Frank Zappa - Entire Catalogue Remastered and Reissued (part4)

I have the new remaster of OSFA and i think that it is an improvement. The removal of the digital reverb sheen is a noticeable improvement to my ears...

 

That's true compared to the standard Ryko CD, but there isn't any digital reverb sheen on the Au20. The rule of thumb is that if you have the Au20, you don't need to upgrade. If you have the standard CD, get the new one.

 

Is the corrected TGW out ?

 

I believe it is. Mine is OK, never had a problem with ANY of my players.

I waited for months until amazon started selling it again. Before that, amazon would not sell the title for months, saying that customers had reported as defective. After it was back in stock I got my copy.

 

The Mike Douglas Show extra on the new DVD is pretty interesting. Frank comes out with his guitar and plays "Black Napkins" with Douglas' house band. I'm surprised I'd never seen it before.

 

Just noticed that the From Straight to Bizarre documentary is currently streaming free for Amazon Prime members. I've been wanting to see this one for a while.

 

Cool. Thanks for the heads up.

 

Yes, it's nice. Not too many videos of FZ playing in this calm style in the 70's (as opposed to the rock star frenzy of most of the solos seen in the Baby Snakes film).

 

Don't forget though, that there are versions of the regular '95 remaster out there that use the AU20 mastering. I found one used for $5 a few years ago. I was able to identify it by certain time lengths that someone on this forum pointed out. I know there's a thread here dedicated to it. Same thing with Apostrophe.

 

I did some digging and I found the thread-
http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threa...one-size-fits-all-with-au20-mastering.227360/

 

Just watched it, and it's really interesting. I always get a kick out of Ben Watson. I wonder if they'll ever work out the legal red tape to get some of those albums re-released.

 

Well, that happened fast. When the rollout of the 2012 remasters first started, I promised myself that I would only grab a couple of them just to get a sample. After all, how many times am I going to buy these same albums anyway? I allowed myself upgrades of Hot Rats and Burnt Weeny Sandwich and called it a day.

So a couple of weeks ago, I randomly got an itch to check out a few others. Next thing I know, I've got nine more:

Absolutely Free
Mothermania
Weasels Ripped My Flesh
Chunga's Revenge
Waka/Jawaka
The Grand Wazoo
Sheik Yerbouti
Joe's Garage
Shut Up 'n Play Yer Guitar

Urgh. Since I've gone this far, I'm probably going to go ahead and upgrade all the remaining CDs that were actually remastered, barring my Au20s and a couple of albums that just aren't my favorites. You win again, Zappa Family Trust.

 

Welcome to the club. Congrats !!!

 

Is there a concise list in the thread about which remasters are definitely worth double/triple dipping on? Thanks in advance!

 

This is a pretty good guide: http://www.lukpac.org/~handmade/patio/vinylvscds/2012hotpoop.html

 

Thanks Danner!

 

I've gone over my old Burnt Weenie, Chunga's and Weasles. The Weasles and Chungas are the 1970/1990 Barking Pumpkin versions with a black face, and the Burnt Weenie is 1970/1991. It's got a White Face.

I can't hear 'bad' in them. No obvious right channel distortion and such. The only one that has the 'FZ 25" on the booklet is the Burnt Weenie one.

Can you tell me exactly what to listen for and where, time wise, on the discs themselves ?

Thanks.

*oh...I pulled your quote up from the first thread, thousands of posts back.

 

Offhand I don't know if those three have the right channel problem. They do have significant added reverb compared to the originals. I believe dlokazip mentioned Burnt Weeny (which wasn't part of the "bad batch") doesn't sound bad, just different from the original, and I tend to agree.

The 1990 Weasels has boomy bass and some other sound issues, but is worth having for the elongated "Didja Get Any Onya" (and a short added bit in "Gas Mask").

 

All the issues with all of the various CD releases can be found here: http://lukpac.org/~handmade/patio/vinylvscds/index.html

 

Thanks.

I have the new remasters of each of these titles I was wondering about...but will also keep my old cd's. I don't mind the 'badness' of the batches..reverb etc...

 

Zoot Allures is my favorite of the 2012 remasters. What's yours?

 

I am very happy with all the analog tape remasters but Over-Nite Sensation rises to the top. I hope they hit the master tapes on the other ones soon.

 

That's a good one too. Bob Ludwig for president!

 

I really love what they did with Waka/Jawaka and The Grand Wazoo. The Rykos weren't terrible, but the new ones sound so much better without the added reverb.

 

So, is Gail's deal with Ume done?
I'm wondering if "Dance Me This" will be released independently, or through Ume.