Audiophile Discs Archives - Page 38 of 47

Bill Evans Trio – Portrait In Jazz (1960) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Bill Evans Trio - Portrait In Jazz (1960) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Bill Evans Trio – Portrait In Jazz (1960) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}
2x Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 192kHz | CD-Format / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 1.79 GB (Hi-Res) + 442 MB (CD-Format) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: MFSL | UltraDisc One-Step | USA | Cat#: UD1S 2-009 | Genre: Jazz

The first of two studio albums by the Bill Evans-Scott LaFaro-Paul Motian trio (both of which preceded their famous engagement at the Village Vanguard), this Portrait in Jazz reissue contains some wondrous interplay, particularly between pianist Evans and bassist LaFaro, on the two versions of “Autumn Leaves.” Other than introducing Evans’ “Peri’s Scope,” the music is comprised of standards, but the influential interpretations were far from routine or predictable at the time. LaFaro and Motian were nearly equal partners with the pianist in the ensembles and their versions of such tunes as “Come Rain or Come Shine,” “When I Fall in Love,” and “Someday My Prince Will Come” (which preceded Miles Davis’ famous recording by a couple years) are full of subtle and surprising creativity. A gem. Continue reading “Bill Evans Trio – Portrait In Jazz (1960) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}”

The Band – Stage Fright (1970) [1994, DCC Remastered]

The Band - Stage Fright (1970) [1994, DCC Remastered]

Stage Fright, the Band’s third album, sounded on its surface like the group’s first two releases, Music from Big Pink and The Band, employing the same dense arrangements with their mixture of a deep bottom formed by drummer Levon Helm and bassist Rick Danko, penetrating guitar work by Robbie Robertson, and the varied keyboard work of pianist Richard Manuel and organist Garth Hudson, with Helm, Danko, and Manuel’s vocals on top. Continue reading “The Band – Stage Fright (1970) [1994, DCC Remastered]”

Al Stewart – Year Of The Cat (1976) [1978, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

Al Stewart - Year Of The Cat (1976) [1978, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

Al Stewart – Year Of The Cat (1976) [1978, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Quality / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 819 MB (Hi-Res) + 242 MB (CD-Quality) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | Pressed in Japan | Cat#: MFSL 1-009 | Genre: Pop Rock

Al Stewart had found his voice on Past, Present & Future and found his sound on Modern Times. He then perfected it all on 1976’s Year of the Cat, arguably his masterpiece. There is no overarching theme here, as there was on its two immediate predecessors, but the impossible lushness of Alan Parsons’ production and Stewart’s evocative Continental narratives give the record a welcome feeling of cohesion that keeps the record enchanting as it moves from “Lord Grenville” to “Midas Shadow” to “Broadway Hotel,” before it ends with the haunting title track. Continue reading “Al Stewart – Year Of The Cat (1976) [1978, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]”

The Alan Parsons Project – Tales Of Mystery And Imagination (1976) [1994, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

The Alan Parsons Project - Tales Of Mystery And Imagination (1976) [1994, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

The Alan Parsons Project – Tales Of Mystery And Imagination (1976)
[1994, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Quality / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 862 MB (Hi-Res) + 236 MB (CD-Quality) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | US | Cat#: MFSL 1-204 | Genre: Progressive Rock

Tales of Mystery and Imagination is the debut studio album by English rock band The Alan Parsons Project. It was released on 1 May 1976 in the United States by 20th Century Fox Records and on 1 June 1976 in the United Kingdom by Charisma Records. The lyrical and musical themes of the album, which are retellings of horror stories and poetry by Edgar Allan Poe, attracted a cult audience. Continue reading “The Alan Parsons Project – Tales Of Mystery And Imagination (1976) [1994, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]”

Kenny Rogers – The Gambler (1978) {1980, MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Kenny Rogers - The Gambler (1978) {1980, MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Kenny Rogers – The Gambler (1978) {1980, MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Format / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 797 MB (Hi-Res) + 217 MB (CD-Format) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | Japan JVC Pressed | Cat#: MFSL 1-044 | Genre: Adult Contemporary
Half-Speed Mastered

