Eat A Peach by the Allman Brothers Band arrived in stores on Tuesday as the first installment of two planned Surround Sound Super Audio CDs from the famed rock group on the Mercury Records label. Also arriving on Tuesday from the Universal Music Group was the new Surround Sound SACD by Vince Gill (High Lonesome Sound). Of equal interest to many Super Audio CD fans was the news that five Elton John albums along with several other albums by other artists have been added to the SACD Coming Soon list by Universal Music.

Eat A Peach
Allman Brothers Band
SACD Surround Sound/SACD Stereo/CD Stereo
(Mercury Records B0002439-36)

Eat A Peach was the Allman Brothers Band’s follow up to their classic Live at Fillmore East album, which is due out in SACD Surround Sound next month. It features a mix of live recordings from the group’s Fillmore East recordings as well as studio recordings. The album is also the band’s tribute to Duane Allman who died during the time the album was being recorded. It includes several well known Allman favorites including “Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More,” “Melissa,” “One Way Out,” “Trouble No More,” “Blue Sky” and “Little Martha.”

The SACD Stereo and CD Stereo tracks on Eat A Peach were mastered by Suha Gur at Universal Mastering Studios East. The SACD Surround Sound Mix was done by Jeff Glixman with Carl Cadden-Jones at Angel Mountain Productions and was mastered by Bob Ludwig at Gateway Mastering. High Fidelity Review readers will recall that Glixman and Cadden-Jones have worked on some of the earlier Universal Music SACD Surround Mixes including the one on Marvin Gaye’s Let’s Get It On album (see earlier story linked below).

Comparing the SACD Stereo and SACD Surround Sound tracks is quite interesting. The SACD Stereo track is very well done and features excellent stereo separation, definition and low end reproduction. The SACD Surround Sound mix puts you in the middle of the band on most cuts but it doesn’t seem to have as much low end as the SACD Stereo track. But the Surround Sound treatment of the acoustic track Little Martha is quite a treat. On this SACD, I think Allman Brothers Band fans will find it interesting to compare the SACD Stereo and Surround Sound treatments of this classic rock album. Also worth noting, Eat A Peach was replicated by Sony DADC in Terre Haute, Indiana and comes in a Super Jewel Box with a raised spindle that holds 2 discs, even though it is a Single Disc SACD release.

Album Selections
1. Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More
2. Les Brers in a Minor
3. Melissa
4. Mountain Jam
5. One Way Out
6. Trouble No More
7. Stand Back
8. Blue Sky
9. Little Martha

High Lonesome Sound
Vince Gill
SACD Surround Sound/SACD Stereo/CD Stereo
(MCA Nashville B0002787-36)

High Lonesome Sound was a best selling County Music album by Vince Gill. It’s best known for its title track is performed twice on the album – once with several guest musicians and the Vince Gill band and the second version which features Alison Krauss and her band Union Station.

High Lonesome Sound has previously been released in Surround Sound as a DTS 5.1 Music Disc in 1997 and in DVD Audio last September. The Super Audio CD features the same Surround Sound mix as the prior Surround editions which was produced by Chuck Ainlay and mastered by Denny Purcell, both of whom also handled these roles on the Stereo CD as well.

The SACD Surround Sound track sounds familiar to those who have heard the earlier releases, demonstrating some added clarity and definition when compared to the DTS 5.1 Music Disc edition. The most interesting track in SACD Surround is the first rendition of High Lonesome Sound (track 2) which uses the 4 corner channels to highlight solos during the song. As with Eat A Peach, this SACD was made by Sony DADC in Terre Haute, Indiana and features a Super Jewel Box case with the raised spindle made to hold 2 discs rather than one.

