Was this Miles Davis Steamin LP a rare find?

Well, I think you're in for a treat when you open Sgt. Pepper's. I was only familiar with the Capitol stereo version for many years. Then a few years ago I read Geoff Emerick's book (Here, There, and Everywhere) about his experiences in the control booth with The Beatles. He mentioned how they spent most of a work week doing the mono mixdown of Sgt. Pepper's, and the Beatles were present for that. The stereo mix was a toss-off, done in a few hours and with no Beatle involvement. The stereo version had always sounded thin and brittle to me.

Not so the mono version. It's warm and rich. There are even some content differences. For example, you'll hear a significant difference in the laugh track at the end of "Within You Without You."

Very cool. Will have to give Sgt Pepper and the QRP Miles an Audio Intelligent bath and a spin. Johnnyb53- Which Beach Boys Mono do you have. I assume Surfin USA. Michael F. really liked that one. I prefer their later stuff, and am waiting on Surfs Up. I also have an early press of Sunflower, which I enjoy quite a bit. Even my Pet Sounds remaster from the Late 90's is quite good. I have TODAY on the newer CAP vault remasters, and it's not good at all. So I steer clear of those. Cheers -Don

11-03-15: Fjn04
Johnnyb53- Which Beach Boys Mono do you hav?"

My only BB monos right now are recent Capitol issues of Pet Sounds and Smile!, and although they may not match the AP's, I think they're pretty good on 180g vinyl and a nice rich tonal balance. The vocals are wonderful on both as well. When I got the mono cart, Smile! and Pet Sounds are two of the first mono LPs I played.

Brian Wilson has been deaf in one ear most of his life, so the story is that he always favored mono.

It's nice to see that the Beach Boys back-catalog has been getting the same sort of respect for the original intendted analog mixes that The Beatles' catalog finally got. I will have to pick up some more. These early BB albums transport me to my early adolescence when I was crazy for cars and our family (in Cincinnati) vacationed in SoCal annually.

Instead of paying the big bucks for audiophile reissues, that I admit can be really great, try some of the Fantasy reissues of the great jazz albums.They are readily available used on Ebay. Especially good are the ones that the Contemporary Studios recorded. Also, if you can find the original recordings still in good shape pick them up. I've found that a lot of used record stores that lean toward rock sometimes don't know their jazz and classical ... and underprice them. The Miles Davis "Round Midnight" album I mentioned above was bought in a used record store in Santa Monica for under a buck. I guarantee that album played on your system would knock yer socks off.

Contemporary or Riverside are two of the best jazz labels, and I agree that Fantasy reissues can be very very good.
I own "Art Pepper + 11" on original Contemporary, and I like it so much that I later on bought the 45-rpm re-issue. The latter is maybe a little "smoother" for want of a better adjective, but it's really no better overall.