Carole King – Music (Ultra Analog, Half-speed Mastering)
ORDER LIMITED TO ONE ITEM PER CUSTOMER
Carole King – vocals, piano, electric piano, electric celeste, backing vocals [click here to see more vinyl featuring Carole King]
James Taylor – acoustic guitar on "Some Kind of Wonderful", "Song of Long Ago" and "Too Much Rain", backing vocals refrain on "Some Kind of Wonderful" [click here to see more vinyl featuring James Taylor]
Ralph Schuckett – organ on "Sweet Seasons" and "Surely", electric piano on "Back to California", electric celeste on "Growing Away from Me"
Danny Kortchmar – acoustic and electric guitars; backing vocals on "Song of Long Ago"
Charles Larkey – electric and acoustic bass guitar
Joel O'Brien – drums
Russ Kunkel – drums on "Back to California"
Ms. Bobbye Hall – congas, bongos, tambourine
Teresa Calderon – congas on "Brother, Brother"
Curtis Amy – tenor saxophone on "Brother, Brother", Sweet Seasons" and "Music", electric flute on "Surely"
Oscar Brashear – flugelhorn on "Sweet Seasons" and "Carry Your Load"
William Green – woodwind, flute, saxophone
Buddy Collette – woodwind, flute, saxophone
Ernest Watts – woodwind, flute, saxophone
Plas Johnson – woodwind, flute, saxophone
Mike Altschul – woodwind, flute, saxophone
Abigale Haness – backing vocals on "Some Kind of Wonderful", "Surely", "Music", "Brighter" and "Growing Away from Me"
Merry Clayton – backing vocals "second woooh" on "Back to California"
Written by Carole King (all tracks), Toni Stern (A2-3, B5), Gerry Goffin (A4)
1 LP, gatefold jacket
Limited numbered edition
Original analog Master tape : YES
Half-speed Mastering
Gain 2™ Ultra Analog
Heavy Press : 180g
Record color : black
Speed : 33 RPM
Size : 12'’
Stereo
Studio
Record Press : RTI
Label : MOFI
Original Label : A&M
Engineered by Hank Cicalo
Produced by Lou Adler
Remastered by Rob LoVerde at Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab
Originally released in December 1971
Reissued in 2011
Tracks:
Side A:
- Brother, Brother
- It's Going to Take Some Time
- Sweet Seasons
- Some Kind of Wonderful
- Surely
- Carry Your Load
Side B:
- Music
- Song of Long Ago
- Brighter
- Growing Away from Me
- Too Much Rain
- Back to California
Reviews :
“After years as one of the most prolific and successful songwriters in pop music, Carole King emerged in the '70s with Tapestry, an album that catapulted her to the forefront of the singer/songwriter movement. While she had mined her back catalog for that album, she relied more heavily on songs written with new collaborator Toni Stern for Music. Coming out on the heels of the classic Tapestry, it's hard not to feel like this album was a bit of a letdown. However, time has shown this album to be one of her finest. While these songs lyrically lack the simplistic beauty of Gerry Goffin-penned tunes, the melodies are very strong and Carole King adds some nice texture to her piano-based tunes with the tasteful percussion of Bobbye Hall. When King goes for grand statements, however, it doesn't always work. Her call for peace and brotherhood works on songs like the opening track, "Brother, Brother," but her voice is not strong enough and does not convey enough emotion to prevent uplifting tunes like "Carry Your Load" from sounding a bit hollow and preachy. But her songwriting is still in peak form, and there are many highlights including "It's Gonna Take Some Time" (also made into a hit by the Carpenters) and "Song of Long Ago" (with backing vocals by James Taylor).” AllMusic Review by Vik Iyengar
Ultra Analog™ : The GAIN 2 Ultra Analog™ Series stems from the use of the Gain 2 system, mastered at half speed from the original master tapes where possible, capturing and uncovering as before undiscovered sonic information.
Half-speed mastering. In half-speed mastering, the whole process is slowed down to half of the original speed. A typical 33 1/3 rpm record is cut at 16 2/3 rpm. The source material is also slowed down (reducing the pitch in the process) meaning the final record will still sound normal when played back. Slowing the whole process down allows more time, which means the end result sounds better and is more efficient — allowing engineering to minimize the effects of inherent limitations within the vinyl format. The result is a more accurate and more open high-frequency response in the half speed vinyl when compared with a normal speed recording.
Ratings :
AllMusic : 4 / 5 ; Discogs : 4.39 / 5