Old-School Logo
I was totally into Sumiko's old-school logo. Bring it back, Sumiko!
Stephen Mejias
Continue Reading »
Cartridge?
The Sumiko needs a cartridge. Any recommendations? It should be relatively affordable (I'm thinking $300 or less) and look good with wood.
Serial Number 15002
Eden's Sapphire was born in Oakland, California. It owns serial number 15002.
La Gran Fuga
During some 1970's summer, in the housing projects of Newark, NJ, a young Puerto Rican girl would listen as the bold, brassy sounds of New York City's salsa wafted from open windows, like the unmistakable scent of chuletas fritas. (No, that's too obvious.) The bold, brassy sounds of New York City's salsa fell from open windows like newborn babies. (Oh, god, too gruesome.) The bold, brassy sounds erupted like gunfire, falling into rhythm with police sirens and train whistles. (Whatever.) The music was everywhere. Our young Puerto Rican girl listened to it, and fell in love with it. She (very innocently) plastered the walls of her virginal bedroom with the colorful artwork of her favorite album covers.
Blackjack
Music has never made me cry. I have cried while listening to music, with something else on my mind. But music, by itself, while powerfully moving, has never brought me to tears. When others mention that a certain piece of music, or a specific musical performance, touches them so deeply that the tears flow from their eyes, I wonder what it is, exactly, that is happening. What are these people feeling? And why haven't I felt it?
Maybe
We have the same birthday. Isn't that nice? Today the blog is 3, and I am 31. Happy birthday to us.
Between Heaven and Hell
As I searched through the new arrivals at the Princeton Record Exchange, I kept coming back to this album. I knew nothing about Oscar Brown Jr.—had never even heard of the guy—but the pain communicated in the album title and cover art intrigued me. Even if it turned out that I didn't like the music, I'd at least get an interesting piece of art. And for just four bucks!
Babylon!
If you were to judge this album just by its cover, you might imagine the music inside to be weird and awesome. At least that's what I imagined. If you're like me, you'd be absolutely desitively right. Dr. John's <i>Babylon</i> is something else.
New Arrivals at the Princeton Record Exchange
Omar and I were enjoying breakfast at Skinner's Pub. Monica makes a great Bloody Mary. The storms hadn't arrived yet—in fact, the sun was still shining—but the Mets game had already been canceled. The forecast was bleak. We could have easily spent the entire day chatting with Monica, but decided to take a ride down to Princeton.
Timeless, Unforgettable, Enduring
We recently posted all of our coverage of two classic turntables: The <a href="http://www.stereophile.com/turntables/184rega/">Rega P3</a> and the <a href="http://www.stereophile.com/turntables/284sotastar/">Sota Sapphire</a>. And when I say "classic," I don't mean old. I mean timeless, unforgettable, enduring. Take a look at our <a href="http://www.stereophile.com/historical/709/index.html">Hot 100 list</a> of all-time most important products, and you'll see that the British Rega ranks at number 30, while the all-American Sota stands proud at number 54. Our reviews of these turntables date back to 1984, and provide information that is still very much useful and interesting today.