My Morning Jacket - Z (Ultradisc One Step LP) / 45RPM 2LP Mobile Fidelity

My Morning Jacket was at a crossroads as it prepared to record the album that would bring its long-awaited breakthrough. Two members had already left the band, and their replacements were slowly finding

their feet within the group's chemistry. The Kentucky ensemble also felt the desire to step outside its comfort zone and therefore brought in professional producer John Leckie. The result – “Z” – was ranked by

Rolling Stone as one of the 500 greatest albums of all time and is often referred to as My Morning Jacket's “OK Computer.”
 
My Morning Jacket focuses entirely on the essentials on “Z”: the quintet, which has been given new energy by the addition of Carl Broemel on guitar and Bo Koster on keyboards, goes beyond the Southern rock

and rustic ballads of its earlier LPs, incorporating exotic vocabulary and psychedelic sounds into its repertoire while streamlining its structures. The conscious decision to lock themselves away in a studio, isolated

from all distractions, led the group to a remote area of the Catskill Mountains. The final piece of the puzzle that brought everything together was Leckie: a veteran of Abbey Road Studios who had worked in various

capacities on albums by George Harrison, Pink Floyd, and Wings, Leckie already had an impressive resume as a sound engineer and producer before the sessions began, including work for the Stone Roses, XTC,

Muse, and Radiohead. Leckie's perspective changed the way the band worked. “Z” is a testament to the brilliance of this collaboration, with adventurous arrangements and forays into reggae, R&B, and soul jazz that

take the listener on wondrous journeys to distant galaxies. The songs are reminiscent of rays of light passing through a prism and projecting a broad spectrum of colors.

Mobile Fidelity's numbered double LP, strictly limited to 2,500 copies, was remastered from the original tapes at MoFi Studio in California especially for this edition and pressed on 180-gram vinyl (45 RPM) using the

sonically superior UltraDisc One Step process. A significant part of the album's acclaimed appeal and success – John Leckie's outstanding production, which dampens the reverb characteristic of the group and coats

the music with organic warmth and cosmic textures – comes to the fore here with unprecedented openness and presence. The records are housed in foil-stamped jackets. The luxurious slipcase honors the outstanding

status of this work with unique artwork created in collaboration with the band: two inserts designed by the group specifically for this release.

MUSICIANS

Jim James: vocals, lead and rhythm guitars
Tom Blankenship: bass guitar
Carl Broemel:  guitar and saxophone on "Dondante"
Patrick Hallahan: drums
Bo Koster: keyboards
Andrew Bird: strings and whistles on "Gideon", "Into the Woods" and "It Beats 4 U"
“M.” Ward: acoustic guitar and choirs on "Into the Woods"
John Leckie & Jim James: production

Title

LP 1
Side A
1.    Wordless Chorus
2.    It Beats 4 U
3.    Gideon

Side B
1.    What A Wonderful Man
2.    Off The Record
3.    Into The Woods

LP 2
Side C
1.    Anytime
2.    Laylow
3.    Knot Comes Loose

Side D
1.    Dondante
2.    Where To Begin (Bonus Track)