Same here on the west coast, I found about ten (sealed) in the bargain bin around 1984.
SPOTLIGHT 6 Vocalion Surround SACD Releases - Argent, Blood, Sweat & Tears, BW Stevenson, Guess Who, Buddy Miles & Santana, Don Sebesky (Dec 2019)
- Thread starter haikubass
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Well, what can I say? As you've pointed out, the two BW Stevenson albums are maybe off a lot of people's radar, but I think they're both quite good and are elevated even moreso by the personnel on them - I actually reccomended to Mike that he tackle these two albums after the warm reception that the Pure Prairie League twofer got a couple of years ago, and I'm really glad D-V are doing them. I think it really highlights the versatility of some of these session musicians that around the same time they did these two albums, they also played on a lot of other wildly different stuff that's had the D-V SACD treatment in the last few years, including the Hues Corporation 2fer (Carlton, Gordon), and some of the Hugo Montenegro albums (Carlton, Muhoberac). Aside from the title track, My Maria also has a fantastic rendition of Shambala, written by a friend of Stevenson's, Daniel Moore, which would shortly thereafter become a big hit for Three Dog Night. Both albums were produced by David Kershenbaum (who'd later go on to be a super-producer for the likes of Bryan Adams, Supertramp, Joe Jackson and many others), who also produced the Hues Corp's Love Corporation, so if you have that SACD you know what kinds of quad mixes you're in for. Calabasas does indeed suffer from "no hit singles syndrome", but I agree with @fredblue about the quality of the album - not only is it a more consistently better album than My Maria, they also seemingly spared no expense with the production, as evidenced by the fact that you can find names like Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris on backing vocals. Also previously mentioned was that My Maria only saw quad release as a Q8 in Canada, so it's exceedingly rare - I think I've only personally seen one or two copies of it in the last 10 years or so, whereas I've seen at least a half dozen of the other Canada-only RCA Q8, Doc Severinsen Rhapsody for Now!. My guess is that, given that My Maria is part of the RCA unified numbering system (APL1-0088) that it should've had a CD-4 release (which would've been APD1-0088, but they must've had some kind of problem getting a good cutting of the album so they abandoned the release, and didn't put out the Q8 because they didn't want questions about why their newfangled QuadraDisc couldn't handle the music. Given it was early on in the format's life, I wonder if maybe the album was too long to fit on a CD-4 disc - some of those early RCA Japan CD-4s (like the Guess Who) actually have tracks omitted because they could only get something like 17 minutes per side in the early days.
I think the Guess Who two-fer pretty much speaks for itself, and if not hopefully the liner notes I've done for it will fill in the missing pieces. Wheatfield Soul, the band's RCA debut is such a weird album - aside from These Eyes, it sounds rather unlike any of their other LPs...it's almost like you can hear them working through all their influences (British psychedelia, US hard rock, modern jazz, greenwich village folk) searching for their identity. There are a couple of clunkers, but I think if you're a fan of the band at all, it's a really interesting journey. Canned Wheat, on the other hand, finds the band's signature sound almost entirely in place seemingly overnight - it's like by clearing the decks of all their old songs on the debut LP, they were free to write brand new material while at the top of their game, and they not only avoid the dreaded "sophomore jinx", they turn in what is (for me) the best album of their early years. I also think the quad mix of Canned Wheat is the most discrete of their first 5 quad mixes, with the drums completely discrete in the rear channels...and of course lots of the swirling pans that characterise the other early quad mixes.
