Elvis Presley – Essential Elvis Volume 2: Stereo ’57 (1988) [Analogue Productions Remaster 2013] [SACD / Analogue Productions – CAPP 057 SA]

Elvis Presley - Essential Elvis Volume 2: Stereo '57 (1988) [Analogue Productions Remaster 2013]

Title: Elvis Presley – Essential Elvis Volume 2: Stereo ’57 (1988) [Analogue Productions Remaster 2013]
Genre: Rock
Format: SACD ISO + Hi-Res FLAC

The second volume of Essential Elvis offers Elvis in binaural stereo from the January 1957 sessions that produced several hits. (RCA Victor generously filled the disc out with mono masters of the remaining songs to give the consumer a complete version of the sessions.) This is a lot of fun; the gaffes are numerous, obvious, and hilarious, and for ears raised on multi-track recording, it must be amazing to hear an entire record recorded live in the studio!

(more…)

1 min read

Elvis Presley – 24 Karat Hits! (1997) [Analogue Productions’ Remaster 2012] [SACD / Analogue Productions – CAPP 2040 SA]

Elvis Presley - 24 Karat Hits! (1997) [Analogue Productions’ Remaster 2012]

Title: Elvis Presley – 24 Karat Hits! (1997) [Analogue Productions’ Remaster 2012]
Genre: Rock
Format: SACD ISO + Hi-Res FLAC

Had Elvis Presley done nothing else but record “That’s Alright, Mama,” his place in pop music history would be secure. With his first regional hit, Presley fused rhythm and blues with country, put a handsome white face out front for audiences to see, and in so doing legitimized beat music for white audiences. It is no understatement to call Presley the chief catalyst of the rock-and-roll era. During the 1950s, Presley’s records spent a collective 53 weeks in the number one chart position. Only the Beatles can boast similar sales success. spectacular television special and several great albums. During the last decade of his career, Presley’s live show was the hottest ticket in America. A great singer first and last, Presley was equally adept at raunchy blues, lilting boogie, operatic pop, and country tear-jerkers.

(more…)

1 min read

Elvis Presley – Elvis Is Back (1960) [Analogue Productions Remaster 2012] [SACD / Analogue Productions – CAPP 2231 SA]

Elvis Presley - Elvis Is Back (1960) [Analogue Productions Remaster 2012]

Title: Elvis Presley – Elvis Is Back (1960) [Analogue Productions Remaster 2012]
Genre: Rock
Format: SACD ISO + Hi-Res FLAC

“Elvis Is Back” was Presley’s first album to be released in true stereo. It peaked at number two on the Top Pop Albums chart and is listed, along with his debut and From Elvis in Memphis, in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. It was certified Gold on July 15, 1999, by the RIAA.

Although they have common recording origins, two of the three singles, “It’s Now or Never” and “Are You Lonesome Tonight,” were very quirky by the standards of Elvis songs at the time — the former inspired by Elvis’s admiration for Tony Martin’s 1949 hit “There’s No Tomorrow,” while the latter was recorded at the request of Col. Parker as a favor to his wife. They add to the diversity of sounds on this record, which shows a mature Elvis Presley. “Dirty, Dirty Feeling” and “It Feels So Right” showed he could still rock out and challenge authority and propriety, while “Reconsider Baby” and “Like a Baby” offer some of his best blues performances; but “The Thrill of Your Love” (a very gospel-tinged number), “Soldier Boy,” “Girl of My Best Friend,” and “Girl Next Door Went a’ Walking,” also displayed the rich, deep vocalizing that would challenge critics’ expectations of Elvis Presley playing rhythm guitar throughout. He also comes off better than on any of his other albums since arriving at RCA, as a musician as much as a “star” (he’d always had a lot more to say about running his sessions than the critics who loathed his RCA years indicated). [The 1999 remastering of this classic album features the complete contents of the March 20, 1960, RCA Hollywood session plus the dawn-to-dusk April 2 Nashville session that rounded out the album, for a total of 18 songs, including the three singles and their B-sides from those sessions. The sound is extraordinarily close yet natural, giving the listener full value for the presence of Scotty Moore, Hank Garland (who also plays bass on a few tracks), D.J. Fontana, Boots Randolph, and Floyd Cramer.]

