Matthew Posted October 26, 2003 Report Posted October 26, 2003 Ever since getting a turntable two years ago, I've been trying to pick up the Mosaic lp sets at various places, Ebay, used record stores, etc. For my money, I have to say that every set that I've bought has been well worth the price, and I'm up to ten lp sets. The biggest surprise for me has been the sound quality on the Jimmy Smith set -- it beats any cd I have (I have all the JRVG's). Plugged Nickel is also great. My next purchase, I hope, will be the Complete Bud Powell, it would just be so great to have all his BN stuff on vinyl. Does anyone know if RVG mastered all the Mosaic BN vinyl sets? The ones that I have sound really alive. Quote
wolff Posted October 26, 2003 Report Posted October 26, 2003 As far as I know, RVG only remastered the Mingus/Candid and De Franko/Clark(?) sets. The liner notes say he did the Hodges/51-55 but he did not. Of course, he did the original recording of most of the sets. Quote
Matthew Posted October 26, 2003 Author Report Posted October 26, 2003 As far as I know, RVG only remastered the Mingus/Candid and De Franko/Clark(?) sets. The liner notes say he did the Hodges/51-55 but he did not. Of course, he did the original recording of most of the sets. That brings up a question I've had regarding lps: Would BN lps be "remastered"? It seems they would stay with the original RVG mix. Did Moasic actually "remaster" the lp sets? Quote
wolff Posted October 26, 2003 Report Posted October 26, 2003 I think they keep the same mix. A new 'master' needs to cut on the lathe every time a re-issue is put out. Quote
sidewinder Posted October 27, 2003 Report Posted October 27, 2003 (edited) As far as I know, RVG only remastered the Mingus/Candid and De Franko/Clark(?) sets. The liner notes say he did the Hodges/51-55 but he did not. Of course, he did the original recording of most of the sets. RVG definitely remastered the DeFranco/Clark. The runout on the LPs in this set has those immortal words 'Mastered by Van Gelder' . B) Big thumbs up for the Mosaic vinyl, particularly those Q-LP 180g issues. In terms of sound quality, there are quite a few highlights but honourable mention in terms of my own favourites must go to the Bill Evans 'Vanguard' set, the Thad Jones 'Complete Blue Note', the Sam Rivers and the Horace Parlan. I like all of the Miles sets too - although in some cases the 'soundstage' does tend to differ a bit from the original Columbia issues (CS and CL). The 'Miles/Gil' and 'Plugged Nickel' are my faves from this grouping. Edited October 27, 2003 by sidewinder Quote
sidewinder Posted October 27, 2003 Report Posted October 27, 2003 One of the few sets in vinyl still in print that I'm contemplating is the Teddy Wilson Verve. Anyone have any thoughts as to its sound quality etc (probably a daft question - I'm pretty sure what the answer will be - but best to ask anyway). Thanks in advance ! B) Quote
wolff Posted October 27, 2003 Report Posted October 27, 2003 I think the Thad Jones is very, very well done. A couple tracks of the Mingus/Candid set are amazing. The Don Cherry is top notch. The ballads on the Chaloff set are close to perfect. I could go on......... Well, Mosaic's vinyl production was nice while it lasted. Quote
brownie Posted October 27, 2003 Report Posted October 27, 2003 In love with Mosaic vinyls? Definitively, YES. I'm still mad at Mosaic for dropping vinyl with too rare exceptions. The Miles Davis Plugged Nickel vinyl was just incredible. So was the Miles Davis/Gil Evans box. Much better than the CD versions. One other later Mosaic box that was also a stunner was the Bill Evans 'The Final Village Vanguard Sessions'. Malcolm Addey's analog work on this was proof of the beauty of the vinyl process. Quote
king ubu Posted October 27, 2003 Report Posted October 27, 2003 I only have very few Mosaic LP sets. The Pepper, the Brooks, both of which are not 180gram LPs, but sound alright. Then I have one with 180g-Lps, the Buck Clayton - and that sure sounds incredible, in my opinion. I usually buy the CD versions, the LPs would be too expansive, but these three, I picked them up when they were OOP for a long time, and I got them for quite nice prices... However, I would sure like to have some of the MD sets on LP! How's the one with Coltrane? ubu Quote
jazzhound Posted October 27, 2003 Report Posted October 27, 2003 It goes without saying that a good vinyl pressing will kill any cd, unless you have a super high end digital playback which will cost at least 5k. However, I found the Mosaic Thad Jones set was bettered by a United Artist blue Note pressing made around 1970. Vinyl lovers would be better off picking up those pressings since the Mosaic goes for a ridiculous price considering it is only a 3 lp set. Needless to say, guys who have original Blue Notes will tell you the United Artist reissues sound like crap! Its all relative in the audio world. Quote
Ed S Posted October 27, 2003 Report Posted October 27, 2003 I knew that a Vinyl forum would bring jazzhound out of hibernation.. Welcome back. Quote
Son-of-a-Weizen Posted October 27, 2003 Report Posted October 27, 2003 I think the Thad Jones is very, very well done. I agree............ditto for the McLean vinyl. Quote
sidewinder Posted October 27, 2003 Report Posted October 27, 2003 However, I found the Mosaic Thad Jones set was bettered by a United Artist blue Note pressing made around 1970. Vinyl lovers would be better off picking up those pressings since the Mosaic goes for a ridiculous price considering it is only a 3 lp set. Needless to say, guys who have original Blue Notes will tell you the United Artist reissues sound like crap! Its all relative in the audio world. This one's a 5LP set - interesting comment about the UA pressing. Was this 'The Magnificent Thad Jones' I guess this must be one of those UA gems with the 'RVG' in the runout .. I'll second that thums-up for the Buck Clayton too. It's almost as if you are there in the Columbia 30th St studio, wonderful acoustics and all.. Quote
Z-Man Posted October 28, 2003 Report Posted October 28, 2003 My two favorite Mosaic sets are the McLean & Plugged Nickel LP sets. Both musically and sonically, they're incredble. The Horace Parlan LP set also sounds wonderful on my system. I would love to get my hands on a MD/Gil Evans LP set - it sold out right before I became a Mosaic addict. I bet it sounds great. Someday, someday... Quote
Matthew Posted November 5, 2003 Author Report Posted November 5, 2003 I'm becoming interested in getting the early Blue Note swing artists Mosaic sets, e.g., Art Hodes, Bechet, etc. Just wondering how the sound is on these and if the music is worth spending the $$$ on. Quote
danasgoodstuff Posted November 6, 2003 Report Posted November 6, 2003 See my post in Offering/Looking For re the Mulligan/Baker Mosaic Quote
ASNL77 Posted November 20, 2005 Report Posted November 20, 2005 Now that I have my Rega P3, I have started grabbing Mosaic LP sets on Ebay. I appreciate that the Miles, Parlan, Thad Jones, Bill Evans, Don Cherry sets are top notch. Have you got any reservations on any Mosaic sets? Are there any other sets you would strongly recommend? The Don Cherry sounds amazing. Quote
Alfred Posted November 20, 2005 Report Posted November 20, 2005 Hi Yves, welcome here in the vinyl section. I highly recommend the Hodges 51-55 set, which is a LP release only. This is one of my favorite. And it is affordable compared to the Parlan or OOP Miles sets you mentioned before. Quote
sidewinder Posted November 20, 2005 Report Posted November 20, 2005 (edited) The Art Pepper was a recent addition for me and sounds wonderful ! Recommend the Hank Mobley too but its a $$$ hit.. Also another for the Hodges 51-55 set. I just wish they'd done a vinyl on the second Hodges set too. Edited November 20, 2005 by sidewinder Quote
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