
Those of you who’ve been following my reviews in TAS already know that I’m a huge fan of reel-to-reel tape players. But tape decks are no good unless you can find first-rate tapes to play back on them. So, in keeping with the tradition of our Super LP List, I’ve compiled a selection of recommended tapes, which you’ll find printed below.
Of course, I haven’t been able to come close to auditioning all the many 15ips reel-to-reel issues and reissues that have been marketed over the past few years. Though I’ve made my selections from a fairly large sampling (and have had help from tape aficionados Greg Beron and Andre Jennings), my list of best-sounding tapes comes nowhere close to being comprehensive. There are many worthy tapes out there that I simply haven’t heard.
Also, be aware that the sonic quality of R2R tapes, like the sonic quality of LPs, varies with the generation and condition of the source (in addition to the quality of the original mixing and mastering). Those very well-recorded ones that are copied from second- and third-generation production masters (copies of the mastertape used to press vinyl records) tend to sound a bit less good than those that are copied directly from first-generation mastertapes. To give you a heads up, new entries are in boldface. I’ve also marked the tapes that are said to have been copied directly from the original 15ips or 30ips mastertape with double asterisks, though understand that, however it was duplicated, no tape on this list is less than worthy.
Classical
Albeniz: Suite Española (De Burgos, New Philharmonic), Decca/The Tape Project (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00
Arnold: Arnold Overtures (Arnold, London Philharmonic), Reference Recordings/The Tape Project (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00
Bach: Cello Suite No.3, etc. (Rosselet), Yarlung Records (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $290.00**
Bach: Italian Concerto (Gould), Columbia/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $649.99**
Bach: Messe In H-Moll BWV 232 (Popp, Schreier, Rundfunkchor Leipzig and Neues Bachisches Collegium Musicum zu Leipzig), Eterna/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $649.99**
Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra (Reiner, CSO), RCA Victor/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00
Beethoven: Sonatas Nos.8 and 14 (Lenehan), Chasing The Dragon (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $499.99**
Beethoven: Sonata Op.96 (Abel/ Steinberg), Wilson Audiophile/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00
Brahms: Klavierkonzert No.1 (Gilels, Jochum, Berliner Philharmoniker), DGG/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $649.99**
Brahms: Klavierkonzert No.2 (Gilels, Jochum, Berliner Philharmoniker), DGG/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $649.99**
Cantate Domino (Oscar’s Motet Choir), 2xHD (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reels, IEC EQ), $994.99**
Elgar: Cello Concerto (Du Pré, Barbirolli, LSO), EMI/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ, 510nWb), 420.00 EUR
Graham: Winds of War and Peace (National Symphonic Winds), Wilson Audiophile/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00
Holst: The Planets (Steinberg, Boston Symphony Orchestra), DGG/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $649.99**
Janaki String Trio: Debut (Penderecki, et al.), Yarlung Records (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $290.00**
Petteri Iivonen: The Art of the Violin Volume 1 (Debussy Sonata in G Minor, etc.), Yarlung Records (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $449.99**
Liszt, et al.: Rhapsodies (Stokowski), RCA/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00
Mahler: Symphony No. 1 (Suitner, Staatskapelle Dresden), Eterna/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $649.99**
Mendelssohn: Octet (Locrian Ensemble), Chasing The Dragon (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $499.99**
Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition, Night on Bald Mountain (Markevitch, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig), Eterna/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $549.99**
Mussorgsky: The Power of the Orchestra (Leibowitz, Royal Philharmonic), RCA Victor/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00
Nojima: Nojima Plays Liszt, Reference Recordings/The Tape Project (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00
Open Reel Selection of Opus 3 Analogue Classical Recordings (Brahms, Albeniz, Sandström), Opus 3 (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $299.99**
Orff: Carmina Burana (Kegel, Radio Sinfonie Orchester Leipzig, Rundfunkchor Leipzig), Eterna/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $649.99**
Prokofiev & Ravel: Piano Concertos (Argerich, Abbado, Berliner Philharmoniker), DGG/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $649.99**
Prokofiev: Lieutenant Kije (Reiner, CSO) RCA Victor/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00
Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No.3 (Janis, Kondrashin, Moscow Philharmonic), Mercury/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Puccini: Tosca (Callas, Gobbi, Prêtre), Warner Classical/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $1149.99**
Rachmaninoff: Symphonic Dances & Vocalise (Johanos, Dallas Symphony), Turnabout/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00**
Rachmaninov: Second Symphony (Previn, London Symphony Orchestra), EMI/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $549.99**
Ravel: Daphnis and Chloe (Munch, BSO), RCA Victor/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00**
Ravel: La Valse, Ma mère l’Oye, Pavane pour une infante Defunte, Bolero (Herbig, Berliner Sinfonie-Orchester), Eterna/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $549.99**
Respighi: Pines of Rome (Reiner, CSO), RCA Victor/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00**
Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5 (Sanderling, Berliner Sinfonie-Orchester), Eterna/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $649.99**
Stravinsky: Der Feuervogel & Britten: Sinfonia da Requiem Op.20 (Kempe, Dresden Staatskapelle), Eterna/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $549.99**
