A Tale of two Turrentines - Mintons on Music Matters vs. Analogue Productions 45 vinyl:

I have previously commented that the sound on the Music Matters 45 rpm vinyl series is somewhat better on average than the Blue Note 45 vinyl from Analogue Productions, which has caused some minor consternation over at the Hoffman board (at least, until any mention of it gets censored there).

Finally, we have a perfect opportunity to see if that's a figment of my imagination or not, by comparing the Analogue Productions 45 of Up At Minton's Volume 1 to the Music Matters 45 of Up At Minton's Volume 2 - both recorded at exactly the same time on the same equipment by the same Rudy Van Gelder. Both remastered by the same team of Kevin Grey and Huf-huf-huffmann.

Should sound the same, right? Remastered by the same guys at the same studio on the same equipment. Same master tapes. How could they be different?

Well...they are, and that's just a fact. The AP sounds wimpier, Turrentine is a bit muted and further back, the top end is just a touch rolled back, and the bass is very softly pleasant.

Now turn to the Music Matters and Turrentine is punching out front and center, the bass has more punch and presence, and there is a snap on top. Not that the AP is bad - it's not. It's just much more nice. You know, it's more pleasant as in dinner party pleasant, nice and inoffensive, nice and easy to listen to, easy on the ears. The Music Matters is nice too - but it sounds more like a jazz record should, and how Stanley Turrentine should - more heft and punch to Turrentine, he cuts when he shouts and is far more out front, as he was on the bandstand the night this was recorded.

The Music Matters is up at Minton's. The AP is around the corner from Minton's, or maybe in the bathroom at Minton's.

Why the difference?

It's really pretty simple. Analogue Productions doesn't use a producer for their reissues. Chad Kassem gets the tapes shipped to whatever remastering engineer he is using and relies on that person's judgement. Music Matters has Ron Rambach and Joe Harley, the former and expert on Blue Note and the latter a renowned producer, in the mastering studio supervising.

That's the difference. The production team. That's why all other things being equal, as they are with Turrentine's "Minton" recordings, the Music Matters sound better.