Copper


Test Records and Demo Discs, Part Six

Issue 211Audio Anthropology

In the days before digital music, the primary medium for sound reproduction was vinyl records. Sure, there were some who preferred reel-to-reel tapes, but they were in the minority. The...

The Vinyl Beat: Black Sabbath, John Lee Hooker,...

Issue 211The Vinyl Beat

Autumn is upon us, and it’s time for this season’s first Vinyl Beat. This month I’m featuring a comparison, some winners, a major disappointment, and a handful of other notable...

James Lee Stanley Reflects on Life, Love and Li...

Issue 211The Copper Interview

I’ve been listening to singer/songwriter/guitarist/actor/all-around great guy James Lee Stanley since 1988, when his Freelance Human Being album knocked me out. I believe he’s one of the most talented songwriters...

The Hyeseon Hong Jazz Orchestra Releases a Stun...

Issue 211Frankly Speaking

  Hyeseon Hong Jazz Orchestra: Things Will Pass (Pacific Coast Jazz) This is one of the best records I’ve heard in a very long time. The music is wonderful, and...

Thoughts on Quality, Style, and Class, in Audio...

Issue 211Featured

Seeing all the brand-new, but distressed-looking Relic instruments at Fender and on the show floor at NAMM 2024 (see my articles in Issues 210, 209 and 208) reminded me of the perhaps touchy...

Playlist Priorities

Issue 211Audio Static

  This cartoon originally appeared in Issue 155.

Seated in Sonic Perfection: the Ultimate Hi-Fi ...

Issue 211Featured

Copper has an exchange program with PMA magazine of Canada (and other publications), where we share articles, including this one.   Let’s get one thing straight: audio quality starts with the chair. Sure,...

In Memory of Singer/Songwriter JD Souther

Issue 211In Memoriam

JD Souther was as gifted a songwriter as he was a singer. I had the opportunity to speak with him at the end of July about the re-release of his...

Kenny Wayne Shepherd Lands a Blues-Rock Punch W...

Issue 211Disciples of Sound

Kenny Wayne Shepherd, along with artists like Joe Bonamassa, Gary Clark, Jr., Walter Trout, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram and others, has been a driving force in keeping blues-based rock guitar alive...

PS Audio in the News

Issue 211PS Audio in the News

The Aspen FR5 stand-mount loudspeaker received high marks from Hi-Fi News. The publication called the FR5 (above) “seriously entertaining” and said, “the FR5 delivers grip, clarity, balance and bass punch...

Back to My Reel-to-Reel Roots, Part 10

Issue 211Copper Classics / Natural Born Kessler

In which Ken Kessler makes a discovery linked to his dad. Only the churlish would deny that there’s an element of nostalgia in the Reel-to-Reel Revival, however much the inescapably...

Potent Portables

Issue 211Audio Anthropology

  "When a man loves a tape deck...can't keep his mind on nothin' else..." Well, maybe we got those lyrics a little wrong. Uher ad, date unknown.     Here's...

Calavera

Issue 211Parting Shot

Halloween is just around the corner, so here's an appropriate shot from James Schrimpf, from an old storefront window in Bisbee, Arizona.

Table of Contents – Issue 210

Issue 210Table of Contents

We are greatly saddened by the passing of Rondi D’Agostino (78) of Krell Industries. She was one of the most-loved and warm-hearted people in high-end audio. It was always a...

PS Audio Celebrates 50 Years, Part Two: The Beg...

Issue 210Paul's Place

I will share some stories with you of our history over the last 50 years – half a century of making audio equipment. There are a lot of stories, some of...

Sing and Dance With Frank Sinatra on Impex Reco...

Issue 210Frankly Speaking

I have been extremely impressed with the reissues I’ve heard from Impex Records, including Patricia Barber’s Nightclub and more recently, Companion; the absolutely astonishing 1STEP Getz/Gilberto 45 RPM 2-LP release, and...

Subduing Satan

Issue 210Featured

Imagine, if you will, a person living alone in a claustrophobic flat with an audio system which never stops playing, a volume control which doesn’t attenuate sound, and a “pause”...

Octave Records’ Audiophile Masters, Volume XI: ...

Issue 210Octave Pitch

Octave Records has released Audiophile Masters, Volume XI: Covers Collection 2, featuring more cover versions of popular favorites and standards by some of Octave’s favorite artists. This companion to the...

The Evolving Jamtronica of Lotus in How to Drea...

Issue 210Disciples of Sound

The rock/electronic/jam/multi-genre band Lotus has effectively created the musical term, “jamtronica.” Across a 25-year career they have mixed synthesizers and other instruments with elements of house music in ways that...

FIDELITY Visits Eavesdrop, the Brooklyn Jazz Kissa

Issue 210Featured

Copper has an exchange program with FIDELITY magazine of Germany (and other publications), where we share articles, including this one.   The Kissa craze has reached New York – even though in the Big...

Jack White: No Name, Got Game

Issue 210Wayne's Words

 Former White Stripes Guitarist Earns Four Umlauts The White Stripes were either the last great rock band of the 20th century or the first great band of the 21st. Perhaps...

Sweet Caress, by Franco Ambrosetti and Strings:...

Issue 210Frankly Speaking

I’ll get right to the heart of it: this is one of the most gorgeous records I’ve ever heard, musically and sonically. It’s aptly titled: the music of Sweet Caress by...

The Musical Growth of Americana Band Fruition a...

Issue 210Disciples of Sound

Americana band Fruition has just released their first album in four years, and How To Make Mistakes is a departure from what fans might have come to expect from this...

