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Blue Note 45s and the <I>Sunday Times</I>

I have an article in the Arts & Leisure section of this past Sunday’s New York Times about vinyl reissues of Blue Note jazz albums mastered at 45 rpm.

Yes, you read that right: an article about such audiophile labels as Music Matters Jazz, Analogue Productions, and Classic Records was featured in the paper of record, and quite prominently so: 1,500 words, spread out on two pages, with four photos, including one of a Blue Note 45 spinning on my own VPI Classic.

Is it a sign that the MSM are beginning to take all this seriously—or just an editor who agrees that a narrative…

10 Years

Today is my 10th anniversary with Stereophile. Hmm…on the way home today, maybe I’ll buy myself a nice beer. Or a record…

Or maybe I’ll go crazy and buy myself a beer and a record. Woo!

The Young Guy

And look who’s back: It’s Ariel Bitran! Ariel worked as our part-time editorial intern, enabling us to complete the 2008, 2009, and 2010 editions of the Stereophile Buyer’s Guide, before departing for a full-time gig with Mini-Circuits.

Ariel and I kept in touch, and, one winter day, prior to an Open End show at the Iron Monkey in Paulus Hook, during which I was crazily infatuated with a beautiful, vinyl-loving girl (another story altogether), Ariel mentioned that he’d be interested in a full-time position with Stereophile. I was happy to hear this, and I told Ariel to hold…

Some Good News: Rega’s New RP-1

Well, I just got off the phone with Steve Daniels of The Sound Organisation, US importer for Rega, and while I don’t have a ton of information on Rega’s new RP-1 turntable, I do have some good news:

The RP-1 is scheduled to be available by the end of September and will not be considerably more expensive than the P1. The company hasn’t set a final US retail price, but they’re targeting somewhere around $445, or just $50 (or so) more expensive than the old version. Which I think is great. My eyes tell me the cosmetic upgrades alone are worth that much.

Rega says the RP-1…

Wandering, Searching, Cool Struttin'

Sort of like a drunk wandering around the East Village in search of companionship or something, I stumbled upon this outstanding article by Stereophile’s former senior contributing editor, Jonathan Scull. The piece, “All Sales Are Vinyl,” which appeared in the December 1997 issue of The Atlantic Monthly, takes the reader on a brisk tour of Greenwich Village record shops. Though many of the shops mentioned are long gone, others such as A-1, the Jazz Record Center, Academy Records, and Other Music are still going strong, and Jonathan’s writing is at its best. Not only does he capture…

Moving

The October issue of Stereophile shipped to press yesterday afternoon. (Hallelujah.) We are already deep into the November issue, while our new editorial assistant, Ariel Bitran, is tackling the 2011 Buyer’s Guide. In addition to all of that, and on top of the regular stuff, the entire office is in the process of moving onto the 6th floor of our 261 Madison Avenue location. Construction crews are tearing down walls and building new cubicles, painters are turning white and gray into blue and cream, movers are carrying tables and desks up flights of stairs. My office is cramped with…

Belle and Sebastian Write About Love

Just like me, Belle and Sebastian write about love. The band’s new album is due out here in the States on October 12. It will be mine. You can listen to a clip on the Matablog. The song, “I Want the World to Stop,” sounds just as dark and groovy and infectious as you might imagine. I’ve listened to it about 69 times already.

Jazz on the Tube

For just a few days now I’ve been receiving mysterious e-mails from “Jazz on the Tube.” At first I wondered if they were spam, and I was afraid to click on the links inside. But they all seemed harmless enough: A few kind and thoughtful words, a passion for jazz, a hand held out in friendship, a smile. So I clicked the link and was taken to a simple page with a narrow, white field against a black border and a YouTube video at the center.

Each day, Jazz on the Tube sends another video, and so far they have all been excellent. Today, Jazz on the Tube is thinking about Abbey…

A First System

I’m so much more impressed by good, affordable systems than I am by those costing tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars. I find it difficult to concentrate on music when I’m overwhelmed by the high prices of the gear delivering it. Price should never be the most impressive aspect of hi-fi.

When price is the most impressive aspect of a system, the system sucks. Plain and simple. Is that clear?

My first "system"&#151a Magnavox boombox and CDs.

If your $100,000 speakers and your $80,000 amplifier and your $150,000 turntable do not absolutely knock the…

WilcoFest

It may be time to begin appending the words “The Great,” in front of the name of Wilco. At least that’s my unvarnished reaction to their headlining performance at the inaugural edition of their own Solid Sound Festival, held last weekend in North Adams Massachusetts. Where in the hell is North Adams you may ask, why across the Mohawk Trail is the answer. I once had a friend, upper crust Brahmin Bostonian he was, and his mother used to rhapsodize about “motoring along the Mohawk Trail. She must have been speaking about the end of the trail (otherwise known as Mass Highway 2), nearer to…