Years ago, my audio dealer invited me to a tour of the factory in Glasgow. I’ve been buying the same brand of audio equipment for years, and mostly at the same dealer. The factory gives regular tours for their customers, because they’re proud of what they are doing. They like to show the manufacturing process. All their products are designed and made in Glasgow, and even assembled by just one person. They get to put their name on a sticker, labeling the product as theirs.
So I wanted to shake hands to the person that assembled my record player, and I did. It turned out she really did work there since the early 90s, and she was now the specialist in the LP12, my record player.
After the tour, we got a little sales demonstration about all the new and better products they also have. I was with a small group, and we got a chance to ask for a track to be played on the best system you can think of. One of the people in the group asked for this: Pretty little thing from this album. I asked highway it was, because I was very impressed.
I didn’t know the singer, and I am not even sure I liked his style from the start. It’s just… crispy. This live recording sounds like your part of his guitar. You can hear every detail, including the scratch of the finger across the outside of the string, before the actual note. It makes it come alive like nothing else.
Unfortunately, I’m not the only one to find out. I wanted this record, but it took a while to find a decent offer. It was on sale on Discogs for as much as 2000 euro! I found it for less, but it still by far the most expensive record I’ve ever bought. It does come with a gorgeous printed booklet, with beautiful pictures, some of which were taken in Amsterdam. I won’t recommend doing the same as I did, but I can recommend a listen to it.