Mobile Fidelity / MoFi Record Vinyl Records

On Nice 'N' Easy, Frank Sinatra selected a collection of songs he sung early in his career and it's a classic mix of breezy mid-tempo numbers and beautiful ballads. Conducted and arranged by Nelson Riddle, Nice 'n Easy contains twelve pieces of pure perfection including definitive versions of That Old Feeling, How Deep is the Ocean, I've Got a Crush On You, Try a Little Tenderness, Embraceable You and Dream. This album rolls along steadily from the first tune to the last, charming everyone along the way.

Mobile Fidelity mastering engineers have painstakingly re-mastered the titles in the Frank Sinatra Capitol recordings project with the utmost care and respect for the 20th century icon. As an artist, Frank Sinatra brilliantly interpreted some of America's greatest songs, preserving them for generations to come. On Sinatra's Capitol recordings: his voice, phrasing and excellent musical taste are all on full display.

Track Listing:
1. Nice 'n' Easy
2. That Old Feeling
3. How Deep Is the Ocean?
4. I've Got a Crush on You
5. You Go to My Head
6. Fools Rush In
7. Nevertheless (I'm in Love with You)
8. She's Funny That Way
9. Try a Little Tenderness
10. Embraceable You
11. Mam'selle
12. Dream

Dont Cry Now, her first for Asylum was released in 1973 and would help solidify Ronstadt as one of the premiere female pop vocalists for the next two decades. This is one of the most exceptional sounding female vocalist recordings of the 1970's.

Various tracks were produced by John Boylan, J. D. Souther; and, for the first time in what would be a long and highly successful relationship, British musician (Peter & Gordon) Peter Asher. The album spent more than a year on the Billboard chart and peaked at No. 45. Featured hit singles are the Eagles' Desperado, Bonnie Raitts Love Has No Pride, Randy Newmans sly observation on slavery and southern culture Sail Away plus a nod to both Dusty Springfield and the Grand Ole Opry with Silver Threads and Golden Needles.

Guest appereances include guitar work by both the Eagles Glenn Frey and super-sessionman Larry Carlton, plus harmonica by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Bands Jimmy Fadden, bass and drums by L.A.A-teamers Lee Sklar and Russ Kunkel respectively, plus last but certainly not least, the legendary Sneeky Pete adding his tasteful pedal steel throughout.

Track Listing:
1. I Can Almost See It
2. Love Has No Pride
3. Silver Threads And Golden Needles
4. Desperado
5. Don't Cry Now
6. Sail Away
7. Colorado
8. The Fast One
9. Everybody Loves A Winner
10. I Believe In You

Looking for something 'different?' Then EXPERIENCE the 23-minute title track, which has reedman, Sonny Fortune, playing flute, bassist, Calvin Hill, playing reeds, and drummer Alphonse Mouzon employing a variety of percussion effects. If all this isn't enough, on 'Valley of Life,' Tyner picks up a kyoto and produces a gentle, hypnotic impressionistic sketch, aided again by Fortune on flute. On Sahara, the musicians weren't afraid to wail spontaneously, yet Tyner maintains a clear focus on the effort and in doing so expanded the very definition of jazz itself. Mission accomplished.

Personnel: McCoy Tyner (piano, koto, flute, percussion); Sonny Fortune (soprano & alto saxophones, flute); Alphonse Mouzon (trumpet, reeds, drums, percussion); Calvin Hill (reeds, bass, percussion). Recorded at Decca Recording Studios, New York, New York in January 1972.

The albums spare, hyper-realistic approach stood as a proud contrast (and still does) to the overly polished, studio-slick blues, pop, and rock efforts mainlined out of high-tech studios. Recorded in just seven hours with an ambisonic microphone, Whites Off Earth Now!! is one of the most acoustically resplendent and dynamically rich records ever cut. The Canadian bands intentional attempt to reclaim purity has made WOEN a cult classic and audiophile favorite.

Comprised of three siblings and a bassist friend, Cowboy Junkies stuck to songs that they had been playing live since 1985 when it came time to solidify their existence with an actual album. They favored potent standards such as Robert Johnsons Me and the Devil Blues and Crossroads, John Lee Hookers Decoration Day and Forgive Me, Bruce Springsteens State Trooper, and Big Joe Williams Baby Please Dont Go. In the Junkies hands, these tunes take on newfound ethereal power and riveting danger. Sung in a hushed lullaby voice by singer Margo Timmins, lyrical meanings change and emotional chills increase. Subtle illusions of calmness hold steady, but droning guitars and short bursts of bruised feedback generate a tension that drives these songs into our subconscious.

Disgusted with what they rightly perceived as the contrived, overly processed sound of 80s recordings, the group agreed to let producer/engineer Peter Moore experiment with an unconventional recording technique. The decision proved a stroke of genius. Set up in an uncomfortably hot garage padded with carpets and materials to dampen echoes, the foursome gathered around a single Caltrec Ambisonic Microphonethe quartet recorded direct-to-two-track. The results are magical, the natural and unimpeded sound that audiophiles dream about.

Mastered from the original tapes by Mobile Fidelity, this numbered limited-edition 180-gram LP captures every last finite detail and note. Microdynamics and sonic cues abound. The sticking together of Timmins lips from the heat and sweat right before she begins to sing on both Johnson tunes; the sound of drummer Pete Timmins putting his sticks down at the end of Ill Never Get Out of These Blues Alive; myriad creaks, shuffles, and vibrations. What was a stunning headphone record is now an unreal stereo experience. This is what in-the-room presence is all about; albums dont get more realistic-sounding. The sense of space is staggering.

Track Listing:
1. Shining Moon
2. State Trooper
3. Me And The Devil
4. Decoration Day
5. Baby Please Don't Go
6. I'll Never Get Out Of These Blues Alive
7. Take Me
8. Forgive Me
9. Crossroads

Marc Cohn (born July 5, 1959 in Cleveland, Ohio) is a sophisticated singer-songwriter, famous for his song 'Walking in Memphis' from his self titled debut. The album is masterfully produced and features brilliantly crafted musical arrangements that perfectly accentuate Marc's soulful, rich baritone timbre and graceful, contemplative piano performances - all tastefully brought to full and exceptional sonic fruition via the Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab proprietary G.A.I.N. (Greater Ambient Information Network 2) mastering process. Songwritng styles vary from the Memphis/Elvis/Graceland mythic imagery of the hit single to the seemingly Springsteen inspired writing of 'Silver Thunderbird'.

*In 1992 Marc Cohn won the Grammy Award for Best New Artist

*In 1993 Marc Cohn won an achievement award from VH1.

Track Listing:
1. Walking in Memphis
2. Ghost Train
3. Silver Thunderbird
4. Dig Down Deep
5. Walk on Water
6. Miles Away
7. Saving the Best for Last
8. Strangers in a Car
9. Twenty-Nine Ways to My Baby's Door
10. Perfect Love
11. True Companion

In 1958, Frank Sinatra recorded Frank Sinatra Sings for Only the Lonely, one of five collections recorded for Capitol, consisting of saloon songs and bluesy ballads, lamenting lost love and heartache. Recorded over three days in Capitol's famous Studio A, Only the Lonely features sumptuous arrangements by Nelson Riddle who co-conducts here with Sinatra's resident concertmaster Felix Slatkin. The result is arguably his greatest ballads album.

Sinatra's tour de force versions of What's New, Blues in the Night, Spring is Here, One For My Baby (and One More for The Road), Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out to Dry and Good-bye, all became staples hereafter. Never forcing the emotion out of the lyric, 'The Chairman of the Board' let's it all flow naturally here and the result is a heartfelt affair, an ideal late-night album.

Mobile Fidelity mastering engineers have painstakingly re-mastered the titles in the Frank Sinatra Capitol recordings project with the utmost care and respect for the 20th century icon. As an artist, Frank Sinatra brilliantly interpreted some of America's greatest songs, preserving them for generations to come. On Sinatra's Capitol recordings: his voice, phrasing and excellent musical taste are all on full display.

Track Listing:
1. Only the Lonely
2. Angel Eyes
3. What's New?
4. It's a Lonesome Old Town
5. Willow Weep for Me
6. Goodbye
7. Blues in the Night
8. Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out to Dry
9. Ebb Tide
10. Spring Is Here
11. Gone With the Wind
12. One for My Baby (And One More for the Road)

This title is not eligible for discount.

Track Listing:
1. I Hadn't Anyone Till You
2. Night and Day
3. Misty
4. Stardust
5. ome Rain or Come Shine
6. It Might as Well Be Spring
7. Prisoner of Love
8. That's All
9. All or Nothing at All
10. Yesterdays

Live In Paris (2 LPs) Track Listing
1. Introduction - Charles Aznavour
2. Goody Goody
3. Imagination
4. At Long Last Love
5. Moonlight in Vermont
6. Without a Song
7. Day In - Day Out
8. I've Got You Under My Skin
9. I Get a Kick Out of You
10. Second Time Around
11. Too Marvelous for Words
12. My Funny Valentine
13. In the Still of the Night
14. April in Paris
15. You're Nobody 'Til Somebody Loves You
16. They Can't Take That Away from Me
17. Chicago
18. Night and Day
19. I Could Have Danced All Night
20. One for My Baby
21. Foggy Day
22. Ol' Man River
23. Lady Is a Tramp
24. I Love Paris
25. Nancy (With the Laughing Face)
26. Come Fly With Me

Nice 'N' Easy Track Listing
1. Nice 'n' Easy
2. That Old Feeling
3. How Deep Is the Ocean?
4. I've Got a Crush on You
5. You Go to My Head
6. Fools Rush In
7. Nevertheless (I'm in Love with You)
8. She's Funny That Way
9. Try a Little Tenderness
10. Embraceable You
11. Mam'selle
12. Dream

(Sings For) Only The Lonely
1. Only the Lonely
2. Angel Eyes
3. What's New?
4. It's a Lonesome Old Town
5. Willow Weep for Me
6. Goodbye
7. Blues in the Night
8. Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out to Dry
9. Ebb Tide
10. Spring Is Here
11. Gone With the Wind
12. One for My Baby (And One More for the Road)

1981 Album a Return to Pop and a New-Wave Landmark

A return to form after the departure that was 1980s muddled Panorama, the Cars Shake It Up bursts forth with a rich assembly of synthesizers, drum machines, electronic blips, and catchy melodies that make it an early 80s pop staple. Known the world over, the famous title track proves the bands arrangement skills were in perfect shape and set the stage for a record overflowing with memorable hooks and complementary rock riffs.

Shake It Up also plays witness to primary songwriter/vocalist Ric Ocaseks increased cynicism and biting wit. While the Cars never took a rosy-eyed view of romance, the songs here impart a newfound sense of sympathy, regret, limbo, and reservation. The beauty of the Carsand all ten tunes hereis that the music suggests something else entirely. Such subliminal emotions and dynamic contrasts act as a magnet, and the band plays as if its in on the secret.

They've always cultivated a dark side--girls make boys want to end it all even after the boys have grown up. They've always basked in the shadow of Roxy Music, too. But they've never been so stylishly nightmarish--except for the title cut, even the fast ones don't aim for fun. Robert Christgau, The Consumer Guide

Apart from the party vibe of the title cut, the Cars aim for deeper targets and smarter undertones. Shake It Up is defined by an urban edginess and modern feel that comes alive on tunes such as Cruiser and circular Im Not the One, a pop gem laded with stacked vocals and keyboard lines that double as a horn section. The bands arrangements have never been betteror more involved. Absent the cheesiness that would mar the groups late-period work, the songs ride on the strength of keyboard-heavy lines and layered harmonies. You will not be disappointed.

Half-speed mastered from the original analog tapes, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited-edition LP focuses on the myriad pitch changes that control the musical directions. Recorded at the bands Synchro Sound studios by famed Queen producer Roy Thomas Baker, the album takes advantage of electronic textures and varying timbres in immersing the listener in accessible albeit abstract washes of sound. MoFis engineers made sure to capture every note and nuance; this marks the first time that Shake It Up has been remastered in any way, let alone from the original tapes.

Track Listing:
1. Since You're Gone
2. Shake It Up
3. I'm Not the One
4. Victim of Love
5. Cruiser
6. A Dream Away
7. This Could Be Love
8. Think it Over
9. Maybe Baby

Original Analog Masters Located After 18 Years and Used for Remaster

Half-Speed Mastering Yields Unprecedented Sound

Also Available on Limited Edition MoFi Hybrid SACD!

The opening instrumental to Bossanova makes it clear that the Pixies werent about to take the same crazed approach on their major-label debut as they did on their initial standout efforts, 1987's Surfer Rosa and 1989's Doolittle, also available from Mobile Fidelity on 180g LP. More straightforward, linear, fluid, subtle, and dreamy, Bossanova finds the band exploring pop structures, dropping psychedelic accents, and satisfying surf-rock urges. While it often verges off-the-beaten path, particularly for mainstream tastes circa 1990, the set is the most accessible and hook-ridden record the Pixies ever made.

Black Francis surreal narratives and breathy delivery flavor tunes like Is She Weird, Velouria, and The Happening, all of which sonically and/or lyrically tie into themes of aliens and sex. Macabre fixations and noisy outbursts take a backseat to tunefulness, putting a spotlight on Joey Santiagos underrated guitar work and Kim Deals complementary back-up vocals. Recognizing the changes, producer Gil Norton bestowed Bossanova with spacious dynamics and wide-open arrangements that allow the music to breathe.

The analog masters for Bossanova had been missing for 18 years before finally being located in 2008 in the WEA tape archives in Los Angeles. This release marks the first time that the original ½-inch analog master tapes have been used since Bossanova was originally released in August 1990. Be assured that this is the very finest version of Bossanova you will ever hear. At long last, the staggering dimensions of the Pixies canyon-wide soundscapes and three-dimensional atmospherics of their nuanced vocals are faithfully reproduced.

An essential document of one of the 20th centurys most vital bands, these numbered limited edition copies will sell out.

Track Listing:
1. Cecilia Ann
2. Rock Music
3. Velouria
4. Allison
5. Is She Weird
6. Ana
7. All Over The World
8. Dig For Fire
9. Down To The Well
10. The Happening
11. Blown Away
12. Hang Wire
13. Stormy Weather
14. Havalina

Anyone put-off by Barber's artsy flights on her other records will want to put such reservations aside. The Cole Porter Mix is more about the song that how one develops and arrives at an arrangement. There's no high-arch poetry here, just sumptuous melodies and subtle rhythmic devices. Solo saxophone flights by guest Chris Potter and understated guitar work by longtime Barber foil Neal Alger fill the arrangements with an ideal balance of grit and grace. Factor in Barber's erotic tones, playful humor, and fine piano playing, and this set of pop standards is love at first listen.

But like all great jazz artists, Barber in The Cole Porter Mix has brought her own vision to the music at hand, and in so doing she has reinvented works that we might have thought we already knew. If the first line of credit goes to Porter, for having penned lyrics and melodies that withstand constant re-examination, Barber has met the man on his own terms. In effect, she radically has reworked familiar music without crushing the spirit of the originals, a significant achievement.--Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune, September 2008

And now, that achievement sounds just absolutely brilliant. Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on quiet slabs of 180-gram vinyl, Mobile Fidelity's two-LP edition of The Cole Porter Mix will rival the best-sounding vocal records in your collection. Realizing how crucial Barber's distinctive phrasing, soft-spoken expressions, and intimate timbre are to the material, MoFi engineers did everything to ensure that every last micro tone and micro detail of this close-up recording comes through cleanly, clearly, and accurately.

Track Listing:
1. Easy to Love
2. I Wait for Late Afternoon and You
3. I Get a Kick Out of You
4. You're the Top
5. Just One of Those Things
6. Snow
7. C'est Magnifique
8. Get Out of Town
9. I Concentrate On You
10. In the Still of the Night
11. What Is This Thing Called Love?
12. Miss Otis Regrets
13. The New Year's Eve Song

Originally promoted as twelve of the most uninhibited things Sinatra ever recorded, Swing Along With Me pairs the legendary singer with arranger Billy May, who leads an orchestra that just doesnt quit. Just as impressive, the album features the incredible production standards for which the era is famous. The result: Tour de force vocals, fabulous rhythms, grand interpretations, and vivid sonics.

Of course, the album is true to its title. Sinatra rarely, if ever, swung so hard (and effortlessly) as he does here. Whether its his timing and voice control (Dont Cry Joe), diction and feeling (Please Dont Talk About Me When Im Gone), or note-perfect baritone (Granada), the Chairman makes the most out of Mays brassy arrangements. Several unexpected touchesclassically themed instrumental introductions, Spanish-influenced accentsadd to the allure.

Viewing the record as delivering one giant, swaggering groove after another is simplifying the magic contained within. But Swing Along With Me claims a big-band looseness and nightclub panache that makes it incredibly easy to enjoy. At the time, Sinatra was in the midst of his high-flying Rat Pack days, and he brings that same ring-a-ding-ding spirit to every tune here.

As is the case with all of its Sinatra series reissues, Mobile Fidelitys numbered, limited-edition 180g analog version is mastered from the original master tapes and tops all previous incarnations. The audiophile label is honored to have the opportunity to present this timeless music in pristine fidelity that enhances the transparency, fullness, timbres, and soundstage so that listeners can experience Sinatra as if he and Mays orchestra were only feet in front of them. The connection to the music, and the emotion, is riveting.

Try not to swing along!

Track Listing:
1. "Falling in Love with Love" (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart) 1:49
2. "The Curse of an Aching Heart" (Henry Fink, Al Piantadosi) 2:06
3. "Don't Cry Joe" (Joe Marsala) 3:05
4. "Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone" (Sidney Clare, Sam H. Stept) 2:56
5. "Love Walked In" (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin) 2:19
6. "Granada" (Dorothy Dodd, Agustín Lara) 3:38
7. "I Never Knew" (Ted Fio Rito, Gus Kahn) 2:14
8. "Don't Be That Way" (Benny Goodman, Mitchell Parish, Edgar Sampson) 2:41
9. "Moonlight on the Ganges" (Sherman Myers, Chester Wallace) 3:18
10. "It's a Wonderful World" (Harold Adamson, Jan Savitt, Johnny Watson) 2:17
11. "Have You Met Miss Jones?" (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart) 2:30
12. "You're Nobody 'Til Somebody Loves You" (James Cavanaugh, Russ Morgan, Larry Stock) 4:09

Miss Sinatra couldn't be more on the nose. Recorded onto 35mm film in 1963 at the Goldwyn Studios Soundstage, the record pairs the Voice with longtime collaborator Nelson Riddle and a gigantic orchestra. Consequently, the album's name refers not to a live performance but the music's epic grandness and the orchestra's huge size. Captured over four sessions in four days, the undertaking involved upwards of 60 musicians.

Thematically, half of the album features Rodgers and Hammerstein compositions while the other half also pulls from popular Broadway shows. True to the theatrical adage of leaving the audience wanting more, The Concert Sinatra will have every listener wishing it lasted forever. Everything here is utterly magnificent. Using his unparalleled breath control techniques and in the best voice of his career, Sinatra matches Riddle's sweeping arrangements, turning in resplendent performances that are as powerful, majestic, and dynamic as Riddle's surging instrumental support.

A number of pieces here-the delicate romanticism of "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered" and tremendously poignant "Soliloquy" are commonly cited by Sinatraphiles as among the greatest work Sinatra ever did. But nothing tops the definitive version of "Ol' Man River," revered for the way Sinatra holds the notes, phrases the syllables, and brings the standard's goosebump-inducing emotion to the fore. It's as perfect of a song as you will ever hear.

And hear it you will, with unprecedented clarity, transparency, and detail, on Mobile Fidelity's 180g LP. Mastering from the original tapes, Mobile Fidelity engineers realized how beloved The Concert Sinatra is to music listeners around the world. They invested tremendous care and effort in maximizing every opportunity to draw as much richness, verve, and range as possible from the source material.

So whether you have a later-era 1970s LP pressing, any of the CD versions (including the 2009 remaster), or even a rare 1960s original LP, this edition is the one to own. And if you don't own a copy-well, here's your chance to experience what's possibly the greatest pop album ever made. Prepare to have shivers run down your spine.

Track Listing:
1. "I Have Dreamed" (Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein II) 3:01
2. "My Heart Stood Still" (Rodgers, Lorenz Hart) 3:06
3. "Lost in the Stars" (Maxwell Anderson, Kurt Weill) 4:11
4. "Ol' Man River" (Hammerstein, Jerome Kern) 4:29
5. "You'll Never Walk Alone" (Rodgers, Hammerstein) 3:11
6. "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered" (Rodgers, Hart) 3:02
7. "This Nearly Was Mine" (Rodgers, Hammerstein) 2:49
8. "Soliloquy" (Rodgers, Hammerstein) 8:05

Half-speed mastered from the original analog master tapes, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited-edition 180g LP possesses a warmth, immediacy, and intimacy that surpasses that available on any of Taylors prior albums, Rhinos analog reissues included. The singers comforting voice, breath control, and enchanting guitar lines sound as if they pour right out of the studio control room, and the splendid array of backing instrumentation is balanced, vivid, and dynamic. Youve never heard Taylor this realistic, warm, or lively.

More than any other of his records, the triple-platinum JT features all sides of Taylors lyrical persona. Optimistic, content material fills half of the set while Taylor also reveals a darker, moodier identity on a number of songs that keep the 12-track set alternating between shade and light, shadow and sun. He turns romantic and blissful on the touching ballad There We Are, praises the power of love on Your Smiling Face, and enchants with the graceful Secret OLife.

In addition to the domestic bliss, Taylor also expresses surprise and cynicism on Honey Dont Leave L.A., delves into despair on Another Grey Morning, and invites sardonic tones on Bartenders Blues. The result is a complete picture of an extraordinary songwriter, and accurate sketches of the mixed emotions so many of us feel. Taylors ability to capture deep-seeded feelings, and set them to lyrical and musical poetry, explains why we relate to him on such a meta-level. Its also why his music, particularly JT, remains timeless.

Taylor doesnt do it all alone. JT benefits from an all-star support cast. Iconic singers Carly Simon and Linda Ronstadt supply background vocals, saxophone great David Sanborn plays the horn, Russ Kunkel mans the percussion, and legendary arranger David Campbell oversees the strings and woodwinds. Its no wonder why many fans consider this gorgeous collection of Laurel Canyon pop-rock Taylors finest.

Mobile Fidelity is honored to have given this easy listening late-70s gem the sonic restoration befitting its brilliant musical content. Whether youve never heard this record or know it inside and out, this 180g analog reissue will open your ears to previously hidden details ranging from pedal-steel guitar accents to honky-tonk tonalities that add to the overall enjoyment. Taylors funky rhythms, too, gain in stature, as does his meticulous command of pace and tempo. Bliss.

Track Listing:
1. Your Smiling Face
2. There We Are
3. Honey Don't Leave L.A.
4. Another Grey Morning
5. Bartender's Blues
6. Secret O' Life
7. Handy Man
8. I Was Only Telling a Lie
9. Looking for Love on Broadway
10. Terra Nova
11. Traffic Jam
12. If I Keep My Heart Out of Sight

Half-Speed Mastered from the Original Master Tapes: Roy Thomas Baker's Original Production Shines Like Never Before

The moment Head Games begins, a nastier, grittier tone is established, and it becomes apparent that Foreigner is bringing something new to the table. Namely, an edgier, leaner sound built around stronger guitars and harder rhythms. The heaviest record of the bands career, the 1979 effort functions as irrefutable proof that the quintet rocked as hard as anybody in the mainstream and did so without losing sight of the melodies that put it at the top of the charts. And with Head Games, there Foreigner would stay.

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelitys collectible audiophile edition of this longtime favorite classic-rock staple bursts with tremendous dynamics, soaring vocal timbres, punchy dynamics, and newfound instrumental separation. With more emphasis placed on Mick Jones guitar riffs and meatier grooves, you may just find yourself investing in a new power amp to get every last degree of detail thats been uncovered! Longtime fans will be thrilled to hear the subtle nuances now fully discernible amidst a gargantuan soundstage.

Joined by new bassist Rick Wills, and guided by Queen producer Roy Thomas Baker, Foreigner goes for broke, ratcheting up the muscularity on hard-hitting fare such as the hit single Dirty White Boy, Seventeen, and the aptly titled Rev on the Red Line. However, the group maintains its trademark equilibrium, pushing the limits on toughness yet retaining a diamond-in-the-rough smoothness that allows the bands hummable choruses and winding hooks to take hold.

Moreover, the band expands its use of synthesizers to wonderful effect. The smash title track, through which mesmerizing keyboard passages coarse, is a prime example of Foreigners slight albeit thrilling sonic evolution, the net result upping the drama, fanfare, and color. At the time, the combination was a breakthrough idea. Is it any wonder Head Games sold more than 5 million copies?

None, however, sound anywhere near as lifelike, involving, and rich as Mobile Fidelitys remaster. Part of the reason why late 70s arena rock remains beloved, and why its so fun, owes to the go-for-broke nature of the arrangements, decibel-clearing volume levels, and free license to just let loose. By digging in and revealing all the musical information the master tapes provide, Mobile Fidelitys analog 180g LP amplifies the pleasure principle by tenfold!

Track Listing:
1. Dirty White Boy
2. Love on the Telephone
3. Women
4. I'll Get Even with You
5. Seventeen
6. Head Games
7. The Modern Day
8. Blinded by Science
9. Do What You Like
10. Rev on the Red Line

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelitys collectible audiophile 180g LP of this longtime favorite classic-rock staple bursts with tremendous dynamics, soaring vocal timbres, bottom-end punch, and newfound instrumental separation. Sure, you may have heard songs such as Double Vision and Hot Blooded countless times, but trust us, youve never really heard them (outside of an arena setting, stadium amplifiers blaring) like this. You may just find yourself investing in a new power amp to get every last degree of detail thats been uncovered!

Synonymous with AOR (album-oriented rock), Foreigner essentially perfects the style throughout this concise, focused, down-and-dirty ten-song set. The key to any memorable 70s rock record is a catchy single, and the quintet has several lying in the waiting. The title track, inspired by New York Rangers goalie John Davidson getting whacked in the head by a hockey puck, spills over with double-entendre meaning, tough-cut riffs, and a rotating groove, not to mention a mystical keyboard refrain. Equally memorable, and a permanent part of any radio stations rotation, Hot Blooded is the ideal come-on, the groups open-ended rhythm and dance-inspiring beats pouring with promise, salaciousness, and ass-kicking sexuality. A terrific power ballad infused with woe and longing, Blue Morning, Blue Day features insistent harmonies and piano notes that grab you by the collar and doesnt let go.

Of course, great songs alone dont make for great records. The bands chemistry and performance needs to be on par with that of the material. And what else can be said of leather-lunged vocalist Lou Gramm and guitar-hero Mick Jones save for the fact the pair combine for a legendary one-two punch, leading their mates through sensational melodies and swaggering leads. Seldom has the balance between tough and polished, light and heavy, fun and reserved been better established and maintained.

Ready to rock out? Wait until you hear Mobile Fidelitys analog remaster. Itll bring back (double) visions of hot stage lights, dry-ice fog, feel-good times, and amplifiers cranked to 10only this time, the experience will take place inside the confines of your own home. Check it and see!

Track Listing:
1. Hot Blooded
2. Blue Morning, Blue Day
3. You're All I Am
4. Back Where You Belong
5. Love Has Taken Its Toll
6. Double Vision
7. Tramontane
8. I Have Waited So Long
9. Lonely Children
10. Spellbinder

Be A Juke Box Hero: Sound Will Rattle Your Walls and Shake Your Windows!

Want to be a juke box hero? Heres your chance. Featuring Mutt Langes spotless production, contributions from Motown legend Junior Walker and new-wave icon Thomas Dolby, no less than three huge singles, and Foreigners most economical performances, 4 is classic-rock nirvana, a model of crystalline pop-rock melodies and lighter-flicking balladry. More than six million copies later, the 1981 record is still rightly discussed as a front-to-back masterpiece of precision, power, and economy. Its an album that demands to be experienced in the highest-possible fidelity.

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelitys 180g LP presents 4 in a room-filling, stadium-big sound that simply crushes whats heard on all prior versions. Replete with energetic rockers such as Urgent, Night Life, and Woman In Black, the record benefits from a sonic facelift that opens up the previously compressed dynamics, expands the dimensions of the soundstage, dials in a clear path to the instrumental images, and erases the ceiling that pressed down on Lou Gramms superhuman vocals. For the first time, Langes obsessive, detail-oriented production can be enjoyed in all its splendid glory.

Fresh off blockbuster success with AC/DCs Back In Black, Lange uses his magic touch on 4, pairing with guitarist Mick Jones who, armed with the best batch of riffs of his career, shared a the producers sentiment for discipline, efficiency, and cleanliness. And so, on crisp tunes like Break It Up, pianos and hard-hitting guitars share the same space without ever impinging on one another or overstepping boundaries. The winning formula also propels Top 5 hits like the wildly funky Urgent, sent to new heights by Walkers dazzling saxophone solo, and the touching Waiting for a Girl Like You, a crossover smash that introduced Foreigner to soft-rock and adult-pop audiences.

Simply stated, 4 has everything: Rowdy frustration-releasing cuts, fiery rock n roll tunes, heartfelt torch songs, and synth-drenched pop numbers. The playing throughout positively smokes, as the one-two punch of Gramm and Jones lands with both emotional and musical impact every time. There's not a single wasted note. And, reduced to a quartet, Foreigner seems bent on making more with less, just as Lange does with the polished production. This is 42 minutes of hard-rocking bliss.

Accept no substitute. Mobile Fidelitys collectible audiophile edition will rattle your walls and shake your windows. Be prepared to tap every reserve available from your amplifiers. And play it LOUD!

Track Listing:
1. Night Life
2. Juke Box Hero
3. Break It Up
4. Waiting for a Girl Like You
5. Luanne
6. Urgent
7. I'm Gonna Win
8. Woman in Black
9. Girl on the Moon
10. Don't Let Go

Midler's Grammy-Winning 1972 Debut Announces the Birth of a Superstar

Record Overflows With Energy and Personality: Torch Songs, Girl-Group Classics, Campy Remakes, Theatrical Pieces Delivered With Supreme Emotion Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI (Best Plant in North America): Midler's Voice Upfront and Centered, Every Nuance of Her Phrasing Laid Bare

Oh, behave! Bette Midler's sparkling, energy-pulsing 1972 debut features the singer honing her trademark brassy personality as well as showing off an intimate, raw edge that fell by the wayside later in her career. Witness her forlorn, melancholic, and heartbroken moods, all conveyed with supreme emotion on several riveting ballads. But this LP is no downer. Midler offsets any bleakness with playfully campy songs laced with unadulterated enthusiasm and joyous defiance. This is a diva lover's delight. The music is astonishingly alive. A superstar is born!

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI (the best record plant in North America), Silver Label numbered limited edition LP presents The Divine Miss M with the warmly cozy and front-row perspective that the music demands. Midler's voice is transparent and full, the timbrel shadings colorfully outlined, the vocal images appearing as if she's singing just a few feet away. Similarly, her cast of back-up vocalists (the Harlettes) receives ample face time on songs that come across as if performed by a girl-group revue. Midler has cut many records in her career but none are this entertaining, diversified, and, now, sonically spectacular.

There's always risk associated with interpreting other artists' classics and hits, but Midler makes every song here her own. She injects "Chapel of Love" with extra swagger and feminine gusto. In her hands, the Carpenters' "Superstar" becomes more heartbreaking, filled with desolate sentiment and lonesome ache. John Prine's ballad "Hello In There" echoes, as if sung to an empty room, with forlorn emotion. The 50s smash "Leader of the Pack" positively stomps and declares, her band in tow, that she's not going to be stopped. Indeed, Midler's interpretations of these staples surpass the previous versions, mostly due to her impeccable strong vocals and contagious passion. She doesn't quit. And don't you dare decline her offer on "Do You Want to Dance!"

What else can be said of her trademark "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy," her update of the Andrews Sisters' jazzy hit landing in the Top 10, featuring a scat vocal (!), and smartly walking the line between campy fun and serious reverence. Similarly, Midler's two takes of "Friends"--the first off-the-cuff, wild, snappy, and humorous; the second slightly cooler and infused with gorgeous harmonies--remain modern marvels. There's not a bad note on this incredible record.

The Divine Miss M has always been prized for its clear, clean production. Mobile Fidelity's Silver Series LP further improves the sound, which, in combination with Midler's performances, make this collectible reissue an absolute no-brainer!

Track Listing:
1. Do You Want to Dance? (Bobby Freeman)
2. Chapel of Love (Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich, Phil Spector)
3. Superstar (Bonnie Bramlett, Leon Russell)
4. Daytime Hustler (Jeff Kent)
5. Am I Blue (Jarry Akst, Grant Clark)
6. Friends (Mark Klingman, Buzzy Linhart)
7. Hello In There (John Prine)
8. Leader of the Pack (Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich, George Morton)
9. Delta Dawn (Larry Collins, Alex Harvey)
10. Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy (Don Raye, Hughie Prince)
11. Friends (Reprise) (Mark Klingman, Buzzy Linhart)

Guilty Pleasure Records Don't Come Better Than This Freewheeling 1975 Set

Party On: Smash Hits "Get Down Tonight, "That's the Way (I Like It)", "Boogie Shoes" Are All Here

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI (America's Best Record Plant): Wait Until You Hear How Deep and Low the Grooves Go

It's okay to admit it. While few openly confess their love for KC and the Sunshine Band, who among us doesn't light up the instant that the super-catchy "Get Down Tonight" or giddy sing-a-long invitation "That's the Way (I Like It)" begins to play? Yeah, just by reading that last sentence, it's likely you're already humming the tune in your head, or feeling a twitch in your feet. The music is that addictive. And that universally recognized. It's time you finally enjoy it on a pressing that brings everything that's been buried in those deep grooves to the surface.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI (the best record plant in North America), Silver Label numbered limited edition LP presents the 1975 triple-platinum smash in the absolute best sound it's ever had. The ensemble's brassy horns, funky guitars, tropical percussion, and snappy vocals take their respective place amidst a gargantuan soundstage that, in your listening room, will double as a discotheque. Get your dancing shoes ready!

Coming from a musical strain then known as the Miami Sound, KC and the Sunshine Band perfected its mix of boisterous rhythms, disco-floor grooves, slick funk riffs, R&B hooks, carefree choruses, and dance commands on this self-titled release. The world immediately took notice. Focused on nothing but fun, letting go, and channeling feel-good emotions, the group revolutionized pop music by getting even the most hardened, resistant rock purists to embrace its appeal.

There isn't a better record with which to start or continue a party. Synonymous with celebrations, commemorations, and just blowing off steam, mega-hits "That's the Way (I Like It)" and "Get Down Tonight" transcend boundaries and generations. If youâre within earshot, you will get up and dance. In addition to being utterly irresistible songs, guilty pleasure or not, the fare on KC and the Sunshine Band qualifies as simply great pop, the arrangements, playing, and consistency as good as it gets. As for the grooves? Man, keep 'em flowing.

Rather than live in secrecy or settle for an inferior version, go ahead, indulge yourself, and grab this 70s classic on remastered, audiophile-grade vinyl. You'll be surprised at the amount of new information that's revealed, whether it's the depth of the low frequencies or timbrel properties of the horns.

Track Listing:
1. Let It Go (Part One)
2. That's the Way (I Like It)
3. Get Down Tonight
4. Boogie Shoes
5. Ain't Nothin' Wrong
6. I'm So Crazy ('Bout You)(Casey, Finch, Willie Clarke)
7. What Makes You Happy
8. I Get Lifted
9. Let It Go (Part Two)

Ranked 172/500 on Rolling Stone Magazine's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Rod the Mod's Definitive Album: Timeless Feel-Good Set Contains Eternal Chart-Topper "Maggie May," Introspective "(Find A) Reason to Believe"

Stewart's Band Includes His Faces Mates: Ron Wood, Ian McLagan Shine

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI (The Best Plant in America): LP Boasts Organic Warmth and Full-Range Extension

Rod Stewart owned the early 1970s. When he wasn't recording great sets with the Faces, he was redefining how folk, country, and soul music could be folded under rock's umbrella. Filled with first-rate originals and terrific interpretations of classics, Every Picture Tells A Story remains Stewart's watershed moment, a brilliant synthesis of organic warmth, earthy tones, raucous romance, and loose performances. Those who only know Stewart from his later evolution into a sappy balladeer will be overwhelmed.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI (the best record plant in America), MoFi Silver Labels' numbered limited edition LP presents the 1971 smash in the most transparent, warm, and full-range sound the music has ever enjoyed. Stewart's supremely soulful vocals come on with insouciant passion and joyous persuasion, the detail allowing listeners to hear into his lungs and feel every breath he draws. His equally superb band is presented amidst an expanded soundstage that's free of artificial ceilings and harshness introduced by several digital remastering editions. The explosive sound is akin to watching a fledgling group come into its own in a small club.

Kicking up the tempo and slightly increasing the edge from his previous solo effort, Stewart transforms blues, folk, country, and soul into a hard-rocking hybrid that maintains acoustic properties but isn't afraid to step out and report on what it's like to have a night out on the town. Anchored by Mick Waller's free-swinging percussion, every song triumphs, with Stewart's slightly hoarse and eminently emotive vocals communicating each word as if they're literally sewn as hearts on his sleeve. Ron Wood's slide guitar and gritty chords complement the singer's earnest conviction, and Ian McLagan's organ adds bittersweet accents. Nothing here is blue; Every Picture Tells A Story is a celebration.

Stewart combines American and British folk styles on the strolling "Mandolin Wind," the touching song epitomizing the simple, direct approach that underpins the entire album. On the breathless title track, Stewart embraces his inner playboy, the tune's likable crude-and-rude swagger sent up on crackling rhythms and visceral harmonies. The British native handles Bob Dylan's "Tomorrow Is A Long Time" and the evergreen "That's All Right" as if he wrote them. The best aspect of Every Picture Tells A Story relates to how genuine and believable Stewart and his good-natured company sound throughout. If you are a fan of rock, soul, folk, or the blues, you owe it to yourself to have a superb copy of this timeless record that shows off its translucent and organic tones, extraordinary vocal performances, and crack backing band. Mobile Fidelity's Silver Label numbered limited edition LP does just that. And it restores one of the most iconic album covers in history. As for that "Classic Edition" statement that's always hovered at the top of the record? Never truer than now.

Track Listing:
1. Every Picture Tells a Story (Rod Stewart, Ronnie Wood)
2. Seems Like a Long Time (Theodore Anderson)
3. That's All Right (Arthur Crudup)
4. Amazing Grace
5. Tomorrow Is a Long Time (Bob Dylan)
6. O. Henry (Martin Quittenton)
7. Maggie May (Rod Stewart, Martin Quittenton)
8. Mandolin Wind (Rod Stewart)
9. I Know) I'm Losing You (Norman Whitfield, Eddie Holland, Cornelius Grant)
10. Reason to Believe (Tim Hardin)

Jam until the break of dawn! Released in 1980, Stevie Wonders brilliant Hotter Than July followed up with a bang a film soundtrack that witnessed the end of the legendary artists Classic Period. And how. Excited after meeting Bob Marley, Wonder embraced reggaes sunnier feel and colorful look on the album, which yielded for Top Ten singles in the U.K. and three charting singles in the U.S. Hotter Than July remains the peerless composers last true masterpiece.

Possessing a slightly faster and jam-oriented direction that Wonders other trademark efforts, the record finds the singer doing what he does best: Crafting memorable arrangements and addictive grooves, all the while ignoring the musical trends that surrounded him at the time. Wonder flirts with a disco pulse on All I Do, yet the main attractions relate to his irrepressible soulfulness. Rather than play everything himself, he switches up his prior methods by employing all-star backing choirs and abundant rhythm sections that grace songs with insouciant tunefulness and buoyant hooks. More than a dozen backing vocalists (including Michael Jackson, Eddie Levert, and Angela Winbush) as well as multiple handclap percussionists are involved in the process.

Historically, Hotter Than July not only marks a return to form, but a launching pad for the now-observed Martin Luther King holiday. With the anthemic Happy Birthday, Wonder issued a call to action and ultimately, got it. The song is line with the mood of the majority of the album: celebratory, positive, and lively. Wonder, however, doesnt abandon his penchant for social critique, as Cash In Your Face stands as a protest against housing discrimination. Simply put, Hotter Than July has it all, and more than 30 years after its original release, continues to burn brightly.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI (America's best record plant), this numbered limited edition LP of Wonders timeless R&B-bursting work reveals previously obscured colors, tonalities, textures, and dimensions. Sonically, this version is signed, sealed, and delivered, with the express purpose of turning your system into a spirited lounge where Wonder sits at the piano and some of the funkiest, soulful musicians put on a show youll never forget.

Track Listing:
1. Did I Hear You Say You Love Me
2. All I Do
3. Rocket Love
4. I Ain't Gonna Stand for It
5. As If You Read My Mind
6. Master Blaster (Jammin')
7. Do Like You
8. Cash in Your Face
9. Lately
10. Happy Birthday

There are thirteen vocal songs and one instrumental on this two-record set. Krauss is the lead vocalist on eight of the songs and Union Station members share the other lead vocals. The virtuoso musicians comprising the group are Barry Bales (acoustic bass), Ron Block (banjo, guitar), Adam Steffey (mandolin), and Dan Tyminski (guitar). Of course Krauss started her career as a violinist (fiddler to the bluegrass world) and she doesn't leave that instrument out either. Due to the unmatched resolution of the Gain 2 Ultra Analog Cutting System, all the acoustic instruments and voices on the record are reproduced with an exceptional sense of space and clarity.

The tunes are mostly new material and alternate from bluegrass to acoustic pop. The standouts on the album are Alison's numbers: It Doesn't Matter, Looking in the Eyes of Love, and the gospel There is a Reason. These are all quiet, reflective pieces with the haunting, almost angelic quality of Krauss' voice demonstrated to its fullest. The harmony singing on every cut shows off the vocal prowess of the entire ensemble. The title track in particular stands out for its use of harmony and incredible accurate presentation of acoustic instruments. The male vocalists are superb in their own right and each of the band members has the spotlight somewhere on the album. MFSL

Track Listing:
So Long So Wrong
No Place to Hide
Deeper Than Crying
I Can Let Go Now
The Road Is a Lover
Little Liza Jane
It Doesn't Matter
Find My Way Back to My Heart
I'll Remember You Love in My Prayers
Looking in the Eyes of Love
Pain of a Troubled Life
Happiness
Blue Trail of Sorrow
There Is a Reason

Many of the album's songs explore romantic relationships from a distinctly female perspective. As Peyroux says "These love songs come from an extremely personal place, and therefore allowed me a most intimate reading."

Produced by Larry Klein, the 12-track album finds Peyroux lending her sublime vocals to songs by artists she has cherished throughout her lifetime such as Leonard Cohen, Tom Waits, Fred Neil and Joni Mitchell. Peyroux wrote the upbeat 'I'm All Right' with Klein and Steely Dan's Walter Becker, and three other songs with Klein and Jesse Harris (who co-wrote 'Don't Wait Too Long' on Careless Love).

Track Listing:
1. I'm All Right
2. River
3. The Summer Wind
4. Blue Alert
5. Everybody's Talkin'
6. A Little Bit
7. Once in a While
8. The Heart of Saturday Night
9. Half the Perfect World
10. La Javanaise
11. California Rain
12. Smile

After much success (and a little luck) with our Little Richard hits packages, MoFi next visited the Sony vaults to identify and audition the original masters of another rock pioneer. This famous Roy Orbison collection had originally been compiled by Monument Records in 1972 and has stayed in print ever since. Before being wooed away by the old MGM Records label, Orbison experienced an astonishing run for Monument, placing fifteen singles (all included here) in the Top 100 on the pop and country charts.

