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SACD

Jordi Savall – Claudio Monteverdi: Vespro della Beata Vergine (1989) [Reissue 2007] [SACD / Alia Vox – AVSA9855 A+B]

adminMarch 31, 2026 6 Views

Title: Jordi Savall – Claudio Monteverdi: Vespro della Beata Vergine (1989) [Reissue 2007]
Genre: Classical
Format: MCH SACD ISO + DSF DSD64 + Hi-Res FLAC

Here is the first re-issue from the Astrée-Naive catalogue for Alia Vox Heritage. One of Jordi Savall’s legendary recordings, the Monteverdi Vespers was recorded in the Santa Barbara chapel in Mantova, Italy, the site of the premiere in 1610.

This is a Super Audio remastering of Savall’s 1988 recording (13:4), made in the ducal basilica of Santa Barbara in Mantua. Like Harry Christophers eight months earlier (12:6), Savall recast the work as a Vespers of St. Barbara, the patron of the basilica, on the assumption that it might have been performed there before publication. This was accomplished chiefly by using six chant antiphons for the feast that was proper to the basilica, even though they fitted the modes of the psalms no better than any Marian feast does (a point that I failed to grasp in the original review). Christophers went further, changing the litany to “Santa Barbara, ora pro nobis” and radically rearranging the order of the pieces, in the process completing a liturgical reconstruction of sorts. But Savall’s is the only recording of the masterpiece recorded in that basilica (John Eliot Gardiner did record it at St. Mark’s in Venice, 14:5). Even though it was recorded with a pair of omnidirectional microphones, it has been remastered for Super Audio surround sound, and the result is spectacular. The producer intended to capture the acoustics of the basilica that Monteverdi was familiar with. Savall thinks he might have first performed the work there, suggesting an occasion on March 25, 1610, without offering any evidence for the idea. Scholars have suggested a couple of other occasions that prove to be impossible on closer examination. There have been over 20 recordings since then, and Masaaki Suzuki (25:2) and Rinaldo Alessandrini (28:4) are among the best, the latter among the few recordings that adopts a chamber style without choral voices. Both of these stick to the publication of 1610 with both Magnificats, transposing the two chiavette movements but adding nothing. It is tempting to include John Eliot Gardiner (14:5; DVD in 27:1) in a short list, but especially on DVD his effort to dramatize Vespers is wrongheaded. The Mass is an action, with movement and gesture; Vespers and other hours of the Office are simply ritual prayer, marked by little more than standing and kneeling in place. Along with the other positive attributes, Savall’s version is good because it is so well sung. All the original notes are retained, and Savall adds another note dated 2007. The date of death of Monteverdi’s predecessor in Mantua, Giovanni Gastoldi, is still described as “shortly after” 1608, though he lived until 1622. The packaging is even more sumptuous than the original issue. This is still one of the recommendable recordings of this masterpiece.

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3 min read

SACD

Jon Lord – Beyond The Notes (2004) [SACD / Capitol Records – 7243 8 74181 2 7]

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Title: Jon Lord – Beyond The Notes (2004)
Genre: Rock
Format: MCH SACD ISO + Hi-Res FLAC

Beyond The Notes is a studio album by former Deep Purple keyboard player Jon Lord, released in 2004. It features guest appearances from Frida Lyngstad, Sam Brown (singer), Miller Anderson, Thys van Leer, Pete York, and Trondheim Soloists. Organist Jon Lord supposedly left Deep Purple to retire and take it easy, after he’d spent much of his life recording and touring the world with Purple and other artists. But upon his exit from the band, Lord played gigs and issued albums on his own, such as 2004’s Beyond the Notes. The split provided Lord with the opportunity to pursue some unexpected musical avenues, as the album sees a detour into soothing classical music. Gone is the blaring guitar through Marshall stacks and Lord’s overdriven organ rocking back and forth — in its place is the jazzy sound of “Cologne Again” a lovely piano ballad, and the string-heavy album closer, “Music for Miriam.” While it’s not unheard of for a rock musician to take the orchestral plunge, Beyond the Notes is one of the few instances where it works surprisingly well and doesn’t come off as a mere detour.

