Genre > Soul, R&B, Funk

The wise saying »spiritus ubi vult spirat« (»the spirit blows where it wills«) is interpreted by Earth, Wind & Fire with impressive clarity. Gentle sounds and modest gestures are foreign to the colourful Afro group, who in their live performances welded together ancient Egyptian Pharaonic mysticism with urban street life. That this spirit, which is found in the LP title and blows all the way through it, was guaranteed not only by the exuberant wind section in the group’s early years. With regard to rhythm, too, the band rolls out almost everything to pave the floor with powerful disco patterns, not forgetting the elegant and finely controlled falsetto, which adds further pep. Out of all this came the highly cultivated and expressive vocals as in "Imagine", carefully balanced ballads ("Burnin’ Bush"), as well as a powerful sound that is so good for dancing to, as in the memorable number "Saturday Nite". An extremely wide range of musical genres was brought together by Earth, Wind & Fire in a big-band sound that is »innovative yet popular, precise yet sensual, calculated yet galvanizing« (Rolling Stone Magazine).

This Speakers Corner LP was remastered using pure analogue components only, from the master tapes through to the cutting head. All royalties and mechanical rights have been paid.

Musicians:

• Maurice White (vocal, drums, percussion)
• Philip Bailey (vocal, conga, percussion)
• Larry Dunn (piano, organ, synthesizer)
• Johnny Graham (guitar)
• Al McKay (guitar, percussion)
• Jerry Peters (piano)
• Verdine White (vocal, bass, percussion)
• Fred White, Ralph Johnson (drums, percussion)

Recording: 1976 at Wally Heider Studio 3, Burbank Studios, Hollywood Sound Recorders and Westlake Audio by George Massenburg
Production: Maurice White & Charles Stepney

About Speakers Corner

At the beginning of the 90s, in the early days of audiophile vinyl re-releases, the situation was fairly straightforward. Companies such as DCC, Mobile Fidelity, Classic Records and, of course, Speakers Corner all maintained a mutual, unwritten ethical code: we would only use analogue tapes to manufacture records.

During the course of the present vinyl hype, many others have jumped on the bandwagon in the hope of securing a corner of the market. Very often they are not so ethical and use every imaginable source to master from: CDs, LPs, digital files, MP3s – or employed existant tools from the 80s and 90s for manufacturing.

A digital delay is gladly used when cutting a lacquer disc because tape machines with an analogue delay have become quite rare and are therefore expensive. When cutting the lacquer, the audio signal is delayed by one LP revolution against the signal, which controls the cutter head, and for this a digital delay is very often employed. Of course, the resultant sound signal is completely digital and thus only as good as this delay.

We should like to emphasise that Speakers Corner Records on principle only uses the original master tape as the basis for the entirely analogue cutting of lacquer discs. In addition, the pressing tool is newly manufactured as a matter of principle. We have one digital recording in our catalogue (Alan Parsons / Eye In The Sky“), but even in this particular case we used the analogue tapes for cutting.

We only employ existing tools for manufacturing if an improved result is not forthcoming, e.g. the title Elvis Is Back, which was mastered by Steve Hoffman and Kevin Gray, or several titles from our Philips Classics series, which in any case Willem Makkee cut from the original masters at the Emil Berliner Studios in the 90s. It goes without saying that we only used the mother and that new tools were made for our production.

To put it in a nutshell: we can ensure you that our releases are free from any kind of digital effects – excluding the exception above – and that the lacquer discs are newly cut.

As is well known, early relationships are not always blessed, and it is certainly no secret that the collaboration between Aretha Franklin and Columbia’s record producer John H. Hammond did not last long. Hammond’s later attempts to candy Franklin’s irrepressible natural voice with sugary arrangements and studio gimmicks did not go down well with the public. On the first Franklin disc from Columbia, however, it was honeymoon all the way. With a successful mix of pop and jazz standards, the super talent – Aretha had just turned 18 years old – brought her vocal chords to vibrate. Fired on with youthful élan, these evergreens sound so fresh, new and intoxicating that the question of their genre is quite irrelevant. From a seesawing R & B ("Won’t Be Long") via bell-like waves of melody ("Over The Rainbow") right up to the freely styled, jazzy Gershwin classic "It Ain’t Necessarily So" – everything is right there! The Ray Bryant Trio – augmented with winds – proves itself a formidable ensemble with true presence yet unobtrusive accompaniment. If you compare the mature performances of Aretha Franklin in her subsequent years with Atlantic, you will soon recognize that the later 'First Lady of Soul' was in full command of her profession right from the very beginning.