Kenny Rogers took a bit of a chance in releasing this loosly based concept album at the time, but boy, did it pay off! Sales for the album went through the roof, as the title track and “She Believes In Me” became pop crossover hits, with the latter reaching the pop Top 10. Later, “The Gambler” was turned into a string of made-for-television movies. Continue reading “Kenny Rogers – The Gambler (1978) {1980, MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}”

Neil Diamond – The Jazz Singer (1980) {MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Neil Diamond - The Jazz Singer (1980) {MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Neil Diamond – The Jazz Singer (1980) {MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Format / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 978 MB (Hi-Res) + 347 MB (CD-Format) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | Japan JVC Pressed | Cat#: MFSL 1-071 | Genre: Soundtrack, Adult Contemporary
Half-Speed Mastered

Neil Diamond’s 1980 screen turn as a charismatic singer torn between Jewish tradition and pop music stardom spawned this phenomenally successful soundtrack album — six million copies and counting. Diamond’s 21st century resurgence as a walking item of kitsch has sparked renewed interest in the bombastic melting-pot jam “America,” as well as his signature late-career ballad “Hello Again.” In addition, the lite FM favorite “Love on the Rocks” is classic, raw-throated Neil. Continue reading “Neil Diamond – The Jazz Singer (1980) {MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}”

Rod Stewart – Blondes Have More Fun (1978) {MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Rod Stewart - Blondes Have More Fun (1978) {MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Rod Stewart – Blondes Have More Fun (1978) {MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Format / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 897 MB (Hi-Res) + 250 MB (CD-Format) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | Japan JVC Pressed | Cat#: MFSL 1-054 | Genre: Pop Rock
Half-Speed Mastered

In its simplest terms, Blondes Have More Fun is Rod Stewart’s disco album, filled with pulsating rhythms and slick, synthesized textures. It’s also his trashiest, most disposable album, filled with cheap come-ons and bad double entendres. Continue reading “Rod Stewart – Blondes Have More Fun (1978) {MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}”

YES – Close To The Edge (1972) {1982, MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

YES - Close To The Edge (1972) {1982, MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

YES – Close To The Edge (1972) {1982, MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Format / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 831 MB (Hi-Res) + 258 MB (CD-Format) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | Japan JVC Pressed | Cat#: MFSL 1-077 | Genre: Progressive Rock
Half-Speed Mastered

With 1971’s Fragile having left Yes poised quivering on the brink of what friend and foe acknowledged was the peak of the band’s achievement, Close to the Edge was never going to be an easy album to make. Drummer Bill Bruford was already shifting restlessly against Jon Anderson’s increasingly mystic/mystifying lyricism, while contemporary reports of the recording sessions depicted bandmate Rick Wakeman, too, as little more than an observer to the vast tapestry that Anderson, Steve Howe, and Chris Squire were creating. Continue reading “YES – Close To The Edge (1972) {1982, MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}”

Bachman-Turner Overdrive – Not Fragile (1974) [2011, Audio Fidelity Remastered]

Bachman-Turner Overdrive - Not Fragile (1974) [2011, Audio Fidelity Remastered]

After gaining some recognition from the success of the band’s previous album, Bachman-Turner Overdrive got around to recording Not Fragile. Not only had one of the three Bachman brothers (Tim, the rhythm guitarist) left the band to BTO’s advantage, but Randy Bachman and C.F. Turner had clearly grown musically. Continue reading “Bachman-Turner Overdrive – Not Fragile (1974) [2011, Audio Fidelity Remastered]”

Stevie Wonder – 5 Albums (1972-1976) [Audio Fidelity, Remastered]

Stevie Wonder - 5 Albums (1972-1976) [Audio Fidelity, Remastered]

Music of My Mind (1972) / Talking Book (1972) / Innervisions (1973) / Fulfillingness’ First Finale (1974)
Songs in the Key of Life (1976)
Continue reading “Stevie Wonder – 5 Albums (1972-1976) [Audio Fidelity, Remastered]”

