Genesis on Classic Records-Good Choice?

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Thommo577, Jan 2, 2018.

  1. Thommo577

    Thommo577 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Hi All and Happy New Year!
    I am I'll and not at work Tonite - Also not anxious to go out in single digits weather!
    I was following a forum here from 2014 regarding Genesis' wonderful 'Foxtrot' LP. I had the original U.S. copy before I sold my vinyl collection ( too many geographical moves, lack of climate controlled storage etc).
    So, in my quest to revive my vinyl collection I have been replacing some of my faves. Just now I put in a winning bid of $13.50 for an 'excellent ( VG++) copy of Foxtrot on EBay. I hope it lives up to my expectations, as I am very fussy about sound quality (um, isn't everyone on this site?!), and have returned and been refunded several times in the last 18 months or so.
    I am wondering if anyone can add their opinion regarding this pressing and also recommend pressings for 'Nursery Cryme' and 'Selling England By the Pound', as I want to replace those two as well. Thanks!
     
  2. Thommo577

    Thommo577 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Anyone,? Any Early Genesis fans here that can contribute an opinion? It would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
     
  3. Moonchild

    Moonchild Forum Resident

    Location:
    Coruña. Spain
    It was a good choice when they first came out: quiet vinyl, thick and flat pressings, good mastering, aso... Today they'll cost you an arm and a leg (probably
    more than minty originals!) I still prefer the latter but it's sooo hard to get really proper-sounding ones... I wouldn't even bother with VG+s or EX (+); not
    even Mint minus's ones are truly so. It can become frustrating (been there, done that). Early Genesis is a tough nut to crack on vinyl.
    If money is not an issue, I would try to seek out the Pink Scrolls for Trespass and NC. (These were made on HQ vinyl, so an EX (+) will do). Otherwise, fetch the Classics.
    Foxtrot is hard to come by in Mint (-) condition. However, I've got a German 1986 Virgin reissue that sounds absolutely fine (and it's cheap!).
    The Porky SEBTP is mandatory. Be patient, this one is not that difficult. They spring up very often on the bay. Be patient and you'll get a minty one for 50-75 bucks.
    The German first pressing of the Lamb is superb (forum consensus!). This one is plain sailing: I bought a mint one for around 25 bucks.
    If you want to save yourself the trouble and effort (ordeal, really!) be prepared to fork out around 100 bucks for each of the Classics. They're very
    good sounding too. Pick your poison!
     
    hi_watt, Mr. Explorer and izgoblin like this.
  4. Thommo577

    Thommo577 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Thanks for the info. Kinda mind boggling prices considering how much I paid for the originals. The sound wasn't so great, lousy mastering hiss mainly. The mixes were OK, but I would have used a bit less echo/ reverb in spots.
    Anyway, I took a risk and won a copy of Foxtrot on the Classic label on the bay. It was $14.50. it could be a bust, as it wasn't showing a visual grade, but the pic of one side looked very clean. I just asked the seller if he could play grade for me before he ships it. I will post my results if the sale is finalized. It just depends how cool the seller is...more to come....
     
    Mr. Explorer likes this.
  5. I have all the Genesis CR's and they sound amazing
     
    ultron9 and seed_drill like this.
  6. izgoblin

    izgoblin Forum Resident

    Agreed on early Genesis being a tough nut to crack on vinyl.

    Odd to read that early pink scrolls were on HQ vinyl as I spoke with a UK record dealer who distinctly remembers pink Charismas and pink Islands from that era being so noisy that they got returns when bought new all the time. His comments were that it was almost impossible to get clean sounding ones right off the presses.

    As for SEBTP, I'm in love with the Classic Records version and have never heard that album sound better. Maybe my Porky just wasn't clean enough or something, but for me, the Classic one smokes the one I have. So much detail in the drums and a beautifully balanced EQ.
     
    Mr. Explorer likes this.
  7. Bill Cormier

    Bill Cormier Forum Resident

    Location:
    Malta, New York
    In short, yes, the Classic Records versions are way worthy, get those and be done with it !

    It would be a never ending project trying to find clean original UK pressings.

    Actually, the original US Charisma (Buddha) pressings (mastered by Bell sound for Nursery Cryme and Foxtrot, Atlantic/George Piros for Selling England) sound pretty good if you want to go that way (less expensive for sure). The first press Trespass on ABC/Probe sounds wonderful but is tough to find. The best sounding "Genesis Live" is the French black label Charisma pressings, blows every other version I have heard out of the water. Sounds almost like they had better tape sources. You can find this one for under $20.00 more than likely.
     
    hi_watt, Mr. Explorer and Thommo577 like this.
  8. Moonchild

    Moonchild Forum Resident

    Location:
    Coruña. Spain
    My NC is a Pink Scroll. Lots of hairlines and superficial marks. Plays Near Mint. I'm sorry but the Classic can't hold a candle to it. I'd much rather pay 100-150 for a PC than forking out 100 for a Classic.
    Hey, but that's me! YMMV, of course
     
    kevin5brown, Bigbudukks and G E like this.
  9. Bill Cormier

    Bill Cormier Forum Resident

    Location:
    Malta, New York
    Yup, nice if you can find them but not cheap indeed ! :)
     
  10. Moonchild

    Moonchild Forum Resident

    Location:
    Coruña. Spain
    Yes, the Classic Records are the easy way out. Granted. Good sounding records, quiet pressings, aso... It's good to have choices, though.
     