How to Play in a Rock Band, 3: Gearing Up

Issue 210Frankly Speaking

In Part One and Part Two of this series, (Issue 208 and Issue 209), I noted the fact that I’ve played in rock bands for more than 50 years, and during that time, I’ve...

The Vinyl Beat

Issue 210The Vinyl Beat

This month we have some vintage rock and roll and blues, jazz old and new, and a couple of frequently-reissued titles that will save you some hard-earned cash. A little...

PS Audio in the News

Issue 210PS Audio in the News

The Absolute Sound posted a detailed video review of the StellarGold preamp. In the review, Thomas Tan found a lot to enjoy…click here to watch the video. Secrets of Home...

More Faces of NAMM 2024, and the Pursuit of Qua...

Issue 210Show Report

I’ve been thinking about the ideas of craftsmanship and quality, especially after viewing so many drop-dead gorgeous instruments at NAMM 2024. Does the quality of the finish of a guitar...

Short Takes: Reading Lou Reed, Jazzing it Up, K...

Issue 210Short Takes

I am in the enviable position of being able to listen to music many hours a day, since I work from home, even if it’s background listening most of the...

Back to My Reel-to-Reel Roots, Part Nine: Who K...

Issue 210Copper Classics / Natural Born Kessler

KK finds out that embracing a dormant format is full of surprises. Audiophiles come in many flavors, and I am not even remotely bothered by those who are, say, equipment...

Stone Knives and Bearskins

Issue 210Audio Anthropology

    Surround sound, 1970s style. Who needs Ohm loudspeakers when you have this Zenith Circle of Sound radio? Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons/Joe Haupt.     He's listening to the...

Mobile Art

Issue 210Parting Shot

On a recent trip to Southern California, I visited the Petersen Automotive Museum. It had the most impressive collection of cars that I have ever seen: three floors of everything...

Table of Contents – Issue 209

Issue 209Opening Salvo

“I see music as fluid architecture.” – Joni Mitchell In this issue: Paul McGowan begins a series on the 50th anniversary of PS Audio. Octave Records releases one of its...

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The Other Folk Singers, Part Three

Issue 209Featured

I belong to a listening group that gets together to socialize and listen to music. We meet in each of our homes on a rotating basis. The host provides the...

PS Audio Celebrates 50 Years

Issue 209Paul's Place

Over the next couple of issues or so, Copper will feature reminiscences by Paul McGowan, co-founder and CEO of PS Audio and Octave Records, which look back on the history...

Leveraging Karma for Fun and Profit

Issue 209Featured

My mother was disgusted. “How can he exploit a young girl like that?" she exclaimed as she passed the newspaper. The headline read: "82-Year-Old Millionaire to Wed 22-Year-Old Model." It was accompanied...

Pianist Tom Amend Plays Jazz Classics: 1950s on...

Issue 209Octave Pitch

Audiophiles and music lovers alike have a special place in their hearts for classic jazz and standards, and Octave Records’ latest, Jazz Classics: 1950s from pianist/organist Tom Amend will be...

My Experience With Commercial Four-Track Reel-t...

Issue 209Featured

Just as I was running out of things to write about for Copper, a mysterious gift landed on my doorstep. One day, someone left a large bag at the reception...

How to Play In a Rock Band 2: Why Would You Wan...

Issue 209Frankly Speaking

In Part One (Issue 208), I noted the fact that I’ve had more than 50 years of playing in rock bands, and during that time I’ve seen people make every...

Singer/Songwriter JD Souther and the Return of ...

Issue 209Disciples of Sound

There were a lot of secret musical weapons in the 1970s to help make that Southern California sound so special. Some of these artists weren’t always the headliners, weren’t always...

Test Records and Demo Discs, Part Five

Issue 209Audio Anthropology

In the days before digital music, the primary medium for sound reproduction was vinyl records. Sure, there were some who preferred reel-to-reel tapes, but they were in the minority. The...

Two Mendelssohn Symphonies: the "Italian" and t...

Issue 209Featured

Copper has an exchange program with AAA (Analogue Audio Association) magazine of Switzerland (and other publications), where we share articles, including this one. The Swiss author Ernst Müller is a...

John Lennon’s Mind Games – The Ultimate Collection

Issue 209Disciples of Sound

It’s almost impossible to fathom that when John Lennon set out to make his fourth solo record in 1973 he was only 33 years old. When you consider how much...

The Vinyl Beat

Issue 209The Vinyl Beat

INXS: Kick Analogue Productions, Atlantic 75 series Hot off the Analogue Productions presses, the popular 1980s album Kick by INXS is one of the latest titles in the Atlantic 75...

The Many Faces of NAMM 2024, Part Two

Issue 209Show Report

At NAMM 2024, Harris Fogel took a lot of photos. Well, he is a photographer after all. Part One of this picture-packed photo essay ran in Issue 208. Here are...

Zach Bryan, Bars and Stars

Issue 209Wayne's Words

Even the armed forces news is amazed at the speed with which Navy veteran Zach Bryan became a music star. He was still on active duty in 2020 when he...

The Business of Why Vinyl Has Survived: Talking...

Issue 209The Copper Interview

Rene Wiedner is an organizational sociologist at Warwick Business School, which is part of Warwick University in Coventry, England. He studies change processes in organizations and industries and the relations...

PS Audio In the News

Issue 209PS Audio In the News

Tech publication Gear Patrol featured the aspen FR5 loudspeaker with the headline, “This Hi-Fi Speaker Offers $30,000 Specs for a Tenth of the Price.” The article noted, “The American hi-fi...

Attention Shoppers!

Issue 209Audio Anthropology

  Scene from a Japanese audio store in 2006. We wonder what those prices would be like today! Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons/Tomer Gabel.     Here's one of the many...