I am going to play all my RCA Living Stereo LPs...

[GP49]

....we come to the one Living Stereo described in the RCA Bible as 'poor'.

Playing the LP, I did not think it was that bad, maybe acceptable, but not great. Then I played the next one and remembered what an RCA is supposed to sound like, and yes, it's poor.

Agreed. This one puzzled me. First one was, as you say, poor; so poor I couldn't believe it, even though the record was clean and lustrous, and there wasn't any apparent wear or gross distortion. It just sounded...DEAD.

Then I sprung for another one. Same thing, and I gave up after that until a third copy popped up at a thrift store. What could I lose?

Fifty cents, that's what!

 

[vinyl1]

Before we get to some really good ones, there's this:

This has gorgeous string playing, very well-recorded, but the music is Kreisler on one side and Kern on the other. They made a lot of records like this in the pre-rock era, and they sold well. Those who bought Coltrane and Ravel were a tiny minority, which is why those LPs are so valuable.

If you want to hear what the shaded-dog string sound is like, you can listen to this, but I wish they had done Vaughn Williams instead.

 

[vinyl1]

Sorry for slight delay...

....as I have been playing this one over and over, not quite knowing how to rate it.

The performance is noble and high-minded, but the sonics are really only mediocre for RCA. Valin notes the lack of bass, and he is right. I would also prefer a livelier performance, but tastes may vary on this.

My copy has really horrible pre-echo at the start of the second movement; for a minute, you're thinking 'what happened?' and then the music starts again.

 

[vinyl1]

And now for a couple more. First, this not-so-great one:

A pleasant enough set of performances, perhaps, but not really special. I have never liked the Reformation Symphony, either - it is hard to believe a skilled melodist like Mendelssohn would produce such a tortured piece. So I have never bothered to seek out a shaded-dog copy.

If you really want to hear some nice Mendelssohn, get the Abbado on Decca SXL-6363. That's the one I usually play.

 

[vinyl1]

Now here is one that is truly great.

Unfortunately, my copy is quite noisy, and these are pieces where quiet surfaces are a must. Yeah, I only paid fifty cents for it, but still.....

After I played this, I happened to play the Fruhbeck de Burgos LP of Falla's El Amor Brujo. This just happens to have a competing version of Ravel's Alborada Del Gracioso on the flip side, a really excellent performance in fine sound. The Decca, which I don't have, must be really something.

 

[vinyl1]

OK, I'm going to try to get going again. No promises, though, that never works.

So sandwiched between two truly great Living Stereos, we have this one:

That you, Nero? I guess they really did have fiddles in Rome!

This is not actually a bad-sounding record, just not a very serious one. Bits and pieces of famous works played with a pick-up orchestra, well, what would you expect? Musically serious, no, but pleasant enough listening. I wouldn't be waiting around for Acoustic Sounds to reissue this title, but if you happen to see one for cheap, pick it up.

 

[George O.]

I've never seen that one.

 

[guiller]

OK, I'm going to try to get going again. No promises, though, that never works.

So sandwiched between two truly great Living Stereos, we have this one:

That you, Nero? I guess they really did have fiddles in Rome!

This is not actually a bad-sounding record, just not a very serious one. Bits and pieces of famous works played with a pick-up orchestra, well, what would you expect? Musically serious, no, but pleasant enough listening. I wouldn't be waiting around for Acoustic Sounds to reissue this title, but if you happen to see one for cheap, pick it up.

The cover reminds me of Mel Brook's "History of the World"!

 

[Ken Boyd]

Read all 12 pages, thanks for going out of the way to inform us about them. I liked the link to the list as well.

 

[GP49]

And now for a couple more. First, this not-so-great one:

A pleasant enough set of performances, perhaps, but not really special. I have never liked the Reformation Symphony, either - it is hard to believe a skilled melodist like Mendelssohn would produce such a tortured piece. So I have never bothered to seek out a shaded-dog copy.

Don't waste time looking. The Shaded Dog may not even sound as good as the White Dog, and that's mediocre. My Shaded Dog looks pristine but the sound is
congested and ill-defined in spots. This has been in my collection for a long time and it never gets played any more.

