Livingston Taylor - Good Friends

Livingston Taylor - Good Friends

AudioNautes Recordings • All-Analogue 180g Vinyl • From the Original Master Tapes

Good Friends is a beautifully crafted collection of original songs, classic standards and imaginative covers, all shaped by Livingston Taylor’s warm, intimate style. The album moves naturally between folk, pop, blues, gospel and jazz-inflected arrangements, demonstrating why Taylor has remained such an enduring favourite among both music lovers and audiophiles.

One of the album’s highlights is Taylor’s interpretation of Bill Withers’ “Grandma’s Hands.” Rather than reproduce the sparse blues-based character of the original recording, Taylor completely reimagines the song as an a cappella, gospel-inspired performance, bringing its spiritual character to the foreground. The lyrics’ portrait of a deeply religious grandmother - clapping in church and playing tambourine - gains an especially moving intimacy in this stripped-back setting.

Taylor also turns to the American songbook with two beloved pieces from The Wizard of Oz: “If I Only Had a Brain” and “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” In his hands, these familiar songs become understated, personal performances rather than nostalgic reproductions.

Recorded the Chesky Way

The sonic character of Good Friends is central to its appeal. In keeping with Chesky Records’ minimalist recording philosophy, the sessions were captured with carefully chosen microphone techniques and without overdubbing or unnecessary electronic manipulation.

The goal was straightforward: preserve the natural relationship between voice, instruments and acoustic space.

That philosophy gives the recording a sense of openness and presence rarely encountered in conventional studio productions. Livingston Taylor’s voice remains firmly at the centre, surrounded by musicians occupying believable positions within the acoustic rather than being assembled artificially through multitracking.

For the AudioNautes vinyl edition, the recording was treated with the same respect.

No noise reduction. No compression. No limiting.

The release was mastered by Scott Hull at Masterdisk, New York, directly from the original master tapes, with AudioNautes describing the project as an attempt to recreate the character of the original analogue pressing for a new generation of listeners.

Livingston Taylor - More Than Five Decades of Music

Taylor began playing guitar at the age of 13, beginning a career that would span performance, songwriting and music education.

Born in Boston and raised in North Carolina, he grew up in the highly musical Taylor family alongside Alex, James, Kate and Hugh Taylor. He made his first record while still a teenager and went on to develop a distinctive catalogue combining introspective songwriting with sophisticated interpretations of established repertoire.

His strength has always been communication. Taylor’s performances are technically polished, yet they rarely sound calculated. Instead, his music retains an inviting, conversational quality - the feeling that the performer is playing directly for the listener.

That quality is especially evident on Good Friends.

Audiophile Edition
Livingston Taylor - Good Friends
AudioNautes Recordings
33⅓ RPM
180g Vinyl
Pure Analogue Recording
Mastered by Scott Hull - Masterdisk, New York
From the Original Master Tapes
No noise reduction
No compression
No limiting

The album’s considerable dynamic range also means that correct cartridge alignment and tracking are important. On a properly set-up analogue system, the reward is a recording with exceptional immediacy, natural vocal presence and convincing musical scale.
Good Friends succeeds because its audiophile credentials never overshadow the music. Beneath the recording quality is an album full of warmth, humour, sensitivity and beautifully judged performances.

A reference-quality analogue recording - but, more importantly, a record worth listening to for the music itself.

The Sound of Tape - Hear What You’ve Been Missing.

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