Album Selections
1. One Dance With You
2. High Lonesome Sound
3. Pretty Little Adriana
4. A Little More Love
5. Down To New Orleans
6. Tell Me Lover
7. Given More Time
8. You And You Alone
9. Worlds Apart
10. Jenny Dreamed Of Trains
11. High Lonesome Sound (with Alison Krauss & Union Station)

5 Elton John Albums Join The Universal Music SACD Release List
In recent weeks Universal Music has scheduled in store dates for most of the titles on their Coming Soon list. On Tuesday, they shed some light on the next batch of upcoming Super Audio CD releases. Included in the newly announced titles are five Elton John albums which follow the successful Super Audio CD releases of Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (Island Records B0001478-40 and B0001570-36). These upcoming Surround Sound SACDs will include:

• Elton John – Captain Fantastic (Island)
• Elton John – Elton John (Island)
• Elton John – Honky Chateau (Island)
• Elton John – Madman Across The Water (Island)
• Elton John – Tumbleweed Connection (Island)

  Tuesday’s edition of the SACD Release list also has several other changes that include:

• Toby Keith’s Shock ‘n’ Ya’ll and Lee Ann Womack’s Greatest Hits on August 31st
• The Marvin Gaye Collection moves from Coming Soon to September 14th
• Hilary Hahn’s Violin Concerto Op. 61 and the Eastman Rochester Orchestra’s Symphonies 1 & 2 added to the SACD Coming Soon list

  Upcoming Universal Music SACD Release List
  Turning to upcoming Super Audio CD releases, Universal Music has a number of them coming including the Animals and Herman’s Hermits next week followed by Lionel Ritchie’s latest album in Surround Sound SACD on August 3rd. Here’s the complete list of upcoming SACDs from Universal Music with Tuesday’s additions and changes included:

  July 20, 2004 SACD Releases

• The Animals – Retrospective (ABKCO Records)
• Herman’s Hermits – Retrospective (ABKCO Records)

  August 3, 2004 SACD Release

• Lionel Ritchie – Just For You (Island)

  August 10, 2004 SACD Releases

• Claudio Abbado, Berlin Philharmonic – Mahler: Symphony No. 5 (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Juliane Banse, Pierre Boulez, Cleveland Orchestra – Mahler: Symphony No. 4 (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Concerto Koln & Saraband – Dream of the Orient (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Sheryl Crow – The Globe Sessions (A&M Records)
• Reinhard Goebel, Musica Antiqua Köln – Le Roi Danse Original Soundtrack (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Herbert Von Karajan, Berlin Philharmonic – Beethoven: Symphonies No. 1 & 2 (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Herbert Von Karajan, Berlin Philharmonic – Beethoven: Symphonies No. 3 & 4 (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Herbert Von Karajan, Berlin Philharmonic – Beethoven: Symphonies No. 5 & 6 (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Herbert Von Karajan, Berlin Philharmonic – Beethoven: Symphonies No. 7 & 8 (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Gundula Janowitz, Hilde Rössel-Majdan, Waldemar Kmentt, Walter Berry, Wiener Singverein, Herbert von Karajan, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra – Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Olivier Latry – Midnight at Notre Dame: Organ Transcriptions (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Paul McCreesh, Gabrieli Consort & Players – Handel: Messiah (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Mikhail Pletnev, Mstislav Rostropovich, Russian National Orchestra – Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No. 3 & Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No. 3 (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Mikhail Pletnev – Pletnev Plays Schumann (Deutsche Grammophon)

  August 24, 2004 SACD Releases

• Allman Brothers Band – Live At Fillmore East (Mercury)
• Herbie Hancock – Gershwin’s World (Verve)
• Joe Henderson – Lush Life: The Music of Billy Strayhorn (Verve)
• Shirley Horn – Here’s to Live: Shirley Horn With Strings (Verve)
• Snow Patrol – Final Straw (Interscope)

  August 31, 2004 SACD Releases

• Toby Keith – Shock ‘n’ Ya’ll (Dreamworks Nashville)
• Lee Ann Womack – Greatest Hits (MCA Nashville)

