Jazz Legends George Benson & Al Jarreau Collaborate For First Time On Monster Music’s “Givin’ It Up” Presented In Monster (HDS) ‘High Definition Surround’

November 8, 2006

Monster Music’s new SuperDisc, High-Definition Surround (HDS) release of George Benson and Al Jarreau’s Givin’ It Up sets a benchmark in audio quality, delivering the Monster’s own highest fidelity stereo and surround experiences in Dolby Digital and DTS for both home theatre systems and iPod/MP3 players. “Givin’ It Up” is now available at most consumer electronics stores. Fully compatible with the current installed base of home theatre systems, “Givin’ It Up” pioneers the use of advanced Monster technologies that bring a performance gain, putting the listener in the middle of the music. It’s the best stereo album in two-channel through the high-definition stereo tracks on the DVD. Monster’s High-Definition Surround Sound is mastered in Dolby Digital (448Kbps) and DTS 96/24 (1.54Mbps), as well as High-Definition PCM 96/24 Stereo, all taken directly from the studio masters. Monster HDS is an interactive music experience, allowing listeners with a home theatre system to select their own “Surround Experience”, choosing, for example, to be “in the studio” of a live recording or “in the room” sitting next to the band. Painstakingly mixed and mastered with the audiophile in mind at the highest bit rate to bring out all the clarity, detail and excitement of the original performance by not compressing it like most recordings that lose the dynamics, “Givin’ It Up” is arguably the best jazz recording ever produced. Comments George Benson, “HDS gives the music another dimension that you didn’t think existed. You just have to experience it because it puts you right in the middle of it all—where the music comes alive.” Adds Al Jarreau, “In High-Definition Surround, you can reach in and touch George’s guitar, you can reach in and touch the singer’s lips. It’s like being there as the music is created.” Monster Cable founder Noel Lee, who serves as executive producer of “Givin’ It Up,” believes, “Sonically, it is the best sounding album from either of these artists. As our first [newly recorded studio] Monster Music project, extreme care was taken to preserve the impact and naturalness of the moment. George has been a friend of mine for more than 20 years. Being able to capture George and Al’s artistry in Monster HDS has been a true highlight of my career.” Comments engineer Don Murray, who mixed the High-Definition Surround tracks with Lee, “This is a watershed album in regard to surround sound quality. You can truly hear that it was conceived in surround sound.” “When you’re talking about High-Definition Surround you’re talking about the first major improvement in many years,” comments Grammy-winning producer Phil Ramone, who heads the Producer & Engineers wing of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. “Here’s an experience that you normally had to go to a motion picture theater. You now have the chance either with picture or without picture to hear surround. I think High-Definition Surround is the best explanation I can give on what can be experienced in your home. We’re about to envelope you with some of the best music you’ve ever heard in the way it should be heard. Monster Music is presenting some of the greatest music that could be heard in surround—It’s High-Definition Surround. Noel Lee has a deep desire and a passion [to deliver the best possible listening experience].” In exclusive Monster High-Definition Surround, the genius and artistry of George Benson and Al Jarreau, and an incomparable group of special guests, including Herbie Hancock and Paul McCartney—is more captivating than ever, providing an inner detail and nuance in their music like never before, as if the listener was there live in the studio. Whether it’s Benson’s unmistakable tasty guitar licks, or Jarreau’s patented mouth percussion, thanks to Monster’s High-Definition Surround technology, the listener is virtually sitting in the all-star band’s crossfire. Other guest musicians include Jill Scott, Marcus Miller, Chris Botti, Patrice Rushen, and Stanley Clarke. Better than ordinary surround sound, Monster HDS is specially engineered to capture music’s true harmonic depth and tonal richness. HDS selectively places artist and instruments around the room for the ultimate listening experience. Unlike DVD-Audio and Super Audio CD, HDS on a SuperDisc plays in any DVD player. Monster Music’s standard releases consist of two discs. The first is a “SuperDisc,” which plays various surround mixes through any DVD-Video player, and also contains High-Definition Digital Music that plays back in surround—through any computer, iPod, or MP3 player connected to any set of headphones—thanks to the disc’s embedded Dolby Headphone software. HDS SuperDiscs also feature multiple surround experiences, such as “In Your Room” and “In The Studio.” The second disc is an audio disc playable in any CD player and mastered at a much higher resolution than a typical CD. When inserted into a computer, the DVD disc contains a folder labeled “Digital Music Files,” including two subfolders, one for Windows and another for Mac. The Windows folder contains WMA (192Kbps) files in stereo or Dolby Headphone surround. The Mac folder contains AAC files (320Kbps) in stereo and Dolby Headphone surround. Monster Music SuperDiscs are the first music audio releases to be certified by THX for high-quality sound, multiple surround experiences, and digital music files. “Givin’ It Up” is the result of a joint venture between Monster Music, the newly created record division of high-end audio equipment supplier Monster Cable, and the Concord Music Group, which simultaneously released the same day a stereo CD version of the Benson/Jarreau collaboration. “Givin’ It Up” was conceived as a state-of-the-art recording by John Burk, Concord Music Group Executive Vice President and Head of A&R. Burk, the album’s producer, approached Monster Cable about partnering on the project to put its High-Definition Surround SuperDisc touch on the proceedings. “Givin’ It Up” marks the first time Benson and Jarreau have worked in a recording studio together, although they have occasionally crossed paths at live gigs. In fact, “Givin’ It Up” was borne out of a 2006 early summer, double-bill tour in which Benson and Jarreau took turns headlining. “Givin’ It Up” marks Monster Music’s first release of newly recorded material, following several remixed and remastered reissues in High-Definition Surround of albums, such as Ray Charles’ “Genius Loves Company,” the classic Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack by Vince Guaraldi, an updated version of the same songs by contemporary jazz artists, and the 20-something, pop singer/songwriter/pianist phenomenon Peter Cincotti. Benson, Jarreau and Burk shared ideas of what should go on “Givin' It Up,” whose 13 songs include well-chosen covers representing recent decades of popular music ranging from Billie Holiday’s "God Bless the Child" (1940s), Sam Cooke’s “Bring It on Home" (1960s), Seals & Croft’s “Summer Breeze” (1970s), and Daryl Hall’s “Everytime You Go Away” (1980s). It was purely studio serendipity that landed McCartney, who was working in the studio next door, for “Bring It On Home.” “Givin’ It Up” also features sizzlin’ jazz jams courtesy of Benson, Jarreau & company on two Miles Davis staples (“Tutu” and “Four”). While known primarily for his vocals, Jarreau also co-wrote six of the album's compositions, including “Don’t Start No Schtuff,” which came out of Jarreau not realizing that Benson ordered a coffee before he did when the two first sat down at Concord to discuss their collaboration. “When the lady came back with my cup first, Al thought it was his. He said, ‘Hey George, don’t start no stuff!’”and I said, “That should be the name of a tune on the record!” So Al wrote it. About Monster Cable Monster Cable Products, Inc. is the world’s leading manufacturer of high-performance cables for professional, home, and car use as well as computers and computer games. Monster Cable is an indispensable component for recording studios, sound professionals, musicians, custom-installers, music lovers, audiophiles, and home theatre enthusiasts. Monster’s audio cables have high-performance sound characteristics that increase the clarity, dynamics and power of the audio signals that travel through them.

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