Simple Minds -Sparkle In The Rain: 5 disc deluxe edition (March 2015)

Others have reported similar:

http://www.simpleminds.org.uk/newgolddreamreviews.html

"This in turn sets the mood perfectly for what used to be the opening track on Side B of the vinyl version of the album, the title track New Gold Dream (81, 82, 83, 84). A pulsing, rumbling track, this sounds quite different in 5.1 and there is perhaps too much going on for the mix to handle. Underlying layers of keyboards and occasional flourishes are practically swamped by the thumping, muffled bass, which even drowns out the punch of the drum and percussion tracks, while Burchill's guitar echoes somewhere off in the distance. This sounds a complete mess, but... it pulls together somewhere around the "81, 82, 83, 84" mid-section and Kerr's vocals sound better and clearer here than in any of the other tracks on the disc.

What the poor mix can't disguise though is just how good this song still is - six minutes of sheer brilliance."

 

Buy them all.

 

Is said whining justified though? In some ways, he didn't just remix......he sort of re-produced the album.......he de-Lillywhite-ed the freakin' record! No one....I mean no one takes the Lillywhite out of my Lillywhite produced albums. I've stated that overall I like the box set, screw ups and all......at least they made it right and in the end it is what it is. He interprets the album a certain way and unfortunately for me he took the balls out of the album. It's very much an acoustic album that relied on crashing drums..........so you don't take the crash out of it.

 

An acoustic album? Hardly...
Also a new mix is always a different interpretation of a record. And you can always go back to the original.

 

I would argue there is still too much Lillywhite on there....

 

I had the vinyl when it was first released, and was mighty disappointed after the brilliance of New Gold Dream. Anyway, I picked up the two disc version with little enthusiasm (and wishing it were New Gold Dream), and much to my surprise it wasn't off my cd player for a good few weeks. I still think their take on Street Hassle is terrible, but I'm more than happy with the rest; East Of Easter is one of my favourite tracks by them. A similar release for New Gold Dream please!

 

No, I don't think the whining was justified.

The amount of Steve Lillywhite produced material in my collection is pretty crazy. The guy worked with so many of my favorite artists and I love his work. But IMO, something wasn't quite right with his production on Sparkle in the Rain. I wasn't the only one who mentioned it in the Simple Minds Album by Album thread you started but I said something to the effect that I thought some day Andy Partridge would come out and say "you've been listening to the wrong album all these years". I thought maybe it was just my original A&M CD or the Heyworth remaster that sounded off. So, I tracked down a still sealed US LP on A&M and the Canadian clear vinyl original so I could compare them with my CDs. It wasn't the CDs though, it's just the way the album was originally created. It's still my second favorite album by the band and I know it very well so I'd be very bummed if someone went and screwed it up. I think Wilson did a fantastic job with what he had to work with. To me the album is far superior in it's 5.1 channel form. It no longer sounds like a congested, smeary mess to me. The additional channels allowed the elements to breathe. BTW, I feel the same way about the 12" versions of the single tracks. The additional track length allowed him to spread out the elements more and things aren't as congested sounding to me. I think they are far superior to the album versions. Plus, he cranked the drums to eleven on the 12" versions!

Are there things I would change? Of course! There are things I'd change on virtually every remix I've heard so that's nothing new to me. I understand the point of view of not mucking with perfection even if I don't agree with it. But it is a remix! If you love the original mix then why would you bother with anything else in the first place?

No crashing drums? I suggest you listen to East at Easter again and if you don't hear much more intense crashing drums compared to the original mix, then you might need to adjust your surround system. To me the drums are stunning on that track especially.

I don't think the whining was justified in regards to Universal's mistakes either. If they released it and never bothered to address the problems (hello EMI), then yes, whining would be justified. However, some people were ready to march in the streets because they had to wait a few extra weeks to get corrected discs and artwork for a thirty year old album. I'm glad they don't have greater things to worry about in life. The fact that Universal produced a super deluxe edition of any Simple Minds album is still mind boggling to me. I think they did an excellent job with the box considering what the band allowed them to release. Yes, I was disappointed with the mistakes and hopefully, they'll have better quality control in the future. But I think they were very fair and efficient with the way they sent out corrected discs and booklets. They had to re-author a DVD-Audio disc to make things right. I'm sure that's not the easiest, cheapest, or quickest thing to have done these days. Despite this, some were whining that it took soooooo long. OMG, the pain of it all!

