In 1976 Getz – who already had the most-heard bossa nova jazz album around in his first Getz/Gilberto LP (it’s said his recordings changed the Brazilian economy) -  encored his stint with Gilberto on this disc.  In the dozen years which had passed Gilberto’s voice had gone deeper and his lyrics had more maturity in their poetry, as pointed out in the extensive liner notes by lyric writer, singer and jazz writer Gene Lees. His own notes wax poetic in observations such as “At times people forget the beauty of the sound of humanity in the human voice.”  Gilberto’s sound does come across with great presence and beauty on this disc. I had not paid much attention when hearing the lyrics previously which Gilberto wrote (in 1973) for his tune Waters of March. This time, both with his wonderful delivery in English, and the fact they are printed in the album, I did.  They are compelling poetry for sure, and cleverly supported by their accompaniment.

 

Bass – Clint Houston, Steve Swallow
Drums – Billy Hart, Grady Tate
Executive-Producer – Teo Macero
Guitar – Joao Gilberto, Oscar Castro Neves
Mixed By – John Guerriere
Percussion – Airto Moreira, Joao Gilberto, Ray Armando, Ruben Bassini*, Sonny Carr
Piano – Albert Dailey
Producer – Stan Getz
Recorded By – Stan Tonkel
Vocals [English] – Heloisa (Miucha) Buarque De Hollanda
Vocals [Portuguese] – Joao Gilberto

 

 

Pure Pleasure Records
The Restoration of the Art of Sound
180g Vinyl Mastered From The Best Available Sources

At the beginning of the 90s, in the early days of audiophile vinyl re-releases, the situation was fairly straightforward. Companies such as DCC, Mobile Fidelity, Classic Records and, of course, Pure Pleasure all maintained a mutual, unwritten ethical code: we would only use analogue tapes to manufacture records. During the course of the present vinyl hype, many others have jumped on the bandwagon in the hope of securing a corner of the market. Very often they are not so ethical and use every imaginable source to master from: CDs, LPs, digital files, MP3s – or employed existent tools from the 80s and 90s for manufacturing.

A digital delay is gladly used when cutting a lacquer disc because tape machines with an analogue delay have become quite rare and are therefore expensive. When cutting the lacquer, the audio signal is delayed by one LP revolution against the signal, which controls the cutter head, and for this a digital delay is very often employed. Of course, the resultant sound signal is completely digital and thus only as good as this delay.

We should like to emphasize that Pure Pleasure Records on principle only uses the original master tape as the basis for the entirely analogue cutting of lacquer discs. In addition, the pressing tool is newly manufactured as a matter of principle. We only employ existing tools for manufacturing if an improved result is not forthcoming, e.g. the title Elvis Is Back, which was mastered by Steve Hoffman and Kevin Gray, or several titles from our Philips Classics series, which in any case Willem Makkee cut from the original masters at the Emil Berliner Studios in the 90s. It goes without saying that we only used the mother and that new tools were made for our production. To put it in a nutshell: we can ensure you that our releases are free from any kind of digital effects and that the lacquer discs are newly cut.

There really is nothing quite like it.  It’s the touch, the feel, you have to stop and stare, the cover,  the real thing, even the smell.

Its tangible, you can feel it, see it, study it,   muse/dream over it, it’s real, someone  has spent hours and hours over its construction and presentation. Pure Pleasure Records is just that, Pure Pleasure and that is what it has set out to be.  

The music and the physical record.  Something to keep, treasure, admire and above all enjoy.Of course with vinyl it’s not just a record, it’s the cover,  the sleeve notes, you are  holding a unique package, produced by craftsmen.

Pure Pleasure  Records bring you vinyl albums of quality Jazz - Blues - R+B - Soul - Funk, remastered by some of the best engineers in the world and pressed on 180 gram audiophile vinyl at what is probably the best pressing plant in Europe 

Pure Analogue Audiophile Mastering - Plated and Pressed at Pallas in Germany on 180 Gram Virgin Vnyl - Released in Limited Quantities