion; McCoy Tyner, piano; Miroslav Vitous, bass; Alphonse Mouzon, drums, percussion. A&R Studios, NYC, October 13, 1970 tk.3 Part 1 - The Creation Blue Note rejected tk.4 Part 2 - B. Because - tk.5 Part 3 - Cee - tk.7 Part 4 - Dee - tk.8 Part 5 - Effe But let's hope that if they only reissue what's in the catalogue they go for some obscure albums that have never seen the light of day since or only get released in Japan!
Yes, to all the above. I think these are likely long shots, but I'm all in! More realistically, I'm hoping to see a lot of titles that didn't make it into the Music Matters 33 program but that were reissued on 45 by them. I'd also love to see some of the Kevin Gray remastered monos from the Japan Disk Union DBLP series, which were pressed right here in the US (by QRP I think?) and now go for big $$. Wonder why they couldn't just re-use those masterings, they are great..
I've been waiting for news on this subject for last few months. Came back to vinyl too late to grab many Music Matters at reasonable price. A new premium reissue series for $35 each would help me out a great deal!
This has nothing to do with "Audiophile". The originals, through the 70's blue label reissues, sounded great and the word 'Audiophile' was not even a consideration, The BN75 simply sucks as far as sound (i don't mind the noisy pressing here and there btw). Its not about 'Audiophile'. The word 'Audiophile' is just a way of jacking prices. Just get Bernie or Steve Hoffman to Master from Tape and listen how punchy and dynamic and focused the originals are while he's at it. The 75 are not about price, they are about terrible mastering choices. Good Mastering hoices cost the same and take the same time to do...
Does anyone have more info on the upcoming 80th anniversary vinyl reissue series? Any confirmation they'll be AAA and pressed at a better plant (RTI?). Maybe also tip-on sleeves similar to the BN review albums? If $33 is what they aim for, they should be pretty much of Analogue Productions Prestige reissue quality (the site says standard jacket, but that probably means "single sleeve" opposed to gatefold jackets in the Tone Poet" series and not those cheap sleeves from the 75th series). Honestly, I am in no position to contradict Don Was, but I think he must have confused something when he said the 75th anniversary LPs were cut AAA. Since some were mastered by Alan Yoshida and he doesn't do vinyl cutting, at least those who had his name on the back sleeve must have been cut from file, regardless of the tape situation (he mastered "Blue Train" and I'm pretty sure a tape exists, same goes for "Somethin' Else").
BLUE NOTE RECORDS CELEBRATES 80th ANNIVERSARY | News ,an excerpt follows, Tone Poet Audiophile Vinyl Reissue Series: “Tone Poet” Joe Harley—co-founder and co-producer of the acclaimed Music Matters audiophile vinyl series—is the producer of this new series of all-analog, mastered-from-the-original-master-tape 180g audiophile vinyl reissues in deluxe gatefold packaging. Mastering was done by Kevin Gray (Cohearent Audio) and vinyl was manufactured at Record Technology Incorporated (RTI). The titles were handpicked by Harley and cover lesser-known Blue Note classics, modern era standouts, and albums from other labels under the Blue Note catalog. The first two albums in the series—Wayne Shorter Etcetera and Chick Corea Now He Sings, Now He Sobs—will be released February 8 and are available for pre-order now.
I just noticed a pre-order on the Blue Note website for Somethin' Else on vinyl. Anyone heard anything about whether these are the same as the 75th annicersary series, or if improvements have been made? https://store.bluenote.com/collections/vinyl/products/cannonball-adderley-somethin-else-vinyl
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They're probably just 75th anniversary editions repressed ($19.99). I have a hard time believing that Don Was will once again try to produce $20 records with flimsy sleeves and problematic pressing. I'm not expecting gatefolds (as used in the Tone Poet series), but why not produce "regular" tip-on sleeves with crisp artwork and good pressings with decent mastering at $26-29? That's gotta be feasible. The Tone Poet series at $35 seems to be flying off the shelves, so no cheap excuses as in "we have to make them as cheap as possible or else no one will buy them". Just do it right this time.
