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A Love Supreme - John Coltrane..what an album!! what a shame!!

post #1 of 17
12/15/09 at 8:12am
Thread Starter 
Recently I've been really getting into Jazz, and so far really enjoying the music and the sound quality of the few albums I have.
sort of disappointed at myself for not diving into jazz earlier and now slowly trying to build a good jazz collection.

After listening to John coltrane's blue train album (which is one of my favorites) I decided to go for his most accomplished album of all time - a love supreme.
I must say, musically it deserves all the praise it gets and should be part of anyone's jazz collection.
Unfortunately the recording, while great is mic'ed so close to the drums on the right side that I am finding it impossible to enjoy with my headphones. trying to listen to it for the last 20 minutes and my right ear just can't take it anymore..
would a remastering make any difference? I have the deluxe edition and if it will make a difference and if anyone can recommend me which edition, I am more than willing to try it out..



otherwise It's a shame that I will have to enjoy these on my not so good speakers..
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post #2 of 17
12/15/09 at 9:04am
I feel your sorrow. Go get a copy of Ornette Coleman's The Shape of Jazz to Come to console yourself while you wait for the definitive A Love Supreme.
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post #3 of 17
12/15/09 at 9:20am
You can either try using crossfeed, or downmixing it to mono. How to do that with itunes (assuming that's what you are using), you'll need to ask someone.
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post #4 of 17
12/15/09 at 9:30am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by catachresis View Post
I feel your sorrow. Go get a copy of Ornette Coleman's The Shape of Jazz to Come to console yourself while you wait for the definitive A Love Supreme.
just listened to some samples on amazon, and it is on my list to buy CDs. thanks for the advice. as a novice to the genre, I need all the recommendations I can get
PS. at the moment listening to Mingus Ah um for consolation
..and I gather you have also been disappointed with the recording of 'a love supreme'..
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post #5 of 17
12/15/09 at 9:36am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by scytheavatar View Post
You can either try using crossfeed, or downmixing it to mono. How to do that with itunes (assuming that's what you are using), you'll need to ask someone.
thanks, I will try the crossfeed on itunes but not sure how it will help. the mic is just too close and the cymbals just give me a headache..the worse part is the sound quality is really really nice..
never done downmixing..but much prefer my speakers than listening to them in mono..
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post #6 of 17
12/15/09 at 10:59am
Quote:
Originally Posted by catachresis View Post
I feel your sorrow. Go get a copy of Ornette Coleman's The Shape of Jazz to Come to console yourself while you wait for the definitive A Love Supreme.
I wouldn't compare The Shape of Jazz to Come to A Love Supreme at all.

I'd sooner compare A Love Supreme to Converting Vegetarians by IM - which isnt jazz at all. However they have recurring motives throughout the album, which is one of the features of ALS which makes it gel IMO.

I partially feel your sorrow, but I believe the music speaks for itself.

Disc 2 with the deluxe edition is live and a totally different recording, if that helps you at all. I don't have any gear with me at the moment so I cant check the recording quality but I figured you may want to know.
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post #7 of 17
12/15/09 at 11:57am
I think you just need to turn the volume down. The cymbals shouldn't give you a headache because of how they're mic'd if the volume is reasonable. A Love Supreme is amazing all the way around. I couldn't imagine letting the fact that it's close mic'd prevent me from enjoying the heck out of it.

Sounds like your audiophile side is overpowering your music loving side. Be careful with that.
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post #8 of 17
12/15/09 at 12:01pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by MrGreen View Post
I wouldn't compare The Shape of Jazz to Come to A Love Supreme at all.

I'd sooner compare A Love Supreme to Converting Vegetarians by IM - which isnt jazz at all. However they have recurring motives throughout the album, which is one of the features of ALS which makes it gel IMO.

I partially feel your sorrow, but I believe the music speaks for itself.

Disc 2 with the deluxe edition is live and a totally different recording, if that helps you at all. I don't have any gear with me at the moment so I cant check the recording quality but I figured you may want to know.
Thanks for the tip!
I just listened to Disc 2 and you are right, it is totally different recording. the quality is ok, but not as good as disc 1. however, the soundstage is perfect, not too close.
oh well, at least i will get to enjoy listening to disc 2 on my headphones, and will have to do with speakers for disc one.
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post #9 of 17
12/15/09 at 12:06pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by robm321 View Post
I think you just need to turn the volume down. A Love Supreme is amazing all the way around. I couldn't imagine letting the fact that it's panned prevent me from enjoying the heck out of it.

Sounds like your audiophile side is overpowering your music loving side. Be careful with that.
I guess you have a point there.
I did try lower volume but still find the cymbals so overpowering that to set up a comfortable level I almost have to give up on other instrument sounds. also it just feels so unbalanced, right next to my ear...
still enjoying it with speakers so I guess its not so bad.
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post #10 of 17
12/15/09 at 12:52pm
Close miking kills everything, kittens included. But the live version on that deluxe set is just to die for.
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post #11 of 17
12/15/09 at 1:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by catachresis View Post
I feel your sorrow. Go get a copy of Ornette Coleman's The Shape of Jazz to Come to console yourself while you wait for the definitive A Love Supreme.

ooh! ooh! and get Eric Dolphy - Out to Lunch!!!

a free jazz masterpiece that takes the baton from Coleman and Coltrane and sprints across the finish line.

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post #12 of 17
12/15/09 at 1:49pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by VicAjax View Post
ooh! ooh! and get Eric Dolphy - Out to Lunch!!!

a free jazz masterpiece that takes the baton from Coleman and Coltrane and sprints across the finish line.
Since when is coltrane anything close to free jazz?
Great albums, tho
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post #13 of 17
12/15/09 at 6:29pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by MrGreen View Post
Since when is coltrane anything close to free jazz?
Great albums, tho
Well, Coltrane overlapped a lot genres. A Love Supreme is sort of a quest between Modal and Free, but certainly everything Trane did after Ascension was the epitome of free jazz.......

Regarding the OP, I don't know if this makes a difference but when Van Gelder was mixing all the Coltrane albums he handled he very seriously chose the left channel for Coltrane and the right channel for Elvin's drums. The exact reason was to emphasize the balance between the two soloists, with McCoy's piano in the center. When I was in sound engineering school I remember my professor telling me that years back, he was asked to do a mix of Coltrane's live "Love Supreme" footage. When he presented it to the record label, the mix was rejected because he centered Coltrane and stereo-ized the drums.

Try listening to it again with the concept that the splitting of instruments was quite intentional. It may make a slight difference.
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post #14 of 17
12/15/09 at 7:14pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by MrGreen View Post
Since when is coltrane anything close to free jazz?
Great albums, tho
Ascension?

- Ed
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post #15 of 17
12/15/09 at 8:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by MrGreen View Post
Since when is coltrane anything close to free jazz?
Great albums, tho
since A Love Supreme is one of the albums that signaled the emergence of free jazz, and pretty much everything Coltrane did after ALS is free jazz.
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