Copper

Welcome to Copper #41!

The title isn't to announce a James Taylor retrospective---sorry to crush your hopes--- but is just what I see in today's weather reports. The Pacific Northwest, where I'm bound for a long-delayed vacation, is up in flames, along with  many other parts of the tinder-dry US. Meanwhile, back in my former home of Florida...they've already had nearly two feet of rain, and Hurricane Irma is not even close to the state yet.

Stay safe, everyone.

I'm really pleased and excited to have Jason Victor Serinus back with us, with the first part of an intensive introduction to art song. Jason brings tremendous knowledge of the field, and provides plenty of recorded examples to listen to, and in the case of videos, watch. There are many stunning performances here, and I hope you enjoy this extraordinary resource. We'll have Part 2 in Copper #42.

Dan Schwartz is again in the lead-off spot with the second in his series of articles on encounters–this one, with Phil Lesh and crew; Seth Godin tells us how control is overrated; Richard Murison hears a symphony; Duncan Taylor takes us to Take 1; Roy Hall tells about a close encounter of the art kind; Anne E. Johnson introduces indie artist Anohni; and I worry about audio shows (AGAIN, Leebs??), and conclude my look at Bang & Olufsen.

Industry News tells of the sale of audiophile favorite, Conrad-Johnson; Gautam Raja is back with an amazing story that I think you'll really enjoy, all about Carnatic music, overlooked heritage, and the universal appeal of rock music; and Jim Smith takes another warped look at LPs. That Jim, always stirring things up....

We wrap up Copper #41 with another classic cartoon from Charles Rodrigues, and a beautiful Parting Shot from Vasilis Lakakis. Something Old/ Something New and Woody Woodward will both be back in the next issue.

Until then—enjoy!

Cheers, Leebs.

Welcome to Copper #40!

The old expression "a miss is as good as a mile" seems to apply to the recent eclipse: those of us in the 90% range of totality were underwhelmed, while those who got The Full Monty talk about life-changing experiences, incredible emotionality, blah blah.

"Life-changing"? Sorry: my life has a lot of inertia, and it takes a lot to change it. Maybe I'll see 100% in my old hometown of Carbondale, come the '24 eclipse. Then we'll see. ;->

I'm happy to welcome back our resident foodie Chloe Olewitz.  Just in time for summer's end, Chloe explains the difference between ice cream, gelato, sorbet---all that frozen stuff. Chloe's next piece will be about martial arts---so be nice!

Dan Schwartz is in the lead-off spot with the first in a series of articles on encounters--this one, with Jack Casady; Seth Godin tells us his favorite audio tweak; Richard Murison sends his compliments to two's complement; Duncan Taylor writes about his new live-recording venue; Roy Hall tells about a family member with issues; Anne E. Johnson introduces indie artist Petite Noir; Woody Woodward looks back at Jethro Tull---and wrote while standing on one leg to get in the mood;  and I worry about devices that are smarter than their user, and take a look at Bang & Olufsen.

Industry News tells of ---well, there's so much going on, you'll just have to read it;  Anne E. Johnson is back in Something Old/Something New, looking at recordings of the works of Frescobaldi;  Gautam Raja is back with a control issue; I finish my look around the California Audio Show; and Jim Smith looks at the high-end industry and doesn't like what he sees; In My Room is the incredible story of a reader's home-built pipe organ (!!)---and you'll have to see it to believe it .

We wrap up Copper #40 with a classic cartoon from Charles Rodrigues, and another beautiful Parting Shot from Paul McGowan.

Until nest issue—enjoy!

Cheers, Leebs.

[caption id="attachment_51117" align="alignnone" width="720"]

 Seen around dog-centric Boulder....[/caption]

Welcome to Copper #39!

For many of us, it's almost time for the kids to head back to school. For those of us who've passed those years, it's almost time to curse the congestion caused by all those damn schoolbuses.....

I'm happy to introduce another new feature to Copper, starting with this issue. Charles Rodrigues contributed cartoons with a perverse audiophile bent to Stereo Review for decades, actually starting way back when it was Hi-Fi Review (he also contributed some truly sick stuff to National Lampoon in the '70's, but let's forget that for the moment). We've secured the rights to reprint Rodrigues' Stereo Review cartoons, and will be reprinting one in each issue. For those who remember Rodrigues' work, enjoy! And for our younger readers who may not know him---welcome to the club!

Dan Schwartz leads off the issue with a tale of The Great Wall---no, not the one in China... the one used by the Grateful Dead; Seth Godin deals with the drama of a dead stereo; Richard Murison looks back at Shostakovich and Soviet Whack-a-Mole; Duncan Taylor tells about all the pesky decisions involved in his new recording venue; Roy Hall tells another interesting tale of his travels;  Anne E. Johnson introduces indie group Sunflower Bean; Woody Woodward looks at the influence of Syd Barrett; and I write about the cosmic weirdness of audio, and how the hipsters are screwing things up.

Industry News tells of yet another turn in the tale of Neil Young and Pono/Xstream/whatever;  Something Old/Something New examine's 1970's Nilsson Sings Newman; John Seetoo is back with an annotated interview with recording engineer Dennis Ferrante; I take a look around the California Audio Show; and Jim Smith looks at the thorny issue of spikes. We wrap up Copper #39 with another beautiful Parting Shot from Paul McGowan.

Until nest issue—enjoy!

Cheers, Leebs.