CJ Shearn

The sound is very very good, mastered by Dominique Brethes

I ripped it to my laptop, and won't pull it out again, the "Spectrum" disc. I know there are complaints about the sound over at the Hoffman forums.

I got the box as well. Working on a review of it.

Really nice set.......

That arrangement of "Wichita Lineman" was great. I've heard her name but never listened to her before

Wow, this was a great article! Thanks for posting. I wasn't aware of the set up leading up to the gig.

Maybe so!!

My mom enjoys some of her stuff, her voice is angelic. There's an album my mom plays on Rhapsody, sounds like there is a bit too much auto tune on her and the male vocalist, but her tone is so pure. I don't recall the album tho, it's fairly recent.

Thank you Mark, this was great. You managed to get Pat to go in areas that usuaally I've only seen European interviewers go, to get him to go deep about the music. When I speak with him, that is my goal as well, I love what he said about the parallels between jazz improvisation and llanguage. On the Unity Sessions DVD, both Chris Potter and Metheny discuss the ways in which to make things sound fresh every night after so many gigs. Potter wasn't used to playing with such a fixed set list, but he enjoyed it. There are times where I think I've heard Pat say everything he is going to say on "Are You Going With Me?" or "James" or "All The Things You Are" but there are times like the way you describe in the write up of the gig with Ron Carter, the level of inspiration pushes him into areas where he plays things that are so fresh. I think of "Til We Have Faces" by Gary Thomas, or both "Unity Band" and "Kin" found Pat playing with a wonderful renewed fire. I enjoy all things he does b/c I take time to really listen, somethings I like more than others but Pat is such a remarkably consistent artist, regardless of personal taste.

Perhaps the project was at least partially funded by Carlos Santana Yeah, often I do cringe when I hear/read what he has to say. He made some GREAT music ca. 1969-1976. When I think of him, I remember the old Nils Lofgren lyric: "I'll play my guitar all night and all day, just don't ask me to think". Also where I'm coming down on those two sets. Looking at the tracklist a bit more carefully, it seems like I would be interested in a few things, but how much would I listen? IDK

The deluxe edition is fine, not going for a third dip, I don't think. "The Complete Sun Ship Sessions" is awesome because of the music being unedited, compared to the composite masters.

CJ, I think all the 75th anniversary series use new masterings. There was discussion of a "budget" reissue batch that came out this year that used older masterings, these were not SHM-CD. Yeah Lon, you're right. Some of the new budget reissues are older RVG or TOCJ ones? There was a point where all RVG masterings were shared from the US and Japan....... Still would like to get more of these before they dissapear.

The differences I notice with hi res downloads vs CD and DVD and blu ray audio on concert discs is things breath more up top and bottom. It really depends on the quality of mastering though. I wonder with the three SHM's BN's I have what makes the masterings so superior, when I've read here that some SHM discs use older masterings or the same as recent US issues.

Get well Mr. Cobb! We need more of that strong cymbal beat.

I still haven't heard "The Epic", would like to so I can better participate in this discussion, but epistrophy makes some very points, about the way critics in what are normally not jazz centric publications are talking about Washington. If they are not mentioning jazz before 1970 and all the various strains have effected his thing, it's because they don't have the knowledge, or maybe not know how to access that knowledge, that all of us here have. I doubt we were the target audience for "The Epic" to begin with, hopefully it's a gateway for people, but as for the jazz and hip hop thing, Ben Williams, to me, is another that deals with that in a way totally organic. He grew up on hip hop, soul and R&B and it's natural. To me, at least before the "RH Factor" came out, not too many jazz/hip hop collaborations sounded completely organic, maybe the Jazzmatazz thing, Us3 sounded forced in an odd way. Steve Coleman's "A Tale of Three Cities" was organic, but highly specific as far as early 90's hip hop went, to my ears. Back to the critics and KW (I'm kinda all over the place here) I also feel as epistrophy said a lot of jazz critics are unable to deal with music with jazz blended into the mix, without the jazz blinders on, I even have them myself a bit, but trying to look at things in the wider picture.

