Kimber Kable Joe McQueen, 'Ten at 86' CD/SACD

Sophisticated Jazz with Huge Dynamic Range

The 86-year-old Joe McQueen plays with the fire of a newcomer and the sophistication that only a seasoned performer can bring to jazz. This IsoMike 'isolated microphone' extremely high-fidelity recording brings out every nuance of his virtuoso sax stylings. Since there is no limiting or compression, the dynamic range will surprise you. You'll also enjoy layer of extreme detail. This hybrid disc plays in CD stereo, SACD stereo, and SACD multichannel formats. Songs include "Satin Doll," "What a Difference a Day Makes," and "Poinciana."

Played in Count Basie's Band

Joe McQueen has been a professional jazz musician for over seventy years, turning Pro at the tender age of sixteen. He was introduced to the saxophone a few years earlier by his cousin, Herschel Evans, who played in Count Basie's band in the mid -1930s. Born in 1919 in Dallas, Texas, Joe was raised in Ardmore, Oklahoma, where he played tuba and then saxophone in the Ardmore High School band.

Fast forward to 1945, when Joe and his wife, Thelma, were on the road as he was touring in a jazz band. While en-route from Las Vegas, the bandleader gambled away the troupes earnings, stranding them in Ogden, Utah. Joe and Thelma decided to stay in Ogden and McQueen reformed the band there. This turned out to be a serendipitous move because just after WWII, Ogden, a major stop on the railroad between San Francisco and Kansas City, had become a hotspot for jazz music.

Since settling in Ogden, McQueen has performed there with such jazz luminaries as Charlie Parker, Chet Baker (a fellow Oklahoman), Paul Gonzalez, Lester Young, Count Basie, Duke Ellington and Dizzy Gillespie. Joe continued to tour in the region, playing in Idaho Falls with Hoagy Carmichael.

Innovative IsoMike Technology

IsoMike (Isolated Microphones) is an experimental acoustic baffle system, to address the interference of intrachannel sounds that results in compromised fidelity. For these 4-channel recordings, the microphones were suspended on four arms, separated by IsoMike baffles.

Most baffles absorb sound from mid- to high-range frequencies; lower frequencies are more difficult to absorb. Here, the unique shapes of the IsoMike baffles are advantageous. As lower frequencies flow around the heart- or egg-shaped baffles, they are scattered, effectively dissipating their energy.

Eliminating line-of-sight between the microphones seems to lower some fidelity robbing cancellations, this reveals a layer of extreme detail and a sense of increased sensitivity. Kimber took great care, therefore, to reduce the noise level within the auditorium during the recordings.

All recordings were made at a low enough level to assure that no clipping occurred, therefore you may need to raise your volume control more than when playing some commercially available CDs where the volume has been normalized and/or compressed.

Since there is no limiting or compression the dynamic range might surprise you. The microphones were never in a close-miked configuration. Except we did try some spot microphones on the bass and for Joes voice. (Hint: Just keep listening at the end of track 10)

All recordings were made at Weber State University, Ogden, Utah, in the Val. A. Browning Center for the Performing Arts, the Austad Auditorium.

Tracks

• 1 - What a Difference a Day Makes, S. Adams, M. Grever
• 2 - Stoned, W. Gray
• 3 - Undecided, S. Robin, C. Shavers
• 4 - Willow Weep for Me, A. Ronell
• 5 - Blues Walkin', R. Carpenter
• 6 - Poinciana, N. Simon, B. Bernier
• Parker
• 8 - Satin Doll, D. Ellington, Jay Mercer, B. Strayhorn
• 9 - Tenderly. W. Gross, J. Lawrence
• 10 - Broadway, B. Tate