Michael Brecker/Pilgrimage, Mofi 180 Gram Double Vinyl LP (Sealed + Rare )

$

96

Serial #330!

TAS Rated 4/5 Music, 4/5 Sonics in the October 2011 Issue of The Absolute Sound!

Featured in Michael Fremer's Heavy Rotation in the July 2010 Issue of Stereophile!

Numbered, Limited Edition! Half-Speed Mastered From Original Tapes!

Pilgrimage is the last album saxophone colossus Michael Brecker ever recorded.  Released just months after he succumbed to leukemia in January 2007, it’s also  the late instrumentalist’s hands-down best work—and truly, one of the finest  jazz records made during the past 30 years. Winner of two Grammy Awards (Best  Jazz Instrumental Album and Best Jazz Instrumental Solo for “Anagram”),  Pilgrimage ranked #2 on the DownBeat critic’s poll and topped many year-end  lists. And for good reason.

"Because only a small fraction of contemporary jazz is released on vinyl, recently-recorded LPs should matter, and fortunately Mobile Fidelity has lent its talents to Michael Brecker's Pilgrimage. Recorded months before Brecker succumbed to leukemia, the posthumous album intrigued listeners when it came out in 2007. In spite of his illness Brecker remained a vibrant and technically superb tenor saxophonist, and he avoided the string of heart-wrenching ballads one might expect from someone facing mortality." - Jeff Wilson, The Absolute Sound, October 2011, Issue 216, Pg. 133

Nothing short of transcendent, the music soars on the resplendent playing of an  astonishing quintet of jazz’s heaviest hitters: pianists Herbie Hancock and Brad  Mehldau, drummer Jack DeJohnette, guitarist Pat Metheny, and bassist John  Patitucci. No, it doesn’t get better than this. Mobile Fidelity is honored to  offer this glorious statement on a sonically spectacular half-speed mastered  180-gram 2-LP set that, like Brecker’s swan song, is without equal. You will not  believe your ears.

Devoid of melancholic emotion and self-pitying moods, Pilgrimage is a joyous  affirmation of life—an invitation to embrace possibilities rather than a sad  farewell. The performances are mesmerizing. None of the musicians here can do  wrong, particularly the leader, whose solos both weave melodic yarns (“The Mean  Time”) and create harmonic contrasts (“Five Months From Midnight”).

Realizing that these sessions would be his last, Brecker's mates match his  passion and soul. Absolutely essential listening, Pilgrimage is the energetic  sound of John Coltrane’s legacy, the culmination of a visionary talent high on  the upbeat rhythms of life. You will feel better about everything in your world  after hearing this album.

Half-speed mastered from the original tapes and lovingly pressed onto supremely  quiet 180-gram vinyl, Mobile Fidelity’s numbered limited-edition 2-LP set of  Pilgrimage presents the entire tonal spectrum of the music amidst a wide, deep,  natural soundstage. This is one of the best-sounding albums you'll ever hear.  High and low frequencies are free of limiting ceilings. Instrumental separation  and imaging are stunningly lifelike. Natural dynamics and details abound.  Waiting for a truly great and great-sounding modern jazz album? This is it.

Once these numbered limited-edition copies are gone, they are gone forever.

"On its own terms, Pilgrimage is a stunning achievement: 77 minutes of  compelling original music that never loses its edge, solos that soar, dynamic  group interplay that communicates wonderfully in the universal language." -  Steve Greenlee, Boston Globe, May 2007

"...you can’t beat this record. It exemplifies 1980s “modern jazz” or as some would call the jazz of the era, “fusion.”" - Michael Fremer, www.musicangle.com, Music 8/10, Sound 8/10

Features:
• Numbered, Limited Edition
• Supremely Quiet 180g Vinyl
• Double LP
• Half-Speed Mastered From Original Tapes
• Special Static Free - Dust Free Inner Sleeve
• Heavy Duty Protective Packaging
• Gatefold Jacket

Musicians:
Michael Brecker, tenor sax & EWI
Pat Metheny, guitars
Herbie Hancock, piano
Brad Mehldau, piano
John Patitucci, bass
Jack DeJohnette, drums

Selections:
LP 1
1. The Mean Time
2. Five Months from Midnight
3. Anagram
4. Tumbleweed
5. When Can I Kiss You Again?
LP 2
6. Cardinal Rule
7. Half Moon Lane
8. Loose Threads
9. Pilgrimage