Patricia Barber Companion 1STEP 45RPM (2 LP)

1STEP Process 180g 45rpm Double LP Pressed on VR900-Supreme Vinyl!
Mastered from the Analog Mix-Down Tapes of the Original Digital Recording by Bernie Grundman!
Ultra-Luxe "Monster Pack" Jacket with a Deluxe 16-Page Booklet & Striking Outer Slipcase!
Strictly Limited to 5,000 Numbered Pressings!
Impex 1STEP #5 celebrates Patricia Barber's 1999 "return" to The Green Mill, Chicago's fabled jazz club. Conceived as a "companion" to her Grammy-winning studio album Modern Cool, Companion finds Barber and her touring band in inspired form, playfully and energetically performing hits and deep tracks from her celebrated oeuvre.
The dynamic interaction between the artist and her reverent audience adds a palpable sense of space and community. At the same time, the fans' hushed attention creates a studio-like sense of precision and detail. The snap and crackle of Barber, her grand piano, and her onstage partners practically leaps off the groove into your listening room!
Companion's fan-favorite reputation is enhanced immeasurably by Jim Anderson's jaw-dropping, lifelike recording. Eschewing the crystalline sterility of digital recordings of the time, Anderson's sound is always warm, natural, and lacking unforced "hype."
Like Anderson, Impex aims to present great recordings that are as natural as possible. And we couldn't wait to put our favorite Patricia Barber release, using Jim's analog mix-down master tapes, on 180 grams of VR900 Super Vinyl. The deep, inky black backgrounds and absence of surface noise will pull listeners right into those three evenings in 1999, capturing a seminal modern jazz artist at a creative and professional peak and reveling in a perfectly rendered and joyous audio time capsule.
Finally, our deluxe Impex Treatment packages the whole party with a lovely outer slipcase, a booklet containing a new note from Patricia, and a dazzling array of photographs from the evenings by frequent Barber collaborator Valerie Booth, exclusive to our 1STEP. Heavy paper stock with spot gloss coating and a faithfully recreated exterior design will satisfy original fans and aesthetes throughout the music-loving world.
With this deluxe edition of Patricia Barber's live recordings at the jazz club "The Green Mill" in Chicago, many fans' hearts should beat faster, "Companion" is considered the favorite of many fans of the jazz icon.
Conceived as a "companion" to her Grammy-winning studio album "Modern Cool", Barber presents energetic hits and profound tracks from her acclaimed oeuvre with her touring band. Sound engineer Jim Anderson's stunning, lifelike recording, which eschews the crystalline sterility of digital recordings of the era, delivers a warm, natural sound. The mastering of the one-step edition was done by Bernie Grundman from the analog mix-down tapes of the original digital recording.
The high-quality jewelry slipcase contains two 45 rpm LPs, pressed on VR900 Super Vinyl by RTI, as well as a 16-page accompanying booklet with exclusive concert photos. The edition is limited to 5,000 numbered copies.
The 1STEP Process:
The Impex 1STEP process relies on short, tightly-controlled runs that require a new lacquer after each 500 pressings. This unforgiving format has the lacquer skipping the regular father-mother process, going right to a single convert and then pressing. Though this dramatically increases mastering and production costs, it also assures each run is more consistent from disc to disc, with less noise, clearer details and deeper bass.
Reducing production complexity to just a single "convert" disc between the lacquer and the press greatly improves groove integrity, diminishes non-fill anomalies and increases signal integrity from the master tape to your system.
"Companion captures Patricia Barber at her most eclectic, with a band that remained relatively static during the period from Café Blue through Modern Cool, and who'd developed a very tight musical rapport. On Companion they perform a scintillating mix of often quirky originals and offbeat, unexpected covers recast by readings Barber has firmly placed her own stamp upon. While the musicians here knew each other's styles intimately, the live performances freed them of the strictures of the studio, allowing for a higher level of improvisation and spontaneity. I'd been developing a deep appreciation for Companion, but prior to hearing the almost ghostly quiet, impressive clarity, and richly detailed sound of the Neotech VR900 Supreme vinyl pressings in Impex's 1STEP, I didn't fully realize what a superb album it actually is! Very highly recommended!" - Tom Gibbs, Positive Feedback

Features:

• New, deluxe edition of Patricia Barber's famed live recordings at The Green Mill in Chicago in 1999
• Mastered from the analog mix-down tapes (of the original digital recording) by Bernie Grundman at Bernie Grundman Mastering
• Two 45-rpm 1STEP LPs pressed on VR900 super vinyl by RTI
• New lacquers cut after each run of 500 pressings
• Distinctive ultra-luxe Impex 1STEP packaging featuring a deluxe 16-page booklet with exclusive concert photography by Valerie Booth, a remembrance from Patricia Barber, a heavy-stock three-sleeve Monster Pack jacket and striking color-matched slipcase
• Strictly limited to 5,000 copies

Musicians:

• Patricia Barber, piano, vocals, Hammond B-3
• Michael Arnopol, bass
• John McLean, guitar
• Eric Montzka, drums
• Ruben P. Alvarez, percussion
• Jason Narducy, guest vocalist on "Touch of Trash"

Selections:

Side A
1. The Beat Goes On
2. Use Mea
3. You Are My Sunshine
Side B
1. Like JT
2. Let It Rain
3. Touch of Trash
Side C
1. If This Isn't Jazz
2. So What
Side D
1. Black Magic Woman