Thursday, April 28, 2022

Davis Special! Dept.


The music curator/archivist Blank Frank had the idea for this, and put a lot of work into creating it. I'm happy to share my version with his approval.

Blank Frank's collection was titled differently (I went for the obvious) and the tracks were individually tagged with different covers and credited to different line-ups, making it (for me) a little unwieldy. I'm not an archivist, and this version unfairly reflects Blank Frank's knowledge and care, but it is perhaps more easily playable. It's also @192 - the apostolic bitrate o' Christ Jesus - where his was @320, the bitrate o' Shub-Niggurath (the Black Goat of the Woods).

Enjoy the music, eighty swellza-poppin' sides from 1950 to 1987, and visit Blank Frank's blog at https://and-your-bird-can-swing.blogspot.com (which appears inactive but he may have plans for further projects).



With thanks to Blank Frank.




18 comments:

  1. Should we assume then, Farq, that these tracks got the deluxe treatment in your recently unveiled IOF© Compression Chamber?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If you've ever seen a documentary about restoring an Old Master painting, removing layers of accumulated filth to reveal the rich polychrome hues, that's what the new compression chamber does in an audio context. Highs are crisp and clear with no trace of shrillness, mids are expansive and richly detailed, with textured lows and a panoramic soundstage that gives instruments the space to breathe.

      (It's a fantastic set - should really be an official release.)

      Delete
    2. They wouldn't call them "artifacts" if they weren't valuable!

      Delete
  2. Replies
    1. Apologies for being a lickspittle but I do agree with Clar re the cover artwork - you have a talent for making spot-on sleeves. The recent Young Rascals one was particularly enticing.

      Thanks for this Miles Davis collection. I like to have a physical copy of stuff I like so I now have a nice 5 CD box set of Miles Music - despite having more than enuff already to see me thru to death - adorned with your cover art. A printer and some glue have transformed Chris Rea's CD-single box of "God's Great Banana Skin".

      Cheers, Peanuts Molloy.

      Delete
  3. Looks wicked good - thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I never associate "singles" with jazz. This is an interesting collection - thank you!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Me neither. There's some rare sides here, in addition to it being not only supremely playable (slips down a treat) but also a unique drone's eye view of his career. Waiting for Babs to sashay on through - apparently she's having her bikini wax today as they have a Senior's Special down at Maxie's Wax Tub.

      Delete
    2. I suppose in the days before elpees that's all there was. Later there was the occasional jazz hit single. Take Five charted, I believe.

      Delete
    3. I don't associate them with jazz, either...but there are hundreds of 45 edits out there. A quick glance at Lee Morgan (and stopping after the first three at Discogs because it's bedtime and I have an 8:00 AM meeting tomorrow) revealed :
      The Rumproller, Part 1 / Part 2 both 3:00, edited out of the 10:29 LP track

      Cornbread Part 1 2:50 / Cornbread Part 2 3:00...the LP track is 9:03

      Hey Chico 3:15, edited down from 7:00
      Sweet Honey Bee 3:05, edited down from 6:55

      These edits get no love; they're not compiled as bonus tracks. Jazz fans don't demand them, I guess...maybe it's because with pop/rock/r&b, the "edit" version was often the actual hit, millions of people bought Prince's "Purple Rain" as a 45 (roughly 1/2 the time of the LP version). The edit versions often turn up on "hit" compilations. With jazz...no hits, no appearance on the "Big Hits Of 1962" comp.

      But they're out there...hundreds of jazz 45 edits.

      For me....Mister Short Attention Span...I'm interested. I'm listening to the single edit of ELP's Fanfare For The Common Man right now, and prefer the 45 edit of Zep's Whole Lotta Love over the LP track with the Robert Plant ape-mating call midsection edited out.

      The Take Five edit is on Ace Records "The Jazz Hits" https://www.discogs.com/release/4467766-Various-The-Golden-Age-Of-American-Popular-Music-The-Jazz-Hits-From-The-Hot-100-1958-1966

      Delete
  5. By the way....Blank Frank went on hiatus in 2020...coming up on two years in July. I dropped him an email yesterday to check in on him but haven't heard back yet.

    ReplyDelete