JJ Cale & Eric Clapton, "Road to Escondido" - Wilco, "Being There" - Shawn Mullins, "Soul’s Core" - very chill session sorting some new (to me) Bugle Boy and Amperex 6922 tubes. Both sets very nice in my Calypso!
Showing 50 responses by bgross
These nights are becoming few and far between. Streaming mostly but every now and then, when time (and energy) permits,... so have a son living in LA who's in the music business. Last time I was out there he turned me on to Cali Creamin' a blond beer by Mother Earth Brewery with hints of vanilla - it's just fantastic. Anyway, picked up a couple sixers when he was home after a show in NYC earlier this month. Did a deep dive into the remaining few last night while sorting my LP selections. Stated off with My Morning Jacket "It Still Moves" very nice then slipped into Reed Foehl, "Once An Ocean" can't remember where or when I bought this, but it's thoroughly enjoyable and another terrific lesser known Boston artist. Finished in the way back machine with The Stones "Sticky Fingers" - Moonlight Mile, favorite Stones tune! |
Ah, the sounds of youth... must have burned through 3 cassettes of "Live Bootleg". Would pump it hard through the Concord/Jensen setup in my '75 Blazer. What a battleship - couldn't park it anywhere in Boston. Lord of the Thighs was my personal favorite off "Get Your Wings",... think "Rocks" rocks the hardest though. @artemus_5 - need to pull out some JB tonight. He, like Charlie Farren are two Boston Music Icons that never enjoyed the traction nationally they deserved; big talents.
|
@tomic601 - Been streaming "Black Acid Soul" a lot. It's a favorite at the shop. So tried to do some tax work but nope, back to the deck for one more twirl... Jeff Buckley, "Grace". Perfect night cap! |
Buddy demoing the his new Canor Integrated last night & sending me pics of him installing KT88s inspired me to fire the TT. Limited session but pretty great nonetheless. Johnny Jenkins, "Ton-Ton Macoute" - always a funky treat & Bill Wilson, "Ever Changing Minstrel". Streamed JJ Grey & Mofro, "Brighter Days Live" played way too loud to close the night ; ) |
Woah,... been such a long time without firing the TT. Streaming only lately but had some time today so dropped some platters. Peter Green, "In The Skies" - so smooth & with a (semi) clear head, Gary Moore, "How Blue Can You Get" & Son Volt, "Electro Melodier" (growing on me). Maybe sneak in a couple LPs tonight too after the Football game. Gotta find more time for vinyl.
|
Trying out a new to me vintage Adcom high output MC cart... playing nicely on the Luxman low mass arm. So, Amos Lee, "self titled" sounds very nice. Lots of string pop and accurate decay. Cowboy Junkies, "The Caution Horses" & now Ben Harper, "Welcome To The Cruel World" fast and deep bass thump. Nice cart - needs to be broken in more but I get what it has to offer. 👍 |
Helloooo,... been hold up a few days w/Covid protocol. Tested yesterday and came back neg! Gave me time to play some great stuff. Back to back Jayhawks "Hollywood Town Hall" and "Back Roads and Abandoned Hotels" (great album w/terrific production" Lucinda Williams "World Without Tears" Cowboy Junkies "The Caution Horses" Son Volt "Trace" and ok, a guilty pleasure Kacey Musgraves "Golden Hour" (what a talented kid and her band is tight and on point). Anyway, nice couple of days going back and forth with LPs and streaming on two different kits. Picked up a vintage Luxman R-1050 reciever and it's paired now with the Lux table. Lots of rosewood in that setup, lol |
Happy NY one and all... 👋 to the sh_t show that was 2020. So for today we spun Stevie Wonder "Talking Book" (very nice) Bowie "The Man Who Sold the World" Patty Griffith "self titled" and finished up with Leon Bridges "Good Thing" - all over the map today but the Luxman table is back and playing wonderfully. Gave it a full workout! |
@reubent - yeah, that is a fun album. Used to pump it hard with my HS buddies. One guys old man would let him take his mile long Caddy and "Jesus of Cool", Bowie "Young Americans "Stones "Some Girls" Elvis Costello "My Aim is True" Aerosmith "Rocks" Joe Jackson "Look Sharp" so much great stuff,... always takes me right back - makes me smile |
@slaw Aerosmith “Rocks” is, in my humble opinion, their defining album. Just so heavy & powerful. Heroin had taken the wheel and was clearly driving the bus at this point; amazing! Rory Gallagher, “Tatoo” & Humble Pie, “Live at the Fillmore” - Steve Marriott, an all-time favorite. 5’5” of pure dynamite and one of the greatest rock voices of all time |
Picked up almost (80) 60s, 70s & early 80s soul/blues/Motown LPs yesterday at an estate sale. Only flipped through the first 10 or so and offered $50 - offer accepted so trucked them home. The few I flipped through were in mint condition and appeared really well taken care of. Some old Sinatra & Chet Baker in there too. Will see what treasure or trash I bought later tonight. The CB alone might be worth the $50 |