(more…)

2 min read

Elvis Costello – North (2003) [SACD / Deutsche Grammophon – B0001580-36]

Elvis Costello - North (2003)

Title: Elvis Costello – North (2003)
Genre: Jazz, Rock
Format: MCH SACD ISO + Hi-Res FLAC

North, Elvis Costello’s 20th album of new material, follows the deliberately classicist When I Was Cruel by a mere year, but it feels more the sequel to 1998’s Burt Bacharach collaboration, Painted From Memory, or even 1993’s roundly ignored classical pop experiment, The Juliet Letters. Costello has abandoned clanging guitars and drums of Cruel — abandoned rock & roll, really — to return to a set of classically influenced songs, all “composed, arranged and conducted” by the man himself (on The Juliet Letters, he was merely the composer and voice). The songs on North are pitched halfway between traditional torch ballads and arty contemporary Broadway writers such as Stephen Sondheim. This isn’t so much a shift in direction after When I Was Cruel as much as it is an extension of the Bacharach album (in this context, Cruel seems like the aberration), but it’s also a reflection of Costello’s new love for Canadian jazz singer Diana Krall. It’s not just that North is somewhat of a song cycle, starting with the despair of a failed relationship and ending with the hope of a new love, but that it’s somewhat written in the style of Krall’s music: self-consciously sophisticated and slightly jazzy. Ultimately, North is not jazz-pop; it’s classical pop, with Costello more interested in the structure, arrangement, and words of the song rather than mere catchiness. It’s a very writerly album, in regards to both the music and lyrics. Consequently, it takes a bit of effort to get into the album, since it purposefully lacks hooks and songs as immediate or tuneful as those on Painted From Memory or “Jacksons, Monk and Rowe” from The Juliet Letters. This is not a flaw, per se — it’s simply what the album is, a collection of subtle songs performed with an elegant understatement. Unlike The Juliet Letters, North never feels like an exercise, nor does it feel like Costello has something to prove. It’s a specific, personal album with serious ambitions that it fulfills. If the album ultimately winds up being something to listen to on occasion rather than a record to spin repeatedly, that doesn’t make Costello’s achievement with this song cycle any less admirable.

(more…)

3 min read

Elvis Costello – My Aim Is True (1977) [Japanese Limited SHM-SACD 2011] [SACD / Hip-O Records – UIGY-9065]

Elvis Costello - My Aim Is True (1977) [Japanese Limited SHM-SACD 2011]

Title: Elvis Costello – My Aim Is True (1977) [Japanese Limited SHM-SACD 2011]
Genre: Jazz, Rock
Format: SACD ISO + Hi-Res FLAC

Uses the 2011 DSD master based on Japanese original analog tape. Reissue features the high-fidelity SHM-SACD format (fully compatible with standard SACD player, but it does not play on standard CD players). DSD Transferred by Manabu Matsumura. Elvis Costello was as much a pub rocker as he was a punk rocker and nowhere is that more evident than on his debut, My Aim Is True. It’s not just that Clover, a San Franciscan rock outfit led by Huey Lewis (absent here), back him here, not the Attractions; it’s that his sensibility is borrowed from the pile-driving rock & roll and folksy introspection of pub rockers like Brinsley Schwarz, adding touches of cult singer/songwriters like Randy Newman and David Ackles. Then, there’s the infusion of pure nastiness and cynical humor, which is pure Costello. That blend of classicist sensibilities and cleverness make this collection of shiny roots rock a punk record — it informs his nervy performances and his prickly songs. Of all classic punk debuts, this remains perhaps the most idiosyncratic because it’s not cathartic in sound, only in spirit. Which, of course, meant that it could play to a broader audience, and Linda Ronstadt did indeed cover the standout ballad “Alison.” Still, there’s no mistaking this for anything other than a punk record, and it’s a terrific one at that, since even if he buries his singer/songwriter inclinations, they shine through as brightly as his cheerfully mean humor and immense musical skill; he sounds as comfortable with a ’50s knockoff like “No Dancing” as he does on the reggae-inflected “Less Than Zero.” Costello went on to more ambitious territory fairly quickly, but My Aim Is True is a phenomenal debut, capturing a songwriter and musician whose words were as rich and clever as his music.