This Speakers Corner LP was remastered using pure analogue components only, from the master tapes through to the cutting head. All royalties and mechanical rights have been paid.

Musicians:
Aretha Franklin(vocals, electric piano)
Quentin Jackson, Tyree Glenn (trombone)
Al Sears (tenor saxophone)
Ray Bryant (piano)
Lord Westbrook, Skeeter Best (guitar)
Milt Hinton, Bill Lee (bass)
Belton Evans, Sticks Evans, Osie Johnson (drums)

About Speakers Corner

At the beginning of the 90s, in the early days of audiophile vinyl re-releases, the situation was fairly straightforward. Companies such as DCC, Mobile Fidelity, Classic Records and, of course, Speakers Corner all maintained a mutual, unwritten ethical code: we would only use analogue tapes to manufacture records.

During the course of the present vinyl hype, many others have jumped on the bandwagon in the hope of securing a corner of the market. Very often they are not so ethical and use every imaginable source to master from: CDs, LPs, digital files, MP3s – or employed existant tools from the 80s and 90s for manufacturing.

A digital delay is gladly used when cutting a lacquer disc because tape machines with an analogue delay have become quite rare and are therefore expensive. When cutting the lacquer, the audio signal is delayed by one LP revolution against the signal, which controls the cutter head, and for this a digital delay is very often employed. Of course, the resultant sound signal is completely digital and thus only as good as this delay.

We should like to emphasise that Speakers Corner Records on principle only uses the original master tape as the basis for the entirely analogue cutting of lacquer discs. In addition, the pressing tool is newly manufactured as a matter of principle. We have one digital recording in our catalogue (Alan Parsons / Eye In The Sky“), but even in this particular case we used the analogue tapes for cutting.

We only employ existing tools for manufacturing if an improved result is not forthcoming, e.g. the title Elvis Is Back, which was mastered by Steve Hoffman and Kevin Gray, or several titles from our Philips Classics series, which in any case Willem Makkee cut from the original masters at the Emil Berliner Studios in the 90s. It goes without saying that we only used the mother and that new tools were made for our production.

To put it in a nutshell: we can ensure you that our releases are free from any kind of digital effects – excluding the exception above – and that the lacquer discs are newly cut.

Ranked 493/500 on Rolling Stone Magazine's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

"OK, so it’s disco sound, but it’s really good." Whoever says that today must have been pretty lively on their feet in the 70s and 80s and in the days of their youth they will definitely have noticed that the commercial fusion music they listened to on a Saturday night was buzzing with energy and excitement. Earth, Wind & Fire considered their amazing mix of Latin, Gospel, Soul, Funk and dynamic horn section as being of existential importance. This was the album that would either make or break the band: either they would establish themselves or they would sink into oblivion like so many other rhythm and blues acts.

The basic recipe – finely chiselled Latin beat, meaty bass grooves and sizzling funky improvisations, spiced with the sound of exotic instruments – works perfectly. Furthermore, crowned with a beautifully airy falsetto and relaxed harmonious singing, the band created a big-band sound that the magazine Rolling Stone described as »innovative yet popular, precise yet sensual, calculated yet galvanizing«. Almost two decades later, and with more than three million albums sold in the USA alone, the editorial team voted the LP into their list of the ‘500 Greatest Albums of All Time’. And about time too! At last today’s ravers and rappers also get the opportunity to experience the great rhythms to which their daddies danced.

Musicians:

• Maurice White (vocal, percussion, drums)
• Verdine White (vocal, bass, percussion)
• Philip Bailey (vocal, conga, percussion)
• Larry Dunn (piano, organ, synthesizer)
• Al McKay (guitar, percussion)
• Ralph Johnson (drums, percussion)
• Johnny Graham (guitar)
• Fred White (drums, percussion)

Recording: 1975 at Caribou Ranch in Nederland, Colorado (USA), by Curt Wittig
Production: Maurice White

About Speakers Corner

At the beginning of the 90s, in the early days of audiophile vinyl re-releases, the situation was fairly straightforward. Companies such as DCC, Mobile Fidelity, Classic Records and, of course, Speakers Corner all maintained a mutual, unwritten ethical code: we would only use analogue tapes to manufacture records.

During the course of the present vinyl hype, many others have jumped on the bandwagon in the hope of securing a corner of the market. Very often they are not so ethical and use every imaginable source to master from: CDs, LPs, digital files, MP3s – or employed existant tools from the 80s and 90s for manufacturing.