Hey @slaw so I like all RA’s work,... more so ”Ashes & Fire-esque” acoustic stuff. All his work has quality production and his live recorded shows are first rate. “L@CH” is an excellent one on one with the audience. Lots of clever back and forth (maybe too much) but he’s got great presence & his songs are supper tight. I guess I’d lean into this album pretty hard if u haven’t heard it yet. I think it’s terrific |
Been away from all things audio for a bit. Finally kickin back with some Roberta Flack “Quiet Fire” Stevie Wonder “Talking Book” & now Amos Lee “Last Days At The Lodge.” Putting togther a new/old kit with a Sonic Frontiers SFL-1 linestage, pair of borrowed TAD Hibachi Mono Blocks, (shockingly great) my Rega DACr for now as I’m still workout a TT. Will be picking up some Vienna Acoustics Mozart Grands hopefully next week but for now it’s the JM Reynaud Twins. It’s all playing gloriously together. Also sending out a Cary CAD Rocket 88R Tuber to be rebuilt that I’ll be replacing the Hibachis with (maybe). Couldn’t be happier with the recent pick-ups. |
Still at my daughters loft watching her dogs & taking care of her spot. What started off as a 5 day B-Day pop out to LA to visit with my son and his crew is now pushing a month in CA. She’s been getting around West Hollywood and Newport Beach in a rented Lamborghini with my son’s new Rohdesian Ridgeback puppy riding shotgun 🙄 killing me. Anyway, luckily I gave her this nice little kit for her place. I watched an Elliott Smith documentary on Amazon and have been streaming his entire catalogue the past two days. Tortured soul but a super talented guy with such an interesting/unique sound. The struggle with mental illness is so real people. Another story ending badly,... how it all went undetected so long is hard to understand. Even when people knew he was melting down no one stepped in to save him. Terrible! |
@slaw Never forget what the detail officer told me that night when I puffed my chest up & told him confidently that I had LoJack and that they would locate the car... he responded just as confidently with, “the people who steal cars like yours are paying LoJack installers more per/vehicle to locate and take them out than those guys made in a week at the dealership.” Told me that I would most likely never see the car again and to have a drink before I called a cab home - he was correct sir |
@slaw I bought a BMW 635csi in ‘88... was owned previously by the dealership owners sister; was too much car for her. Anyway, it had ADS components all around with amps in the trunk and a Alpine head. Can’t tell u how great the system in that car was. Got stolen right from the valet spot at the hotel where the club I was running was located. Had a LoJack (remember those) and a BMW code alarm and was still never found. Sad day for me |
@tomic601 yeah, they are really very nice. Bought them from on a friend who has way too much gear. Told me they were terrific but never played them, just gave them to her with the amp. Pleasantly surprised but guess I shouldn’t be, I know there are some ADS models that are truly fabulous. Love the same buddy’s L1530s. So big and need so much room though but with his vintage Yamaha M stack... amazing! |
Was at my daughters apartment/loft dog sitting her two rescue pittys while it snowed here in Boston on 5/9... gave her a set of ADS L780s & and old Arcam Alpha 9 Integrated when she moved out. Just chilling earlier streaming Tidal hifi... what a perfectly lovely little combo. Plays really nice in this place w/14’ ceilings and exposed brick walls. Just sitting quietly playing some acoustic music John Wait, “Wooden Heart” & Charlie Farren, “Deja Blue” - so nice/calming. Charlie Farren is a Boston Rock Scene matriarch. Watched him grow up from his early bands Balloon, The Enemy and Farrenheit as well as his stint out front with the Joe Perry Project & later his solo career. Has a fabulous voice and really should have enjoyed more success. Most wont be familiar with him but look for his music. You won’t be disappointed |
https://www.usaudiomart.com/details/649610916-shun-mook-record-clamp/ OK who wants to take a stab at this one... Gotta know why and how this $4K record clamp is sonically better than the Sota I got for a hundo! |
@spiritofradio Yeah, I do have a kinda flavorful past. Was in the club business here in Boston for quite a few years. Lots of great memories but before that I played pro hockey in Europe and here in the minors so... I have some whopper road stories too. Think “Slap Shot” - I truly lived it & played in many of those old barns. Anyway during the 90s - 00s I was a partner in some retail stores as well as some Boston bars/lounges. In the retail shops I ran big Hafler amps pushing EV Sentry 100s. Played (6) in line array fed by a jukebox filled with awesome music where customers could select tracks while shopping. Music all day all the time both night & day. We had young kids at the same time and one of mine is now in LA getting traction as a music producer/manager. |