Ray Charles...

[SPEC2man]

Ray Day !

So, while going through my local indy record store your post suddenly popped into my head and I walked out with Genius + Soul = Jazz. 180 gram repress but it's sweet! Very, very quiet and the tunes are just slamming this black friday. I am getting ready to upgrade the tubes in my Modwright SWL 9.0 from Tung Sol 5687's to Amprex 7119's (the holy grail) this will be one of three test spins. I will run through the test set and then swap tubes before I run through them again and then in a few weeks a third time after the tubes break in a bit. I am expecting a slight but noticeable improvement ... this is good test material.

Thanks for the heads up ... just starting to get into jazz and this is classic. Right up my alley.

 

[boreas]

I have supermarket labels (and drug store labels and five & dime labels) to thank for some of my musical education..... Here's one of my finds from that time.

John

I wouldn't consider Herald a 'supermarket label,' although it's entirely likely that you found it at one back in the day. It was probably 'cut out' by the label - or more likely specifically intended as a budget release - and re-distributed to supermarkets by a rack jobber. Herald is best known as a '50s NYC indie label specializing in vocal group/doo wop 45s. Its biggest hit was "Stay" by Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs.

I was not aware that they released an album by Lightnin' Hopkins! It would not surprise me if that album was valuable. Great score! I hope you've taken good care of it over the years! :thmbsp: Judging by the text on the cover referencing 'American folk lore,' I'm guessing that album was issued in the early '60s to capitalize on the big folk revival. Awesome cover graphics!

Yes, I'm pretty sure it was a cutout, just like the Jimmy Reed VeeJay LP I got at the same place(s) at about the same time. According to Discogs, Lightnin' Hopkins and the Blues was released in 1955. I would have probably bought my copy in the 1958 to 1961 time frame. It's long gone now. NOTHING could have survived the record player I had then.

As to value, I'd expect that to be the case. Maybe it is..... but I just got a sealed copy on Discogs for $15.00. I'm happy.

The LP referred to above just arrived in the mail. I haven't played it yet because it needs to be cleaned - 58 years of off-gassing. I gotta tell you, though, this thing looks like it was just made. Not only was it a sealed copy but it's absolutely mint, not a dog ear or a wrinkle anywhere. The vinyl, except for the "slime", looks perfect, good heavy vinyl and totally flat. Can't wait to hear it!

By the way, for you greater Boston area folks, the seller is What Cheer? at 180 Angell St. in Prov., very near Brown. (What is it about record stores and Ivies?) They have a bricks and mortar business as well as their Discogs one so a visit might be in order for some of you.

........................................

Okay, I didn't wait. I just cleaned Lightnin' and slapped him on the Wayback Machine. GREAT! record! (Oh, and a V15/IV is a great "blues cartridge" too!)

John

 

[wanders]

I agree with the comment about the earlier stuff being much "grittier" and less "uptown" but I still think Modern Sounds in Country and Western is my favorite and one his best. It is far more heavily produced than his other stuff, but absolutely great none the less.

+1; it's absolutely my favorite Ray Charles. But I've never heard a really good version.

I've got a cd and a beat-up lp; but would certainly consider springing for a good, new re-issue if one is available. Disc Cogs lists a 2013 re-issue from a publisher called Wax Time, LP771849. It shows as a US company, but a few months ago I Google around at it seems that WaxTime may be Spanish. I found an etailer who supposedly had it in stock, but when i ordered it, I got put on a wait list (no, I didn't give 'em a credit card).

If anybody knows more about this album, or about WaxTime, I'd be grateful to learn.

 

[beatcomber]

+1; it's absolutely my favorite Ray Charles. But I've never heard a really good version.

I've got a cd and a beat-up lp; but would certainly consider springing for a good, new re-issue if one is available. Disc Cogs lists a 2013 re-issue from a publisher called Wax Time, LP771849. It shows as a US company, but a few months ago I Google around at it seems that WaxTime may be Spanish. I found an etailer who supposedly had it in stock, but when i ordered it, I got put on a wait list (no, I didn't give 'em a credit card).

If anybody knows more about this album, or about WaxTime, I'd be grateful to learn.

WaxTime is a public domain label. Their releases are mastered from CDs. AVOID.

 

[boreas]

It shows as a US company, but a few months ago I Google around at it seems that WaxTime may be Spanish. I found an etailer who supposedly had it in stock, but when i ordered it, I got put on a wait list (no, I didn't give 'em a credit card).

If anybody knows more about this album, or about WaxTime, I'd be grateful to learn.

I don't know anything specific about Wax Time but I have a 180g reissue of Mingus, Ah Um on the Jazz Wax Records label. It's a Spanish label as well, from Barcelona in Catalonia. It could even be an "associated" label. I'm quite pleased with the recording.

I also have a good 180g reissue of the self-titled The Teddy Charles Tentet on the Jazz Beat label. It's European too. I think, though I can't now find it, that I discovered that it's Spanish as well. In fact, I think it's from the Basque Country which, if true, would make both of these labels from parts of Spain that would prefer not to be parts of Spain.

John

 

[wrxr7]

This past Black Friday at my local record store, once finished fighting the crowd for the RSD releases, I ventured over to the Blues/Jazz section with the hopes of picking up two Ray Charles albums. Luck would have it that they were the only two Ray Charles records that they had!

If you like Ray Charles' jazz albums, the recent Rhino 100% analog pressing of "The Great Ray Charles" sounds amazing, truly a reference quality LP, and it's only about $25. It was expertly cut by Doug Sax IIRC, and pressed at RTI on nice thick, quiet vinyl.

This was the first one on my list, based on the multiple recommendations in this thread. As already stated, the sound quality is superb, although I can hear a bit of a "warble", like a slight speed variation, in a couple of songs. I can only assume that this was present in the original recording, as I have not heard this issue in any other of my albums (not a problem with my equipment).

...Wax Time, LP771849. It shows as a US company, but a few months ago I Google around at it seems that WaxTime may be Spanish. I found an etailer who supposedly had it in stock, but when i ordered it, I got put on a wait list (no, I didn't give 'em a credit card).

If anybody knows more about this album, or about WaxTime, I'd be grateful to learn.

The second album I was after was a replacement for my mono copy of Genius + Soul = Jazz, one of my favorite records of all time. I, as a child, would often play my father's stereo copy on our old Magnavox console. My mono copy is in such bad shape that it is virtually unplayable. The reissue I picked up is on the WaxTime label, number 771693. I had never heard of them either, and some research indicated that they are in fact from Spain, as my album had an "import" sticker on it.

I will say that my album is flat, mark-free and sounds very, very nice. I would not hesitate to buy another WaxTime release in the future.