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You are here: Home / Archives for Stickies

Precision Aqueous Cleaning of Vinyl Records-3rd Edition

January 21, 2022 by Bill Hart Leave a Comment

The first edition of Precision Aqueous Cleaning of Vinyl Records appeared in The Vinyl Press in May 2020. It was subsequently revised by its author, Neil Antin, in March 2021 to reflect Neil’s experience in working with a range of users all over the world, who were applying his methodologies and formulas to particular situations. Apart from the fact that some of the basic chemistry available in the States was not readily available in other countries, there were myriad challenges presented by users who employed manual cleaning or the use of record cleaning machines, both vacuum and... Read More

Filed Under: Stickies

Clifford Jordan- Glass Bead Games Shoot-Out

March 2, 2021 by Bill Hart Leave a Comment

Clifford Jordan- Glass Bead Games Shoot-Out  By Ken Golden I’ve been asked by Fearless Leader to do a “shoot out” comparison between an original Strata-East pressing of Clifford Jordan Quartet “Glass Bead Games” (SES 19737/8) and the recent reissue from Pure Pleasure Records out of the UK. Some brief background – Strata-East Records was co-founded by Charles Tolliver and Stanley Cowell.  The name was taken in tribute to the Detroit based Strata Records label.  The exclusive focus of the label was black jazz musicians.  The range of music touched on post-bop, hard bop,... Read More

Filed Under: Stickies

The Finish Line for Your Phonograph Stylus…

May 23, 2019 by Bill Hart 2 Comments

The Finish Line for Your Phonograph Stylus… By Mike Bodell, May 23, 2019  Based on an informal survey of friends who predominately play vinyl records, I believe the most neglected part of their audio system is the stylus on their phonograph cartridge. The stylus is a key component in an audio system and is subjected to the most wear. Yet when I asked folks in my network how many hours of play their cartridges have seen, they could not tell me with any accuracy; all ventured educated guesses. I’ve been there too. Given the value of records today, particularly rare and collectible jazz... Read More

Filed Under: Features, Phono, Stickies

KEN GOLDEN: TOP PICKS FOR 2018- A LIST

December 20, 2018 by Bill Hart Leave a Comment

KEN GOLDEN: TOP PICKS FOR 2018- A LIST : Ken Golden, who contributed a piece on “Prog Rock Obscurities” here in 2016, has been a tireless guide to the less well known, the obscure rock, jazz and hard to “genre-fy” music that has become a staple of my musical diet, gives us a holiday present in the form of his most interesting “picks” for 2018:  I’m often asked to compile a year-end top 10 list and I always refrain.  My memory is short and there is so much music pouring through the threshold of my business that it becomes too much work v. fun.  Plus I... Read More

Filed Under: Features, Stickies

Mark Weber on the West Coast Experimental Jazz Scene and the Shape of Things to Come

December 4, 2018 by Bill Hart Leave a Comment

Mark Weber on the West Coast Experimental Jazz Scene and the Shape of Things to Come Sun Ra Arkestra – April 2, 1981 Los Angeles – photo by Mark Weber I first got onto Mark Weber when I was researching Horace Tapscott and landed on Mark’s webpage, which included a photo essay of the Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra.   Mark spent the first 32 years of his life in LA, and was the CODA jazz magazine LA columnist for the better part of a decade, spending a total of 18 years reporting for CODA from Cleveland, New Orleans, San Francisco, New York, Detroit and Salt Lake City. His... Read More

Filed Under: Features, Stickies

The Curious Case Of Record Cleaning In The Quest For Sonic Perfection

September 5, 2018 by Bill Hart 1 Comment

  The Curious Case Of Record Cleaning In The Quest For Sonic Perfection  Michael Bodell, September 1, 2018   “If there exists a more effective, easy, reliable, and utterly transformative way of cleaning LPs, I have yet to hear it.”  Art Dudley, Stereophile March 2015   In 1952, Bendix Corporation of Davenport, Iowa took ultrasonic cleaning from the laboratory and into production for the first time.  The company experimented with ultrasonic applications through the 1950s to find tank cleaning in a fluid an optimal use, especially in industrial applications. ... Read More

Filed Under: Cleaning - Care, Features, Stickies

Peter Green: A Love That Burns- Definitive Reference Guide by Richard Orlando (3 volumes, Smiling Corgi Press 2017).

September 4, 2018 by Bill Hart Leave a Comment

Peter Green: A Love That Burns- Definitive Reference Guide by Richard Orlando (3 volumes, Smiling Corgi Press 2017). To call this exhaustive study of Peter Green’s performances an ambitious undertaking would be damning by faint praise: over 1,900 pages, cataloging and commenting on the history and attributes of 1,000 recorded performances by the legendary guitarist Peter Green spread among three volumes.  These volumes took author Richard Orlando more than 15 years to assemble. Green is a relatively modern artist who composed and performed within our lifetimes—and within a fairly... Read More

Filed Under: Ephemera, Stickies

tima’s DIY RCM – follow-up #2: Compelling Changes – Improved Results

July 31, 2018 by Bill Hart 33 Comments

tima’s DIY RCM – follow-up #2: Compelling Changes – Improved Results.   by Tim Aucremann It’s been about a year since I built tima’s DIY RCM as described in my original article from the fall of 2017, published here on The Vinyl Press along with follow-up #1.  Since that time I’ve cleaned hundreds of records in all conditions: previously cleaned, new, used, and a few abused. My expectations are now very high about what is possible for getting records clean.   Not only do most records clean-up nearly noiseless (assuming they are not damaged), I get the job done in a... Read More

