Patricia Barber also provides musical enthusiasm. We listen to the finest cool jazz with pop appeal, played by a fascinating singer and pianist, and a combo that knows all the tricks of the trade.
Every music album that has even the slightest claim to be commercially successful is mastered. The original mix of the multi-channel tracks is post-processed. The mastering engineer can make an album sound loud or quiet, slow or fast by simply adjusting the sound controls for each track. The real art, however, is to turn the mix into an album that will appeal to as many customers as possible. The original version of »Café Blue« was written by Jim Anderson. A few years later, Shawn W. Britton reworked this mastering for Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab and created a version that had been out of print for years and sounded even more airy and transparent. At the request of the Asian market, Jim Anderson then reworked the album: it was released as a gold CD, which sounded much richer and warmer than previous releases and is also out of print for a long time.
For the re-release on vinyl, the digital single tracks of »Café Blue« were post-processed on analogue tapes at Capitol Studios with an analogue mixing console. The legendary reverb chambers of the house were used to give the recording even more atmosphere. The combination of the re-mix and re-mastering led to what was probably the best sound version of »Café Blue« to date, but it was only available on LP. Now it has been decided to digitize the mix from the Capitol studios directly at the Super Audio Center in Colorado without re-mastering. Gus Skinas, the sound engineer, is absolutely right when he says that the album has never been heard so vividly and directly. The "omission" of the post-processing of the mix leads to a tonally much richer and also somewhat darker album than the first release. Patricia Barber's voice is somewhat restrained compared to the instruments and is occasionally larger than life in the room. The instruments are less clearly defined in their positions, but emotionally this album has never been so intense. – One of the 10 best albums in jazz history has become even better.
Features:
- Super Audio CD
- SACD Stereo SACD Layer
- This Hybrid SACD contains a 'Red Book' Stereo CD Layer which is playable on most conventional CD Players!
Musicians:
- Patricia Barber, vocals, piano
- Michael Arnopol, bass
- John McLean, guitars
- Mark Walker, drums, percussion
Selections:
1. What A Shame
2. Mourning Grace
3. The Thrill Is Gone
4. Romanesque
5. Yellow Car III
6. Wood Is A Pleasant Thing To Think About
7. Inch Worm
8. Ode To Billy Joe
9. Too Rich For My Blood
10. A Taste Of Honey
11. Nardis
12. Manha De Carnaval
