It's my 100th post and I've been on QQ for a month. Being the SQueaky wheel, it's time for an argument starter. Although many of these titles have been discussed in individual threads, it would be fun to hear about everyone's faves. I'm not even sure that these are my definitive list. I've only had 35-40 years to audition them. LOL!! So, would you kindly post your faves, with or with out reviews? Thanks, Linda
1- Sundown-Gordon Lightfoot CD-4/Q8/Q4 The singles "Sundown" and "Carefree Highway" are fantastic. Seven Island Suite is wonderful. "Lovers will desert you when you're down and S*O*L*." Nice Quad mix, good fidelity for the time. CD-4 was my first copy. The Mofi 2-ch LP is pretty hot, too. I had heard some of his stuff, but this one made me a fan. Have seen him live at the Desert Inn (RIP) and Ravinia 3X.
2- Birds of Fire-Mahavishnu Orchestra SQ/Q8 John McLaughlin and Billy Cobham are amazing. Chicago's own Jerry Goodman knows how to fiddle. How do you engineer a five-piece jazz-fusion band with no vocals for Quad? Give everyone their own channel, plus one across the back. The cover artwork is gorgeous, too. Miles Ahead, indeed.
3- Sly & the Family Stone's Greatest SQ/Q8 Take an integrated band with men, women and horns. Add an album that was an abortion of engineering in stereo, and you have a natural for Quad. Columbia knew mono rechanneled for Quad wouldn't cut it. So, back to the masters to create a Quad masterpiece. Our hi-fi store sold software, too. One day a girl came in looking for a 2ch Sly's Greatest. I persuaded her to buy the Quad. She came back and loved it though her 2ch. It was better than her girlfriend's "non-2ch" stereo copy. If ya gotta pick one Quad title anyone can dig, this is it!
4- Blood, Sweat & Tears (2) SQ/Q8 I bought BS&T "Child" w/Al Kooper. When he left, I didn't see how they could top that with some unknown vocalist. But they did! What a potent brew: nine guys (shoulda done 8.1), powerful vocals, horns, Kooper's ghost & Guercio. A natural for Quad. Even in stereo, it ranks in my top 10. I've owned 8 copies of this, including SQ & Q8. Great Quad mix. Great writing: Satie, Winwood, Holiday, Nyro, and great originals from Katz and Clayton-Thomas. Hits: Spinning Wheel, God Bless the Child, And When I Die and You've Made Me So Very Happy. Prior to this album, Laura Nyro was the vocalist w/BS&T. She was dating Jim Fielder, the bassist. Nothing was ever released with her & BS&T. Hey, Sony, comb those vaults. I love to hear that, even in mono with "bathtub fidelity." "Bar mitzvah soul?" I don't think so.
5- Chicago X SQ/Q8 Another nine guys made for Quad. There are a couple better albums of theirs in SQ, but I'll save those for my modern multi list. Great mix, great tunes. If You Leave Me Now went to #1. There are a lot of better tunes than that here. You Get it Up sounds like War. Funky. Mama Mama is seductive. Scrapbook is autobiographical cool. Another Rainy Day in NYC. Been there when it rained for days. NYC is in my heart, so is Chicago.
6- Santana III SQ/Q8 I ain't got NOBODY, that I can depend on. A smokin' jam firing sequentially through four speakers. Get the sound around you. Santana w/horns IS Everybody's Everything in Quad. Two guitarists that can KILL: Santana & Neil Schon. A cover evoking 2001:Space Odyssey. Sorry, no gatefold in SQ, just a single Gold bordered sleeve. Coke Escovedo added his own fire. WOW!
