[KS]

For some classical, how about some lieder...one voice and a piano.  Or, other very simple pieces with a superb instrument played superbly and recorded superbly.  We know what one piano, or one violin, or one voice sounds like live and should sound like when reproduced.  A variety of this type of music will provide a good showcase of what a music system can produce.  Combine this with small ensembles, large ensembles, small performance rooms, and concert halls, and the music system will have many tests for us to judge it.

[noshortcuts]

Track 16: bass???

Anybody know who this is. I'm dying to hear more. Jim, anybody?

Thank you!

[danmasi]

How about a track from Flim & The BB's disc "Tricycle"?  It's one of my favorite demos.  First track is a good choice; "thunder and birdies" is a good cut as well for demoing.   Great dynamics and detail.  Lots of good stuff on Bela Fleck's "Acoustic Planet" CD, too.

[jsalk]

noshortcuts -

Track 16: bass???

Anybody know who this is. I'm dying to hear more. Jim, anybody?

Thank you!

I don't have the list in front of me.  But if it is a single bass guitar, it is Dean Peer from the CD Ucross.

- Jim

[jsalk]

danmasi -

How about a track from Flim & The BB's disc "Tricycle"?  It's one of my favorite demos.  First track is a good choice; "thunder and birdies" is a good cut as well for demoing.   Great dynamics and detail. 

You have good taste.  I grew up in Minnesota and started my first recording studio there.  Flim and the BB's were Minnesota studio musicians at the time.  I used Jim Johnson (Flim) on many studio sessions starting when he was about 17 years old (long before Flim and the BB's were born).  So my experience with these phenomenal musicians goes back to the early '70's.

The 3M company, based in St. Paul, was selling a large percentage of the magnetic tape used in studios in those days.  Looking to the future, they began to work on the development of a whole new way of recording music - digitally.  This was quite a few years prior to the development of the CD and no standards existed.  So they were developing their own digital recording technology.

As they began to build recording systmes using their newly developed technology, they needed a place to test it.  There was an engineer at a studio called Sound 80 named Tom Jung (Tom later moved to NY and started the DMP label).  Tom was at the forefront of recoding technology for quite some time. I had been a studio musician in recording sessions with Tom starting in the mid '60's.  At any rate, Tom and a couple of studio musicians named Jim Johnson (nickname Flim)(bass), Bill Berg (drums)and Bill Barber (keyboards) (the BB's) started working with this new technology.

One huge advantage of this new technology was a tremendous increase in dynamic range.  Since they were basically the first group in the world to be able to record with this new level of dynamic range, they experimented with differences between loud and soft passages that were far greater than anyone had recorded before (it wasn't possible with magnetic tape) If you listen to their recordings, that is one thing that is very noticeable.

Later, Flim and the BB's let another musician into the group.  Dick Oats was a great read and flute player.  He didn't come from Minnesota (Iowa) and his name didn't start with a B, but he was so good they let him into the group anyway.

These guys, together with engineer Tom Jung, recorded many of the first digital recordings in the world.  The problem is, 3M decided not to get into the business and the proprietary machines they developed went out of existence.  So there is no way to play back many of these original recordings today.

But Tom Jung went on to form the DMP label and Flim and the BB's got together each year for a while to record another CD.  They played a few concert dates as well.  But they eventually each went their separate ways.  Bil Barber moved to the East Coast where is wife developed quite a reputation as a fashion designer.  Bill Berg went to work for Disney.  The last time I saw Jim Johnson (Flim), I was flipping channels late at night and saw him in the band on one of the network late night talk shows (I don't recall which).  I don't know what happened to Dick Oats.

Flim and the BB's have been used to demo audio gear since the mid '80's.  Their recordings are still some of the most dynamic and original you'll likely to find anywhere. 

Sorry for the rambling, but the mention got me to reminisce a little.  Thanks.

- Jim

[noshortcuts]

Thank you Jim. Out of print, but Ebay will help me out. Thanks.

Track 16: bass???

Anybody know who this is. I'm dying to hear more. Jim, anybody?

Thank you!

I don't have the list in front of me.  But if it is a single bass guitar, it is Dean Peer from the CD Ucross.

- Jim
[/quote]

[Big Red Machine]

Thank you Jim. Out of print, but Ebay will help me out. Thanks.

Track 16: bass???

Anybody know who this is. I'm dying to hear more. Jim, anybody?

Thank you!

I don't have the list in front of me.  But if it is a single bass guitar, it is Dean Peer from the CD Ucross.

- Jim

[/quote]

When it was available, it was $80 on Amazon.

[noshortcuts]

Ebay is my friend (sometimes). I already made an offer on an unopened gold edition of Ucross and they accepted: $40.

[lonewolfny42]

Out of print

....?...the LP ....yes

What about this ?....the Cd.

If you can find the Dean Peer album..."Think....Its All Good"....try track 3 "Mars".

[danmasi]

...Flim and the BB's were Minnesota studio musicians at the time...

You've heard of them, then?   

Thanks for that read, Jim... very interesting!

Best,
-dan

[noshortcuts]

Out of print

....?...the LP ....yes

What about this ?....the Cd.

If you can find the Dean Peer album..."Think....Its All Good"....try track 3 "Mars".