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2 min read

SACD

Joni Mitchell – Ladies Of The Canyon (2024 MFSL UltraDisc UHR SACD) (1970/2024) [SACD / Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab – UDSACD 2267]

adminMarch 31, 2026 4 Views

Title: Joni Mitchell – Ladies Of The Canyon (2024 MFSL UltraDisc UHR SACD) (1970/2024)
Genre: Folk Rock
Format: DSF DSD64

HYBRID SACD PRESENTS LANDMARK 1970 ALBUM IN REFERENCE-LEVEL AUDIOPHILE SOUND Ladies of the Canyon can be viewed as Joni Mitchell’s coming-out party. Having recently moved to Lookout Mountain in Los Angeles’ Laurel Canyon area – her house is depicted in a watercolor painting she made for the record’s cover – the Canadian icon turned to her immediate surroundings for inspiration all the while taking the pulse of national affairs, corporate enterprise, celebrity, and her relationship with Graham Nash. The rather upbeat Ladies of the Canyon also finds the singer-songwriter morphing into the groundbreaker who would shed folk music’s constructs and wade into pop, jazz, soul, and poetry with a combination of depth, sophistication, self-examination, and acumen no one had ever heard. Deemed ‘powerful and brilliant’ upon release by The New York Times, this 1970 set marks the first of six consecutive masterworks Mitchell made – and an album that deserves to be heard in reference-grade audiophile sound on Mobile Fidelity’s numbered-edition hybrid SACD.

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1 min read

SACD

Jon Hassell – Fascinoma (1999) [SACD / Water Lily Acoustics – WLA-CS-70-SACD]

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Title: Jon Hassell – Fascinoma (1999)
Genre: Jazz
Format: SACD ISO

“With this record, I locate myself squarely within that aspect of music which is fundamental and irreducible: the beauty of the sound,” states Jon Hassell in the liner notes for Fascinoma. Hassell, of course, has spent his career emphasizing the beauty of sound and how recordings capture that better than any other medium. The difference is, with Fascinoma, he weaves unique interpretations of standards like “Nature Boy” and “Caravan” into his own sonic tapestry. Hassell has intended the album as a tribute to the “musical exotica” he heard as a child “on the radio or in movie scores,” and his statement unlocks many doors to his music. Echoes of early exotica and evocative jazz can be heard throughout the album, but Hassell pieces it together in an odd, original fashion. Since the record is so quiet, some listeners may dismiss it as mere mood music. This is a valid point; the album creates its own unique, wide open aural vistas. But listen closer and there’s some truly startling interplay and ideas, not only from Hassell but from his supporting musicians (who include Ry Cooder and Jacky Terrasson). At times, the gauzy recording can be a little impenetrable, as can the challenging minimalism of the compositions and arrangements themselves. But if the music intrigues you, it’s hard not to get swept up in it.

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2 min read

SACD

Jon Davis Trio – Beauty And The Blues (2013) [Japan 2018] [SACD / Venus Records – VHCD-1107]

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Title: Jon Davis Trio – Beauty And The Blues (2013) [Japan 2018]
Genre: Jazz
Format: SACD ISO + DSF DSD64 + Hi-Res FLAC

Pianist and composer Jon Davis has been performing and touring with many of the finest jazz musicians around the world for more than 25 years. He has appeared on over 50 recordings, and has contributed compositions on many of them. Although perhaps still most widely known for his association with the legendary bassist, Jaco Pastorius, Jon has shown a rare versatility ranging from solo, to Big Band, and everything in between. In his debut CD from Venus Records of Japan, Davis delves deep into the blues, not strictly in terms of structure, as he chose a variety of well-known standards that do not conform to the blues form, but more in terms of the spirit and moods. The program starts with a soulful and even a bit funky rendition of “Beautiful Love” and includes such highlights as the beautiful “Moon River” and the bouncy “Mr. Lucky”. A very well-executed, romantic piano trio album.

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1 min read

SACD

Jonathan Freeman-Attwood – La Trompette Retrouvee (2007) [SACD / Linn Records – CKD 294]

adminMarch 31, 2026 5 Views

Title: Jonathan Freeman-Attwood – La Trompette Retrouvee (2007)
Genre: Classical
Format: MCH SACD ISO + Hi-Res FLAC

La Trompette Retrouvée is Freeman-Attwood’s second recording in his series with Linn Records and continues to explore his passion for expanding the limited chamber repertoire for trumpet by imaginatively arranging chamber works previously scored for alternative forces. He is joined on this recording by the pianist Daniel-Ben Pienaar. As the title implies, this album contains works by French composers, transforming works originally for forces such as cello, piano and orchestra into convincing transcriptions for trumpet and piano.

