Music Matters Definitive Blue Note 45 RPM and 33 & 1/3 RPM vinyl series (pt7)

Heard it and reported on it in the TP/BN80 speed issues thread.

 

Here's an unusual couple of photos. Not a turntable in sight. I spend hours cleaning these MMJ albums before they get played. Portending good vibrations tonight, we have maxed out on the Sleeve City cleaning work mats. Five are in use and the ultrasonic machine is working away in another room!

1) Art Blakey Indestructible 45 RPM
2) Dexter Gordon Doin' Allright 45 RPM
3) Dexter Gordon Gettin' Around 45 RPM
4) Kenny Dorham Round About Midnight at the Cafe Bohemia 45 RPM
5) Stanley Turrentine Jubilee Shout!!! 45 RPM

Added earlier in the week

6) Kenny Burrell Live at the Five Spot 45 RPM
7) Joe Henderson Page One 45 RPM
8) Hank Mobely Workout 45 RPM
9) Grant Green Grantstand 45 RPM

 

Wasn’t aware of these mats. Do you recommend? I’m making a foray into selling records online in 2020. What’s your ultrasonic setup?

 

Oh yes, the Sleeve City mats are fantastic. I highly recommend them. I believe they use Amazon fulfillment and you'd do well to compare prices between their website (maybe a bit cheaper) and Amazon (free shipping) to see if one checkout makes more sense than another for you.

All Media Disc Cleaning Mat

Today we used the Phoenix record cleaning spray bottle. We use the MoFi brushes with them, not the towel seen pictured on their website. More often than not we use the MoFi record cleaning fluids, but not today. My spray bottle of Phoenix is nearing the end and I'm going to see if I can transfer the MoFi fluid into the empty spray bottle. That spray feature works great! It's way better than splattering out drops of cleaning fluid onto the vinyl.

Deluxe Phoenix Record Cleaning Kit for Vinyl

As far as the ultrasonic machine you were asking about, I use the KLAUDIO, available from Artisan Fidelity. If this link doesn't take you straight to it, it's under accessories on the ArtisanFidelity.com website.

Klaudio Ultrasonic Record Cleaner — Artisan Fidelity

 

No question that’s gonna be a good night. What a line-up. Enjoy!

 

Yeah, the Kenny Dorham Round About Midnight at the Cafe Bohemia 45 RPM has been getting excellent reviews here so I went for it. I'll tell you another great sounding live album is the Kenny Burrell Live at the Five Spot 45 RPM. Man, the sound quality just knocked me out. I've been in the mood for live albums lately, but in truth all these Blue Note albums were recorded live -- just not in a live venue. As we discussed in a related thread, it seems like Rudy is using Neumann KM56 studio mics both in the studio and on live venues.

One that surprised me is the Grant Green Grandstand 45 RPM. Yusef Lateef got ahold of a flute and I was afraid he was going to ruin "My Funny Valentine" with it. That's not really the case. I think Alfred or Rudy was able to wrestle it out of his hands before too much damage was done.

Speaking of Rudy, on the Hank Mobley Workout album you can really hear Rudy working his pots. I don't recall the tune, but Philly Joe is hitting it when, anticipating the end of the solo, Rudy opens up the pot on Hank's saxophone and the drums just come pouring in. Mic bleed galore. One might recall the interview video I posted on a related Blue Note thread where Grant Green's son is interviewing Rudy, and Rudy says it was not only the musicians who might ruin a take, he took a few flags himself.

 

The Dorham and the Burrell have been on my radar for a bit and they, along with Jubilee Shout!!!, stood out to me on your great list. Grant Green has been coming from all angles lately, thanks for recommending Grant Stand. It was not on my radar. Thanks always for the interesting insight as well.

 

I highly recommend the Kenny Dorham live date, the Kenny Burrell live date, and the Grant Green Grantstand records. I'll get to Jubilee Shout!!! tonight. The Grant Green Grantstand is a happening (oh sorry, in Blue Note-speak that's happenin') date. I think Rudy got some of the best drum sounds with Al Harwood on Grantstand and Ben Dixon, on, say, the Grant Green Grant's First Stand BN80. Those two have such a wonderful touch on the instrument. You put Philly Joe Jones, Art Blakey or Elvin Jones on a date and anything could happen. Some of the material is borderline un-recordable in my book.

I think it's very difficult to record a cymbal being played at the volume these guys played at. I think a ribbon mic might have been better but then Rudy knows more about it than anyone. And speaking of Elvin, on a related note, I listened to his Puttin' it all Together MMJ 45 RPM last night. Man, the sound quality was superb. I happen to really like that material as well, so this one is a home run for me. That's another great record from the series that doesn't warrant much chatter here. Recorded in 1968, the sound quality seemed more modern -- in a good way -- to me.

A couple final thoughts about cymbals. One solution to overloading the mic would be to not strike the instrument with such force. That would work, but ... a cymbal both sounds differently and sounds different when you change the force. It's not just that the volume increases, like turning up a guitar amp. (I'm simplifying.) It takes on wholly other characteristics depending on an near infinitude of factors. I can recall Miles Davis talking about Tony Williams, and how Tony's concept was integrated with his massive volume. You couldn't just take the volume down and have the same performance. So that's something I consider when listening to how the cymbals are mic'd and played. The medium is the message.

