I picked up an original UK pressing (Pye) in NM condition a couple of years ago for £2. Will have to give it a spin to remind me!
If you haven't heard this pressing, then I'm sure you'd be scratching your head. It's pretty damn good. I never heard the original... hell, I never heard OF this album before VMP. And I can't say I've ever seen it in shops, but I usually don't look for Erroll Garner records. And I think that's part of the point of VMP: to expose great records to audiences that may not be familiar with them. But also... this is a part of a bigger reissue campaign for Octave Records, Garner's label after leaving Columbia. As far as I know, it's the only one issued on vinyl. Announcing the Octave Remastered Series — Erroll Garner
Yeah, they have put out a lot of Classics titles that have been easy to find used copies of: Little Milton, Isley Bros, Otis Redding, Al Green, etc. But I have to admit that the sound quality on them blow any $5 VG found in the crates to pieces. The Isley Bros sold me on that. The Otis mono was outstanding. I didn't get Magician but I'm a big fan of Plagent Process.
The same could be said for Stevie Nicks too but this VMP pressing sounds great. Looks great too! If you are enjoying The Magician then you can definitely pick up used copies of some of Garner's other albums very cheaply. When I first got into Jazz, this was a hot tip from a guy I knew who loved Garner. For some reason his records don't command insane prices for original copies. It is not for lack of quality music. I'm glad the VMP monthly selections are doing their job and opening folks up to stuff they never heard before. They have really been on a roll lately. Excellent presentations of the product all around: Sound, Jacket, booklet, color variations.....very impressed as of late with VMP.
i thought the same thing at first, but decided a well-pressed new mastering might be worth a shot. no regrets now.
Looks like the White Stripes album is going to be delayed and they are giving ahead of schedule swaps for it. I am just going to wait as its the only White Stripes album I don't have.
Heard back from VMP, they state Bellman recut the laquers for all of the titles in this release from the original analog masters
Wouldn’t worry too much, prices are already coming down on discogs. Loads of the vmp records are flipped, have a little patience and you can get one for a fair price. Certainly in the US.
My Errol Garner appears to be stuck in the media mail time loop was sent out May 7th, last tracking update is from May 11 “in transit to next destination”. This will be the 3rd media mail shipment in the last month that’s taken closer to 3 weeks or more, but I’m grateful that they’re still going despite all of the craziness.
That is popular title. I would say it’s a strong contender for repress. Just like the Aretha and Al Green titles were in panic mode for people, so is Otis. Don’t freak (I’ve done it too), steady out and I bet you’ll find it will come around.
Erroll Garner’s Magician is now back in stock for those still looking for it. It seems like the site has crashed once again upon the month’s new albums and swaps becoming available, however.
I will buy any Stax title VMP releases, so I'm down with King, Does King's Things. I swapped The Magician last month so I added a track and picked it up in Swaps this month.
I'm happy they are letting you swap (at the moment) for store credit if you don't find anything else you want.
To preview and help decide, Albert King - Blues for Elvis: King Does The King's Things is available to listen to on Spotify... Blues For Elvis: King Does The King's Things spotify:album:4fhGb7dyNpyEd4pO1SJ91R @Jackstraw78 : It sounds pretty cool to me, too!
I checked out the Kings Things on youtube and it like it! I wish VMP would re-do Born Under a Bad Sign mono. The reviews from the RSD mono didn't aren't the best. I'm sure VMP could do better.
