nickc said:

I've finally taken the plunge (as I intimated two years ago in my profile)and bought two jazz discs. I thought I might as well start with the two most famous discs: Dave Brubeck's "Time Out" and Miles Davis' "Kind of Blue", which, unbelievably I had never heard in my 35 years on the planet!
Just like a classical novice buying "The Four Seasons" or Beethoven's "Fifth" I thought I would start at the top and see how it went; it's said cliche is just a great truth paled by repetition. Just because all these pieces are overly familiar I sometimes think we can forget how good they are!
Anyway I played the first track on both discs and loved them. The sound was also fantastic for 1959 vintage (funnily enough was that also the year of Dorati's MLP Firebird?). I'll post an extremely amateur review soon!
Unfortunately both discs are non-hybrid single layer SACDs. There surely is a place in Dante's nine circles of hell for the idiotic marketer who allowed that idea to get past the drawing board!
Anyway if anyone else has any suggestions of good jazz discs (maybe Telarc, Chesky?) phone 'em in!
Cheers
Nick

zomax said:

Try these:

Classic discs:

1) Bill Evans Trio -- Sunday at the Village Vanguard (Analogue Productions hybrid stereo) -- this one will set you back $20+, but in terms of both sonics and music, I vouch that it's worth every cent. This is piano, bass, and drums -- jazz in perhaps its most fundamental form, which is perfect for getting a feel of what's going on in the piece.

2) Charles Mingus -- Mingus Ah Um (Sony single layer stereo) -- I note your preference for hybrids, but aside from the two you already have, this is probably one of the key discs in jazz history (in any format). Get it on sale from the sony website and buy the cd for your car too for about the same price as the above disc.

3) Thelonious Monk Quartet -- Monk's Music (Fantasy hybrid stereo) -- another classic with good sound (though the recording still shows its age, it's priced reasonably at $17-19).

4) Wes Montgomery -- The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery (Fantasy hybrid stereo) -- same as above, but slightly better sounding IMHO. Also, no horns, just a trio + one beautiful, melifluous guitar.

5) Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers -- Caravan (Fantasy hybrid stereo) -- some excellent hard bop with horns and great drumming by the legendary Blakey.

Contemporary Discs:

6) Geri Allen Trio -- The Life of a Song (Telarc hybrid MC) -- compelling, swinging, beautiful jazz with stellar sound in both stereo and especially MC.

7) Chick Corea -- Rendevous in NY (Concord hybrid MC 2-disc) -- an outstanding array of jazz styles and great live sound.

8) Buster Williams -- Griot Liberte (HighNote hybrid MC) -- bass, vibes, drums, and piano on mostly original compositions with emotion, intellgience and fine musicianship.

Keep us posted.

nickc said:

thanks for the recommendations brad - your descriptions of the music are especially helpful! if push comes to shove i would prefer MC but it wouldn't stop me buying classics.
cheers
nick

nickc said:

Unfortunately both discs are non-hybrid single layer SACDs. There surely is a place in Dante's nine circles of hell for the idiotic marketer who allowed that idea to get past the drawing board!
Anyway if anyone else has any suggestions of good jazz discs (maybe Telarc, Chesky?) phone 'em in!
Cheers
Nick

Johnno said:

How many people with CD players in their cars play the CD layers of their hybrids when out driving?

zem05 said:

If you prefer MC jazz recordings, here are some further suggestions, all hybrids:

zem05 said:

If you prefer MC jazz recordings, here are some further suggestions, all hybrids:

The Concord label produced some of the best-sounding mainstream RBCDs of the 80's and 90's, so the high quality of their SACD reisuues comes as no surprise. They recently acquired the Fantasy catalogue, so we can look forward to many classic and contemporary releases. Here are some of my favorites.

Stan Getz - Pure Getz: Keeper of Lester Young's lyrical tenor flame, Stan only improved with age. Here he's joined by Phil Woods' pianist James McNeely, Bill Evans' last bassist and drum greats Victor Lewis and Billy Hart on a series of newer jazz standards from Miles Davis, Bill Evans, and Billy Strayhorn, among others.

Scott Hamilton - With Strings: a lot of jazz purists scoff at the with strings approach to ballads, but some of jazz's greatest soloists (Charlie Parker, Ben Webster, Clifford Brown to name a few) have recorded classic sessions, and Scott Hamilton, another Lester Young tenor disciple, joins their ranks with this beautiful disc.

Carmen McRae - Live at Birdland West: One of the greatest jazz singers ever, Carmen McRae was a friend to Billie Holliday, and a great interpreter of her music (the classic 'Fine and Mellow' is included here). Jazz is best heard live, and the surround mix here places you in the best seat in the house as Carmen and her band (featuring organ great Jack McDuff) hold the audience in the palm of their hand.

The Jim Hall Quartet - All Across the City: Jazz guitar great Jim Hall leads a young group through a program of standards, originals, and the beautiful Brazilian composition Beija-Flor.

Gary Burton -Like Minds: Pat Metheny and Chick Corea join vibist Burton, drummer Roy Haynes, and bassist Dave Holland for a true all-star session. Original compositions from Metheny, Corea, and Burton, plus a Gershwin cover make for a great, varied program of accessible contemporary jazz.

Poncho Sanchez - Out of Sight: One of Concord's more recent releases, this is a great introduction to Latin jazz, as percussion master Sanchez and his group are joined by Ray Charles, Billy Preston, and former James Brown horn players Pee Wee Ellis and Fred Wesley for a session that's equal parts R & B and latin, in other words, 100% danceable.

If you enjoy the Sanchez disc, proceed directly to Michel Camilo - Live at the Blue Note (Telarc), where a trio headed by Panamanian pianist Camilo sets the club on fire over the course of two SACD's.

A member of John Coltrane's legendary quartet, pianist McCoy Tyner, has lost none of his drive over the ensuing years, and remains one of my favorites. His two most recent releases on Telarc, 'Land of Giants' and 'Illuminations' see him joined by vibist Bobby Hutcherson, (on 'Land..')horn players Gary Bartz and Terence Blanchard (on 'Illuminations'), and crack rhythm sections for some great contemporary jazz.

Both 'Kind of Blue' and 'Time Out' are now available as hybrids, at least here in Europe. Happy jazz listening!

nickc said:

I've finally taken the plunge (as I intimated two years ago in my profile)and bought two jazz discs. I thought I might as well start with the two most famous discs: Dave Brubeck's "Time Out" and Miles Davis' "Kind of Blue", which, unbelievably I had never heard in my 35 years on the planet!
Just like a classical novice buying "The Four Seasons" or Beethoven's "Fifth" I thought I would start at the top and see how it went. Just because all these pieces are overly familiar I sometimes think we can forget how good they are-it's said cliche is just a great truth paled by repetition.
Anyway I played the first track on both discs and loved them. The sound was also fantastic for 1959 vintage (funnily enough was that also the year of Dorati's MLP Firebird?). I'll post an extremely amateur review soon!
Unfortunately both discs are non-hybrid single layer SACDs. There surely is a place in Dante's nine circles of hell for the idiotic marketer who allowed that idea to get past the drawing board!
Anyway if anyone else has any suggestions of good jazz discs (maybe Telarc, Chesky?) phone 'em in!
Cheers
Nick

Johnno said:

I remember reading that, early on, someone at Sony decided that, since people interested in SACD had spent a lot of money on a special player, they wouldn't be interested in the CD layer