Track Listing:
1. Only The Lonely
2. Leah
3. In Dreams
4. Uptown
5. It's Over
6. Crying
7. Dream Baby
8. Blue Angel
9. Working For The Man
10. Candy Man
11. Running Scared
12. Falling
13. Love Hurts
14. Shahadaroba
15. I'm Hurtin'
16. Mean Woman Blues
17. Pretty Paper
18. The Crowd
19. Blue Bayou
20. Oh, Pretty Woman

Originally released the same month as their incendiary set at Woodstock, this impressive debut for Columbia kick-started a Hall of Fame legacy that lasts still today. Establishing one of the most instantly recognizable sounds in rock; Carlos’ signature tone and phrasing coupled with Afro-Cuban percussion virtually launched Latin-Rock fusion. Both AM and FM airwaves were scorched in the ensuing months with their charted singles "Evil Ways" (#9) and Jingo (#93) plus "Soul Sacrifice", a favorite after it’s featured spot in the Woodstock movie and soundtrack.

Track Listing:
1. Waiting
2. Evil Ways
3. Shades of Time
4. Savor
5. Jingo
6. Persuasion
7. Treat
8. You Just Don't Care
9. Soul Sacrifice

One of rocks true masterpieces, this stunning sophomore effort was released in September, 1970 to unanimous accolades and went to Number One on the Billboard Pop Album chart. Utilizing the studio more in overall production than on their debut (especially in mixing and using cross-fades) the band and producer Fred Catero (Janis Joplin, BS&T, Chicago) still maintained the street energy and ethnic roots, while elevating Carlos guitar passages to god-like status; resulting in the pinnacle of their album output. Wicked re-worked arrangements of songs as dichotomatic as the connecting of Peter Greens Black Magic Woman with Gabor Szabos Gypsy Queen in medley, followed directly in sequence on side one with Tito Puentes Oye Como Va (charting at #13), was both brilliant and on-par with anything going down in music at the time, period.

Track Listing:
1. Singing Winds, Crying Beasts
2. Black Magic Woman/Gypsy Queen
3. Oye Como Va
4. Incident At Neshabur
5. Se A Cabo
6. Mother's Daughter
7. Samba Pa Ti
8. Hope You're Feeling Better
9. El Nicoya

Bored with his role as John Lennon in the musical Beatlemania in February of 1980, Marshall Crenshaw decided to try his hand at songwriting. By August of that year, he was playing his songs at gigs around Manhattan with his drummer brother, Robert and bassist Chris Donato. After singer Robert Gordon recorded three of his tunes, Crenshaw was signed by Warner Brothers and this, his self titled debut album was released in 1982. It was immediately lauded as a pop masterpiece and Crenshaw was recognized as a first-rate songwriter, singer and guitarist. Gems like Someday, Someway, She Can't Dance and Not for Me, all remain timeless classics that add up to one of the finest debuts of its day. Now here on Mobilie Fidelity Numbered Limited Edition 180g Vinyl!

Track Listing:
1. There She Goes Again
2. Someday, Someway
3. Girls
4. I'll Do Anything
5. Rockin' Around in N.Y.C.
6. Usual Thing, The
7. She Can't Dance
8. Cynical Girl
9. Mary Anne
10. Soldier of Love
11. Not For Me
12. Brand New Lover

For the follow up to their classic 1988 debut Surfer Rosa, the Pixies brought in producer Gil Norton (Echo & The Bunnyment, Patty Smith, Foo Fighters) and the results were equally as brilliant if not superior to its predecessor. Doolittle boasted a cleaner sound and received excellent reviews, which led to greater exposure in America. Both a benchmark and a timeless monument, the album brazenly mixes surf-pop and grunge, with schizophrenic pacing and head banging jolts. Cited as one of the quintessential alternative rock albums of the '80s by Rolling Stone, Doolittle is undoubtedly one of the most epic and influential indie rock albums of all time. Highlights include Monkey Gone To Heaven, Wave Of Mutilation, Here Comes Your Man, Debaser and Hey among others.

Track Listing:
1. Debaser
2. Tame
3. Wave Of Mutilation
4. I Bleed
5. Here Comes Your Man
6. Dead
7. Monkey Gone To Heaven
8. Mr. Grieves
9. Crackity Jones
10. La La Love You
11. No. 13 Baby
12. There Goes My Gun
13. Hey
14. Silver
15. Gouge Away

Sinatra's 1966 Live Album With Count Basie and Quincy Jones as Good as Music, Performance, and Chemistry Get

Half-Speed Mastered from the Original 4-Track Master Tapes for Breathtaking Sound

Audiophiles Will Be in the Copa Room With Sinatra Standing in Front of Them

Frank Sinatra. Count Basie. Quincy Jones. Las Vegas. Combinations and circumstances dont get any better. And by every measure, Sinatra at the Sands is as good as music gets. Comprised of live material recorded at five nights in early 1966 at the famed Copa Room, Ol Blue Eyes 22-song album stands as one of his pinnacle achievements, the results a blend of superb chemistry, sparkling arrangements, infallible singing, and contagious energy. As part of its continuing series of essential Sinatra recordings, Mobile Fidelity is proud to offer the record in the most definitive-sounding edition available. Listeners will be transported to a table close to the stage, with the image of a tuxedo-clad Sinatra unfolding right in front of them.

By 1966, Sinatra had conquered the world. His tenure as a teen idol and maturing crooner behind him, he was confident, assured, focused, and quite simply, untouchable. Musics top arrangers and composers came to him, knowing the magic that hed bring to their labors of love. Its for these reasons that Count Basie and his orchestra backs Sinatra here, and why Jones, in demand by everyone, chooses instead to lend his arrangement insights onstage at the Sands. Indeed, Sinatra at the Sands harkens back to the days when concerts were a true event, and the album is nothing short that promise. This is a happening you wont want to miss.

Containing many of Sinatras most well-known and celebrated performances--Ive Got a Crush on You, Fly Me to the Moon (In Other Words), Luck Be a Lady among them--Sinatra at the Sands finds the entertainer in immaculate voice. He improvises lines with effortless and ease, casually adorns lyrics with hidden rhythms, stretches notes to instill meaning and emotion, and utilizes his impeccable knack for phrasing to turn a line and beget instrumental responses that complement each songs mood. Meanwhile, Basie and Co. swing on uptempo numbers and lay back on melancholy tunes that still bring a tear to the eye.

Warner Bros. executive Stan Cornyn, writing about these very shows, observed that, doing more than sing, Sinatra turns actor. The man whose broads left him with some other guy and all of the lootAnd there is silence about, for this audience is watching a man become that last lucked-out guy at the bar, the last one, with no where to go but sympathy city. And so it goes, Sinatra proving its the singer and the song, demonstrating a seemingly unlimited range as he transports you to saloons, romantic parks, lonely streets, and bustling cities. Everythingthe pacing, structure, passion, interpretationis perfect.

Mobile Fidelity has half-speed mastered this exquisite analog set from the original four-track master tapes, originally recorded by engineer Lowell Frank. Clear, big, and sumptuous, Sinatra at the Sands now resonates with previously unheard details, transparency, imaging, projection, smoothness, and dimensionality. Capturing a human voice remains the most difficult recording task. Suffice it to say that this 2LP set will join the ranks of the very best recordings you own.

Track Listing:
1. Come Fly with Me (Jimmy Van Heusen, Sammy Cahn)
2. I've Got a Crush on You (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin)
3. I've Got You Under My Skin (Cole Porter)
4. The Shadow of Your Smile (Johnny Mandel, Paul Francis Webster)
5. Street of Dreams (Victor Young, Samuel Lewis)
6. One for My Baby (Harold Arlen, Johnny Mercer)
7. Fly Me to the Moon (Bart Howard)
8. One O'Clock Jump(Instrumental) (Count Basie)
9. The Tea Break (Sinatra Monologue)
10. You Make Me Feel So Young (Josef Myrow, Mack Gordon)
11. All of Me (Instrumental) (Gerald Marks, Seymour Simons)
12. The September of My Years (Jimmy Van Heusen, Sammy Cahn)
13. Luck Be a Lady (Frank Loesser)
14. Get Me to the Church on Time (Frederick Loewe, Alan Jay Lerner)
15. It Was a Very Good Year (Ervin Drake)
16. Don't Worry 'Bout Me (Rube Bloom, Ted Koehler)
17. Makin' Whoopee(Walter Donaldson, Gus Kahn)
18. Where or When (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart)
19. Angel Eyes (Earl Brent, Matt Dennis)
20. My Kind of Town (Jimmy Van Heusen, Sammy Cahn)
21. A Few Last Words (Sinatra Monologue)
22. My Kind of Town (Reprise)

Never before properly remastered, Mobile Fidelity secured the original master tapes to present this 1973 singer-songwriter masterwork in unparalleled fidelity. The cavity of Joels piano, tension of the strings, and reach of his voice are astounding on this numbered limited-edition LP pressing. The New York native finally seems as if hes playing in your room rather than down the hall.

After the commercial failure of his debut, and resulting legal disputes with his label, a determined Joel took up a six month residency as a lounge singer in Los Angeles. The vocalist continued to pen songs, including his signature track, Piano Man, a fictional narrative motivated by the real-life stories and actions of the patrons he witnessed during his cocktail club residency. Joel also drew inspiration from a fellow peer with whom hed ultimately collaborate on a series of highly successful tours that continue to this day: Elton John. The Englishmans Tumbleweed Connection fueled a creative spurt in Joel, who extends the records Western imagery and bluesy themes.

Ignoring introspection in favor of rich character sketches, Joel utilizes his knack for melodic flair, filling out the songs with comprehensive arrangements and a swift sense of purpose. His talesThe Ballad of Billy the Kid, Captain Jack, Aint No Crimeare supported with phenomenal harmonies and thematic flavors that arrive courtesy of instrumental accents from first-rate players that include guitarist Larry Carlton, banjoist Fred Heilbrun, and drummer Ron Tutt. Joel supplies the requisite emotions, and Piano Man oozes with life.

Mobile Fidelitys 180g LP possesses a warmth that, until now, none of Joels records possess. Soundstaging, imaging, and immediacy are refined and mannered, and the enthusiasm and completeness of Joels craft come into supreme focus.

No fan of 70s rock or pop should be without this stellar pressing!

Track Listing:
1. Travelin' Prayer
2. Piano Man
3. Ain't No Crime
4. You're My Home
5. The Ballad of Billy the Kid
6.Worse Comes to Worst
7. "Stop in Nevada
8. If I Only Had the Words (To Tell You)
9. Somewhere Along the Line
10. Captain Jack

1961 Album of Standards Established Darin As A Sophisticated Singer

Concept Effort Divided Into Halves That Explore the Emotional Gamut of Romance: One Side Upbeat, the Other Heartbreaking

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI (Best Record Plant in America): Darins Voice, Torrie Zitos Orchestral Arrangements Set Up Shop In Your Listening Room

Bobby Darin didnt want to be simply known as the singer that scored the novelty hit Splish Splash. Determined to be recognized as a top-tier vocalist on par with the likes of Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett, the Bronx native set out to put an authoritative stamp on pop standards. And did just that with Love Swings. Divided into two conceptual halves, the 1961 masterpiece is the singers defining statement, a splendidly effective and smartly performed record that addresses the wild emotional fluctuations associated with romance and finds Darin nailing every note.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI (the best record plant in North America), Silver Label numbered limited edition LP presents Darins buoyant album with all the brassiness, boldness, and lushness any fan of vocal pop music would ever want. His voice is transparent and immediate, the diversified instrumental arrangements are placed in sharp relief, the songs replete with airiness, warmth, and the sough-after breath of life. The sound is so good that this somewhat-forgotten LP should now finally gain the recognition its long deserved.

Yes, love swings, but like a pendulum: back and forth, state the records liner notes, explaining the concept behind a set that is split into two thematically connected halves. On the first side, Darin delves into the giddy feelings and incredible happiness associated with romances first bloom. Infatuation, devotion, and gaiety take hold, Darin conveying every ounce of joy and pleasure tied to gliding, uptempo staples such as Rodgers and Harts I Didnt Know What Time It Was and the lounge-bound sway of Long Ago (And Far Away). Darins voice, and his ebullient support band (conducted by Torrie Zito), epitomize glee, delight, and bliss.

On the flip side, Darin, ever the realist and proving himself capable of sophisticated material, probes loves disillusions and heartache with incredible panache. The pace slows, the mood darkens, and the lights dim. Zitos orchestrations embrace denser, more poignant tones, and Darin delivers sad, aching tunes like In Love In Vain and Something to Remember You By with stunning realism and haunting impact. Its as cohesive of a vocal performance as youll hear from the era, a journey that takes you from the highs to the lows, and everything in between.

Yes, the human voice is the most difficult element to accurately reproduce on record. Yet Mobile Fidelitys Silver Label LP does wonders with this Darin classic, opening up the highs, clearing out a previously foggy midrange, and, as importantly, restoring to print in analog a vocal tour de force. Unavailable on vinyl for eons, Love Swings demands to be heard on this sumptuously remastered LP, which runs circles around its digital brethren.

About Silver Series: New from Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab, the MoFi Silver Label Vinyl Series will feature an eclectic mix of recordings. This series is mastered and cut on the famous Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab state-of-the-art Tim de Paravacini-designed mastering system. Vinyl will be pressed at RTI on audiophile-grade standard vinyl and will be numbered limited-editions. Future releases will continue to stretch stylistic boundaries, as the MoFi Silver Label continues to explore music from many different genres. Expand your musical horizons with the Silver Label!

Track Listing:
1. Long Ago and Far Away
2. I Didn't Know What Time It Was
3. How About You
4. The More I See You
5. It Had To Be You
6. No Greater Love
7. In Love Vain
8. Just Friends
9. Something To Remember You By
10. Skylark
11. Spring Is Here
12. I Guess I'll Have To Change My Plan

Ranked 152/500 on Rolling Stone Magazine's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Delightfully Campy, Intentionally Goofy, Lyrically Kitschy: 1979 Set Is Nothing But a Good Time

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI (America's Best Record Plant): LP Bursts Forth With the Color and Vibrancy of the Brilliant Pop Within

Boffo! Beehive hairdos, goofy sci-fi humor, lava-lamp kitsch, thrift-store fashions, party-starting tunes, unconventional perspectives, and the unique blending of the underground aesthetic with mainstream accessibility: The B-52s mix all this and more into a dizzying cocktail on their self-titled debut, which remains one of the most ahead-of-its-time, endlessly enjoyable, and vividly colorful albums ever released.

The B-52s has its roots in the bands improbable genesis, itself reflective of the records gleeful moods and quirky charms. The five members first played after sharing a tropical alcoholic beverage at a Chinese restaurant, the ironic silliness and spontaneous irreverence indicative of the music on its breakthrough record. Not to mention how it mirrors the unusual hodgepodge of instrumentation: organs, walkie talkies, bongos, glockenspiels, tambourines, toy pianos, smoke alarms, and more!

Musically, the band proves just as adventurous and whimsical. Using pleasant harmonies as a backdrop and Kate Piersons squealing organ as a starting point, the B-52s draw upon surf-rock grooves, beach-bound soul-pop, herky-jerky funk riffs, minimalist rhythms, and Ricky Wilsons unusual guitar lines to craft songs that tower above the sarcastic suggestiveness and campy declarations. Of course, the latter are plenty entertaining on their own, but theres no denying the dance-bound persuasiveness and melodic shimmy associated with the classic cult single Rock Lobster and splendid cover of the ubiquitous Petula Clark standard Downtown. Youve never heard anything like this.

Indeed, the B-52s were about a decade ahead of the alt-rock revolution when they recorded this delightfully campy, intentionally goofy, lyrically tawdry, and undeniably harmonic 1979 new-wave set that comes off as the best dance party you might ever hear. This is 40 minutes of nothing but a good time.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI (America's best record plant), Silver Label numbered limited edition LP presents the B-52s brilliant debut in a fidelity its never previously enjoyed. So detailed and realistic are the timbres, accents, and harmonies, youll think the bands bright outfits are appearing right in front of you. Plus, the LP is worth the cost alone for the iconic album cover, which spotlights those bouffant dos.

About Silver Label: New from Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab, the MoFi Silver Label Vinyl Series will feature an eclectic mix of recordings. This series is mastered and cut on the famous Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab state-of-the-art Tim de Paravacini-designed mastering system. Vinyl will be pressed at RTI on audiophile-grade standard vinyl and will be numbered limited-editions. Future releases will continue to stretch stylistic boundaries, as the MoFi Silver Label continues to explore music from many different genres. Expand your musical horizons with the Silver Label!

Track Listing:
1. Planet Claire
2. 52 Girls
3. Dance This Mess Around
4. Rock Lobster
5. Lava
6. There's a Moon in the Sky (Called the Moon)
7. Hero Worship
8. 6060-842
9. Downtown

1987 Pop-Rock Blockbuster A Seamless Fusion of Dance Beats, Sleek Riffs, Soaring Hooks, and Horn-Fueled R&B

Spawned Four Top 5 Hits: Need You Tonight, Devil Inside, New Sensation, Never Tear Us Apart Are Pop Genius

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI (America's Best Record Plant): Silver Label LP Sounds Incredible, Replete With Dynamic Midrange

The last throes of Reagans presidency, big hair, carefree existence, the promise of a booming economy, preppy clothes, Nintendo 8-bit gaming systems, and MTVs seemingly limitless reign: All happy memories conjured by INXS Kick, on the creative level of anything Madonna, Prince, or Michael Jackson recorded at the time. More than six million copies sold, four Top 5 singles, and still, nearly 25 years later, not one feeble moment, justify the 1987 records status as pure pop genius.

Anchored by the sensual purr of vocalist Michael Hutchence and frisky drumming (recorded in analog) of Jon Farriss, Kick taps into a hybrid style that freshly stays away from the eras plastic, manufactured sounds and narrow-minded, vacant aesthetic. A seamless fusion of dance beats, sleek rock riffs, soaring hooks, horn-fueled R&B, and string-laden accents, the 12-track set is an irresistibly catchy and liquidly fluid sonic miasma that contains every single element a classic contemporary pop work requires.

Above all, every song boasts a different feel and distinctive pace, characteristics that arent forced but natural results of the collectives chemistry. The sexy, breathy pop-funk Need You Tonight clicks with interlocking arrangements and murmured vocals. The atmospheric, synth-drum-punctuated Meditate hallucinates with stream-of-conscious vocals and percolating grooves. Well-placed pauses, hypnotic flanged guitar passages, and so-funky-youll-sweat saxophone breaks pepper the liberating rock smash New Sensation.

INXS also kicks out upbeat dance-inflected jams on the brassy skirt-swaying title track, syncopated Calling All Nations, and elsewhere, but doesnt forget the importance of a bleeding-heart ballad. Hence, the devastatingly moving Never Tear Us Apart, the knifing strings and guitar twang proving dramatic, direct, and honest. The late 1980s produced a handful of more commercially successful pop records, but none is better than Kick.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI (America's best record plant), Silver Label numbered limited edition LP presents INXS studio masterpiece with the tremendous punch, transparent midrange impact, and involving depth the record has always deserved but, until now, never possessed. Textural details, Hutchences creamy vocals, and Farris diversified percussion positively explode and engage in the manner that only the best pop-rock can.

About Silver Series: New from Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab, the MoFi Silver Label Vinyl Series will feature an eclectic mix of recordings. This series is mastered and cut on the famous Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab state-of-the-art Tim de Paravacini-designed mastering system. Vinyl will be pressed at RTI on audiophile-grade standard vinyl and will be numbered limited-editions. Future releases will continue to stretch stylistic boundaries, as the MoFi Silver Label continues to explore music from many different genres. Expand your musical horizons with the Silver Label!

Track Listing:
1. Guns in the Sky
2. New Sensation
3. Devil Inside
4. Need You Tonight
5. Mediate
6. The Loved One
7. Wild Life
8. Never Tear Us Apart
9. Mystify
10. Kick
11. Calling All Nations
12. Tiny Daggers

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI

Just as Dead Can Dance were utterly distinctive, so too, is the group's Into the Labyrinth, the scintillating 1993 album that catapulted the Australian duo to greater mainstream success. Widely considered the group's best work, the album finds members Gerald Perry and Lisa Gerrard moving away from the Renaissance style of their earlier albums and finding new ways of fusing ethnic sounds. Ethereal, textured, and deeply spiritual, Into the Labyrinth is one of the most gorgeous albums you will ever hear.

Anchored by Gerrard's stunning glossolalia vocals-her language-defying singing on tracks such as "Aridane" meets every definition of speaking in tongues-and Perry's kaleidoscopic arrangements, the record's exotic soundscapes mesmerize at every turn. What's most amazing is that Gerrard and Perry play all of the instruments on the album, which was recorded in the Quivvy Church in Ireland, resulting in optimum sound quality, natural resonance, and lifelike dimensions.

Each song is an exercise in atmosphere, emotion, and beauty. Perry contributes gothic-style vocals to the alternative radio hit and biting "The Ubiquitous Mr. Lovegrove," an Indian-flavored tune informed by raga drones, orchestral swells, and a gradual pace. Similarly, he channels his key influence-Joy Division's Ian Curtis-on "The Carnival Is Over," which balances circus melodies against spry keyboard riffs. A smart commentary on mankind, "How Fortunate the Man with None" is a haunting adaptation of the Berthold Brecht classic that will stick with you for days. In other places, the album comes off as an autumnal film soundtrack replete with Gregorian chants, swirling sounds, and cerebral pop.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI (America's best record plant), Silver Labels' numbered limited edition 2 LP set presents Dead Can Dance's studio masterpiece with awe-inspiring clarity and unprecedented depth. Largely dependent on delicate nuances and containing countless examples of otherworldly textural detail, the music takes on an even deeper meaning and significance that's on the level of majestic transcendence. Silver Series' unsurpassed analog version of Into the Labyrinth is one of the reasons you own a hi-fi system.

About Silver Series: New from Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab, the MoFi Silver Label Vinyl Series will feature an eclectic mix of recordings. This series is mastered and cut on the famous Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab state-of-the-art Tim de Paravacini-designed mastering system. Vinyl will be pressed at RTI on audiophile-grade standard vinyl and will be numbered limited-editions. Future releases will continue to stretch stylistic boundaries, as the MoFi Silver Label continues to explore music from many different genres. Expand your musical horizons with the Silver Label!

Track Listing:
1. Yulunga (Spirit Dance)
2. The Ubiquitous Mr Lovegrove
3. The Wind That Shakes the Barley
4. The Carnival Is Over
5. Ariadne
6. Saldek
7. Towards the Within
8. Tell Me About the Forest (You Once Called Home)
9. The Spider's Stratagem
10. Emmeleia
11. How Fortunate the Man With None

Dead Can Dance's Swan Song the Sonic Equivalent of An Engaging Journey Down the Nile River

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI (America's Best Record Plant): 2LP Set Flush With Incredibly Lifelike Sound

Into the Labyrinth Also Available on 2LP Set from Silver Label

The sonic equivalent of an engaging journey down the Nile River, Spiritchaser is Dead Can Dance's unforgettable swan song. The percussive-based 1996 set finds the world-fusion group fashioning thematic songs around rhythmic structures and tribal beats, creating atmospheric soundscapes that take the listener through Africa, South America, England, and Europeâsometimes within the same movement.

Blurring the lines between styles and genres so that they become irrelevant, Dead Can Dance members Lisa Gerrard and Gerald Perry generate the illusion of being lost amidst a peaceful rain forest that's yet to be discovered by man. Spiritchaser is the sound of a lost culture, where ethereal singing, overlapping harmonies, and trance-like tempos serve to calm, relax, and enchant. Gerrard's phonetic singing-often taking the form of prayer-is grand albeit understated, as much spiritual as it is natural. Just like the music itself.

Exotic instrumentation abounds, but nothing seems out of place. A Turkish clarinet, finger cymbals, and a borrowed melody from the Beatles' "Within You Without You" informs the mystery of tracks such as "Niereka," which epitomizes Dead Can Dance's incomparable blend of ancient and modern, alien and familiar, spooky and freeing, serene and intense. Throughout, Spiritchaser strives for a transcendental sense in which music speaks to a higher power and greater purpose than most artists would like to believe-or dare capture. Dead Can Dance's ambition extended to the production.

Consider what 4AD record label founder Ivo Watts-Russell had to say about the band's late-period albums and approach to sonics: "They were both extreme perfectionists and it was the ability to record things better, the ability to understand acoustics and the environment, to get things down onto tape in a really top-notch way, that probably influenced the sound and direction of their records as much as what they were thinking about musically."

Watts-Russell's observations can be experienced first-hand like never before on Silver Series' numbered limited-edition 2LP set. Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI (America's best pressing plant), this pristine vinyl version presents Dead Can Dance's farewell statement in stunning detail. Recorded at Quivvy Church in Ireland, Perry's home studio, every note floats and naturally decays, voices carry, guitars shimmer, and the percussive imaging is focused and constant. You've never heard Dead Can Dance sound this good! The intricacies that have been uncovered will pull you in as if you're in the studio.

Track Listing:
1. Nierika
2. Song of the Stars
3. Indus
4. Song of the Dispossessed
5. Dedicace Outo
6. The Snake and the Moon
7. Song of the Nile
8. Devorzhum

Paint It Black: 1985 Debut Is Penultimate Goth-Rock Album

Andrew Eldritch's Ghostly Vocals, Static Beats, Melodic Guitar Jangle Create Hauntingly Atmospheric Soundscapes

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI (Best Record Plant in America): First Time Any Sisters of Mercy Record Given Audiophile Treatment on LP

The template for all goth-rock records that followed, Sisters of Mercy's First And Last And Always stands as one of the-if not the most-influential albums of its kind ever released. Distinguished by Andrew Eldritch's ghostly singing, which gives the impression of hearing a forlorn ghoul croon from a foggy English graveyard, the 1985 set is drenched in gloom, claustrophobia, black humor, and dance-ready beats that provide exhilarating contrasts. Fans of the Cure, Depeche Mode, Love and Rockets, Peter Murphy, mid-period Nick Cave, and Joy Division will find it to be a new favorite record.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI (the best record plant in North America), Silver Label numbered limited edition LP presents First And Last And Always with a fuller, richer sound that positively obliterates the thin, feeble sonic perspectives that have limited the music until now. Every aspect from Eldritch's haunting singing to the group's jangling guitars and prancing bass lines finally gain genuine definition. Yet what's most improved is the sense of atmosphere: Sisters of Mercy revel in painting tone poems, where the feel and effect are as essential as the notes that are played. This is now an atmospheric tour de force.

Ever since it's release, First And Last And Always has been aptly shrouded in mythology. Eldritch pushed the envelope during the recording sessions, literally walking into walls and repeatedly unable to maintain his focus. Strung out on amphetamines, dazed by days of no sleep, upset by a recent breakup, and eating little, the vocalist channeled his discord into somber lyrics and brooding singing. He's framed by pulsing albeit lean, spare rhythms, patient tempos, and the clatter of a programmed drum machine that, in spite of its mechanical operation, sounds strangely organic. The songs evoke wet dungeons, walls-closing-in paranoia, and late-night strolls amidst the U.K.'s mysterious underground.

Despite its overall dark character, the record's arrangements value spaciousness, putting a premium on room and minimalism that makes each note count. As a result, twinkling pianos and keyboards parallel steel-cutting guitars and low-tuned bass lines that, in combination with Eldrtich's baritone, suggest glimmers of hope among the decay. Songs such as the shaking "Possession," dramatic "Some Kind of Stranger," and desperate "Marian" remain models of the gothic and post-punk disciplines more than 25 years after their debut. It's no surprise that, given all of the tension and personality that infuse the album, Sisters of Mercy disbanded just months after its release.

It's unlikely that any goth-rock album has ever sounded this good. This MoFi Silver Label LP will turn your room into rainy, dreary England, circa 1985, and expose you to one of the most harrowing vocal performances on record.

Track Listing:
1. Black Planet
2. Walk Away
3. No Time to Cry
4. A Rock and a Hard Place
5. Marian (version)
6. First and Last and Always
7. Possession
8. Nine While Nine
9. Amphetamine Logic
10. Some Kind of Stranger

Numbered Limited Edition

Stevie Wonder established an incredible precedent between 1971 and 1976, releasing six of the most groundbreaking, genre-blurring, genius albums ever made. Composed and written at a time when his marriage was his collapsing, the largely uplifting and eminently soulful Talking Book is arguably the best of those trailblazing records. Wonder manages to not only to restore faith in love, he also includes smart political commentary, personal-is-political messages, empowering statements, and exorcises the frustrations associated with heartbreak. Few efforts are more emotionally intense and consistently enriching.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI (the best record plant in North America), the MoFi Silver Labels' numbered limited edition LP presents the 1972 landmark in the most transparent, warm, and natural sound the music has ever enjoyed. Every nuance and detail is flushed out and an enmeshed part of the supremely balanced whole. Wonder's vocals, meanwhile, are immediate and lively, the singer seemingly only several feet away, surrounded by world-class musicians.

In addition to striking diversity and passionate reach, Talking Book continues to speak to listeners nearly 40 years later because of how much of Wonder himself is invested in the songs. With everlasting proclamations like "I Believe (When I Fall In Love It Will be Forever)" and "You and I (We Can Conquer the World," Wonder transcends his excruciating pain and clung to the concept of love as a higher power. Similarly, he stakes an equal part of himself in fare that confronts woe head-on ("Tuesday Heartbreak") and reels off one of the most famous ballads ("You Are the Sunshine of My Life") in history.

Musically, Wonder is clearly tapped into a spiritual plane, the arrangements encompassing an array of moods and styles: rocking and funky ("Superstition"), mellow and poignant, grooving and exuberant. Jeff Beckâs guitar solo on "Lookin' for Another Pure Love" takes the song to a new level, and guests David Sanborn, Buzzy Fenton, and Ray Parker Jr. round out whatâs an almost impossibly perfectly unified album.

Don't settle for inferior-sounding versions of this visionary creation. Silver Series' LP brings Wonder's impeccably written and performed classics to life with utmost realism and warmth. No matter what mood you're in, Talking Book is made for you.

Track Listing:
1. You Are The Sunshine Of My Life
2. Maybe Your Baby
3. You And I
4. Tuesday Heartbreak
5. You've Got It Bad Girl
6. Superstition
7. Big Brother
8. Blame It On The Sun
9. Lookin' For Another Pure Love
10. I Believe (When I Fall In Love It Will Be Forever)

Party Out of Bounds! Eclectic Groups Sophomore Album The Equal of Its Smash Debut

Boffo Encore: Surf, Pop, Dance, Kitsch, Cabaret, and Psychedelia Unite With Giddy Vocals and Ricky Wilsons Still-Underrated Guitar Playing

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI: 1980 Smash Now Possesses Jump-Out-of-Your-Seat Sonics

Party out of bounds! Not only is this sentiment one of the B-52s directives on their ceaselessly fun sophomore album, its one of the records hit songs, and perfectly summarizes the spirit and intent behind this new-wave classic. Completely up to task in following up their kitschy debut, the B-52s step everything up a notch: Songwriting, humor, exaggeration, melodies, hooks, and group interplay. Wild Planet also finds the band embracing stronger psychedelic accents that seamlessly mesh with its lava-lamp colors and textures. What an album.

Rollicking, rousing, and riotous, Wild Planet soars on vocal efforts put forth by the delightfully campy chanteuses Cindy Wilson and Kate Pierson, whose innocent girly tonalities wonderfully match up with Fred Schneiders effeminate deliveries and manic presentations. While the sheer exuberance and giddy nature of the music tends to make them an afterthought, the trios harmonies are utterly amazing. Add in Ricky Wilsons propulsive beach-bound guitar riffs, random squealing synthesizers, and a surfeit of danceable rhythms, and you have nothing less than a 1980s masterpiece that, due to its optimistic vibes and buoyant grooves, only gets better with time.

As for clever humor and quirky character? Everywhere. Mentions of an icebox, fruit punch, and surprise greetings kick off the defining Party Out of Bounds. Private Idaho is an instant mix-tape essential, sent up with declamatory refrains and insouciant beats. Not to be outdone, the B-52s tackle the subject of devilish possession on the witty Devil In My Car and get hysterical on Strobe Light, surely the finest tune ever written about making love in the shadow of a pulsating illumination device. Schneider is on fire, embracing his sexuality while pushing his mates to new limits. Theres no serious matter here; Wild Planet is all about celebrating, and few records do a better job of capturing such a mood.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, Silver Series numbered limited edition LP presents the B-52s 1980 classic in a rousing fidelity that will have you wanting to jump off your furniture, lampshade on head. The all-important bass lines, divergent vocal timbres, and usually unnoticed guitar lines attain an unprecedented level of balance and realism. And, few bands took advantage of the large-format LP cover art like the B-52s. The cover portrait of these fashionistas is reason enough to get these extraordinary reissue, which takes great pride in reproducing the original art right down to the last smear of eyeliner of Piersons face.

Track Listing:
1. Party Out of Bounds
2. Dirty Back Road
3. Runnin' Around
4. Give Me Back My Man
5. Private Idaho
6. Devil in My Car
7. Quiche Lorraine
8. Strobe Light
9. 53 Miles West of Venus

Pure and Good: 1987 Breakthrough a College-Rock Staple and Bands Introduction to Mainstream

Natalie Merchants Socially Relevant Poetic Lyrics and Luscious Timbres Delightfully Meld With Gorgeous Folk-Rock

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI: First Time This Landmark Set Boasts Room-Filling Sound

R.E.M. Vocalist Michael Stipe, Legendary Linda Ronstadt Producer Peter Asher Help Shape Record

Along with R.E.M. and XTC, 10,000 Maniacs epitomized 1980s college rock in terms of sound, style, expression, and attitude. A staple of the underground, independent, and university scenes, In My Tribe remains a landmark recording, an ideal synthesis of fundamental eclecticism, roots music, and personalized narratives anchored by Natalie Merchants inimitable singing.

Unlike most of their contemporaries, and in particular, the alt-country acts that followed in their wake, 10,000 Maniacs were truly a product of their environmenta small-town Appalachian setting that informs their songwriting, approaches, and arrangements. In reflecting on the bands ascendance, Merchant described the groups essence as such:

We called the music we made proletariat, aware of the fact that we were blue-collar small-town dwellers, geographically and culturally isolated. We were beginning to feel the countrys shift to the right at the threshold of the Reagan-Bush era. We had a growing understanding that the recession of post-industrial towns like ours might not be temporary and we were coming of age in an atmosphere of nostalgia and decay. --Merchant, liner notes to Campfire Songs: The Popular, Obscure & Unknown Recordings of 10,000 Maniacs

Seemingly coming from a different landscape, nothing about the 10,000 Maniacs fare is typicalfor its era or now. Theres a genuine nature to the material on In My Tribe that directly relates to time and place, personal emotion and devout introspection. Probing issues of child abuse (Whats the Matter Here), alcoholism (Dont Talk), illiteracy (Cherry Tree), and the environment (Campfire Song), the ensemble ushered in a period of artistic political correctness and high creativity during an era short on both.

Refraining from preaching and focused on pure rhythms, catchy melodies, and inoffensive rock structures, the band channels an inherent folk goodness thats forever tethered to Merchants mellifluous vocals and heartfelt cadences. Veteran arranger David Campbell (Becks father) organizes the strings, and producer Peter Asher (Linda Ronstadt) smooths over the edges just enough to give In My Tribe the ideal sound. R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe lands a welcome hand.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, Silver Labels collectable version of this 1987 masterwork captures the delicate nuances of Merchants voice as well as the full scope of the strings with amazing detail and clarity. No existing 10,000 Maniacs record, digital or analog, claims such revealing sonics or expansive imaging. Whether youre a longtime fan or new to the album, youll be blown away the organic presence and balanced soundstage. Not to mention the indelible music.

Track Listing:
1. What's the Matter Here?
2. Hey Jack Kerouac
3. Like the Weather
4. Cherry Tree
5. The Painted Desert
6. Don't Talk
7. Gun Shy
8. My Sister Rose
9. A Campfire Song
10. City of Angels
11. Verdi Cries

Rod the Mods 1970 Landmark Set Tone for All Folk-Rock Albums That Followed

Evocative, Low-Key, and Rustic: Gasoline Alley Finds Stewart At His Peak

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI: LP Has Never Sounded More Organic, Warm, or Transparent

Backed By Fellow Faces Ron Wood, Ronnie Lane, Ian MacLagan, Kenny Jones

Stewarts Equally Iconic Every Picture Tells A Story Also Available on LP from Silver Label

No matter what era or phase of Rod Stewart you prefer, nearly everyone is unanimous in choosing the artists early 1970s output as his very finest. Proof comes courtesy of Gasoline Alley. A 1970 record that literally set the template for all folk-rock efforts that followed, the critically acclaimed album has been cited as one of the 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die and remains a blueprint for evocative vocals, low-key presentation, and incredible interpretation.

Barely removed from his debut, Stewart comes into his own on Gasoline Alley, essentially a largely unplugged record on which the singer surrounds himself with a transcendent blend of acoustic guitars, mandolin, fiddle, piano, and understated percussion and channels the music with a gritty, rock n roll attitude. The results? Tough, organic, warm, swaggering, and unfettered songs that bow to country, rockabilly, blues, and folk influences all the while managing to belong to their own genre. Its just one of the reasons why Gasoline Alley remains a study in distinctive excellence.

Another is due to Stewarts passionate singing. Sensitive, understated, wistful, and raggedly worn, he inhabits the role of a journeyman that inhabits the narratives on standard-bearing covers of Bob Dylans Only a Hobo, Elton Johns Country Comforts, and the R&B shuffle Cut Across Shorty. He conveys a bevy of complex emotionssadness, regret, optimism, sorrow, loss, humor, yearningwith a poignancy that suggests every song here is disarmingly personal. Of course, having a band sympathetic to his desires and directions, and one that claims the talent of players such as guitarist Ronnie Wood and organist Ian MacLagan, doesnt hurt matters.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI (America's best record plant), this numbered limited edition LP allows Gasoline Alley to come across with unrivaled warmth, organic tones, and transparent presence. The signature acoustic-electric blend of rock, blues, soul, and country crackles with energy; midrange and highs are vastly improved, affording listeners a clearer image of the Faces dynamic contributions and chemistry. And Stewarts vocals take place right in your room. Wait until you hear the inflections and contrasts.

Dont hesitate on this all-time rock and folk classic.

Track Listing:
1. Gasoline Alley
2. It's All Over Now
3. Only A Hobo
4. My Way Of Giving
5. Country Comforts
6. Cut Across Shorty
7. Lady Day
8. Jo's Lament
9. You're My Girl (I Don't Want To Discuss It)

Numbered Limited Edition LP

The First of Wonders Five Consecutive Classic Period Albums

1972 Masterpiece Signaled New Direction for Motown, Includes Incredible Synthesizer Textures

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI: This Pressing Bests All Prior Analog and Digital Editions

Talking Book Also Available on LP from Mobile Fidelity Silver Label

This album marked the beginning of the legends unsurpassed classic period, Stevie Wonders Music of My Mind remains a touchstone of American R&B. The records liner notes aptly sum up its genius: The sounds themselves come from inside his mind/The man his own instrument. The instrument is an orchestra.

Indeed, save for segments on two songs, Wonder played all of the instruments himself, demonstrating his newfound freedom of artistic control and upping the ante in terms of composition, performance, and execution. He draws from a diverse toolboxwarm drums, vibrant bongos, breezy harmonicas, Fender Rhodes organs, tonally resonant pianosand of course, lays on his trademark, buttery smooth vocals. Yet Music of My Mind also features the first extensive use of synthesizers in black music. Wonder reveals the magic thats contained within Moog and Arp models, conscientious of the benefits and careful not to taint whats otherwise among the most organic soul and funk ever created.

Stretching out, Wonder lets several songs go beyond the five-minute mark. He employs the services of guitarist Buzz Felden, trombonist Art Baron, and an uncredited choir of background voices, but mostly, this is his show. Affectingly tender, I Love Every Little Thing About You and Seems So Long melt with conviction; Happier Than The Morning Sun epitomizes the contagious mood and upbeat emotions present throughout, Wonder delighting in mixing traditional melodies with then-unheard-of arrangements into a seamless whole.

For the first time ever, Mobile Fidelitys Silver Label pressing affords listeners the opportunity to hear Wonders aural orchestra with a clarity, range, and expressiveness never before made possible by prior pressings. Frequency-rich harmonics are one of the keys on this 1972 gem, and this editions ultra-clean surfaces and wide grooves unveil more music. Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI (America's best record plant), this numbered limited edition LP presents the first of Wonders five must-own records in truly extraordinary sound.

Track Listing:
1. Love Having You Around
2. Superwoman (Where Were You When I Needed You)
3. I Love Every Little Thing About You
4. Sweet Little Girl
5. Happier Than The Morning Sun
6. Girl Blue
7. Seems So Long
8. Keep On Running
9. Evil

Let the Good Times Roll: Half-Speed Mastered LP Sounds Amazing!

The Cars Classic 1978 Debut a Veritable Greatest Hits Album: Nearly Every Song a Radio Staple

My Best Friend's Girl, Just What I Needed, You're All I've Got Tonight Among the Tunes on the Hit Parade

One of the most successful and enjoyable debuts in history, The Cars self-titled album doubles as a greatest-hits collection. Thats because not one song here is unrecognized or unknown. A huge reason why the Boston quintet became Americas most popular new-wave band, The Cars launched eight tracks still regularly heard on radio stations everywhere. Consider the hit list: Youre All Ive Got Tonight. Good Times Roll. Just What I Needed. Moving in Stereo. My Best Friends Girl. Dont Cha Stop. If youre a fan of pop music, this album is mandatory. Just call it the best new-wave rock album ever made.

Led by Ric Ocasek and Benjamin Orr, the Cars managed to unite then-disparate styles: bubblegum pop melodies, angular art rock, progressive arrangements, and terse minimalism. Orrs low, understated singing and Ocaseks cool, detached vocals lend shades of doubt and double meaning to the lyrics, which are further counterbalanced by orchestral keyboard flourishes and electronic beats. The brilliant arrangements also benefit from a laidback cool and understated irony that remain uncommon in the over-the-top world of mainstream music. Obsessed with incorporating the latest technologies and sounds into its palette, the band spiced its tunes with delightfully quirky accentscountry-tinged guitar fills, echoing Syndrums, reggae splashes, hard-rock tones, robotic pulses.

The results are the sounds of a creative landmark. At once accessible and eccentric, edgy and catchy, The Cars explodes with emotion, energy, and hooks. Its impossible not to get caught up humming and singing along to every song, an appeal that comes courtesy of Roy Thomas Bakers stellar production. The legendary producer, best known for his work with Queen, ensured that the record seamlessly packed a smooth midrange, spacious imaging, and call-and-answer choruses in one tight package. Bakers trademark touches with harmony vocals abound.

And now, The Cars sounds better than it has in any previous incarnation. Half-speed mastered from the original analog tapes, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited-edition LP allows the musics oscillating rhythms, futuristic keyboard passages, panned stereo images, and rippling textures to be experienced like never before. The songs take on a surreal quality, the Cars manipulating the vibrant music at will to mesmerize the listeners senses and hold them at bay. Mobile Fidelitys unparalleled pressing epitomizes the sensation of moving in stereo!

Track Listing:
1. Good Times Roll
2. My Best Friend's Girl
3. Just What I Needed
4. I'm in Touch With Your World
5. Don't Cha Stop
6. You're All I've Got Tonight
7. Bye Bye Love
8. Moving in Stereo
9. All Mixed Up

With rare exception, few new-wave artists enjoyed much of a career outside of a one-hit wonder. Candy-O proves the Cars were anything but. Its loaded with minimalist atmospherics, pulsing bass lines, catchy refrains, and labyrinthine synthesizers that stick in your mind for days. And while retaining a simplicity thats a Cars hallmark, the album also takes myriad stylistic detours: the glam-rock accents of Dangerous Type, a song whose title references the records mysterious and lusty matter; the percolating riffs of the contagious title track; the dizzying garage-rock nature of the upbeat Got a Lot on My Mind, complete with a tooting Farfisa organ. Nothing drags or feels out of place.

