December 2016

• Burning Spear - Marcus Garvey (1975,LP) ★★★★☆
• Steven Wilson - Grace For Drowning (2011,LP) ★★★★☆
• Enya - The Celts (1986,S) ★★★★☆
• Small Faces - From the Beginning (1967,S) ★★★☆☆
• Peter Gabriel - 3 [Ein Deutsches Album] (1980,LP) ★★★★☆
• Snoop Doggy Dogg - Doggystyle (1993,LP) ★★★★☆
• Porcupine Tree - Fear of a Blank Planet (2007,LP) ★★★★★
• Brant Bjork - Jalamanta (1999,LP) ★★★★☆
• John Brown's Body - Fireflies (2016,LP) ★★★☆☆
• Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon (1973,2016 RM LP) ★★★★★
• The Monkees - Saturday's Child (2016,45rpm RSD PD) ★★★☆☆
• Arthur Louis - Knockin' On Heaven's Door (1988,S) ★★★★☆
• Various - How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1966,LP) ★★★★★
• Calexico - The Black Light (1998,LP) ★★★★☆
• Abba - Arrival (1976,LP) ★★★★☆
• Yes - Close to the Edge (1972,Japan LP) ★★★★★
• The Cars - The Cars (1979,MFSL LP) ★★★★☆
• B-52's - B-52's (1979,MFSL LP) ★★★★☆
• Supertramp - Breakfast in America (1979,Japan LP) ★★★★☆
• Genesis - And Then There Were Three... (1978,LP) ★★★★☆
• Supertramp - Crisis? What Crisis? (1975,LP) ★★★☆☆
• Burning Spear - Man in the Hills (1976,LP) ★★★★☆
• Fugees - The Score (1996,LP) ★★★★☆
• Face to Face - Don't Turn Away (1992,LP) ★★★☆☆
• Leonard Cohen - You Want it Darker (2016,LP) ★★★★☆
• Steven Wilson - Happiness III (2016,7"S) ★★★☆☆
• Tom Petty - The Last DJ (2002,RM 2016 Box Set) ★★★★☆
• Various - Jazz Dispensary: Holiday Treats (2016,S) ★★★☆☆
• Steven Wilson - Hand.Cannot.Erase. (2015,5.1 DVD) ★★★★☆
• XTC - Skylarking (1986,RM 5.1 2016 BD-A)
  • Performance ★★★★☆ Sonics ★★★★☆
• Dirtmusic - Troubles (2013,LP) ★★★★☆
• Tom Petty - Highway Companion (2006,RM 2016 Box Set) ★★★★☆
• Tom Petty - Echo (1999,RM 2016 Box Set) ★★★★☆
• James Last - Christmas Dancing (1966,S) ★★★☆☆
• Jimi Hendrix - Merry Christmas and Happy New Year (1999,EP) ★★★☆☆
• Fu Manchu - California Crossing (2001,LP) ★★★★☆
• The Police - Zenyatta Mondatta (1980,A&M Audiophile LP) ★★★★☆
• Tom Petty - She's the One (1996,RM 2016 Box Set) ★★★★☆
• Tom Petty - Wildflowers (1994,RM 2016 Box Set) ★★★★★
• Leonard Cohen - Various Positions (1984,S) ★★★★☆
• Laura Nyro - Christmas and the Beads of Sweat (1970,S) ★★★☆☆
• Turnpike Troubadours - The Turnpike Troubadours (2015,S) ★★★★☆
• Enya - Shepherd Moons (1991,LP) ★★★★☆
• Beck - Guero (2005,LP) ★★★★☆
• Jimmy Buffett - 'Tis the Season (2016,LP) ★★★☆☆
• Alborosie & Friends - Tour Compilation (2014,LP) ★★★★☆
• Pink Floyd - Animals (1977,LP 2016 RM) ★★★★☆
• Witchcraft - Legend (2012,S) ★★★☆☆
• The Rolling Stones - Blue and Lonesome (2016,S) ★★★☆☆
• The Paladins - The Paladins (1988,S) ★★★☆☆
• The Turtles - Golden Hits. Vol.1 (1967,RSD 2016 Mono LP) ★★★★☆
• Porno For Pyros - Good God's Urge (1996,RSD 2016 LP) ★★★★☆
• Robin Trower - For Earth Below (1975,LP) ★★★★☆
• The Who - The Who Sell Out (1967,LP) ★★★☆☆
• Ringo Starr - Time Takes Time (1992,2016 Green RE LP) ★★★☆☆
• Porcupine Tree - Fear of a Blank Planet (2007,2016 Blue LP) ★★★★★

Chuck's Rating Scale

• Classic / Essential (Tops) 4.4 to 5.0 ★★★★★
• Must Listen (Great) 3.4 to 4.3 ★★★★☆
• Worthy Effort (Maybe to Good) 2.4 to 3.3 ★★★☆☆
• Below Expectations (Bad) 1.4 to 2.3 ★★☆☆☆
• Avoid (Awful) 0 to 1.3 ★☆☆☆☆

Playback:

• VPI Scout JMW9 Tonearm w/Nordost Wiring, Ortofon 2M Black Cartridge
• Rogue Audio Cronus Magnum Integrated Tube Amp (KT-120 Tubes)
• Klipsch RF-3s, RC-3, RS-3s, KSW-15 Sub
• Pioneer Elite BDP-62FD Blu-Ray/SACD/DVD Audio Player / Polk LSi M Bookshelf
• Digital: Apple iMac "Core i3" 3.2 21.5in / J River Media Center 21 / Cambridge SoundWorks
• VPI 16.5 RCM

My initial impressions (and ratings) may change after repeated plays. Albums that grab my attention on the first listen are great, but many others take several listens to truly appreciate and ratings may be updated accordingly. My top rating for greatest hit compilations is four stars.

This list is chronological with the top album being the most recently played. Sound quality ratings are included for some releases, such as multichannel mixes and audiophile labels.

Vinyl is my preferred and typical method for playback, but I occasionally listen to SACD, DVD-Audio, Blu-ray and (less likely) Redbook CD. For titles I don't own, especially for exploration and discovery, Spotify and YouTube are my go-to online resources. Music streaming is noted with an 'S'. For music on the road with my iPhone or iPad and Spotify, playback will be noted with an 'SR'. Sometimes for convenience I will stream music to my Amazon Echo, noted with an 'SE'.

Last month's listening log can be found below.

Older lists are saved in the archive folder.