Filed Under: Cleaning - Care, Stickies

Tima’s DIY RCM

September 11, 2017 by Bill Hart Leave a Comment

Tima’s DIY RCM As a dedicated vinylista, I’ve been cleaning records for over thirty years. Sound familiar? Cleaning techniques and technologies evolved across that time and my approach changed with the times. I’ve been using a Loricraft RC3 point nozzle machine and more recently an Audio Desk System. After reading multiple threads on various audio forums about home made record cleaning kits built around larger volume ultrasonic cleaners, I decided to give that a try. Thanks to all who have gone before me, and especially to Bill at The Vinyl Press and Rob at Audionirvana.org, for... Read More

Filed Under: Cleaning - Care, Features, Stickies

Spiritual Jazz- Three Picks

August 26, 2017 by Bill Hart Leave a Comment

Spiritual Jazz- Three Picks       Exploring “new to me” music often forces me to confront my own biases if not outright ignorance. If you asked me how much jazz I listen to, I’d say very little these days. Sure, I’ve gone through many of the highly regarded “audiophile” favorites and warhorses, usually in the form of reissues from the likes of Analogue Productions (Sonny Rollins “Way Out West” cut at 45rpm is spectacular despite the hard panning characteristic of many early stereo recordings), or other labels, e.g. Music Matters. I have quite a pile of traditional jazz,... Read More

Filed Under: Stickies

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In Brief:

There Is No “Magic Bullet” in Hi-Fi

There Is No “Magic Bullet” in Hi-Fi No Magic Solutions I’ve spent some time on the audio chat fora over the years. Many popular threads these days are devoted to cheap improvements that can be made using audiophile “tweaks” or repurposed non-audiophile products. These can be applied to isolate gear, enhance the signals or connections or otherwise address some perceived problem that, once solved, offers to raise the level of music reproduction. It’s like a cheap solution to upgrade your system: from audiophile fuses, special wires (beyond simply having a high-quality interconnect, speaker wire or power cable) and other tweaks, to contact fluids and other things that you can attach to power sources, equipment, or place in the room (bowls, various harmonizers or active resonators, noise harvesters, etc.) This is apart from room treatment, which is sui generis; that is, every situation is … [Read More...]

Milt Ward Reissue-release date May 6, 2022

Milt Ward Reissue-release date May 6, 2022  Andreas Vingaard, of Frederiksberg Records, dropped me a note that the Milt Ward & Virgo Spectrum record about which much has been written here will be available on vinyl beginning on May 9, 2022. However, several promo emails today, Friday, May 6, 2022 say the record is available NOW via Bandcamp (see link below). The reissue was done with the participation of Milt Ward’s family and includes comprehensive notes in a booklet. Given the price of original pressings, this should be worthwhile even if not taken from the master tape. I plan to get a copy and we’ll do a shoot-out with my “OG” pressing. I’m sure some of you are willing to brook a little sonic compromise to get access to an otherwise very hard to find, expensive spiritual jazz rarity. At the time of this writing there is one copy on Discogs in NM condition for media for over … [Read More...]

Milt Ward Virgo Reissue Coming from Frederiksberg

Although I don't have all the details yet, I have learned that Frederiksberg Records, a small, eclectic label from New York, is in the process of reissuing the hard to find (and even harder to pay for) jazz obscurity, Milt Ward and Virgo Spectrum. You can find out more by keeping tabs on Frederiksberg's Bandcamp page, https://frederiksbergrecords.bandcamp.com   I'm told there is a bootleg out there so be careful. Frederiksberg is doing this project with the participation of the family of Milt Ward, which is to be applauded. Hopefully, this will give more access to a great jazz record at a reasonable price. The Roots album reissue from Frederiksberg (which is sold out on vinyl on the Frederiksberg Records bandcamp site) still appears to be available through some online retailers as a pre-order, so that's another one to jump on now if you can find it-- the original is extremely pricey and … [Read More...]

Clem Snide- Forever Just Beyond

Clem Snide- Forever Just Beyond With a name derived from a character in the same literary work as the band name so famously identified with the Walter Becker-Donald Fagen duo, Clem Snide has an extensive discography, typically cataloged as “alt country.” This latest release is the work of one of its founding members, Eef Barzelay, who was responsible for much of the songwriting and singing. According to his bio, Barzelay suffered some serious bumps in the road during the last decade, including a failing marriage and financial ruin. At the same time, he learned that Scott Avett was a fan and they found inspiration in each other, leading to this album- a collaboration of artistry where Avett and Barzelay share some writing credits and Avett produces. The result is a fresh, upbeat set of tunes that are appealing in their simplicity and refreshing in their sincerity. The band is first tier … [Read More...]

Muriel Grossmann- Reverence

Muriel Grossmann- Reverence Muriel Grossmann continues her quest for musical ascension on Reverence, which was released on vinyl in early December, 2019 on the RR Gems label as a 2 LP set. The compositions are Grossmann’s, and the band is much the same as the group of seasoned musicians with whom she has worked for some time (and detailed in the review of her Golden Rule), but for one notable exception: the addition of a keyboard player who brings that rich, woody Hammond B-3 sound to a series of compositions devoted to Africa. In some ways, Ms. Grossmann’s exploration of the roots of jazz deliberately eschews any superficial attempt to make African music. Instead, she draws inspiration from its influences, which are wide ranging and deep—you can hear rhythm and blues sounds mixed with more traditional African instrumentation and polyrhythms and come away with something that is both … [Read More...]

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