Through it all, vocalists Benjamin Orr and Ric Ocasek keep their heads about themselves, singing in direct albeit detached tones that convey the tension, excitement, and risky promise inherent in the lyrics. Hook-laced choruses abound. Yet all is not what it seems.

Hooks are mechanical by nature, but the affectlessness of these deserves special mention; only listeners who consider alienation is the craze a great insight will find much meaning here. On the other hand, only listeners who demand meaning in all things will find this useless. Cold and thin, shiny and hypnotic, it's what [the Cars] do best--rock and roll that is definitely pop without a hint of cuteness. Robert Christgau, The Consumer Guide

Half-speed mastered from the original analog tapes, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited-edition LP brings the Cars distinctive melodies and exotic arrangements to the fore in ways that have never been heard outside of the recording studio. For the first time, Roy Thomas Bakers vocal production shines, with each members contributions rescued from a cold sonic murk that detracted from the musics impact on both vinyl and the extremely compressed CD. Once you hear the newly uncovered dynamics and rich textures, youll be wondering where they were all of these years. Chalk this up as an essential addition to your pop collection.

Track Listing:
1. Let's Go
2. Since I Held You
3. It's All I Can Do
4. Double Life
5. Shoo Be Doo
6. Candy-O
7. Nightspots
8. You Can't Hold On Too Long
9. Lust for Kicks
10. Got A Lot On My Head
11. Dangerous Type

Every song here is a classic ballad, every performance an elegant masterstroke. Sinatra achieves sublime perfection, and several tracks here became the definitive versions with which hes now forever associated. For instance, the rendition of Night and Day is the singers third on record, but its the best. So, too, is Sinatras run through All or Nothing At All, preceding the swinging version by five years. And the bold interpretation of Stardust, on which Ol Blue Eyes only croons the verses, stands as a testament to the natural chemistry between Sinatra and Costa.

Most importantly, Sinatra infuses the material with the rarified kind of genuine emotion, evocative phrasing, universal pathos, and gorgeous tones that made him legend. His deepening baritone provides a keen match with Costas lush string arrangements and methodical pace. Anyone who believes that Sinatras best work was during his time with Capitol needs to hear this grand, magnificent album, which is as good as anything he ever recorded. Love songs dont come any more sincere, romantic, dramatic, or intense.

Half-speed mastered from the original analog tapes, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited-edition 180-gram LP presents Sinatra & Strings with a premium sonic fidelity that no other edition, including the original vinyl, has ever had. Aware of the high quality demanded by discerning Sinatra fans, MoFi engineers took their time in extracting every possible detail and nuance from this gem, resulting a pressing that makes Sinatra and the orchestra come alive in your room. Nothing is artificially exaggerated or boosted; what you hear is what the artists intended, and the rich sound on this vocal album will satisfy your every need and desire. For Sinatraphiles, this is the ultimate.

Track Listing:
1. I Hadn't Anyone Till You
2. Night and Day
3. Misty
4. Stardust
5. Come Rain or Come Shine
6. It Might as Well Be Spring
7. Prisoner of Love
8. That's All
9. All or Nothing at All
10. Yesterdays

Joined onstage by the Tower of Power horn section, Little Feat accentuates and remakes familiar arrangements, using the stage as a laboratory for unbridled creativity, New Orleans-spiced fun, and spontaneous interaction. Bursting with enthusiasm and excitement, Waiting for Columbus is truly a live album for the agesand one of a certain distinctive era.

The abundance of great music, the culture of drugs, and the politics of Richard Nixon, which had everyone polarized and created more of a sense of community, all contributed to this incredible feeling that somehow we were on a collective journey. Waiting for Columbus is one of the last parts of that journey, and among the last vestiges of that scene. Little Feat keyboardist Bill Payne, as told to Bud Scoppa

Amazingly, the set came together under less-than-ideal conditions. In the months leading up to the seven 1977 Washington D.C. and London concerts that were taped for the record, leader Lowell George had removed himself from the bands affairs. The chemistry was fractured, but the shows functioned as a molding agent. And did Little Feat ever respond. With every member of the sextet playing like their life depended on it, and a guest appearance by ex-Rolling Stone Mick Taylor, this is a must-have set.

Track Listing:
Side One
1. "Join The Band" (Traditional) 1:50
2. "Fat Man in the Bathtub" (George) 4:50
3. "All That You Dream" (Barrère, Payne) 4:25
4. "Oh Atlanta" (Payne) 4:09
5. "Old Folks' Boogie" (Barrère, G. Barrère) 4:22

Side Two
6. "Time Loves a Hero" (Barrère, Gradney, Payne) 4:20
7. "Day or Night" (Payne, F. Tate) 5:23
8. "Mercenary Territory" (George, E. George, Hayward) 4:27
9. "Spanish Moon" (George) 4:49

Side Three
10. "Dixie Chicken" (George, Kibbee) 9:00
11. "Tripe Face Boogie" (Hayward, Payne) 7:02
12. "Rocket in My Pocket" (George) 3:42

Side Four
13. "Willin'" (George) 4:42
14. "Don't Bogart That Joint" (E. Ingber, L. Wagner) 0:57
15. "A Apolitical Blues" (George) 3:41
16. "Sailin' Shoes" (George) 6:18
17. "Feats Don't Fail Me Now" (Barrère, George, Kibbee) 5:17

Largely written on tour in hotel rooms and on the bus, Elvis Costellos Armed Forces takes personal politics to a new level. A supremely melodic and hook-laden record, the 1979 set is a showcase of scintillating keyboard lines, sharp guitar work, and the most cohesive arrangements of Costello and the Attractions career. In every way, this is a pop masterpiece, defined by hits such as Accidents Will Happen, Olivers Army, and the anthemic Whats So Funny Bout Peace Love and Understanding? You need this record.

While less musically intense than the preceding This Years Model, Armed Forces doesnt let up in the lyric department. Costellos narratives are loaded with paranoia, irony, bitterness, and scathing humor. Originally titled Emotional Fascism, the singers third consecutive masterpiece is inspired by billboard sign slogans, insular observations, and social behavior that Costello found applicable to his own situation. Olivers Army, Green Shirt, and Senior Service address systemic governmental control. Big Boys, Two Little Hitlers, and Accidents Will Happen also concern control and betrayalbut that of the interpersonal nature.

Given the luxury of six weeks in the studio, Costello and the Attractions responded with spacious arrangements and a few extra touches and instrumental colors that add to the songs charm. Steve Nieve employs a monophonic Minimoog keyboard and pianos patterned after Abbas sweet pop; whispers are exaggerated into black comedy shouts on Goon Squad; layered and echoed vocals provide the illusion of several Costello voices on multiple tracks. The band is of a piece, constantly in harmony and on the same page.

Half-speed mastered from the original tapes, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited-edition 180-gram LP presents the vibrant dynamics of Armed Forces timeless pop songs in the highest possible fidelity. This album has never sounded so full, rich, airy, spacious, detailed, or necessary. The textures and voicings of Nieves keyboards are alone worth the investment. This pressing will have you dancing in the aisles and analyzing Costellos brilliant turns of phrase for years to come.

Track Listing:
1. Accidents Will Happen
2. Senior Service
3. Oliver's Army
4. Big Boys
5. Green Shirt
6. Party Girl
7. Goon Squad
8. Busy Bodies
9. Sunday's Best
10. Moods For Moderns
11. Chemistry Class
12. Two Little Hitlers
13. (What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love And Understanding?

The first record he made with his legendary backing band the Attractions, This Years Model is Elvis Costellos most explosive and urgent album. Picking up where his fine My Aim Is True left off, the British singer/guitarist blasts through 13 excellent tracks with the fervent purpose and headlong pace of someone who has a cab waiting for him outside.

Stylistically versatile, deeply varied, and melodically catchy, this where Costello came into his ownand where the chemistry between virtuosic keyboardist Steve Nieve, bassist Bruce Thomas, and drummer Pete Thomas produced one of rocks best groups. A dynamic maelstrom of emotional spite, bitter frustration, sexual angst, and caustic political commentary, the 1978 set boosted Costellos star and yielded innumerable standards: the undying MOR protest Radio Radio, fervent Pump It Up, smart (I Dont Want to Go to) Chelsea, and spunky No Action are all here.

While often cited as Costellos angry record, This Years Model has more to do with disappointments and denials. The album bursts forth with a savage energy not possible without the Attractions, which are responsible for the songs being built from the ground up. Where Costellos voice and twangy guitar dominate My Aim Is True, here, sizzling rhythms and Nieves colorful organ runs anchor the foundations. This is a group effort, with Costellos biting lyrics taking chances and forcing the listener to mull double meanings all the while the music zooms by at a fast clip.

More than 30 years after its original release, This Years Model will still leave you breathless. Railing against unachievable desires, Costello and company delight in the anguish, and spit such torment back out in the form of hook-ridden music that functions as a brilliant form of situational confirmation and emotional catharsis.

Half-speed mastered from the original tapes, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited-edition 180-gram LP brings This Years Models vicious songs to the forefront like never before. Punchier, gutsier, and livelier than any of the myriad CD remasters, this analog edition offers a transparent window onto the Attractions' loose interplay, Nieve's carnivalesque organ work, and rabid pounce of the Thomas-Thomas rhythm section. Here, for the first time, are previously buried tones, textures, and details. It took years to happen, but this is how This Years Model was always supposed to sound.

Track Listing:
1. No Action
2. This Year's Girl
3. The Beat
4. Pump It Up
5. Little Triggers
6. You Belong to Me
7. Hand in Hand
8. (I Don't Want to Go To) Chelsea
9. Lip Service
10. Living in Paradise
11. Lipstick Vogue
12. Night Rally
13. Radio, Radio

Elvis Costellos remarkable My Aim Is True announces the arrival of a singular talent. Having long ago secured its status as one of the greatest debut albums ever recorded, the 1977 set hasnt lost any of the vibrant urgency, lyrical edge, or biting wit that made Costello the pin-up model for new-wave music.

Blending punk-fueled motivation with pub-rock, reggae, and classic American rock n roll strains, the landmark effort includes many of the singers best-known and most beloved tunes: the poisoned ballad Alison, voyeuristic Watching the Detectives, slinky (The Angels Want to Wear My) Red Shoes, and rave-up Mystery Dance included. There isnt a bad note here.

The history behind My Aim Is True is as rich as the songs. Before landing at then-fledgling English indie label Stiff Records, Costello had been laboring as a computer operator housed next door to a lipstick factory. The conditions couldnt be riper for the cynical blue-collar observations and fierce humor that pierce tracks like Welcome to the Working Week and Less Than Zero. Costello took inspiration from London subway rides, venomous politics, and surrounding vanity. Having been rejected by what he estimated amounted to every other label in the city, Costello began calling in sick to his day job in order to record material for what become My Aim Is True.

Made for just 1000 pounds and over the course of four six-hour sessions, the experience found Costello recording his parts in a room the size of a telephone booth. His backing bandClover, not the Attractions (save for on Watching the Detectives, left off the original UK release)rounded out the slinky, melodic songs with spare details such as fuzztone pedal steel guitar and organ. The minimal budget ensured that nothing extra or fancy was employed. Overdubs werent really an option; what was played is basically what you hear.

Notorious for being reissued umpteen times, Mobile Fidelity is thrilled to present the one edition of My Aim Is True that every fan needs to own. Half-speed mastered from the original master tapesnot from copies as so many other versions areand pressed on 180-gram vinyl, this numbered limited-edition LP is the definitive My Aim Is True. No compromises, no tricks. Just the music delivered with peerless clarity, purity, and transparency. The rawness of Costellos voice, jangle of the rhythms, hum of the organs, and even the impact of the drumsticks have never been experienced with such realism. This is what organic-sounding albums are supposed to sound like. You will hear this again for the first time. And of course, there's the iconic cover art, presented in full-scale perspective.

Track Listing:
1. Welcome To The Working Week
2. Miracle Man
3. No Dancing
4. Blame It On Cain
5. Alison
6. Sneaky Feelings
7. (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes
8. Less Than Zero
9. Mystery Dance
10. Pay It Back
11. I'm Not Angry
12. Waiting For The End Of The World
13. Watching The Detectives

Leader and songwriter extraordinaire Lowell George is also at the top of his game. Standards such as the acoustic Roll Um Easy, keyboard-drenched Kiss It Off, and adroit title track hook the listener from the start, as does the timeless Fat Man in the Bathtub, a tune that continues Georges knack for twisted storytelling. Legendary New Orleans arranger Allen Toussaint contributes the intoxicating On Your Way Down, which the sextet turns into a slow dark blues that ripples with rock overtones. Thick grooves and sultry riffs abound throughout this brilliant set.

And ensemble playing doesnt get any better. Splitting the line between taut studio perfection and loose jamming, Little Feat lays down some of the most exhilarating slide-guitar and colorful percussive work heard on record. Several distinguished guests contribute to the party: Bonnie Raitt, Bonnie Bramlett, ex-Rolling Stone Mick Taylor, and multi-instrumentalist Fred Tackett among them. In every sense, Dixie Chicken is the epitome of early 70s American rock and rollfunny, smart, relaxing, cohesive, melodic, smooth, stylish, engaging.

Mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited-edition 180-gram LP allows Dixie Chicken to be experienced like never before. The first available domestic remastering, and only edition restored from the original source tapes, this is the only version to own. The sonic improvements will have you jumping for joy.

Track Listing:
1. Dixie Chicken
2. Two Trains
3. Roll Um Easy
4. On Your Way Down
5. Kiss It Off
6. Fool Yourself
7. Walkin' All Night
8. Fat Man In the Bathtub
9. Juliette
10. Lafayette Railroad

Becks Sea Change remains the best record of the indie icons career. And how. The sonic chameleon shocked the world in 2002 with this warm-sounding folk-pop albuma sincere, honest, and mature meditation on the end of a nine-year relationship with his girlfriend. As for the vocalists trademark irony, sarcasm, and humor? Not here. In their place is an affecting emotionalism to which anyone whos ever been in (or out) of love will relate. The music is equally personal and meditative. Gorgeous string arrangements come courtesy of his father, David Campbell, and illustrate the heartbreak that informs the beautiful melodies and tranquil moods.

Best of all, this album is anything but a bummer. Intending to be heard to from start to finish, Beck begins the record with songs conveying emptiness and loss, and gradually moves on to narratives that detail what changes are necessary to regain a sense of identity, purpose, and feeling. By the time he reaches the concluding Little One, the healing has begun. Consider this Becks mellowest golda feat confirmed by its selection as the #2 record of 2002 on Village Voices all-encompassing Pazz & Jop poll.

And now, thanks to truly painstaking remastering efforts, this embraceable and intimate gem sounds better than ever. No lie. Master tapes of every cut were delivered to Mobile Fidelity engineers on a separate reel, with the finished product taking months to perfect. Unlike previous digital versions, no compression or dynamic processing was used, making this half-speed mastered 180-gram 2-LP set not just the definitive version its the only analog version worth owning!

Track Listing:
1. The Golden Age
2. Paper Tiger
3. Guess I'm Doing Fine
4. Lonesome Tears
5. Lost Cause
6. End Of The Day
7. It's All In Your Mind
8. Round The Bend
9. Already Dead
10. Sunday Sun
11. Little One
12. Side Of The Road

Rickie Lee Jones' Pirates arrives like a cloudburst in the desert of Eighties formula pop music and recycled heavy-metal rock. So wrote Stephen Holden in Rolling Stone in his five-star review of the eclectic artists sophomore album, a set that continues to defy eras and styles. While less-well known than her 1979 self-titled debut, the ambitious 1981 record remains Jones definitive statementan effort steeped in biographical details, fictional circumstances, and classic literary elements.

Narratively blending West Side Story and Romeo and Juliet while also exploring spirit worlds and her breakup with Tom Waits, Pirates is at its core an idiosyncratic fusion of possibilities. And does Jones deliver! Accompanied by an all-star lineup that includes trumpeter Randy Brecker, Steely Dan icon Donald Fagen, drumming colossus Steve Gadd, session pro Victor Feldman, and legendary jazz arranger Ralph Burns, the singer-songwriter achieves a musical nirvana that encompasses post-bop, coffeehouse folk, bohemian pop, romantic soul, Beat poetry, and Broadway showtunes.

Harmonized vocals and jive talking bring the piano-based records rich characters to life, making it seem as if listeners are overhearing conversations between strangers. In more than one way, Pirates is a self-contained theatrical production in which Jones singing is the star attraction. Her moody whispers, cries, and coos are the voices of spurned lovers, alienated outcasts, and unlikely heroines. Albums with this kind of stylistic magnitude, close-up intimacy, and emotional intensity come around only once or so a decade.

Mobile Fidelity is proud to have had the opportunity to remaster Pirates from the original analog master tapes and produce a version that captures every nuance of this great-sounding studio masterpiece. Co-produced by Russ Titelman and Lenny Waronker (whose long list of credits include Randy Newman, James Taylor, and Eric Clapton records), trust us when we say that this 180-gram LP is one of the finest-sounding pop records youll hear. Fans of Steely Dan, Joni Mitchell, Randy Newman, Carole King, and Sarah Vaughan should consider this requisite listening. MoFis mini-LP style packaging only adds to the allure.

So dont hesitate: Be the Lucky Guy that Jones sings about on the record by securing your lowest-numbered copy of Mobile Fidelitys half-speed mastered LP of Pirates today!

Track Listing:
1. We Belong Together
2. Living It Up
3. Skeletons
4. Woody and Dutch on the Slow Train to Peking
5. Pirates (So Long Lonely Avenue)
6. A Lucky Guy
7. Traces of the Western Slopes
8. The Returns

Extraordinary Sound Transports Listeners to a Small Coffeehouse: You Need to Hear This on Vinyl!

Peyroux's Half the Perfect World and Careless Love Also Available on MoFi 180-gram LP

Having proven several times over that shes among the premier vocal jazz singers on the planet with Half the Perfect World and Careless Loveboth available as limited-edition 180-gram LPs from Mobile FidelityMadeleine Peyroux makes her mark as a songwriter on the exquisite Bare Bones, her first album of originals. A thematic record that begins with wariness, moves to loss, builds to acceptance, and finishes with hope, the critically acclaimed set is Peyrouxs most soul-baring effort.

The records title says it all. Deeply personal and eminently mature, the chanteuse strips everything down, from her emotional guard to the arrangements. Peyroux penned many of the songs with longtime producer Larry Klein (Joni Mitchell), and also co-wrote the standout You Cant Do Me with Steely Dan legend Walter Becker. As expected, a tart wittiness defines the lyrics, demonstrating Peyrouxs continual growth as an artist. Becker's contributions also spice the title track, while noted tunesmiths Joe Henry and Julian Coryell assist on other songs. As usual, the singer enjoys the sparse, elegant backing of a small group of first-rate musicians. Peyrouxs alto vocals shine.

The empress of the jazzy, languid groove does what she has done on her two bestsellers (and her half-forgotten 1996 debut); purr intimately about life and the iniquities of love over retro backings of brushed drums and polite piano that evoke Billie Holiday. Neil Spencer, The Observer, March 2009

Sonically, Bare Bones continues Peyrouxs tradition of making some of the best-sounding albums around. Her tunesdirect, emotional, beautiful, detailedbenefit from production that emphasizes her strengths and puts a spotlight on the songs, not on any unnecessary tricks or embellishments. This is strictly about the music, its emotional effects on the listener, and the universal healing power of feelings associated with lost love and recovery.

Its hard to imagine a candlelit cocktail bar that wouldnt benefit from playing Madeleine Peyrouxs fourth album, Bare Bones. The ear loves to catch on the inflections of her supple alto, the clear picking on her acoustic guitar, the pacing as slow as a hand-stitched dress. Margaret Wappler, Los Angeles Times, March 2009

Half-speed mastered from the original analog tapes, Mobile Fidelitys 180-gram 2-LP set enhances the experiences of hearing Peyrouxs languorous gems. Transparent, airy, three dimensional, fully textured, and featuring extended response from the acoustic bass and guitars, this analog pressing puts you in the middle of a coffeehouse, with Peyroux and her small ensemble seated a few feet in front of you. Its that good.

Mobile Fidelitys collector's vinyl editions of Peyrouxs earlier hit studio albums have sold quickly. Dont wait on this.

Track Listing:

1. Instead
2. Bare Bones
3. Damn the Circumstances
4. River of Tears
5. You Can't do Me
6. Love and Treachery
7. Our Lady of Pigalle
8. Homeless Happiness
9. To Love You All Over Again
10. I Must Be Saved
11. Somethin' Grand

1961 Collection Gathers 12 Must-Have Songs from Charles' Peak Era

Mobile Fidelity Has Righted the Sonic Wrongs That Plagued Earlier Versions - You Won't Find a Better-Sounding Ray Charles LP

Genius doesnt even begin to describe the greatness of The Genius Sings the Blues. Comprised of a dozen songs Ray Charles made between 1952 and 1960, the collection was released in 1961 by Atlantic Records to counter the singers migration to rival ABC Paramount. What Atlantic originally underestimated is that the album contained many of Charles greatest works, all unified by their bluesy emotions and stirring arrangements. A classic of the soul and R&B canon, The Genius Sings the Blues is a snapshot of the evolution of timeless American music captured by the pianists indelible rhythmic pace, gospel roots, jazz backgrounds, and Southern-styled accents. And its never sounded so good.

From the iconic cover art (a photo of Charles taken by legendary photographer Lee Friedlander) to the distinguished music within, everything about the thematic record is iconic. Now, nearly 50 years later, it can be heard in pristine fidelity sourced from the original mono master tapes. Mobile Fidelitys engineers have taken great pains to ensure that every clink of the piano keys, ache of Charles rolling voice, and rush of the backing arrangements sounds better than they have since first being recorded in the studio. This 180g LP simply lays waste to the competition.

Previous editions of The Genius Sings the Blues, including a remastered digital edition from Rhino, suffered from varying levels, distracting static and noise, and inconsistent vocal balances. Mobile Fidelity has gone back to the original mono master tapes to correct these problems, giving music lovers what is now unquestionably the best-sounding Charles album to stem from his peak era. And these performances are simply on fire.

Whether inhabiting the sadness in Night Time (Is the Right Time) or personifying the loss of Hard Times, Charles invests each song with supreme emotion and undeniable conviction that makes the lyrics ring true and the blues resonate with cathartic pathos. Uptempo country blues numbers (Im Movin On, Early in the Mornin) balance the mournful slow fare, and again prove Charles a master composer, interpreter, and musician who could make any style his own. The Genius Sings the Blues also speaks to legendary jazz pianist Billy Taylors initial impressions of Charles upon hearing him in a way in which few other Charles recordings do.

Taylor recalled: While playing through some new music for a projected Ruth Brown record date, I was asked to listen to an original song played and sung by a young composer and pianist from Seattle, Washington. I can still remember how surprised I was to hear this kind of music from a Northwesterner. He reminded me of Charles Brown, another pianist-singer who was very popular in the Forties, but he had a very personal sound and there was something different about his rhythmic approach. In his handling of melody he seemed to be using devices similar to those used by Dinah Washington and a small group of popular singers who allowed their gospel singing backgrounds to influence their interpretation of popular songs... I was intrigued by the emotional quality projected by both his piano playing and his unusual voice and was not surprised when Ahmet Ertegün said that he wanted to let the young musician record some of his own material. He communicates just like the old blues singers, Ahmet said."

Indeed, that innate blues aesthetic dominates this collection, as does Charles distinctive rhythmic mannerisms. Finally, hear them as theyve always been intended to be experienced.

Track Listing:
1.Early in the Mornin'
2.Hard Times (No One Knows Better Than I)
3.The Midnight Hour
4.(Night Time Is) the Right Time
5.Feelin' Sad
6.Ray's Blues
7.I'm Movin' On
8.I Believe to My Soul
9.Nobody Cares
10.Mr. Charles' Blues
11.Some Day Baby
12.I Wonder Who

Mobile Fidelity has gone back to the original master tapes to present Joels encompassing music the way it was always intended to be experienced: Intimate, detailed, expressive, warm. The records widescreen sonics are at last properly cinematic, flush with colors, textures, and atmosphere.

Progressing away from sensitivity, Joel casts his eye towards broader horizons. For him, that meant moving from the West Coast back to his native New York and embracing the citys doo-wop, Broadway, and R&B heritage. Joels diversity comes through in a spectacle of memorable tunes, including the infectious All You Wanna Do Is Dance, acerbic Angry Young Man, and gorgeous Ive Loved These Days.

Still, no song better illustrates the allureand breadthof Turnstiles more than Say Goodbye to Hollywood, bathed in the sort of fabulous Phil Spector sound, huge drum echoes, and Brill Building orchestral sweep that Joel grew up on. Similarly, the sprawling ballad New York State of Mind clearly states the singers vision and mood. On the definitive track, Joel luxuriates in full string accompaniment and soulful saxophone playing that gives the pop standard its foundation. Not for nothing did Joel insist on keeping his touring band for the album, a decision that resulted in the firing of the records original producer.

Supported by talents such as arranger Kenny Ascher, guitarist James Herb Smith, and percussionist Mingo Lewis, Joel succeeds in wrapping his head around a rich swath of American pop music, stopping by way of New Orleans, Kansas City, Memphis, Chicago, and other cities on his way from California back to the Garden State. While lacking the fame of the subsequent The Stranger and 52nd Street, Turnstiles is in every way their equal.

Finally, the delicate nuances of Joels phrasing, pregnant pauses, and introspective emotion can be experienced in three-dimensional fidelity. In addition, the spectrum of the orchestras power and finesse, ravishing poignancy of the lyrics, and bittersweet qualities of the melodies bloom with unforced immediacy. The previous veiled sonic character and stultifying dryness have been corrected, presenting Joel and his crack band with illuminating precision and feeling.

Turnstiles has never sounded betterand it never will.

Track Listing:
1. Say Goodbye to Hollywood
2. Summer, Highland Falls
3. All You Wanna Do Is Dance
4. New York State of Mind
5. James
6. Prelude/Angry Young Man
7. I've Loved These Days
8. Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway)

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited-edition 180g LP of Kings second solo masterpiece is rife with intimacy, transparency, soulfulness, and you-are-there sound. Never before remastered, Music seems like a brand-new album, Kings familiar voice, intelligent arrangements, and ravishing support band presented on a deep, three-dimensional soundstage. Your appreciation for and understanding of Kings inspirational lyrics and ravishing performances will increase tenfold. Mobile Fidelitys 180g LP brings you that much closer.

Accompanied by percussionist Bobbye Hall, drummer Russ Kinkel, guitarist/vocalist James Taylor, and a cavalcade of professional wind musicians, King delves further into R&B and jazz-derived pop, coming up aces every time. Warm, intelligent, and cohesive, songs echo with simplicity and honesty. And as is typical of much of Kings work, several of tunes here were later covered by other artists, including Its Going To Take Some Time (the Carpenters). Yet the originals trump the later renditions, and the rendition of the standard Some Kind of Wonderful stands as the best ever recorded.

With Taylor lending more of a hand on Music than he does on Tapestry, King expands her confident reach on the piano and peppers the songs with graceful touches of saxophone, flute, pedal-steel guitar, and woodwinds. Ballads sway (Surely), gospel brightness lifts spirits (Brighter), and backup vocals float heavenly pop (Song of Long Ago). Yet the best aspect is Kings voice, infused with fondness, concern, joy, and a quiet power that parallels the delicacy and deliberate nature that define Music.

Mobile Fidelitys audiophile edition is free of the limiting artifacts that have helped keep this record in the dark for the better part of the past few decades. Previously diminished, acoustic guitars, subtle brass elements, and soft percussion contribute to the enjoyment of the songs, and Kings voicepleasant, assuring, emotionalcomes through with incredible clarity and inflection. The brilliance of the legendary Lou Adlers original production is restored to its full glory.

If its at all possibleand it isthis treasure now sounds even more heartwarming than it did upon original release. The companion to Tapestry, Music is an auraland sonicdelight.

Track Listing:
1.Brother, Brother
2.It's Going to Take Some Time
3.Sweet Seasons
4.Some Kind of Wonderful
5.Surely
6.Carry Your Load
7.Music
8.Song of Long Ago
9.Brighter
10.Growing Away from Me
11.Too Much Rain
12.Back to California

Half-Speed Mastered from the Original Tapes: Intimate Sonics Make It Seem Like King is Sitting Five Feet Away

Stripped-Down Songs Teem With Warmth, Nuance, Emotion; James Taylor Also Appears

Every so often, a from-the-vault release captures our hearts, minds, and attention in such a way that its impossible not to tell all family, friends, and neighbors about its existence. Originally issued to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Tapestry, Carole Kings The Carnegie Hall Concert: June 18, 1971 is such a record, a fortunate document of an absolutely magical period in the singer-songwriters legendary career and a revealing look at the then-stagefright artist turning in a commanding performance just as she was becoming a superstar.

Half-speed mastered from the original tapes, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited-edition 180g LP of this compelling concert album brims with liveliness, depth, dimension, detail, and transparency. The nuances of Kings spare performances and warm vocals emanate as if shes sitting five feet away. Stripped down even further than they are on the studio albums, songs breathe with palpable earnestness and emotion, the subtle differences from their more polished studio brethren allowing listeners an insight into Kings creative genius.

At the time of its recording, King still suffered from shynessand who could blame her? She had been accustomed to penning lyrics for other artists and sitting behind a desk in the Brill Building. Only recently did King strike out on her own and enter the public realm. This set encapsulates this contrast in thrilling fashion. Disarmingly genuine and daringly honest, The Carnegie Hall Concert: June 18, 1971 benefits from the inclusion of Kings nervous between-song banter that exposes who she is as a person and performer. Most importantly, despite her anxiety, she turns out stirring renditions of tunes from 1970s Writer, Tapestry, and even a few from Music.

Her control is demonstrated on the records six opening cuts, which feature King alone at her piano. For the remainder of the program, shes accompanied by guitarist Danny Kortchman, bassist Charles Larkey, and a string quartet, which enter and exit according to arrangement. As such, the concert is profoundly intimate and personal, an unplugged session that predated the use of the term by nearly two decades. Longtime collaborator James Taylor joins her for a memorable medley of some of her biggest hitsWill You Love Me Tomorrow/Some Kind of Wonderful/Up on the Roofthe chemistry evident of why the duos 2010 tour was one of the most in-demand outings in years.

Mobile Fidelitys remastered sound ties everything together and is what makes this release extra special. By going to the original source, the audiophile label considerably opens up the sonic perspectives, revealing the spacious acoustics of the famed venue that act in concert with Kings music. In particular, the songs from Writer benefit from the no-nonsense production. You can literally picture Kings piano beside her, and her voicesincere, tender, melodicis rich, full-bodied, and penetrating. Listeners can even hear it crack on occasion, the results a consequence of her nerves. Unpolished and non-synthetic, the performance is better for it.

No, they dont make albums like this anymore. The Carnegie Hall Concert: June 18, 1971 as real as it gets. And so is the sound. Get your collectible copy now!

Track Listing:
1.I Feel the Earth Move
2.Home Again
3.After All This Time
4.Child of Mine
5.Carry Your Load
6.No Easy Way Down
7.Song of Long Ago
8.Snow Queen
9.Smackwater Jack
10.So Far Away
11.It's Too Late
12.Eventually
13.Way over Yonder
14.Beautiful
15.You've Got a Friend" [Performed with James Taylor]
16.Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?"/"Some Kind of Wonderful"/"Up on the Roof" [medley; performed with James Taylor]
17.(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes, and pressed on two 45RPM LPs to replicate the very first promotional pressing in the UK, the 1980 LP has never sounded better on any format. Rather than cram nearly 50 minutes of music and 20 songs onto a single record, Mobile Fidelity has gone the extra mile and back to the album's UK roots with two 45RPM discs. For the first time, listeners can home in on the records signature sound that relates to the decision to record the vocals in a studios glass strings room. In addition, the dimensions and images associated with Steve Nieves penetrating organ, Pete Thomas punchy drumming, and Costellos bounding vocals know no limits. The music simply leaps off the proverbial page, the uptempo rhythms jumping and nimble bass lines kicking.

Clearly, the group is motivated, and the leader brings some of his very finest songs to the table, including High Fidelity, Riot Act, Motel Matches, and The Imposter. While some believe the drunken incident caused Costello to shelve a planned new-wave-leaning effort for the soul-stoked Get Happy!!, the vocalist claims that his ability to find so many great soul records in America from 1977 through 1979 inspired the group to change course. Whatever the cause, Get Happy!! is a start-to-finish wonder.

Paying homage to Northern soul, Motown, Stax, and Southern soul strains, and infused with smooth and gritty arrangements, Get Happy!! runs on an efficient R&B motor. Subtle tributes abound. High Fidelity quotes a Supremes song; Love for Tender borrows a Supremes riff; Opportunity tips its hat to Al Green; Clowntime Is Over bows to Curtis Mayfield. And two covers, of Sam & Daves I Cant Stand Up for Falling Down and the Merseybeats I Stand Accused, are recast as quick, R&B rave-ups. Theres not a misplaced note or bad step on this record. And for history buffs, the closing, searing ballad Riot Act is Costellos response to his hypocritical critics and finger-pointers.

As essential as anything in Costellos catalog, and one of the truly great records of the 1980s, you owe it to yourself to experience Get Happy!! in the supreme sonic fidelity that this numbered limited edition Mobile Fidelity double-LP pressing affords. For those intimately familiar with its contents, listening will be a revelation. And for fans that have never heard the record, prepare to be wowed.

Part of Mobile Fidelitys Costello catalog restoration series, Get Happy!! will make you positively ecstatic.

Track Listing:
1. Love for Tender
2. Opportunity
3. The Imposter
4. Secondary Modern
5. King Horse
6. Possession
7. Men Called Uncle
8. Clowntime Is Over
9. New Amsterdam
10. High Fidelity
11. I Can't Stand Up For Falling Down
12. Black & White World
13. 5ive Gears in Reverse
14. B Movie
15. Motel Matches
16. Human Touch
17. Beaten to the Punch
18. Temptation
19. I Stand Accused
20. Riot Act

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited-edition 180g LP presents Bennett in to-die-for sound. Amazingly, this landmark recording has lavished in the vaults over the years and longed for the restoration that meticulous engineering can bring. Gone is the veiled haze that hung over the orchestrations, artificial ceiling that held back the highs, and cloudiness that obscured the entire range of Bennetts vocals. And were not just talking about the inferior digital editions. Previously unheard degrees of warmth, expressiveness, and detailing are just some of the newly uncovered aspects of this majestic recording.

Pairing again with producer Ernie Altschuler and pianist Ralph Sharon, and adding the skills of expert arranger Marty Manning, Bennett navigates his way through heavenly pop territory, turning phrases that bridge myriad moods and feelingswistful, romantic, sentimental, longing, happy, autumnalwhile making listeners feel each and every word that seemingly tumble out of his mouth. Bennett fully invests himself in the performances. And part of the appeal is just how relaxed he remains, a trait that helped him propel both the title track and The Good Life into Top 20 hits.

Decades before hed join the likes of Bono for a Duets album that reprised some of the classic material found here, Bennett perfected on I Wanna Be Around a traditional vocal pop sound that is best described as the touch of velvet. His mellow singing spans from conversational to soaring, his timbre sensational and note-perfect. Bennett inhabits the lyrics as if every song were expressly written for his voice. Whats more, the arrangements remain sympathetic, neither over- nor underdone, resulting in a superb combination of color, style, sophistication, and suaveness.

Mobile Fidelitys collectible 180g LP resonates with standard-setting transparency, imaging, projection, smoothness, and dimensionality. Capturing a human voice remains the most difficult recording task. Suffice it to say that this LP will join the ranks of the very best recordings you own. And of course, the music is on the same elevated level as the sound.

Track Listing:
1. The Good Life
2. If I Love Again
3. I Wanna Be Around
4. I've Got Your Number
5. Until I Met You
6. Once Upon a Summertime
7. If You Were Mine
8. I Will Live My Life for You
9. Someone to Love
10. It Was Me
11. Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars
12. Autumn in Rome

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited-edition 180g LP presents Bennett in the finest sound hes ever enjoyed. Amazingly, this landmark recording has lavished in the vaults over the years and longed for the restoration that meticulous engineering can bring. Gone is the veiled haze that hung over the orchestrations, artificial ceiling that held back the highs, and cloudiness that obscured the entire range of Bennetts vocals. Previously unheard levels of warmth, expressiveness, and detailing are just some of the hallmarks of this terrific audiophile delight.

At the time of the albums sessions, Bennett found himself caught between the need to sing thin uptempo numbers in order to appease the marketplace and the desire to move beyond the jazzier material he tackled in the late 50s. Unwilling to compromise his will to sing ballads and swing, Bennett, along with producer Ernest Altschuler and arranger/pianist Ralph Sharon, found the perfect combination on I Left My Heart In San Francisco, replete with expansive orchestration, period echo, anthemic ballads, and lush pop arrangements that still leave plenty of room for intimacy and delicacy.

Theres little left to say about the timeless title track, amidst the most definitive songs ever recorded. Similarly, the closing The Best Is Yet to Come ranks equally high, with Bennetts rendition coming a full two years before Frank Sinatras version. Its no wonder why The Voice deemed Bennett his favorite singer. The proof is everywhere, whether on the brassy Rules of the Road, big-band bossa nova send-up of Cole Porters Love for Sale, tender Have I Told You Lately?, or the white-gloves treatment of the Broadway tune Once Upon a Time. Bennetts charismatic personality and refined singing ring true throughout, his burnished baritone as clear as spring water.

Now, hear this triumphant performance as if Bennett is singing to you on a private stage. Witness every breath, and experience the thrill of the singer holding a note for what seems like eternity on Im Always Chasing Rainbows without flinching. Seldom, if ever, has a vocalists singing sounded so effortlessly natural and innate. Mobile Fidelitys 180g LP is simply unmatched in terms of sonics, spaciousness, and sensation.

One of the five-best vocal albums ever made. Order your collectors copy today!

Track Listing:
1. I Left My Heart in San Francisco
2. Once Upon a Time
3. Tender Is the Night
4. Smile
5. Love for Sale
6. Taking a Chance on Love
7. Candy Kisses
8. Have I Told You Lately?
9. Rules of the Road
10. Marry Young
11. I'm Always Chasing Rainbows
12. The Best Is Yet to Come

1982 Smash Propelled Two-Tone Ska Revivalists to Commercial Fame: Police, Jam, Specials Fans Need This LP

Record Contains Irresistible Original Version of "Save It For Later," Longtime Pearl Jam Concert Staple

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI (Best Plant in America): Spaciousness Amidst Instruments, Midrange Dynamics Vastly Improved

In the early 1980s, many bands began borrowing styles initially made popular in other regions of the world, spicing their own sound up with exotic textures and foreign rhythms. Few groups perfected the mix-and-match hybrid with more everlasting appeal and contagious melodicism than The English Beat, a multi-cultural ensemble whose Special Beat Service dominated the charts, scored with the critics, and captivated listeners.

Blending jazzy saxophones, pop hooks, calypso accents, firm beats, jangly guitars, and scores of other creative devices, the 1982 set has always been ripe for sonic restoration. Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI (the best record plant in North America), Silver Label numbered limited edition LP brings the music's colorful flair and cross-continental vibes to the fore, eliminating the haze and artificial ceilings that flaw previous pressings. The Caribbean flavors, dub pulses, and irresistible refrains now jump with palpable energy and feet-tapping verve. You'll be addicted as soon as the needle drops into the first grooves of the record.

A feel-good set from start to finish, Special Beat Service bows down to the power of great pop. But within this framework, The English Beat weaves in brilliant threads of music plucked from Jamaica (reggae and dub), its native England (new wave and Merseybeat), and the United States (post-punk and Motown). While many recognize them as Two-Tone ska revivalists, the group's arrangements reach far beyond any label, a breadth immediately recognized on multifaceted tracks such as "Sugar & Stress," "Ackee 123," and "Sole Salvation."

In particular, the band's "Save It For Later" became an anthem that is still heard today. A precursor to the influential Britpop sound that followed nearly a decade later, the hit rides on a flexible bass line, sly sexual lyrics, and rolling guitar-driven lines that even the Beatles would envy. Years ago, Pearl Jam resurrected the classic by tacking it onto the end of its "Betterman" in concert, and to this day, it remains a live favorite. You need to experience the original in the highest-possible fidelity.

No mere revivalists or retro-minded purveyors, The English Beat created a true 80s pop masterpiece with Special Beat Service. Mobile Fidelity Silver Series' LP presents the songs as they were meant to be heard, and will have you dancing in no time. If you're a fan of the Police, Madness, The Specials, The Clash, The Jam, or the Wailers, you need this LP.

Track Listing:
1. I Confess
2. Jeanette
3. Sorry
4. Sole Salvation
5. Spar Wid Me
6. Rotating Head
7. Save It for Later
8. She's Going
9. Pato and Roger a Go Talk
10. Sugar and Stress
11. End of the Party
12. Ackee 1-2-3

Numbered Limited Edition 180 gram 2LP Set

Precedent-Setting 1969 Release One of the Five Best Live Albums Ever Recorded

Half-Speed Mastered from the Original Master Tapes: Invite the Dead Into Your Living RoomYou Wont Believe How Good This Pressing Sounds

Pinnacle First-Era Grateful Dead Record Captures Best of Both Worlds: Bands Improvisational and R&B-Based Blues Sides on Display

Part of Mobile Fidelitys Amazing Grateful Dead Reissue Series: Skull and Roses, From the Mars Hotel, Wake of the Flood, and In the Dark Also Available on 180 gram LP

If you want to experience why on any given night the Grateful Dead was the best live band going in 1969, you need to hear Live/Dead. If you want to understand how personal chemistry, symbiotic interplay, and otherworldly energy can lead to a near-extinct onstage combination of soulfulness, surprise, and suspense, you need to hear Live/Dead. Ranked by Rolling Stone on the magazines list of the 500 Greatest Records of All Time. Universally acclaimed by both Deadheads and non-devotees alike. The perfect synthesis of the legendary groups first-era vital characteristics and cosmic faculties. A gorgeously recorded sonic artifact and more, Live/Dead is outright essential.

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes with the utmost care, and part of Mobile Fidelitys unprecedented Grateful Dead reissue series, this numbered limited edition 180g 2LP version of Live/Dead raises the iconic albums lofty prestige even higher. Recorded at three San Francisco concerts in early 1969 with a mobile 16-track studio, the 7-song set has always possessed excellent fidelity in large part because of a mic splitterspecially created for the projectthat fed both into the PA system and record inputs, allowing the engineers to capture the shows without any loss in quality.

Seldom have venue dimensions, acoustic properties, spatial characteristics, low-frequency resonances, amplifier tonalities, soundstage balances, and vocal timbres been so faithfully reproducedor enhanced. Mobile Fidelitys version elevates Live/Dead into the revered pantheon of the most respected reference audiophile LPs. Close your eyes and youre dead center, ten rows back in two of the Bay Areas most beloved halls: Fillmore West and Avalon Ballroom. The degrees of realism are utterly staggering; no, you dont need any, ahem, chemical assistance to facilitate the transcendent experience.

Renowned for contagious communication between its members, the Dead operates on a interstellar plane throughout Live/Dead. Witnessing the ebb-and-flow manners in which guitarist Jerry Garcia, bassist Phil Lesh, and drummer Billy Kreutzmann respond to one anothers passages and blur the lines between jazz, psychedelia, and rock disciplines. Meandering jamming this is not. Solos burn, rhythms thunder, bass lines roll, melodies twist. Dark Star remains the touchstone for whats possible in epic frameworks, with notes climbing, darting, and skittering amidst a dark canvas seared with mystic vibes and punctuated with blossoming instrumentals. Along with the inseparable pairing of St. Stephen and The Elevena sequence that highlights the raw gospel beauty of Garcia, Lesh, and Bob Weirs harmonies as well as breathtaking tightrope seguesthe explorative excursion epitomizes the Deads progressive inclination, cohesion, and ability.

