Mamas & Papas vs Mamas & Papas

Hi all,

What is the relationship between the CDs 16 of their greatest hits (the Steve Hoffman special) and Classic The Mamas & The Papas - the Universal masters Collection?

Both have 16 tracks, both have the same songs (although the order of some songs are swapped). Is the newer Universal CD a case of the record company piggybacking Steve's work?

Listening to the opening track (Dedicated to the one I love) the Universal collection is definately louder, with both the bass and treble goosed up a bit.

Any comments?

 

I have many M&P Cee Dee's...Steve's is still my reference Cee Dee. Love It!

 

Re: Re: Mamas & Papas vs Mamas & Papas

Yeah, I found my copy a couple months back and I love it too. Great stuff! Very interesting headphone listening too, lots of details in there to hear.
Dan C

 

I found a copy of Steve's CD at J&R's new used store in NYC a week ago, put it aside for a forum member and posted this link:

http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=9691

I was there yesterday - it is still there. please someone grab it!!

 

Is it a record club issue or a regular issue and how much is it?

 

If the price is right I'd be very interested as I have a Record Club Cee Dee version and would like an original issue...be careful though, the only clue is CRC on the disc. I did not see that when I picked it up years ago! The only problem is...New York is a far drive from Florida!

 

It appears as though you've answered your own question. Remember, louder is not always better and more times than not, it's not.

 

I will look to see next time I am there. It was selling for $7.99.

The BMG Club has deleted the UPC code on my copy.

 

BTW, are Steve's Mamas&Papas disks remixed, or just remastered -- and did his work also appear on the LP version, or was that before his time?

I'd love it if they were remixed without all the horrible Muzak-y reverb on the high strings (yechh!). (Listened to parts of "Deliver" last night.)

 

I seem to recall Steve saying that he did do some remixing in order to fix up some of the problems.

 

I believe the M & P Multi's are gone long ago...Maybe some EQing.

 

I believe Steve used some *alternate* mixes, but I think the multis were already gone/missing by the time he got to things.

 

Multi's were dumped years ago.

 

Is something wrong sonically with the record club version? I picked it up on ebay for $3.

 

The record club releases 99.99% the same. Just make sure most of the MCA numbers and mastering credits are the same.

 

Thanks, Gary. Mine says "mastered by Steve Hoffman" right on the disc. There are a number of great songs here. I really like "Got A Feelin'" on this disc, track 9. I don't have anything to compare it to, but it sounds good.

 

Could Steve remix it even with multi's? I'm not too familiar with the group, but I thought some things were dubbed straight to the final mix rather than recorded on a separate track.

Anyway, there was a lot of heavy duty EQ. Steve's version actually has some bottom, a little easier on the top, and the midrange is 'toned down' to a more pleasing level.

 

The CD should be easy to find for real cheap. Nobody seems to want it, especially with more complete anthologies out there. Once you hear how Steve tamed the sound of those tapes, you can't listen to anything else.

 

It was rated a "D" in BSN Oldies Book...Comments were, "Hissy; not even Steve Hoffamn could save it". I think he rescued it and forever made the Ultimate -Reference- Mamas & Papas Greatest Hits Cee Dee!

 

OK, I know I'm a little late to the party, but I finally got my copy of this disc and I have to say it sounds incredible. I compared a couple of tracks to the "Leaves Are Brown" compilation and Steve's version just Blows It Away! Absolutely no contest. The new discs are compressed, loud as hell and sound like they were recorded in a tin can. 16 GH sounds open and airy, very natural, with nice bass and great dynamics.

Everyone should own this CD. Hard to believe a CD from 1985 can sound this good. Makes me think maybe it's not the technology so much as the mastering engineer. Hmmm.

 

You got it! Hoffmaneered!

 

I found a copy of this CD over the Christmas holidays and picked it up. Most tracks sound better than on any other Mamas & the Papas comp... and I have both Creeque Alley and All the Leaves Are Brown. The only problem I caught was with "Dream a Little Dream of Me" ... the familiar (to me) voice of the guy saying "Here is ... Mama Cass" over the intro is missing! That is on both the original 45 and stereo LP versions ... Oh well, you can't always bat 1.000!

 

Mike's problems with sound: hiss, and mono. He's more tolerant with the latter if that's all there is, less so if he's expecting stereo and doesn't get it. Hiss he simply can't stand. When I sent him info I'd always warn him about both as applicable, since I knew that's what he wanted to know. Also more tolerant of needledrops than I am...

He's supposed to have the latest OLDIES ON CD out one of these days...the last one, I guess, he's going to do, has other things going on in his life, now that he's deep in the heart of Texas...but we've been waiting for many years for that book, and it's yet to come of anything. Even then, it might be worthwhile to have for members who want mono/stereo/rechanneling info, which is no small consideration. But for many of us, if you see the warning flag *hiss* it probably means it's a CD worth buying. Unfortunately, by the time it's out a lot of the discs in the book will be OOP, including whatever MFSL and DCC's he's reviewed along the way.

ED

 

Ed, one of the delays with the next "Oldies on CD" is that because he's so much busier than he used to be, Mike doesn't want to self-publish it the way he did with the first two editions. Last I heard, he was having trouble finding a publisher. He wants Krause Publications to do it, and he submitted it several years ago, but people higher on the food chain than I decided not to go with it. (If it was my decision, I probably would have taken a chance with it.) It wouldn't surprise me if publishers are looking for modifications, some of which Mike might find unpalatable.

 

Tim,

Everything you said makes sense. It's a shame Krause didn't go with it, because for whatever inherent flaws it has, there's plenty to recommend, not least all the valuable listings of OOP discs that have some material that hasn't been reissued since. Just yesterday I was thumbing through some of my V.A's and found those old Roulette comps. Most people dismissed them as trash, but on one volume, you have mono mixes of "I Only Have Eyes For You"(Flamingos)and "Shimmy, Shimmy Ko-Ko Bop"(Little Anthony), and those seem to appear in stereo everywhere else. I still use the old book to refresh my memory.

Any idea what kind of modifications a publisher would want? Worked well the first time...

ED