Arthur Butterworth, composer and former principal-trumpet of Barbirolli’s Hallé Orchestra, once lamented to me about the restricted use of the trumpet in the 18th-century orchestra, after the guilds of players that created the great Baroque tradition of high trumpeting had disappeared. But in the 20th century – not least with the coming of jazz – the trumpet has sustained a renaissance, and today there is almost nothing a top-class player cannot do within the instrument’s range (and even above it). Never better demonstrated than in this highly stimulating recital by Gramophone’s own Jonathan Freeman-Attwood with his splendidly responsive partner, Daniel-Ben Pienaar, who constantly illuminates the piano contribution. The transcription of Chabrier’s Pièces pittoresques stands out, full of charm, with the spiccato trumpet in the “Danse villageoise” (a real lollipop) and the galumphing “Scherzo-Waltz” irresistible, so perfectly suited to this instrument. Rameau’s Naïs Suite, which opens the programme, is remarkably successful too, stylish and characterful, with moments of real nobility. Apart from his nimble dexterity, Freeman-Attwood’s playing is just as striking for the beauty of his lyrical phrasing and his richness of colour, so well demonstrated by Saint-Saëns’s “Romanza”, and in the wonderful freedom of his playing in the transcription of Fauré’s Violin Sonata No 2, which at times (and specially in the finale) almost convinces one that it was written for the trumpet. I resisted this remarkable arrangement first time through, but on subsequent listenings put prejudice aside and revelled in the sheer musicianship of this splendidly matched duo. They are helped by absolutely natural recording in an ideal acoustic. It sounds first-class on CD equipment; but subtly bring in the back speakers and you will surely “retrieve” the image of the two players together with complete realism. And if you haven’t got the equipment yet for SACD, you don’t know what you are missing – a truly added dimension in music reproduction in the home! La Trompette Retrouvée’ includes French chamber music recordings, from Rameau to Fauré, with trumpet. They were discovered’ again with fresh arrangements as the trumpet accompanies the piano. It is the second record in a series of trumpet playing recordings presented in a novel way. The third one is planned in 2008 and it also will include music from 17th Century. It is a brilliant record. The music and the performances are excellent (however, modern technological play doesn’t have to be liked by everyone). The sound quality is fantastic! I have to tell again- it is a fantastic record! There are just two instruments – trumpet and piano, but it sounds like a chamber orchestra. The trumpet plays with strong dynamic and gentle way of legato. This gives a fantastic effect in the sound. Both instruments have got a lot of air around them but they aren’t blurred, which often occurs in the multi-channel recordings. Between the listener and the audience is quite a distance like in a real concert, and we are sitting near to the trumpeter. Therefore, in reality we turn down and up, because we want to find the natural level of sound. However, we are enjoying the music and we just relax, and then the strong entry of the trumpet might punch us to the wall. Piano also is recorded from the long distance. However, we might feel that the piano plays the second role, because it plays less dynamic, in the ‘safe” way. To the perfect play of the record you have to have a system with very good resolution and dynamic.

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4 min read

SACD

Jon Anderson – Olias Of Sunhillow (1976) [Audio Fidelity 2014] [SACD / Audio Fidelity – AFZ 156]

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Title: Jon Anderson – Olias Of Sunhillow (1976) [Audio Fidelity 2014]
Genre: Rock
Format: SACD ISO + Hi-Res FLAC

Inspired by the artwork of Roger Dean and the writings of Ver Stanley Alder, Jon Anderson developed an entire story around the idea of an interstellar exodus from Sunhillow, writing this album around the narrative (named for the spaceship’s architect, Olias). The idea may seem overly ambitious, but Anderson fills the record with enough magical moments to delight fans of Yes’ mystic side. The music is written and performed almost entirely by Anderson, who dubs vocals, plays guitar and harp, and adds percussion and the occasional synthesizer to flesh out his ideas so that at no point does the music lose its spellbinding effect for lack of sonic detail. Olias of Sunhillow is faithful to the spirit of Yes, though decidedly more airy than that band’s visceral style — its closest comparison would be Fragile’s “We Have Heaven” or Going for the One’s “Wonderous Stories” (which was clearly influenced by this record) on the vocal tracks, and Vangelis on the instrumental tracks. Although the album is effective in its entirety, “Sound Out the Galleon,” “Olias (To Build the Moorglade),” and “Solid Space” are some of the more memorable excerpts. The arrangements incorporate elements of the four tribes of Sunhillow, the most noticeable being Oriental elements that prefigure Vangelis’ own China (especially on the opening “Ocean Song”). While there are several songs that could have easily fit in Yes’ own catalog, and the lyrics continue to mine the mystical musings that Yes fans had come to enjoy, Olias of Sunhillow is not the missing Yes album some might hope it to be, though it does deliver on the promise that the Jon & Vangelis collaborations seemed to hold. If possible, pick up the LP version of this release, since the packaging is stunning and features terrific artwork by Dave Roe.

