Bill Haley/Buddy Holly CD reviews

Was looking through boxes of old stuff when I found a book of CD reviews by David Prakel published in 1987.He certainly liked what heard back in the "supposed" bad old days of CD.

BILL HALEY AND HIS COMETS - FROM THE ORIGINAL MASTER TAPES

Perhaps at first sight unpromising,this disc of remastered hits almost defines what good CD should be.Decca has gone back to first generation mono master tapes for remastering - the results are extraordinary.
Recorded between April 1954 and October 1956(presented here in chronological order) these marvellous songs are blessed with equally marvellous sound quality.Though in mono,the internal balances are vividly distinct while vocals and the tenor sax of Rudy Pompilli have a presence and natural dynamic that belies the age of the recording.
Decca's cleaning has turned up a pristine treble(the triangle in ABC Boogie) and a driving bass extension(Birth Of The Boogie for example).Hiss levels are remarkably low.Though tape noise is faded down between the different takes,the hiss in no way detracts.
This is an ideal release to demonstrate what careful selection and remastering of old material can achieve.From The Original Master Tapes will come as a major surprise to those who think modern recordings are the last word on fidelity.

BUDDY HOLLY - FROM THE ORIGINAL MASTER TAPES

This collection stems from the same Decca digital remastering programme that produced the fabulous Bill Haley CD.
Working with the original mono and stereo master tapes,Decca has stripped away the years from these songs recorded in Norman Petty's New Mexico studio in 1957/58.
The sound is clean and vital but songs like Not Fade Away and Rave On may not deliver quite the expected impact as they were recorded in a rather dead acoustic .
However,the dynamic range of this material should not be underestimated,the natural range in Holly's voice in songs like Well..All Right,the guitar break in Heartbeat and the hand clap backing in Everyday for example.Norman Petty can be heard counting the band and string orchestra into the last true stereo numbers which has a space and transparency that it has taken years to rediscover through digital technology.
Wonderful,authentic rock'n' roll with outstanding sound quality - purchase is obligatory rather than merely recommended.

 

On a recent visit to my local Music For A Song store, these two CDs were available for '2 for $10' ... what a deal ... fortunately, I have owned these since the early '90s ... before I knew or cared who mastered them ... but I am much smarter since I arrived here.

 

Wow, 2 fer $10. Whatta deal.

I've owned these since day one.

They're superb.

Mud-

 

YES, they are both superb! I have the Buddy Holly on vinyl & it's companion: the single Lp "For the First Time Anywhere"-WOW! Does anybody-Steve?-know wether the Haley was issued as a double LP? I've been lookin' for years-I have it on CD & that's tremendous. Steve, thanks for all your great work on lottsa' great music through the years