Steve, ClearAudio makes a great record hole reamer, but it's costly ($50). It's very well built and feels really good in your hand. But it's costly!
Dave Mason - Alone Together Again I have said it before, and I'll say it again. This endeavor by Dave Mason is a really great production. The album cover and swirly vinyl are great. The music is exceptionally well done. And the sonics are really good. Could use a little more on cymbals, but that was the mix they chose. The bass line and kick drum are superb, as are the lead guitar and all vocals (lead and backup). Very highly recommended.
I listened to a reissue copy of Supersession that I bought last year. It seemed rather strident and thin, even more so than I remember (I do remember that it wasn't impressive last year). This is an all analog issue from Speakers Corner. I bought it thinking the all analog reissue would outperform my original copy. I followed it by playing my original copy, from 1971. What a difference! The 1971 copy sounded so much smoother and elegant. The difference between these two, if I can make an analogy, is like eating a beautiful red and sweet strawberry and then eating one that is equally pretty but is a GMO strawberry that just has no sweetness or real flavor. I wish my original copy was in perfect condition. I played it a lot, and plenty of times on the old Magnavox console before moving on to my first real high fidelity system. A bit noisy in places, but still very good. Fabulous album, by the way. A real classic. Great music and very good SQ.
