Crazy People Music (again)- Branford Marsalis (Columbia). This is BM's best group, a quartet with Kenny Kirkland on piano and Jeff "Tain" Watts on drums and the sound is dreadful. This should be in the Smithsonian for two reasons: 1) How not to make a recording; 2) How a tight jazz quartet should play together. The music is first rate modern jazz and Marsalis is such a great composer and improviser it hurts that dynamically this recording is dead as a doornail.
By contrast, I then listened to bluesplayer Robert Lucas and The Locomotives on Joe Harley's Audioquest lable. Crystal clear immediacy and dynamic life, lots of room sound and a wide open stage. Now, THIS is how Mr. Marsalis and company SHOULD have been recorded. Plus, the music is straight up great blues! Oh, how I wish BM could have hooked up with Joe Harley.
If you ever see the latter in a bin somewhere, you'll thank me if you buy it. It has downright excellent sound and the tunes are consistently excellent. I should mention that the playing on Crazy People Music is about as wonderful as any jazz album from the decade if you could just hear more of the supporting cast and contrasts. Both on CD.
