n80, I thought you had the newer AR LS-16 pre..........Of course, Kind of Blue set a standard for musical writing, arrangements, band leadership and musicianship. Genius, in fact. Miles went through many " changes " during his career ( as many musicians / bands did / do ). Another favorite MD recording for me is " A Tribute to Jack Johnson ", recorded in 2 sessions in 1970, released on cd in '92 ( Columbia Jazz 47036 ). Miles was an amateur boxer, and the two tracks on this recording tell the tale of a boxing match and recovery of a fighter ( based on a movie documentary ), of his favorite boxer / fighter, Jack Johnson. IMO, everything I indicated above about KOB, has been applied here. In fact, my buddy who got me into Miles so many years ago ( wow, I am old ), only, many years later, heard of the " Tribute " album from me....lol. My best, and enjoy !