Terry Callier at the Earl of Old Town Review: Better on CD Than 180 Gram Vinyl

This is not going to be a popular review because it is one of my rare negative-leaning takes on a new release by Terry Callier, a fine, if underappreciated, folk singer with a rich style that falls somewhere between Richie Havens and Tim Buckley.

While I have no problem with the artist, the music, or even the underlying performance on Terry Callier at the Earl of Old Town (Time Traveler Records), I felt an obligation to offer some perspective on the underlying value proposition of the vinyl edition. The promotional buzz surrounding this recent Record Store Day release appeared promising:

“These 1967 live tapes—unearthed from a private archive were recorded by Joe Segal in Chicago at The Earl of Old Town Club. Showcasing Callier’s distinctive blend of folk, soul, and jazz in its purest form. His intricate guitar work, luminous voice, and spiritual depth are presented in stunning clarity, giving both longtime fans and new listeners an unfiltered glimpse into a foundational moment in American music history. Transferred from the original tapes, restored by Joe Lizzi and mastered by Matthew Lutthans at The Mastering Lab. The limited-edition 180-gram 2-LP edition includes a booklet with rare photographs and newly commissioned liner notes… “

Sounds super appealing, right? Unfortunately, as is sometimes the case with archival releases, the reality is a bit different from the pre-release promotional descriptions.

As a lifelong Deadhead, I certainly appreciate a good audience-captured, fan-made unofficial recording. I get it. Rare recordings like this are invaluable for better appreciating an artist’s life’s work. Accordingly, I can even love a less-than-perfect archival recording if it is presented in its proper context. And therein lies the rub: Terry Callier at the Earl of Old Town is presented as “restored,” but it sounds far from that. For an album selling for upwards of $50 when you add taxes and shipping, it feels like a bit much.

As I listened to this just-OK-quality, lo-fi, audience-sounding recording, I questioned whether it really needed to be pressed as a fancy double 180-gram audiophile vinyl set. Coupled with the relatively short performance time of approximately 58 minutes, I suspect it could have been mastered to fit on a less costly, standard-weight 140-gram single LP without a significant sacrifice in fidelity. I’ll put it this way: if Herbie Hancock and Chick Corea could issue a live album in 1978 with a 35-minute-long side, a 30-minute side in 2026 should be feasible. Just sayin’!

For example, there are warbles audible during “The Last Thing on My Mind,” indicating that the recording was damaged somehow. There are moments of distortion throughout. Mr. Callier was playing in a small club before a relative handful of patrons who are polite except when they aren’t, so there is a fair amount of talking in the background during some tunes. In short, this is a far-from-perfect document. I guess that is the “unfiltered glimpse” part of the offering noted above.

Terry Callier At The Earl of Old Town is currently selling for $46.02 at Amazon. Of course if you are a deep fan, you probably already own this. However if you’ve been on the fence you might be better off going for the less pricey 2CD version, which you can find on Amazon for $23.56 — although I need to point out that at 58 minutes in length, it could have been all put on a less expensive-still single CD. Alternately, you might just want to simply wait until the prices come down on both of these options.

Our Ratings

★★★★★★★★★★ Music

★★★★★★★★★★ Sound Quality

★★★★★★★★★★ Pressing Quality

Where to buy:

Mark Smotroff is a deep music enthusiast / collector who has also worked in entertainment oriented marketing communications for decades supporting the likes of DTS, Sega and many others. He reviews vinyl for Analog Planet and has written for Audiophile Review, Sound+Vision, Mix, EQ, etc.  You can learn more about him at LinkedIn.

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