Kevin Bresnahan

No. I thought I was being blatantly un-serious. I used the "wiseass" symbol to show that I was being sacrcastic. I was hoping my sarcasm would make it clear that I don't agree with buying any of these labels' releases. Sarcasm just doesn't work on the Internet. It just doesn't.

While I agree that it would be wrong to buy the Mingus and Parker/Gillespie Uptown clones, I don't really see the problem with purchasing the Massey Hall or Horace. It's been over 50 years for both.' Guy Why differentiate the Mingus and Parker/Gillespie CDs? I think I know why - Chuck's here and considered a friend. But they're well beyond the 50 year EU term, so if that's the only criteria, buy 'em. I can see if people say, "I won't buy the Mingus and Parker/Gillespie CDs because I want Chuck Nessa's label to succeed." But if you think the 50 year rule is fine for Horace Silver and the Quintet, then it's fine for these as well. Why not screw Chuck's label out of some return on investment too?

Damn! I had read the encouraging news this summer on the Jazz Corner boards and I assumed he would be around a lot longer. RIP Michael. I have some fond memories of some great blowing. The show he put on with Lovano & Leibman... wow. That's one that will never be forgotten.

I thought I heard that this CD was going to be reissued by LeDonne's current label? Is it already out on the Savant label?

Every CD is 16 bit/44.1 kHz PCM. Sometimes, the mastering engineer will convert the analog to digital at 20 or 24 bit and work on the digital at that point, but it always has to be converted to 16 bit PCM for CD. If the CD is encoded in HDCD and your player can decode it, there are two extra bits at play, but I'm not sure that both bits are always used. FWIW, I've never been a believer that 20 bit or 24 bit equates to "good sounding CD". It's all in the mastering, not the bits. I've heard just as many crappy-sounding 24 bit masterings as 16 bit ones. Later, Kevin

WinRar's nag screens really piss me off after about the 8,000 th time they pop up to tell you to "pay up". I went to download.com and downloaded/installed 7-zip. Works great and no nag screens.

I was wondering if anyone was going to start this thread... it wasn't going to be me! 50. I used to think that was "old". Now, I think it's not too old. Ha! See you at Jack's sale Rob. Kevin

I just bought a rather expensive television so I was thinking about protecting it. I also am a bit worried about RF interference affecting the picture as I've seen it affect the display model at Circuit City. So, taking advantage of the last day of the $20 Google Check-Out at buy.com, I ordered a Belkin PureAV PF31. Less than $100 delivered. I'll see if it does anything for my system. I doubt it, but I'll give it a try. Later, Kevin

Ditto. I bought it expecting a "Wow" and got a "ummm, OK". I guess I thought it would be a bit more bombastic? Hank still plays pretty good though.

The timings on the back of the CD are totally incorrect and would lead one to believe that the tracks are edited. They are not.

Get the Collectables two-fer which combines "Philly Joe & Elvin: Together" with "Philly Joe's Beat". It has the entire LP, even though the CD says it doesn't. Nothing is omitted from "Philly Joe & Elvin: Together" as far as I can tell. Later, Kevin

I just downloaded and installed it last week. I haven't really given it much of a workout yet. I bought it mostly for MyDVD Premier, which is part of the bundle. I needed this to start working with my new Panasonic DVD camcorder discs. Kevin

Why not just rip the 5 tracks off of the two CDs and make your own standalone copy? I've done that myself with a couple of Mosaic boxes. Heck, you could even have fun with the artwork.

It might help to pry it from someone's hands if you said how much you'd be willing to pay. Kevin

Well, I've listened to this new CD several times now, and I have to say, I don't know what is so "wrong" with it. Like others have said, the different take for "Linus & Lucy" is tough to get by. Why didn't they include the version we've all heard for the last 25 years? Even though not the LP version, it is the actual TV soundtrack version, as I verified this last night. As for the sonics, I think this new version sounds great. All in all, if you dig this music, get this new CD. If you always wanted to hear this music, get this CD. If you already have it and like it for a couple of plays a year, stick with your old version. Merry Christmas Charlie Brown, Kevin

I want to be able to talk about this recording... after all, it's just about my favorite Christmas music. So I went out today and picked it up. I'll give it a spin tomorrow and see how it is. Just the fact that several tunes don't fade out should be a bonus. My biggest worry is that the version of 'Linus & Lucy', supposedly the "real" TV soudtrack version, will be too different from what I've grown to love for the last 20 years on CD.