Live/Dead isnt all about the art of the improvisation. R&B-driven electric blues comes courtesy of organist/vocalist Ron Pigpen McKernan, still in excellent health, and pianist Tom Constanten, who departed the band shortly after these shows occurred. The latters counterpoint playing and spiritual accents shadow the shivering ballad Death Dont Have No Mercy and underscore a rousing, percussive-laden marathon take of Turn on Your Love Light. Call-and-response segments, spontaneous exchanges, and joyous merry-making doesnt come any better. Live/Dead is a landmark in every sense; it remains the first 16-track album released. Its impact is still felt today.

From the illustrative cover art (hint: the word Dead subtly spells out Acid on the back cover) to the gatefold graphics and the extraordinary sonics, Mobile Fidelitys 180 gram 2LP edition ranks among the labels best releases. Ever. Secure your lowest-numbered edition by ordering now!

Track Listing:
Side 1
1. Dark Star

Side 2
1. St. Stephen
2. The Eleven

Side 3
1. Turn On Your Love Light

Side 4
1. Death Don't Have No Mercy
2. Feedback
3. And We Bid You Goodnight

1971 Double Live Album Presents Legendary Bands Expansion Into Country Rock, Traditional Rock and Roll, and Roots Folk

Half-Speed Mastered from the Original Master Tapes: Ultra-Quiet Pressing Features Spacious, Transparent, Illuminating, and Organic Sound

Prototype Document of the Deads Second-Era Sound and Lineup: More Accessible, Concise, and Stripped-Down Performances

Includes Many Longtime Staples of the Bands Live Repertoire: Playing in the Band, The Other One, Me and My Uncle, Bertha, Wharf Rat, and More

Part of Mobile Fidelitys Amazing Grateful Dead Reissue Series: Live/Dead, From the Mars Hotel, Wake of the Flood, and In the Dark Also Available on 180g LP

The Grateful Dead took to the start of the 1970s as a different albeit equally thrilling and eminently broader-reaching band than the ensemble that revolutionized psychedelia in the late 1960s. Made evident in the back-to-back studio releases Workingmans Dead and American Beauty, the group increased its mastery of harmony-driven roots songs distinguished by catchy signatures, more concise arrangements, and impossibly organic textures. Captured live in spring 1971 and featuring not a single repeated song from Live/Dead, the expressive performances on Skull & Roses document this stylistic expansion in unsurpassed fashion. The double-LP constitutes the no-limits sound of an iconic band coming in to its own.

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes with the utmost care, and part of the labels unprecedented Grateful Dead reissue series, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited edition 180g 2LP version of Skull and Roses presents the downsized Dead lineups most memorable songs in previously unimaginable fidelity. From the moment Jerry Garcias guitar pick touches a string at the outset of the scampering Bertha, the improvements are palpable: Life-size images, airy vocals, subterranean bass lines, incredibly spacious separation, tube-amp warmth, faithful tones, and balanced dynamics lead a crystal clear path to the music and the Deads extraordinary collective spark.

Originally captured on a 16-track recorder, the songs brim with rarified levels of you-are-there realism and reach-out-and-touch immediacy. Notorious for its exacting sound demands, the Dead achieves the kind of instrumental and frequency-range transparency that many dedicated audiophiles spend their entire lives dreaming about. Skull and Roses is a kernel of sonic truth. Such is the pressings degree of detail and insight that listeners will be able to debate what gauge guitar strings the members are using as they savor every last breath, riff, and snare hit.

Thankfully, the bands perfectionist attitude toward sound doesnt literally transfer over to its music approach. Loose, lively, playful yet earthy, focused, and committed, the Dead crackles with boogie-based moxie, greasy soulfulness, and swaggering bravado, each note seemingly exploding like tiny pieces of magic that hover in the air and cast hypnotic spells. The groups embrace of leaner, tighter, more melodically incisive songs and the swaying rhythms that accompany the approach directly relate to two key lineup changes: the temporary departure of drummer Mickey Hart and permanent leave of keyboardist Tom Constanten. As a result, the Dead toured as a quintet, with Bill Kreutzmann the sole percussionist and Garcia, bassist Phil Lesh, guitarist/singer Bob Weir, and keyboardist/vocalist Ron Pigpen McKernan rounding out the barer-bone cast.

Not only do Garcia, Lesh, and Weir show tremendous growth as singers, the Dead as a whole further invest in folk, country, R&B, rock, and blues traditionsvia Garcias sweeter tones and Bakersfield picking, Weirs cowboy twang and increasingly confident counterpoints, Kreutzmanns hang-fire beats and scurrying grooves, Leshs weighty sway, McKernans foreshadowing spiritual timbres. Inspired covers of tunes by Merle Haggard (a frisky and defiant Mama Tried), Willie Dixon (the comfortably rumbling, boozy honky tonk Big Boss Man), Kris Kristofferson (the dusty, peaceable tale Me and Bobby McGee), Chuck Berry (a supercharged romping Johnny B. Goode), and Buddy Holly (Not Fade Away, segued into Goin Down the Road Feeling Bad) announce the Deads intent to make practically every style of contemporary American music their own, and in the processto paraphrase the great Bill Grahambe the only ones that did what they did.

A similar attitude informed the records genesis. The group originally lobbied to call the album Skullfuck before the record label, at an allegedly chaotic meeting at the infamous Hyatt Hotel, dissuaded the humorous ploy. While technically named Grateful Dead, the album is commonly known as Skull and Roses due to Alton Kelly and Stanley Mouses now-iconic cover art. Trivia buffs might know the latter is based on an illustration for an antique edition of the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam.

The 1971 effort also has another huge claim to fame: It included the message DEAD FREAKS UNITE. Who are you? Where are you? How are you? Those simple lines, and the invitation to respond, created of the Deadhead subculture and biggest fan list in history, utterly pioneering the industry overnight.

Get it allthe dazzling graphics, dizzying performances, deft sonicsby ordering your prized collectable edition of Skull and Roses today!

Track Listing:
Side 1
1. Bertha
2. Mama Tried
3. Big Railroad Blues
4. Playing in the Band

Side 2
1. The Other One

Side 3
1. Me and My Uncle
2. Big Boss Man
3. Me and Bobby McGee
4. Johnny B. Goode

Side 4
1. Wharf Rat
2. Not Fade Away/Goin' Down The Road Feeling Bad

Here Comes Sunshine: 1973 Set Launches Dawning of New Era, Revamped Lineup

Half-Speed Mastered from the Original Master Tapes: Larger-Scale Arrangements, Brass Accents, Woodwind Passages Emerge Like Never BeforeTremendous Sound

Album Presents the Dead in All Its Incarnations: Country-Rock Merry Makers, Gospel-Sent Balladeers, Folk-Rock Storytellers, Psychedelic Innovators

Part of Mobile Fidelitys Amazing Grateful Dead Reissue Series: Live/Dead, Skull and Roses, From the Mars Hotel, and In the Dark Also Available on 180g LP

For the Grateful Dead, Wake of the Flood ushered in an exciting new era of change and potential. The band elected to depart Warner Bros. and start its own record label. A new lineup emerged after keyboardist/vocalist Ron Pigpen McKernan passed away and the group landed jazz-schooled pianist Keith Godchaux and his wife, Donna, who gave the ensemble a new option in the form of a dedicated backing vocalist. Having road-tested a batch of new originals, the collective eagerly sought to expand its broad musical palette in the form of a large-scale studio LP that involves horn sections, violin, and choral figures. Diverse, unique, and mellow, 1973s Wake of the Flood overflows with the luminous vision, stellar songwriting, and ensemble reciprocity made possible by its historical circumstances and inspired creators.

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes and part of the labels unprecedented Grateful Dead reissue series, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited edition 180g LP of Wake of the Flood presents the Deads family-styled blend in supreme fidelity. More than any other Dead studio effort, Wake of the Flood utilizes the myriad alternatives offered by the studio setting. Recording to 24-track, the group invited no fewer than six horn players to the fray, with saxophones, trumpets, and trombones synching up with the six-piece band on two songs. In addition, virtuoso violinist Vassar Clements makes a guest appearance and Texas legend Doug Sahm lays down 12-string guitar, contributing to an amalgamation thats nothing short of epic in ambitionand, in the case of the thematic Weather Report Suite, epic in length.

Mobile Fidelitys engineers recognize how beloved this iconic effort is to so many people. Approaching the mastering process with the same type of focus, perception, and foresight that the Dead bring to the compositions, their painstaking work reveals previously obscured details, timbres, movements, and sounds that greatly add to Wake of the Flood. You can hear and sense it in terms of the LPs poetic sensibility, arching scope, mythological illusion, and emotional impact, all as natural as the rustic images portrayed on the albums artwork.

Bass fanatics, take note: During the sessions, Phil Lesh was in the midst of utilizing an Alembic Quad bass equipped with four pickups to allow each string to be recorded individually, or, one per track. The oceanfloor-deep bass frequencies on this pressing will loosen anything not properly tethered in your room. Jerry Garcia, too, debuts a new Alembic-produced guitar on the album; his rich tonalities swim in the currents of every song here.

And every tune here is first-rate, good ol Grateful Dead. Two separate albeit symbiotically related songwriting teamsGarcia/Hunter and Weir/Barlowguide excursions into forget-all-your-troubles country-rock (Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo), spirit-boosting funk-cum-psychedelia (Eyes of the World), mournfully bracing blues balladry (Stella Blue), and reassuring folk-rock (Here Comes Sunshine). Akin to the albums overall mood, the latter track progressively unfolds, each passage blooming with additional optimism, fortitude, and purpose.

Similarly, the lyrical clouds and thunder ultimately pass on Weirs beautifully complex and terrifically executed three-part Weather Report Suite, a team effort that represents one of the rare occasions of the Dead pairing with a horn section. A live favorite for many years, the tune never possessed onstage the atmosphere-filling soundscapes and theme-enhancing instrumental elements that it does here. Is there a better way to conclude a masterpiece that subconsciously reflects dawning of a new era and the indefatigable hope that comes with it? Doubtful.

Bask in the glory that is Wake of the Flood with this incredible 180g LP pressing. Get your collectable copy and lowest-numbered available version by ordering today!

Track Listing:
1. Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo
2. Let Me Sing Your Blues Away
3. Row Jimmy
4. Stella Blue
5. Here Comes Sunshine
6. Eyes of the World
7. Weather Report Suite
Prelude
Part I
Part II (Let It Grow)

The Dead Will Survive: 1987 Album Gave Band New Lease on Life, Best Studio Effort in More Than a Decade

Half-Speed Mastered from the Original Master Tapes: Jerry Garcia and Bob Weirs Dynamic Magnified, Bluesy Riffs Properly Textured

In the Dark Contains Touch of Grey: Deads Only Top 40 Hit

Entire Album Boasts Continuity, Flow, and Cheer of a Memorable Live Show: After More Than a Decade, Group Finally Tallied Another Studio Masterwork

Part of Mobile Fidelitys Amazing Grateful Dead Reissue Series: Live/Dead, Skull and Roses, Wake of the Flood, and From the Mars Hotel Also Available on 180g LP

In the Dark will forever be known as the Grateful Dead record that propelled the iconic band into the mainstream conscious more than two decades after its career began. Thanks to undeniable hooks, sing-a-long refrains, and shrug-it-off sentiments on the survivalist anthem Touch of Grey, the Dead was exposed to new generations of listeners and, in the process, became celebrity figures that packed football stadiums with fans. But In the Dark remains significant for many other, more important reasonsJerry Garcias stunning recovery from a coma, Garcia and Bob Weirs compelling dynamic, and an impeccable batch of tunes. It also stands bar-none as the sextets finest output since 1975.

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes and part of the labels unprecedented Grateful Dead reissue series, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited edition 180g LP of In the Dark presents the Deads long-overdue breakthrough in attention-grabbing fidelity. Even in an era in which the most revered artists succumbed to the days prevailing sound (namely, slick textures and artificial keyboard-heavy production that evoked the feel of Saran-Wrap) the band remained obstinate in its allegiance to revealing fidelity. As it happened, the Dead recorded most of the record live onstage at Marin Civic Auditorium using the then-newly introduced Dolby SRa technology that permitted astounding instrumental separation, even when playing live. The groups inimitable blend now sounds better, more immediate, and natural than ever.

Everything including the clip-clop of cowbells, Mickey Hart and Billy Kreutzmanns rhythm-devil grooves, Phil Leshs supple bass lines, Garcias sweetened timbre, and Brent Mydlands pastel-shaded keyboard melodies converges into a delightfully balanced, animate entity. The music possesses tube-like warmth and glow, and the bands renewed vigor and, particularly, Garcias mellifluous guitar tones and rippling passages, come across with irresistible immediacy, heft, and vitality. Several effectsthe revving of a motorcycle engine, which moves with precise imaging across an extremely wide soundstage and various synthesizer interjections among themhighlight lyrical turns and add winking humor. In the Dark is a late-80s anomaly: A great and great-sounding rock album that isnt the least bit dated.

While theres no single secret behind the records success and its position as the greatest studio achievement of the Deads last two decades, In the Dark boils down to the essential ingredients of great songwriting and the kind of loose, spirited, frolicking chemistry that the sextet so often demonstrated onstage. Weir and Garcia engage in a friendly competition of gamesmanship. The rhythm guitarists cleverly cynical Hell In a Bucket is one of the toughest, nastiest songs in the Deads catalog; Throwing Stones, his image-laden treaty on greed, politics, responsibility, and the environment, benefits from a complex arrangement sent up with marching bridges and spidery guitar work.

For his part, Garcias haunting slow blues West L.A. Fadeaway makes room for Weirs skillful slide-guitar fills while the poignant, merciful reflection Black Muddy Riverdressed in gospel gowns and Biblical allusionscompletes the circle the Dead began back in the late 1960s when the group ended its marathon shows with the traditional spiritual And We Bid You Good Night. The white-bearded legend clearly has fun throughout, and, obviously energized by a second chance on life, pours his soul into the music.

Mydlands performance and presence aren't to be overlooked. Equipped with the vocal harmony potential of a choir of angels, his poignant backing singing on Black Muddy River aches with beauty. Similarly evocative, his lead on the hobo country-blues Tons of Steel evokes equal parts move-on sympathy and regrettable loss. It can be strongly argued that his piano lines and right-hand fills throughout constitute the most valuable the Dead ever received on a record. Chalk them up to an integral part of an album on which every star aligned, good fortune prevailed, and the Dead finally achieved the widespread recognition it had long been overdue.

The prototypical portrait of final-era Grateful Dead, In the Dark belongs in every record collection. Get your collectable copy today!

Track Listing:
1. Touch of Grey
2. Hell in a Bucket
3. When Push Comes to Shove
4. West L.A. Fadeaway
5. Tons of Steel
6. Throwing Stones
7. Black Muddy River

Narratives on 1979 Gem Peer into the Heart of Everyman and Everywoman

Mastered from the Original Master Tapes: Sonics As Mellifluous As Taylor's Voice on a Cool Summer Night

JT and Dad Loves His Work Also Available on 180g LP from Mobile Fidelity

James Taylor was an interesting place when he recorded the colossally underrated Flag. Fresh off his double-platinum J.T. (also available from Mobile Fidelity), the artist who defines the singer-songwriter genre had just collaborated with Art Garfunkel and Carly Simon, undertaken a Broadway musical, and become more active in political affairs. All these factors contribute to this 1979 treasure, which finds Taylor plying more of his trademark mellow vibes and insightful, soul-gazing lyrics.

While Flag has been previously remastered for CD, its never been sourced from the original analog master tapes. Mobile Fidelitys brilliant-sounding 180g LP is, and the results are as spectacular as chilling out to Taylors mellifluous voice on a summer night. Flush with exquisite acoustic textures, beautiful tonalities, and studio-perfect dynamics, this audiophile version brings Taylors music to life like never before.

Having landed in the Top Ten and sold more than two million copies, Flag nonetheless remains one of Taylors most under-appreciated efforts. And its not because the content is lacking. The beloved singer enters his hallmark storytelling mode on Sleep Come Free Me and dizzies the senses with the beloved Rainy Day Man. Drawing from his musical Working (based on legendary author Studs Terkels book of the same name), Millworker and Brother Trucker are lessons in character studies, Taylors narratives peering into the heart of blue-collar America and reflecting his knack for the everymanand everywoman.

Similarly, a pair of coversUp on the Roof and Day Trippershow his knack for reverent interpretation as well as originality. Flag reveals why we love JT. The literary descriptiveness, at-home folk arrangements, soft-rock fireplace coziness, captivating emotion, faithful tones, and stellar sense of instrumental placement, be it backing vocals, nuanced percussion, pedal-steel guitar, or subtle horns, the latter courtesy of do-it-all saxophonist David Sanborn. Alas, many of these facets have long gone unnoticed.

Ever since its original release, Flag has been plagued with muddled sound. No longer. Mobile Fidelitys analog reissue unlocks the well-kept sonic secrets and floods the record with the intimacy and impact that have always lurked underneath the surface. Finally, Taylors finite acoustic playing, well-mannered melodies, reflective words, and refined singing are experienced as a whole. The amount of new musical information thats been uncovered will boggle the minds of even the most ardent Taylor fans.

Trust us: Flag is one of Taylors finest works. After three decades, hear it all for yourself. And discover what is certain to become of your new favorite records.

Track Listing:
1. Company Man
2. Johnnie Comes Back
3. Day Tripper
4. I Will Not Lie for You
5. Brother Trucker
6. Is That the Way You Look?
7. B.S.U.R.
8. Rainy Day Man
9. Millworker
10. Up on the Roof
11. Chanson Française
12. Sleep Come Free Me

Mastered from the original master tapes by Mobile Fidelity, A Good Day sounds positively exquisite on 180g LP, the very first time this sure-to-be audiophile vocal favorite has been made available on vinyl. While Mobile Fidelity typically issues albums that are at least a decade old, the label's engineers and decision makers felt too strongly about Ahn's 2008 album to squander any opportunity to release it. Such is the capacious amount of low-level detail, acoustic information, timbral presence, natural dynamics, and wide-spectrum frequency response present on a vocal-dominant effort that sparkles sonically as well as musically. A Good Day is the kind of airy album meant for high-end turntables, analog-friendly amplifiers, a cozy seat, and glass of fine Bordeaux.

Helmed by noted producer and Beck colleague Joey Waronker, A Good Day teems with understated string sections, fingerpicked arpeggios, rustic atmospherics, and confident harmonies. Ahn's relaxed, rural-based childhood memories work their way into delicate ballads and cozy midtempo strummers, as does her more recent stint in California's sun-baked environs. Simultaneously innocent and experienced, she's equally at home with tender love-struck admissions as she is with tough-skinned declarations. Always in control, her lyrics and music belie her then-24-year-old age.

Fans of Joni Mitchell, Carole King, and Laura Nyro should immediately be drawn to Ahn's personal, intimate vibes. The upstart multi-instrumentalist not only plays guitar but also masters autoharp, piano, ukulele, Wurlitzer organ, bells, and glockenspiel on tracks rife with texture and color. Yet the main attraction remains Ahn's wispy, clear, dream-like voice. Soft and sensual, spirited and soothing, her coos, whispers, and wordless flights take off like a breeze on a clear summer day, gently blowing against fields of golden flowers and pillowy clouds.

Indeed, Ahn's is a comforting voice you'll want to experience in the highest-possible fidelity. Experience the blissful aural sensations and myriad sonic hues delivered by Mobile Fidelity's numbered limited-edition 180g LP, and luxuriate in acoustic folk-pop that brightens moods, massages the senses, and clings to the soul as well as any you've heard in recent memory.

Track Listing:
1. Dream
2. Wallflower
3. I Don't Think So
4. Masters in China (Benji Hughes)
5. Leave the Light On
6. Red Cape
7. Astronaut (G. Seyffert, Priscilla Ahn)
8. Lullaby
9. Find My Way Back Home
10. Opportunity To Cry (Willie Nelson)
11. A Good Day (Morning Song)

Last Album Made By Original Members Ronnie Van Zant and Allen Collins

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI

Triple-Guitar Front of Steve Gaines, Gary Rossington, and Collins Remains Rocks Most Formidable Assembly of Six-String Players

Street Survivors remains Lynyrd Skynyrds finest hour, and for many reasons. The last album recorded with original vocalist Ronnie Van Zant and guitarist Steve Gaines, who passed away in a tragic plane accident three days after its release, the 1977 set is both mythical for its historical significance as well as infallible songwriting quality. Then there's the triple-guitar front of Collins, Gary Rossington, and Steve Gaines, which, together, comprise the most formidable combination of lead six-string players assembled on an original album. Add in freshly inspired performances and classic Muscle Shoals production, and you have a timeless work of art.

Mastered from the original master tapes and pressed at RTI (the best record plant in North America), Mobile Fidelity Silver Series' limited edition LP presents Skynyrds landmark effort in a dynamic, organic, soulful, and balanced sound that puts the musicians on a wide soundstage that will make you think they are standing on a stage in your room. In particular, Van Zants re-energized singing comes through with utmost clarity and verve. The complex web of guitars is now unraveled, with each of the instrumentalists possessing their own space, allowing their contributions to assume a transparency that further lends to the musics impact. Background vocals, too, rise up above what had heretofore been an artificial ceiling.

Produced by iconic producer Tom Dowd, Street Survivors is drenched in earthy vibes and live-from-the-floor rawness, the sense of spontaneity and interplay underlining the groups taut albeit loose material. Rebounding from 1975s solid yet semi-formulaic Nuthin Fancy and the following years equally lukewarm Gimme Back My Bullets, Skynyrd comes out firing on Street Survivors and never let up. The septets nucleus was never better. It's lamentable that this stands as the lineups only studio record together, but the music here makes you all the more thankful for the chance to at least here them reach their potential at least once.

Gaines incredible abilities spur on his mates, which respond with strong ideas and even stronger performances. Melodies are sharp, hooks are abundant, rhythms in command. A miasma of blues, rock, country, gospel, and soul informs the arrangements, and those three guitarists play as if their lives depended on getting everything just right. Songs flow with an effortless ease, and whether its the slithering organ-backed rollick of I Never Dreamed, swampy drug-abuse warning That Smell, or autobiographical honky-tonk Ain't No Good Life, Skynryd clicks on all cylinders. Swagger, swing, and strut. What an album.

Honor Van Zant and Collins memories, and revisit a Southern rock masterpiece, by acquiring this collectable version of Street Survivors.

Track Listing:
1. What's Your Name
2. That Smell
3. One More Time
4. I Know A Little
5. You Got That Rig
6. I Never Dreamed
7. Honky Tonk Night Man
8. Ain't No Good Life

Its impossible to overstate the magnificence of the interpretations on this set. Looking for the ultimate renditions of My Funny Valentine, In the Still of the Night, One for My Baby, Night and Day, and Ol Man River? Search no more. Sinatras readings of these classics exceed his superb studio versions, as well as those that appear on other live albums. And consider the setlist: The Lady is a Tramp, Come Fly With Me, Chicago, I Could Have Danced All Night. Superb. And Sinatra is simply on, bringing a combination of swinging enthusiasm, reverent charm, and dignified emotion to standards. He triumphs with a powerful voice yet affected by the ravages of time and cigarettes.

Fans of Sinatra at the Sands should take note. Sinatra in Paris is much more intimate, with the scaled-down arrangements and small band allowing songs to bask in the glory of Ol Blue Eyes voice. Yes, Sinatras period onstage comments can seem crude. But they take nothing away from the sheer superiority of this recording.

Ever since its release, the lone drawback to Sinatra in Paris has been that of the inferior sound quality. Lament the shortcoming no more. Half-speed mastered from the original tapes and pressed onto two slabs of quiet 180-gram vinyl, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited-edition 2-LP set lifts the veil on the music and allows it to soar with a richness, texture, openness, and presence that have until now gone missing. You will swoon over the improvements.

Track Listing:
1. Introduction - Charles Aznavour
2. Goody Goody
3. Imagination
4. At Long Last Love
5. Moonlight in Vermont
6. Without a Song
7. Day In - Day Out
8. I've Got You Under My Skin
9. I Get a Kick Out of You
10. Second Time Around
11. Too Marvelous for Words
12. My Funny Valentine
13. In the Still of the Night
14. April in Paris
15. You're Nobody 'Til Somebody Loves You
16. They Can't Take That Away from Me
17. Chicago
18. Night and Day
19. I Could Have Danced All Night
20. One for My Baby
21. Foggy Day
22. Ol' Man River
23. Lady Is a Tramp
24. I Love Paris
25. Nancy (With the Laughing Face)
26. Come Fly With Me

Sinatra's 1963 Studio Record Features New Takes on His Best-Beloved Classics

Every Song Here Is a Pop Staple: Many of Sinatra's Finest Studio Performances

Half-Speed Mastered from the Original Master Tapes for Fabulous Sound

You can't argue with a legend. And you can't argue with success. So when Frank Sinatra noticed that his former labels, Columbia and Capitol, were banking on his earlier hits by issuing compilations of older material, he decided he'd one-up their strategy. The singer had just formed Reprise, his own imprint, and immediately took control. Released in 1963, Sinatra's Sinatra is true to its name: The enchanting album features Ol' Blue Eyes revisiting a dozen of his best tunes, all selected by the singer, and all deemed to be among his all-time favorites. But what's most important are the performances, and they are amazing, equaling or besting the originals in terms of scope, sound, and phrasing.

As it seems to be with a majority of Sinatra's finest efforts, the involvement of legendary collaborator, arranger and conductor Nelson Riddle looms large. Together, Riddle and Sinatra breathe new life into an incredible selection of pop staples: I've Got You Under My Skin, Witchcraft, Young at Heart, and All the Way among them. Sinatra's voice is richer and more mature here than on the original versions, and Riddle infuses the songs with a drive and tempo that add to their enjoyment.

Loving Sinatra's Sinatra is as simple as the record's concept: You know all of these songs, and Sinatra, motivated to show the world he was at the top of his game, performs the material with ingrained passion and peerless emotion. His vocal inflections, Riddle's brilliant arrangements, and the quality of the songs themselves make for an unbeatable combination. Of course, Sinatra spans a gulf of emotions and moods, be it romantic, ruminative, or playfully riled.

And now, Mobile Fidelity engineers have brought staggering sonics to the equation. Half-speed mastered from the original tapes, the 180g numbered limited-edition LP of Sinatra's Sinatra brings you closer to the music and The Voice. Riddle's arrangements have never sounded more spacious, and Sinatra's convincing timbre is clear, transparent, textured, and unbelievably present. Here is a vocal album that will soon become one of your reference favorites.

Don't wait: Rediscover many of Sinatra's best-known songs on an overlooked gem of a record that, for the first time ever, finally has the sound to go along with the tremendous performances!

Track Listing:
1. I've Got You Under My Skin
2. In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning
3. The Second Time Around
4. Nancy
5. Witchcraft
6. Young at Heart
7. All the Way
8. How Little It Matters How Little We Know
9. Pocketful of Miracles
10. Oh, What It Seemed to Be
11. Call Me Irresponsible
12. Put Your Dreams Away

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited-edition 180g LP marks the first time this classic has been properly remastered. Far exceeding the sonics of Sonys CD reissue, this audiophile version lifts up the cover on a world of sound, with Taylors mellow finger-picked guitar melodies, gently reassuring vocals, and bittersweet deliveries brought to the fore. Listeners will also be able to relax amidst the soft clouds of comforting background singing by ace guests Jennifer Warnes, J.D. Souther, and Peter Asher.

With the title reflecting the singers answer to his then-wife, Carly Simon, Dad Loves His Work remains a statement of certainty and priority that Taylor invests with devastating poignancy, physiological soulfulness, and universal pathos. Balancing the biting edginess and forlorn despair with equal parts self-deprecating humor and rapier wit, Taylors songwriting on such nuggets as Hard Times, Hour That the Morning Comes, and charged Stand and Fight is among the best of his career.

No surprise, then, that Taylor wasnt only looking at and reflecting upon his own life, but that of his relationship with his own father and ancestors. The emotional repercussions involved with such looming themes trickle through the harmony-laden music, spurred by the vocalists trademark acoustic guitar, shivering harmonicas, Rhodes pianos, myriad percussive devices, and tasteful synthesizer passages.

Taylors definitive duet with Souther on Her Town Too bridged both the pop and adult-contemporary charts, catapulting Dad Loves His Work in the Top Ten and past sales of one million copies. Similarly, Taylor expands his horizons on the politically motivated Sugar Trade, co-written by Jimmy Buffett.

Mobile Fidelitys collectible audiophile 180g LP brings you into Taylors private world with unparalleled intensity and extreme closeness. Taylor feels every word he sings on this record, and now, thanks to meticulous remastering efforts, his expressiveness and sensitivity coming through via unencumbered transparency and dynamic acoustics. This edition of Dad Loves His Work is not to be missed!

Track Listing:
1. Hard Times
2. Her Town Too
3. Hour That the Morning Comes
4. I Will Follow
5. Believe It or Not
6. Stand and Fight
7. Only for Me
8. Summer's Here
9. Sugar Trade
10. London Town
11. That Lonesome Road

Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab has obtained the master tapes of this landmark album and for the first time Whats Going On will be released on 180 gram ultra analog LP.

As with all Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab releases, meticulous attention to detail is paid during the transfer process.

Marvin Gayes Whats Going On was a landmark recording and is considered one of the greatest albums ever made. Rolling Stone named it Album Of The Year when it came out and, in 2003, it was ranked number 6, the highest for a non-rock album, in Rolling Stones 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time. Originally, the title cut was recorded as a single, and Motown chief Berry Gordy refused to release it, citing that it was too personal and political. What's Going On became Motown's fastest-selling single at that point, going to the number one spot on the R&B charts for five weeks and number two for three weeks on the Pop listings, which lead Gordy to request a full album's worth of material.

What's Going On, the single, was recorded in June of 1970. The remainder of the album was recorded in March-May of 1971 and was released on May 21st of that year. It was produced entirely by Marvin Gaye.

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes, Learning to Crawl finally possesses the combination of whisper-in-your-ear intimacy and nerve-checking toughness that it's always demanded on Mobile Fidelity's super-quiet analog LP. Leader Chrissie Hynde's voice is made viscerally apparent, wavering between vigorous determination and solemn reflection, while drummer Martin Chamber's punchy backbeats register with requisite punch. To say nothing of how fresh the effort's hit singles ("Middle of the Road," "Back on the Chain Gang") and incredible deep cuts sound.

The story behind Learning to Crawl is directly connected to the powerful, moving music within. After releasing two records that swept the world by storm (Pretenders and Pretenders II, the latter available on hybrid SACD from Mobile Fidelity), the group's fortunes reversed after guitarist James Honeyman-Scott was found dead of a drug overdose in 1982. Shortly thereafter, founding member Pete Fardon, fired just two days before his partner's death, also succumbed to an overdose, leaving the band's state in tatters. Would there still be a Pretenders?

Hynde answers this question with a resounding "yes" on Learning to Crawl, which still contains signs of the band's early, street-wise rawness but also adds new wrinkles, with more streamlined melodies, sensitive ballads, and reflective tones. "Back on the Chain Gang," the Pretenders' most commercially successful hit, functioned as a bittersweet tribute to her ex-mates while the Christmas-themed "2000 Miles" holds rank as one of the most effecting, penetrating love songs of Hynde's career. Throughout the record, the Pretenders are again one.

New guitarist Robbie McIntosh supplies simpler, bluesier, basic guitar lines and the foursome know how to all-out rock, with the furious "Middle of the Road" and socially conscious "My City Was Gone" testifying to a stinging, thrilling sensibility that can exist only because of the devastation that the band survived. Call it the rise of the phoenix or triumph of the human will, but any way you see it, Learning to Crawl occupies a rare territory--akin to the space referred to on the superb cover of "Thin Line Between Love and Hate"--that registers in the pits of the human soul.

Whether you've grown up with this album, heard it in college, or are just learning about it now, Mobile Fidelity's expertly mastered 180g LP version is the only analog edition worth owning. Hear Hynde and Co.'s cathartic, transcendent effort in all its full splendor, and, like the Pretenders, refuse to settle for less.

Track Listing:
1. Middle of the Road
2. Back on the Chain Gang
3. Time the Avenger
4. Watching the Clothes
5. Show Me
6. Thumbelina
7. My City Was Gone
8. Thin Line Between Love and Hate
9. I Hurt You
10. 2000 Miles

Brecker's Last Work: Saxophone Legend's Grammy-Winning 2007 Album is an Acknowledged Masterpiece

Jazz Doesn't Get Better Than This: Limited Edition Pressing Will Test the Limits of Your System

Pilgrimage is the last album saxophone colossus Michael Brecker ever recorded. Released just months after he succumbed to leukemia in January 2007, its also the late instrumentalists hands-down best workand truly, one of the finest jazz records made during the past 30 years. Winner of two Grammy Awards (Best Jazz Instrumental Album and Best Jazz Instrumental Solo for Anagram), Pilgrimage ranked #2 on the DownBeat critics poll and topped many year-end lists. And for good reason.

Nothing short of transcendent, the music soars on the resplendent playing of an astonishing quintet of jazzs heaviest hitters: pianists Herbie Hancock and Brad Mehldau, drummer Jack DeJohnette, guitarist Pat Metheny, and bassist John Patitucci. No, it doesnt get better than this. Mobile Fidelity is honored to offer this glorious statement on a sonically spectacular half-speed mastered 180-gram 2-LP set that, like Breckers swan song, is without equal. You will not believe your ears.

Devoid of melancholic emotion and self-pitying moods, Pilgrimage is a joyous affirmation of lifean invitation to embrace possibilities rather than a sad farewell. The performances are mesmerizing. None of the musicians here can do wrong, particularly the leader, whose solos both weave melodic yarns (The Mean Time) and create harmonic contrasts (Five Months From Midnight).

Realizing that these sessions would be his last, Brecker's mates match his passion and soul. Absolutely essential listening, Pilgrimage is the energetic sound of John Coltranes legacy, the culmination of a visionary talent high on the upbeat rhythms of life. You will feel better about everything in your world after hearing this album.

On its own terms, Pilgrimage is a stunning achievement: 77 minutes of compelling original music that never loses its edge, solos that soar, dynamic group interplay that communicates wonderfully in the universal language. Steve Greenlee, Boston Globe, May 2007

Half-speed mastered from the original tapes and lovingly pressed onto supremely quiet 180-gram vinyl, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited-edition 2-LP set of Pilgrimage presents the entire tonal spectrum of the music amidst a wide, deep, natural soundstage. This is one of the best-sounding albums you'll ever hear. High and low frequencies are free of limiting ceilings. Instrumental separation and imaging are stunningly lifelike. Natural dynamics and details abound. Waiting for a truly great and great-sounding modern jazz album? This is it. Pilgrimage gets our highest recommendation.

DO NOT WAIT ON THESE. Once these numbered limited-edition copies are gone, they are gone forever.

Track Listing:
1. The Mean Time
2. Five Months from Midnight
3. Anagram
4. Tumbleweed
5. When Can I Kiss You Again?
6. Cardinal Rule
7. Half Moon Lane
8. Loose Threads
9. Pilgrimage

Did any musician have more talent at their beckon call during the 70s than Linda Ronstadt? Absolutely not. Part of her impeccable string of mid-1970s albums that defined California's soft-rock scene, the Grammy-winning Hasten Down the Wind is Ronstadt at her best and that's saying something. Consider the watertight repertoire: The Warren Zevon title track. Patsy Cline's (by way of Willie Nelson) 'Crazy.' Buddy Holly's 'That'll Be the Day.' Nelson's 'Down So Low.' Karla Bonoff's 'If He's Ever Near.' Ry Cooder's 'The Tattler.'

And then, there's the supporting cast, which includes Eagles legend Don Henley on drums and harmony vocals, folk-rock legend Peter Asher on guitar, session drumming master Russ Kunkel, and multi-instrumentalist sensation Andrew Gold playing just about everything with strings or skins. Couple this with the thematically revealing cover in a nod to the escapism of fantasy romance novels, the singer stands on a beach before an ocean and a running horse, her exposing dress a sign of the lovesick vulnerability that colors the songs and Hasten Down the Wind is the complete package of sensuality, passion, and poignancy.

Now, due to Mobile Fidelity's trademark sonic restoration, the album finally has the exquisite sound it has always deserved. Listeners can now literally feel Ronstadt's deep-seeded emotions. Even better, her covers of affecting ballads and midtempo country-rock numbers intentionally revolve around vocal-heavy arrangements. It's no wonder that the album, which topped the country charts, also yielded two Top 20 hits and resulted in the artist's first platinum-record award.

But make haste! Quantities are limited, and, unlike Ronstadt's timeless interpretations, this will not be around forever.

Track Listing:
1. Lose Again
2. The Tattler
3. If He's Ever Near
4. That'll Be The Day
5. Lo Siento Mi Vida
6. Hasten Down the Wind
7. Rivers of Babylon
8. Give One Heart
9. Try Me Again
10. Crazy
11. Down So Low
12. Someone To Lay Down Beside Me

This title is not eligible for discount.

Track Listing:
My Aim Is True

1. Welcome To The Working Week
2. Miracle Man
3. No Dancing
4. Blame It On Cain
5. Alison
6. Sneaky Feelings
7. (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes
8. Less Than Zero
9. Mystery Dance
10. Pay It Back
11. I'm Not Angry
12. Waiting For The End Of The World
13. Watching The Detectives

Armed Forces

1. Accidents Will Happen
2. Senior Service
3. Oliver's Army
4. Big Boys
5. Green Shirt
6. Party Girl
7. Goon Squad
8. Busy Bodies
9. Sunday's Best
10. Moods For Moderns
11. Chemistry Class
12. Two Little Hitlers
13. (What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love And Understanding?

This Year's Model

1. No Action
2. This Year's Girl
3. The Beat
4. Pump It Up
5. Little Triggers
6. You Belong to Me
7. Hand in Hand
8. (I Don't Want to Go To) Chelsea
9. Lip Service
10. Living in Paradise
11. Lipstick Vogue
12. Night Rally
13. Radio, Radio

Remastered from Recently Discovered First-Generation, Original Analog Master Tapes

Numbered, Limited Edition

The Plymouth Rock on which alternative rock was founded, the Pixies' Surfer Rosa forever altered the music environment even if it did take most of the world a few years to catch up with its brilliance. Internationally acknowledged as a pioneering record, its rollercoaster blend of harsh and soft tempos, male and female singing, intense punk and bubblegum pop tones, dark and light quips, and off-kilter sensibilities is the influential equivalent of the Velvet Underground's oft-cited 1967 debut.

The 1987 debut established the Pixies as otherworldly visionaries whose songs such as the insistent 'Bone Machine,' badgering 'Something Against You,' and sensual 'Cactus' remain ahead of the curve. Having analog fanatic and noise aficionado Steve Albini working production ensured that the music would retain a requisite rawness and in-your-face sonic signature that paralleled the fundamentally chaotic, compulsive characteristics of the Pixies' songs.

And now, thanks to the painstaking efforts of Mobile Fidelity engineers, you will truly hear this groundbreaking record as if you were experiencing it for the first time. Vivid, immediate, massive, and detailed, this is how Surfer Rosa was meant to be heard when Albini completed it and turned it into the label.

Why pay $175 for the Pixies' Minotaur limited-edition box that features the band's four original records with dated (read: bland, compressed, and flat) sound when you can spend far less and, in addition to this superior 180-gram LP copy,you can also get hybrid SACDs of Surfer Rosa, Doolittle, and Bossanova that play in all CD players and feature remastered sound sourced from the original master tapes? Jeff Anderson, who oversaw the release of Minotaur, says there is no remastering on the box because he didn't want to touch the original master tapes. We did, and having finally hunted the true masters down, know you'll agree with our results.

'The heaviness and hugeness of the room-reverberating drumbeat that begins the album-opening 'Bone Machine' epitomizes the record's forward impact, visceral punch, grinding crunch, and dynamic headroom. Rather than cluttering the mix with an avalanche of effects, Albini left space without sacrificing live detail or volatile oomph, shown to great effect on 'Broken Face,' 'Gigantic (there's a piano, who knew?), and haunting 'Where Is My Mind?,' which opens unto a sonic canyon that swallows the listener whole. - Bob Gendron, The Absolute Sound, September 2007

Track Listing:
1. Bone Machine
2. Break My Body
3. Something Against You
4. Broken Face
5. Gigantic
6. River Euphrates
7. Where Is My Mind?
8. Cactus
9. Tony's Theme
10. Oh My Golly
11. Vamos
12. I'm Amazed
13. Brick Is Red

Track Listing:
1. Revival
2. Don't Keep Me Wonderin'
3. Midnight Rider
4. In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed
5. Hoochie Coochie Man
6. Please Call Home
7. Leave My Blues At Home

"I don't believe in overly moralistic philosophies. Have your sex, it can be exciting, if you're lucky. I hope the music that I present here makes you lucky." - Marvin Gaye

Lets Get It On was released on August 28, 1973 and quickly became the biggest-selling recording of Marvin Gayes tenure with Motown.

The album peaked at #2 on the Billboard Pop Albums chart and remained at the top of the Soul Albums chart for eleven weeks, making it the best-selling R&B album of 1973. At that time, the single Let's Get It On was Motown's largest-selling recording ever, selling over three million copies within 2 years of its release. Lets Get It On contains 3 top 100 hits, Lets Get It On, Come Get To This and You Sure Love To Ball.

Track Listing:
1. Let's Get It On
2. Please Stay (Once You Go Away)
3. If I Should Die Tonight
4. Keep Gettin' It On
5. Come Get To This
6. Distant Lover
7. You Sure Love To Ball
8. Just To Keep You Satisfied

Foundation-Establishing Rock n’ Roll Album Includes Eternal Hit “Lonesome Town”

A Late 1950s Vocal and Instrumental Touchstone: Nelson Comes Into His Own, Moving Away from Teen Pop and Towards Serious Rockabilly

Stellar Backing Band Includes Elvis Presley Sideman/Guitarist James Burton and Backing Vocalists the Jordanaires

Also Includes Top 10 Singles “Believe What You Say,” “It’s Late,” and “Never Be Anyone Else But You”

Superb Sound: LP Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI

Ricky Nelson will forever be identified with the ageless single “Lonesome Town.” The career-defining smash is included here, on a record that arguably remains the picturesque idol’s peak moment, a 1959 set on which the singer moves away from teen pop and towards serious rock n’ roll and rockabilly on par with the likes of Elvis Presley and Buddy Holly. Loaded with material expressly written for Nelson as well as tunes penned by Hank Williams and Johnny Cash, and featuring an all-star session musician band, Ricky Sings Again is a foundation-building 1950s album.

Exceeding the fidelity of any prior analog pressing and affording a warmth missing from Capitol’s out-of-print digital reissues, this Silver Label LP—pressed at RTI and mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s internationally acclaimed mastering system—teems with detail, presence, dynamics, and authority. With help from his legendary father, Ozzie, Nelson enjoyed superb studio production, heard here in the form of balanced instrumentation, natural tonalities, wide and deep soundstages, and you-are-there vocals. Studio dimensions, too, come across with palpable body and precision. Since the record is a collection, some of the tracks are in mono, others in early stereo.

Backed by a stellar band that includes Elvis Presley guitarist James Burton and in-demand studio bassist James Kirkland, Nelson delivers what remains a 1950s classic that stands up to everything recorded by his famous contemporaries. Burton mimics the sound of a train on “One Of These Mornings,” just one of the myriad tunes here on which the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member lays down fabulous lines and rockabilly licks that both shade and support the concise melodies. While largely recognized for the melancholy ballad “Lonesome Town,” one of four Top 10 singles on the set, Ricky Sings Again is as much about early rock n’ roll and extraordinary singing. About that voice.

Simultaneously tender and rollicking, innocent and mature, Nelson conveys a rainbow of emotions, pouring over country-flavored weepers and beat-driven rockabilly numbers with equal parts sensitivity, smoothness, and sincerity. A surfeit of heavenly background harmonies and innovative guitar-led breaks make masterpieces out of upbeat offerings such as “You Tear Me Up” as well as slow-dance invitations like “Old Enough to Love.” Add the Jordanaires on back-up vocals, and there's something for everyone here.

