Are Speakers Corner LPs Worth The Money?

If true, that sucks.

 

If he said that - I'm hugely depressed. Where did he say this?

 

I did a shootout this weekend with an Original George Benson "The Other Side Of Abbey Road" WLP .. Monarch deltas /Van Gelder stampers.

There's something about an original and this one has the provenance. There's a visceral quality that's hard to deny but sometimes it oversteps and gets a little carried away. Perhaps a little strident or peaky at times but never lacking in energy. I forgave it's transgressions as it just did so much so well.

The Speakers Corner reissue was fun and just a pleasure to listen to. I hate to use the term "hifi" because many round here consider that an indictment, but that's the first word that comes to mind. Smooth, lush, dynamic.

This is yet another case where I need both copies as they both hit the pleasure centres so well; just in different places.

 

YouTube interview. I'm not sure if this might be a couple years down the line but he said it's increasingly difficult to license titles if he wants to sell records at a standard price. Would explain why AP and MFSL mostly do expensive 45 rpm versions. At 27 minutes on in the video below.

 

Anyone pick up Eternity? The music is great, but I’ve now gone through two copies with horrible surface noise and audible stitching (that zipping sound). Just wondering if there are clean copies out there…

 

I have it and it’s a clean copy so they are out there.

On the question of the future of Speakers Corner I believe they are done with any new releases, which is a shame as they have put out some great stuff over the years.

 

I recently picked up Michael Franks' "The Art Of Tea" and it's terrific in every way. Beautifully laidback music with terrific SQ on dead quiet vinyl, mastered by Kevin Gray.

Highly recommended!!

 

What is everyone's favourite Speakers Corner?

I have:
Al Green - Call Me
Blue Oyster Cult - Secret Treaties
Lou Reed - Transformer
Nina Simone - Sings The Blues
Ornette Coleman - The Shape Of Jazz To Come

All are stellar releases and sound great. I'd say Transformer edges it for me. Bass is massive. Still quite tough to call.

Need some more jazz on Speakers Corner. Thinking Charles Lloyd- Forest Flower might be a good shout.

 

I can't remember how many I have, they're mixed in with the Pure Pleasure, but I would put these at the top:

1. Mingus at Antibes
2. Charles Lloyd - Forest Flower (can't go wrong with this one, and The Flowering by Lloyd is good too, maybe one notch below performance-wise IMO)
3. Ornette Coleman - The Shape of Jazz To Come
4. Les McCann & Eddie Harris - Swiss Movement
5. Mingus - The Clown

All very good sonically, possibly all mastered by KG, and I love these albums

 

I guess I should pick up the Charles Lloyd for sure. I actually bought Glass Bead Games on Pure Pleasure. Waiting for that one to arrive. Had some Charles Tolliver on the wishlist for a while. Music Inc., Live At Slugs. You can probably tell I'm on a jazz kick at the moment haha.

 

Ha yeah, nice scores! If I were to rate my PPs (technically separate from Speakers Corner but relevant in the UK as they share distribution) Glass Bead Games would be at the top and then some distance to the second.

The Tolliver live albums can be a bit rough sonically (Live in Tokyo is supposed to sound good but I haven't picked it up yet), but both Slugs volumes are very strong musically. I have Music Inc and Compassion too, both are good (the former more lively) but Glass Bead Games, man, that's something else.

 

I dig @Petter Premberg’s taste

My faves:

Charles Lloyd - Forest Flower
Mingus - Oh Yeah
Mingus - Antibes

 

Donny Hathaway - Everything Is Everything (slays the VMP mono)
The Doobie Brothers - The Captain And Me
Michael Franks - The Art Of Tea
Bill Withers – Just As I Am

 

Muddy Waters - The Best Of Muddy Waters

Highly recommended

 

I’m still hunting an Elton John GBYBR …..

 

Had it and really disliked it! *Super* bright to a ridiculous degree. Strident, really... and I own Harbeths ("warm" speakers)!

My UK 1st pressing sounded much better. The MFSL I own sounds great and actually better in a couple of ways than the UK... and costs roughly half what a SC costs, now. The SC is at the bottom for me.

 

I FINALLY received my SC Mingus Oh Yeah after a years wait/preorder. Apparently this thing was released in europe months ago.

I've been comparing with the 24/192 digital, which has always had great holographic quality (Kirk moves around the microphone and you can hear the depth of the room when he does).

The SC copy is slightly different. It claims AAA and I trust it, but is it from the master tape, coming from Europe? Prob not:

• There is more tape hiss on the SC cut.
• The stereo imaging is more pinched on the SC cut. This could just be due to having to cut to vinyl, centering the image, etc. Personally I like it a bit more; the drums and piano in the digital are wayyyy out in the left.
• The mastering is a little hotter on the vinyl, more upfront. I like this! More energy compared to the relaxed digital.
• Depth and detail are about equal; nothing is lost that I can hear on the SC cut.
• Pressing is typical Optimal B- quality, few pops and clicks, nothing major.

Overall I doubt SC is using master tapes here. But I do like the mastering choices and it makes the album a more engaging fun listen!

 

The Speakers Corner Oh Yeah was mastered by Kevin Gray, purportedly from the original master tapes. I’m surprised yours took so long. I got mine right at the street date in Feb ‘22

 

Ah didn't realize it's KG, woah. Guess that's why I like the sound!

Also I went through Elusive Disc for this one. 1 year delay!

 

Bought my first speakers corner vinyl about 2 weeks ago- Alan Parsons Project, Turn of a friendly card. Tracks 2,3 and 4 had very loud pops. I eventually reduced these drastically by velvet pad and spray about 6 times. The record still has click...click...click on I think track 3 and other surface noise. The sound is probably on par with my other original and Sony Legacy I robot, Amonia Ave., Eye In The Sky. Not impressed by the cheap, nasty cover with no printed insert or anything else included. I won't be buying any more. Juno asked me to produce a video of the record playing and then they would refund. I'll just keep it, it is listenable. Wish I'd bought the MOV. I also got Analogue Productions Amused to Death. Wow, it's sensational. Expensive but a real experience.

 

I own a handfull SCs records and so far they all are great.

Looking for a Toto iv, but this SC release get‘s very different feedback, so im hesitant.
It seems a lot of people experienced some sort of pressing deffect.
Does anyone own one and can comment ?

 

Fantastic reissue label

 

I'm seeing rumors that Speakers Corner is shutting down. At least one person said they received an email from the company about this. Can anyone confirm?

 

I got my monthly email newsletter from them a couple of days ago and it did not mention anything about that - it simply listed their latest reissues.
Elvis, Monk, Jobim, Bill Evans, and Alice Coltrane from what I remember.

 

That Elvis isn’t new.
In fact I sold mine nearly a month ago now.
In fact I spoke of my copy in this thread 4.5 years ago