Joni Mitchell - Hejira - Rhino reissue is better than the original Asylum vinyl?

Better records will probably say otherwise...their blind philosophy that all new 180g vinyl is rubbish

I agree, this is my favourite out of the Talking Heads Rhino reissues...

 

Why would you think that?

 

Playing the Chris Bellman now straight after playing my original, WOW sounds stunning. Hearing things I haven't heard before. Toasts my German Original. Wonderful. Thanks to @antonkk for bringing this to my (our) attention. Stunning!

 

So are the EU Rhino issues using the Bellman mastering as well?

 

Yes - same mastering. Different pressing plant. EU Rhino normally pressed by Optimal.

 

I have loads of Rhino reissues and many of them are Chris Bellman remasters. Almost all of them are awesome.

For the price, Rhino put a lot of 'audiophile' label reissues to shame.

 

Yes, CB etched in the dead wax. Flawless pressing too, Dead silent, flat.

 

Almost all? Which are the bad ones to watch out for?

 

Oy! How do the US Rhino pressings stack up against their EU counterparts? Please tell me that the US pressings are fine so I don't have to go through the rigmarole of hunting down foreign copies.

 

The EU version of Blue is not the Gray/Hoffman cut. And Court/Spark is not the Bellman cut. So watch out, what you are buying - only way is to import these from the US.

 

What happened to the other Joni Mitchell re-issues? I remember reading that most of the master tapes are not available anymore - didnt the latest compilation have the vinyl rips from her personal collection?

 

Well, thanks to this tread I intend to scarf up a bunch of Bellman Rhino Mitchell's.

 

Yes on this occasion. Be careful of the other EU Rhino reissues as they are cut in house at Optimal.

 

Some of the others you may need US pressings....

 

US pressings are what I will be setting my scarf ray for.

 

Thanks all - I was specifically referring to Hejira here, sorry not to have been clear.

 

Damn auto-correct! The parenthesis was supposed to read "(whether they GET them or not)." There are still crappy, low quality control and poorly mastered records nowadays.

 

In any event, here are a couple of contrasting examples:

The original Robert Ludwig US Atlantic Led Zeppelin pressings might be the best out there. Some prefer the original UK red/plum. The Classic Records reissues are pretty stunning. All of those are really worthy of high praise.

The best sounding stereo version of Miles Davis' Kind of Blue is largely considered to be the 1990's Classic Records 45rpm release, followed by the Classic 33. The original 1959 Columbia 6-eye mono of that same album is probably best.

 

I know, was just helping you out in case you were interested in any of the others....

 

Yes. This one is amazing and beats any original I've ever heard.

 

+1 on the Rhino Hejira, amazing, so glad I picked it up.

 

I always thought the general consensus for best KOB was an original 6-eye Stereo. I was lucky to score one for 50 cents at a thrift many years ago and it does sound great even though my copy is VG/VG+ with a bit of surface noise. I only have a Legacy mono to compare with and it's good, not quite as, but quieter.

As for Hejira...I've had many Asylum copies and they were all noisy and most not that great. I need to check out the Rhino too.

 

No on the first. Unlike the 6-eye mono, the stereo is an extra step from the original 3-track session tapes. The stereo mixdown is good, and that stereo master is what most copies were made from. The mid '90s reissue on CD, SACD, as well as the Classic Records vinyl went back to the 3-track session tapes and created the best of the reissues.

 

Why would they do that if they could just rip the CD's? Where did you read this?

So I have Blue from SH.

What albums are remastered by Bellman aside from Heijra?

 

Joni Mitchell - Ladies Of The Canyon

Joni Mitchell - Court And Spark

Joni Mitchell - The Hissing Of Summer Lawns