No matter the performance, Nelson demonstrates time and again on Ricky Sings Again why he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the institution’s second year of existence—and why, even more so than Elvis during 1958-59, he was the period’s leading singles artist.

Divine Sonics: LP Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI

Bill Evans catapulted to the top of the jazz world in June 1961 after reeling off three straight masterpiece sessions at New York’s Village Vanguard with his trio. Yet the emotional highs came to a screeching halt shortly thereafter when bassist Scott LaFaro died in a car accident. Devastated, Evans refrained from playing for nearly a year. If not for an inspirational collaboration of tremendous creative outpouring, one wonders what fate may have befallen Evans. Undercurrent, the outcome of two studio sessions with guitarist Jim Hall, is that project.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, this Silver Label LP edition bursts forth with brilliant textures, you-are-there realism, and extraordinary tonalities. No other version outside of this analog copy brings you face-to-face with these two jazz giants’ sonic communion, a kind of spiritual musical summit on which Evans’ deft keyboard touches and Hall’s reliably subtle phrasings seamlessly mesh and wonderfully dance, the compositions streaked with natural instrumental decay, full-frequency extensions, and poignant emotionalism that, on this LP, you can feel.

While Evans managed to sit down for a few one-off takes between LaFaro’s passing and these April-May 1962 dates, he largely remained on hiatus and abstained from recording. Whether it owes to the intimate pairing, he and Hall’s brotherly chemistry, or the exquisite selection of program material, the results consistently come across as the equivalent of a private meditation—such is the level of introspective depth and quietly shaded interplay throughout. For Evans, the duet clearly functions as therapy, a healing episode in which his partner patiently lays back, shadowing moves and suggesting others, neither musician interested in the spotlight but each striving for (and achieving) transcendent beauty.

In tackling standards such as Rodgers and Hart’s “My Funny Valentine” and the Broadway classic “Darn That Dream,” as well as the Hall original “Romain,” the pair traverses complex harmonies with the astute elegance of a figure skater. At times, Evans and Hall go for broke on a hard-swinging romps, yet it’s their implied melancholy and drifting, softly struck melodic refrains on waltzes and ballads that bestows Undercurrent with a nuanced romanticism and whispered atmosphere befitting the record’s title.

Indeed, even the album’s cover—an iconic photograph by Toni Frissell—exhibits the surreal, almost-hallucinogenic properties of the fare contained within.

Track Listing:
1. My Funny Valentine
2. I Hear a Rhapsody
3. Dream Gypsy
4. Romain
5. Skating in Central Park
6. Darn That Dream

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI

True to the title of the record’s smash single, INXS gives you what you need on Listen Like Thieves. Originally released in 1985, the breakthrough album marked the group’s deserved entrance into the mainstream radio sphere and commercial charts. With its sound honed from prior records, INXS develops an enviably balanced combination of dance grooves, bluesy persuasion, acoustic framing, and pop bluster on this batch of supremely catchy fare, equally memorable for its melodic nature and stylistic fusion.

Working with producer Chris Thomas (John Cale, Pete Townshend, Roxy Music), INXS expands its versatility and reach. Vocalist Michael Hutchence, too, comes into his own, singing more confidently, soulfully, and warmly than in the past. While avoiding cheap imitation, the Aussies turn to the Rolling Stones as influences, churning out thick riffs and slithering rhythms that aim for the hips and stimulate the feet. Hutchence splits the difference between the sexual bravado of Mick Jagger and primal depth of Jim Morrison, and in doing so, establishes himself as an original who’s always careful not to overdo anything or overstay his welcome.

Bolstered by a series of can’t-miss singles—the swaggeringly funky “What You Need,” sharp thrust of “Listen Like Thieves,” and wistful “Kiss the Dirt”—Listen Like Thieves teems with glorious hooks and intertwining instrumentation that cross-pollinates jazz, R&B, new-wave, and pub rock. Honking saxophone lines surge throughout, punctuating the spare chords and driving bridges with an insouciant edge missing from most of the decade’s pop. A knack for atmospheric production also plays a large role. On “Shine Like It Does,” a majestic moodiness takes hold, while “This Time” gives U2 a run for its money.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, Silver Series’ numbered limited edition LP significantly enhances the midband, textural qualities, and ample spaciousness—all previously boxed-in on prior editions. The character of the bass notes, as well as the depth and breathiness of the vocals are also noticeably improved, bringing out the music’s personality and dynamics like never before.

Track Listing:
1. What You Need
2. Listen Like Thieves
3. Kiss the Dirt (Falling Down the Mountain)
4. Shine Like It Does
5. Good & Bad Times
6. Biting Bullets
7. This Time
8. Three Sisters
9. Same Direction
10. One X One
11. Red Red Sun

Meat Loaf Producer Jim Steinman and New York Choral Society Among Collaborators on Vast-Reaching LP

Lush, Huge, Balanced: LP Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI

1987 Effort Includes Insurmountably Influential Opus The Corrosion

The Sisters of Mercy emerged from a brief hiatus and lineup overhaul in spectacularly grand fashion on Floodland, an epic album that stands as the groups commercial breakthrough as well as one of the periods monumental productions. Having witnessed his bandmates leave, singer Andrew Eldritch recruited bassist Patricia Morrison, utilized a groundbreaking drum machine, and hooked up with Meat Loaf collaborator Jim Steinman to attain a glorious, bombastic, and irrepressible marriage of gothic rock and sumptuous balladry.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, this Silver Label LP improves the records splendid dynamic contrasts, low-end thrust, expansive dimensionality, and moody atmospherics. Steinmans unforgettable sonic contributions finally receive proper due in the form of towering choruses and operatic heft. The groups signature epic The Corrosion, described by Eldritch as a narrative about power in the face of misery, sounds downright staggering, with an awe-inspiring performance by the New York Chorale Society and blooming classicism.

Throughout, the Sisters of Mercy traverse myriad styles in breaking down goth-rock conventions. As on the bands noisier debut First and Last and Always, also available on Silver Series LP, brooding emotions, nocturnal episodes, and dim sentiments gloss over the songwriting. Yet theres a colossal amplification of evocative spirituality, delicate accents and anthemic riffs that combine with funky drum-machine beats and visceral tension to yield music that dares listeners not to dance and/or lift their hands skyward.

Rhythms play as large a role as the leaders trademark stentorian vocals, with thundering grooves and crashing percussion illuminating incisive lyrics and industrial-tinted scenery. Whether felt via the dramatic waves of Lucretia My Reflection, balladic sweep of 1959, or charging protest of Dominion/Mother Russia, Floodland is a touchstone, topped off by iconic cover art that fits in with todays vampire-obsessed society as well as it did upon release in 1987.

Track Listing:
1. Dominion/Mother Russia
2. Flood I
3. Lucretia My Reflection
4. 1959
5. This Corrosion
6. Flood II
7. Driven Like the Snow
8. Never Land (A Fragment)
9. Torch
10. Colours

Midler Steps Into Persona of Janis Joplin on Record Steeped in Rock n Roll, Pounding R&B, and Memphis Blues

Contagious Sound That Spotlights Midlers Potent Voice: LP Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI

Bette Midlers first leading role in a musical remains her best. As the soundtrack for that film, The Rose spotlights The Divine Miss Ms outstanding performance as a character in the persona of Janis Joplin. Midler received an Oscar nomination for Best Actress, and while the record contains no visuals, it punctuates the raw emotion and show-stopping persuasion that the singer brings to upbeat, rollicking fare composed in tribute to the late Joplin. Her reading of When A Man Loves a Woman remains definitive and unique for being sung from a females perspective.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, this Silver Label LP allows listeners to hone in on Midlers voice like never before. Kernels of previously unheard tonalities, richer hues of her bluesy timbre, and better-defined contours of her phrasing come to foreas do the contributions of guitarist Steve Hunter and drummer Whitey Glan, both members of Lou Reeds Rock n Roll Animal tour. No, The Rose isnt your conventional adult-contemporary pop offering from Midler. Its much more.

Always a natural-born theatrical star, Midler demonstrates these abilities to wondrous effect throughout, pouring herself into the painful sentiments of Stay With Me and raising hell on raucous numbers such as Sold My Soul to Rock N Roll and Keep On Rockin. Muscle Shoals sounds and Memphis-birthed shuffles keep Midler balanced and engaged. Producer Paul Rothchild, who helmed Joplins final salvo, matches the headliners zest by keeping tight-fisted control over the material selection and sonics. Never does Midler seem as if shes merely paying tribute or playing a part; she makes listeners feel every note.

Its apt, then, that shes afforded carte blanche on the title track, a gorgeous and career-defining moment of immense proportions and the only song here not performed in the persona of Joplin. Theres no better way to wrap up an album of nearly shamanic power, and an effort that, along with The Divine Miss M, remains Midlers peak.

Track Listing:
1. Whose Side Are You On
2. Midnight In Memphis
3. Concert Monologue
4. When a Man Loves a Woman
5. Sold My Soul to Rock N Roll
6. Keep on Rockin
7. Love Me With a Feeling
8. Camelia
9. Homecoming Monologue
10. Stay With Me
11. Let Me Call You Sweetheart
12. The Rose

An American Classic: Gorgeous Breakthrough Album of Pop Standards Spent More than a Decade on Country Charts

Quintuple Platinum 1978 Set Finds Nelson Interpreting Fare From Likes of Kurt Weill, Hoagy Carmichael, and Irving Berlin

Sumptuous Sound Elevates Booker T. Jones Production: Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI

As a Singer, Nelson Never Better: Gets Inside the Phrasing, Lyrics, and Emotions of Songs

Why be predictable?, Willie Nelson asked Columbia Records executive Nick Blackburn, after the latter resisted the Red Headed Strangers decision to make an album of classic pop tunes. Talk about outlaw country. Cutting against the genres traditions and Music Row conventions, Nelsons Stardust remains a genius-level creation as well as the icons most commercially successful release, a truly gorgeous record infused with ultimate respect for composers and lyrics and many of the finest performances of his career. It is a quintessential part of any catalog.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, this Silver Label LP dazzles with dead-quiet surfaces, tube-like warmth, and an enhanced soundstage. Further exposing the delicate touches abounding in Stax legend Booker T. Jones production, this edition brings out the textured kernels of Nelsons voiceand the deep-seeded dignity, austerity, devotion, grit, sensitivity, grace, and plaintiveness within it. His brilliant phrasing throughout is on par with that of Frank Sinatra and Ray Charles, two giants that influenced this project and his willingness to pair with strings and small combo to wondrous effect.

Having met Jones while living in Malibu, Nelson established a relationship with the musician that extended to roles as producer, arranger and band mate. Jones superior knowledge of the American Songbook comes through via the materials economy of scale and sympathetic approach. Acoustic guitar arpeggios, contrasting breaks, bluesy harmonicas, glowing organs, R&B-tinged horns, brushed drums, and relaxed bass lines trickle throughout the songs, all distinguished by Nelsons intimate timbre and absolutely astonishing vocal expressiveness.

In redefining and reimagining standards such as Irving Berlins Blue Skies, Hoagy Carmichaels Georgia On My Mind, and the age-old All of Meall of which landed in the Top 5 of the Country singles chartNelson wedded together pop, country, jazz, folk, and blues in a manner in which no artist had ever before done. He gained considerable rewards for his exquisite efforts: Stardust sold more than five million copies and, incredibly, stayed on the Country album charts for more than ten years.

This is a record no one should be without. Hear the definitive analog pressing.

Track Listing:
1. Stardust
2. Georgia On My Mind
3. Blue Skies
4. All of Me
5. Unchained Melody
6. September Song
7. On the Sunny Side of the Street
8. Moonlight In Vermont
9. Dont Get Around Much Anymore
10. Someone to Watch Over Me

Wonder Probes Romantic Feelings and Features Jackson 5 and Other Soul Icons as Guests

Boogie on! Warm, personal, stripped-down, and mainly playful: Stevie Wonders Fulfillingness First Finale primarily finds the legendary vocalist tracing the arcs of relationships on a spirited record that has gone down in history as one of the most cohesive, fully realized soul sets ever made. The fourth in Wonders five-album series of classic period creations, the 1974 landmark won three major Grammy Awards: Album of the Year, Best Male Pop Vocal, and Best Male Rhythm and Blues Performance.

Indeed, theres not one note out of place on the extraordinary ten-song set, notable for the way in which Wonder uses sparer arrangements to his advantage. Not that the overall tone is bleak or angry. Coming off of 1973s socially biting Innervisions, Wonder intentionally returns to love-related fare here, investigating a surfeit of emotions involved with romance and passion. As had become his trademark, he handles a bulk of the songwriting, production, and performance chores but gets help from a few choice friends.

Appearances by singers Minnie Riperton, Paul Anka, Deniece Williams, and the Jackson 5 lend extra weight and breadth to the harmonies. Iconic Motown bassist James Jamerson and guitarist Sneaky Pete Kleinow lend instrumental support, but, as expected, Wonder is the center of his own universe. He nails the feelings of being in love, falling in it, realizing when its gone away, and wondering how to properly express it. Fulfillingness First Finale also benefits from Wonders continuing forays into social consciousness. The number-one smash You Havent Done Nothin toasted the Nixon administration in classic style and bookends his previous topical cuts such as Living for the City.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelitys world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI (America's best record plant), this numbered limited edition LP of Wonders seminal creation bursts with color, tonality, texture, and openness. Deep electronic grooves, lively percussion, gospel-sent backing vocals, and involving bass notes pour out like cleansing rain. Above all, Wonders mellifluous vocals soar, taking on an intimate quality rarely heard on any soul or pop record.

Track Listing:
1. Smile Please
2. Heaven Is 10 Zillion Light Years Away
3. Too Shy to Say
4. Boogie On Reggae Woman
5. Creepin'
6. You Haven't Done Nothin'
7. It Ain't No Use
8. They Won't Go When I Go
9. Bird of Beauty
10. Please Don't Go

Personal Document on Romantic Loss, Frustration, and Loneliness Hits Bittersweet, Spiritual Notes

Adams' Voice Never So Poignant: Supported By Strings, Acoustic Guitars, Spare Pianos

Revealing Sonics: Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI

Originally released on two EPs and mired in controversy, Love Is Hell is a staggeringly personal report on romantic desolation, personal frustration, and incurable loneliness whose themes play out via splendidly crooned vocals, chamber-pop strings, and spare pianos. The excising of pain has rarely sounded more bittersweet—or spiritual.

Track Listing:
1. Political Scientist
2. Afraid Not Scared
3. This House Is Not for Sale
4. Anybody Wanna Take Me Home
5. Love Is Hell
6. Wonderwall
7. The Shadowlands
8. World War 24
9. Avalanche
10. My Blue Manhattan
11. Please Do Not Let Me Go
12. City Rain, City Streets
13. I See Monsters
14. English Girls Approximately
15. Thank You Louise
16. Hotel Chelsea Nights

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI

Released the same year as the equally pivotal Stained Class, Killing Machine cemented Judas Priest’s standing and reputation as the world’s foremost metal band of the late 1970s. Further diversifying its music and sporting increased confidence, boldness, and full-bodied songwriting, the album managed a then-unprecedented task of appealing to mainstream tastes via its impeccably solid production, creative prowess, and staggering melodies. Known in the United States as Hell Bent for Leather, Killing Machine remains a titanic release no matter the name.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, this Silver Series numbered limited edition LP broadens the scope of the original production, helmed by none other than Pink Floyd The Wall producer James Guthrie. Besting those on all previous editions, the low-end thrust, high-frequency dynamics, and all-important midrange now come alive with unsurpassed detail and accuracy. Soundstaging and imaging positively explode before your eyes and ears, and instrumental separation allows insight into band’s tight-fisted interplay.

Recognizing the era’s potential and pushing to expand metal’s horizons, Priest created music that at the time hadn’t any peer. With proto-metal luminaries Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, and Led Zeppelin experiencing career low points, and campy hard rockers following a softer path, the English quintet married street-bruising intensity to commercial accessibility without compromising any aggression, volatility, rawness, or ruggedness. Part of the success owes to Guthrie’s expert hand. A majority, however, lies with the group’s unrelenting ambition and variety—not to mention masterful performances.

Exemplified in the breakthrough “Hell Bent for Leather,” as tough-as-nails resilient as any metal song and delivered by vocalist Rob Halford with a pronounced ruffian attitude as guitars blaze behind him, Killing Machine sparks with high-powered muscle and concise, exact rhythmic structures. Halford comes into his own throughout, sending his falsetto into another universe on the wide-open highway-driving anthem “Evening Star,” evoking deep loss on the ballad “Before the Dawn,” and attacking “Delivering the Goods” as if he’s a mercenary. There’s not a wasted note or moment of doubt on the album.

To author and metal expert Martin Popoff, music doesn’t get any better. “To my mind, Killing Machine was the apex, the hallowed halls of heavy metal which Priest summarily occupied alone at this particular juncture in time,” writes Popoff in his The Top 500 Heavy Metal Albums of All Time. “The songs on this record sweat the corners and creases of all of metal’s characteristics, Priest firing on and off all speeds, from quick and note-dense to positively glacial.”

Track Listing:
1. Delivering the Goods
2. Rock Forever
3. Evening Star
4. Hell Bent for Leather
5. Take on the World
6. Burnin’ Up
7. Killing Machine
8. Running Wild
9. Before the Dawn
10. Evil Fantasies

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI

You’ve got another thing comin’! Distinguished by dual magnesium-burn guitars, leather-tough percussion, molten-hot melodies, and the unmistakable piercing falsetto of operatic vocalist, Screaming for Vengeance became the soundtrack to millions of music lovers’ lives in the early 1980s as Judas Priest continued to lay waste to its contemporaries’ softer, cheesier hard-rock styles. An effort on which precision-based speed, mainstream accessibility, and resilient attitude meet in triangular equilibrium, the 1982 set remains the British metal legends’ top-selling record.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, this Silver Series numbered limited edition LP shows off the grand intersection of daring adventure and commercial purpose achieved via ironclad production values and entrenched grooves. The latter particularly benefit from this analog pressing, as the group never overlooks the importance of rhythm and pace even when stoking tempos to engine-combusting levels. Leagues ahead of the sonics gracing its peers’ albums from the time, the sense of balance, separation, and realism is on par with that of big-budget rock creations.

Staked by the breakout “You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’,” which burns white-hot with foot-pounding riffs, prize-fighting percussion, and singer Rob Halford’s gun-for-hire blare, Screaming for Vengeance clutches hold of the jugular and doesn’t let go. A return to the band’s gritty, purist roots, the record revisits the themes of darkness, menace, and the unknown firmly established on the pioneering Stained Class and Killing Machine. Along with those albums, and British Steel, Screaming for Vengeance is the template for the catchy albeit uncompromisingly heavy crossover success Metallica, Megadeth, and Anthrax enjoyed years later.

With the one-two opening tandem of the instrumental “The Hellion” and stomping “Electric Eye,” overseen by Halford as if he’s embodying the persona of a wicked James Bond villain, Priest sounds utterly futuristic and terrifying, the instruments seemingly on a swivel and the sawed-off tones flooding the guitar solos with intimidation. A classic head-out-to-the highway anthem (“Riding on the Wind”), a racing proto-thrash banger (“Screaming for Vengeance”), and a scorching exorcism (“Devil’s Child”) function as the metal-hued bolts that hold the foundations of this Top 20-charting benchmark in place.

Perhaps more so here than on any other record, Priest spit-shines hooks and collusive six-string harmonic leads to perfection, giving listeners ying-yang doses of pain and pleasure, sweet and bitter. Songs at once invite sing-a-longs and fist-pumping responses. Screaming for Vengeance marked the last time Priest would sound this heavy in the 80s. No wonder it was voted the 12th best metal album of all time in Martin Popoff’s definitive book of the same name.

Track Listing:
1. The Hellion
2. Electric Eye
3. Riding on the Wind
4. Bloodstone
5. (Take These) Chains
6. Pain and Pleasure
7. Screaming for Vengeance
8. You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’
9. Fever
10. Devil’s Child

Mellifluously Airy Harmonies: LP Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI

The matching Mod suits, trim haircuts, and youthful appearance weren’t just for play. The Raspberries’ looks extended to their irresistibly catchy and refreshingly concise music, a blend of bouncy Britpop, lazy-day psychedelia, mellifluous pop, and crunch arena rock that stands apart from the epic pomposity of most of the early 70s’ commercial trends and continues to linger as some of the most expertly crafted sounds ever created. Over the course of four albums, the singles-minded group cut their share of memorable sides. They’re all here on this 1976 compilation. And now, they possess a fidelity that even the original LPs lacked.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s internationally renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, this Silver Label LP extracts more information from the grooves, extending the spaces between instruments and breathing newfound life into the swirling vocal harmonies. The group’s trademark singing is airier, the highs free of constraints, and the string-laden accents enriched with natural decay. Improved, too, are the quartet’s amplifier-driven chords and frisky drumming, aspects that possess a palpable crunch typical of British Invasion acts.

Adept at both gorgeous devotional ballads and upbeat, fist-pumping rockers, the Raspberries claim a multifaceted talent in leader Eric Carmen, a crooner whose capacity to turn on a dime from a sweet falsetto to searing cry infuses the band’s tunes with emotional exuberance and bittersweet weight. He lends sentimental grace to epic piano weepers such as “Don’t Want to Say Goodbye” and amiable snarl to carefree numbers like “I Wanna Be With You.” However, the Raspberries’ greatest asset relates to their harmonic prowess.

Multi-part group vocals on bounding, surf-referencing fare (“Drivin’ Around”) and catchy, summery material (“Tonight”) recall both the Beach Boys and Beatles. Yet the Raspberries bring a unique edge and R&B-etched rhythm to tunes that stand as proto power-pop staples. Thematically, the ensemble keeps lyrics as simple and memorable as its hooks, with a majority of songs speaking to the pleasures of romance and love. Breezy, fun, and indelible, it’s music that never goes out of style.

Track Listing:
1. Go All the Way
2. Tonight
3. Ecstasy
4. I Wanna Be With You
5. I Can Remember
6. Overnight Sensation
7. Let’s Pretend
8. Drivin’ Around
9. Starting Over
10. Don’t Want to Say Goodbye

Illuminative Sonics: LP Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI

Cyndi Lauper could’ve easily played up the independent wild-child pop persona she established on her breakthrough debut until the trend faded. Instead, on her superb sophomore effort, the charismatic artist opts for a more mature and creatively ambitious program, inviting big-name guests and pursuing deeper instrumental textures on a set that goes far beyond the well-known title track. True Colors is a vocal tour de force, an expressive statement on which Lauper showcases singing steeped in emotion, phrasing, and earnestness.

Bringing Lauper’s rich timbre to the fore, and mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s world-renowned mastering system, this RTI-pressed LP presents the 1986 album in the finest fidelity it’s ever enjoyed. Period touches such as synthesized drumbeats and layered keyboards no longer sound blatantly artificial or canned. Instruments now possess a warmer, fuller roundness that fleshes out their role in the compositions. And Lauper’s vocals—at times balladic, soaring, plaintive, stylish, and celebratory—occupy a defined place in the mix, anchoring songs etched with tonal expressiveness and diverse arrangements.

An all-star cast aids Lauper in shaping what remains a colossally underrated record. Billy Joel (vocals), Adrian Belew (guitar), the Bangles (vocals), Aimee Mann (vocals), Nile Rodgers (guitar), and Rick Derringer (guitar) are among the guests. So is Pee Wee Herman, whose telephone operator role at the conclusion of “911” speaks to the fact that Lauper didn’t abandon her whimsical nature even as she pressed forward. Cajun accents, soulful motifs (“What’s Going On”), and joyous covers of traditional fare (“Iko Iko”) keep the album pleasantly varied and accessibly offbeat.

Of course, Lauper also turns in, with “True Colors,” what’s arguably her career-defining moment, the chart-topping single radiating with gorgeous elegance and graceful phrasing that forced audiences to regard the performer in a different light. For her boldness, Lauper was rewarded with two Grammy nominations and a song that has since been covered by artists such as Phil Collins and appeared as the theme for the 1988 Olympic Games and 2003 Rugby World Cup.

Don’t miss this chance to hear True Colors in the three-dimensional detail one gets from a high-definition television picture.

Track Listing:
1. Change of Heart
2. Maybe He’ll Know
3. Boy Blue
4. True Colors
5. Calm Inside the Storm
6. What’s Going On
7. Iko Iko
8. The Faraway Nearby
9. 911
10. One Track Mind

Spectacular Sonics: Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI

Men at Work already had an album in the Top Ten when the Australian ensemble released Cargo, which continued the momentum gained by its record-setting debut. As ambitious and even more diversified than its initial salvo, the 1983 effort firmly established the band as new-wave pioneers—a group whose goofy playfulness, sharp hooks, brass accents, and memorable choruses helped define the decade’s landscape. Any doubts about Men At Work’s quirky sensibility were promptly answered by the iconic cover art gracing this multi-platinum set.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, this LP not only brings the artwork back into full-scale glory but also takes the enjoyably melodic pop-rock to new sonic heights courtesy of improved imaging, separation, and balance. Previously obscured details jump to the surface, and leader Colin Hay’s unique voice takes on life-like dimensions that hover between the speakers.

While remaining true to the approach that garnered them a Grammy Award for Best New Artist, Men at Work expands the creative palette on Cargo by giving guitars a more prominent role and increasing the rhythmic textures. With the sweeping ballad “Overkill” and politically savvy cynicism of “It’s a Mistake,” the band furthered their radio domination and extended their run of Top 10 singles. A third hit, “Dr. Heckyll and Mr. Jive,” cracked the Top 30. Well-tailored melodies and whimsical imagination definitely had a place in the public’s consciousness, and no group understood this more.

As the final album captured by the original lineup, Cargo remains an indelible piece of the 1980s audio terrain and a reminder of the era’s endless fun. Bolstered by lively saxophone solos, self-effacing humor, and instantly catchy refrains, the album is as good as excuse as any to turn on the stereo, sit down, forget your worries, and dance to leisurely pursuits so perfectly captured by this beloved group.

Track Listing:
1. Dr. Heckyll and Mr. Jive
2. Overkill
3. Settle Down My Boy
4. Upstairs In My House
5. No Sign of Yesterday
6. It’s a Mistake 7. High Wire
8. Blue for You
9. I Like To
10. No Restrictions

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes and meticulously pressed at RTI, Mobile Fidelitys 180g LP version of this masterwork allows the records expressive punchiness, dynamic extension, treble-driven jangle, and more forceful playing to be experienced as originally intended. Indeed, Lifes Rich Pageant is notable for its production: Board operator Don Gehman lends the group a harder edge and cleaner sound than it had in the past. On this audiophile-grade reissue, the results come to the fore in the form of contemporary-sounding arrangements, cohesive structures, and cleaner tonalities. If anything, this LP helps make the case for the many that Lifes Rich Pageantnot Murmur or Reckoningstands as the bands finest hour.

Lyrically, R.E.M. hits upon more concrete themes, and while Stipes occasionally mumbled singing still lacks clear enunciationa trait that adds to the songs mystique and surrounding texturestheres no mistaking the overt political and environmental sentiments in tunes such as the hit Fall on Me and gorgeous Cuyahoga. Similarly, Flowers of Guatemala epitomizes R.E.M.s hallmark ability to turn allegory into dreamy poetry, the counterpoint melodies, atmospheric guitar fills, and majestic bridges all enchanting devices of a band that manages to get its point across via spiritual performances and indirect suggestiveness.

Such qualities lie at the heart of Lifes Rich Pageant, on which subtle details and concerted purposes unite to make transcendent, lasting art. Bolder, more pronounced, refined, and immediate than that on previous efforts, Mike Mills bass lines and Peter Bucks swelling guitar passages augment the hard-driving beats as well as Stipes increasingly upfront vocals. Disposing with the intentional murkiness and subconscious approach of earlier records, R.E.M. goes in attack mode here, with even mellow numbers resonating with an attention-getting kick. It doesnt hurt that the band covers the field with expertly executed songs that comprise garage rock, jangle pop, rustic country, and more. What a record.

We dont need to tell you about R.E.M.s importance to modern music. And this record plays a large role in establishing the groups reputation.

Track Listing:
Side One Dinner Side
1. Begin the Begin
2. These Days
3. Fall on Me
4. Cuyahoga
5. Hyena
6. Underneath the Bunker

Side Two Supper Side
1. The Flowers of Guatemala
2. I Believe
3. What If We Give It Away?
4. Just a Touch
5. Swan Swan H
6. Superman (Mike Bottler and Gary Zekley)

Wider Grooves, Superior Sound: Mobile Fidelitys 45RPM Edition The Last Word in Analog Fidelity

Recorded in One Day: Whimsical Feel, Surrealist Lyrics, On-the-Fly Fluidness Grace the Bards Loosest 1960s Effort

Includes I Shall Be Free No. 10, It Aint Me Babe, My Back Pages, Chimes of Freedom

The Freewheelin Bob Dylan, Bringing It All Back Home, Blonde on Blonde, Blood on the Tracks, and The Basement Tapes Also Available from Mobile Fidelity

The ever-evasive Bob Dylan never explicitly stated exactly what represented the another side of himself referenced in the title to his second 1964 record. Yet the whimsical moods, hallucinogenic prose, humorous angles, transparent mistakes, and noncommittal themes give a pretty clear idea at what the Bard hinted as he emerged from being labeled as a reluctant generation spokesperson and folk savior after releasing two highly intellectual, socially pioneering sets replete with protest songs. Dylan needed to take a breath, step back from the drama, and reevaluate his surroundings. Another Side of Bob Dylan is all that and more.

As part of its Bob Dylan catalog restoration series, Mobile Fidelity is thoroughly humbled to have the privilege of mastering the iconic LP from the original master tapes and pressing it on 45RPM LPs at RTI. The end result is the very finest, most transparent analog stereo edition of Another Side of Bob Dylan ever produced. Be there as the Minnesota native spends the evening of June 9, 1964 in Columbias Studio A and, displaying an openness hed never before revealed in a formal environment, lays down the songs that compromise his fourth album.

Featuring minimal editing, Another Side of Bob Dylan is naked, truthful, and whimsical. Mobile Fidelitys reissue illuminates the artists conditionhe laughs in the midst of songs, experiences a few false starts, hits a couple of bum notes, occasionally sings as if hes stumbling down a Manhattan sidewalk after having one too many at a smoky pub, prizes rawness over perfectionwith microscopic accuracy. Indeed, Dylans slightly woozy and completely playful state related to his having downed a handful of bottles of Beaujolais during the sessions.

The uninhibited joie de vive is discernable in the rattling piano lines on Black Crow Blues, seemingly subconscious ramble of the hysterical folk rhyming of Motorpsycho Nightmare, bluesy dream sequencing throughout I Dont Believe You, and intentionally out-of-tune yodeling during All I Really Want to Do. On a majority of the prized set, Dylan lets his guard down, but does so in clever manners that speak to his surrealist imagination and biting wit. He possesses the rare ability to make planned strategies appear spontaneous, to challenge audiences with stinting wordplay and minimalist melodies that provide a deceptive false security.

And so the apparently autobiographical and self-aware My Back Pages, one of the earliest examples of Dylans immersion into symbolist prose and abstract metaphor, remains controversial for its on-the-surface denouncement of his earlier condemnations of social institutions and injustices. Peeled back, the tune is a brilliant releasean essential escape hatch for Dylan to both relieve himself of unneeded pressures and distance himself from pundits. As an indelible piece of art, it succeeds in masquerading obvious meaning while simultaneously forcing listeners to question their own actions. Quintessential Dylan.

As is the trifecta of relationship-themed compositions that closes the record, as well as the eternal Chimes of Freedom, the standard that journalist Paul Williams dubbed Dylans Sermon on the Mount. Its inseparable conjunction of apocalyptic imagery, personal emotion, allusive lyricism, balladic alliteration, and inclusive sympathy signaled that, having already eviscerated the rules associated with pop and folk music, Dylan had just begun his assault on our consciousness, making Another Side of Bob Dylan that much more mysterious, unequivocal, and requisite.

Given the sonic and artistic merit of this album, we anticipate huge demand.

Track Listing:
1. All I Really Want to Do
2. Black Crow Blues
3. Spanish Harlem Incident
4. Chimes of Freedom
5. I Shall Be Free, No. 10
6. To Ramona
7. Motorpsycho Nightmare
8. My Back Pages
9. I Dont Believe You
10. Ballad in Plain D
11. It Aint Me Babe

That Thin, That Wild Mercury Sound: Dylans Ground-Shaking 1966 Double LP Sent Tremors Throughout the World

Wider Grooves, Superior Sound: Mobile Fidelitys 45RPM Edition The Last Word in Analog Fidelity

Recorded With One of The Most Ear-Awakening Lineups Ever Assembled: Al Kooper, Pig Robbins, Joe South, Kenny Buttrey, and The Bands Rick Danko and Robbie Robertson Among Musicians

Vaudeville, Contemporary Pop, Fiery Rock and Roll, Memphis Blues, Folk-Derived Sagas Among Enriched Palette of Styles

Blonde on Blonde: A double album that transcends time, defies space, suspends reality, and looks through the human soul and tells the listener characteristics about themselves they didnt know. Professor Sean Wilentz, historian-in-residence for Bob Dylans Web site, comes as close to summing up its brilliance in his superb Bob Dylan In America as any whove tried: The songs are rich meditations on desire, frailty, promises, boredom, hurt, envy, connections, missed connections, paranoia, and transcendent beautyin short, the lures and snare of love, stock themes of rock and pop music, but written with a powerful literary imagination and played out in a pop netherworld. No lie.

As part of its Bob Dylan catalog restoration series, Mobile Fidelity is thoroughly humbled to have the privilege of mastering the iconic LP from the original master tapes and pressing it on 45RPM LPs at RTI. The end result is the very finest, most transparent analog edition of Blonde on Blonde ever produced. Forever renowned for what the Bard deemed that thin, that wild mercury sound, the albums famed aural character lives and breathes on this superb version, with wider and deeper grooves affording playback of previously buried information and lifelike presentation of the studio sessions.

Forever prized for a unique sound that cultural critic Greil Marcus tagged the most glamorous record imaginable; listening you [can] see the checkered jesters suit Dylan had worn on stage for the nine previous, furious months, Blonde on Blonde is to music, production, prose, and performance as what hydrogen is to water. The secret to its inimitable aural character partially stems from Dylans request in Nashville to producer Bob Johnston to remove the baffles from the studio room, allowing the musicians to interact as well as the music to assume a more organic quality that drifts from one microphone to another. Mobile Fidelitys reissue captures this ensemble ambience, with echoes, resonation, and some of the most natural timbres youll ever hear in plain sight.

The story of Blonde on Blonde is almost as compelling as the music within. Dylan, frustrated with how initial attempts fared in New York, relocating to Tennessee and pairing with Nashvilles top session players as well as members of what would become the Band, feverishly chasing perfectionism while also arriving at an on-the-fly feel that remains a reference point for recorded music. The Bard sweated over lyrics, demanded his band get the exact sounds he heard in his head, and limited most takes to a handful at most. A majority of songs were recorded long after midnight, the post-A.M. vibe reflected in the nocturnal aura, woozy optimism, inversion of intervals, and spiritual soulfulness of the playing.

As for the tunes? Chapters of books and lengthy theses are dedicated to the sheer conscious-altering power, mythical weight, character cast, and convention-obscuring magnetism of the lyricsto say nothing of the sophisticated albeit pure playing within, as arrangements touch upon gospel, R&B, pop, traditional and contemporary blues, vaudeville, folk, and more. Then theres Dylans inventive phrasing, his manipulation of pitch and locution, helping the narratives to take on epic, inchoate, and cryptic meanings that continue to be deciphered to this day. Punch lines occur as frequently as romantic declarations, all delivered with salient references, traditional parallels, and elusive interpretations on par with those of Shakespeare.

Visions of Johanna. I Want You. Rainy Day Women #12 & 35. Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands. Absolutely Sweet Marie. We could go on. Essential doesnt even begin to cover the genius of this record that, now, sounds better than Dylan himself can imagine.

Given the sonic and artistic merit of this album, we anticipate huge demand.

Dylans Masterpiece Break-Up Album: Sentimental Redemption Arises Amidst Sorrow, Turmoil, Sadness, and Pain

Presence, Immediacy, Naturalness, Realism in Spades: Mobile Fidelity Reissue Makes Blood on the Tracks Among Most Lifelike-Sounding Albums Youll Ever Hear

Songs Flow Like Rivers, Acoustic and Electric Elements Merge Like Bezels on a Diamond

Includes Tangled Up In Blue, Simple Twist of Fate, Idiot Wind, Buckets of Rain

The Freewheelin Bob Dylan, Another Side of Bob Dylan, Bringing It All Back Home, Blonde on Blonde, and The Basement Tapes Also Available from Mobile Fidelity

Bob Dylan was at several crossroads in the mid-1970s. Artistically, he was largely written off as being past his prime. Emotionally, he was suffering through a painful divorce from his then-wife Sara Lowndes. Creatively, he appeared at a stalemate, his previous decades unprecedented run of transformational brilliance finished. Then came Blood on the Tracks.

A start-to-finish cycle that documents a lovers pursuit of, entanglement with, and loss of a woman, the bracingly intimate 1975 effort remains one of the most encompassing break-up albums ever made and ranks as the most personal statement of the Bards career. To hear it is to experience the agony, frustration, trauma, highs, lows, confusion, sadness, and, ultimately, requisite redemption associated with intimate relationships gone astray. Dylan maintains its a work of fiction, but its evident close-vested autobiographical premise is what helps make it universal: Its the icon singing through tears, going out of his mind, battling hallowing emptiness, firing shots across the bow, and accepting culpability. It is, in short, a consummate expression of loves darker sides and the consequences of what happens when dreams unravel.

As part of its Bob Dylan catalog restoration series, Mobile Fidelity is thoroughly humbled to have the privilege of mastering the iconic LP from the original master tapes and pressing it on dead-quiet LPs at RTI. The end result is the very finest, most transparent analog edition of Blood on the Tracks ever producedand the first-ever proper analog reissue. Fantastically presenting both the solo acoustic and band-supported songs with the utmost clarity, dynamics, presence, immediacy, spaciousness, imaging, and balance, this version shines a high-powered light on the fluid vocal phrasing, timbral shifts, functional rhythms, and inward-looking strumming that contribute to every song here serving as a wound-exposing confessional.

For all the melancholic pain, unresolved questions, shattered memories, wasted times, unrequited dialogs, and weary regret within, Blood on the Tracks remains as daring as it is reflective. Rather than follow for a monotone caustic vibe, Dylans songs burrow into the subconscious for the manners in which they are even-keeled, mellow, and occasionally, even peaceful. Dignity, honor, poignancy, and fairnessall traits uncommon in any situation in which partners dissolve histories, change hearts, and attribute blameinstill the record with equilibrium on par with the consistency of the flowing melodies.

Throughout, tunes come on and proceed as if they could continue forever, Dylan spinning poetic verses and conversations amidst finely tied knots of acoustic notes, chords, and fills, the deceivingly simple architecture conjuring the intertwined refractions of a bezeled jewel, various angles, colors, and textures conjoining into a gorgeously inseparable whole. Backed by Tony Browns flexible albeit subtle bass, Buddy Cages country-streaked pedal-steel guitar, and Paul Griffins soul-baring organan instrument used to shadow, tuckpoint, and illuminate here as effectively as any time in rock historyDylan pours soulful emotion, open his veins, and bleeds.

Ranked 16 on Rolling Stones list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, and replete with existential thought, piercing directness, raw singing, and majestic arrangements,

Given the sonic and artistic merit of this album, we anticipate huge demand.

Track Listing:
1. Tangled Up in Blue
2. Simple Twist of Fate
3. Youre A Big Girl Now
4. Idiot Wind
5. Youre Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go
6. Meet Me in the Morning
7. Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts
8. If You See Her, Say Hello
9. Shelter From the Storm
10. Buckets of Rain

Recorded in Basement of Big Pink with The Band: Modern Americana Starts Here

• Audiophile Sound at Last: Sonic Subtleties, Loose Interplay, Organic Spirit, Warm Textures Presented Like Never Before on Definitive Mobile Fidelity Reissue
• Dylan at His Most Humorous, Unguarded, Loose: Folk Tales, Weird Narratives, Rock Ballads, Inside Jokes, Allusions Pepper Alchemic Material
• Includes This Wheels on Fire, You Aint Goin Nowhere, Tears of Rage, Million Dollar Bash, Yazoo Street Scandal

The Freewheelin Bob Dylan, Another Side of Bob Dylan, Bringing It All Back Home, Blonde on Blonde, and Blood on the Tracks Also Available from Mobile Fidelity

Basements have long been associated with raw, off-the-cuff rock n roll, the damp and dark spaces serving as the woodshedding venues for countless bands. Yet no basement is more famous, and none yielded music as familiarly weird, wholesomely American, joyously loose, and identifiably humorous as that in the upstate New York house dubbed Big Pinkthe location where, during the summer and early fall of 1967, Bob Dylan and The Band played a vivid tapestry of covers, originals, and traditionals that signaled the advent of Americana. Once again, the Bard changed the world.

As part of its Bob Dylan catalog restoration series, Mobile Fidelity is thoroughly humbled to have the privilege of mastering the iconic LP from the original master tapes and pressing it on dead-quiet LPs at RTI. The end result is the very finest, most transparent analog edition of The Basement Tapes ever producedand the first-ever analog reissue. Inimitable, the particulars of The Basement Tapesespecially, the gather-round-in-a-huddle assembly of the instrumentalists, home-made character, domestic vibe, and low-volume nature of the recordingscome to fore here in a manner that takes the listener down the stairs at 2188 Stoll Road and brings the images of Dylan, Rick Danko, Robbie Robertson, and Co. to life.

Fresh off experiencing a motorcycle accident and the wrath of audiences hostile to his embrace of amplified music, Dylan elected to retreat to the comforts of rural and family life. He soon began collaborating with members of the Band in his house, ultimately moving the sessions to Big Pink. Informal, peaceful, relaxed, open-minded: The collaborations blanket country stomps, roots hootenannies, forgotten spirituals, earthy originals, chaotic marches, dreamscapes, dance tunes, folk laments, catch-as-you-can improvisations. On The Basement Tapes, mythical ghosts and dead legends reappear, reveling in the absurdity, comedy, mystery, aura, and alchemy.

In Invisible Republic, his scintillating book about the sessions, cultural critic Greil Marcus states: At a time when the country was tearing itself apart in a war at home over a war abroad, the music was funny and comforting; it was also strange, and somehow incomplete. Out of some odd displacement of art and time, the music seemed both transparent and inexplicable when it was first heard, and it still does. Indeed, The Basement Tapes appear to emanate from an indefinable chasm between modern and ancient, self-evident and mysterious, shapeless and fully formed, abstract and concrete, histories unwritten and chronicled. But every note chimes with freenessa liberating fun, humble simplicity, and bond-creating camaraderie felt in every hoot, holler, laugh, and false start.

The Basement Tapes capacity to remain so gloriously honest and timelessperformances that genuinely couldve been made today, ten years from now, or back in the 1930shelps account for their emotional resonance and unsurpassed reputation as a snapshot of how unencumbered American music, and art with deep historical roots and connective cultural tissues, is supposed to sound.

Mobile Fidelitys reissue squares away the late-night bleariness, jovial atmosphere, low-ceiling dimensions, and ensemble-based perspective of the sessions, allowing the listener to become Hamlet, the dog who slept nearby Dylan, Robertson, and Co. as it all went down. This is not to be missed.

Given the sonic and artistic merit of this album, we anticipate huge demand.