A digital delay is gladly used when cutting a lacquer disc because tape machines with an analogue delay have become quite rare and are therefore expensive. When cutting the lacquer, the audio signal is delayed by one LP revolution against the signal, which controls the cutter head, and for this a digital delay is very often employed. Of course, the resultant sound signal is completely digital and thus only as good as this delay.

We should like to emphasise that Speakers Corner Records on principle only uses the original master tape as the basis for the entirely analogue cutting of lacquer discs. In addition, the pressing tool is newly manufactured as a matter of principle. We have one digital recording in our catalogue (Alan Parsons / Eye In The Sky“), but even in this particular case we used the analogue tapes for cutting.

We only employ existing tools for manufacturing if an improved result is not forthcoming, e.g. the title Elvis Is Back, which was mastered by Steve Hoffman and Kevin Gray, or several titles from our Philips Classics series, which in any case Willem Makkee cut from the original masters at the Emil Berliner Studios in the 90s. It goes without saying that we only used the mother and that new tools were made for our production.

To put it in a nutshell: we can ensure you that our releases are free from any kind of digital effects – excluding the exception above – and that the lacquer discs are newly cut.

These recordings were made before Aretha Franklin was honoured with such names as 'Lady Soul' or 'Soul Sister No. 1'. That the young, talented singer already possessed one of the most outstanding voices was confirmed by the great Dinah Washington who stated concisely but decisively: "The girl has got soul."

The present tribute album was recorded just a few months after Washington’s death and presents her most important and successful numbers, sung by her 23-year-old successor, who obviously feels quite comfortable when treading in the great singer’s footsteps. In "Unforgettable", a laid-back number with a string background, Aretha captivates the listener with her ever-changing vocal colouring and gospel-like ballad feeling. In the second number, "Cold, Cold Heart", there is already evidence of a shimmering, subliminal blues nuance which is shot through with pointed harp phrases and the 'sucking' sound of the Hammond organ. While an old-fashioned bluesy style supported by a powerful bigband is characteristic of "Evil Gal Blues", unconventional arrangements using obbligato trombone ("Don’t Say You’re Sorry Again") are also found in this fascinating and highly varied line-up of numbers. Now, more than 40 years after its release, this album pays tribute to two unforgettable interpreters of black music.

Musicians:

• Aretha Franklin (piano, vocals)
• Buddy Lucas (harmonica, tenor saxophone)
• Ernie Royal (trumpet)
• Bob Asher
• Teddy Charles (vibraphone)
• Ernie Hayes (organ, piano)
• Paul Griffin (organ)
• George Duvivier (bass)
• Gary Chester (drums)

Recording: August 1964 in New York
Production: Robert Mersey

About Speakers Corner

At the beginning of the 90s, in the early days of audiophile vinyl re-releases, the situation was fairly straightforward. Companies such as DCC, Mobile Fidelity, Classic Records and, of course, Speakers Corner all maintained a mutual, unwritten ethical code: we would only use analogue tapes to manufacture records.

During the course of the present vinyl hype, many others have jumped on the bandwagon in the hope of securing a corner of the market. Very often they are not so ethical and use every imaginable source to master from: CDs, LPs, digital files, MP3s – or employed existant tools from the 80s and 90s for manufacturing.

A digital delay is gladly used when cutting a lacquer disc because tape machines with an analogue delay have become quite rare and are therefore expensive. When cutting the lacquer, the audio signal is delayed by one LP revolution against the signal, which controls the cutter head, and for this a digital delay is very often employed. Of course, the resultant sound signal is completely digital and thus only as good as this delay.

We should like to emphasise that Speakers Corner Records on principle only uses the original master tape as the basis for the entirely analogue cutting of lacquer discs. In addition, the pressing tool is newly manufactured as a matter of principle. We have one digital recording in our catalogue (Alan Parsons / Eye In The Sky“), but even in this particular case we used the analogue tapes for cutting.

We only employ existing tools for manufacturing if an improved result is not forthcoming, e.g. the title Elvis Is Back, which was mastered by Steve Hoffman and Kevin Gray, or several titles from our Philips Classics series, which in any case Willem Makkee cut from the original masters at the Emil Berliner Studios in the 90s. It goes without saying that we only used the mother and that new tools were made for our production.

To put it in a nutshell: we can ensure you that our releases are free from any kind of digital effects – excluding the exception above – and that the lacquer discs are newly cut.