Very interesting reading here in the original article and what Allen said regarding the Hartt jazz program. Seems like Jackie was protecting himself at the end, based on what happened to him previously? Just a natural human response to trauma. In the On Mars documentary he seemed troubled by the attitude younger jazz musicians had being into the jazz rock or jazz funk end of things without knowing the history. That hasn't changed that much over time, those kind of attitudes.

Should be getting mine very soon as well to review.

As John Kelman has often told me, Manfred Eicher is the most active jazz record producer today, he is very hands on with the musicians. At times he makes suggestions to help the musicians get the most out of the performances.

Great!

Really? thought that was one of that title. The McMaster is a plain old SBM 20 bit remaster from 1998.

Which version? I have the McMaster, skipped the RVG and didn't buy the SHM b/c the McMaster sounds fine to me. Though I know the SHM is probably great, like the paltry 3 I own.

If the music is killing Scott, it doesn't matter to me either. Though there are people like that Michael Fremer guy who swears anything digital sucks, that's an attitude I can't get with.

Interesting. So when there is a digital recording that sounds "cold", i.e....... an early digital recording, or say Tony Williams "Young At Heart", the first DSD recording released, is that because it's so clear and precise?

Well, yes and no. Our ears find 2nd harmonic distortion to be rather pleasing for some reason. Adding a bit of that into the signal can create a sense of 'excitement'. It's why we still like vacuum tubes. But vinyl is an extremely limited medium, especially in the low-end. Exactly. Second order harmonic distortion is pleasing to the ear. It's an argument I've tried to make in past conversations to no avail here. And it's the main reason why I find the "high resolving" argument when it comes to tubes and LP's so odd. Not to mention the fact that some folks get a little uppity when you mention the distortion that is introduced. I personally prefer the cold, clean sound of digital. Not to mention the wider dynamic range. IIRC, and you can correct me if I'm wrong, vinyl is limited on both the lower and upper ends. I think you are right about that, Scott. Vinyl being limited up at the top and bottom. The distortion is what creates, the sense of "warmth", right? So I think when you read things at the Hoffman forums and here about people who like DCC and CD's like that being warm, they like that distortion being introduced. Interesting. Is distortion always what creates the warmth, whatever stage it is introduced? Recording, mastering or playback through a certain amp or speakers? Like, when Marantz amps are supposed to sound warmer than NAD amps, what creates that extra warmth? I find that my new Dali Ikon 5 MK2 speakers which are supposed to be very good and well integrated in the highs and mids also add a pleasing warmth to those mids when connected to my old NAD amp. More than I remember from my old Tannoy speakers which I got rid of years ago, and so have to go on memory. Not sure erwbol, but what so many people say is harmonic distortion is what adds "warmth", what are the mechanics of that? IDK

Well, yes and no. Our ears find 2nd harmonic distortion to be rather pleasing for some reason. Adding a bit of that into the signal can create a sense of 'excitement'. It's why we still like vacuum tubes. But vinyl is an extremely limited medium, especially in the low-end. Exactly. Second order harmonic distortion is pleasing to the ear. It's an argument I've tried to make in past conversations to no avail here. And it's the main reason why I find the "high resolving" argument when it comes to tubes and LP's so odd. Not to mention the fact that some folks get a little uppity when you mention the distortion that is introduced. I personally prefer the cold, clean sound of digital. Not to mention the wider dynamic range. IIRC, and you can correct me if I'm wrong, vinyl is limited on both the lower and upper ends. I think you are right about that, Scott. Vinyl being limited up at the top and bottom. The distortion is what creates, the sense of "warmth", right? So I think when you read things at the Hoffman forums and here about people who like DCC and CD's like that being warm, they like that distortion being introduced.