Now THAT didn't come up in my search for UCROSS, but surely would have been the way to go!!

Not "out of print" but self-selling.

I guess Google and Ebay aren't the greatest friends after all  .

[elee532]

Anyone know the song title and/or album name for the Track 9 George Winston track?

Thanks.

[jsalk]

Anyone know the song title and/or album name for the Track 9 George Winston track?

Thanks.

It is from the CD "Country - The Original Soundtrack" by George Winston.

- Jim

[Art_Chicago]

Seems like track 2 is Ray LaMontagne  "You Can Bring Me Flowers" from his 2nd disk Till the Sun Turns Black

[elee532]

So, yesterday I stoppd by a local audio store to listen to some speakers. Sales rep threw in a demo disc, first track was Jennifer Warnes, "Somewhere, Somebody" and the second track he played was Nils Lofgren, "Keith Don't Go." Funny.

While I'm on the topic, the Salk Demo Disc has turned me onto - and caused me to go out and buy - Nils, "Acoustic Live," and Santana, "Supernatural." Ray LaMontange, Dean Peer, and Jennifer Warnes, each of whom I had never known before, are also on my "to-buy list."

Jim, I hope you get some kick-back from the artists.

[DarienJax]

I tried to figure out the last few missing songs for the track list.  I haven't done an exhaustive verification, just trying to piece together what other people have said.  So here's the list I have:

Track #: Artist / Song Title [Album]

Track 1: Jennifer Warnes / Somewhere, Somebody [The Hunter]
Track 2: Ray Montange / You Can Bring Me Flowers [Till the Sun Turns Black]
Track 3: Mary Fahl / Una Furtiva Lagrima [The Other Side of Time]
Track 4: Ray Charles / Here We Go Again (Featuring Norah Jones) [Genius Loves Company]
Track 5: Nils Loftgren / Keith Don’t Go [Acoustic Live]
Track 6: Lyle Lovett / She Already Made Up Her Mind [Joshua Judges Ruth]
Track 7: Ray Charles / Fever (Featuring Natalie Cole) [Genius Loves Company]
Track 8: Jennifer Warnes / I Can't Hide [The Hunter]
Track 9: George Winston / The Auction [Country: The Original Soundtrack]
Track 10: Ray Charles / Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word (Featuring Elton John) [Genius Loves Company]
Track 11: Santana / Migra [Supernatural]
Track 12: Ray Charles / Do I Ever Cross Your Mind (Featuring Bonnie Raitt) [Genius Loves Company]
Track 13: Mario Frangoulis / Vincero, Ferdero [Sometimes I Dream]
Track 14: Jennifer Warnes / Lights of Louisianne [The Hunter]
Track 15: Doc Powell / Thank You [97th and Columbus]
Track 16: Dean Peer / Lord's Tundra [UCross]
Track 17: Blue Man Group / I Feel Love (Featuring Venus Hum) [The Complex]

[taoggniklat]

Out of curiosity Jim, what would you add/take away from this list now?

[jsalk]

Out of curiosity Jim, what would you add/take away from this list now?

Tough question.  At the time I compiled the disc, Ray Charles had just completed his last CD and then passed away.  There isn't a bad cut on this CD, but I think three cuts are too much.  As for many of the other cuts, I guess I would probably pass on most of them - not because they are no good, but just because I've heard them so often.  There are other cuts I would use today and may work on a second generation CD in the not-too-distant future.

All in all, I think most of the cuts do a very good job showing off one or more performance attributes of the speakers.  But there are so many more cuts I have used in the recent past for demo purposes, I think I'd start from scratch on a whole new line-up.

- Jim

[oneinthepipe]

Tough question.  At the time I compiled the disc, Ray Charles had just completed his last CD and then passed away.  There isn't a bad cut on this CD, but I think three cuts are too much.  As for many of the other cuts, I guess I would probably pass on most of them - not because they are no good, but just because I've heard them so often.  There are other cuts I would use today and may work on a second generation CD in the not-too-distant future.

All in all, I think most of the cuts do a very good job showing off one or more performance attributes of the speakers.  But there are so many more cuts I have used in the recent past for demo purposes, I think I'd start from scratch on a whole new line-up.

- Jim

Jim:

That would be great.  I know that you don't have enough to keep you busy.   

In the interim, maybe Salk customers could come up with a Salk Customers' Demo CD.  We have the Outstanding Demo CD thread.  What if we selected 17 tracks that, in our collective opinion, best demonstrated the speakers' capabilities?   I think that this would be a bloodbath fun and would further demonstrate your customers' satisfaction with their speakers. 

(If Jim says OK, maybe we should form a committee.    )

[taoggniklat]

Tough question.  At the time I compiled the disc, Ray Charles had just completed his last CD and then passed away.  There isn't a bad cut on this CD, but I think three cuts are too much.  As for many of the other cuts, I guess I would probably pass on most of them - not because they are no good, but just because I've heard them so often.  There are other cuts I would use today and may work on a second generation CD in the not-too-distant future.

All in all, I think most of the cuts do a very good job showing off one or more performance attributes of the speakers.  But there are so many more cuts I have used in the recent past for demo purposes, I think I'd start from scratch on a whole new line-up.

- Jim

I really like the Nils Lofgren track the most.