Despite all our differences though, I think it's cool that we're all so passionate about this album. I absolutely acknowledge Lillywhite's importance in the creation of this album even if I wasn't 100% happy with the sound of it.

 

If the Clear Canadian Vinyl sounds like a congested, smeary mess to you, then you might need to adjust your system or you have a bad copy.

I have that plastic and it sounds superb. Wouldn't change a thing! The great thing about the original production is that its "FLAT", no a smiley hot production.

 

Exactly, no balls, no art, just Fart.
It seems as if he knows nothing about drums, they just sound so wrong on the remix.

So glad Lillywhite produced this, remember he was to work on Grace Under Pressure for Rush, and chose to do this instead. I wonder how this all would have panned out if he did, maybe there an alternative universe I can visit to find out!

I could just imagine GUP by Lillywhite and SITR done by Rupert Hine.

 

Cool, I'm glad you're happy with it. It certainly looks sharp and I got it for cheap so I'm not complaining.

 

Aren't there more deluxe editions planned? Like New Gold Dream and Once Upon a Time? Surely someone with insider knowledge here knows if those are still happening?

 

Coincidentally, Universal Official press release is tomorrow. Expect OUAT deluxe to be announced for 20 November, with NGD to follow...

 

!!!! Wow, thanks for that!

 

I'm holding you to this!!

I certainly hope these releases involve Simon Cornwell, as he alluded to in his Dream Giver posting

http://www.simpleminds.org/sm/news/n2015/index.htm

"Again, Dream Giver has gone quiet, and again the answer is the same... I'm currently working on some new Universal releases. These will be revealed very soon."

Exciting times indeed.

 

I understand The Vinyl Collection 1979 - 1985 (a 7 disc set from LIAD to SITR) will be released 30 October.

Links have been up on Amazon UK for sometime for this and the OUAT vinyl, with no artwork or details as of yet.

Things should become clearer tomorrow!

 

I'm melting, and so will my wallet.

Someone needs to start a new thread on this!!


wait there is one, where have I been?

http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/simple-minds-vinyl-collection-coming-14-august-2015.444560/

 

I finally got this - the blu-ray - and have spun the first half of the album in 5.1. I have yet to listen to the stereo remix. I like what I'm hearing. It opens up nicely. If anything, Wilson's surround mix may open things up just a tad too much. It almost has the effect of diffusing the impact a bit, rather than having it hang together as an enveloping surround mix. But I say "almost"...it still largely sounds quite good to my ears.

At this early stage I'd have to say I like his 3 Yes 5.1 mixes better, followed by Tears For Fears' SFTBC, then this one - but all of the others I've absorbed a handful of times each. Wilson is very good at this, but not quite the master that Elliot Scheiner became.

 

Did you get the corrected Blu-Ray?

 

Sure did; decided not to risk it elsewhere and ordered from Burning Shed.

 

Wilson remixed Goodbye Yellow Brick Road??

 

No, Universal managed to do a pretty underwhelming boxed set of that one bypassing Wilson completely. I just mentioned all those in the same breath because they all seem to be designed along the same pattern: remastered album, disc of bonus tracks that no one wants, DVD that they could barely sell outside the boxed set, surround mix for the "audiophile" market, nothing of a booklet, all in an oversized box. Universal seem to do "imitation" super deluxe sets.

 

Cool. I'm more interested in any outtakes than 5.1 mixes though, but the barrel is probably scrapped in the case of New Gold Dream. Not sure about Once Upon A Time; if there are any pre-album demos featuring Derek Forbes that would be priceless. "Ghostdancing" evolved out of a live arrangement of "I Travel" the band played at the Barrowlands gigs in early '85 (note that the bridge of "Ghostdancing" is actually the chorus from "I Travel"!); hope they include that.

 

Passing along a heads-up that Universal UK's website GreatOfferStore.com has this set on sale for $19!! I've never ordered from them before and I don't know what they charge for shipping to the US but at that price it seems worth it to suck up some of the hassles and replacement disc dramas.
Sparkle In The Rain: Super Deluxe Edition Box Set »

 

Thanks. I'm still waiting to hear if people prefer the DVD stereo mix or remaster to the original cd or previous remaster.

 

Has anyone actually ordered and received a copy recently? I posted about this previously, and never got any responses: if you add it to your cart, it will let you do so, but when you go to view the cart/check out, the notation "sorry sold out" appears below the description of the set.