One other thought. I find myself listening and making a determination as to whether the mic is above the cymbals or below them. A lot of these recordings sound to me like the mic is below the cymbal and the result is a different sound coming off the bottom rather than the top or side. It's just something to ruminate on when listening to how these records were put together. You don't want a mic both above and below a cymbal because the polarity will be off, it will be out of phase. True, you could swap the polarity on one of the mics but best to do it with just one microphone. And if you're doing that, and the mic is also picking up drums, you can run into the kind of balance issues to which I refer. So these are the kinds of idle thoughts that might run through my mind during the listening experience.

 

Thanks Britt. A veritable fount of info, as ever.

 

It's the first song, similar but not as extreme as what ever is going on in the Newks Time stereo MMJ

 

Thanks for sharing those thoughts! As a former drummer, one of the things that really drew me to MMJ was how real the cymbals can sound, especially the rides. I can almost feel the wood hitting the bronze. Especially depending how real and 3D the rest of the band was recorded, that realistic cymbal sound puts me right in the middle of it all.

 

I could've written that. Same here. Former drummer, they sound incredible on these puppies.

 

Okay, now we've got some drummers on board. There is a section I'm curious about in the Horace Parlan Us Three tune, side 3 on the 45 RPM, "The Lady is a Tramp." When they go into the section (~ 2:26) and Al Harewood puts down the one brush -- although he continues to ride with the other brush -- do you guys think he's playing those tom beats with his hand? When I went from the CD to the MMJ 45 it was a revelation. As you say, the cymbals are so clear. Al Harewood's cymbals are so great. But I had a moment listening to the vinyl where I became convinced he's playing with his hand -- not a mallet, stick or rubber ball brush end. Just curious if you guys ever considered that?

You cannot hear it clearly enough on YouTube, but you can get an idea of what I'm asking about.

 

Incidentally, I have the 33 RPM coming to me in the next day or two, so this will be a fun little project! I can sort of hear what you're talking about on the YouTube clip but as you say, it's not as clear as it will be on the MMJ.

 

Excellent. Speaking of this album, there's another little fascination for me. The next tune, "Walkin,'" it's like Al Harewood is caught off guard at the onset. It's like they surprised him with the downbeat and it takes him a moment to decide he wants to be playing those hits on the ride cymbal.



There's a whole bunch of fascinations for me on this album. The last one is practically the last note on the album. The final tune, "Return Engagement," Al Harewood adds an internal note to the flourish that ends it.

It's just so great at that time, they didn't try to fix anything; they didn't try to punch it in. The squeaking pedal (I don't recall if it's the bass drum or hi-hat) -- but it's on there. Another aspect of this album to me is that Al Harewood is playing calf skin heads. The brush wire whisking across the snare drum head. You'll hear it. The thumpy attack on the toms. You'll feel it. You can practically smell those calf skin heads. (I'll have to make a study of whether this is one of the last Blue Note sessions with calf heads on the drum. I don't know.) You can even hear him "moaning" during some of the drum fills. It's just wonderful. To me, that's all part of the Blue Note sound -- it's the whole enchilada.

In referring to my Blue Note Discography book, we can tell that the tunes I'm talking about were done in one take. The order the album was recorded looks like this:

tk.2 Come Rain or Come Shine
tk. 3. I want to be Loved
tk. 6. Return Engagement
tk. 7. Us Three
tk 11. The Lady is a Tramp
tk. 12. Wadin'
tk. 13. Walkin'

 

The suspense is killing me!!!

Let’s have those 2020 SRXes’!!!

 

I just listened to that section and while the tom hits do sound like a John Bonham hand job, the rim shots right after have a bit more stick-like hit. Maybe he used the some of the rubber brush handle? (Please excuse the suggestive terms used here!)

 

The KLAudio cleaner has been discontinued. One may be able to still find them and KLAudio says they will still service them but at this point I would describe it as “buyer beware.”

 

Interesting stuff about Us Three. That’s one I haven’t listened to before, not sure Apple Music will be the best way to tell. 33 is sold out and 45 is now $85...

 

Us Three is an amazing percussive trio record. I can only imagine how good it is on MMJ 45. If that price ever falls I’m diving at it.

 

Following up on my question last week on ordering from Elusive Disc. Ordered last Thursday, package arrived yesterday media mail. Mailer was heavy with cardboard on sides to protect against dings with bubble wrap and cardboard inserts. Very impressed for free shipping

AP Buddy Holly, Point of Departure 33 and numbered Stylings of Silver 45 all flat and quiet even before I’ve cleaned them. Makes these my 12th 45 and 19th 33. I told myself in late 2017 I was only buying my top two favorites (Blue Train and Idle Moments), but well here we are

 

I got my copy of Us Three (33) a couple weeks ago from elusive disc. Looks like they still have copies available ($59.99) if you’re interested.

 

Ha, well it’s gonna have to wait til after Christmas. That order last week killed my
Monthly vinyl budget!

 

Didn’t think to look there. Thanks!!

I just played my own Buddy Holly and Point of Departure 33 in the past day or two. They’re both perfect records. Enjoy! I’m sure the Horace Silver is great as well.

 

great minds! I played my buddy holly two days ago and POD just last night