Joe Jackson – Body and Soul (Vinil 180g, LP dublu)

“Body And Soul” is Joe Jackson’s jazzy follow-up to his legendary hit album “Night And Day” and was his seventh release as a bandleader and solo artist when it was released in 1984. Born in Burton-upon-Trent, Staffordshire, England, the musician learned to play the violin and piano at the age of eleven and received a scholarship to study composition at the Royal Academy of Music in 1972, graduating in 1975. Three years later he moved to London, formed the Joe Jackson Band and landed his first record deal with A&M Records. “Look Sharp!”, the band’s debut album, was a commercial success, as were the two albums that followed. In 1982, he moved to New York and immediately recorded “Night And Day”, which showcased Jackson’s compositional diversity for the first time and included “Steppin’ Out”, one of the musician’s most famous singles. The soundtrack to “Mike’s Murder”, released shortly thereafter, was a flop with audiences and critics alike. It was not until “Body And Soul” that he was able to build on his earlier successes: three times gold and one silver certification attest to the album’s popularity.

Preparations for the album began in the summer of 1983, when Jackson met with music producer David Kershenbaum in Los Angeles. Both agreed that the music recordings of the time sounded artificial, which was ultimately due to the recording technology used in the modern recording studios of the time. So they went to New York to look for suitable recording locations with acoustics that would support their vision of a natural-sounding music recording. The sound of the recording was to be as close as possible to a live recording. They chose an old Masonic lodge made of wood and stone, the Brooklyn Masonic Temple, which was used by Vanguard Studios for classical recordings. To take advantage of the unique acoustics of the space, technicians installed two Neumann M-50 microphones five meters above the floor. “Body And Soul” was a groundbreaking recording, as it was one of the first digital recordings made with a 32-track 3M system. Work on the final master tape was completed in Studio B at Atlantic on February 7, 1984. The album features two of Jackson’s most popular compositions: “You Can’t Get What You Want (Till You Know What You Want)” and “Be My Number Two”. In keeping with the spirit of the times, brass instruments are used, but South American rhythms and classical elements can also be heard on this complex, sound-oriented album. “Happy Ending”, a duet with singer Elaine Caswell, established itself high in the charts as a single release.

The original PCM digital files from “Body And Soul” were remastered for this new edition by Intervention Records by Kevin Gray at CoHEARent Audio and cut onto two 180-gram vinyl records at 45 RPM to achieve maximum dynamics and fidelity. The pressing was done by Gotta Groove Records. The result is simply breathtaking: “Body And Soul” has never sounded so big, full and dynamically explosive. The reverberant space of the recording location has been beautifully brought out and is more three-dimensional and holographic than ever! The iconic album cover – a tribute to Sonny Rollins – has been beautifully restored by Tom Vadakan. By the way: The deluxe old-style “tip-on” gatefold  jacket is printed and film-laminated with heavy “brown” blanks, in the style of jazz records from the 1950s and 1960s. Stoughton Printing has done a wonderful job here!

We recommend the use of „L’Art du Son” LP cleaner to wet wash your vinyl. Even new records of high quality production will benefit from this.

Lista pieselor

LP 1

Side A
1.    The Verdict
2.    Cha Cha Loco

Side B
3.    Not Here, Not Now
4.    You Can’t Get What You Want (Till You Know What You Want)
5.    Go For It

LP 2

Side C
6.    Loisaida
7.    Happy Ending

Side D
8.    Be My Number Two
9.    Heart of Ice
10.    Rat Race