Booger Bear might be another one that isn't really on people's radars, especially given its terrible title, but I think if you're picking this two-fer up for the live album with Santana, you'll be pleasantly surprised by it, especially if you're any kind of fan of the too-small genre of funk-rock, and bands like Funkadelic, Isley Bros. etc. It's also notable for being the only credited quad mix for Mike Stone, a pretty legendary engineer known for his work on all of Queen's biggest songs of the 70s including Bohemian Rhapsody. But as good as Booger Bear is, Carlos Santana & Buddy Miles! Live! is even better, especially in quad. Having done quite a bit of reading about Santana for the Illuminations liner note I did a couple of years ago, I came to appreciate this album even more for how organically it came together - the Santana band had basically broken up after a tense tour following their 3rd album, and Columbia had just signed Miles away from Mercury, and Miles suggested to Santana that they get some of their friends together and do this New Year's gig. That's how you get a band that's half Santana band members, a few guys from Miles's band, and even drummer Greg Errico, who'd just quit Sly & The Family Stone months earlier. This was an album that never really registered for me, until someone in the early days of QQ (I think it may have actually been Cai Campbell) mentioned that the quad mix is a cut above the stereo version. I'm not familiar enough with the stereo mix to do a comparison, but I loved the quad mix the first time I heard it - it's full of energy and excitement, and the complete antithesis of the typical 'band in front-crowd in the rears' type mixes that we see today, with guitars, horns and percussion in the rear speakers at times. My suspicion is that the quad mix sounds better because it's probably drier than the stereo version, as SQ mixes seemed to lay off a lot of the reverb and echo effects because they interfered with the encoding/decoding process. Interestingly, it's emerged in the last few years that either some (or all) of this album was re-recorded in the studio after the gig - Rolling Stone magazine reported at the time that a technical fault meant that only 15 minutes of the recorded music was in a usable state, and a few years back an audience-recorded bootleg of the show emerged and the majority of the music doesn't match up with what's on the officially released LP. If it was the case that it was recreated in the studio, you'd certainly never guess it from the fiery performances, and whatever it may lose in authenticity it certainly gains in audio quality from being done in a controlled environment like that. Santana doesn't mention this at all in his autobiography (only the mixing of the album, and that Miles was overbearing in the studio) so I guess he wants to keep a bit of the mythos alive. It's a shame they didn't have the confidence to issue it as a double-LP at the time, given how hot the Santana brand was at the time.
I also wanted to add that, once again having had the privilege to assist D-V's graphic designer Paul Evans on all of these, that he continues to outdo himself with the artwork and design on these releases. Not only do the original album covers regularly require a lot of restoration, finding a clever, organic way to combine the covers of two separate albums (often with very different aesthetics) is no easy task, yet Paul always finds a way. I think his work on the Wheatfield Soul/Canned Wheat twofer is some of the best he's done to date. We've also been afforded access to the information on the stereo and quad master tape boxes, so pretty much every one of these releases contains some previously unknown information about the albums, either on the inlay or in the booklet, be it recording dates/locations, or recording/remix personnel.
What a beautyALWAYS knew you had royal blood, Pupster
Well, I scored all four. Why? First, I have a problem. Second, Schoenberg was on preorder when I bought the other five 19 October releases, all of which I LOVE, so I'm guessing Schoenberg will be just as wonderful. Third, I think Canned Wheat is my favorite Guess Who release, so I'm stoked to hear the quad. Fourth, I love Stevenson's "Shambala," and even though "My Maria" is the only other song of his I know, how can I go wrong with a guy whose initials stand for Buckwheat!? Fifth, I'm all in for ANYTHING with Santana on it, and if Buddy's Booger even remotely resembles Funkadelic, then sans acid reign I shall attain Maggot Brain! Sixth, I still have a problem, but it's nothing a fix from D-V won't exacerbate . . . which, even though it's sick, is cause for me to CELEBRATE!
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Oh, and before I forget, a couple of other tidbits - the reason Booger Bear isn't paired with Buddy Miles' other quad album Chapter VII is that another reissue label already holds the rights to that album so it's not available to D-V currently.
Additionally, searches were carried out to see if the rumoured quad mixes of the Guess Who's So Long, Bannatyne and Live at The Paramount could be found, but nothing has turned up. That isn't to say that they definitely don't exist, but given that the guy who did the archive work on the Guess Who reissues for Iconoclassic recently said on the Hoffman forums that Sony couldn't find the quad mixes for Wheatfield Soul and Canned Wheat (two quads that we definitely know exist) when he asked for them as part of an aborted box set, I think we should be exceedingly happy with what we are getting.
Additionally, searches were carried out to see if the rumoured quad mixes of the Guess Who's So Long, Bannatyne and Live at The Paramount could be found, but nothing has turned up. That isn't to say that they definitely don't exist, but given that the guy who did the archive work on the Guess Who reissues for Iconoclassic recently said on the Hoffman forums that Sony couldn't find the quad mixes for Wheatfield Soul and Canned Wheat (two quads that we definitely know exist) when he asked for them as part of an aborted box set, I think we should be exceedingly happy with what we are getting.