  September 14, 2004 SACD Releases

• Pierre Boulez, Berlin Philharmonic – Ravel: Bolero (Deutsche Grammophon)
• The Carpenters – Singles: 1969-1981 (A&M Records)
• Marvin Gaye – The Marvin Gaye Collection (Motown)
• Bryn Terfel, Claudio Abbado, Chamber Orchestra Europe – Mozart: Don Giovanni (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Anne Sofie Von Otter, Thomas Quasthoff, Claudio Abbado, Chamber Orchestra of Europe – Schubert: Lieder With Orchestra (Deutsche Grammophon)

  September 21, 2004 SACD Release

• Chet Baker – Baker’s Holiday: Chet Baker Plays & Sings The Billie Holiday Songbook (Verve)
• John Coltrane & Johnny Hartman – John Coltrane & Johnny Hartman (Impulse)

  October 12, 2004 SACD Release

• Argerich & Pletnev – Cinderella Suite from the Ballet for 2 Pianos & La Mere (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Antal Dorati, Philharmonia Hugarica Orchestra – Respighi: Ancient Airs & Dances for Lute (Decca Classics)
• Antal Dorati, London Symphony Orchestra – Stravinsky: The Firebird (Complete); Tango; Scherzo à la Russe (Decca Classics)
• Byron Janis, Antal Dorati, London Sympohny Orchestra, Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra – Rachmaninov: Piano Concerti 2 & 3; 2 Preludes (Decca Classics)
• Paul Mc Creesh, Gabrieli Consort & Players – Music for San Rocco (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Paul Paray, Detroit Symphony Orchestra – Suppé: Overtures (+Auber) (Decca Classics)
• Janos Starker – Bach: Six Suites For Solo Cello (Philips)
• Jaap van Zweden, Residentie Orchestra – Beethoven: Complete Symphonies (5 SACD Box Set) (Philips)

  November 9, 2004 SACD Releases

• Cotrubas, Domingo, Kleiber, Bayerischer, Staatsorchester – Verdi: La Traviata (2 SACD Set) (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Richard Croft, Minkowski, Les Musiciens du Louvre – Gluck: Orphee et Eurydice (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Zimerman, Polish Festival Orchestra – Chopin: Piano Concertos No. 1 & 2 (Deutsche Grammophon)

  SACD Releases Coming Soon

• Count Basie & His Orchestra – April In Paris (Verve)
• Dorati, Enescu, London Symphony Orch – Liszt: Hungarian Rhapsodies (Decca Classics)
• Frederick Fennell, Eastman Wind Ensemble – Sousa Marches (Decca Classics)
• Renee Fleming – Handel (Decca Classics)
• Juan Diego Florez – Great Tenor Arias (Decca Classics)
• Hilary Hahn, Colin Davis, London Symphony Orchestra – Elgar: Violin Concerto Op. 61 & Williams: The Lark Ascending (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Howard Hanson, Eastman Rochester Orchestra – Hanson: Symphonies No. 1 (Nordic) & 2 (Romantic); Song of Democracy (Philips)
• Elton John – Captain Fantastic (Island)
• Elton John – Elton John (Island)
• Elton John – Honky Chateau (Island)
• Elton John – Madman Across The Water (Island)
• Elton John – Tumbleweed Connection (Island)
• Tonu Kaljuste – Te Deum (ECM)
• Eleni Karaindrou – Soundtrack: Ulysses’ Gaze (ECM)
• Diana Krall – Love Scenes (Verve)
• Christina Milian – It’s About Time (Island)
• Motley Crüe – Greatest Hits (Hip-O Records)
• Anne Sofie Mutter, Andre Previn, London Symphony Orchestra – Tchaikovsky & Korngold: Violin Concertos (Deutsche Grammophon)
• Anna Netrebko, Claudio Abbado, Mahler Chamber Orchestra – Sempre Libera (Deutsche Grammophon)

Linda Ronstadt – Humming to Myself (Verve)