Compared Tone Poet to Mosaic
This might interest some people. The new copy of Hank, by Hank Mobley Sextet on Tone Poet just arrived last week. The sextet: Donald Byrd, trumpet; John Jenkins, alto; Hank Mobley, tenor; Bobby Timmons, piano; Wilbur Ware, bass; Philly Joe Jones, drums. Originally released in 1957, new release dated 2026, but received 12/2025. Anyway this is a terrific hard bop record in the best Blue Note tradition. Originally recorded by Rudy Van Gelder, remastered by Kevin Gray and Produced by Joe Harley. I thought it might be fun to compare the vinyl Tone Poet with the Mosaic release of 2022, which is on CD.
For vinyl playback: VPI HW-40 w/SoundSmith Hyperion set up using AnalogMagic, Conrad Johnson ART Phono.
For digital playback: Luxman D-10X
Amp, line stage, speakers, wires etc. were the same for both.
Well some interesting differences and similarities. First the Mosaic set used the mono master, whereas the Tone Poet set used the stereo master. With that said the two masters were made simultaneously so there were no differences in performance. The overall tonality of two were exactly the same. That surprised me. Overall I found that I liked the mono recording better. I was amazed that there was no real difference between the analog and the digital versions that I could discern. They were equally great and I would be happy to own either. The difference I heard was more to do with what the recording engineer did and it is clear that Rudy V.G. was more adept or more comfortable with mono and lavished more attention on it to get it right. I also think that Kevin Gray must have done everything possible to capture the sound of the original mono master. The two recordings are remarkably transparent. Later recordings in the Mosaic set are in stereo and if there is interest and if I have a duplicate in vinyl of another record, let me know and I will endeavor to do a follow up.
No sir, Tone Poet "Hank" is mono. I have a photo from Joe showing the tape box they used, clearly marked as Mono. He tells me anyone who thinks otherwise, "needs to adjust their system if they think they are hearing stereo." There have been times Joe and Kevin have pulled up stereo tapes from this dual mono/stereo recorders era, and liked the stereo better, so that's what they mastered. "Sonny Clark Trio" (ST-81579) is a good example. "Hank" is not one of them. |
@dwette You are right. I just put it on and listened to it again. Using a stereo cartridge is sounds a little out of phase perhaps, but with a mono cartridge is snaps nicely into focus. Now I must listen carefully again and once more compare it to the Mosaic CD. |
" There are no mono fold-downs from stereo masters in the entire Tone Poet series, period." Confusing... The link contradicts this: " As good as the mono originals are, after the October 30, 1958 session at Van Gelder Studios the mono masters were made by folding down the original stereo master. Once we heard the actual stereo masters, the decision was made: when a stereo Blue Note master exists, we will use that stereo master to cut our lacquers for this series." "Let me be clear the Tone Poet is a stereo record." billstevenson, is this is the album you have? I'm confused. Hank Mobley – Hank LP (Tone Poet Vinyl Series) - Blue Note Records This is a mono LP. You are referring to the original stereo master folded for the mono used for the LP? I have this 1958 Art Blakey in medium grade condition. "Moanin" is thankfully silent. Also have a 70's stereo reissue which is A+ and sounds great, but the mono without the hard L/R separation is more believable in picturing an imaginary stage with the musicians. Tonality of the instruments is about the same in both LP's.
RVG master Stereo/Mono tape(s) must be magical to experience.
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The Tone Poet series is now 152 titles (as of Jan 2, 2026). All the mono reissues in the series are from mono masters. There is not a single Tone Poet release that is mono from a stereo fold down. What that means is that every Tone Poet reissue of Blue Notes recorded after Oct. 1958 – when RvG stopped recording on a mono tape machine – are mastered and reissued in stereo. Every single one. |