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2 min read

SACD

Johnny Winter – The Best Of Johnny Winter (2002) [Reissue 2003] [SACD / Columbia – CS 85926]

adminMarch 31, 2026 3 Views

Title: Johnny Winter – The Best Of Johnny Winter (2002) [Reissue 2003]
Genre: Blues, Blues Rock
Format: SACD ISO + Hi-Res FLAC

Columbia/Legacy’s 2002 release The Best of Johnny Winter concentrates solely on the guitarist’s early recordings for Columbia, which are often (and deservedly) considered his best work. Nearly all of the 16 selections here were recorded between 1969 and 1971 — there’s a stray cut from 1973, plus two cuts from 1979, dating from his time on Blue Sky — and all of them showcase Winter at his best, not just as a fiery blues-rock guitarist, but as a band leader. While there are a few items that may be relatively rare here, there is no unreleased material, just selections from Winter at his prime, and this collection does a very good job of summarizing that peak succinctly and enjoyably.

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1 min read

SACD

Johnny Mathis – The Christmas Album (2002) [SACD / Columbia – CK 86814]

adminMarch 31, 2026 2 Views

Title: Johnny Mathis – The Christmas Album (2002)
Genre: Christmas
Format: MCH SACD ISO + DSF DSD64 + Hi-Res FLAC

Johnny Mathis is one of the few classic artists whose names have become synonymous with the holidays. He practically owns “Marshmallow World,” for instance. The silky smooth crooner has released at least one new Christmas album every decade since his ’50s hit-making heyday. His first entry of the 2000s may not be the best choice for the uninitiated, but anyone who’s loved his Christmas music in the past surely won’t be disappointed. Mathis’s voice has matured, but that tenor is still beautiful, as he delivers his usual mix of carols and pop standards. Like so many other Christmas artists, Mathis is at his best when he’s covering the already familiar: “Frosty the Snowman” and “Have a Holly Jolly Christmas” pop like Sinatra here, making up for the rather unmemorable “Heavenly Peace”. That voice, though, has always been an instrument of romance and fantasy, two elements that blend perfectly with the holiday spirit.
In case you’ve lost track (or were never keeping track), this is Johnny Mathis’ sixth newly recorded Christmas album following Merry Christmas (1958), The Sound of Christmas (1963), Give Me Your Love for Christmas (1969), For Christmas (1984), and Christmas Eve With Johnny Mathis (1986). If it seems like there have been even more, that’s because of repackagings: Such titles as Christmas with Johnny Mathis, Christmas Is…, and The Christmas Music of Johnny Mathis: A Personal Collection are compilations drawn from the previous original five. So, maybe this 2002 collection should be called “A Christmas Album” instead of The Christmas Album. Definitive yet generic, that title isn’t likely to distinguish the disc for buyers browsing the holiday sections of their local record stores. You might think that Mathis would have trouble finding Christmas evergreens to record the sixth time through, but somehow he doesn’t seem to have gotten around to “Joy to the World,” “Away in a Manger,” “Frosty the Snowman,” “Have a Holly Jolly Christmas,” “O Little Town of Bethlehem,” or “Merry Christmas” before. He has commissioned one new one, Tom Snow and Dean Pitchford’s pleasant “Heavenly Peace,” and pressed into service other non-holiday standards, such as Irving Berlin’s “I’ve Got My Love to Keep Me Warm” and ’40s bandleader Claude Thornhill’s theme song “Snowfall.” And since the album only contains ten tracks and runs a mere half an hour, that’s enough. Backed by the Irish Film Orchestra, which can be alternately lush and swinging, Mathis creates yet another winning collection. It isn’t a match for his classic first one, Merry Christmas, but it’s still very good.

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3 min read

SACD

Johnny Hartman – The Voice That Is (1964) [Analogue Productions 2012] [SACD / Analogue Productions – CIPJ 74 SA]

adminMarch 31, 2026 3 Views

Title: Johnny Hartman – The Voice That Is (1964) [Analogue Productions 2012]
Genre: Jazz
Format: SACD ISO + DSF DSD64 + Hi-Res FLAC

Though he was never the most distinctive vocalist, Johnny Hartman rose above others to become the most commanding, smooth balladeer of the 1950s and ’60s, a black crooner closely following Billy Eckstine and building on the form with his notable jazz collaborations. This album featuring performances recorded in 1964 for the Impulse! label.

Ballad singer Johnny Hartman’s third and final Impulse session is not quite on the same level as the first two. Although the earlier of the two sessions has several near-classic performances (including “My Ship,” “Waltz for Debby,” and “It Never Entered My Mind”), the second date has weaker material, primarily several songs from movies or shows, including “Sunrise, Sunset.” Hartman is in fine form whether backed by the Hank Jones quartet or accompanied by an octet arranged by pianist Bob Hammer, but this set is not as essential as his earlier meetings with John Coltrane and Illinois Jacquet.

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1 min read