7- Message from a Drum-Redbone SQ/Q8 "Still, it hurts to find some people unkind." So, the message begins. Another Louisiana swamp filled Bay area band that percolates. Marie, the vodoo, Laveaux lives. A Witch Queen Never Dies! Got a Q8 of this the day I got my Akai CR80-DSS. I sat and listened in awe. Two years later, Come and Get Your Love stormed the charts. In the midst of Quad, we anticipated an SQ of Wovoka w/ the hit. It never came. That album smoked, but this one is better. Great mix, eschewing pan pots in favor of getting intimate with a small rock band. Alumni of the Shindogs and Niki Hoeky. Can you dig zombie voodoo gris-gris? It's Fate!
8- Nilsson Schmilsson CD-4/Q8/Q4 "On a fence with bits of crap around the bottom," sung so sweetly that it didn't sound like crap. Got this one soon after my Q8 deck. Later got a promo CD-4. Thanks, RCA! Without You and Coconut are great, but there's lots more incredible stuff here. Nilsson rocks out on Jump Into the Fire. There are lots of different edits/mixes of this song. The Mofi Gold CD features a false start. The Quad mix/edit is the bomb! Makes a great case for Nilsson and CD-4.
9- Red Octopus-Jefferson Starship CD-4/Q8 Miracles, my #2 song of all time is here. Isn't that enough? My #1 song isn't on this top 10 list, but it's on my modern multi list, though I have an SQ and Quadio of it. Listen closely to the background vocals on Miracles. They're beautiful. Fast Buck Freddie kicks off the festivities. Think fast! Creach fiddles around. Imagine bring this home as a new release on CD-4. Life was good.
10- Azteca SQ/Q8 16-piece band in Quad. No need for panning. Four to a channel, no pushing, It's not exactly like that, but you get the idea. Five lead vocalists and some cooking jams. Pete & Coke Escovedo, and Paul Jackson, pre-Head Hunters. Some great writing, though nothing you ever heard on radio. Once again, a gold border, but no gatefold sleeve for the extra buck. After 40 years, they've reunited and have a live CD & DVD-V out. Get it, once you become familiar with the songs, you won't forget it! "I'm in love, with lovely feelings, and they come from everywhere."
OK, many of my faves are missing here, and I'll bet many of yours are, too. There are six Quad titles which belong here, but that I deliberately left off. It's because they're out in 5.1 and I'll review those on my moden multi Top 10. Stay tuned.
:51banana:
1- Sundown-Gordon Lightfoot CD-4/Q8/Q4 The singles "Sundown" and "Carefree Highway" are fantastic. Seven Island Suite is wonderful. "Lovers will desert you when you're down and S*O*L*." Nice Quad mix, good fidelity for the time. CD-4 was my first copy. The Mofi 2-ch LP is pretty hot, too. I had heard some of his stuff, but this one made me a fan. Have seen him live at the Desert Inn (RIP) and Ravinia 3X.
2- Birds of Fire-Mahavishnu Orchestra SQ/Q8 John McLaughlin and Billy Cobham are amazing. Chicago's own Jerry Goodman knows how to fiddle. How do you engineer a five-piece jazz-fusion band with no vocals for Quad? Give everyone their own channel, plus one across the back. The cover artwork is gorgeous, too. Miles Ahead, indeed.
3- Sly & the Family Stone's Greatest SQ/Q8 Take an integrated band with men, women and horns. Add an album that was an abortion of engineering in stereo, and you have a natural for Quad. Columbia knew mono rechanneled for Quad wouldn't cut it. So, back to the masters to create a Quad masterpiece. Our hi-fi store sold software, too. One day a girl came in looking for a 2ch Sly's Greatest. I persuaded her to buy the Quad. She came back and loved it though her 2ch. It was better than her girlfriend's "non-2ch" stereo copy. If ya gotta pick one Quad title anyone can dig, this is it!
