Well that's interesting... Would this have been done on purpose, or just an oversight? And if done on purpose...what would the reason have been?
In case you listened and now want to know, Spoiler: The MMJ file was The KS file and Spoiler: The Blue Note 80 file was The LB file
I'm inclined to think it's the MMJs with the reversed polarity because the Tone Poet, BN80, and OG Blue Note needle drops I made all have the same polarity.
I'm perplexed that some titles currently available on MM 33s are being reissued in the BN80 program.(E.g., Hub Tones, Indestructible.) My understanding is that Joe Harley has worked with Ron Rambach at MM in the past, and is therefore on good terms with him. So why would Joe and Don Was at Blue Note reissue some of the same titles as are currently available on 33 from MM? Especially, why would they have Kevin Gray do new remasterings, when Kevin also did the MMs fairly recently? Don't get me wrong, I think it's great to have less expensive options for these titles, especially in what appears to be comparable quality. I have defended MM's pricing choices at length here- I think as a small business they need to do what works for them. But I've also personally balked at th0se prices, and the need to order 4 records to get free shipping. Frankly, this has kept me from picking up some MM titles that I really want. So again, I'm very pleased that less expensive options are available. I just think it is strange that the powers that be at Blue Note, who seem to have worked pretty closely with Ron and MM in past, would choose to potentially get crosswise with MM by reissuing some of the same titles when there are so many other titles they could choose. Maybe Ron has assured them that he's checking out, that the current batch of SRXs are his last hurrah, and that he doesn't really care(?)
It's not that strange, if you think outside the bubble of the tiny audiophile world. Since Music Matters chose to make their titles only available directly from their site, there is an entire world of potential Blue Note customers who are never going to order from MM in the USA, they want to buy BN at their local stores, in countries all over Europe, Canada, South America, not to mention the rest of the local stores in the USA. The implication of Music Matters holding certain tiles exclusively to their own site means that many other sellers are effectively locked out of doing business on those titles, which as we've seen, ultimately limits the number of copies they will sell. The Tone Poet series has clearly demonstrated that a wider distribution plan, one that includes brick and mortar stores all over the world, plus Amazon, plus independent on line sellers means they'll sell hundreds of thousands more copies. It's clear that MM decided the best way to sell their limited number of copies was based on the fact they were limited to a few thousand copies, and they were a premium price. The fact the vinyl market has expanded from where it was years ago when that EMI/MM project started, the BN/Universal decision to include some titles MM had done in the 80th series was simply BN adapting to what makes sense in the market now, which would have been hard for EMI to even imagine back then. The fact the Tone Poet series has avoided MM titles suggests they tried to find the right overall balance.
Wait, Joe doesn't have anything to do with BN80, does he? The only thing Joe is involved in is Tone Poet.
Blue Note, or any label, would never grant an outside company exclusive rights to license catalog titles. And Joe has nothing to do with the BN80 series.
MMJs are not for the masses and they only have a specific quantity license which is not exclusive. They are not in stores or available outside the MMJ website. Retailers have urged Bluenote to make reasonably priced titles available and so the label answered their call. Most record buyers aren’t Audiophiles and won’t pay $60 and up for a single record. .
Awesome, was just going to say that as well. And great, now with some of the recent comments, they have me thinking about MMJ titles I still need/want. Very nice!
BN80 titles are chosen by Don Was and Cem Kurosman. Maybe Joe gave some input, but he hasn't been credited so far.
I think it is great development and also partly deserved, especially because MM does not have and cannot (or simply does not care to) implement a viable worldwide distribution. Lot's of Jazz fans live outside North America. The music on these albums is a treasure and should not be reserved for the few people able and willing to buy $50-$99 albums + 31$ shipping (!) + customs per album (results in a total of approx. $100 for a $50 album). Also, Hub Tones is out of stock at MM, as are most other BN80 releases that duplicate MM releases. Indestructible seems to be an exception in that regard. Don Was seems to be a genuine music fan who based on interviews wants lot's of people to discover that music and make it affordable. And Mr. Harley is AFAIK not involved with the BN80 series. (Maybe BN simply earns more money from their own releases than from the license payments they get for a $50-$99 MM release. Who knows.) That being said I hope they AAA-redo some classics from the BN75 campaign.
It is possible, no doubt, but it would be unofficially so it doesn't make sense to even start discussing that like some are trying to do here.
Exactly. They just need to coordinate on selected titles so TP and BN80s aren’t overlapping. And TP at least for now, are not duplicating any MMJs.
Precisely. It isn't and probably won't. It's Joe's premise since the beginning. Not saying it won't happen in the next series, but for now, nothing points that way.
Lots of great replies. In particular, I think the point that market trends are indicating the need for wider distribution of good quality BN reissues makes a lot of sense. And yeah, the price of MMs excludes a lot of potential buyers. Sometimes even a Blue Note vinyl geek like me!
I'd thought that some of the titles would reuse the original MM33 metal parts just to save time and money. Not sure why they didn't go with that route unless there is some licensing clause that prevents this from happening?
Maybe they don't belong to blue note so they can't really? Or maybe Kevin has a contract to do them all? Even if he'd done the title previously...
If they were to do that, they could only do it for titles that MM did at 33 rpm, of course. But to date, the BN80 series have been new cuts.
The BN80 Series were specifically purposed to cover five distinct themes. Honestly, I've been a culprit right in there with others who have slurred the lines on this forum among, say, the Tone Poet and BN80, the VMP BN offerings (the box set, the Art Blakey (Freedom Rider), Donald Byrd (Fancy Free), Eddie Gale (Ghetto Music) etc.), Blue Note Review (Vol. 1 and Vol. 2), and the tripartite (45, 33 and 33 SRX) MMJ offerings, the AP BNs. But to return to the proposed lifeblood of the dedicated BN80 series, the distinct themes are: A) Blue Note Debuts B) Blue Grooves C) Great Reid Miles Covers D) Blue Note Live E) Blue Note Drummer Leaders. That doesn't mean BN80 titles won't continue to fall in the shadows of a previous offerings (Art Blakey Indestructible has been done three times!) The BN80 Indestructible fell under the Great Reid Miles Covers category. Maybe they'll do it again under Blue Note Drummer Leaders. Just kidding. But I'd just as soon get some fresh titles in the future. I used to consider live dates secondary to studio albums but I no longer feel that way. The live dates give the listener a sense of place and of time that is absent in the studio albums. I'm looking forward to more live dates! http://www.bluenote.com/presenting-the-blue-note-80-vinyl-reissue-series/
Could not agree more. I have never been much of a fan of live recordings in general. Sure there are the classic Live At Leeds, Allman's "Fillmore East", Miles "Plug Nickle", and "Forest Flower" to name a few, but the more I listen to live Jazz recordings, the more I am enjoying them and quite much. Resonance Records has been releasing some really goods ones on RSD the past several years that have been quite nice. Great call out!
It is also possible that metalwork is either 1) worn out 2) being held for future possible MM releases, like SRX/colored vinyl/whatever