| Review by ramossp February 11, 2003 (1 of 1 found this review helpful)
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Performance:  Sonics:  |
| If someone had told me years ago, before I had heard of Analoge Productions and Acoustic Sounds, that some of the strongest and most consistent new music releases would be coming out of Salina, Kansas, I wouldn't have believed them. After all what's in Kansas? But here it is, yet another solid reissue, another fantastic reworking from the Fantasy Records Vault. Moonbeams finds Bill Evans at his most introspective, a year (and his first albulm) after the death of his bassist, there is a certain poinancy to his playing that marks a real maturity in his work. The opening number "Re: Person I Knew" is a heart breaking Evans original, and a strong start to the record. Evans then proceeds through a serious of unusual standards including "Stairway to the Stars" and Rogers and Hammerstein's "It Might As Well Be Spring", ending finanaly (and optomistically) on the light-hearted Evan's original "Very Early". While I'm a big fan of this particular record it won't be for everyone. As Evan's first all-ballad albulm, the songs (while not slow) do tend to have a certain "sameness" to them, and while the ballad format tends to work with Evan's impressionistic style, by the end you're yearning for hard bop number. The sound, of course, is first rate, with a little tape hiss (old recording), but some fabulous imaging and tonal color. So if you're just starting out with Evans, the live albulms "Waltz for Debbie" or "Sunday at the Village Vanguard" (both SACDs available from Analoge Productions) might be a better place to begin, but for the seasoned Evans veteran this is albulm is another essential to fill in your collection.
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| Review by JW December 30, 2004 (3 of 3 found this review helpful)
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Performance: Sonics:  |
There is a storyline running through this and the other two Evans album - also reviewed here - that provides depth to the music. It's of course about LaFaro, but there is more. When Bill Evans does ballads I always feel he is talking, and that takes listening to him to a different level. It's not only a fine flowing, elegant piano piece - but let's not forget the sensitive contributions of Chuck Israels on bass and Paul Motian on drums. It has that something extra that is difficult to put into words. It invites you to really listen and it takes the ballad out of the realm of background music.
Analogue Productions has produced some of the best sounding piano on SA-CD, and this one is no exception. If you want to listen to Bill Evans' story you owe it to yourself to buy all three discs ('Saturday At The Village Vanguard' and 'Waltz For Debbie' are the other two).
JW
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| Review by DeSelby June 1, 2005 (2 of 4 found this review helpful)
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Sonics: |
| very good sound
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| Review by Barb October 27, 2007 (6 of 6 found this review helpful)
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Performance: Sonics: |
B. Evans p, C. Israels b, P. Motian ds, Riverside 1962.
Playing all ballad material this is a very contemplative record. It`s slow and gentle music for relaxing or the opposite, listening with close attention to every nuance this trio brings to life. The interplay of the three is fantastic and makes this melancholic music thrilling, grabbing you. Slow sophistication. If you are in the mood for that, this one`s perfect. The sound is good, rich of colour, good soundstage and imaging, air for the instruments to breath, dynamic, brilliant. Analogue Productions did a great job here, again.
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| Review by M_Dixon April 3, 2012 (1 of 1 found this review helpful)
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Performance: Sonics: |
| This is a terrific record, though it's kind of incredible how out of tune the piano is. This is really the only flaw, as the trio kills it on the performance, the compositions are top-notch, and the sound quality is delicious. The analog transfer is very good, tape hiss is almost never noticeable and the warmth was well captured in the transfer.
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