Kinks: What is the best way to hear "Something Else" on cd?

Steve, if that happens it'll be a bombshell!!! The Kinks SOOOO deserve better sounding examples of their high art.

Is there any chance of rare goodies?

 

Since when does Ray approve everything? (that's a question, not a challenge, as the Kinks have always been a...y'know...everyone who can put them out *will*).

I assume this is a good thing conceptually, as the catalog might finally mellow out.

 

I could be wrong but my guess is that Steve is not talking about 60s era albums.

Tell me I'm wrong please Steve!

 

WOW!

Now I can buy my 20th versions of that material!!

So, is this related to the recent shelving of the proposed 2CD edition of Village Green?

 

This is the best news I've heard in months! Lets hope that everything works out so Steve can work his magic on those sacred tapes!

 

I doubt anything short of a remix would save some of those albums, actually. Some of them seem transferred fairly well on some discs, and the overall fidelity is still pap.

 

YES!!!!!!

 

Tim, this was it:

http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=13373&highlight=chop+out

My summary: The Earmark LP has a copyright on the back of "c 1998 Castle Communications", the year of the Castle CD issue; sounds the same to me. Is mono. Was mastered by Simon Heyworth at Chop 'Em Out, as with the CDs.

 

I just listened to the Sanctuary cd of Something Else and have come to the conclusion that their entire run of Kinks discs are the worst-sounding cd's in my entire collection, bar none. Yeccchh!!!

It may be that the original masters are just bad to begin with, but any improvement would be a real godsend for all Kinks fans. With Steve on board, I'm sure we would hear that improvement.

 

Same here. I would have sold my 1998 copy of Something Else years ago but I'm holding on to it in case I ever need to educate visitors regarding the horrors of noise reduction.

 

Are you talking about the '98 Castle/Essential CDs, or the Sanctuary discs?

 

I'd definitely be up for buying some Kinks SACDs on Audio Fidelity.

Ryan

 

This would be truly incredible, Steve! In fact, this would heal the pain that I've been feeling ever since Mobile Fidelity cancelled their Big Star SACD.

 

Steve -- Face to Face, Something Else, Village Green Preservation Society, Arthur and Lola are all classics -- please don't forget about the last three (which are post-1967). I can't imagine that Sanctuary would have much interest in putting these out on SACD, and even though I don't have a SACD player right now, I'd gladly cough up a non-vital organ or two just to have a decent sounding CD layer for these titles.

 

Ditto. If Audio Fidelity can pull this off (knock on wood) I'd finally upgrade to an SACD player...

 

Doesn't Reprise/TW still hold rights to some of these titles (ie, the ones still in print in the USA on Reprise)? That said, I'll buy the living crap out of any Kinks on AF.

 

I'm already emptying the bricks out of my shorts over the possibility of this happening.

 

Well, Reprise certain acts as if these titles don't exist -- they've done absolutely nothing with them since the discs were originally release well over a decade ago. No remasterings. No deluxe reissues with bonus tracks. The retailers in my area don't even bother to stick the Sanctuary titles in the import section anymore.

 

That's pretty standard for WB/Reprise...remember, they were the last of the WEA labels to let Rhino do anything with their catalog titles.

 

Aren't these just cut from Castle's digital 1998 re-masters?

The copyright info seems to suggest so. I did buy the Earmark Village Green, and side from it being in mono (for the first time on vinyl since 1968) it still sounds mediocre to me. Very harsh. Very digital. These Earmarks are just identical to the Castle 1999 LP re-issues, which were also cut from the digitally remastered tapes.