(more…)

2 min read

Elvin Jones – Dear John C. (1965) [Analogue Productions 2011] [SACD / Analogue Productions – CIPJ 88 SA]

Elvin Jones - Dear John C. (1965) [Analogue Productions 2011]

Title: Elvin Jones – Dear John C. (1965) [Analogue Productions 2011]
Genre: Jazz
Format: SACD ISO + Hi-Res FLAC

Drummer Elvin Jones may have been breaking down new rhythmic boundaries at the time with John Coltrane’s Quartet but his own sessions as a leader were not all that innovative. This quartet set with altoist Charlie Mariano, bassist Richard Davis and either Roland Hanna or Hank Jones on piano is an example of how the avant-garde of the era was starting to influence the more mainstream players. The music is in general safe but enjoyable with the virtuosic bassist Richard Davis often taking solo honors on what was in reality a modern bop date.

The second album by Elvin Jones as sole title rights leader (excluding the co-op ensemble that recorded the stunning and essential progressive jazz icon Illumination!) has the drummer sounding more like a backup musician, as he claims no compositional duties or noticeable solo space. In fact, this is one of the very best albums in the career of alto saxophonist Charlie Mariano, who occupies the bulk of lead lines and improvising responsibilities. He’s so up-front, and on an instrument that is not John Coltrane’s main instrument – the tenor sax – that the title is also a bit of a misnomer. The value of Jones as a bandleader lies in his concept of using fellow Detroiter Sir Roland Hanna or brother Hank Jones on selected tracks, or in the case of three tracks, no pianist. Bassist Richard Davis rounds out this truly brilliant ensemble of burgeoning mid-’60s jazz stars, who play an enticing collection of standards, bop, compositions of Bob Hammer, and originals from several modern sources. A stone cold bebopper and Charlie Parker devotee at the time of this recording. Mariano is the standout performer. He swings easily but mightily on the title track paralleling Coltrane’s “Milestones,” stretches the Charles Mingus evergreen “Reincarnation of a Lovebird” (titled here as “Love Bird”), and pulls out all the stops with Hank Jones during an only slightly flawed (they miss two notes) version of the tricky “Anthropology.” They tack a calypso beat onto Duke Ellington’s “Fantazm” in a playful, modern dress, and stroll on the quirky Hammer composition “That Five-Four Bag” as an offshoot retort to Dave Brubeck’s “Take Five.” The three tracks sans piano include a walking version of “Everything Happens to Me”; the ballad “Smoke Rings,” where the band excepting Mariano is relaxed; and Frank Sinatra’s “This Love of Mine,” where the emotive saxophonist dips into humor, even a bit ribald. The variety from cut to cut is engaging, and there’s nothing over the top, even the drumming of Elvin Jones. With the musicality at a high level, Dear John C. needs revisiting by drumming students and jazz fans to note how teamwork, shared values, and held-in-check dynamics benefit the overall quality of music. It seems this recording is underrated when over time it should never be. Dear John C. is deserving of an excellent rating.

(more…)

3 min read

Elton John – Tumbleweed Connection (1970) [Reissue 2004] [SACD / Island Records – B0003611-36]

Elton John - Tumbleweed Connection (1970) [Reissue 2004]

Title: Elton John – Tumbleweed Connection (1970) [Reissue 2004]
Genre: Rock
Format: MCH SACD ISO + Hi-Res FLAC

Tumbleweed Connection is the third album by English singer/songwriter Elton John. It is a concept album based on the country and western/Americana themes. All songs are written by John and Bernie Taupin, with the exception of “Love Song” by Lesley Duncan. The album was recorded at Trident Studios, London, England in March 1970 and released in October of the same year. It peaked at #2 on the UK Albums Chart and #5 on the US Billboard 200 chart. In the US, it was certified gold in March 1971 and platinum in August 1998 by the RIAA. In 2003, Tumbleweed Connection was ranked #463 on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

Instead of repeating the formula that made Elton John a success, John and Bernie Taupin attempted their most ambitious record to date for the follow-up to their breakthrough. A loose concept album about the American West, Tumbleweed Connection emphasized the pretensions that always lay beneath their songcraft. Half of the songs don’t follow conventional pop song structures; instead, they flow between verses and vague choruses. These experiments are remarkably successful, primarily because Taupin’s lyrics are evocative and John’s melodic sense is at its best. As should be expected for a concept album about the Wild West, the music draws from country and blues in equal measures, ranging from the bluesy choruses of “Ballad of a Well-Known Gun” and the modified country of “Country Comfort” to the gospel-inflected “Burn Down the Mission” and the rolling, soulful “Amoreena.” Paul Buckmaster manages to write dramatic but appropriate string arrangements that accentuate the cinematic feel of the album.

