Home  |  Audio Reviews  Audiophile Shows Partner Mags  News     

 

 

Enjoy the Music.com Review Magazine

Steamin' With The
Miles Davis Quintet

Review By Dave Glackin
Click here to e-mail reviewer

Steamin' with the Miles Davis Quintet

SACD Stock: Mobile Fidelity UDSACD 2019
www.mofi.com

 

  For many music lovers, Miles Davis and John Coltrane represent the epitome of jazz. And among the legions of Davis and Coltrane fans, for many the definitive period in history spanned the mid fifties through the early sixties. While Davis and Trane appeared with various accompanists during that period, the pairing of this duo with Red Garland on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Philly Joe Jones on drums comprised a magical group that really clicked. Steamin' With the Miles Davis Quintet is one in a series of four famous releases that were recorded in 1956. Steamin', Cookin', Workin', and Relaxin' were all recorded in glorious mono by Rudy Van Gelder, probably the most highly revered jazz recording engineer of the era.

This Mobile Fidelity Sound Labs SACD was mastered by Shawn Britton on MoFi's GAIN 2 System, and released as a dual-layer disc. My reference for the sound quality is the playback that I heard at David Robinson's house with his Ed Meitner SACD gear (my own SACD playback hardware is now hopelessly behind the curve... for the moment). The sense of mastertape-like sound quality that I heard from this disc was startling. SACDs vary in sound quality, as a function of the technique and care that was used in their mastering, but in my opinion this release is right up there among the very best, and shows what the medium is capable of. You should have no quibbles about the sound quality of this disc.

Yes, the recording is in mono. But if you only listen to stereo recordings, you don't know what you're missing. My favorite jazz record is mono. Many recordings that were originally done in mono sound better when back in mono. And many sound like "fat mono," with the players filling a discernible chunk of space between your speakers, sounding very real within that space. So don't be scared by mono. With a good mono recording of good music, you will soon forget about the mono and concentrate on the music. And with a great mono recording of great music, such as this, you won't care about the mono from the very first note.

The music is a mix of ballads, mid-tempo numbers, and angular, bebop-style pieces. The classic Miles Harmon-muted trumpet is present in all its glory, and its wistful emotion comes across in spades on the slower numbers. Coltrane's signature style shines through, in 1956 still rising on a trajectory that in my opinion culminated in 1959-60 with a number of startling albums including, of course, Kind of Blue. Red Garland and Philly Joe Jones really get to strut their stuff on Steamin' on the up-tempo number "Salt Peanuts," and Coltrane sounds like he's in his element.

This is one outstanding recording, featuring my favorite jazz trumpeter and my favorite jazz artist (Coltrane). My only beef is that there are only six cuts. If you any interest whatsoever in jazz, I recommend that you buy this recording. It may spark a much more serious interest in jazz. If you have an abiding interest in jazz, you'll want to listen to this MoFi release as soon as you can.

 

 

Enjoyment:

Sound Quality:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     
 

Quick Links


Audiophile Review Magazine
High-End Audio Equipment Reviews

 

Equipment Review Archives
Turntables, Cartridges, Etc
Digital Source
Do It Yourself (DIY)
Preamplifiers
Amplifiers
Cables, Wires, Etc
Loudspeakers/ Monitors
Headphones, IEMs, Tweaks, Etc
Superior Audio Gear Reviews

 

Videos
Enjoy the Music.TV

 

Columns
Viewpoint By Roger Skoff
Viewpoint By Steven R. Rochlin
Various Think Pieces
Manufacturer Articles
10 Questions For Manufacturers


Show Reports
Capital Audiofest 2023 Report
Toronto Audiofest 2023 Report
UK Audio Show 2023 Report
Pacific Audio Fest 2023 Report
T.H.E. Show 2023 Report
HIGH END Munich 2023
Australian Hi-Fi Show 2023 Report
AXPONA 2023 Show Report
Salon Audio Montréal Audiofest 2023
CanJam Singapore 2023 Report
Florida Intl. Audio Expo 2023
...More Show Reports

 

Other
Audiophile Contests
Cool Free Stuff For You
Tweaks For Your System
Vinyl Logos For LP Lovers
Lust Pages Visual Beauty

 

Resources & Information
Music Definitions
Hi-Fi Definitions

 


Industry & Music News

High-End Premium Audio & Music News

 

Partner Print Magazines
audioXpress
Australian Hi-Fi Magazine
hi-fi+ Magazine
HiFi Media
Sound Practices
The Absolute Sound
VALVE Magazine

 

For The Press & Industry
About Us
Press Releases
Official Site Graphics

 

Contests & Our Mailing List

Our free newsletter for monthly updates & enter our contests!

 

 

    

Home   |   News   |   Equipment Reviews   |   Press Releases   |   About Us   |   Contact Us

 

All contents copyright©  1995 - 2023  HighEndAudio.com and Enjoy the Music.com®
May not be copied or reproduced without permission.  All rights reserved.