You might be surprised. Tone Poet Blue Notes have shown up multiple times in Amazon's "Movers & Shakers" chart of top sellers. Most recently Dexter Gordon's Clubhouse and Baby Face Willette's Face To Face were at # 2 and #3 respectively behind the Backstreet Boys at #1.
I find myself playing this one frequently. When it first came out (and I was a Jr. in High School) I didn't really gravitate to Lou's soul-jazz records.... but later on I came to fully appreciate what he was doing, along with the contributions of such incredible players like Doctor Lonnie Smith and the amazing drummer Idris Muhammad, then known as Leo Morris. (By the way, check out Idris' superb autobiography "Inside the Music".)
I really enjoy how it conveys that period in time, kind of like mod pop jazz before psychedelia took over.
Nice chronology! I have my sights set on a copy of Aligator Boogaloo and Lush Life. As for the recording it sounds very good. I would rate the Sam Rivers' Contours as the best of the lot so far- the sax and horns are so fast and dynamic, they really pop. Note: I do not have the Cassandra Wilson or Gil Evans records.
Looks like some good pricing right now on Amazon for the previous and new Tone Poet albums. Many are $26 and change
I ordered Lee Morgan's Cornbread on amazon.ca but apparently it's not shipping for another 4-6 weeks, despite seeing someone else on this thread getting theirs already.
I have been an infrequent lurker on this forum, and this is my first post. I will try to be very respectful, all the while I think it could be of interest to other members to learn what I have observed. I usually do not spring for audiophile, or even any other, new vinyl releases. When it comes to Blue Note albums from the 60s, I have a couple of originals, some reissues from the Liberty and UA years, some King and Toshiba LP:s, but mainly CDs from the various reissue programs. Anyhow, when I learned that Wayne Shorter's 'Etcetera' was being reissued in the Tone Poet series, I was tempted enough to order a copy. I follwed the discussion in this thread the first 100+ pages, but I have still not read through the subsequent posts, so I apologize if this has already been brought up. I suppose many of you are aware of the observation in the BN80 thread that the Herbie Hancock album 'Takin' Off' album suffers from some wow or flutter (not sure if that is the right word) - quick, slight but noticeable speed variations - that affects the piano. I hear the same artifact on several places on the Tone Poet 'Etcetera' release (most noticeable on the ballad 'Penelope'). This problem is not present on the Connoisseur CD from the 90s. While the overall mastering comes across as well very good, this problem is, to me, distracting enough to make me prefer the earlier CD reissue. It should be noted that I am not a hard core audiophile, but I have a low tolerance for pitch variations.
I'm admittedly not super sensitive to pitch variation, but it might be helpful if you posted what turntable you are using. Moreover, our host and others have written about speed variation involving master tapes and I wonder if these issues are more easily corrected in the digital domain.
Hi, and thanks for your response. I am using a Thorens TD-125 MK II with SME 3009 tone arm, Shure V15 type IV pickup and Jico SAS stylus.
One of our fellow BN jazz lovers, @MisterBritt is the author I believe, he gave me the heads up on that autobiography recently.
It's a really fun read, with many insights about the music, all in Idris Muhammad's own voice. And Britt did a great job getting it all down and putting it together in a coherent way.
Got it! I’ll see if I can get a copy in time before our family travels to NYC this Wednesday! Speaking of Idris, his playing on the shing a long TP is unreal! You guys did a great job allowing all his little fills to come out so clearly. What a fantastic, versatile drummer! He does so many different styles and the way he reads and responds to everyone is remarkable.
@Joe Harley Im sure you are tired of this sort of thing but I have to do it. I recently picked up The Worm by Jimmy McGriff and this would make a superb Tone Poet release. It’s on Solid State so you would have access to the tapes and the sound quality of the original is phenomenal. Not a super rare title or expensive, but deserving of a high quality reissue in my opinion. So funky. And, thanks for the heads up on the IM autobiography!
I have 5 out of 6 Tone Poet series releases so far — all absolutely fantastic, and I'm looking forward to the next batch, in the meantime . . . 1965/2019 Blue Note – B0029357-01, Blue Note – LT-1056, Blue Note – B1 7243 8 33581 1 3 Blue Note Tone Poet Series –
Sorry if this has already been answered, but are all the Tone Poet releases in Stereo or Mono? Particularly, the upcoming Kenny Burrell. Thanks guys
Thanks.....only reason I ask is because I have the Toshiba 1983 pressing which is Mono and sounds fabulous. Torn between either selling this and getting the Tone Poet, keeping this and not getting the Tone Poet.....or......keeping it AND getting the Tone Poet. I’ve got a sneaky suspicion as to which of the three options I’ll go for!
Is your copy of Takin' Off pressed off-centered? You can tell if your tonearm is swaying left and right while playing the record and thus, this causes wow/flutter.
I think this is pretty much par for the course for us Canucks ordering through Amazon Canada but it's also our best bet to get the Tone Poet pressings for cheaper than through a brick and mortar shop. I wouldn't be too surprised if Dexter Gordon's Clubhouse is delayed for another 4-6 weeks from the expected release date.