 

[vinyl1]

And now for the other half of that sandwich.....

....the next great one:

This is a Decca recording, probably engineered by Ken Wilkinson. It features the Arnold Tam O'Shanter Overture, the Gnomus movement from Pictures, Night on Bald Mountain, the Saint-Saens Danse Macabre, the Witches' Ride from Hansel and Gretel, and the Liszt Mephisto Waltz.

The sound is a step up. The Decca microphones and tape machines capture deep bass, vivid tone color and huge dynamics. The bass is clearly attenuated below 40 Hz, but it is there. The cutters they had in 1960 couldn't cut a bass signal flat down to 20 Hz. If you listen to the Hobson-era Classic reissue, you will hear the bass all the way to the bottom - but, unfortunately, without the microdynamics and tonal purity you can hear in the original. I'll have to admit that the Bernie Grundmann treatment does not hurt this type music as much as some of the other reissues, and it is a fun listen. There is also a Decca reissue from the mid-70s that I haven't heard, that might be a good compromise.


I hope you guys like the new style of picture, I got tired of having to put the belt back on my turntable - it tends to slip under the platter while I am attempting to get it in place.

 

[guiller]

I hope you guys like the new style of picture, I got tired of having to put the belt back on my turntable - it tends to slip under the platter while I am attempting to get it in place.

It´s perfect for me! Thanks again for all the great work and love you´ve put into this thread!!!

 

[vinyl1]

And back to the minor leagues....

......with this LP of film music:

The sound is very good, but it is a film score. There are some exciting special effects, bombs exploding and jungle sounds that are quite realistic. You can hear how the film composer used all the techniques of 19th and 20th century classical music to get the cues he wanted.

Why they released Vol 2 before Vol 1, I cannot say - that's large corporations for you.

 

[vinyl1]

And back to some serious classical muic, with...

.....a little Berlioz:

This is not one of the famous audiophile shaded dogs, and with good reason. IMO, the piece is very difficult to bring off successfully on record. To do that, you need a huge soundstage and deep bass. This LP is small and sweet. The string tone is good, but the bass is clearly attenuated. The performance is acceptable, nothing great.

When I want to hear this piece, I tend to reach either for the Colin Davis on Philips, which has the best performance, or the Mehta on Decca/London which has the best sound.

 

[vinyl1]

Here's one I thought I had....

....but I didn't find in the expected place. Since the cover seemed familiar, I searched through boxes of mixed records that are not part of my official collection until I found one:

As it turns out, I hadn't had one until I dug up, cleaned, and played this copy.

This is definitely a fun record, containing about a dozen short marches from various sources on each side. The performances are very good, much better than this sort of music usually receives, and the sound is also of high quality. There's a lot in these pieces you never hear when they played by your local marching band, but Fiedler and the thinly-disguised Boston Symphony manage to deliver it.

A record like this is worth nearly nothing in today's collector market, so you might as well just pick one up and enjoy it.

 

[LivingColour]

I missed a few updates. Glad I'm caught up now.

 

[vinyl1]

Now for another great one...

....the Reiner "Spain":

This is magnificent early pressing with the gatefold and booklet. With apologies to the "Moving to Montana soon...." thread starter, I obtained it by trading a a white-label promo of 'Over-Nite Sensation' even up, as they were both worth about $50 at the time.

Great sound, great performances, highly recommended, if you can find one. The program is Granados and de Falla on side 1, and Albeniz on side 2. These are pieces often heard on audiophile-approved LPs from this era, but this LP is the top dog.

 

[vinyl1]

Great thread, all the power to ya, vinyl1 !

I'm going to need it, as I'm only up to LSC-2230 after 3 1/4 years. There are a lot of records to go before I finish.

 

[guiller]

I'm going to need it, as I'm only up to LSC-2230 after 3 1/4 years. There are a lot of records to go before I finish.

We are enjoying the trip!

 

[vinyl1]

Here's one missing from my collection: LSC-2231, On Stage, Robert Shaw Chorale. Describe by Valin as 'Stage music from 30's, 40's', rated Fair. Obviously, I haven't looked too hard for this one.