Sketches of Spain, Kind of Blue, Milestones, Round About Midnight, and Four & More Also Available from Mobile Fidelity

Shhh. The command to be quiet is no just part of the title of one of the two sprawling compositions on this pioneering album. Its also an apt metaphor for the relaxed hypnotism and spaced-out atmosphere that define In a Silent Way, a record that pushes the boundaries of studio possibilities, artist-producer relationships, and rock-jazz chasms. Recognized as Miles Davis first full-on fusion effort and part of his electric era, the 1969 landmark claims a Whos Who lineup that sends the music into an ethereal stratosphere.

Part of Mobile Fidelitys Miles Davis catalog restoration series, In a Silent Way now immerses the listener in lineolate landscapes starlit by the intuition, suspension, and paradoxes wrought by a once-in-a-lifetime collective. Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes and pressed at RTI, this unsurpassed 180g LP edition lifts the veil on the cutting-edge assembly process that created the pair of lengthy suites. Helmed by three electric instruments, the beveled compositions melt away all preconceived notions of jazz, rock, and ambience, following a loose theory Davis dubbed New Directions.

Few albums are so delicately textured. And on Mobile Fidelitys meticulous analog reissue, such sulcate elements pour over ink-black backgrounds on a canyon-wide soundstage. In particular, Tony Williams inventive percussive touchhe causes the cymbals to shimmer as a pieces of silver tend to do when exposed to sunlightis broadcast with lifelike three-dimensional qualities, the panoramic view extending to Davis nocturnal trumpet, Wayne Shorters ribbon-unfurling saxophone, Dave Hollands extrapolative bass, and the mosaic of keys.

If the records only accomplishment is its introduction of guitarist John McLaughlin to the world, it alone would be enough. Yet In a Silent Way continues to bedazzle, puzzle, and inspire for myriad reasonsnot the least of which is the seemingly telepathic communicative methods employed by the groups members. The lineup is great on paper, but, if its even possible, the octet sounds even better in practice, with the instruments and tonalities conjoining in avant-garde communion like hyper-sensitive tentacles exploring the stippled landscapes of an undiscovered planet.

Diverting from expectation, tubular grooves twist, turn, and spin, sometimes piling atop of each other, always shying away from structure and melody. Ellipsoidal solos provide hesitant guidance, ranging from Chick Coreas Fender Rhodes phrases to Davis decorative spirals. And as color is the primary unit of currency on Davis Sketches of Spain, laidback episodes, geometric spaces, and quiet sensuality reign here, with the sets maverick reputation attained via musings on solitude rather than explosions of noise.

Controversial for the period, the heavily edited production of In a Silent Way blew open the once-locked doors on what producers could attemptand how artists could assist them. Knitted together as one would construct a cross-hatched quilt, songs contain grafts of repeat passages that provide unifying structure and experimental continuity. What a statement.

Track Listing:
1. Shhh/Peaceful
2. In a Silent Way/Its About That Time

How does one properly introduce an epochal record? Perhaps by unequivocally stating that it is the best-selling jazz album in history. Or by affirming that, every year, it sells tens of thousands of copies more than five decades after its original release. Theres also the matter of its status as the most-referenced, and arguably, most important, jazz recording of all-time. And the Dream Team lineup of Miles Davis, Cannonball Adderley, John Coltrane, Bill Evans, Wynton Kelly, Paul Chambers, and Jimmy Cobb. Yes, Kind of Blue is utterly inimitable.

Part of Mobile Fidelitys Miles Davis catalog restoration series, the landmark has been given the ultimate white-gloves treatment. Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes, and pressed on 45RPM LPs at RTI, this sumptuous box set of the often-reissued album is a must for even fans that already possess multiple versions. Such is the illuminating transparency, reference dynamics, organic warmth, and instrumental detail exposed by the thoroughly scrupulous mastering process. If theres a stairway to heaven, this is the soundtrack.

In its three-decade-plus history, Mobile Fidelity has never been prouder to have the honor of handling efforts as important as Davis key recordings. Its why the labels engineers took every available measure to transport listeners to the March and April 1959 sessions that parlayed modal jazz into mainstream language. The blueprint for melodic improvisation and vamping, Kind of Blue simplifies tonal organization and chordal progression into an eminently beautiful, introspective tapestry stitched with swinging poetry, mellifluous soloing, compositional lyricism, transcendental harmonies, and group interplay of the highest caliber.

While no one has ever completely identified the magic behind the records allurethe otherworldly nature is part of its inherent charmmuch of the success lies with the band members. Davis intentionally handpicked these musicians to comprise this particular cast, with everyone from former foil Evans to blues maestro Kelly to percussive genius Cobb interacting and reacting with peerless skill.

An audiophile favorite from the day it was issued, Kind of Blue takes on nirvanic sonic proportions via Mobile Fidelitys reissue. The expressive warmth, imaging clarity, frequency extension, and window-on-the-world breadth afforded by this new edition places music lovers right in the studio with the sextet. Close your eyes and, no matter how many times you may have heard it before, your experience will parallel that of the players that recorded these gems. Everyone shares in the excitement of not knowing what will happen and, as the music begins to lie out in front of you, youll feel as if youve been whisked away to a jazz holy land. Quintessential.

Take a Load Off with the Very Best-Sounding Analog Big Pink Ever Pressed

Half-Speed Mastered from the Original Master Tapes and Pressed at RTI

Includes "The Weight," "I Shall Be Released," "This Wheel's On Fire"

Youve likely heard the story. Now hear the results of one of the most famous sessions in history with a clarity and warmth never thought possible.

In late 1965 and early 1966, Bob Dylan shattered the boundaries between folk and rock music on a controversial tour that found the generation spokesman plugging in and shocking purist audiences that reviled in horror at the sight of their hero playing electric with a bunch of ragtag Canadian mates. Then known as the Hawks, the Band was that backing group, serving Dylan not only on the road but, playing with him after his motorcycle accident, on his seminal Basement Tapes collection.

Recorded in 1968 and ranked #34 on Rolling Stones 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list, The Bands Music From Big Pink stems from the same localea pink farmhouse in upstate Woodstock, New Yorkas the Basement Tapes and is just as rustic, timeless, and mysterious as Dylans celebrated work. A debut for the ages, the album features two songs co-written with DylanThis Wheels on Fire, Tears of Rageas well as whats universally recognized as the definitive version of Dylans I Shall Be Released. More famously, it also includes The Weight, a standard covered by everyone from the Grateful Dead to Weezer to Aretha Franklin. But the power of this set doesnt lie in one song but the entire album.

A groundbreaking statement, Music From Big Pink lays bare the magnetism of the American South, Appalachian traditions, and country-rock innovations. That guitarist Robbie Robertson, pianist Garth Hudson, bassist Rick Danko, drummer/vocalist Levon Helm, and organist Richard Manuel are all household names only adds to the proof of this must-have records everlasting appeal. This is the majesty of what Greil Marcus called the old, weird America.

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes and pressed at RTI, Mobile Fidelity's analog version practically gives you a spot on the floor at Big Pink as the sessions went down. Curl up, close your eyes, and listen as the music's sublimely organic sounds appear with full-range dynamics, life-size imaging, and tremendous soundstaging. This is one of the reasons why you have a turntable. Prepare for your system, and your ears, to glow.

Track Listing:
1. Tears Of Rage
2. To Kingdom Come
3. In A Station
4. Caledonia Mission
5. The Weight
6. We Can Talk
7. Long Black Veil
8. Chest Fever
9. Lonesome Suzie
10. This Wheel's On Fire
11. I Shall Be Released

Joels Breakthrough Record Loaded With Smash Hits: Movin Out (Anthonys Song), Just the Way You Are, Only the Good Die Young, Shes Always a Woman

Getting It Right: Mobile Fidelitys Half-Speed Mastered Version Brings Phil Ramones Celebrated Production into Full-Color Detail

1977 Set a Grammy Winner for Record of the Year and Song of the Year

Billy Joel entered 1977 with a great track record but in need of breakthrough. Pairing with producer Phil Ramone (Carly Simon, Simon & Garfunkel), who developed the requisite ingredients missing from Joels formula, the singer-songwriter became a household name and chart-topping success courtesy of The Stranger. Certified ten-times platinum, Joels artistic and commercial smash remains a pop-rock benchmark. Better still, it now sounds astonishing.

An integral part of Mobile Fidelitys Billy Joel catalog restoration series, The Stranger is mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on 180g LP at RTI. Far superior to the previous Sony and Simply Vinyl analog reissues, this edition emphasizes the crucial touches and insightful techniques Ramone brought to a batch of material that ranks among Joels most clever, catchy, and sagacious.

Whereas a handful of Joels preceding efforts feature a near-flawless mix of melodic arrangements and poignant lyrics, the aspects he sought in order to graduate into a more serious artist arrive here via Ramones more muscular, fleshed-out, and rock-enabling production. The streamlined approach slightly strips back the sweeping developments heard on Piano Man and Turnstiles, and on this edition, lays bare the core of the material, allowing the vocalists bittersweet yearning, rollicking 88 notes, and working-class conviction to emanate with full-bodied detail, vivid color, and grand-scale dynamics.

A Grammy winner for both Record and Song of the Year, Just the Way You Are epitomizes Joels balladic reach, his ability to transfer wistful sentiments and lovelorn emotions. He also flashes a mean streak. The animated Only the Good Die Young bounces and hops to an updated classic-R&B rhythm and, underneath its beauty, Shes Always A Woman hints at trouble underfoot. And then theres the New York-centric, character-rich poetry of the vignettes.

Akin to many of his influences, Joel nails the grit, personality, specificity, descriptiveness, and behavior of protagonists that populate Movin Out (Anthonys Song) and Scenes From an Italian Diner, each equally at home on The Stranger as well as on a Broadway play or on a golden-era Hollywood film soundtrack. No wonder that, just months after its original release, Joel was no longer a stranger to any of the music-loving public. He would never look back.

Dont pass up this seminal pop-rock work in the best fidelity its ever enjoyed.

Track Listing:
1. Movin Out (Anthonys Song)
2. The Stranger
3. Just the Way You Are
4. Scenes From an Italian Restaurant
5. Vienna
6. Only the Good Die Young
7. Shes Always a Woman
8. Get It Right the First Time
9. Everybody Has a Dream/The Stranger (Reprise)

Universally Hailed 1982 Pop Masterpiece Pairs Costello and Co. With Beatles Engineer Geoff Emerick

Record Topped Village Voices Pazz & Jop Critics Poll In Year of Its Original Release

Lavish Instrumentation, Involved Arrangements, and Piano-Based Melodies Frame Ambitious Songs That Address Domestic Malaise While Coming Off as Upbeat

Half-Speed Mastered from the Original Master Tapes: Imperial Bedroom Joins Mobile Fidelitys Pristine LP Reissues of Costellos My Aim Is True, This Years Model, Armed Forces, Get Happy!!, and Almost Blue

Recorded with famed Beatles engineer Geoff Emerick, Imperial Bedroom stands as Elvis Costello and the Attractions most highly decorated traditional pop album. Boasting sumptuous arrangements, large-scale instrumentation, ambitious layers, Tin Pan Alley melodies, and orchestrated devices, the 1982 record is a testament to studio creativity and ornate production. Amidst the lavish settings beats the heart of Costellos biting, brutal lyrics that confront domestic malaise and sober emotional reflection. Its little wonder the intelligent effort took top honors in the Village Voices Pazz & Jop Critics Poll.

Not that audiences back in the day ever had the privilege of hearing Imperial Bedroom at its maximum potential. Now they can. Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited edition 180g LP opens up the soundstages, expands the depth, and brings the genius of the grand arrangements into clear focus. In particular, the sound of the piano will have you believe that the 88s are situated right in your room, and never before has Emericks crafty sonic precision been so readily apparent. This is a huge-sounding record that demands full frequency extension and astute separation. Mobile Fidelitys reissue delivers on all fronts. You need to hear this!

Ranked in 2005 by Rolling Stone at #166 on the magazines prestigious list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, Imperial Bedroom overflows with contagious pop, savvy torch, cabaret, chamber, and jazz-influenced fare. If its details you seek, then look no further. With Emericks assistance, each tune is distinguished with painstaking sonic accents, blended rhythms, counterpoint bass lines, dazzling passages, and inventive motifs. Accordions, tremolo guitars, organs, harpsichords, marimbas, horns, and an assortment of other instruments help color the subtly dark canvases. A 40-piece orchestra graces the gorgeous And In Every Home.

Originally intended to be a stripped-down affair, Imperial Bedroom reflects Costellos migration to composing on piano as well as his listening tastes at the time: Billie Holliday, Cole Porter, Frank Sinatra, Debussy. Intricate, expansive, and complex without ever sounding inaccessible, the record includes the now-classic Man Out of Time, Beyond Belief, and Almost Blue, the latter a ballad that Chet Baker included in his live sets until he passed away. In another stroke of brilliance, Costello used the record as an opportunity to address the melancholic changes in both his own personal situation as well as that of England, the songs functioning as smart, sometimes satirical dialogues on issues such as disenchantment, identity, and relationships.

Still considered by many the finest record released in 1982, dont pass up this extraordinary-sounding reissue.

Track Listing:
1. Beyond Belief
2. Tears Before Bedtime
3. Shabby Doll
4. The Long Honeymoon
5. Man Out of Time
6. Almost Blue
7. ...And in Every Home
8. The Loved Ones
9. Human Hands
10. Kid About It
11. Little Savage
12. Boy with a Problem
13. Pidgin English
14. You Little Fool
15. Town Cryer

Expertly Played 1981 Set Marks the Second of the Encyclopedic Pop Musicians Many Forays Into Multiple Styles

Half-Speed Mastered from the Original Master Tapes: Knockout Sonics Present Costellos Close-Up Vocals, Steve Nieves Piano, and the Pedal-Steel Guitars in Great Relief

Elvis Costello was so enamored with American country music when he finally discovered it, he was motivated to record Almost Blue. Renowned as one of the most passionate and enthusiastic covers albums ever made, the 12-song set finds the iconic singer/songwriter interpreting standards by the likes of Hank Williams, Gram Parsons, George Jones, Merle Haggard, and other legends. Replete with heartbreak, lonesomeness, boozing, cheating, and dreaming, its laden with country and westerns customary themes and dignified by one of the finest performances of Costello and the Attractions peerless career.

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelitys numbered limited edition 180g LP opens up the soundstages, clears previously muddled midrange frequencies, and places the imaging of the various country-tuned instruments into clear focus. For the first time, listeners can hear just how much of himself Costello invests in the vocal performances, while the Attractions dont miss a beat, particularly pianist Steve Nieve and guest musician John McFee. Moreover, the strings (when employed) take on new life, and the records cover art, a take-off on Kenny Burrells Midnight Blue, is faithfully reproduced.

At the time of the albums recording in 1981, Costello was admittedly emotionally shattered. The title of the effort isnt merely coincidental. Feeling dejected and disenchanted, the vocalist had been put through the ringer: His pop stardom yielded one incredible record after another, but Costellos marriage was in tatters, his behavior deplorable, and his reputation tarnished by a famous drunken incident that shamed him for decades. In addition, he chose to follow his string of original LPs up with the soul- and R&B-minded Get Happy, a creative masterwork that nonetheless caused some of his mainstream fans to believe hed abandon his hit-making pedigree.

So he did what any self-respecting, astute musician would want to do: Cut a country and western record steeped in heartbreak, fragility, sadness, despair, and beer-glass-raising spirit. Largely informed by the stacks of country LPs he bought in used shops during U.S. tours, and in the ideal frame of mind, Costello sought out not to make standards such as Sweet Dreams, Too Far Gone, Honey Hush, and Tonight the Bottle Let Me Down his own but to put a unique spin on the darkness, surprise, soulfulness, foreboding, and authenticity that they contain within.

With each note, Costello succeeds and exceeds expectations, turning in versions that sound both old and new. Such timelessness, and the confluence of contemporary and traditional, distinguishes Almost Blue from nearly every other country tribute album made by pop/rock artists before and since. Costello and the Attractions embody the deep sentiments attached to these weeping ballads, tear-jerking lullabies, honky-tonk rave-ups, and playful shuffles in an incredibly convincing manner. Producer George Sherrill, famous for working with the likes of Tammy Wynette, George Jones, and Marty Robbins, and brought on board specifically for the project, frames the music with the perfect blend of grit and professionalism.

Track Listing:
1. Why Don't You Love Me (Like You Used to Do)? (Hank Williams)
2. Sweet Dreams (Don Gibson)
3. Success (Johnny Mullins)
4. Hot Burrito #1 (Gram Parsons, Chris Ethridge)
5. Tonight the Bottle Let Me Down (Merle Haggard)
6. Brown to Blue (George Jones, Virginia Franks)
7. A Good Year for the Roses (Jerry Chesnut)
8. Sittin' and Thinkin' (Charlie Rich)
9. Colour of the Blues (Lawton Williams, George Jones)
10. Too Far Gone (Billy Sherrill)
11. Honey Hush (Lou Willie Turner)
12. How Much I Lied (Gram Parsons, Pam Rifkin)

The group’s uncanny ability to switch between instruments and effortlessly play each as if it’s their innate right—listen to the seamless fashion in which electric and acoustic guitars, marimbas, organs, saxophones, harmonicas, and percussion create strikingly memorable soundscapes—comes to light amidst a warmer, airier, more organic and deep-black background.David Hidalgo’s sweet, honeysuckle timbre, he and Cesar Rosas’ overlapping tremolo guitars, and stacks of interwoven rhythms jump with vibrant electricity.

Shifting into storytelling mode, Los Lobos use By the Light of the Moon as an opportunity to meditate on everyday America and channel the fate of normal communities. Issues of faith, mortality, love, disillusionment, and melancholy inform narratives that are on the same socially conscious level as those of period-era Bruce Springsteen and John Mellencamp. As for the songs, they crackle, waltz, shuffle, dance, tremble, and kick. The band almost dares listeners not to care.

Whether leaning into twangy two-step country-rock (“One Night In America”), dual-guitar shootout rockabilly (“Shakin’ Shakin’ Shakes”), swinging jump R&B (“Is This All There Is?”), tequila-spiked East Los Angeles-style rock (“Set Me Free (Rosa Lee)”), searing Latin-tinged blues (“My Baby’s Gone”), or poignant gospel-lined folk (“River of Fools”), Los Lobos’ Tex-Mex gumbo continually impresses and delights.

Don’t pass up one of the best releases of the 1980s and one of Los Lobos’ definitive statements. You’ll never hear a better pressing. Boleros, rancheros, and more await!

Track Listing:
1. One Time One Night
2. Shakin' Shakin' Shakes
3. Is This All There Is?
4. Prenda Del Alma
5. All I Wanted To Do Was Dance
6. Set Me Free (Rosa Lee)
7. The Hardest Time
8. My Baby's Gone
9. River of Fools
10. The Mess We're In
11. Tears of God

Numbered, Limited Edition!

Weezer doesn’t look like rock stars, its amusing name doesn’t evoke stadium-heights glories, and the group’s lyrics don’t exude confidence or flash. For precisely these reasons, and the fact that the band’s songs on its self-titled debut are the stuff of air-guitar dreams and shout-it-out choruses, the quartet became ironic arena-rock stars equally celebrated by in-the-know hipsters and mainstream radio listeners. Replete with urgent melodies, quirky confessional narratives, wry humor, and gargantuan hooks, Weezer (Blue Album) remains the best geek-rock record ever made.

Mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on 180 gram LP at RTI, Mobile Fidelity’s analog version of the 1994 release finally possesses the grand-scale sonics that the music’s bunker-busting hooks deserve. Cars frontman Ric Ocasek’s polished production is now both free of artificial ceilings that squashed the explosive dynamics and rid of the compression that saddled the frequency range. Instrumental separation is vastly improved, and the amount of midrange energy seemingly doubled. This reissue is guaranteed to help you rock out.

Underdogs and misfits, Weezer emerged from Los Angeles as nerdy kids that eschewed traditional party-hard ways in favor of studying Kiss records, engaging in conversations about old LPs, and playing Dungeons and Dragons. The band’s awkwardness joyfully translates in its songs on its 1994 debut, largely concerned with jealous insecurities, pop culture, true-to-life heartbreak, common accidents, youthful misconceptions, and daydreaming. Unlike many of their indie-rock peers, Weezer finds no need to conceal feelings in obscurities, snark, or impossibly impenetrable quirkiness.

While every song on Weezer is a delight, “In the Garage,” the ultimate ode to a heavy-metal practice space and private musical retreat, best spells out the album’s appeal and the band’s intent. “I’ve got an electric guitar/I play my stupid songs/I write these stupid words/And I love every one/Waiting there for me/Yes I do, I do/In the garage/No one cares about my ways/In the garage where I belong” sings leader Rivers Cuomo, his voice often meshing with that of Matt Sharp, and giving the material a barbershop-quartet harmonic boost in line with the catchiness of the guitar-driven bridges and rhythmic foundations.

More than three-times platinum, the Blue Album, as it’s often called, also claims an iconic cover that pays tribute to that of the Feelies’ Crazy Rhythms. The picture—as well as the bubblegum-inspired content within—has become an indelible part of modern culture. Weezer graces must-have lists from Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, Guitar World, and more. And needless to say, “My Name Is Jonas,” “Say It Ain’t So,” “Buddy Holly,” and “Undone (The Sweater Song)” are all modern classics.

Track Listing:
1. My Name Is Jonas
2. No One Else
3. The World Has Turned and Left Me Here
4. Buddy Holly
5. Undone (The Sweater Song)
6. Surf Wax America
7. Say It Ain’t So
8. In the Garage
9. Holiday
10. Only in Dreams

Released exactly six years after the band’s Pinkerton album, The Lion and the Witch was designed as a collector’s item. Limited to 25,000 copies on CD, the EP captures Weezer performances from Japan in Spring 2002. In addition to spirited takes of six favorite tunes, the mini-album contains a number of unique characteristics long-prized by fans. And it’s never been on LP. Until now.

Mastered from the original master tapes and pressed at RTI, Mobile Fidelity’s 180g LP presents the music in the best fidelity it’s ever enjoyed and puts music lovers feet away from Weezer’s onstage position. Moreover, the celebrated artwork—designed by Los Angeles-based duo kozyndan—can finally be appreciated in large-scale format. In every way, this reissue brings to fans everywhere the EP’s myriad simple pleasures for the very first time. It’s an ideal and integral part of the ongoing mainstream vinyl resurrection.

Originally expressly intended for indie record stores, The Lion and the Witch lasts just over 25 minutes yet makes up for brevity in terms of fun, looseness, and uniqueness. The band plays the rare instrumental “Polynesia” before lighting into “Dope Nose” and commits a few lovable gaffes throughout.

Specifically, leader Rivers Cuomo begins the third verse of “El Scorcho” too soon and bassist Scott Shriner forgets the words to “Holiday,” causing his fellow band members to break out in laughter. Warts and all, this hook-ridden affair is a souvenir-worthy snapshot of an excellent pop-rock band relishing in its identity as geeks and goofballs.

Don’t pass up the chance to grab this piece of memorabilia. Whether you own this on CD or were never fortunate enough to snag a copy, it’s never sounded better.

Track Listing:
1. Polynesia/Dope Nose
2. Island in the Sun
3. Falling for You
4. Death and Destruction
5. El Scorcho
6. Holiday

Meticulously Produced 1989 Orchestral Pop Work Includes Top 40 Hits “Sowing the Seeds of Love” and “Woman In Chains”

Vocalist Oleta Adams Debuts and Aids English Pop-Rock Duo’s Pursuit of Soul, Gospel Strains

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI: LP Brings Intricate Melodicism to Foreground

Having elected to defy tradition and wait four years to release a follow-up to their commercial breakthrough Songs From the Big Chair, Tears for Fears expand their creative prowess on The Seeds of Love. Opting for grand melodies over radio-targeted hooks and reflecting a slightly sunnier disposition, the compositions establish an even closer relationship to soulful roots and hint at gospel undercurrents. The duo, too, also discovered a secret weapon in the person of Oleta Adams.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, this Silver Label LP resolves with striking clarity and precision the myriad layers of orchestral-themed information that pack jazzy fare such as “Standing on the Corner of the Third World” and balladic turns like “Year of the Knife.” Distinguished with sumptuous production techniques that reportedly cost more than one million pounds to realize, the album benefits from the enhanced spaciousness, bigger soundstages, increased atmospherics, and amplified dynamic contrasts afforded by this audiophile collector’s edition.

While again pursuing themes associated emotional hurt and healing, Tears for Fears take a more grandiose turn on arrangements steeped in suite-like forms and epic pop psychedelia. Adams lends warmth via her gospel-shot vocals as well as her female presence. She grounds songs with a combination of gentle poignancy and soaring theatricality, bringing a can’t-miss energy to rigorously crafted works that aim for a lasting transcendence independent of radio interest.

Of course, with the proudly bombastic “Sowing the Seeds of Love” and “Woman In Chains,” Tears for Fears again found chart-scraping success, the hits rewards for uncompromising boldness and this record’s expertly polished sound. The group’s sonic evolution is also apparent on the album cover: an eye-popping, colorful montage suggestive of the music’s harlequin textures and stylish devices replaces the stark, grey-hued image carried by its predecessor. Here’s a set that you can fairly judge by the cover.

Legendary Live Set Features Horn Arrangements by Allen Toussaint

Incredible Sound and Virtuosic Performances

The Last Waltz gets bigger billing, but The Band’s 1972 live album Rock of Ages is actually the better representation of a live Band album. Recorded at the tail end of the group’s Cahoots tour and over the course of four nights at New York’s Academy of Music at the end of December 1971, the incendiary concert set bookmarks the close of the first phase of the collective’s career.

Rather than follow the lead of most other live records made at the time (and many since), The Band resists any temptation to improvise or extend its material. Instead, the group plays with an intensity, chemistry, and spirit that’s nearly unrivaled by any other live album. The quintet also draws on a secret weapon: One Allen Toussaint, who tailors expert horn arrangements for multiple songs, a move that spices renditions of classics such as “Don’t Do It” and “Chest Fever.” To top it all off, the horn charts are performed by the Rock of Ages Horn Section—a five-piece ensemble that includes legendary trumpeter Snooky Young (Count Basie, Lionel Hampton) and saxophonist Joe Farrell (Charles Mingus, Elvin Jones).

“I felt very much at home with The Band. You could tell in their music they know where they’re coming from and they know where they’re going. Each one had an extremely special interest in what they were doing.” –Toussaint, as told to Rob Bowman

Do they ever. Unencumbered by the myriad guests and grandiose sense that define The Last Waltz, and energized by Toussaint’s invaluable work, Rock of Ages is the sound of a great band pulling out all the stops. Robbie Robertson’s guitar solos take “Unfaithful Servant” to a higher ground; “The W.S. Walcott Medicine Show” kicks with raunchy R&B abandon; Garth Hudson delivers a show-stealing performance on “The Genetic Method,” a thrilling organ piece that incorporates elements of Anglican church music, folk, classical, and pop—as well as “Auld Lang Syne,” due to its being recorded on New Year’s Eve.

After various inferior editions and reissues, Rock of Ages is finally presented on an immaculate-sounding 180g 2LP set from Mobile Fidelity that lets Toussaint’s contributions, horn section’s energy, and the Band’s feverish interplay shine like never before. Mastered from the original tapes, the open, airy, natural, and balanced sound will have you returning to Rock of Ages again and again.

Track Listing:
1. Introduction / Don’t Do It
2. King Harvest (Has Surely Come)
3. Caledonia Mission
4. Get Up Jake
5. The W.S. Walcott Medicine Show
6. Stage Fright
7. The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
8. Across The Great Divide
9. This Wheel’s On Fire
10. Rag Mama Rag
11. The Weight
12. The Shape I’m In
13. Unfaithful Servant
14. Life Is A Carnival
15. The Genetic Method
16. Chest Fever
17. (I Don’t Want To) Hang Up My Rock And Roll Shoes

Urgent 1987 Breakthrough Catapulted Band to Stardom: Includes Classics Such as “The One I Love” and Unforgettable “It’s the End of the World As We Know It”

Half-Speed Mastered From the Original Master Tapes: RTI-Pressed 180 gram LP Abounds With Incredible Dynamics, Faithful Tonalities, and Tremendous Imaging

Scott Litt-Produced Set Overflows With Mature Creativity, Fiery Intent, Catchy Hooks, and Stellar Songwriting

The last album R.E.M. made before migrating to Warner Bros., and very arguably the last start-to-finish masterpiece the band created in its acclaimed career, Document turned Georgia’s celebrated sons into mainstream stars. Musically unadulterated and sonically pure, the group’s 1987 work epitomizes the unmistakable sound and feeling of college rock during a period where innocence, experimentation, and adventurousness freely collided before being co-opted and branded as “alt-rock.” Document is the record to which everyone refers when citing R.E.M. as the premier example of how a respected band is expected to behave, evolve, and maintain its integrity after experiencing mass success.

Mastered from the original master tapes and carefully pressed at RTI, Mobile Fidelity’s numbered limited-edition 180g LP edition of this breakthrough set explodes with unrivaled instrumental signatures, deep soundstages, and faithful tonalities that allow listeners insight into the actual makes and models of the guitars utilized on the recording. Sharp and clean, Scott Litt’s widescreen production throws the band into clear relief, magnifying its razor-edged melodies and drummer Bill Berry’s foundation-establishing beats. R.E.M. has never sounded so muscular or righteous.

Indeed, the quartet plays as if on a mission, its electrified energy teeming with a contagious fervor that helps fuel political numbers such “Welcome to the Occupation,” “Exhuming McCarthy,” “Disturbance at the Heron House,” and “King of Birds.” R.E.M. comes into its own, peeling back the layers on vagueness and utilizing Michael Stipe’s biting lyrics and Mike Mills’ amped-up guitar riffs to punctuate its catchy fare. Aptly, songs dance around a central image of fire.

The group’s hallmark jangle-pop motifs and swooning refrains remain, yet they exhibit a determined attitude and wily quality that brings everything up to another notch. Toss in surf-rock fills, feedback accents, deep-South rootsiness, and subversive undertones, and Document stands as near-flawless statement: A reaction to the social and material currency of its era, a call-to-arms to overcome trauma via hope, humor, and justified anger.

All these characteristics bleed into the manic anthem “It’s the End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine),” a renegade shot of beat poetry, delirious delivery, punk-infused vitality, and bounce-around-the-room chaotic abandon that never grows stale. Is R.E.M. serious or joking? Or both? Part of the genius is that it’s still impossible to tell. R.E.M. delights in taking listeners for a ride on Document, the swerving, drifting, stylistic interplay, and brief detours all of a whole, the group relishing in the fun of going for broke and succeeding at all of its goals.

We don’t need to go on about R.E.M.’s standing as a group that’s influenced countless artists and inspired millions of listeners. If you own just one of the quartet’s albums, it should be Document.

Track Listing:
1. Finest Worksong
2. Welcome to the Occupation
3. Exhuming McCarthy
4. Disturbance at the Heron House
5. Strange
6. It’s the End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
7. The One I Love
8. Fireplace
9. Lightnin’ Hopkins
10. King of Birds
11. Oddfellows Local 151

Where Are You? is perfect in every sense. Recorded when Frank Sinatra was 42, the torch album finds him in impeccable voice and spirit. The dozen tracks fit together as a unified whole; it’s difficult to imagine one song missing, or another added. Arranger Gordon Jenkins reads Sinatra’s mind, affording him with lush arrangements that break hearts and underscore deliberation. Topping it off, Sinatra’s interpretive skills utterly astonish. Genres aside, this 1957 Capitol classic is inarguably one of the ten-best vocal pop efforts made in the 1950s.

The record’s splendid beauty and unparalleled emotionalism surface like never before on Mobile Fidelity’s numbered, limited edition 180g mono LP. Mastered from the original master tapes, this mono version focuses the instrumentalists, images, vocals, and ambience in a transparent manner that exceeds the detail on the more-common stereo version. In addition, this reissue marks the first time this gem has been made available in mono in several decades. Akin to Mobile Fidelity’s previous Sinatra titles, the sound and clarity on this LP takes the Voice into your room, puts him on an imaginary studio stage, and gives you your own private concert.

While not as known as Only the Lonely, Where Are You? is its creative equivalent, a poignant masterwork on which Sinatra reflects on what could have been, ponders life’s deep questions, elicits sympathy via romantic distress, and does whatever it takes to get through the night. It is one of Sinatra’s alone-at-the-bar statements, his fedora pulled slightly over his eyes, his face fixated on his drink, his only friend the understanding bartender that will keep pouring until last call. Throughout, Sinatra delves into sorrow and desolation. Yet unlike the stark gloom and bleak bitterness on In the Wee Small Hours, this solitary statement echoes with an accepting wistfulness and maturity that parallels a change of seasons—or situations.

Jenkins’ warm, classically informed arrangements grant Sinatra the sentiments and support he needs. The sumptuous melodies and burnished strings complement the singer’s completely natural delivery; seldom has Sinatra sounded so relaxed, dramatic, warm, cello-like, and in a zone. His lyrical phrasing and rhythmic time-keeping are spot-on; his soulfulness and sensitivity of another world. Sinatra’s renditions of “Laura,” “Autumn Leaves,” and “Lonely Town” are the reference-bearing performances of these famous standards. If you are a fan of vocal music, consider this album mandatory.

Track Listing:
1. Where Are You?
2. The Night We Called It A Day
3. I Cover the Waterfront
4. Maybe You’ll Be There
5. Laura
6. Lonely Town
7. Autumn Leaves
8. I’m a Fool to Want You
9. I Think of You
10. Where Is the One?
11. There’s No You
12. Baby Won’t You Please Come Home

Includes Original Version of "Whipping Post," Cover of Muddy Waters' "Trouble No More"

They hailed from Macon, Georgia. They looked liked any number of young, hopeful bands straddling the violent fade of the 1960s with the advent of the 1970s. They missed the British Invasion-triggered blues revival by several years. Yet they sounded like no other group, their youthfulness belied by virtuosic abilities and interlocking interplay Miles Davis would've envied. It all starts here, on a smoldering self-titled debut that has few peers.

Mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelity's 180 gram LP of The Allman Brothers Band joins the unparalleled reissue imprint’s other Allman titles in presenting the inimitable group's music in the most lifelike, uncompromising fidelity anyone has ever heard. Opening up the dynamic contrasts, clearing direct paths for the frequency ranges, and ensuring optimal balances and neutrality, this edition takes listeners to the producer’s chair at New York’s Atlantic Studios as the sessions went down. The Allman Brothers Band has never sounded so crisp, clear, or defined.

Having already cut its collective teeth via live shows throughout the South, the Allman Brothers Band was properly vetted for its initial major-label foray. In particular, Gregg and Duane Allman had done stints in several other collectives that recorded a handful of long-forgotten records. Duane, too, established himself as a go-to whiz-kid slide and lead guitarist, becoming a session instrumentalist for Muscle Shoals’ FAME Studios and playing with the likes of Aretha Franklin, Percy Sledge, Wilson Pickett, and others.

He and organist/vocalist Gregg’s deft touch and innate knack for soulful tonalities help define his namesake group’s eponymous debut, notched with raw-boned R&B and purifying gospel motifs that seeped into the duo’s consciousness while growing up in Jacksonville. Complemented by likeminded lead guitarist Dickey Betts and a trio of similarly minded masters, the siblings quickly changed history on this 1969 set famous for stunningly resonant blues, spirit-moving soul, and polyrhythmic rock.

Entering with a memorable one-two punch in which fluid jazz lines mutate into an anguished 12-bar blues exchange between Gregg and Duane, continuing with an edgy and worthy take of Muddy Waters’ “Trouble No More,” and closing with the landscape-shifting workout "Whipping Post," a preview of things to come, The Allman Brothers Band contains no flaws. Then there’s the aching of "Dreams," a melodic 12/8-time piece showcasing slide-guitar voodoo and psychedelic aftertastes. Don’t miss this stellar work.

Track Listing:
1. Don’t Want You No More
2. It's Not My Cross to Bear
3. Black Hearted Woman
4. Trouble No More
5. Every Hungry Woman
6. Dreams
7. Whipping Post

The South Rises Again: Bluesy, Hard-Rocking 1973 Debut Raised Southern Rock Flag

Landmark Release Includes Ageless “Free Bird,” “Tuesday’s Gone,” “Gimme Three Steps,” “Simple Man”

Rawness Never Felt So Real: Mobile Fidelity LP Affords Triple-Guitar Array, Gritty Lead Vocals Plentiful Space and Rich Tonalities

Forget, for a moment, “Free Bird.” Consider, instead, the authentic down-home rowdiness, distinctive first-person narratives, searing triple-guitar front, gritty vocals, and bluesy boogie bluster. And the undeniable youthful hunger pumping through the subtly witty songs, all strongly rooted in Southern heritage and working-class values. Independent of the most-requested tune in history, Pronounced Leh-nerd Skin-nerd bleeds red, white, and blue and encapsulates the wondrous dichotomies of Southern rock.

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on 180g LP at RTI, Mobile Fidelity’s vinyl edition of the Floridian group’s ground-shaking debut is the equivalent of having access to the band’s amplifiers and producer Al Kooper’s control boards in the studio. Affording palpable spaciousness to each of the instruments, expanding the dynamic range, and clearing away previous tonal congestion, this version presents the septet’s raw, honest tunes in the most direct, hard-hitting sound they’ve ever enjoyed. It lays waste to all prior reissues—none of which on LP went back to the master tapes.

Months before Lynyrd Skynyrd enjoyed the privilege of recording its debut, the band entered its seventh year of playing juke joints and assorted dives in a bootstraps effort to land a deal. During a residency at a hardscrabble Georgian club, the group’s rambunctious rock, swaggering attitude, blue-collar determination, and country-reared cadence caught the ear of producer/musician Al Kooper. The rest is history. Kooper inked the ensemble to his new imprint and hustled everyone into a Georgia studio for sessions that occurred March through April 1973.

It’s at the Studio One space that Lynyrd Skynyrd flashed scampering tempos, cutting give-and-take riffs, loose barroom lines, and off-the-cuff vocalese that entirely separated its approach from that of the more jazz-styled affairs of the Allman Brothers Band. Confederate flags, empty whiskey bottles, cocked pistols, rotgut habits, scorned women, and prodigal drifters populate the songs, nearly all written from first-person perspectives that add to their genuineness. Prophetic touches—twinkling piano notes, soaring mellotrons, a one-off harmonica—provide ideal complements to the intertwined guitar melodies and singer Ronnie Van Zant’s comfortable gruffness and way of expressing local customs.

Whether it’s the them’s-fightin’-words edginess of the humorous albeit entirely believable Southern-etched yarn “Gimme Three Steps,” which sails on a triple mast of six-string exchanges and clicks heels to a trotting percussive beat that doubles as the sound of cowboy-boot heels, or the spiritual pleas and lived-in wisdom echoed on the barbed-wire balladry of “Simple Man,” Pronounced Leh-nerd Skin-nerd burns with forthright and freewheeling desire, rebellious and sincere earnestness. Seen from either a lyrical, musical, or performance perspective, there’s not a wasted second or awkward moment to be found.

Then, of course, there’s the sugary drip of Van Zant’s political ragtime-referencing affair “Things Goin’ On,” bluegrass-tinted swing of “Mississippi Kid,” and swampy get-go of “Poison Whiskey.” They all lead up to the epic “Free Bird,” a greasy slide-guitar anthem that no matter how many times it’s played or requested in jest, never loses its power to grip the listener’s emotions like an iron vice. What a record.

Track Listing:
1. I Ain’t the One
2. Tuesday’s Gone
3. Gimme Three Steps
4. Simple Man
5. Things Goin’ On
6. Mississippi Kid
7. Poison Whiskey
8. Free Bird

Includes Duet With Johnny Cash, Plus "Lay Lady Lay" and "Tonight I'll Be Staying Here With You"

For an artist whose career is flush with enigma, myth, and disguise, Nashville Skyline still surprises more than almost any other Bob Dylan move more four decades after its original release. Distinguished from every other Dylan album by virtue of the smooth vocal performances and simple ease, the 1969 record witnesses the icon's full-on foray into country and trailblazing of the country-rock movement that followed. Cozy, charming, and warm, the rustic set remains for many hardcore fans the Bard's most enjoyable effort. And most inimitable. The result of quitting smoking, Dylan's voice is in pristine shape, nearly unidentifiable from the nasal wheeze and folk accents displayed on prior records.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, this restored 45RPM analog version zeroes in on the shocking purity and never-again-replicated croon of Dylan’s vocals. Enhanced, too, are the images associated with the calmly strummed and picked acoustic guitars and decay connected to the fading notes. The dimensions and ambience of the Columbia studio translate via subtle echoes and natural blend of instruments melding with one another, akin to honey integrating with tea. Providing comparably soothing effects, relaxing vibes pour forth from this reissue, which affords this masterpiece the fidelity it’s always deserved. Wider grooves mean more information reaches your ears.

“Is it rolling, Bob?,” Dylan famously queries producer Bob Johnson at the beginning of “To Be Alone With You,” indicating the laissez-faire feelings that surrounded the sessions and helped yield the laidback, convivial music defining the album—arguably the most unique in the artist’s vast catalog. While he dipped his toes into country waters on the preceding John Wesley Harding, Nashville Skyline throws its collective arms around the style in bear-hug fashion and drops any obvious folk references. Everything from the songs’ moods to the amicable arrangements reacts against the era’s turmoil and popular sounds.

This beautiful and beautifully executed effort might stand as Dylan’s most effective protest ever, even if many missed the point upon original release. Advocating peace, love, and old-world allure without calling attention to any characteristic in an overly forward manner, Dylan frames the songs as ballads, rags, lullabies, and gentle honky-tonk dances. He adheres to expeditious brevity, keeping the arrangements tight and free of any filler, thus allowing the melodies to immediately work their magic and place hummable memories inside listeners’ heads.

Indeed, if any Dylan masterpiece is overlooked, it's Nashville Skyline. In addition to his superb singing and infallible songs, Dylan enjoys backing from a crackerjack assembly of Nashville session musicians including Charlie Daniels, Marshall Grant, W.S. Holland, Charlie McCoy, Ken Buttrey, and Norman Blake. Country pros, and their respective performances, don't come any better.

As much as on any of his records, Dylan resides in a good place, mentally and emotionally. The idyllic, warmhearted environs of Nashville Skyline stand apart now just as they did in the late 1960s. The sincerity conveyed on the inviting “Lay Lady Lay,” relief sighed on the romantic “Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You,” and unlimited promise expressed on the jittery “To Be Alone With You” parallel the lessons-learned yearning and genuine desire found on “One More Night,” bracing “I Threw It All Away,” and eternal “Girl From the North Country,” performed to perfection with Johnny Cash.

Track Listing:
1. Girl From the North Country
2. Nashville Skyline Rag
3. To Be Alone With You
4. I Threw It All Away
5. Peggy Day
6. Lay Lady Lay
7. One More Night
8. Tell Me That It Isn't True
9. Country Pie
10. Tonight I'll Be Staying Here With You

Stunning 45RPM Reissue Boasts Phenomenally Open Sound: New Morning Has Never Enjoyed Better Fidelity

The album might have saved Bob Dylan’s career. At the least, it proved the icon still relevant, and his wits still in tact. And it immediately followed what remains the artist’s biggest disaster, the yet-unexplained and forever puzzling Self Portrait, a nearly unlistenable attempt that caused many to wonder whether Dylan had lost his mind. If intended as a joke, it bombed, making the sublime New Morning all the more important to restore faith in the singer’s creativity and songwriting prowess. It did all this and more, and stands as his finest studio effort during a five-year span.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, this restored 45RPM analog version spotlights the open, woozy sound that welcomes wholeheartedly Dylan’s piano, several eager guitars, female background singers, Al Kooper’s organ, and snappy drumming into a world of their own. New Morning remains one of Dylan’s loosest and jovial affairs, the instruments retaining an off-the-cuff sensibility relating to a nightclub atmosphere or live stage feel. On this reissue, notes naturally dangle and fade, allowing the playful vibes and humor to come through like never before. Consequently, the album can be experienced with a new perspective. Wider grooves mean more information reaches your ears.

