which Charlie Christian set...

[David Gitin]

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Edited January 15, 2007 by David Gitin

[Ron S]

I have the Sony box ("The Genius of Electric Guitar"):

The selection is great (including alternates and some neat rehearsal tracks), the sound is--for the most part--great, and the booklet is well-done. But BEWARE, the packaging SUCKS. As is well documented, the CD's are placed directly into slits cut into a block of foam rubber, which practically guarantees that residue gets all over them and potentially screws up how they play. But not to worry, all you have to do is call the toll-free customer service number Sony provides in the booklet, and they'll replace the CD's with brand new ones. Needless to say, you'll then want to store them in jewel cases.

[Mark J]

The Sony box mentioned above by Ron is the best way to get all the studio material from the Benny sessions including many excellent alternates and outtakes. The live material is more problematic. No legit US label for this and there are overlapping European boxes and CDs which range from good to awful, but I have the JSP live box and it is mostly complete, the sound is pretty good, especially on the radio airshots with Benny, and the price is right.

[J.A.W.]

I have the Sony box, and while the music is absolutely wonderful, I don't like the sound at all; it's bright and sometimes shrill/harsh. Unfortunately, as far as I'm concerned there's no alternate for this box.

[jazzbo]

I'm with Hans on the Columbia sound. It's too bad because it could have been fantastic.

I have the nine volumes that Masters of Jazz put out. This is the best way to go for the Christian completist; fantastic series. But. . . hard to find these now.

[Ron S]

I'll have to go back and listen to the Sony box again. Maybe the sound is not as good as I remember? Or, more likely, Hans' and Lon's (reminds me of the Kevin Nealon/Dana Carvey characters) audiophile equipment is significantly more demanding than my crappy little system.

[Free For All]

  Or, more likely, Hans' and Lon's (reminds me of the Kevin Nealon/Dana Carvey characters)

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[Ron S]

. . . or maybe I'm just a GIRLY-MAN who never PUMPS my system UP.

[montg]

I agree with everything said about the sony box. Lousy packaging, great music. the sound is good, but not great. I hear some of the shrillness, but it seemed to get better on the 1940 and 41 sides. On the plus side, regarding the sound, the Columbia engineers were doing first class work and even though the recordings are pre WWII, they are big and full with lots of detail. There is a sampler of this box ("Original guitar hero") that you can find for about 5 bucks. Might be best to check it out first.

[GregN]

I have the Sony box ("The Genius of Electric Guitar"):

The selection is great (including alternates and some neat rehearsal tracks), the sound is--for the most part--great, and the booklet is well-done.  But BEWARE, the packaging SUCKS.   As is well documented, the CD's are placed directly into slits cut into a block of foam rubber, which practically guarantees that residue gets all over them and potentially screws up how they play.  But not to worry, all you have to do is call the toll-free customer service number Sony provides in the booklet, and they'll replace the CD's with brand new ones.  Needless to say, you'll then want to store them in jewel cases.

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I have this set as well. I'm in the process of transcribing some of these tunes,

so from that stand point, I like the fidelity.

[Brad]

Do you have the OJC, Charlie Christian - Jazz Immortal. A must in my book.

[Ron S]

David, I haven't had a chance to listen to the Sony box again since my last post in this thread, but I did just randomly sample some of the tracks on the AMG site, here. While the sound may be a bit bright (and/or shrill and/or harsh) for Hans' and Lon's taste, it does reveal a lot of detail and has a lot of presence that is lacking on many of the currently available European issues. Presumably, this is largely because Sony used the best available sources, which would not have been available to the European labels. If you haven't already done so, I'd recommend that you check out the track samples on the AMG site, and perhaps still pick up the Sony box at some point.

Edited September 19, 2005 by Ron S

[paul secor]

I wouldn't usually give these guys a mention, but since there have been several negative comments about the sound quality of the Sony box, and since the Masters of Jazz series is out of print, has anyone heard the Definitive studio sessions box?

[Fer Urbina]

has anyone heard the Definitive studio sessions box?

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Sound-wise I would recommend the Legacy box over the Definitive.

For discographical errors in the Definitive set a comparison with the Masters of Jazz series, check Leo Valdés' site

F

(There's a review in there by me too . Now, after a few years, I'd add that the Minton's tunes in the Live are identical to the Masters of Jazz set, overdubbed applause, pitch correction and all.)

[J.A.W.]

I wouldn't usually give these guys a mention, but since there have been several negative comments about the sound quality of the Sony box, and since the Masters of Jazz series is out of print, has anyone heard the Definitive studio sessions box?

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Yep, I picked it up (before I was aware of the way they seem to acquire their remasters), hated it and sold it. It sounded worse than the Sony box.