Saint-Saëns: Symphony No.3 (Munch, BSO), RCA Victor/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00**
Various: The Reiner Sound (Reiner, CSO), RCA Victor/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), 420.00 EUR**
Various: Witches’ Brew (Gibson, New Symphony Orchestra of London), RCA Victor/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $449.99**
Vivaldi: Vivaldi in Venice (Interpreti Veneziani), Chasing The Dragon (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $799.99**
Rock, Blues, Pop, Folk
Joan Baez: Joan Baez, Vanguard/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Joan Baez: Joan Baez, Vol. 2, Vanguard Records/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
The Band: The Band, Capitol/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
The Band: Stage Fright, Capitol/The Tape Project (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00**
Patricia Barber: Café Blue, Premonition Records (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, digital recording, IEC EQ), $599.99
Patricia Barber: Clique, Premonition Records/Impex (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, digital recording, IEC EQ), $629.99
The Beatles: Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, Capitol/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Harry Belafonte: Belafonte at Carnegie Hall, RCA Victor/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Vincent Bélanger & Anne Bisson: Conversations, Camillo (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $499.99**
David Bowie: The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, RCA/United Home Audio (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $N/A
The Doors: L.A. Woman, Elektra/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Island/United Home Audio (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $N/A
Vanessa Fernandez: Use Me, Groove Note (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $599.99**
Vanessa Fernandez: When the Levee Breaks, Groove Note (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $599.99**
Janis Ian: Breaking Silence, Columbia/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00**
Jacintha: Autumn Leaves/The Songs of Johnny Mercer, Groove Note (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, NAB), $599.99**
Jacintha: Jacintha is Her Name, Groove Note (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, NAB), $599.99**
Jacintha: Lush Life, Groove Note (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, NAB), $599.99**
Norah Jones: Come Away With Me, Blue Note Records/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00**
Rickie Lee Jones: It’s Like This, Artemis/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00**
Antonio Lysy at the Broad: Music from Argentina, Yarlung Records (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $290.00**
Hugh Masekela: Hope, Troika/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00**
Metallica: The Black Album, Elektra/United Home Audio (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $N/A
Joni Mitchell: Blue, Reprise Records/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Joni Mitchell: Hejira, Reprise Records/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Peter, Paul and Mary: In the Wind, Warner Bros. Records/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Lou Reed: Rock N Roll Animal, RCA Victor/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Lyn Stanley: Interludes, (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $674.99**
Lyn Stanley: The Moonlight Sessions Volume Two, AT Music (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reels, IEC EQ), $674.99**
Rolling Stones: Beggars Banquet, London Records/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Rolling Stones: Let It Bleed, London Records/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Hans Theessink: Baby Wants To Boogie, Blue Groove/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $649.99**
Hans Theesink & Terry Evans: Delta Time, Blue Groove/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $649.99**
Hans Theesink & Terry Evans: Visions, Blue Groove/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $649.99**
Trio de Curda: Liber Tango, 2xHD (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reels, IEC EQ), $499.99**
Suzanne Vega: An Evening of New York Songs and Stories, Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $549.99**
Yello: Stella, Blue Groove/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $749.99**
Muddy Waters: Folk Singer, Chess Records/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00**
The Weavers: Reunion at Carnegie Hall 1963, Vanguard/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Junior Wells: Hoodoo Man Blues, Delmark/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $475.00
The White Stripes: Elephant, V2/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $499.99**
Sonny Boy Williamson: Keep It To Ourselves, Storyville/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00**
Jazz
Dee Alexander: Magic, International Phonograph Inc. (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $150.00/reel**
Louis Armstrong: Satchmo Plays King Oliver, Audio Fidelity/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Chet Baker: Chet Baker Sings, Pacific Jazz/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track mono, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Count Basie: 88 Basie Street, Pablo Records/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Clifford Brown: Memorial Album, The Tape Project (15ips, ¼”, 2-track mono, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00**
Holly Cole Trio: Don’t Smoke in Bed, Manhattan Records/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Quentin Collins All-Star Quintet: A Day in the Life, Chasing The Dragon (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $499.99**
John Coltrane Quartet: A Love Supreme, Impulse!/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $500.00**
John Coltrane Quartet: Ballads, Impulse!/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $500.00**
Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool, Capitol Records/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track mono, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Miles Davis: Kind of Blue, Columbia Records/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Duke Ellington: Masterpieces by Ellington, Columbia/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track mono, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Bill Evans: Live At Art D’Lugoff’s Top Of The Gate, 2xHD (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $499.99**
Bill Evans: Some Other Time: The Lost Session From The Black Forest Vol. 1, 2xHD (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $499.99**
Bill Evans Trio: Waltz for Debby, Riverside/The Tape Project (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, Album, IEC EQ), $450.00**
Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong: Ella and Louis, Verve Records/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track mono, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Shirley Horn: Softly, 2xHD (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $499.99**
International Phonograph Inc. Jazz Sampler 1, International Phonograph Inc. (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $150.00/reel**
International Phonograph Inc. Jazz Sampler 2, International Phonograph Inc. (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $150.00/reel**
Diana Krall: Live in Paris, Verve Records/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, Album, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
The L.A. Network: Dave Brubeck Redux, 2xHD (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $499.99**
Josh Lawrence: Jazz Masters Volume 1, Dangerous Analog, LLC (15ips, ¼”, 2-track mono, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $499.99
Syd Lawrence Orchestra: Big Band Spectacular, Chasing The Dragon (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $499.99**
Thelonious Monk: Brilliant Corners, The Tape Project (15ips, ¼”, 2-track mono, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00**
Lee Morgan: The Sidewinder, Blue Note/The Tape Project (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00**
Gerry Mulligan: Gerry Mulligan Meets Ben Webster, Verve/United Home Audio (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $N/A
Oliver Nelson: The Blues And The Abstract Truth, Impulse/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00**
Joe Pass: Intercontinental, MPS/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $649.99**
Jaco Pastorius: Truth, Liberty & Soul: Live in NYC, 2xHD (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $994.99**
Oscar Peterson: Exclusively For My Friends—Mellow Mood, MPS/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $649.99**
Oscar Peterson: Exclusively For My Friends—Travelin’ On, MPS/Horch House Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $649.99**
Joe Policastro Trio Featuring Mark Feldman, International Phonograph Inc. (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $150.00/reel**
Sonny Rollins: Saxophone Colossus, Prestige/The Tape Project (15ips, ¼”, 2-track mono, 10.5″ NAB reel, Album, IEC EQ), $450.00**
Frank Sinatra: Sinatra at the Sands, Reprise Records/Puget Sound Studios (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $200.00/reel*
Jimmy Smith: The Sermon! Blue Note/The Tape Project (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $450.00
Buddy Tate & Harry Edison: I Cried For You, 2xHD (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reels, IEC EQ), $499.99**
Clare Teal with the Syd Lawrence Orchestra: A Tribute to Ella Fitzgerald, Chasing The Dragon (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $499.99**
Various: Jazz at the Pawnshop, Proprius/2xHD (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC/NAB EQ), $994.98**
Ben Webster: Gentle Ben, Ensayo/Analogue Productions (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, Album, IEC EQ), $450.00**
Ben Webster: Stardust Limited, 2xHD (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reels, IEC EQ), $994.99**
The Anthony Wilson Trio: Our Gang, Groove Note (15ips, ¼”, 2-track stereo, 10.5″ NAB reel, IEC EQ), $599.99**
* Only available through industry professionals.
** Said to be sourced directly from the original mastertape.

By Jonathan Valin
I’ve been a creative writer for most of life. Throughout the 80s and 90s, I wrote eleven novels and many stories—some of which were nominated for (and won) prizes, one of which was made into a not-very-good movie by Paramount, and all of which are still available hardbound and via download on Amazon. At the same time I taught creative writing at a couple of universities and worked brief stints in Hollywood. It looked as if teaching and writing more novels, stories, reviews, and scripts was going to be my life. Then HP called me up out of the blue, and everything changed. I’ve told this story several times, but it’s worth repeating because the second half of my life hinged on it. I’d been an audiophile since I was in my mid-teens, and did all the things a young audiophile did back then, buying what I could afford (mainly on the used market), hanging with audiophile friends almost exclusively, and poring over J. Gordon Holt’s Stereophile and Harry Pearson’s Absolute Sound. Come the early 90s, I took a year and a half off from writing my next novel and, music lover that I was, researched and wrote a book (now out of print) about my favorite classical records on the RCA label. Somehow Harry found out about that book (The RCA Bible), got my phone number (which was unlisted, so to this day I don’t know how he unearthed it), and called. Since I’d been reading him since I was a kid, I was shocked. “I feel like I’m talking to God,” I told him. “No,” said he, in that deep rumbling voice of his, “God is talking to you.” I laughed, of course. But in a way it worked out to be true, since from almost that moment forward I’ve devoted my life to writing about audio and music—first for Harry at TAS, then for Fi (the magazine I founded alongside Wayne Garcia), and in the new millennium at TAS again, when HP hired me back after Fi folded. It’s been an odd and, for the most part, serendipitous career, in which things have simply come my way, like Harry’s phone call, without me planning for them. For better and worse I’ve just gone with them on instinct and my talent to spin words, which is as close to being musical as I come.
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