“Many of the songs seem to have been made up on the spot, with confidence in the ability of first-rate musicians to move in any direction at any time,” wrote Dylan expert and cultural critic Greil Marcus in his original review for the New York Times. “The riffs, inventions, and studio jams of New Morning have their own personality…the full joy of anticipating the right move and the exhilaration of hitting it square and bouncing off a chord into a new lyric.”

These observations hold true today, for the 1970 effort claims a daring flair Dylan rarely exhibited on albums before or since. Enthusiasm and excitement surround his singing, and his work on the 88s underlines the liberating arrangements. Offbeat and eclectic, the record frolics and swings, with the Bard and his crack band pursuing jazzy steps (“Sign on the Window”), shuffling spoken-word experiments (“If Dogs Run Free”), and soulful rock (“The Man In Me,” used to wonderful and prominent effect in the Coen Brothers film The Big Lebowski).

Throughout, Dylan’s phrasing communicates joyousness and simplicity seemingly carried over from the stripped-down John Wesley Harding and Nashville Skyline. The record’s dominant sentiments trace to the lead track, “If Not For You,” one of the singer’s all-time greatest singles, stitched with country threads and warmth that pervades everything that follows. Yes, New Morning may lack the iconic status of some of Dylan’s better-known records. Yet the underdog stature makes repeat listens all the more rewarding.

Track Listing:
1. If Not for You
2. Day of the Locusts
3. Time Passes Slowly
4. Went to See the Gypsy
5. Winterlude
6. If Dogs Run Free
7. New Morning
8. Sign on the Window
9. One More Weekend
10. The Man In Me
11. Three Angels
12. Father of Night

Includes Anthems Such as "Blowin' in the Wind," "The Times They Are A-Changin'," "Like A Rolling Stone," and "Mr. Tambourine Man"

Ten songs that ultimately changed the world. Ten songs pulled from precedent-establishing albums recorded between 1963 and 1966. More than five-million copies sold. In every way, Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits is a fundamental collection for every music lover, and the perfect choice for those seeking an introduction into the legend's vast career. For this is a collection so prized, even the cover photo won a Grammy.

Mastered from the original master tapes on Mobile Fidelity’s world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, this restored 45RPM analog version offers listeners of all stripes to hear some of the world’s most important music ever recorded in supreme fidelity. While the tracks stem from several different albums, on this release, they share more in common than Bob Dylan—they share rich, sonic traits steeped in astounding dynamics, great balances, tremendous soundstaging, and realistic imaging. Wider grooves mean more information reaches your ears.

Greatest-hits volumes are often hit-and-miss propositions not because of what they contain, but because of what’s missing. Filtering the top selections from the six formative, life-altering albums Dylan made between 1963 and 1966 is an arbitrary process but one performed impeccably on this set. Home to his biggest chart successes as well as his most influential songs, Bob Dylan’s Greatest Hits is a veritable template for any aspiring singer-songwriter, an American history lesson, and a seminal release for anyone new to his work—as well as for audiences that find some of his deeper cuts an acquired taste.

Every signature facet of Dylan is represented, and done so authoritatively. Serious, protest folk anthems (“Blowin’ in the Wind,” “The Times Are A-Changin’”) sit alongside defiant rock statements (“Positively Fourth Street”), landscape-changing epics (“Like a Rolling Stone”), beautiful blues-inspired odes (“I Want You”), and surrealist dreamscapes (“Subterranean Homesick Blues”). Infused with literary poetry, impassioned emotion, and career-making performances, this material doubles as a definitive account of American culture and society, and functions as a soundtrack to the era’s social movements.

Gathered in one place, it’s no wonder the songs here gave Dylan what remains the biggest-selling album of his career. Accept nothing less than the best version in existence.

Track Listing:
1. Rainy Day Women #12 & 35
2. Blowin' In The Wind
3. The Times They Are A-Changin'
4. It Ain't Me, Babe
5. Like A Rolling Stone
6. Mr. Tambourine Man
7. Subterranean Homesick Blues
8. I Want You
9. Positively 4th Street
10. Just Like A Woman

Transparent to the Source: Hyper-Detailed 45RPM Pressing Brings the Simple Sounds of Dylan’s Voice, Acoustic Guitar, and Harmonica into Lifelike Perspective

Bob Dylan’s self-titled 1962 debut is as understated of an entrance as any significant musician as ever made. Already well-versed in American roots music, Dylan simultaneously pays homage to tradition and extends it by putting his own stamp on classic material that metaphorically functions as the soil of our contemporary songs and styles. Free of ego, and performed with masterful conviction, Bob Dylan ranks with the debut efforts of similar artistic giants Elvis Presley and the Rolling Stones.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, this restored 180 gram 45RPM 2LP analog version brings the contents of this seminal release as closest as they’ve ever come to master tape-quality. Transparent to the source, the simple sounds of Dylan’s voice, acoustic guitar, and harmonica take on lifelike perspective and dimensions—the “husk and bark” to which Robert Shelton referred in his now-legendary New York Times review of a Dylan appearance at Gerde’s Folk City. MoFi has made possible an inexpensive time-traveling trip back to the Greenwich Village coffeehouses and folk clubs in which Dylan cut his teeth, albeit in much better fidelity and without any annoying background noise. Wider grooves mean more information reaches your ears.

Much has been made of the commercial indifference that greeted the album upon its low-key release. Yet focusing on sales figures and the reaction of a public not yet hip to Dylan’s name or music is to miss the forest for the trees. Distinguished from the era’s other folk efforts by way of the determination, brazenness, and lived-through-this worldliness Dylan approaches the material and sings the songs, Dylan lays the groundwork for the path he’d soon trailblaze and everyone else would follow.

By nodding to Woody Guthrie at the same time he completely re-imagines a sobering tune such as Blind Lemon Jefferson’s “See That My Grave Is Kept Clean,” Dylan straddles the past and future. He also displays, with challenging authority and savant-like expertise, the ability to handle weighty topics such as death, sorrow, and lamentation with the vaudeville flair, bluesy mannerisms, and poignant command of an artist three times his age.

As Dylan scholar and pop-culture critic Greil Marcus observed in 2010, “Everybody knew Joan Baez and the Kingston Trio; if you knew Bob Dylan, you knew something other people didn’t, something that soon enough everybody had to know. Within a year, an album could put an adjective in front of the singer’s name as if it were already common coin.” It all starts here.

Track Listing:
1. You're No Good
2. Talkin' New York
3. In My Time of Dyin'
4. Man of Constant Sorrow
5. Fixin' to Die
6. Pretty Peggy-O
7. Highway 51
8. Gospel Plow
9. Baby, Let Me Follow You Down
10. House of the Risin' Sun
11. Freight Train Blues
12. Song to Woody
13. See That My Grave Is Kept Clean

Includes Original Version of "All Along the Watchtower"

Leave it to Bob Dylan to follow three of the most pioneering electric-based albums in history by again deviating from the norm and straying from expectation. Hinting at a return to his folk roots and firmly pointing toward the field that became country rock, John Wesley Harding breathes with relief and freshness, the sound of an artist re-engaging with the past, forging a future, and stepping into new realms after recovering from an accident and unimaginable pressure.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, this restored 45RPM analog version presents the 1967 album with the finite details and impressionistic tones. Immediately notable for the slimmed-down instrumentation, brisk flow, and simple approach, the record continues to endure via a rustic, era-defying naturalism tied to the organic sounds and warm production swathing Dylan’s acoustic guitar, mellow voice, breezy harmonica, and minor accompaniments. All of these traits translate with incredible realism and lifelike air on this reissue, which also brings out the low end of Charlie McCoy’s bass with a previously unheard supple character. Wider grooves mean more information reaches your ears.

Recorded around the same time as the sessions that yielded The Basement Tapes, John Wesley Harding came together after just three studio sessions and approximately 12 hours of time. While many specifics are shrouded in mystery, a majority of songs are tied to Biblical figures, ominous matters, and morality themes. Making not just a clear sonic break from his most recent efforts, but a songwriting transformation as well, Dylan embraces a strict economy of scale, dropping beat-poetry techniques in favor of stanzas that waste no words and progress narratives at every turn. It’s as if the Bard is saying that truth is spoken here. Few, if any artists, have captured the American myth and its population of immigrants, drifters, and outlaws with such convincing scope and parabolic sagacity.

Combined with the lyrical evolution and unabashed move towards country conventions, Dylan manages to turn popular music on its side, forging a subdued hybrid style no other peers had yet attempted. Arriving during a period of intense experimentalism and psychedelia, John Wesley Harding functions as a sigh of relief, a piano- and pedal steel-flavored set steeped in requisite simplicity in an environment that was increasingly marked by chaos and madness.

Climbing to number two on the Billboard charts and quickly tallying one million in sales, the pared-down work resonated with a public ensnared by its myriad charms. Then, of course, there’s the utter brilliance of every one of the songs here, each seemingly occupying a timeless space that suggests they could’ve been made in 1967, 1937, or 2007. With “All Along the Watchtower,” Dylan landed upon a tune that would soon become one of the most-covered and revered tracks in history. And yet it isn’t even a standout on an album on which every note just belongs.

Track Listing:
1. John Wesley Harding
2. As I Went Out One Morning
3. I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine
4. All Along the Watchtower
5. The Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest
6. Drifter's Escape
7. Dear Landlord
8. I Am a Lonesome Hobo
9. I Pity the Poor Immigrant
10. The Wicked Messenger
11. Down Along the Cove
12. I'll Be Your Baby Tonight

Dylan's Radical Rearrangements of Classics Give Songs Renewed Meaning and Relevance

The live reunion of Bob Dylan and The Band during 1973-74 yielded one of the decade's most celebrated, dynamic, and astonishing tours. Captured on Before the Flood, the results portray the two artists' shared chemistry as well as Dylan's instinctive ability to challenge audiences, his group, and himself via inventive rearrangements of classics that simultaneously ward off nostalgia and renew with meaning. Said by noted critic Robert Christgau to be "at its best, [the] craziest and strongest rock and roll ever recorded," Before the Flood crackles with intensity, relevance, and unhinged performances.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, this restored analog version cracks wide open the ceiling previously obscuring many of the tonal details, revealing microdynamics, and vocal nuances on the recording. Distinguished with an immediately recognizable sound, The Band comes across in three-dimensional form, while Dylan takes center stage, feet from your listening chair. The two artists play like two souls in communion, a facet displayed here courtesy of the increased airiness, enhanced soundstage depth, and lifelike imaging.

There’s so much new information here, this already-iconic album only gains in stature. As experienced on Mobile Fidelity, Before the Flood unquestionably takes its place as one of the ten-best concert releases ever made. Notes are rounded, Garth Hudson’s organ claims a tube-like glow, Levon Helm’s drumming possesses its own space, voices are perceptible all the way down the singers’ throats, and Dylan’s awe-inspiring phrasing resonates with palpable urgency. Audiophiles and Dylan fans, prepare to be astonished.

Arriving at a crucial time for both Dylan and The Band, Before the Flood is the furthest thing possible from a nostalgia trip. It’s where Dylan begins his now-trademark feat of turning songs upside-down, taking risks, surprising and challenging expectations, leaving audiences riveted to the edge of their seats in anticipation of what might come next. He sings with unabated passion, the moods spanning bitterness to jubilation, his willingness to play fast and loose with the music giving way to compelling shifts, under-the-surface textures, complementary intricacies, and a sense of newness and discovery on par with that of an adventurer embracing total freedom.

Before the Flood buries any notion of limits, safeguards, or borders. It is an open map, each song a route begging for exploration without need or concern for exactness or an appointed leader. Collaborative in every sense, it’s a portrait of six inimitable musicians feeding off one another, trusting in their past history as they hurdle towards uncharted territory, using soulfulness as a compass and opportunity as their vehicle.

Wholly different than the live episodes heard on Bob Dylan Live 1966, The “Royal Albert Hall” Concert, Before the Flood is equally seminal and, from the perspective of witnessing an artist dare not only his audience but himself to break through to a new plane, even better. Utterly astounding.

Track Listing:
1. Most Likely You'll Go Your Way (And I'll Go Mine)
2. Lay Lady Lay
3. Rainy Day Women #12 & #35
4. Knockin' on Heaven's Door
5. It Ain't Me Babe
6. Ballad of a Thin Man
7. Up on Cripple Creek
8. I Shall Be Released
9. Endless Highway
10. The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
11. Stage Fright
12. Don't Think Twice, It's All Right
13. Just Like a Woman
14. It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)
15. The Shape I'm In
16. When You Awake
17. The Weight
18. All Along the Watchtower
19. Highway 61 Revisited
20. Like a Rolling Stone
21. Blowin' in the Wind

1965 Set Also Includes "Ballad of a Thin Man," "Desolation Row," and "Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues"

Its title references the road that spans North Minnesota to the Mississippi Delta, and the formative blues, country, and roots sounds connected to its existence. The highway also lays claim to towering musical myths and deaths, many tied to the blues lexicon and narrative. All figure prominently on the revolutionary beacon that is Highway 61 Revisited, the 1965 set that overturned rules, upended preexisting limits, and utterly changed everything in its path. Ranked the fourth-greatest album ever made by Rolling Stone, its reach, power, and content boggle the mind nearly five decades after its release.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s world-renowned mastering system and pressed on 180 gram LP at RTI, this restored 45RPM analog version presents the life-altering music in reference-quality sound—so much so that the record’s famous first lightning-strike note is now indeed the “snare shot that sound[s] like somebody’d kicked open the door to your mind,” as once described by Bruce Springsteen.

Teeming with organic energy, palpable voltage, and countless textures, the LP faithfully recreates the dimensions, vibes, and events associated with the six days Dylan and Co. spent at Columbia’s Studio A. Everything from the soundstages to dynamics, instrumental separation to balances, resonates with enormous might and insightful perspective. Wider grooves mean more information reaches your ears.

Recorded amidst a time of unfathomable turmoil and frustration that witnessed Dylan booed by fans, labeled a traitor, and call into question his work, Highway 61 Revisited roars and snarls, jabs and criticizes. Its bonfire of cynicism, fury, indignation, and absurdity forever transformed rock, what it could mean, and what it could do. Supported by a thundering, commanding band that included guitarist Mike Bloomfield and organist Al Kooper, Dylan hopscotches between tempos, moods, and melodies. The symmetry of the songs references a scattered hybrid of R&B, blues, folk, soul, gospel, vaudeville, and garage rock pieces that Dylan assembles in the shape of a brilliant, mind-teasing aural puzzle.

Outside of “Like a Rolling Stone”—the six-minute-plus anthem that both challenged and chewed up all preconceived notions of an acceptable radio single by way of its length, ambition, and vitriol—every tune was captured shortly after Dylan’s contentious performance at the Newport Folk Festival. The lingering impact of the hostility comes through in both the searing music and rich, literate, zinging poetry. Dylan’s sneering tones, raucous arrangements, and unmistakable resentment toward both the establishment and counterculture that adopted him, and assume the form of songs such as “Ballad of a Thin Man,” “Queen Jane Approximately,” “Tombstone Blues,” and the stupefying “Desolation Row.”

At its core, Highway 61 Revisited is about experience, reality, and the cruelties and truths that lie outside soporific safety nets and bourgeois ideals. These reasons—and the bold musicianship, ace performances, inimitable sonics, and vast lyrical expanses—are why the album means as much today as it did in the mid-1960s. Akin to Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and Dark Side of the Moon, this is an album that everyone needs to own and hear in the best-possible fidelity.

Track Listing:
1. Like a Rolling Stone
2. Tombstone Blues
3. It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry
4. From a Buick 6
5. Ballad of a Thin Man
6. Queen Jane Approximately
7. Highway 61 Revisited
8. Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues
9. Desolation Row

Features Complete, Accurate Reproduction of Gatefold Artwork

Tributes to fallen icons don’t come any more poignant or illustrative than Eat a Peach. Released in early 1972, slightly more than three months after guitarist Duane Allman died in a motorcycle accident, the double album honors the musician via sides he recorded in the studio as well as several live performances that didn’t fit on the mammoth At Fillmore East. The Allman Brothers Band, determined to press on, also contributes a trio of songs completed after their soulmate’s passing. Its execution is near perfect, its concept timeless.

Mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on dead-quiet vinyl RTI, Mobile Fidelity’s 180 gram 2LP of Eat a Peach joins the unparalleled reissue imprint’s other Allman titles in presenting the superlative ensemble’s work in the most lifelike, uncompromising fidelity possible. Not only is the punch of the concert fare transmitted with full-range dynamics and realistic spaciousness, but the studio cuts—in particular, the acoustically framed “Melissa” and “Little Martha”—come through with astounding clarity and body, replete with textural richness that affords listeners images of fingers on frets and sticks hitting drum skins.

In all probability, the Allman Brothers Band would’ve leapt to the fore of music’s commercial and critical elite had it not been for Duane’s fateful motorcycle accident that altered history and the trajectory of the group’s course. A statement of purpose and homage, Eat a Peach extends the guitarist’s legacy in the form of three heart-racing live tunes recorded at Fillmore East, none more important than the nearly 34-minute harmonic showcase “Mountain Jam.” Begun at the end of “Whipping Post” during the final show of the group’s four-gig stand, the tour de force improvisation finds the band at the peak of its telepathic aural and communicative capacities.

Not that the three studio originals with Duane are by any means forgettable. “Blue Sky” epitomizes the gorgeously elegant colors with which the late virtuoso could paint while the heart-stopping sentimental feel of “Little Martha” finds just he and Dickey Betts engaged in spiritual communion. To this extent, the band continues a mellower vibe on the hit “Melissa,” a country-rock ballad that taps into a melancholy feel largely courtesy of Gregg Allman’s weary vulnerability and Betts’ lyrical, slap-back-echoing guitar lines.

Yet nothing here eclipses the direct meaning and steadfast intent of the record-opening “Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More,” a defiant showing of unity and understated anthem with which the band seemed to embrace as a motto. No one knew, however, that fate would again subvert the group’s plans even if it could never take away the magic held within Eat a Peach, sonic and lyrical sorcery that extends to the legendary gatefold-artwork mural.

Track Listing:
1. Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More
2. Les Brers in A Minor
3. Melissa
4. Mountain Jam
5. One Way Out
6. Trouble No More
7. Stand Back
8. Blue Sky
9. Little Martha

Chart-Topping Album Includes Smash “Ramblin’ Man” and Favorites “Jessica” and “Southbound”

Mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on dead-quiet vinyl RTI, Mobile Fidelity’s 180 gram LP of Brothers and Sisters joins the unparalleled reissue imprint’s other Allman titles in presenting the superlative ensemble’s work in the most lifelike, uncompromised fidelity possible. Whether it’s the feather-light harmonic layering of the collective’s background vocals, echoing cavity of Leavell’s gospel-tinted piano, skin-against-skin smack of Jaimoe’s congas, or sweet dobro lines laid down by Betts, this version betters all previous pressings by bringing you, the listener, as close to the studio as any record feasibly can.

Having stayed at the top of the Billboard charts for five consecutive weeks, Brothers and Sisters constitutes the Allman Brothers Band’s biggest commercial triumph. Given the circumstances surrounding its creation, such an accomplishment hardly seemed possible. Fresh from licking their wounds over Duane’s tragic motorcycle accident, the group experienced déjà vu when Oakley met the same fate just blocks away from where his mate was killed. Rather than collapse, the Allman Brothers Band tightened up and mellowed out, inviting Leavell to join instead of recruiting another guitarist.

What the sextet gets in return for its troubles is music that marks the concrete beginnings of a form that soon become known as Southern rock. Leavell and Betts exchange notes as if the pair has been trading ideas since they were children. Slide guitars still tread over greasy grooves, yet the Allman Brothers Band digs deeper into country dirt, parlaying a twang anchored by Betts’ picking and abetted by Gregg’s organic, shot-of-blues vocals. The laidback vibe manifests on the signature “Ramblin’ Man,” a hit evocative of the record’s breezy melodies and friendly interplay.

The cover art further reveals the Allman Brothers Band’s mindset. Golden, tranquil, idyllic, Southern, loving: It’s a paradise-longing view that would soon come crashing down in the group’s lives but one that, for the duration and existence of Brothers and Sisters, remains gloriously undisturbed.

Track Listing:
1. Wasted Words
2. Ramblin’ Man
3. Come and Go Blues
4. Jelly, Jelly
5. Southbound
6. Jessica
7. Pony Boy

Mastered from the Original Master Tapes: Manilow's Music in Highest Fidelity It's Ever Enjoyed

Forget the empty criticisms. Barry Manilow needs no justification. Cited by Frank Sinatra in the 1970s as the next great entertainer, respected by artists as diverse as Bob Dylan, and author of albums that have sold more than 80 million copies, the singer looms as a pop legend, the voice and songwriter behind some of the most everlasting music created during the past four decades. A collection to beat all, his best is amassed on Greatest Hits.

Mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on dead-quiet 180 gram 2LP at RTI, Mobile Fidelity’s reissue of this 1978 compilation presents Manilow in the finest sonics he’s ever enjoyed. The human voice is recognized as the most difficult sound to capture. Manilow’s is no different. It’s one reason Mobile Fidelity engineers took every cautious step in going to each studio album, taking the original tracks, and mastering them in a manner in which dynamics, clarity, soundstaging, balance, and imaging are vastly improved.

Originally released at the height of his chart dominance and record-breaking popularity, Greatest Hits contains Barry Manilow’s 14 consecutive Top 30 hits spanning 1974-1978 as well as several uptempo tracks that balance the balladic fare. At the time, Manilow scored five albums on the best-selling charts at once, an achievement accomplished by only four other artists. His relatable lyrics, often championing underdogs and against-all-odds love, combine with fabulously orchestrated arrangements suited for his intimate style and subtle sense of swing.

Recognized as the number-one adult contemporary artist of all-time and a premier showman, the pianist/singer secured his reputation with an enviable string of standards included here. Manilow’s high-charting hits expertly pair mood with music, spanning dramaturgical orchestration (“Could It Be Magic”), disco dance (“It’s a Miracle”), mellow pop (“Mandy), serious balladeering (“I Write the Songs”), crescendo-rich torch (“Tryin’ to Get the Feeling Again”), sweeping romanticism (“This One’s For You”), and swooning sentimentalism (“Looks Like We Made It”).

There’s no doubting why these classics, as well as “Copacabana,” “Somewhere in the Night,” and more, remain staples of his sold-out concerts to this very day. Experience them all like never before!

Track Listing:
1. Mandy
2. New York City Rhythm
3. Ready to Take a Chance Again
4. Looks Like We Made It
5. Daybreak
6. Can't Smile Without You
7. It's a Miracle
8. Even Now
9. Bandstand Boogie
10. Tryin' to Get the Feeling Again
11. Could It Be Magic
12. Somewhere in the Night
13. Weekend in New England
14. All the Time
15. This One's for You
16. Copacabana
17. Beautiful Music
18. I Write the Songs

Chart-Topper Certified Seven-Times Platinum: Includes “Big Shot,” “Honesty,” “My Life”

Some artists embrace their success by repeating the steps that originally granted them fame. Billy Joel did the opposite, refusing to be contained by prescribed approaches or constrained by a given label. The follow-up to the breakthrough The Stranger, 52nd Street further expands on its predecessor's bold production techniques and inventive arrangements, incorporating more sophisticated textures as well as reflecting a jazz edge gleaned from New York City’s thriving club scene.

A key component of Mobile Fidelity’s Billy Joel catalog restoration series, The Stranger is mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on 45RPM 180 gram LP at RTI. The wider and deeper grooves—as well as the meticulous mastering process—yield resplendent dynamics, broad soundstages, three-dimensional perspectives, and tonal balances absent from prior editions. Indeed, Joel wouldn’t sound more realistic if were playing ten rows away from you onstage. This is how you want to experience the 1978 LP that captured the Grammy Award for Album of the Year.

Teaming again with producer Phil Ramone, Joel capitalizes on his momentum, churning out another direct-sounding affair replete with captivating melodic devices, showmanship accents, and penetrating lyrics. The singer’s concision and focus is evident via the tune’s lengths, with only “Until the Night” breaking the six-minute mark. Hit singles “Big Shot” and “My Life” rattle forth with an urgency and intensity that Joel had not previously demonstrated, the combination of passionate deliveries, snide overtones, and insistent grooves setting the table for what follows.

Broadening his palette, and drawing from New York’s thriving jazz club scene and the city’s late-70s grit, Joel splashes Latin and jazz colors on several pieces—even employing veterans such as Dave Grusin and Freddie Hubbard to contribute along with a cast that includes a team of background vocalists and horn players. Everything is tastefully appointed, and yet the vocalist’s trademark Broadway gaze and knack for the grand gesture coincide with the straight-ahead swagger.

52nd Street is one of the main reasons why Joel has always been championed for consistency. Everything here, from the production to the stand-up songs, helped redefine mainstream pop-rock. More than three decades later, it’s finally available in fidelity that rivals that of those Columbia Records’ master tapes produced right on 52nd Street. Mobile Fidelity takes you there and Joel sweeps you away.

Track Listing:
1. Big Shot
2. Honesty
3. My Life
4. Zanzibar
5. Stiletto
6. Roaslinda’s Eyes
7. Half a Mile Away
8. Until the Night
9. 52nd Street

Another Joel Blockbuster: Seven-Times Platinum 1983 Affair Includes “Uptown Girl,” “For the Longest Time,” “An Innocent Man,” “Tell Her About It”

After making The Nylon Curtain, Billy Joel felt the need to exhale and get back to the carefree music of his childhood. He also met supermodel Christie Brinkley, who brought serious degrees of levity and romance to his world. In love, relaxed, and out to have fun, the singer crafted An Innocent Man, arguably the most easygoing and pleasing album of his career. Featuring four Top 40 pop singles and the same number of Top 5 Adult Contemporary hits to grace the Billboard charts, the record remains a commercial staple.

An essential title in Mobile Fidelity’s Billy Joel catalog restoration series, An Innocent Man is mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on 180 gram LP at RTI. The resulting presentation effortlessly outshines that heard on all previous editions of this 1983 set. Particularly, the effervescent harmonies now possess an airiness and extension that lends to realistic tonal decay. Instruments are balanced and placed on a wider, deeper soundstage, contributing improved to improved imaging and spaciousness. Joel’s voice, too, comes across with tremendous clarity, presence, and body. These songs have never sounded so contagious.

Per usual, Joel proves a melodic jukebox. The vocalist’s grasp on structure, hooks, and delivery help make this batch of songs among his most beloved, easy to hum, and impossible to ignore. Much of the appeal resides in Joel’s understanding of the early rock and roll, doo-wop, and soul that he grew up hearing in New York, and the manners in which the popular songwriters favored simplicity over complexity, good-natured vibes over seriousness, and romantic charm over introspective sadness.

Whether floating on a cloud on the giddy “Uptown Girl” (check out his falsetto), doubling as both the lead and background vocalist on the reminiscent-themed “The Longest Time,” or tapping gospel undercurrents on the tribute “Keeping the Faith,” Joel revels in 50s and 60s pop constructs, turning out amiable refrains and unforgettable moods. Love perfumes the air, and Joel can’t get enough, and it's a feeling he passes on to his listeners.

As the calm before stormier periods in his life, and a timeless connection to America’s finest pop music traditions, An Innocent Man is indeed innocent—a guiltless pleasure that keeps on giving.

Track Listing:
1. Easy Money
2. An Innocent Man
3. The Longest Time
4. This Night
5. Tell Her About It
6. Uptown Girl
7. Careless Talk
8. Christie Lee
9. Leave a Tender Moment Alone
10. Keeping the Faith

26-Track Set Includes Standards Such as "Piano Man," "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me," "Pressure," "Allentown," "Uptown Girl," and Many More

It’s the third best-selling record in American history. It contains nearly every one of Billy Joel’s peak-era chart hits as well as a smattering of fan favorites. It encapsulates exactly why the singer-songwriter-pianist remains one of the most beloved, commercially successful, relentlessly creative, and oft-referenced artists in music. Spanning 1973 to 1985, Billy Joel’s Greatest Hits Vol. 1 and 2 functions a hand-guided tour through pop, rock, doo-wop, blues, R&B, blue-eyed soul, and chamber jazz. It is rivaled by few—if any—other compilations.

Mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on 180 gram vinyl at RTI, Mobile Fidelity’s pristine reissue of this ubiquitous classic finally does justice to the Hall of Fame caliber music. Part of the label’s restoration of Joel’s most crucial releases, Billy Joel’s Greatest Hits Vol. 1 and 2 literally takes on new life. Devoid of the flatness, squelched dynamics, and limited soundscapes that defined previous versions, the collection brings Joel’s genius and intentions into a more transparent light.

Is it any wonder that this double set has moved more than 23 million copies to date? No. All told, 20 Top 40 singles line up alongside six album-track favorites, the songs all instantly recognized by name. This is touchstone material that’s long crossed over into multiple generations of listeners and eradicated genre boundaries, and formed the basis of Joel’s constantly sold-out concerts for the past two-plus decades.

As demonstrated on diverse fare ranging from “Piano Man” to “The Stranger,” “Big Shot” to “Uptown Girl,” and the pair of then-new tracks (“You’re Only Human (Second Wind)” and “The Night Is Still Young”), Joel always succeeds in wrapping his head around rich swaths of American pop, his music stopping by way of New Orleans, Kansas City, Memphis, Chicago, and other milestone cities.

The singer’s simple, yet disarmingly effective lyrics speak to universal truths and uplift. Joel’s melodic flair does the rest, filling out tunes with comprehensive arrangements, towering harmonies, and a swift sense of purpose. His catalog testifies on behalf of unimpeachably ovational songwriting and execution. Experience all his hits in heart-rustling fidelity. They, and you, have waited long enough for such an intimate encounter.

Track Listing:
1. Piano Man
2. Captain Jack
3. The Entertainer
4. Say Goodbye to Hollywood
5. New York State of Mind
6. The Stranger
7. Scenes From an Italian Restaurant
8. Just the Way You Are
9. Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)
10. Only the Good Die Young
11. She's Always a Woman
12. My Life
13. Big Shot
14. Honesty
15. You May Be Right
16. It's Still Rock and Roll to Me
17. Don't Ask Me Why
18. She's Got a Way
19. Pressure
20. Allentown
21. Goodnight Saigon
22. Tell Her About It
23. Uptown Girl
24. The Longest Time
25. You're Only Human (Second Wind)
26. The Night Is Still Young

Ideal Summation of Joel’s Early Period Material, Enhanced by Accomplished Band in Concert Setting

Great live albums often function as documents of a performer’s stinting onstage abilities, stopgaps between studio albums, introductions to a musician’s earlier work, and/or opportunities for familiar material to be showcased in superior ways. Songs In the Attic serves all of these purposes and more. As Billy Joel’s first live album, it’s still his best, punctuated by dynamic renditions of favorites and deep cuts, and augmented by a tested band in sync with the pianist.

A vital component of Mobile Fidelity’s Billy Joel catalog restoration series, Songs In the Attic is mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on 180 gram LP at RTI. The resulting presentation effortlessly outshines that heard on all previous editions of this 1981 set. Joel’s piano possesses fuller body and lifelike resonance. His veteran group’s contributions emerge with newfound clarity, dynamics, decay, and extension. Balances are supreme, and shades and colors blend, amplifying richness and presence.

On the heels of three multi-platinum albums and a commercial breakthrough, Joel released Songs In the Attic to both tide fans over until 1982’s The Nylon Curtain as well to feature material in a looser, warmer setting. The record highlights not only the singer’s consistency and knack for indelible melodies, but savvy live techniques. Upbeat tunes such as “Everybody Loves You Now” receive a more fleshed-out treatment that yields added punch and swagger, while balladic numbers like “I’ve Loved These Days” take on a cozy warmth akin to the feeling of putting on a sweater on a cool fall day.

Songs In the Attic also bridged the gap for listeners for whom Joel was then a new entity, as many didn’t come to his music until The Stranger. Hence, tracks like “Captain Jack” and “The Ballad of Billy the Kid,” from Piano Man, get a fresh identity, particularly courtesy of a backing band that, by then, had been gigging with Joel for years. No wonder that, unlike a majority of live records, Songs In the Attic yielded two Top 40 pop hits: “Say Goodbye to Hollywood” and “She’s Got a Way.” No matter from what angle it’s viewed, the set stands as one of the most important and enjoyable live records ever released.

Track Listing:
1. Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway)
2. Summer, Highland Falls
3. Streetlife Serenader
4. Los Angelenos
5. She’s Got a Way
6. Everybody Loves You Now
7. Say Goodbye to Hollywood
8. Captain Jack
9. You’re My Home
10. The Ballad of Billy the Kid
11. I’ve Loved These Days

Multi-Platinum 1982 Song Cycle Includes “Allentown,” “Laura,” “Pressure,” “Goodnight Saigon”

Having triumphantly asserted himself as a take-no-mess singer-songwriter on 1980’s hard-rocking Glass Houses, Billy Joel continues to push his creative impulses on The Nylon Curtain, a fascinating song cycle that pays tribute to John Lennon and stands as the most ambitious project of his career. Enriched by sweeping orchestral arrangements and socially conscious lyrics, the 1982 set addresses unemployment, war, and realities of the Reagan era with exacting precision. Insightful and clever, the album’s Baby Boomer-themed narratives continue to resonate.

A requisite piece of Mobile Fidelity’s Billy Joel catalog restoration series, The Nylon Curtain is mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on 180 gram LP at RTI. The myriad nuances amidst Phil Ramone’s crisp production assume greater tonality, texture, and detail. What was a very good-sounding album is now an audiophile-caliber favorite, with transparency, clarity, and microdynamics enhancing the poignant connection between Joel’s expressiveness and the listener’s emotions. The Nylon Curtain is now an even more personal experience, a brilliant distillation of sadness, loss, hope, and anger.

Harnessing concerns, obsessions, reflections, and feelings that consumed a majority of the Baby Boomer generation near the beginning of the Reagan Era, Joel delves into job loss (“Allentown”), wartime fallout (“Goodbye Saigon”), and, of course, romantic longing (“She’s Right on Time”). Rather than take a long-view perspective, Joel gets up and close to the issues, infusing the fare with a mix of sadness, frustration, cautious optimism, and moodiness that he wears on his sleeve. Joel’s melodies, too, ricochet with unmistakably personal sentiment, as he constructs arrangements in tribute to Lennon, whose ghost arises on pieces like “Scandinavian Skies” and “Laura.”

Pop culture author Chuck Klosterman addresses the Beatles link and The Nylon Curtain’s timeless appeal in Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs, writing: “’Laura’ and ‘Where’s the Orchestra’ really are as good as what’s on The White Album. This is because the first song says things so directly that its words shouldn’t make sense to anyone else (and yet they do), while the latter is so metaphorically vague that anybody should be able to understand what he’s implying.”

But relate and understand audiences do: The Nylon Curtain remains a pop marvel, introspective juggernaut, and finally, courtesy of Mobile Fidelity, a sonic landmark. Joel’s anguish, regrets, sorrow, and worries transcend both tastes and time. Somewhat underappreciated upon its original release, the 55-minute effort is now regarded as a conceptual masterpiece.

Track Listing:
1. Allentown
2. Laura
3. Pressure
4. Goodnight Saigon
5. She’s Right on Time
6. A Room of Our Own
7. Surprises
8. Scandinavian Skies
9. Where’s the Orchestra

Juggling Themes of Desire and Exile, Costello Strips Arrangements Down to Folk, Country and Pub-Rock Roots

Elvis Costello spent the year prior to recording King of America embarking on a solo tour, usually accompanied by producer/singer-songwriter T-Bone Burnett. The pair’s decision to collaborate on Costello’s 1986 album came naturally, and the music sounds it—emotional, effortless, literate, seemingly uncomplicated. Credit, however, not only goes to the best batch of Costello originals since 1982’s Imperial Bedroom, but to the literally awesome and awe-inspiring cast of musicians Burnett invited to participate.

Mastered from the original master tapes and pressed at RTI, Mobile Fidelity’s 180 gram LP of this masterpiece broadens the live-in-the-studio intimacy and opens up the midrange, highs, and lows of Burnett’s fabulously de-congested mix. Made with few overdubs or effects, King of America relishes organic approaches and faithful tones—as well as a vast spaciousness and balance not always evident on Costello’s efforts with the attractions. Finally, Mobile Fidelity transports the listener to the semicircle of players that surrounded Costello in the studio, and highlights the benefits of the center-of-the-production miking technique employed on the singer’s voice and guitar playing.

Given the brilliance of the performances, every music fan will want to be brought as near as possible to the purity of these sessions. A Hall of Fame-caliber list of instrumentalists accompany Costello, with Elvis Presley’s T.C.B. mates Ron Tutt (drums), James Burton (guitar), and Jerry Scheff (bass) forming one band and drummer Earl Palmer (Little Richard), bassist Ray Brown (Oscar Peterson, Duke Ellington), pianist Tom Canning, and organist Mitchell Froom ready in waiting as another. Several of these musicians formed yet another band, joined by drummer Jim Keltner of Bob Dylan, George Harrison, and John Lennon fame. Oh—and the Attractions make a guest appearance on one track.

King of America—the title reflective of the threads of intentional, thought-provoking contradiction throughout—would be exemplary if just for the troupe. Yet it’s the combination of chemistry, ability, sonics, and tunes that propel this watertight platter to iconic status. Unconcerned with writing a radio hit or adhering to a single musical theme, Costello wrote a majority of the material on acoustic guitar and on piano, tapping his pub-rock and folk roots in turning out songs that remain some of the catchiest, introspective, and deep of his career. Cuts such as “Indoor Fireworks,” “Poisoned Rose,” “Brilliant Mistake,” and “Suit of Lights” epitomize Costello’s inimitable manner of viewing adulthood, romance, and geographical transition through a transparent lens that blocks neither truth nor consequence.

As for the music? It swings (vide, Scheff’s bass line on “Lovable”), swishes (Keltner’s brushes on “I’ll Wear It Proudly”), jumps (Brown’s string bass on “Eisenhower Blues”), swoons (“Poisoned Rose”), and shuffles (“Jack of All Parades”). There’s truly not a bum track here, and now, experienced in such high fidelity, the genius of every contributor can be easily heard and felt. Akin to Mobile Fidelity’s other Costello reissues, this is not to be missed.

Track Listing:
1. Brilliant Mistake
2. Lovable
3. Our Little Angel
4. Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood
5. Glitter Gulch
6. Indoor Fireworks
7. Little Palaces
8. I'll Wear It Proudly
9. American Without Tears
10. Eisenhower Blues
11. Poisoned Rose
12. The Big Light
13. Jack of All Parades
14. Suit of Lights
15. Sleep of The Just

Razor-Sharp Wit, Concise Melodies on Display Throughout; Jazz Legend Chet Baker Guests

Punch the Clock is Elvis Costello & the Attractions’ most British record, a return to mainstream pop craft loaded with clever barbs and insightful social commentary that nearly landed the headliner in serious trouble with government representatives. Produced by the English hit-making team of Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley, the jumpy and horn-accompanied 1983 effort includes Costello’s first-ever American Top 40 hit (“Everyday I Write the Book”) and a smooth sheen that reinforces the material’s commercial intent and catchy appeal.

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelity’s numbered limited edition 1980g LP presents the hyper-literate fidelity and refined melodies in astonishing sonics, navigating the multiple layers of information, brassy effects, and background vocals to present a unified whole replete with stellar front-to-back depth. Akin to the reissue label’s previous acclaimed Costello reissues, Punch the Clock is vastly improved, the opened-up perspective, pronounced instrumental separation, and textural clarity enhancing all the details within the grooves.

Fresh from making a country tribute album and a large-scale set flush with complex arrangements, Costello and Co. return to straight-ahead pop given a decidedly British accent and soulful backing vocals. Conscious of the Merseybeat sound and success of Dexy’s Midnight Runners, Costello tints songs with new-wave characteristics, splashy horns, and spontaneous vocal-response support courtesy of female duo Afrodiziak, one member of which later attained fame with Soul II Soul. Steve Nieve’s bounding piano lines dance throughout the arrangements, adding witty pizzazz and delicate allure to already-tuneful fare like “The Element Within Her” and “Mouth Almighty.”

The more direct, hook-ready approach also manifests on numbers such as “Let Them All Talk” and “Charm School,” tunes that also illustrate the contrasts in romantic theme. While remaining deeply cynical, as was his longtime hallmark, Costello unfurls two compositions on which love and marriage are viewed in a positive light. Yet he spares no one, nothing, and minces no words with “Shipbuilding” and “Pills and Soap,” fare that remains revered in his native country as well as abroad.

For “Shipbuilding,” a brilliantly disguised 88s-clinking protest against war influenced by the Falkan Conflict, Costello enlists jazz legend Chet Baker to deliver a masterfully poignant, bluesy trumpet solo that echoes throughout the coda. On the hip-hop-inspired “Pills and Soap,” a thinly veiled metaphor addressing Britain’s abusive sociopolitical state and royal officials, the bespectacled bandleader invents a thoroughly unique quasi-rap draped over a drum-machine beat and Nieve’s bold piano chords. Bracing.

Track Listing:
1. Let Them All Talk
2. Everyday I Write the Book
3. The Greatest Thing
4. The Element Within Her
5. Love Went Mad
6. Shipbuilding
7. The World and His Wife
8. TKO (Boxing Day)
9. Charm School
10. The Invisible Man
11. Mouth Almighty
12. King of Thieves
13. Pills and Soap

Another Iconic Nelson Riddle-Frank Sinatra Collaboration from Artists’ Peak Era

Swing, swing, swingin': There’s nothing wrong with taking a proven concept, tweaking and bettering it, and then doing it all over again. While many sequels fail to hit the mark, Frank Sinatra slams another proverbial ball of the park on 1957’s A Swinging Affair!, an unofficial follow-up of sorts to the previous year’s smash Songs For Swingin’ Lovers! Hitting slightly harder than its predecessor, with revered self-assurance and horn-stoked energy, the Capitol classic remains quintessential Ol’ Blue Eyes.

Mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelity’s numbered limited-edition 180 gram LP presents in mono another supreme collaboration between Sinatra and longtime creative companion Nelson Riddle. Imaging, dynamics, separation, airiness, and tonalities experience significant enhancement and restoration, particularly compared to what’s present on digital and analog pressings made over the past four decades. A Swingin’ Affair! now sounds how it was intended, with the spatial dimensions of Capitol’s Studio A and depth of Sinatra’s mellifluous baritone realistically present and balanced.

While largely similar to Songs For Swingin’ Lovers! in approach and execution, Sinatra’s 1957 treasure steps up the brassiness and boldness. Riddle’s charts teem with color, charm, and sophistication, the instrumental touches in sync with the Chairman’s phrasing and diction. Jut one close listen reveals why so many Sinatraphiles believe the Sinatra-Riddle pairing tops any other during the vocalist’s illustrious career. Brisk tempos and rousing crescendos drive the songs ahead, and Sinatra latches onto the attack, singing as if nothing is ever going to contain him.

Exuberance, swagger, and smoothness abound. So do memorable ballads on which Sinatra’s voice seems to simply glide. His interpretations of Cole Porter’s “At Long Last Love,” the bluesy torch classic “No One Ever Tells You,” and Rodgers and Hart’s “I Wish I Were In Love Again” rank amongst his finest mellow moments. Regal atmospherics and thrilling climaxes punctuate a majority of the material, while the song selection is utterly infallible. If only all second acts were this good.

Track Listing:
1. Night and Day
2. I Wish I Were In Love Again
3. I Got Plenty o’ Nuttin’
4. I Guess I’ll Have to Change My Plans
5. Nice Work If You Can Get It
6. Stars Fell on Alabama
7. No One Ever Tells You
8. I Won’t Dance
9. The Lonesome Road
10. At Long Last Love
11. You’d Be Nice to Come Home To
12. I Got It Bad (And That Ain’t Good)
13. From This Moment On
14. If I Had You
15. Oh! Look At Me Now

Laden With Standards: “Come Fly With Me,” “Autumn In New York,” “April In Paris,” and “Blue Hawaii” All Included

The jet-setting Come Fly With Me is a musical travelogue for the ages. A fabulously executed concept album on which Frank Sinatra hops from one locale to another, whisking listeners from exotic islands to South American jungles to the world’s most beloved cities, the 1958 set topped the charts and earned a Grammy nomination on its way to becoming one of the most well-known releases of the Chairman’s career. Spanning lighthearted swing to heartfelt ballads, it’s as musically diverse as it is geographically eclectic. The cover art alone is the worth the price of admission.

Mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelity’s numbered limited edition 180 gram mono LP returns the prized warmth and depth to the brass and string sections—and depth and richness to Sinatra’s voice—that have gone lacking since its original release on mono vinyl more than five decades ago. Engineers took extreme care in the restoration process, laboring until they had uncovered and refined every sonic characteristic possible in order to make the dynamic range, presence, airiness, and separation as good they can possibly be.

Sinatra’s first project with arranger Billy May, Come Fly With Me utterly soars with heralded songwriting, brassy verve, and swinging prowess. True to the title, Sinatra plays up the role of the cosmopolitan globetrotter as only he can. He’s smooth, cool, relaxed, hip, fashionable, debonair. He makes everyone want to be him, his charm and persuasion brimming to exuberant effect, his enthusiasm and effervescence reflected in the fun he experiences while darting between notes, closing his eyes, and landing in international hotspots.

Countless artists have pursued the natural vibes on display throughout this humdinger. Sinatra makes not only the specific places but the actual seasons, surroundings, and atmospheres come alive in standards such as “April In Paris,” “Moonlight In Vermont,” and “Autumn In New York.” His sense of timing, tone, and pitch personifies brilliance; nothing is out of place, and yet, there’s never the feeling that any part is ever over-deliberated or forced. Records like these are once-in-a-lifetime affairs for most singers; Sinatra claims several like it, but none more enjoyable or inspired.

Gorgeous gals, ice-cold drinks, romantic scenery, first-class service on airplanes, and as much free-swingin’ pop as one could ever want: Come fly with Ol’ Blue Eyes in mono. It’s a trip you’ll want to take again and again.

Track Listing:
1. Come Fly With Me
2. Around the World
3. Isle of Capri
4. Moonlight In Vermont
5. Autumn In New York
6. On the Road to Mandalay
7. Let’s Get Away From It All
8. April In Paris
9. London By Night
10. Aquarela do Brasil
11. Blue Hawaii
12. It’s Nice to Go Trav’ling

Ranked #100 on Rolling Stone’s List of the 100 and 500 Greatest Albums of All Time; Cited by Mojo Magazine as One of the 100 Records That Changed the World

The greatest break-up and broken-hearted albums are continually debated. Yet no discussion of the sort is worth merit without the inclusion of In the Wee Small Hours. One of the genre’s pillars, the 1955 gem pairs Frank Sinatra and Nelson Riddle to wondrous effect, and represents the first time the Voice recorded material specifically for a 12-inch LP. An intimate and honest meditation on loss, heartache, loneliness, and hope against hope, the album stands as one of the most iconic pop statements ever made.

Mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelity’s numbered limited-edition 180 gram mono LP presents in mono the performances with astounding clarity and projection. Deeply personal, Sinatra sings with utmost conviction, every intake of a breath and release of his lungs registering in uncompromising fashion. The striking realism of this pressing takes listeners not only inside of Sinatra’s chest cavity but inside his head, to a point where his hurt, regret, solitude, and slivers of optimism resonate in a manner equivalent to the best Hollywood film portrayals of such themes.

To a large extent, the lifelike anguish in the songs—and yearning reach of Sinatra’s voice—owes to biographical experience. Ol’ Blue Eyes’ eternal love for Ava Gardner is widely known, and he bravely created this work shortly after a breakup, with the profound extent of his pain registering in every note. However melancholy, Sinatra pulls off the superhuman feat of retaining a jazzy sway, keeping in time with Riddle’s orchestrations. He is a picture of a bruised and battered soul, a young man matured and wiser, a ravished human being wanting for the comfort and consolation that can only be provided by his former mate.

Colored indigo and steeped in desolation, In the Wee Small Hours triumphs because of Sinatra’s flawless inflections, deeper timbre, and gut-wrenching deliveries, as well as Riddle’s spare arrangements that perfectly fit the mood and atmosphere. Strings enter only occasionally, leaving the bulk of the foundation to a gorgeously executed rhythm section comprised of a guitar, celesta, and Bill Miller’s sympathetic piano. Renditions of the title track, “I Get Along Without You Very Well,” and “I See Your Face Before Me” transcend eras, gender, and style. It is rumored that Sinatra broke down and cried while completing “When Your Lover Has Gone.”

Named by Rolling Stone the 100th Greatest Album of All Time, cited by Mojo as a Record That Changed the World, placed by Time magazine on its All-Time 100 Albums list, and included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, this is an essential, and now, with the best sound its ever enjoyed on a mono 180 gram LP, a record that cannot be beat.

Track Listing:
1. In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning
2. Mood Indigo
3. Glad to Be Unhappy
4. I Get Along Without You Very Well (Except Sometimes)
5. Deep In a Dream
6. I See Your Face Before Me
7. Can’t We Be Friends?
8. When Your Lover Has Gone
9. What Is This Thing Called Love?
10. Last Night When We Were Young
11. I’ll Be Around
12. Ill Wind
13. It Never Entered My Mind
14. Dancing on the Ceiling
15. I’ll Never Be the Same
16. This Love of Mine

Thematic Songs Address Goodbyes With Profound Sense of Sadness, Longing

Nobody says goodbye like Frank Sinatra. For his final album with Capitol, Ol’ Blue Eyes elected to croon an unforgettable selection of farewell songs marked with longing, sadness, and poignancy. To make the occasion even more special, he teamed with arranger Axel Stordahl, the virtuoso that helped launch Sinatra’s star at Columbia during the 1940s. The results amount to one of the finest send-off statements in history.

Mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelity’s numbered limited edition 180 gram stereo LP presents the songs as they should be experienced: In rich, lush, front-to-back sound in which the strings soar and literally inhale and exhale. Sinatra’s singing, as good as it’s ever been during his career, comes across with unfettered transparency and tonal purity. Such is the fidelity, the music turns into aural poetry, rendering completely fluid and tube-amp warm the rushes of strings, words, and structures.

Sinatra fans continually debate which of the artist’s albums rank as his best, but there’s no doubting the status attached to Point of No Return. Unquestionably the most overlooked effort in the Chairman’s Capitol catalog, it defies common expectation that it was made haphazardly to simply fulfill a contractual obligation. Sinatra’s presence alone guarantees that isn’t the case, yet Stordahl’s involvement ensures this 1961 set is something very special indeed.

The chemistry between the old collaborators is immediately evident. Sinatra inhabits every phrase, feeling, and expression conveyed on the dozen standards, achieving an intimate connection with Stordahl’s instrumental accents. Akin to the downbeat moods he casts on the immortal In the Wee Small Hours and Only the Lonely, the vocalist keeps calm and cool, yearning and reflecting as if he’s strolling a barren downtown after midnight, a man left alone with his thoughts and memories. Somber, wistful, meditative, teary-eyed sentimental—Sinatra paints each song with the emotions they need, nothing more and nothing less.

From regal (“These Foolish Things (Remind Me of You)”) to nostalgic (“I’ll Be Seeing You”), relaxed (“September Song”) to dramatic (“When the World Was Young”), Stordahl’s treatments blush with natural ease and instinct, setting up Sinatra for countless moments of sublime beauty. Vocal pop aficionados, you don’t want to miss this classic.

Track Listing:
1. (Ah, the Apple Trees) When the World Was Young
2. I’ll Remember April
3. September Song
4. A Million Years Ago
5. I’ll See You Again
6. There Will Never Be Another You
7. Somewhere Along the Way
8. It’s a Blue World
9. These Foolish Things (Remind Me of You)
10. As Time Goes By
11. I’ll Be Seeing You
12. Memories of You

Includes Standard-Setting Renditions of “I’ve Got You Under My Skin,” “You Make Me Feel So Young,” “Pennies From Heaven”

Having endured a traumatic breakup and recorded his first “saloon style” concept album the year prior, Frank Sinatra returned with vivacious gusto on the aptly titled Songs for Swingin’ Lovers!, a light-on-its-feet set bursting with joyousness, pop, vitality, optimism, and finger-snapping promise. Indisputably one of the greatest swing efforts ever undertaken, it contains highlight-reel renditions of now-standards such as “I’ve Got You Under My Skin,” “You Make Me Feel So Young,” and “Pennies From Heaven.” The equivalent of a musical fountain of youth, the fluid material mirrors Sinatra’s confidence and enthusiasm, which nearly burst off the page.

Mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelity’s numbered limited-edition 180 gram LP presents in mono this jubilant affair, eviscerating in transparency that rendered by the previous remasters and at least equaling the sonics of the extremely rare original 45RPM editions of the Capitol release. Akin to Mobile Fidelity’s other Sinatra titles, it’s the definitive pressing and one meant to be handed down to future generations.

There’s every reason any music lover would yearn to be as close to the music on this record as possible. And in rendering the scope, scale, thrust, and peaks-and-valleys dynamics of the orchestra, not to mention the timbral richness and full extension of Sinatra’s impeccable singing, this pressing gives you a front-and-center chair to the sessions at the Hollywood studios.

Rare is the album replete with the superb combination of contagious pitch-perfect singing, swaying tempos, life-affirming emotions, and breezy string arrangements exemplified here. Nelson Riddle’s scales climb to unforeseen heights, the rushing crescendos and twirling comedowns surging with power, persuasion, and pleasantry. At times, the strings and rhythm section threaten to overwhelm Ol’ Blue Eyes. Yet Sinatra, lighthearted and in great humor, is in such brilliant form, he matches the splendor and seems to invite Riddle to bring all he’s got.

Songs For Swingin’ Lovers! finds both icons at their peak, each having loads of fun and delighting in the songs’ captivating faculties. Tenderness, swagger, affection, spring-like bloom, romance, danceability, smoothness, sentimentality—all present in spades, coursing through the arrangements and Sinatra’s phrasing. A vocal pop masterpiece, and immediate mood-lifter, conceptual records don’t come any better.

Track Listing:
1. You Make Me Feel So Young
2. It Happened in Monterey
3. You’re Getting to Be a Habit With Me
4. You Brought a New Kind of Love to Me
5. Too Marvelous for Words
6. Old Devil Moon
7. Pennies From Heaven
8. Love Is Here to Stay
9. I’ve Got You Under My Skin
10. I Thought About You
11. We’ll Be Together Again
12. Makin’ Whoopee
13. Swingin’ Down the Lane
14. Anything Goes
15. How About You?

Mastered from the Original Master Tapes: Sound Cuts to the Heart of Tandem's Balanced, Melodic, Smooth Sound

Hall and Oates’ biggest-selling album also stands as their most ambitious. Recorded in 1982, when the duo practically owned the pop market, H20 strikes a keen equilibrium between polish, melody, muscle, and craft. The vocalists expand the emotional reach of their songwriting, and shepherd meticulous production and measured arrangements toward thrilling intersections of blue-eyed soul, edge new wave, soft rock, and dance. Staked to two giant singles, the double-platinum affair lingers as the group’s last masterwork.

Mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on 180 gram LP at RTI, Mobile Fidelity’s reissue of H20 falls in line with the label’s other two definitive Hall and Oates restorations. Fans that think they know the set backwards and forwards will even be stunned at how much sharper vocal harmonies sound, how much richer the dynamics have become, and how broad and deep the soundstage now spans. One listen, and you’ll know why this record marks the tandem’s creative pinnacle.

Oh-oh, here she comes! Yes, you know the refrain. In their number-one smash and album-opening “Maneater,” Hall and Oates distill all the trademark traits that made their music irresistible. Swinging verse structures; call-and-responses choruses; catchy, stick-in-your-head hooks; smooth synthesizer layers; doo-wop vocal fills; and here, even a reggae-nodding rhythm and cool saxophone lines to stir up the mood and atmosphere. The blend of seemingly disparate styles would seem disastrous in nearly any other artists’ hands, yet here, it’s euphoria. All of H20 follows suit.

Simply look to the other Top Ten hit, “One on One,” an elegantly seductive jam sent up with witty metaphors, mellow balladic foundations, syncopated singing, falsetto stretches, and percolating drum-machine beats that add to the soulful feel. Or to the attractive power-pop of “Delayed Reaction,” slinky and sensual “Open All Night,” mechanized synthpop statement “Crime Pays,” fun-loving spirit of “Italian Girls,” and horn-laden “Art of Heartbreak.” Again claiming an advantage lost on most of their contemporary pop peers, Hall and Oates cut the album with their superb touring band in support, buttressing the fare with genuine instruments and full-bodied tones.

After the release of H20, Hall and Oates soon became history’s all-time biggest-selling male duo. This early 80s benchmark has much to do with their achievement, and deserves to be heard in the best-possible fidelity. Look no further.

Track Listing:
1. Maneater
2. Crime Pays
3. Art of Heartbreak
4. One on One
5. Open All Night
6. Family Man
7. Italian Girls
8. Guessing Games
9. Delayed Reaction
10. At Tension
11. Go Solo

Stylish, Sophisticated Production Comes to Fore on Mobile Fidelity Reissue, Mastered from the Original Master Tapes

Hall and Oates could’ve easily followed the protocol established on their breakthrough Voices, done nothing else, and watched 1981’s follow-up Private Eyes scale the charts. Yet the duo continues to press forward, further refining the era-defining stylistic mélange that propelled them to mass stardom a year prior. The creative and artistic peak of the all-time best-selling male duo’s output, Private Eyes delivers relentless pop bliss and functions as an instruction manual that, as Rolling Stone opined, still teaches “the way to make rock girls, disco girls, and new-wave girls scream together.”

Mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on 180 gram LP at RTI, Mobile Fidelity’s reissue presents the Top 5 album’s sharp, widescreen production values with awe-inspiring detail and palpable realism. For the first time, listeners can get inside the songs’ internal mechanisms by experiencing first-hand the vast surfeit understated sonic effects. Well-appointed tones now grace the array of guitars, pianos, basses, and voices placed against synthesized backdrops. Each member’s singing also claims enhanced intimacy and balance. Offering tremendous insight, Mobile Fidelity’s LP doubles as a lesson in the construction and sustain of big, bold grooves.

Advancing their rhythmic support and melodic symmetry, Hall and Oates give extra space to their still-underrated backing band, affording the material a muscular punch and organic warmth crucial to their success and ability to transcend the largely artificial era. While the tandem’s peers often relied on robotic mechanisms and now-dated keyboard noises, Hall and Oates wisely merge the period’s savvy sounds with tried-and-true soulful instrumentation.

Reflecting the album’s infallible level of quality control, no song disappoints. The three Top 40 singles—the title track, “I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do),” and “Your Imagination”—feature clever elements such as hand-clapped choruses and staccato piano lines. The distinctive traits complement the duo’s hallmark harmony vocals and add R&B flavors to already-scintillating pop concoctions. Yet Private Eyes’ pleasures advance well beyond the radio singles.

Whether witnessed via the taut tension of “Some Men,” reggae-splashed “Tell Me What You Want,” or Motown homage “Looking for a Good Sign,” the group’s blend of dance vibes, electrifying hooks, keyboard loops, and sleek beats epitomizes seduction, style, and swagger. Private Eyes is an 80s juggernaut that hasn’t lost a step. Utterly classic.

Track Listing:
1. Private Eyes
2. Looking for a Good Sign
3. I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)
4. Mano a Mano
5. Did It in a Minute
6. Head Above Water
7. Tell Me What You Want
8. Friday Let Me Down
9. Unguarded Minute
10. Your Imagination
11. Some Men

Divine Sonics: Spacious, Polished Production Shines on Mobile Fidelity Reissue, Mastered from the Original Master Tapes

Daryl Hall has inferred that if Voices failed to catch fire, it would have likely signaled the end of he and John Oates’ recording career together. Suffice it to say that the 1980 effort not only caught on—it established a production and songwriting template that would help largely define the decade. The album also propelled Hall and Oates into the mainstream and turned them into superstars, placing them at the top of the charts for a multi-year run during which the duo proved superior singers, master songwriters, and visionary producers.

Mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on 180 gram LP at RTI, Mobile Fidelity’s reissue at last affords this pop classic an expansive, engaging, dynamic reach absent from all prior editions. Self-produced, the record’s sonics were key to its success. As evidenced by the greater information and finer details found in this analog edition’s grooves, the polished, sleek, and open sound works hand-in-hand with the arrangements. Hall and Oates’ knack for stylish tones, instrumental placement, and edgy accents has never been clearer—literally or figuratively. This LP is nothing short of a game-changer.

By the dawn of the 1980s, Hall and Oates had already released more than a half-dozen albums and attached themselves to a folk-pop model they gradually took in blue-eyed soul directions. Hints of a pop/new wave/R&B amalgamation initially appear on 1979’s X-Static, but only fully come into play with confidence, conviction, and commercial flair on Voices. Arriving upon a near-flawless fusion of dance grooves, soft rock rhythms, smooth vocals, romantic sentiments, catchy beats, and spotless hooks, the collaborators simultaneously crossed over into multiple markets and eradicated stylistic boundaries.

Rightly recognized for its four hit singles—the irresistible “Kiss on My List,” building “You Make My Dreams,” cover of the Righteous Brothers’ “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling,” and original rendition of the poignant “Every Time You Go Away,” which Paul Young took to the top of the charts years later—Voices towers as both an 80s masterpiece and all-time pop classic.

Independent of the ubiquitous fare, the record holds up courtesy of the deep-album cuts. There isn’t a weak note or false move to be found. Hall and Oates paint “United State” with uptempo assertiveness; “Big Kids” passes as first-rate new-wave rock; “Diddy Doo Wop (I Hear the Voices)” pays loving tribute to the duo’s doo-wop influences; “Gotta Lotta Nerve (Perfect Perfect)” oozes emotional rawness. Their stage set, Hall and Oates would further advance their craft on Private Eyes and H20, also available from Mobile Fidelity.

Track Listing:
1. How Does It Feel to Be Back
2. Big Kids
3. United State
4. Hard to Be In Love With You
5. Kiss on My List
6. Gotta Lotta Nerve (Perfect Perfect)
7. You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'
8. You Make My Dreams
9. Everytime You Go Away
10. Africa
11. Diddy Doo Wop (I Hear Voices)

Audiophile Favorite Steams Up Mirrors With Enchanting Melodies, Breathy Vocals, Daring Originality

Patricia Barber’s origins are commonly associated with 1994’s Café Blue and the follow-up, 1998’s Modern Cool. Both quickly established the singer/pianist as an immediate audiophile favorite whose rare combination of astute instrumental performance, daring originality, poetic enterprise, intrepid vocals, and sculpted production announced her as an artist that both takes immense care in her music as well as in her sound. While largely unknown to many, 1992’s diverse A Distortion of Love signaled the beginning of Barber’s unfettered creativity.

Half-speed mastered from the original master tapes and pressed at RTI, Mobile Fidelity’s numbered, limited-edition 180 gram LP of the Chicagoan’s sophomore album features the similar wowing detail and perspective-altering clarity offered on the reissue label’s celebrated versions of Mythologies, The Cole Porter Mix, and the now out-of-print and extremely sought-after Café Blue, Modern Cool, Companion, and Nightclub.

Such is the attention brought to Barber’s tastefully reverb-assisted singing, the quartet’s stripped-down arrangements, the grand piano’s resonance, the background finger snaps, and the astounding transparency of every note and breath uttered in the studio. Smoothness, balance, and neutrality abound. Through and through, this is an audiophile delight.

While national acclaim wouldn’t come to Barber until the mid-90s, it wasn’t because she didn’t provide notice of her monumental talent and MacArthur Grant-worthy inventiveness. On A Distortion of Love, her individuality manifests on a surprisingly eerie rendition of the standard “Summertime” and subsequent “Subway Station No. 5,” a lengthy piece adorned with atmospheric nervousness, tonal shifts, and contrapuntal movements that ultimately lead into a swinging theme.

Barber, guitarist Wolfgang Muthspiel, bassist Marc Johnson, and percussionist Adam Nussbaum achieve like-minded heights on an improvised and clever read of the Temptations’ “My Girl.” Here, and again especially on the aptly titled “You Stepped Out of a Dream,” Barber’s textured vocals seemingly float on a jet-black plain, emanating as if her lips and mouth are just feet away, the slap of the acoustic bass and patter of the drums responding in kind to her expressiveness. Whether you’re familiar with this album, a longtime Barber fan, or just coming to her for the first time, Mobile Fidelity’s pressing of this record will please even the sternest critics of vocal jazz.

Track Listing:
1. Summertime
2. Subway Station No. 5
3. You Stepped Out of a Dream
4. Parts Parallels
5. Or Not To Be
6. Yellow Car
7. Yet Another In a Long Series of Yellow Cars
8. I Never Went Away
9. My Girl
10. Be Myself

Double-Platinum Album Includes Top 10 Hit “Chuck E’s In Love”

Rickie Lee Jones was hip before hipsters came of age. Wearing a beret, exuding supreme cool, and visually demarcating herself as a member of a bohemian underground, her image on the cover of her self-titled debut says as much about the singer-songwriter as it does the music within the grooves. Uninterested in coloring within the lines, Jones steps out, a dreamer in the post-punk age, an adventurous drifter seemingly deaf to the noisiness of her era. No wonder the work remains one of the most impressive opening salvos in history.

Mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelity’s 180 gram LP edition of Jones’ double-platinum 1979 smash finally gives listeners the ultimate version of this long-adored masterpiece. Always prized by audiophiles for its sonics, the record now breathes with a clearer air, with enhancements in dynamics, imaging, soundstaging, and frequency extension apparent seconds after the needle touches down on the opening grooves. Jones’ singular, jazzy vocals—straddling territory between youthful surprise, street-smart sharp, and grown-up seriousness—take on stupendously lifelike qualities to the extent you can hear into her lungs.

Emerging from a quiet Los Angeles scene that also laid claim to Tom Waits, a former love interest, Jones reflects an undiminished capacity for fusing folk, R&B, pop, jazz, and scatted word poetry on an effort that matches the flexibility and elasticity of the artist’s creative approach. As if playing games of hide and seek, Jones often dances around conventional syllabic phrases, using her delivery to stretch language and vowels, turning in diction that’s at once gorgeous and enterprising. She taps into a subtlety of texture and ambience well beyond her then 23-year-old age, inserting sly humor when apt, and never shying away from raw emotion.

Renowned for the Top 10 hit “Chuck E’s In Love,” Rickie Lee Jones overflows with finger-snapping be-bop accents, funky cabaret melodies, bluesy bridges, soothing balladry, and even Westernized fills. Subdued complexities flavor the arrangements, expressly tailored for Jones’ portrait-rich storytelling and character-driven narratives. Such diversity is on display on the metaphorical heartache of “Last Chance Texaco,” reflective “Company,” and corner-hangout musings of “Danny’s All-Star Joint.” Throughout, intricate guitar lines give listeners further reason to concentrate on the tunes. This one is simply a must-have.

Track Listing:
1. Chuck E’s In Love
2. On Saturday Afternoons in 1963
3. Night Train
4. Young Blood
5. Easy Money
6. Last Chance Texaco
7. Danny’s All-Star Joint
8. Coolsville
9. Weasel and the White Boys Cool
10. Company
11. After Hours

Mastered from the Original Master Tapes: Stunning, Room-Filling Sound

The Doobie Brothers’ illustrious career is marked by a string of hits, two of which, “Sweet Maxine” and “Take Me In Your Arms (Rock Me),” are included here. But Stampede offers much more. In terms of musical dexterity, the 1975 set stands as the group’s peak studio moment.

With ex-Steely Dan guitarist Jeff “Skunk” Baxter finally a full-time member of the band, the California quintet steps up everything from the arrangements to the songwriting. The group also invited several distinguished guests along for the ride: Vocalist Maria Muldaur, soul legend Curtis Mayfield, slide guitarist Ry Cooder, and jazz hand Victor Feldman among them. The results are as good on record as they appear on paper.

A definitive staple of 1970s rock, Stampede traverses a wellspring of soulful genres while remaining tethered to a rootsy anchor. Western-themed rock, retro blues, and rousing boogie flavors pepper the songs, all of which stand the test of time and both reference and advance ideas generated by the Byrds, Eagles, and Steve Miller. Connoisseurs of fine-tuned playing need to tune into the stripped-down acoustics of “Slat Key Soquel Rag” and Baxter’s classically styled instrumental “Precis.” As far as virtuosity is concerned, few mid-70s albums equaled the balance of Stampede.

The record’s highlights are legion, yet the best quality may be the Doobies’ unwillingness to play it safe. Whether it’s Mayfield’s arrangements on the forceful “Music Man,” Cooder’s tasty accents on “Rainy Day Crossroad Blues,” or Muldaur’s passionate vocals on “I Cheat the Hangman,” the band brings it all to the table, and then some. If you only know the Doobies by way of radio smashes such as “Listen to the Music,” you are in for a treat.

Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab engineers invested tremendous care into the mastering of Stampede from the original master tapes. Akin to the other five titles in Mobile Fidelity’s Doobie Brothers catalog restoration series, this 1975 classic breathes with new life that’s on par with Keith Richards receiving a blood transfusion. Not only does the instrumental finesse of the guest musicians shine, the Doobies’ rhythms and melodies come on with a tube-like warmth and plentiful airiness that enhance the enjoyment of the record. This is a killer album that no one should be without, particularly now that it sounds absolutely fantastic!

Track Listing:
1. Sweet Maxine
2. Neal's Fandango
3. Texas Lullaby
4. Music Man
5. Slack Key Soquel Rag
6. Take Me In Your Arms (Rock Me a Little While)
7. I Cheat the Hangman
8. Précis
9. Rainy Day Crossroad Blues
10. I Been Workin' on You
11. Double Dealin' Four Flusher

Mastered from the Original Master Tapes: Smooth, Big-Guitar Sound Resonates Like Never Before

Weezer’s self-titled third album, collectively known as the Green Album, nearly never came to pass. The band had all but broken apart, with leader Rivers Cuomo choosing to go back to college and the other members dismayed at the initial reception to 1996’s Pinkerton. Persuaded at the turn of the century to return to the concert stage, the foursome launched one of the most enduring comeback stories in history, and in the process, penned 75 songs, the choicest of which grace 2001’s concise, tightly played Green Album.

Mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on 180 gram LP at RTI, Mobile Fidelity’s reissue presents the music with by far the most dynamic range it’s ever enjoyed. Cars icon Ric Ocasek’s production comes into fuller relief, with guitar notes ringing with front-to-back depth and superb imaging. Cuomo’s singing gains focus and clarity, and the rhythms that help give the tunes their incessant catchiness are better defined, with the low end finally present.

That nearly everything on Green Album—from the cover to the producer to sonics—reflects those of Weezer’s blockbuster debut isn’t merely coincidence. The quartet, not yet realizing that Pinkerton had already become a cult classic (and, soon after, would be hailed as one of the most prized albums of its generation), intentionally pursued a back-to-basics approach that echoed its roots. Unadorned simplicity, skyscraper-sized hooks, and short-but-sweet arrangements are the hallmarks here, each a signpost on how rock albums can work their way into a listener’s head and provide limitless satisfaction.

Of course, however crucial, the music is just one component in Weezer’s arsenal. Akin to its sibling efforts, Green Album wouldn’t be the same devoid of Cuomo’s lyrics, which exude charming personality and boyish awkwardness. Absent is the heart-on-a-sleeve obviousness of the fare of Pinkerton. The material here echoes with a related emotional universality whereby romantic yearning, fear of rejection, and getaway fantasies spark with the winking promise of enthusiasm and attainment. There’s a reason every passage remains so accessible; playfulness and wryness abound. Power-pop efforts don’t come more perfect.

Track Listing:
1. Don’t Let Go
2. Photograph
3. Hash Pipe
4. Island in the Sun
5. Crab
6. Knock-Down Drag-Out
7. Smile
8. Simple Pages
9. Glorious Day
10. O Girlfriend

Mastered from the Original Master Tapes: Rick Rubin's Sleek, Layered Production Now Reveals More Details and Subtle Cues

Following four acclaimed albums filled with power-pop, Weezer swings for the fences on Make Believe. Expanding its ambitions, arrangements, and diversity, and helmed by mega-producer Rick Rubin, the 2005 record ranks as the band’s most diverse and balanced effort. It’s also the group’s longest set distinguished by more personal lyrics inspired by leader Rivers Cuomo’s meditation sessions. Anchored by four radio-charting singles, and streaked with cautious optimism, Make Believe remains a compelling intersection of sleek, new wave and big, meaty arena-rock bluster.

Mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on 180 gram LP at RTI, Mobile Fidelity’s reissue affirms Make Believe as the best-sounding record of Weezer’s career by allowing Rubin’s finessed sonics to showcase the instrumentation and subtle cues embedded in the layers of production. Previously buried or obscured, strings and pianos give extra body and shape to certain songs, while the quartet—buttressed by the brawnier, richer studio techniques—comes across as bigger than ever before. Drums, in particular, strongly benefit from Rubin’s experience and ear.

Opening with “Beverly Hills,” a chant-a-long anthem that immediately hypnotizing the senses with bleacher-stomping momentum and dorky talk-box solo, Make Believe takes amusing aim at haute-couture culture and fickle materialism here and on the farcical “We Are All On Drugs,” each song informed by Cuomo’s observations while living in California. Silly, witty, quirky—it’s requisite Weezer, and uses a sense of humor to counteract the more serious sides of the album.

As he did on Pinkerton, Cuomo revisits intimate feelings and fears of loneliness, drawing from his break-up with his girlfriend to themes of forgiveness. Make Believe represents both a musical and emotional evolution, wherein Weezer embraces different styles (new wave, harder-edged rock, irony-free ballads) and hints at sincere hopefulness. Two of the effort’s biggest singles (“This Is Such a Pity,” “Perfect Situation”) breathe with an endearing sympathy that steers clear of cynicism or sarcasm. Where the quartet previously opted for self-flagellation when it came to romance, songs here indicate Cuomo and Co. content to move on and let go.

Similarly, Cuomo wrote the nerves-exposed “The Other Way” for his ex-girlfriend after her boyfriend passed away. Undercurrents of self-analysis, apology, and resolution run throughout the material and affirm a maturation that nevertheless avoids sacrificing Weezer’s hallmark hooks and melodies. As Rolling Stone writer Rob Sheffield noted in his review of Make Believe, “Not since Brian Wilson has an L.A.-pop mastermind gotten such musical mileage out of wanting to be an ordinary guy, not realizing that his psychosexual freakitude is exactly what makes him one.”

Track Listing:
1. Beverly Hills
2. Perfect Situation
3. This Is Such a Pity
4. Hold Me
5. Peace
6. We Are All On Drugs
7. The Damage In Your Heart
8. Pardon Me
9. My Best Friend
10. The Other Way
11. Freak Me Out
12. Haunt You Everyday

Mastered from the Original Master Tapes: Experience the Album's Edgier Feel as Originally Intended

Few records claim as bizarre a history as Weezer’s Pinkerton. Upon release in 1996, the band’s sophomore effort failed to meet sales expectations, lacked a hit single, and drew primarily negative reviews from the press. Then, via word of mouth and reevaluation, the Little Album That Could began to build a reputation as an initially misunderstood masterwork—a bold, brave, and exposed creation that happened to have hyper-contagious hooks to accompany the confessional lyrics. Today, it’s cited on virtually every Best Albums of the 1990s list in existence.

Mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on 180 gram LP at RTI, Mobile Fidelity’s analog version of the effort Rolling Stone awarded a full five-star review upon revisiting it eight years later brings the band’s live-in-the-studio vocals and darker, raw feel to the surface like never before. Leader Rivers Cuomo’s decision to record group choruses around three microphones rather than capture them separately finally can be experienced as originally intended, with the immediate vibe paying off in the form of more engaging, edgier results that parallel the songs’ personal emotions and frustrated themes. Guitars, which scrape and push, augmenting the trials and tribulations documented in the narratives, are finally rendered in proper perspective.

Comprised of nonfiction tunes largely based on Cuomo’s dissatisfaction with rock-star life, and written by the singer/guitarist as he attended school at Harvard University, Pinkerton confronts disappointment, loneliness, isolation, awkwardness, and cruel romantic irony with a universal perspective to which anybody can relate. Cuomo selected the character Lieutenant Pinkerton from Puccini’s Madame Butterfly as a touchstone, believing the persona symbolic of the tormented protagonists in his songs—and recognizing similar struggles to come to terms with identity.

Weezer’s aims on Pinkerton have connected with many that identify with its narratives and adore its surfeit of melodies. Surpassing cult-classic status and conquering fickle tastes, the record ranks in Guitar World’s “Top 100 Guitar Albums of All-Time”; Spin’s “100 Best Albums From 1985 to 2005”; Pitchfork’s “Top 100 Albums of the 1990s”; and Rolling Stone’s Hall of Fame.

For all the malaise, Pinkerton also contains beloved wit and humor. Shyness and hands-in-pocket diffidence inform “El Scorcho”; incongruity and surprise surround the simultaneously funny and sad “Pink Triangle”; tedium and desire collide on the cynical “Tired of Sex.” Psychosexual confusion, unrequited passion, and good intentions elicit unintended sympathies, a trait that remains one of the record’s brilliant turns.

Track Listing:
1. Tired of Sex
2. Getchoo
3. No Other One
4. Why Bother?
5. Across the Sea
6. The Good Life
7. El Scorcho
8. Pink Triangle
9. Falling for You
10. Butterfly

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI

Judas Priest’s namesake razor-blade logo is recognized the world over. So, too, is the band’s leather-and-studs look, the roughness and rebelliousness seamlessly meshing with the group’s no-nonsense music. Both trademarks arrived with 1978’s Stained Class, a benchmark not only for the British quintet but for the international hard-rock community. Boasting cleaner, crisper, and more refined production than its previous efforts, the record became an archetype of the style that ultimately became speed metal.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, this Silver Series numbered limited edition LP opens up the sound and spectacle contained within Stained Class like never before. Immeasurably more dynamic than the 2001 CD remasters and more transparent, extended, and immediate than the original vinyl pressings, the reissue brings the metal gods to life. Rob Halford’s piercing falsetto reaches untold heights, and the crunch-and-burn of the dual-guitar interplay boasts realistic weight, balance, and tension. There’s nothing like the sound of metal on vinyl.

The last Judas Priest effort to feature songwriting by all five members, Stained Class briefly attained infamous status during the early 1990s after it became the subject of a legal case involving two misguided youths. Yet Priest’s unanimous victory in court further reaffirmed the LP’s purist, no-frills appeal and, moreover, drew attention to the symphonic precision and cleaver-sharp melodies within what Metal Hammer magazine declared “the heaviest heavy metal album of all time.”

At once visceral, complex, aggressive, sinister, and focused, Stained Class addresses topics such as death, victory, and the alien unknown with combustible relentlessness and instinctual passion. While the turbo-thrust gallop of “Exciter” and blaring momentum on “White Heat, Red Hot” rank as straight-ahead shots of adrenaline, the band displays a still-underappreciated lyrical intelligence on “Savages,” the title track, and “Heroes End,” all owing to long-view perspectives and Biblical imagery. And with “Better By You, Better Than Me” and “Beyond the Realms of Death,” Priest cut two songs whose influence on the likes of Metallica, Megadeth, and countless others remains today.

As metal journalist Martin Popoff wrote in his book The Top 500 Heavy Metal Albums of All Time: “The album was first and foremost a spot of production crumpet proposing that this kind of music could exist and thrive within the realm of armchair audiophile fidelity. This was applied nowhere with more force than within the tom-tom sound of drummer Les Binks, who holds the philosophical line to the briefly sparked Simon Phillips’ version of the band, one record previous.”

Track Listing:
1. Exciter
2. White Heat, Red Hot
3. Better By You, Better Than Me
4. Stained Class
5. Invader
6. Saints in Hell
7. Savage
8. Beyond the Realms of Death
9. Heroes End

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI: LP Breathes With Sumptuous Warmth

The final Santana album recorded with the leader’s famed Woodstock lineup, one of the most capable and explosive bands ever assembled, Santana III (commonly referred to as The Third Album) is a beacon of Latin-tinged rock, melodic creativity, and cohesive interplay. The record also marks the debut of young guitar virtuoso Neal Schon, who functions as the ideal foil to Santana, whose playing on this 1971 set rivals that of the finest in his career. If not for arriving after the monumental Abraxas, it is likely Santana III would be mentioned in the same breath as groundbreaking psychedelic classics such as Bitches Brew. It’s that good.

Embracing the concept that all of the members should share their musical ideas, Santana added two crucial components to his band: Schon, discovered at the age of 15 playing in a Palo Alto club, and Thomas “Coke” Escovedo, who during the sessions temporarily replaced ill percussionist Chepito Areas, and whose percussive assistance helped define the album’s feel. With Schon in the fold, Santana strives for the unknown, and yet, manages to stave off the numbing excesses that define much of the period’s output.

From the opening “Batuka,” peppered with Schon’s stirring guitar lines, to the sensitive “Everything Is Coming Our Way,” infused with a mesmerizing Hammond organ underpinning that supports Santana’s vocal pathos, the record teams with inventiveness. Involving albeit accessible concoctions of funk, jazz, rock, blues, and soul run throughout the set. Spanish-styled flavors infuse a majority of the material, ranging from the salsa piano on “Guarjira” to the distinctive “No One to Depend On,” a lively take on the cha-cha-cha.

A globe-spanning armada of percussive instruments—timbales, congas, drums, vibes, tambourines, and more—as well as the existence of a three-person percussion team that fits in harmoniously with Santana, Schon, and company makes Santana III a masterful accomplishment in musical chemistry and the exploration of true world craft.

The Silver Label LP of Santana III breathes with sumptuous warmth and you-are-there realism. The tension of Schon’s guitar lines, the album’s open sound, and extensive use of studio echoes (check the presence of the backward echo on “No One to Depend On”) fill the soundstage, replete with the kind of depth and dynamics one expects from a first-rate audiophile recording.

Track Listing:
1. Batuka
2. No One to Depend On
3. Taboo
4. Toussaint L'Overture
5. Everybody's Everything
6. Guajira
7. Jungle Strut
8. Everything's Coming Our Way
9. Para los Rumberos

Stunning Sound: LP Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s World-Class Mastering System and Pressed at RTI

Many believe it’s the most perfect Americana album ever made. The 1969 touchstone very well may be. Advancing the chemistry and cohesion of the group’s ground-shifting debut, The Band is an inimitable distillation of compelling storytelling, cosmic divinity, loose country-rock tunefulness, and superbly crafted songwriting. Warm, literate, poignant, and intimate, the record established new standards for seemingly effortless telepathic interplay among first-class musicians whose creations are as much about feeling as they are about sound.

Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI, this collectable LP burrows into the sonic heart of hearth-rich fare that balances Appalachia’s mountain flavors, the Old West’s rollicking free spiritedness, Canada’s limitless vast folk sprawl, and the Deep South’s whiskey-soaked drawl. Arkansas native Richard Helm blends his rural roots with guitarist Robbie Robertson’s allegorical narratives, the pair meeting at a crossroads that, on this pressing, reveals textures as organic as cotton and tonalities as timeless as the look of classic filmstrips. Notes hover and naturally decay; cascading harmonies waft and reverberate; soundstages open up and extend, providing generous spaces for each member’s invaluable contributions to relax, settle, and enter into a wholesome communion.

Indeed, a force normally associated with higher powers appears to guide each one of the 12 tracks, honed to perfection by co-writer Robertson and his simpatico mates. Sensitive, graceful, magnetic, entirely genuine: Whether focusing on Richard Manuel’s spiritual piano chords and evocative tenor, Rick Danko’s simple albeit direct bass lines and melancholy deliveries, Robertson’s pull-no-punches leads, Garth Hudson’s majestically tuckpointed organ runs, or Helm’s percussive rhythms, a sense of astonishment and truth dignifies arrangements steeped in meditative properties and barn-dance rawness.

From the swampy bayou grooves, jaw-harp-mimicking clavinet passages, and traditional yodels found on “Up on Cripple Creek” to the jubilant dance persuasion of “Rag Mama Rag,” The Band blends mythological devices with authentic melodies, rustic acoustic properties with haunting harmonies. Universally identifiable, the characters in the songs are people well-versed in hardship, depression, working-class struggle, and Skid Row trouble. Musically, the group balances sweetness and edginess on all of its foundational material, capturing the essence of American music and culture like no band before or since.

Track Listing:
1. Across the Great Divide
2. Rag Mama Rag
3. The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
4. When You Awake
5. Up on Cripple Creek
6. Whispering Pines
7. Jemima Surrender
8. Rockin’ Chair
9. Lookout Cleveland
10. Jawbone
11. The Unfaithful Servant
12. King Harvest (Has Surely Come)

“No One Else Writes or Sounds Like This”—Chicago Tribune

Accessible and complicated, alluring and challenging, sensuous and liberating, Patricia Barber’s Smash once and for all confirms the pianist/singer exists in an elevated artistic plane reached by none of her generational peers. Four years in the making, and the beloved musician’s first studio record since 2008, her Concord Records debut defies expectations and crystallizes her status as a preeminent songwriter. Informed by personal episodes of significant loss and yearning, the album masterfully unites harmony and melody via uncommon delicacy, tonal intimacy, and ethereal surrealism. It will likely stand as 2013’s finest jazz effort, an instant classic.

Mastered from the original master tapes and pressed at RTI, Mobile Fidelity’s 180g 2LP possesses audiophile-quality fidelity and dynamic transparency unmatched by the commercially released CD. Akin to the reissue label’s previous Barber releases, many of which are long out-of-print and command huge sums on the collector’s market, Smash brings the singer and her band into your listening room, converting it into a recreation of the stage at Chicago’s Green Mill, Barber’s home base. Sonic characteristics crucial to Barber’s sophisticated compositions—atmospherics, decay, whisper-soft transients, mood, acoustic dimensions, precise imaging—are rendered with utmost detail, balance, and accuracy. All else that’s required for your trip to the Green Mill is a stereo and glass of chardonnay.

Punctuated by deft instrumental passages and mysterious verses, Smash marks a triumphant return for Barber after she endured a series of melancholic episodes, including the death of her mother and four other people close to her. In addition, a disagreement with business associate cost her untold amount of money. She also broke away from Blue Note after its president stepped down from his position. Barber channels these painful, often-angry experiences and transitional periods into expressionistic poetry on Smash, transferring her emotions to arrangements that mirror the deep, meaningful cycle of human life and death.

Backed by a brilliant trio, Barber opts for her now-signature subdued methods, allowing each syllable to linger, every note to hover before fading, each rhythmic line to develop unique relationships with the groove. Chicago Tribune jazz critic Howard Reich wrote in his rave review of Smash: “No one else writes or sounds like this, in other words, because no one else approaches the art of singing, songwriting, and piano playing with Barber’s particular interests. The liquidity of her vocals, the sharp edge of her jazz pianism, and the quirkiness of her original songs cannot be imitated and remain a work in progress.”

These aspects, and more, are immediately apparent on Smash, arguably the boldest and most satisfying set of the reclusive talent’s career. Her famously seductive and breathy vocals, supple right-hand runs, and nuanced harmonics simultaneously engage, hypnotize, and tempt. Her mates follow suit with aptly sculpted bass lines, taut percussion, and suggestive guitar fills. A model of economical succinctness, Smash takes risks, harbors intensity, and utilizes silences to communicate. It represents a new level for 21st century jazz, and there’s no way to better way to experience it and immerse yourself in its powers than via Mobile Fidelity’s superb edition.

Track Listing:
1. Code Cool
2. The Wind Song
3. Romanesque
4. Smash
5. Redshift
6. Spring Song
7. Devil's Food
8. Scream
9. The Swim
10. Bashful
11. The Storyteller
12. Missing