Michael Brecker Pilgrimage on Numbered-Edition 180g 33RPM 2LP Set from Mobile Fidelity: Audiophile Edition of Saxophone Legend's Final Work Is Out of Print

Digital clone of original PCM digital master to analog console to lathe

Pilgrimage is the last album saxophone colossus Michael Brecker ever recorded. Released just months after he succumbed to leukemia in January 2007, it’s also the late instrumentalist’s hands-down best work—and truly, one of the finest jazz records made during the past 30 years. Winner of two Grammy Awards (Best Jazz Instrumental Album and Best Jazz Instrumental Solo for “Anagram”), Pilgrimage ranked #2 on the DownBeat critic’s poll and topped many year-end lists. And for good reason.

Nothing short of transcendent, the music soars on the resplendent playing of an astonishing quintet of jazz’s heaviest hitters: pianists Herbie Hancock and Brad Mehldau, drummer Jack DeJohnette, guitarist Pat Metheny, and bassist John Patitucci. No, it doesn’t get better than this. Mobile Fidelity is honored to offer this glorious statement on a sonically spectacular 180g 2LP set that, like Brecker’s swan song, is without equal.

Devoid of melancholic emotion and self-pitying moods, Pilgrimage is a joyous affirmation of life—an invitation to embrace possibilities rather than a sad farewell. The performances are mesmerizing. None of the musicians here can do wrong, particularly the leader, whose solos both weave melodic yarns (“The Mean Time”) and create harmonic contrasts (“Five Months From Midnight”).

Realizing that these sessions would be his last, Brecker's mates match his passion and soul. Absolutely essential listening, Pilgrimage is the energetic sound of John Coltrane’s legacy, the culmination of a visionary talent high on the upbeat rhythms of life. You will feel better about everything in your world after hearing this album.

Mastered from the original tapes and pressed onto supremely quiet vinyl, Mobile Fidelity’s numbered-edition 2LP set of Pilgrimage presents the entire tonal spectrum of the music amidst a wide, deep, natural soundstage. High and low frequencies are free of limiting ceilings. Instrumental separation and imaging are stunningly lifelike. Natural dynamics and details abound. Waiting for a truly great and great-sounding modern jazz album? This is it.

"The original release won two Grammy’s (Best Jazz Instrumental Album and Best Jazz Instrumental Solo for “Anagram”), and the MoFi version strips away all of the compression, leaving just the music. Pressed to two LPs, the grooves are wide, dynamic, and free of distortion."
--Jeff Dorgay, TONE Audio, Issue 25