On the black triangle, the spoken intro to "Still Life" is made an extra track called "Phatoor". So, it's nothing additional, but you could skip the intro and listen directly to "Still Life".
I listen to the MFiT versions of the albums and like them so I will be getting the new CDs. Hopefully the live albums are not far behind as I need most of them.
Can anybody confirm whether the Japanese EMI 1986 CD's are any good or not? Well, those are including the debut all the way to Somewhere in Time anyhoo.
I don't know where you're coming from, but I could easily feel fooled by that question... The black triangles (which ARE the 1986 Japanese EMIs) are the holy grail of classic Iron Maiden CD pressings, even if they feature the same mastering as the European EMIs or as the US Capitols - and this is the usual consensus in the SHF for years! There are quite a few threads regarding Iron Maiden on CD, and every time one pops up, the answer's always the same: Get any of the originals, and get Japanese EMI if you care for better pressing quality and are willing to pay the price. Still, the best way to go is vinyl. I'd say go and get some original UK pressings, but some seem to prefer the 2015 remastered vinyl.
How the hell do Maiden always manage to give us less with each successive remaster program? 1995 - Two-disc sets with complete B-sides and non-album singles. 1998 - No B-sides, just a few non-album singles (and even then not all of them) 2019 - Literally nothing extra at all, actually deleting some tracks that have been on the CDs for years Bonus tracks like B-sides and non-album singles are pretty much par for the course with modern reissue series, and yet these are going backwards and giving us even less than what we got with the last round, which in turn were worse than the ones before. The only way this makes any logical sense is if they're gonna do a box set at the end of it with all the missing stuff that should be on these reissues, but even that would seem like a stupid way to do it. Hard pass for me.
I own the original 80s EMI CDs and did my own remasters as they sound a little bit weak, compared to the original vinyl counterparts. For all the non-album-stuff, I compiled a 2 CD-R set, including everything not available on the original LPs (B-Sides) from the 1995 double CDs I borrowed from a friend. Would be cool to see that stuff released in a nice CD box: all original albums on separate discs, a B-Sides double disc and an "Early Rarities" bonus CD with a proper transfer of the "Soundhouse Tapes" + early demos and rare live recordings from the 70s...
I think a rarity album on triple vinyl and cd might come out when these are done, to get some of those great tracks like total eclipse back out to a wider vinyl audience
Oh yes, that would be incredible if they could issue each album track as a 12" - 45 RPM using the same source/mastering as the original UK & Germany, I love those singles. It's not going to happen but it's nice to dream.
Rare collectors items, pretty much the same as UK EMI cd’s. Want a different mastering? Buy the ”first ten years” set.
I hope these are well mastered but I am not optimistic. If these are anything like the recent hi-rez versions I'm not spending a cent on them.
I hope you're right, because deleting "Sanctuary", "Twilight Zone" and "Total Eclipse" from their back catalogue when they've been a part of their first three albums for 20 years seems utterly nonsensical.
While it is true that the first remasters are from 1998 and 20 years have passed since, they just don't mirror the original (European) albums and simply are wrong, no matter how long they've been/ are in print. Therefore, the new remasters will mirror the albums as they were meant to be and put it right - at least track-wise. You know, I'm glad that the fashion of added bonus-material in between or after the original tracks has passed, as I always felt these watered down the original impact or left you a bit more fed up than they should. The right way would be (like many artists do these days) 2-CD 'Deluxe'-editions with the album as is on disc one and all the bonus stuff on disc 2, just like they did on the 1995 twofers.
I'm one of those folks who was with Iron Maiden at the beginning, up to that point and including Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son. I saw them twice on that tour including Donnington and in my opinion they sounded burned out on those shows. Really jaded. And its was no surprise it started going down hill after that....especially with Adrian leaving.... So.......never did get round to buying their catalogue on CD and have thought so many times......so I am going to use this opportunity to pick them up and TBH I am quite glad they have taken the additional tracks off and gone back to the originals, as that is how I remember them. I do however hope they put out a set at the end that picks up the loose bits and pieces... all remastered, however I won't hold my breath.
I agree. Those albums are incomplete without those tracks. Don't care that they weren't on the original UK releases. They could then leave them off the UK pressings of the new CD's and put them on the US pressings, if Brits are happier without the songs. I'm not.
Total Eclipse is my second favorite Iron Maiden song behind Phantom Of The Opera. Guess I will keep my 1998 cds of the first three.
They're not incomplete. I understand why you feel that way, but I think an album is always best served with the artistic vision intact. The inclusion of "Sanctuary" on the debut and "Twilight Zone" on Killers was a biz decision and never approved by the band, and "Total Eclipse" (no matter how great it is) wasn't included at all up until the 1998 remasters. As I said before, that stuff should be put on a 2nd disc, along with other releases around their respective time. Of course, there are lots of people wanting all the EPs and B-sides, me being one of them, and I too hope these will be released!
I have to agree , no matter how much I love total eclipse it just doesn’t sound right stuck towards the end of “beast” , it was a b side and should be left as such , and the b sides best of was poorer for it being missing. At least maiden haven’t done a Morrissey or Manics and removed tracks completely and substituted poor quality demos or b sides in
