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
An Experiment with Platter Mats- the MyMat
An Experiment with Platter Mats- the MyMat Introduction Until I performed some recent experiments with a product called the MyMat, offered by a long-time member of the Audiogon community, I rarely thought about changing out platter mats. I’ve owned a number of good turntables over the years and figured: (a) that the manufacturer knew what was best, and (b) going down this rabbit hole was yet another potential morass—that the results would vary considerably based on a number of factors, including the particular turntable design and platter. How “projectable” would anyone’s... Read More
The Finish Line for Your Phonograph Stylus…
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
KEN GOLDEN: TOP PICKS FOR 2018- A LIST
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
Mark Weber on the West Coast Experimental Jazz Scene and the Shape of Things to Come
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
The Curious Case Of Record Cleaning In The Quest For Sonic Perfection
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
Peter Green: A Love That Burns- Definitive Reference Guide by Richard Orlando (3 volumes, Smiling Corgi Press 2017).
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
tima’s DIY RCM – follow-up #2: Compelling Changes – Improved Results
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
Tima’s DIY RCM
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
Spiritual Jazz- Three Picks
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