Hendrix/Band of Gypsys - Stepping Stone 45rpm (Unplayed US Stock Copy)
24bit/96kHz (High Resolution Audio for DVD burning)
01. Stepping Stone
02. Izabella
These mixes do not appear officially on CD or any other vinyl release.
Producer: Heaven Research Unlimited (a.k.a. Jimi Hendrix)
Engineer: Jack Adams
Mastering: Robert Ludwig (his initials are on both sides of the deadwax)
Hardware:
- Technics 1210mk2
- Jelco SA-750D Tonearm (w/ JAC 501 cable)
- Audio Technica AT33PTG MC
- Pro-Ject Tube Box SE-2
- Yamaha CA-1010
- RME ADI-2 A/D Interface
Software:
- Audition 3.0 used for adjusting DC bias, editing, (incl. manual removal of clicks
and pops), adding gain and making the cue points.
- Click Repair 3.4.1 used with setting Cl: 10, Cr: 0
- CueListTool v1.7 & Mediaval CueSplitter used for generating the .cue's & .m3u's.
Transfer & Restoration by Prof. Stoned
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Prof. sez:
It's about time for a slice of seriously rare Hendrix.
This 45 rpm was released on April 8, 1970, shortly after the US release of the Band of Gypsys album.
For some strange reason, it failed to sell and was allegedly withdrawn after Hendrix expressed his
dissatisfaction about the mix.
Contrary to popular believe, the original 45 rpm mix of Stepping Stone as heard here was NEVER used again
for commercial release, unlike what Alan Douglas and John McDermott/Eddie Kramer tried to have you believe.
There are no less than 5 mixes of the A-side in existence, three of which have Buddy Miles original drum efforts.
The mix that first appeared on the 1982 compilation 'Kiss the Sky', then on 1990's Cornerstones,
2001's 'Voodoo Chile; The Collection' and most recently the limited edition Singles Box Vol. 2 is
NOT the 45 rpm mix, although it has Buddy's drums.
And then, there's yet another vintage mix containing Buddy's drums, which can be found on the Warner Bros
1971 3LP sampler Looney Tunes/Merry Melodies. This seems to be a much rougher mix that was never intended for
release and has also never appeared elsewhere (see the other txt file for a weblink to a listening sample).
Exactly what was wrong with the 45 mix in Hendrix' view is hard to say.
Hendrix would later revisit the multitrack of the A-side and have Mitch Mitchell overdub new drums
but apparently -according to John McDermott's 'Ultimate Hendrix' book- Buddy Miles efforts were not wiped
from the tape. It's unknown when exactly the 'Kiss the Sky' mix was made but it's 99.9% likely
that it was made during the same mixdown session as the 45 version, as the mixes are very close
with similar (though not entirely identical) stereo panning goin' on.
The mix on the B-side is also a rarity in that it was never used again. A 1971 remix of this track
appeared on the album 'War Heroes' but unlike Stepping stone (which was remixed with Mitchell's drum part)
this one still had its original drum part. But as with Stepping Stone, the version that did appear
on 'Voodoo Chile; The Collection' and the limited edition Singles Box Vol. 2 is NOT the 45 rpm mix either
but at the same time is also nearly identical. Confusing, huh?
All credit for these findings must be given to Steve E. If you wanna learn the exact details and differences,
read page 1 +5 of the following thread: http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?t=146795
I have also collected his posts in a .txt file included here for posterity.
This record came from a collection of unplayed stock copies and which I was lucky to find on eBay.
It is in stunning near mint condition and has only been played two times ever (by me, after cleaning, to make
sure whatever dirt was still in the grooves would be picked up). The quality is breathtaking as you
might expect from an RL cut. Side A has some distortion which I believe originates from the mastertape,
as it can be heard on the other mix as well.
The record was professionally and carefully cleaned in three steps using Audio Intelligent’s
Enzymantic formula, Super Cleaner Formula, and Ultra pure water on a VPI 16.5
(using VPI brushes) and Nitty Gritty mini-pro 2.
Then I spent time manually declicking the wave file (after Click Repair had already been
applied with a medium setting) to make sure the cleanest and most natural sounding result
possible was achieved.
Enjoy!