  11. Moonchild

    Moonchild Forum Resident

    Location:
    Coruña. Spain
    Good luck with it. Sometimes, opportunity knocks.... I paid 20 dollars for my NC pink scroll. Seller didn't advertise it properly
     
  12. Thommo577

    Thommo577 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Looking at a Rhino remaster 2008 $(25)and a German repress 1978 ($16) both NM. Any opinions n those 2?
     
  13. NorthNY Mark

    NorthNY Mark Forum Resident

    Location:
    Canton, NY, USA
    With Nursery Cryme, the first German Philips is a great and affordable alternative. Earlier I tried a US first pressing, which had a beautifully textured gatefold, but was a bit bright, and a UK small hatter that was a bit dark and lifeless. The German pressing was just perfectly balanced in terms of tonality. I also had good luck with early German pressings of Lamb and Trick of the Tail.
     
    LeBon Bush and Bigbudukks like this.
  14. Thommo577

    Thommo577 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Thank you, Mark -I will keep that in mind, my primary question is regarding Foxtrot.
     
  15. Thommo577

    Thommo577 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Looking at a Rhino remaster 2008 $(25)and a German repress 1978 ($16) both NM. Any opinions n those 2?
     
  16. NorthNY Mark

    NorthNY Mark Forum Resident

    Location:
    Canton, NY, USA
    The Rhino remaster is also (and crucially) a remix. You might want to do a search on the remixes, as they are very controversial. I'm in the camp that finds them interesting, but ultimately lacking the atmosphere of the originals. While the vinyl mastering is not terrible, it still sounds more sterile to me than any version of the original mix I've heard.

    I don't know anything about the German repress. My own vinyl copy of Foxtrot is a UK original (which might be overly warm on some systems).
     
  17. Thommo577

    Thommo577 Forum Resident Thread Starter

     
  18. fortherecord

    fortherecord Senior Member

    Location:
    Rochester, NY
    The Classic pressing of Nusrey Chryme is the best I’ve ever heard, even compared to the original Pink Scroll copy.
     
    izgoblin likes this.
  19. Thommo577

    Thommo577 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Can't be too warm for me, wish I could afford a classic old tube amp. I am looking at an original UK pressing., VG+ (both) €27 plus shipping ( no quote on that yet) from UK.
    Thanks for your input!
     
  20. toddrhodes

    toddrhodes Forum Resident

    Location:
    South Bend, IN
    I have a US Porky Lamb and I like it a lot. I'm sure a UK would be a touch better, but I'm happy with it.
    I have an EMI100 Selling England and it's good, but I don't think it's exceptional. It is far and away better than the 2008 reissue I have also, though.
    I have an early UK and a Japan Trick - I've heard the Mofi of this one is good. I prefer my Japanese pressing as it's a little cleaner, but the UK sounds great beyond the condition mine is in.

    I don't yet have NC.
     
  21. Thommo577

    Thommo577 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    What is a 'pink scroll'? Is it an original UK pressing? I would need to know what pressing it is to search on Discogs,EBay, etc. Thank You.
     
  22. NorthNY Mark

    NorthNY Mark Forum Resident

    Location:
    Canton, NY, USA
    Pink Scrolls (referencing the design on the label) are the earliest UK Charisma pressings for Trespass and Nursery Cryme. They usually seem to be considered the best sounding for those titles, and tend to be very expensive. I've heard that German Philips pressings sound similar, and I have one of those for NC--as I mentioned before, it sounds great. What can be confusing is that in the US, I believe the pink scroll design was used for the second pressings of NC rather than the first. In any event, if you are mainly interested in Foxtrot. pink scrolls are not relevant at all, as Charisma was using what's called the Large Hatter designs by that point. By the mid-'70s, the label switches to Small Hatters, and by the late '70s, it switches to the blue labels. Knowing this can help distinguish among first and later pressings of UK Charisma LPs, depending on when the album in question was originally released. Generally, the Blue labels are the least expensive, but are not highly regarded in terms of their sound (at least for repressings of older albums).
     
    Thommo577 likes this.
  23. Thommo577

    Thommo577 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Thanks, Mark. I didn't know about them because I never had purchased them before.My copy of NC was a Gatefold on Charisma. My faves are Foxtrot and SEBTP. I purchased a copy of FT on Classic Charisma on Ebay- the guy had 100% + feedback...but the LP wasn't graded, he just said it was in 'great shape'. Bad long scratches on side one, dust city. Sigh...paid $14.50, asked for a refund, he offered 1/2 refund, maybe I should return 1/2 an album! More fool me.
     
  24. Thommo577

    Thommo577 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Hey all, found a NM copy of Foxtrot on Charisma, Dutch 1972 pressing for a reasonable price, about $21 including shipping. Should I pull the trigger?!
     
    Bigbudukks likes this.
  25. NorthNY Mark

    NorthNY Mark Forum Resident

    Location:
    Canton, NY, USA
    I should also mention to be careful of deals that may sound too good to be true. UK sellers on Ebay do not have a great reputation for accuracy in grading--something labeled VG+ might turn out to be a lot noisier than that grade would normally suggest on this forum's marketplace. I would look very carefully at any seller's feedback before buying (though it seems that you did, in this case). Japanese sellers, on the other hand, are usually very reliable in grading (and sellers on this forum are pretty good as well)

    For what it's worth, the Classic reissues tend to get VERY high prices, often comparable to original pressings, so the price he was offering was what I would consider in the "too good to be true" category. Sorry you got burned.
     

Share This Page

molar-endocrine