Patricia Barber – Cafe Blue Un-mastered (2016, SACD 2ch Premonition)

Patricia Barber – Cafe Blue Un -mastered released in 2016 by Premonition Records. For the first time, listeners will be able to hear the mixes as they were done in the studio and not in the mastered-for-release form of all prior releases. Café Blue may be Patricia Barber’s most popular and best-regarded release.

On the Patricia Barber – Cafe Blue album, she is on piano and vocals, Michael Arnopol is on bass, John McLean plays guitars, and Mark Walker handles percussion. Barber’s voice is both closer and far more vivid. The finger snaps on the opening of “Ode To Billie Joe” are far more realistic. The bass on the same track sounds closer to what you would hear if you were sitting right next to Arnopol during the recording session.