Bad Recordings and Big Regrets

Funny, Aja sounds pretty darn good on my system. Oh maybe the piano and sax is a little thin, but certainly not terrible.
 
Myles B. Astor said:
I haven't heard a good U2 recordings or mastering. :(
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Well, I'd have to agree if using the word "good" in the strict sense, but I was using the word "good" loosely just to be descriptive. U2 albums were not well mastered...any of them and the later you go the worse they get. (Sure, they used to describe themselves as a punk band and so one can't expect T-Bone Burnett like mastering, but it's still no excuse for living with a poor mastering job, no matter what kind of music it is).
Within the U2 albums though as far as vinyl is concerned the Joshua Tree just stuck out like a sore thumb...and it is a sore thumb. I had a rather good pressing of October though (German), don't know why I did not keep it. Anyway, what I could not figure out is why the CDs sound completely different and decipherable. Not that the mastering on those are great, it is not, but they do sound better than their vinyl cousins in this case.
 
Zero said:
Steely Dan - Aja

Adele - 21

Arcade Fire - Neon Bible

Arctic Monkeys - Suck it and See.

Almost anything that's been 'Remastered'
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Myles B. Astor said:
What don't you like about Aja?
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Zero said:
Myles,

Oh boy... You just HAD to go and ask me that question...

Now if I had any sense of self-preservation, I'd respond to your question by carefully doling out my grievances in the softest manner possible. Thing is though, I've never had much of a filter. So here's my take on the coveted recording: The music is alright, but it sounds as though it was recorded via: tin cans and a string. Sure, it's dynamic - but dynamic range does not a good recording make.
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My original pressing of Aja sounds very good. A friend of mine with a similar setup (same speakers) once played a reissue and an original pressing for me back-to-back in his system. The original clearly sounded better.
 
As far as bad recordings/mastering are concerned, my original LP pressing of Bitches Brew is terrible.
 
asindc said:
My original pressing of Aja sounds very good. A friend of mine with a similar setup (same speakers) once played a reissue and an original pressing for me back-to-back in his system. The original clearly sounded better.
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I also have the original pressing of Aja and in fact every Steely Dan album. They are all very, very good!
 
One of the worst that I bought was the Cisco reissue of The Guess Who's American Woman. Recording had the frequency response of a transistor radio.
 
Alright boys, you've convinced me to do a bit more digging around. Will try to find other copies of Aja to see what I get.
 
Jerome W said:
In vinyl two of my worst recordings are Diana Krall : Glad Rag Doll and Eric Bibb : Jericho Road.

Technically the mastering is horrible for both. Voices are completely unopened and muddy. Bass is fat and invasive. Musically they are also somewhat very disappointing.
I did not dare to buy the digital version.

"Réchauffé" as we say in french. Reheated meal. Please share the recordings that you regret you bought, and why.


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Those are interesting comments on the Krall album.

Krall's Glad Rag Doll is a departure from all of her other works. This album has a ragtime feel to it.

If may be so bold, I’d say this album has a ragtime meets blues meets a Tom Waits grunge feel to some of the tracks. Krall's voice is every bit as refined as her other albums on the slower and more sparse tracks. Overall, it is different but not a bad pressing IMO. Musically you could take it or leave it just like any album...

As for Eric Bibb: I have a large number of his albums and enjoy them greatly. However, I don't have Jericho Road, yet.

Dre
 
Dre,

I agree that the record has a ragtime style. It is just without any imagination and originality to me. But that is good if you like it.
For the recording quality, I probably got a bad pressing.


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Jerome W said:
Dre,

I agree that the record has a ragtime style. It is just without any imagination and originality to me. But that is good if you like it.
For the recording quality, I probably got a bad pressing.


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For her recordings, it's a bit outside the norm and ordinary to some degree. I would agree the it's not what I would grab if I were asked to play one of her songs. (I'd grab Live in Paris)


Dre
 
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