(more…)

2 min read

Elton John – Peachtree Road (2004) [SACD / Mercury – 9867612]

Elton John - Peachtree Road (2004)

Title: Elton John – Peachtree Road (2004)
Genre: Rock
Format: MCH SACD ISO + Hi-Res FLAC

Peachtree Road is the 28th studio album by British singer/songwriter Elton John, released in 2004. It was named after Peachtree Road, the northern part of Peachtree Street in Atlanta, where one of John’s four homes is located. This is the only album during his long career on which John alone has sole credit as producer.

Elton John returned to the sound and aesthetic of his classic early-’70s work with 2001’s Songs From the West Coast, finding critical acclaim, if not much commercial success. Not that the lack of sales greatly bothered Elton — in many interviews, including one with Entertainment Weekly the week before Peachtree Road was released in November 2004, he claimed he was “disappointed” that it just barely went gold, but he was tired of making “uneven” records. John wasn’t merely doing publicity: Peachtree Road proves that he’s back to making good, solid records focused on songs, not hits, the way he did at the outset of his career. Since this is an album by a veteran, not an artist on the rise, it doesn’t have the sense of discovery, or the hunger, that the early records still retain, and the production — the first self-production by John with no collaborators — is a little cleaner and crisper than the rich, warm sound of the late Gus Dudgeon (to whom this record is dedicated), who helmed such masterworks as Tumbleweed Connection. This means Peachtree Road is about craft, both in the writing and recording, which also means that it’s a grower, with each song sounding stronger, better with each spin. While the sound of the record is bright and polished, this album makes few concessions to radio: this is certainly adult pop, but it never panders to adult contemporary radio, and the music is a little too rugged and sturdy to fit alongside the stubbornly sweet sounds of 21st century MOR. Which is precisely the point, of course: Elton has consciously returned to the reflective singer/songwriter template of the early ’70s, both in his writing and production. Not that this is as lush as Elton John or country-tinged as Tumbleweed Connection — “Answer in the Sky” recalls the high-flying disco of “Philadelphia Freedom” quite deliberately, and “They Call Her the Cat” finds a halfway point between “Honkey Cat” and “The Bitch Is Back” — but it fits alongside those albums quite nicely because the focus is on songs, not trying to have hits. These songs may not rival his standards, but they’re in the same tradition, and there’s not a bad song in the bunch, resulting in a sturdy, satisfying record that proves that the comeback on Songs From the West Coast was no fluke and, hopefully, this latter-day renaissance for Elton will not be short-lived either.

(more…)

3 min read

Elton John – Madman Across The Water (1971) [Reissue 2004] [SACD / Island Records – B0003610-36]

Elton John - Madman Across The Water (1971) [Reissue 2004]

Title: Elton John – Madman Across The Water (1971) [Reissue 2004]
Genre: Rock
Format: MCH SACD ISO + Hi-Res FLAC

Madman Across the Water is the fourth studio album by British singer/songwriter Elton John. The title song was set to be released on John’s previous album Tumbleweed Connection. However, it was set aside and would eventually be re-recorded and serve as the title track of this album. The SACD version of the album contained a longer version of “Razor Face” which extended the song-ending jam to 6:42 instead of the early fade on the original album.

Trading the cinematic aspirations of Tumbleweed Connection for a tentative stab at prog rock, Elton John and Bernie Taupin delivered another excellent collection of songs with Madman Across the Water. Like its two predecessors, Madman Across the Water is driven by the sweeping string arrangements of Paul Buckmaster, who gives the songs here a richly dark and haunting edge. And these are songs that benefit from grandiose treatments. With most songs clocking in around five minutes, the record feels like a major work, and in many ways it is. While it’s not as adventurous as Tumbleweed Connection, the overall quality of the record is very high, particularly on character sketches “Levon” and “Razor Face,” as well as the melodramatic “Tiny Dancer” and the paranoid title track. Madman Across the Water begins to fall apart toward the end, but the record remains an ambitious and rewarding work, and John never attained its darkly introspective atmosphere again.

(more…)

2 min read