PRESENTING THE BLUE NOTE 80 VINYL REISSUE SERIES March 12 2019 In honor of Blue Note Records’ 80th Anniversary, the legendary Jazz label is launching the Blue Note 80 Vinyl Reissue Series. Distinct from the Tone Poet Audiophile Vinyl Reissue Series, this 2nd series curated by Don Was and Cem Kurosman features mid-priced 180g vinyl releases in standard packaging with albums spanning the many eras of the label’s history presented by themes: Blue Note Debuts, Blue Grooves, Great Reid Miles Covers, Blue Note Live, and Blue Note Drummer Leaders. The series launches May 10 with the reissue of 3 remarkable Blue Note debuts—Herbie Hancock Takin’ Off, Dexter Gordon Doin’ Allright, and Robert Glasper Canvas—and will continue with 3 albums released each month for the coming year. Blue Note 80 Vinyl Reissue Series: May 10 – Blue Note Debuts, Part 1 Dexter Gordon – Doin’ Allright (1961) Herbie Hancock – Takin’ Off (1962) Robert Glasper – Canvas (2005) June 14 – Blue Note Debuts, Part 2 Johnny Griffin – Introducing Johnny Griffin (1956) Freddie Hubbard – Open Sesame (1960) Grant Green – Grant’s First Stand (1961) July 12 – Blue Grooves, Part 1 Lonnie Smith – Think! (1968) Reuben Wilson – Blue Mode (1969) Bobbi Humphrey – Blacks And Blues (1973) August 9 – Blue Grooves, Part 2 Lou Donaldson Alligator Bogaloo (1967) Donald Byrd Ethiopian Knights (1971) John Scofield Hand Jive (1993) September 13 – Great Reid Miles Covers, Part 1 Freddie Hubbard – Hub-Tones (1962) Kenny Dorham – Una Mas (1963) Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers – Indestructible (1964) October 11 – Great Reid Miles Covers, Part 2 Jutta Hipp – Jutta Hipp with Zoot Sims (1956) Herbie Hancock – Inventions & Dimensions (1963) Joe Henderson – In ‘n Out (1964) November 8 – Blue Note Live, Part 1 Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers Meet You at the Jazz Corner of the World (1960) Horace Silver Doin’ The Thing (1961) Grant Green Alive! (1970) December 13 – Blue Note Live, Part 2 Jimmy Smith – Groovin’ At Smalls’ Paradise (1957) Lonnie Smith – Live at Club Mozambique (1970) Lee Konitz – Alone Together (1996) January 10, 2020 – Drummer Leaders, Part 1 Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers – Buhaina’s Delight (1961) Pete La Roca – Basra (1965) Tony Williams – Foreign Intrigue (1985) February 14, 2020 – Drummer Leaders, Part 2 Art Taylor – A.T.’s Delight (1960) Elvin Jones – Mr. Jones (1972) Brian Blade – Brian Blade Fellowship (1997) March 13, 2020 – Great Reid Miles Covers, Part 3 Jackie McLean – A Fickle Sonance (1961) Dexter Gordon – A Swingin’ Affair (1962) Lee Morgan – The Rumproller (1965) April 10, 2020 – Great Reid Miles Covers, Part 4 Andrew Hill – Smokestack (1963) Kenny Dorham – Trompeta Toccata (1964) Larry Young – Into Somethin’ (1964) * * * PRESENTING THE BLUE NOTE 80 VINYL REISSUE SERIES | News
Can anyone comment on precisely how these will differ from the Tone Poet series? Aside from the obvious and already stated differences. Will the sources be from a previous master? Or will they vary from one release to another? Will they be analog? Hi-res digital? Or will they vary? Who will do the pressing? Maybe none of that matters. Regardless, I guess I’d just like to say, goodbye wallet, it was nice knowing you.
I would guess that they are digital. If they press them at RTI or QRP, I'll probably pick up a few. The $25 price point for single LPs suggests that they might have gone to a plant other than United this time, given that the United-pressed 75th anniversary series was at $20 per. We'll see!
If these drop under $20, like the initial tone poets dropped to $25 then I’m in for a few Looks to be more straight forward covers (no gatefold or heavy stock) and possibly digitally sourced. But if they learned from the BN75 pressing issues could be a good bargain and some interesting titles.
I checked my order $26.25 from amazon preordered. Close enough Considering they listed st $35 I’ll preorder the dexter and Herbie here and hope for them to drop to $19ish.
If the only difference between these and the Tone Poet series is the lack of a gatefold with pictures, then I'm in. But...
Lame. If these were going to be AAA it would be in the promo. Looks like I’ll be giving my cash to discogs for 70’s United pressings. At least with new pressings floating around, the prices on secondhand stuff might go down a little.
I think some people expect too much especially to call this lame as a knee jerk reaction without seeing or hearing the product. These are meant to be affordable and they picked titles not done to death to get buyers to pick up something they normally wouldn’t. If you want AAA then there’s Tone Poet, Music Matters or AP, and you pay a premium. Those all analog options have already been done and there for those who want them. Hopefully blue note learned from their pressing mistakes in the BN75 and these can be more like MOV’s - good quality pressing as mastering and priced accordingly.
Definitely going for Takin Off, Inventions, and Smokestack. I deeply do not care if they are from digital masters. The record plays in analog, and my ears hear in analog.