Come Swing with Me - 1961
My major peeve with the stereo mix of 1959’s similarly-titled Come Dance with Me was two-fold: 1.) There is a pronounced “ping-pong” stereo effect; and 2.) Said effect is greatly out of balance, with brass dominating and overshadowing the saxes and making the album quite “right heavy.” Perhaps the good folks at Capitol heard my cries, as with 1961’s Come Swing with Me album, we have a ping-pong effect that is every bit as pronounced, but this time the two sides are more-or-less armed with equal firepower. Furthermore, the recording is of the new style introduced on the Swingin’ Session album, with more mics (probably 12 again here, as opposed to the earlier 7-mic albums) and a very wide stereo spread, with brilliant presence on virtually each instrument or section. On the album at hand, the cherry on the sundae is, to my ears, the sound of the mallet percussion and harp, sections that really “make” several tracks with both brilliant playing and exquisitely clear reproduction.
Stereo versions: Tennis anyone? Maybe some Ping-Pong?
(Clearly, Robert Walker is a mono man.)
Stereo Clips from “American Beauty Rose”
(carried over from the 2010 version of this page)
Click photo above to hear:
D3 USA pressing
Click photo above to hear: N5 pressing, courtesy “stevelucille”
Click photo above to hear: 1983 MFSL pressing, mastered by Stan Ricker.
Click photo above to hear: Aussie N6 pressing, courtesy “stevelucille”
Click photo above to hear: 9:00 rainbow German pressing, courtesy “stevelucille”
Click photo above to hear: c. 1979 H14 SM-series abridged pressing, courtesy “stevelucille”
Click photo above to hear: c. 1961 75 IPS quarter-track stereo reel tape.
Click photo above to hear: 1991 CD, mixed/mastered by Larry Walsh
Click photo above to hear: 1998 UK boxed set CD (Original mix)
Click photo above to hear: 2002 CD, mastered by Robert Norberg (original mix)
Stereo Clips from “Day By Day”
(Newly added, August, 2021 - CLICK PHOTOS to hear AUDIO)
Above: Circa 1961 D3 USA LP
Above: Circa 1961 N5 USA LP, courtesy Martin Melucci
Above: Circa 1978 SM-11801 LP, courtesy Martin Melucci
Above: 1983 MFSL LP, half-speed mastered by Stan Ricker..
Above: 1984 UK “Dell” LP.
Above: 1984 Australia “Dell” LP.
Above: 1984 Netherlands “Dell” stereo DMM LP.
Above: 1991 remixed CD, mixed and mastered by Larry Walsh
Above: 1998 UK boxed set CD.
Above: 2015 HD download (presented here at 16-bit/44.1).
Above: 2015 UMe LP, courtesy SHTV’s “AxeD.”
Stereo Clips from “Sentimental Journey”
(Newly added, August, 2021 - CLICK PHOTOS to hear AUDIO)
Clips mirror those freely available at iTunes.
Above: Circa 1961 D3 USA LP
Above: Circa 1961 N5 USA LP, courtesy Martin Melucci
Above: Circa 1978 SM-11801 LP, courtesy Martin Melucci
Above: 1983 MFSL LP, half-speed mastered by Stan Ricker..
Above: 1984 UK “Dell” LP.
Above: 1984 Australia “Dell” LP.
Above: 1984 Netherlands “Dell” stereo DMM LP.
Above: 1991 remixed CD, mixed and mastered by Larry Walsh
Above: 1998 UK boxed set CD.
Above: 2015 HD download (presented here at 16-bit/44.1).
Above: 2015 UMe LP, courtesy SHTV’s “AxeD.”
