Despite owning this album for years I've only recently come to properly appreciate it. I hear it as Bowie's first glam record, and one of his most cohesive. Almost all of the themes and obsessions that show up on the subsequent albums appear here in early form. At the moment I've got the Ryko CD, which is a bit two-dimensional and bass-shy (worth keeping for the great bonus tracks, though!). I've also got an early UK RCA pressing, albeit in pretty poor shape. What's the general opinion of this album on vinyl? Should I find another UK copy in better condition? Or the Japanese RCA? How do they compare with the earlier Mercury pressing, the US cartoon sleeve? (I'd love the UK dress cover but the prices on those are absurd.)
I have the UK RCA Victor with the black and white cover. Sound quality is great, althought it can sound muddy sometimes, but I think that is the way it was mixed in general. But overall I'd say its one of the best sounding vinyls I own. The bass guitar on Width of a Circle is phenomenal! It comes out of the speakers and punches you in the gut!
I have a few different copies and the AU20 Ryko sounds the best to me.Vinyl would sound nice with a expensive turn table.
How can it sound muddy and be one of the best sounding.? And please, Vinyl or Vinyls is not a proper noun. They are called records. thanks
I presume that was the way Visconti mixed it or maybe I just have a worn vinyl oops 'record' (happy now) or maybe a poor matrix number. But considering certain sounds stand out and certain other sounds can sound a bit muddy at the same time in a song, I'm leaning towards the 'mix' theory. But overall it sounds mighty fine
Sample of UK vinyl here: https://skydrive.live.com/?mkt=en-gb#cid=D57E836204FEB061&id=D57E836204FEB061!261 Tim
This album was released before Bowie got massive so I'd imagine the initial UK run was pretty low, as he wasn't selling many records at this time. But they must have made a lot more after Ziggy so is there much difference?
I still have an original on Mercury from when it flopped. The Visconti Bass is so loud in overkill. I never bought another copy to compare and heard it's was bootleg years later. I learned to appreciate this LP years later.
I like my Dynaflex U.S. second pressing (1972, with black cover instead of drawing) but have nothing to compare it to.
The difference in the second UK & US RCA's is mainly in the resolution. The UK has more presence and is a bit smoother + cleaner in presentation, noticeable at the top and bottom frequencies (because the tape used was undoubtedly of lower generation) but its not 'head over heels' better sounding overall.
I have the 3 sided Ryko Vinyl and it sounds wonderful The only other copy I've had, is the US mercury which indeed sounds bad.
The UK RCA, orange label LP w/ the B&W cover (and "1E" as the last letters in the deadwax) is a keeper. Just a tad more clarity than the US RCA pressing.
One thing to be aware of is that the U.S. Mercury version (with cartoon cover) was widely bootlegged in the 70s after Ziggy became a hit. The bootlegs are probably more common than genuine Mercury pressings. I would be careful of those unless you know how to identify the fakes. A genuine US Mercury most likely won't be cheap either. U.S. RCA pressings are cheap and plentiful and are a safer bet.
I have a original Mercury that I bought when it first came out. My question is how can you tell the difference between the original and a fake one?
I will check the Matrixes, but it is the Kick cover. The tan RCA label began use in the mid 1970s, so I don't know if it is a late 70s or early 80s pressing, as The Man Who Sold The World continued to be in print for 18 years. Someone with more knowledge on the Bowie discography may be able to answer...
