Stanley Cowell, Billy Harper, Reggie Workman, and Billy Hart - Such Great Friends - 180g LP

Product no.: SES9004

In stock

Stanley Cowell, Billy Harper, Reggie Workman, and Billy Hart - Such Great Friends - 180g LP
£29.99
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AAA 100% Analogue This LP was Remastered using Pure Analogue Components Only, from the Master Tapes through to the Cutting Head

Pure Pleasure / Strata East - SES-9004 - 180 Gram Virgin Vinyl

AAA 100% Analogue - Mastering by Ray Staff  at Air Mastering London

Limited Edition - Pressed  at Pallas Germany 

This is a great vinyl remastering of post-bop jazz! Pure Pleasure Records has done its customary excellent job in re-mastering Such Great Friends to 180-gram vinyl. The overall mix is crisp and balanced. The stereo separation is top-notch  Sound 4.5/5 Audiophile

"Listening to ‘Such Great Friends’, you’ll agree that it’s an indisputable point but more than anything, you’ll just be glad that this one hasn’t passed you by."A MUST HAVE ALBUM 5/5 uk vibe

A lost bit of late Strata East – and an all-star session that never lets up! The album's a quartet effort – led by Stanley Cowell, but equally featuring participation from Billy Harper on tenor, Reggie Workman on bass, and Billy Hart on drums. The overall feel is a lot like Harper's own work from the time – particularly his late 70s Japanese sessions – driven strongly by Cowell's modal approach to the groove, a sound that's perfectly executed by the team of Workman and Hart. The tracks are all quite long, spinning out with a freely expressive approach – and titles include "Sweet Song", "Destiny Is Yours", "Layla Joy", and "East Harlem Nostalgia".

Recorded in 1986 in Paris and originally released only in France, Great Friends mines the John Coltrane spiritual legacy with fervent incantatory playing and an ecstatic charge. Not that alto saxophonist Fortune and tenor man Harper necessarily speak with Trane’s voice, but the intensity of their playing and their use of certain scales and modes produce a Tranelike atmosphere. Drummer Hart (who organized this band at the request of a Japanese promoter), bassist Workman and pianist Cowell form a hard-hitting team along side the horns.

Things begin with “Cal Massey,” a tribute penned by Cowell. Harper sets the spiritual vibe in motion with a big-toned, take-no-prisoners solo. The Texas tenor man has the heaviest low-register sound in the business. On Workman’s “East Harlem Nostalgia,” he chomps into the low notes as a prelude to wailing runs into the upper register. Harper’s uptempo “Insight” is the album’s tour de force, with rippling solos and torrid exchanges between the saxophonists. Fortune’s searing tone is well suited to the exuberant joyride of this performance.

The rhythm section can be compared to the McCoy Tyner, Jimmy Garrison and Elvin Jones triumvirate that backed Trane. Equally heavyweight and agile, it is relentless in its conviction and spiritual attitude.

Great Friends is hot.

 
Musicians
Stanley Cowell piano
Billy Harper tenor saxophone
Reggie Workman bass
Billy Hart drums
 
Side A:
1. Sweet Song
2. Destiny Is Yours
 
Side B:
1. Layla Joy
2. East Harlem Nostalgia
 
Stanley Cowell, Billy Harper, Reggie Workman, and Billy Hart - Such Great Friends - 180g LP
 
ORIGINAL MASTER TAPES
AAA 100% ANALOGUE
We use the Original Tapes and work with only the Best Mastering Studios
PALLAS
Plated and Pressed at Pallas in Germany on 180 gram Virgin Vinyl
Highest Quality Jackets and  Inner Sleeves
LIMITED EDITION
Low Numbers per Stamper Released in Limited Quantities
Image result for pure pleasure records
 

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.

60 Years Pallas

 
Audiophile Vinyl - Made in Germany  For over 60 years the family business in the third generation of the special personal service and quality "Made by Pallas" is known worldwide. Our custom PVC formulation produces consistently high pressing quality with the lowest surface noise in the industry. Our PVC complies with 2015 European environmental standards and does not contain toxic materials such as Lead, Cadmium or Toluene. Our vinyl is both audiophile and eco-grade! 
 

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