4- Blood, Sweat & Tears (2) SQ/Q8 I bought BS&T "Child" w/Al Kooper. When he left, I didn't see how they could top that with some unknown vocalist. But they did! What a potent brew: nine guys (shoulda done 8.1), powerful vocals, horns, Kooper's ghost & Guercio. A natural for Quad. Even in stereo, it ranks in my top 10. I've owned 8 copies of this, including SQ & Q8. Great Quad mix. Great writing: Satie, Winwood, Holiday, Nyro, and great originals from Katz and Clayton-Thomas. Hits: Spinning Wheel, God Bless the Child, And When I Die and You've Made Me So Very Happy. Prior to this album, Laura Nyro was the vocalist w/BS&T. She was dating Jim Fielder, the bassist. Nothing was ever released with her & BS&T. Hey, Sony, comb those vaults. I love to hear that, even in mono with "bathtub fidelity." "Bar mitzvah soul?" I don't think so.
5- Chicago X SQ/Q8 Another nine guys made for Quad. There are a couple better albums of theirs in SQ, but I'll save those for my modern multi list. Great mix, great tunes. If You Leave Me Now went to #1. There are a lot of better tunes than that here. You Get it Up sounds like War. Funky. Mama Mama is seductive. Scrapbook is autobiographical cool. Another Rainy Day in NYC. Been there when it rained for days. NYC is in my heart, so is Chicago.
6- Santana III SQ/Q8 I ain't got NOBODY, that I can depend on. A smokin' jam firing sequentially through four speakers. Get the sound around you. Santana w/horns IS Everybody's Everything in Quad. Two guitarists that can KILL: Santana & Neil Schon. A cover evoking 2001:Space Odyssey. Sorry, no gatefold in SQ, just a single Gold bordered sleeve. Coke Escovedo added his own fire. WOW!
7- Message from a Drum-Redbone SQ/Q8 "Still, it hurts to find some people unkind." So, the message begins. Another Louisiana swamp filled Bay area band that percolates. Marie, the vodoo, Laveaux lives. A Witch Queen Never Dies! Got a Q8 of this the day I got my Akai CR80-DSS. I sat and listened in awe. Two years later, Come and Get Your Love stormed the charts. In the midst of Quad, we anticipated an SQ of Wovoka w/ the hit. It never came. That album smoked, but this one is better. Great mix, eschewing pan pots in favor of getting intimate with a small rock band. Alumni of the Shindogs and Niki Hoeky. Can you dig zombie voodoo gris-gris? It's Fate!
8- Nilsson Schmilsson CD-4/Q8/Q4 "On a fence with bits of crap around the bottom," sung so sweetly that it didn't sound like crap. Got this one soon after my Q8 deck. Later got a promo CD-4. Thanks, RCA! Without You and Coconut are great, but there's lots more incredible stuff here. Nilsson rocks out on Jump Into the Fire. There are lots of different edits/mixes of this song. The Mofi Gold CD features a false start. The Quad mix/edit is the bomb! Makes a great case for Nilsson and CD-4.
9- Red Octopus-Jefferson Starship CD-4/Q8 Miracles, my #2 song of all time is here. Isn't that enough? My #1 song isn't on this top 10 list, but it's on my modern multi list, though I have an SQ and Quadio of it. Listen closely to the background vocals on Miracles. They're beautiful. Fast Buck Freddie kicks off the festivities. Think fast! Creach fiddles around. Imagine bring this home as a new release on CD-4. Life was good.
10- Azteca SQ/Q8 16-piece band in Quad. No need for panning. Four to a channel, no pushing, It's not exactly like that, but you get the idea. Five lead vocalists and some cooking jams. Pete & Coke Escovedo, and Paul Jackson, pre-Head Hunters. Some great writing, though nothing you ever heard on radio. Once again, a gold border, but no gatefold sleeve for the extra buck. After 40 years, they've reunited and have a live CD & DVD-V out. Get it, once you become familiar with the songs, you won't forget it! "I'm in love, with lovely feelings, and they come from everywhere."
OK, many of my faves are missing here, and I'll bet many of yours are, too. There are six Quad titles which belong here, but that I deliberately left off. It's because they're out in 5.1 and I'll review those on my moden multi Top 10. Stay tuned.
:51banana: