Scratching That Vinyl Itch

Music lover Dennis Cassidy had an itch years ago to start an audiophile label dedicated to releasing the particular kinds of music he liked with the best vinyl and packaging available. Cassidy was involved with music distributor Sound Advice at the time, which sold the standard audiophile favorites from Mobile Fidelity Sound Labs, and others.

But he says he was never satisfied with the musical choices the audiophile labels made. As Cassidy puts it, "I'm picky about my audiophile LPs. It really all started with me in high school telling people, 'listen to this' or 'buy this LP' and their liking my suggestions. Many of these same people will swear by my choices today. I relish the opportunity to make title selections again, like I did in high school and have so many times since. I'm in my element, like a fish in water."

It took a few years, but to finally scratch that musical itch, Cassidy has now formed a new label called Pure Audiophile and says he will be ready to release his first disc in two months. Cassidy notes, "The LPs will be mastered by Stan Ricker using the half-speed process he developed long ago. For us to get Stan Ricker to do the remastering is huge. I remember Michael Grantham telling me to be sure to put 'half-speed mastered by Stan Ricker' on the jacket in capital letters. Working with him is a thrill, he's a gem."

"Our first LP is going to be a stunner," Cassidy continues. "Our goal on the project is to melt people, so be careful." Pure Audiophile's first release will be Karrin Allyson's Ballads: Remembering John Coltrane, which is currently available on CD from Concord Records. Cassidy adds, "I don't want to appear to be over-hyping Karrin, so just let me understate that, in my opinion, Karrin Allyson is one of the finest vocalists on our fair planet. I could flood you with adjectives till you drowned."

Cassidy says he plans to have a website up early next year, after two or three albums have been released. Until then, folks can contact him via email or by phone at (816) 361-2713. According to Cassidy, the limited edition LPs can be pre-ordered at a discount. "The first release will retail for around $45–$49 because it's a double album, but it can be pre-ordered now for $40 (+$5 shipping) and low numbers will be reserved."

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