The B-52s – Cosmic Thing (1989) [2010, Audio Fidelity, HDCD Remastered]

The B-52s - Cosmic Thing (1989) [2010, Audio Fidelity, HDCD Remastered]

Many observers were prepared to write off the B-52’s after the release of Bouncing Off the Satellites. Granted, the album was completed in the wake of Ricky Wilson’s death, but the group appeared bereft of new musical ideas and were sounding rather stale. Continue reading “The B-52s – Cosmic Thing (1989) [2010, Audio Fidelity, HDCD Remastered]”

Van Halen – Van Halen (1978) [1998, DCC, 24-Karat Gold Disc Remastered]

Van Halen - Van Halen (1978) [1998, DCC, 24-Karat Gold Disc Remastered]

Among revolutionary rock albums, Van Halen’s debut often gets short shrift. Although it altered perceptions of what the guitar could do, it is not spoken of in the same reverential tones as Are You Experienced? and although it set the template for how rock & roll sounded for the next decade or more, it isn’t seen as an epochal generational shift, like Led Zeppelin, The Ramones, The Rolling Stones, or Never Mind the Bollocks Here’s the Sex Pistols, which was released just the year before. Continue reading “Van Halen – Van Halen (1978) [1998, DCC, 24-Karat Gold Disc Remastered]”

Elton John – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (1970) [1984, MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

Elton John - Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (1970) [1984, MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

Elton John – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (1970) [1984, MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]
2x Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Format / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 2.19 GB (Hi-Res) + 813 MB (CD-Format) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | Pressed In Japan on JVC | Cat#: MFSL 2-160 | Genre: Pop Rock
Half-Speed Mastered

It was designed to be a blockbuster and it was. Prior to Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Elton John had hits — his second album, Elton John, went Top 10 in the U.S. and U.K., and he had smash singles in “Crocodile Rock” and “Daniel” — but this 1973 album was a statement of purpose spilling over two LPs, which was all the better to showcase every element of John’s spangled personality. Continue reading “Elton John – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (1970) [1984, MFSL Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]”

Jackson Browne – The Pretender (1976) {1982, MFSl Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Jackson Browne - The Pretender (1976) {1982, MFSl Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Jackson Browne – The Pretender (1976) {1982, MFSl Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Format / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 0.99 GB (Hi-Res) + 402 MB (CD-Format) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | Pressed In Japan on JVC | Cat#: MFSL 1-055 | Genre: Pop Rock
Half-Speed Mastered

On The Pretender, Jackson Browne took a step back from the precipice so well defined on his first three albums, but doing so didn’t seem to make him feel any better. Employing a real producer, Jon Landau, for the first time, Browne made what sounded like a real contemporary rock record, but this made his songs less effective; the ersatz Mexican arrangement of “Linda Paloma” and the bouncy second half of “Daddy’s Tune,” with its horn charts and guitar solo, undercut the lyrics. Continue reading “Jackson Browne – The Pretender (1976) {1982, MFSl Remastered, CD-Format + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}”

Curtis Mayfield – Super Fly (1972) {2018, MFSL Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip}

Curtis Mayfield - Super Fly (1972) {2018, MFSL Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip}

Curtis Mayfield – Super Fly (1972) {2018, MFSL Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip}
SACD Rip | ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz | FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
Hybrid SACD | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 1.48 GB (ISO) + 693 MB (FLAC) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: MFSL UltraDisc UHR | USA | Cat#: UDSACD 2204 | Genre: Soul

The choice of Curtis Mayfield to score the blaxploitation film Super Fly was an inspired one. No other artist in popular music knew so well, and expressed through his music so naturally, the shades of gray inherent in contemporary inner-city life. His debut solo album, 1970’s Curtis, had shown in vivid colors that the ’60s optimist (author of the civil-rights anthems “Keep On Pushing” and “People Get Ready”) had added a layer of subtlety to his material; appearing on the same LP as the positive and issue-oriented “Move On Up” was an apocalyptic piece of brimstone funk titled “(Don’t Worry) If There’s a Hell Below Continue reading “Curtis Mayfield – Super Fly (1972) {2018, MFSL Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip}”