Mark Smotroff

Album ReviewsBeatles
First Official 180g 2LP Release of One Hand Clapping, the Well-Loved and Oft-Bootlegged 1974 Live-in-Studio Recordings by Paul McCartney & Wings, Deserves Much Applause
Mark Smotroff  |  Jun 14, 2024  |  5 comments

It’s been heavily bootlegged over the years, and yet Paul McCartney & Wings’ One Hand Clapping is still something of a holy grail among fans. These 1974 live-in-the-studio recordings find the group firing on all cylinders — and then some. Finally, this vital Macca music has been officially released today, June 14, 2024, by MPL/Capitol/UMe as both a 180g 2LP set and a web-exclusive edition that also includes a bonus six-track 45. Read on to see why Mark Smotroff feels One Hand Clapping offers some of the most rocking Macca & Wings music on vinyl to date. . .

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Album Reviews
Indie-Rock Icons The dB’s Oversee a Quite Welcome and Long-Overdue First-Time U.S. Vinyl Release of Their Highly Influential 1981 Debut LP, Stands For deciBels
Mark Smotroff  |  Jun 07, 2024  |  5 comments

The acclaimed hybrid North Carolina/New York four-piece band The dB’s were on the leading edge of the gradually growing indie-rock movement as the calendar turned to the 1980s. Today, we are celebrating the first-ever U.S. vinyl edition of their highly influential January 1981 debut LP, Stands for deciBels, which is set for release by Propeller Sound Recordings next Friday, June 14. Read Mark Smotroff’s review to see why Stands for deciBels continues to stand tall as an influence on much of the music we listen to on vinyl today, and why this new domestic LP version belongs in your collection. . .

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Album Reviews
Pianist and Composer Vijay Iyer and His Trio Deliver Emotive Sonic Riches and Much Aural Beauty on Their New 180g 2LP ECM Records Set, Compassion
Mark Smotroff  |  May 31, 2024  |  5 comments

Pianist and composer Vijay Iyer is someone who should have been on our analog radar much, much sooner, so we’re beyond pleased that we’re now able to marvel at his and his trio’s true artistry on their new 180g 2LP release on ECM Records, Compassion. Read Mark Smotroff’s review to see if Iyer and Compassion should be added to your must-listen list. . .

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Album Reviews
Tom Verlaine’s Retrospective 4LP RSD Box Set Souvenir From A Dream Collects the First, and Quite Worthwhile, Phase of His Post-Television Solo Career
Mark Smotroff  |  May 24, 2024  |  1 comments

A new 4LP box set compiling the initial four solo album releases by the late, great tastemaking guitarist/vocalist Tom Verlaine, titled Souvenir From a Dream: The Tom Verlaine Albums (1979-1984), celebrates the artist’s initial musical life beyond Television, his highly influential CBGB-era alt-punk band. Read Mark Smotroff’s review to see if Souvenir is worth adding to your collection. . .

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Album Reviews
Could T Bone Burnett’s New Solo Album, The Other Side, Be One of the Best Acoustic-Oriented LPs You’ll Spin This, Or Any Other, Year?
Mark Smotroff  |  May 17, 2024  |  6 comments

Joseph Henry Burnett III is not exactly a household name for most people these days, and that’s a shame. Under his T Bone Burnett sobriquet, he’s turned in a lifetime of work that has placed this legendary musician, composer, and producer in the crosshairs of the likes of Bob Dylan, Elvis Costello, Los Lobos, Robert Plant, and Alison Krauss (to name but a few). He’s also just released a new solo album, The Other Side, that’s one of the best LPs we’ve heard so far this year. Read Mark Smotroff’s review to see why both sides of The Other Side belong on your turntable. . .

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Album Reviews
Pearl Jam’s New Studio LP Dark Matter Is a FIne Collection of Undeniably Great Songs, But Does the Vinyl Edition Meet Our Audiophile Standards?
Mark Smotroff  |  May 10, 2024  |  4 comments

Pearl Jam’s first studio album in four years, Dark Matter, is chock full of the kind of hard-edge songs that made the band great when they first burst onto the rock scene in the early 1990s. Read Mark Smotroff’s review to see if the Dark Matter LP passes audiophile muster. . .

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AAA VinylShort Cuts
Review Explosion, Short Cuts Edition, Vol. 15, RSD 2024 Roundup, Part 2: Parliament’s 2LP Expanded Inaugural 1970 Album Osmium and Gandalf’s All-Analog Self-Titled 1969 Debut are Holy Grail Finds
Mark Smotroff  |  May 04, 2024  |  First Published: May 04, 2024  |  2 comments

Part 2 of our RSD 2024 Short Cuts roundup focuses on a pair of Holy Grail releases for reviewer Mark Smotroff — Gandalf’s self-titled 1969 debut and Parliament’s own 1970 debut, Osmium, the latter of which is now expanded into a 2LP Deluxe Edition. Read on to see if either or both of these RSD offerings are worthwhile additions to your own collection. . .

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Album ReviewsShort Cuts
Review Explosion, Short Cuts Edition, Vol. 14, RSD 2024 Roundup, Part 1: New, Top-Shelf Live LPs From Talking Heads and Fleet Foxes
Mark Smotroff  |  Apr 27, 2024  |  First Published: Apr 27, 2024  |  4 comments

We here at AP had pretty fruitful, respective Record Store Day 2024 ventures last Saturday, and we hope you did too! In Part 1 of his RSD 2024 review roundups, Mark Smotroff tackles a pair of excellent multidisc live LP releases from Talking Heads and Fleet Foxes, so read on to see if either/both belong in your own RSD-related collections. . .

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Album ReviewsShort Cuts
Review Explosion, Short Cuts Edition, Vol. 13: A Trio of Record Store Day 2024 LP Releases From Brother Jack McDuff, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, and Art Tatum
Mark Smotroff  |  Apr 18, 2024  |  First Published: Apr 18, 2024  |  3 comments

It’s not often you get new titles from three legendary artists of yesteryear like gospel icon Sister Rosetta Tharpe, piano virtuoso Art Tatum, and soul-jazz organ pioneer Brother Jack McDuff all released on the same day. But this year, all three of them are being celebrated on Record Store Day 2024 — this year’s first installment of which happens to fall on this upcoming Saturday, April 20 — with newly unearthed, previously unreleased, multidisc live concert recordings on 180g black vinyl. Read Mark Smotroff’s review of all three of these releases to see which one, or ones, belong on your “must have” RSD 2024 shopping list. . .

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Album Reviews
RSD Preview Review: Nat King Cole’s Intimate, 1953 Small Club Gig, Live at the Blue Note Chicago, Makes Its Vinyl Debut on April 20 Via 180g 2LP Set Pressed at RTI
Mark Smotroff  |  Apr 05, 2024  |  3 comments

The first question we asked ourselves when contemplating the newly unearthed 1953 concert recording of Nat King Cole duly dubbed Live at the Blue Note Chicago — which is earmarked for release on the next upcoming Record Store Day, April 20 — is why would audiophile-leaning vinyl enthusiasts and jazz fans alike want it in their collections? The combination of great performances, of-era sound quality, and pricing topped our requirements list, and, fortunately, Live at the Blue Note Chicago has enough of all three to satisfy our listening/collecting needs — but what about yours? Read Mark Smotroff’s review to see if Nat King Cole’s Live at the Blue Note Chicago belongs on your RSD must-have list. . .

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