Best Vinyl Bach - Solo Cello Suites recording?

+1 on the Speakers Corner reissue of Starker's set. If recording quality is your goal, this is a must have.

^^^ Yep. Considering that original mono sets of Starker hit $500 and the
stereo ones fetch around $1500, the Speakers Corner set is practically a gift,
especially considering its exceptional quality in all aspects.

There's a reason for that, in case you're wondering what the go-to LP set of
the Bach Suites is. The Starker-on-Mercury was legendary from its 1965
debut. And the more you play it, the more you understand why--50 years
later--it still is.

I use a Yo Yo LP as a phono cartridge tester, and when I simply want to hear that greasy killer tone of his as a Large Reference. Kills me, and I usually wind up playing guitar too loud through a small tube amp immediately after.

What Yo Yo LP are you referring to? Most of his stuff, especially the earlier
stuff, sounds a bit thin and buzzy to me, esp compared to Harrell. Maybe this
one is closer-miked.

If you want to hear a monster cello tone, listen to some Lynn Harrell.

Johnnyb, totally agree on Harrell. He is a consummate musician, and I find the sound of his cello much to my liking. I've heard Starker, Ma, Mork, Alban Gerhardt, Bailey, and so many others live. I've heard Ma live multiple times. Harrell beats them all. Best Dvorak concerto I have ever heard, and not by a slim margin. Funny, I have so few Harrel recordings. That is a deficiency I really should rectify.

I never had the pleasure of hearing Rostropovich.