Thanks for all the insider info, Dave. I knew that if someone sent out a bat-signal, you'd show!
That's interesting. One of the things that always appealed to me about the crowd noise on that recording was that it was sort of...I donno...heightened. Almost calling attention to itself. (Or, as the Amazon reviewers that @esimms86 alluded to groused: "excessive.") I never would have used the word "synthetic," but maybe now I will. Just listen to all the echo-y whistling, which sounds like it's on a loop.
Regardless: looking forward to this entire batch--and, as always, to their liners, fortified this time by extra helpings of session info!
That's interesting. One of the things that always appealed to me about the crowd noise on that recording was that it was sort of...I donno...heightened. Almost calling attention to itself. (Or, as the Amazon reviewers that @esimms86 alluded to groused: "excessive.") I never would have used the word "synthetic," but maybe now I will. Just listen to all the echo-y whistling, which sounds like it's on a loop.
Regardless: looking forward to this entire batch--and, as always, to their liners, fortified this time by extra helpings of session info!
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van1
Senior Member
3 has turned into 6, Blood, Sweat and Tears, Argent and Don Sebesky. Thank god for us vigilant folk in Australia, are there no European or north american insomniacs out there? 
3 has turned into 6, Blood, Sweat and Tears, Argent and Don Sebesky. Thank god for us vigilant folk in Australia, are there no European or north american insomniacs out there?
6 it is....
The Guess Who - Wheatfield Soul & Canned Wheat [SACD Hybrid Multi-channel]
https://www.duttonvocalion.co.uk/proddetail.php?prod=CDSML8570
Buddy Miles & Carlos Santana - Buddy Miles: Booger Bear & Carlos Santana and Buddy Miles: Live! [SACD Hybrid Multi-channel]
https://www.duttonvocalion.co.uk/proddetail.php?prod=2CDSML8560
B.W. Stevenson - My Maria & Calabasas [SACD Hybrid Multi-channel]
https://www.duttonvocalion.co.uk/proddetail.php?prod=CDSML8565
Argent - In Deep & Nexus & Ring of Hands [SACD Hybrid Multi-channel / Stereo]
https://www.duttonvocalion.co.uk/proddetail.php?prod=2CDSML8568
Don Sebesky - Giant Box [SACD Hybrid Multi-channel]
https://www.duttonvocalion.co.uk/proddetail.php?prod=CDSML8557
Blood, Sweat & Tears - Mirror Image & New City [SACD Hybrid Multi-channel]
https://www.duttonvocalion.co.uk/proddetail.php?prod=CDSML8572
3 has turned into 6, Blood, Sweat and Tears, Argent and Don Sebesky. Thank god for us vigilant folk in Australia, are there no European or north american insomniacs out there?
Holy shit!!!!
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Have just spent a little over £91 including first class postage.
An expensive week - I ordered that Band super deluxe, some mint condition 60s LPs, and some mint condition 60s singles.
Haven't bought any Christmas presents for anybody yet, either.
An expensive week - I ordered that Band super deluxe, some mint condition 60s LPs, and some mint condition 60s singles.
Haven't bought any Christmas presents for anybody yet, either.
Just wait till those who only saw the first three! And, they quietly slip another 3 in! Whoopee!!
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Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Just bought all 6!!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
3 has turned into 6, Blood, Sweat and Tears, Argent and Don Sebesky. Thank god for us vigilant folk in Australia, are there no European or north american insomniacs out there?
OMFG!!!!!!!
a big fat Christmas WOW!!!!!
edit: the Blood Sweat & Tears 2-fer is an absolute dream come true for me, among my most cherished CBS Quads with superb surround mixes
Ah hahaha! I was waiting for your reaction! LMFAO!!
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but i'm totally thrilled about these new releases!! cannot WAIT!!!
a big fat Christmas WOW!!!!!
edit: the Blood Sweat & Tears 2-fer is an absolute dream come true for me, among my most cherished CBS Quads with superb surround mixes
... and still i note there's not the usual update to the blurb at the top of the DV site when a new batch lands..
could there be even more!!
please Sir Dutton, we want some more!!
don't be gruel to our hearts that are true, slap some extra quad porridge in our bowls! we're ready brek, willing and able!!!!
Watch out Tom Brady! Dutton Vocalion is rising quickly in the discussion of who is the surround sound G.O.A.T. of the digital age. Three more...
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