I think the answer to the first question would be 'Yes' and by reading his opinions on today's topics, 'No' to the second one. The SH forums forbid political talk so I can only guess at that last one. Don't get me wrong, SH seems like a super-nice guy. I just don't like it when he speaks in absolutes most of the time. Many of the posters, maybe following his cue, do the same. They compare recordings with very subtle differences and then blurt out these proclamations that only one of them is "the one" and by extension, everything else is crap. Kevin

I agree that some of those guys go a bit overboard. Many of them are great guys whose opinion I value. Don't put too much into reading one thread, particularly this one. Why? This thread is an example of when it's a bad idea to solicit an opinion over at the Steve Hoffman forums: when SH has worked on the master for another label. NEVER talk about another version of a session if there's a SH version. You'll never get anyone to agree with you and you'll likely get booted for disagreeing with Steve. In my experience, Hoffman never seems to "like" any other version of a recording he worked on. Proof? Check his post #172 in the thread in question. Hoffman says, "Well, I have not heard the new mix but I understand what you mean by "space" or lack of it." Say what?? He's posting on a thread about a newly remastered CD and comes on and tells everyone, "Try and find the common and cheap "old" Fantasy CD", when HE'S NEVER HEARD THE NEW REMASTER?? I love Steve Hoffman's work but sometimes, he's wrong. I have to say, this may be one of those cases. The worst thing about topics like this is that you simply cannot argue this with SH. If you do, you'll be "gorted" off the site quicker than you can say, "Steve, aren't you wrong to...". That's a big weakness at those forums. Steve's opinion is gospel, even if he has never even heard the CD being discussed. Kevin

RIP Steve. Live it up, everyone. You only get one. Sounds like Steve got use his wisely. Cancer. I hope our society gets better at battling this disease, which seems to affect every single human on the planet.

JJ Johnson's RCA big band recordings would fit the bill. I really dig "J.J.!", recently reissued as a Mosaic single. Tubby Hayes's "Tubbs' Tours" and "100% Proof" should still be available. Very nice hard bop big band. I prefer "Tubbs' Tours" ever slightly. Kevin

Well, I did it... LCD for me. I just decided that I'd rather pillar-box 4:3 content and I didn't want to chance burn-in. Maybe I made a mistake, maybe not. I went with the Mitsubishi LT-46131 1080p 46" model. My last Mitsubishi CRT set lasted 17 years. Hopefully their quality is still there. Kevin

I e-mailed Hiroshi and pulled Timmons' "Got To Get It". I thought it was just a trio date. It doesn't sound like something I'd like. Thanks for letting me know. Kevin

I put my order in with Hiroshi. I ordered: VICJ 41811(16 bit) Criss,Sonny(as)/Sonny's Dream 1000 VICJ 41812(20 bit K2) Terry,Clark(tp)/Serenade To A Bus Seat 1000 VICJ 41814(16 bit) Fuller,Curtis(tb)/With Red Garland 1000 VICJ 41817(16 bit) Griffin,Johnny(ts) & Eddie Davis(ts)/Lookin' At Monk 1000 VICJ 41820(16 bit) Jordan,Clifford(ts)/Spellbound 1000 VICJ 41831(16 bit) Jones,Sam(b)/Soul Society 1000 VICJ 41862(20 bit k2) Ammons,Gene(ts)/Goodbye 1000 VICJ 41863(20 bit k2) Stitt,Sonny(as)/So Doggone Good 1000 VICJ 41887(20 bit k2) Roach,Freddie(org)/My People 1000 VICJ 41890(20 bit k2) Timmons,Bobby(p)/Got To Get It 1000 VICJ 41894(16 bit) Stitt,Sonny(as) & Jack McDuff/Meets Brother Jack 1000 VICJ 41896(16 bit) Griffin,Johnny(ts)/Grab This! 1000 Some of these fall under the "I've always wondered...." banner, others are ones that I've been meaning to buy for a while but I just haven't gotten around to it. I had several others that I wavered on but when I checked into them many are on two-fers in the US. Offhand, do I have any real stinkers in here? Kevin

Any opinions on the non-K2 versions here? I have several of these titles on my want list, and the price is right. Are the "normal" CDs using the same mastering as their US counterpart or does it have a unique mastering? Quite a few of these are CD-only compilations that would appear to have been done originally by OJC in the US. If Sonny Stitt's "Soul People" is simply the US-mastered CD with an obi stuck on it, I don't need it. If it's differently mastered, I would want it to compare to the US CD if only because it's one of my favorite Sonny Stitt dates. Kevin

If you got the money, there is a solution to add a headphone jack to any audio gear with line outputs. $399 is the price you'll pay.