Description
A historic record recorded just four years removed from the dawn of the analog tape era!
200-gram double LP set remastered by Ryan K. Smith at Sterling Sound from the original analog tapes and cut at 45 RPM!
Recorded on an Ampex 200, using 3M-111 magnetic tape running at 15 inches per second
Gatefold old-style "tip-on" on jacket by Stoughton Printing
Plated and pressed at Quality Record Pressings!
Masterpieces By Ellington shines from an astonishingly brief period of history that gave the recording industry two of its greatest achievements — the introduction of magnetic tape recording and the 33 1/3 LP, or long-playing record. Now with our 45 RPM release, the best-sounding version of this historic album gives listeners an even richer sonic experience. The dead-quiet double-LP, with the music spread over four sides of vinyl, reduces distortion and high frequency loss as the wider-spaced grooves let your stereo cartridge track more accurately.
Duke was joined for this album by a virtuoso supporting cast: Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn (piano). Russell Procope, Paul Gonzalves, Johnnie Hodges, Jimmy Hamilton (saxophone). Nelson Williams, Andrew Ford, Harold Baker, Ray Nance, William Anderson (trumpet). Quentin Jackson, Lawrence Brown, Tyree Glenn (trombone). Mercer Ellington (horn). Sonny Greer (drums). Wendell Marshall (bass). Yvonne Lanauze (vocals).
"Most highly recommended. It's one of my 'Records to Die For' in the February 2015 Stereophile. You won't have to die to get a copy. A true classic both musically and sonically and a historical work of art you can now own." — Music = 11/11; Sound = 11/11 — Michael Fremer, AnalogPlanet.com.