Miles Davis: Someday My Prince Will Come -- Analogue Productions 45 RPM Vinyl

While not everyone's favorite title from Miles Davis, Someday My Prince Will Come has a strong contingent of fans. Released in 1961, after the departure of John Coltrane, but prior to the formation of his second classic quintet, this record features tenor saxophonist Hank Mobley on all of the tracks but one. Coltrane actually shares the tenor duties on one track and handles them alone on the track in which Mobley lays out.
And despite what some feel is a muddling performance from Mobley, Davis still gives a strong performance--both with and without the use of the harmon mute, and is aided by the piano of Wynton Kelly and strong rhythm section of Jimmy Cobb (Philly Joe Jones plays on one track) and Paul Chambers.






(Hank Mobley)

This 45 RPM release from Analogue Productions was pressed by R.T.I, on two slabs of 180 gram vinyl.  Both discs arrived clean, flat, and played quietly throughout. The unipack cover is made of regular weight cardstock and is the only disappointing part of the package. For a fifty-dollar record, the vinyl buyer deserves better--and AP has shown that they can deliver--take a look at their beautiful gatefold cover for their 45 RPM release of A Love Supreme.
 
This 45 RPM pressing of Someday My Prince Will Come was mastered by George Marino, at Sterling Mastering, and is the most detailed, dynamic, and transparent version of this music that I have ever heard. All of the emotion of Davis' horn comes through in ballads, such as the title cut, and details such as the squeak of a chair or the spit on the sax's reed are revealed with an increased clarity.



(Miles Davis and John Coltrane)


The original six-eye vinyl does have a bit of an advantage when  listening to the performances where Davis employs his mute, as what  seems to be a bit of tube compression in the original mastering softens  what I sometimes find to be a bit-too-piercing tone. That said,  numbers such as Pfrancing, where Davis plays without the mute, clearly  benefit from the lack of any compression, and swing even harder than on  the original six-eye. While this 45 RPM pressing is not absolutely essential if you already have a six-eye original, you will be rewarded with a more dynamic, detailed and transparent-sounding version. If you don't own a six-eye orignal and have had difficulty finding a clean one, this very nice sounding 45 RPM pressing is definitely for you.

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