Moody Blues In search of the lost chord 50th anniversary

I've probably seen most of it on YouTube, but, yeah, it would be nice to have on DVD in best quality.... Hmm....

 

Thanks, it was originally your post that informed me about the book! I'm not one who needs every mix of every song, unless they're longer fades, have different vocals or tracks evident, etc. Played an Amazon snippet of the Best Way to Travel alt vocal, and that definitely sounds different. Think I might pick this up.

 

Has the original mix been remastered specifically for this release? If yes, how does it sound compared to previous CD releases?
Thanks

 

Thank you.
I can't remember if that's the forum favourite version of the original mix. If I remember correctly, it was mastered from a good tape, but some members preferred the older Deram CD.

 

Hello everybody, I am new to this forum although I am on LTOV a lot.
I have to say that I am extremely disappointed with the 5.1 channel version of ISOTLC.
Something very strange seems to be going on, because all the high frequency brilliance seems to have vanished and the whole thing sounds muddy.
Just to test my equipment I played some King Crimson and ELP surrounds and they are all fine.
I also played my USA Deram go-to vinyl of ISOTLC and all the high frequency brilliance returned as I remember it.
Additionally there is no really new instrumental separation indicating that the backing tapes were stereo only and not multi's.
A guitar seems to flip from speaker to speaker but accompanying background music flips along with it.
To me that seems like the Jakko-manipulation which is mysteriously mentioned in the booklet.
It's making me really suspicious. It's as if some instruments were added DURING the final mixing on the fly and that therefore no separate tracks of them exist.
I've now sat down twice, determined to play it all the way through, and determined to find some saving grace.
But I couldn't. Perhaps my brain is spoilt by a 5.1 Lark's Tongues or a 5.1 Tarkus, or even a 5.1 White Album.

I welcome any and all comments and responses, even if you completely disagree. I will listen openly........

Love to all, Bas

 

Gave in and ordered for $37.70 delivered from Amazon

 

Love seeing the Hayward era Moodies tackling Laine era material. They really tear it up on Bye Bye Burd. Wish we could have gotten Go Now.

 

I'm on the fence about getting this one already having the 2006 double set. How good is the Disc 3 album remix? Is is worth getting this package just for this?

 

Yes

 

The video DVD is very nice to have, too. There are a handful of mixes besides the Disc 3 remix that weren't on the 2006 edition. And the 2006 booklet is much more informative than the new one, but the new booklet is nicely illustrated.

My opinion is that if you love the album, you need both sets: 2006 and 2018.

 

forty with tax, being delivered sunday! should have waited to buy the THIS WAS box only 27 bucks now!

 

After having already purchased the SACD recently, I've watched this box set go from $59 to $37.70 (Amazon), so I figured that it wouldn't likely get much cheaper than that. I wholeheartedly agree with texquad. Jakko did a pretty g*ddamn good job on the 5.1 mix. It's obviously not as great sounding as most/all of the SACD releases, but they only had a 4 channel tape to work with. The first Doors album was in the same place...the only 4 Track album in their discography. For all intents and purposes, that album was a 3 track mix (Left/Center/Right) with an ambient depth in the rears. It's not as spectacular sounding as the other (5) Doors SACDs, but still sounds very good. The very next album, they were given 8 tracks to delightfully explore and play with.

After listening to the SACD of "Lost Chord" in "ProLogic" (I listen to most of my music this way), I was slightly satiated, but there was only (1) rear channel (technically), so any improvement over that was worth it, to me. Sure...I wish it had been recorded in Advanced Resolution and that they had something more substantial than a 4 track tape to work with. Steve Wilson was forced to make a similar move with a couple of tracks on "Octopus", when a true multi-track tape wasn't available. Again...not perfect, but Steve managed to make it respectable and satisfactory sounding.

ANYTHING that allows me to distinctly hear vocals and instrumentation that was previously muddy or "lost", due to a bad mix/source and/or being lost in the sauce, when mixed down to (2) tracks. To quote Eldon Tyrell (Joe Turkel) from Bladerunner..."I want more life"..."You were made as well as we could make you."

 

I prefer this 5.1 mix over what Botnick did or didn't do with the 5.1 of The Doors debut. At least Jacko used the rear speakers on Chord where Bruce could at least could have done a Silverline and synthesized something anything. And what makes it even stranger is look what was done with these same tracks on the Best of quad mix. Go Figure!

 

That's strange.
In the book to the boxset, it was mentioned that it was recorded on a Studer 8-track in studio 1 at Decca's studio.

 

Got the box for Christmas and just now listened to the 2018 5.1 remix. Awesome! Fully discreet surrounds and more immersive than any of the previous 5.1 Moody SACDs(yes, I have them all). Those complaining that it’s just the stereo pro-logic ed should check their systems or their ears. If you love 5.1 and the Moody Blues, don’t hesitate, this is a winner.

 

I'd held off, but managed to get the box set in HMV (the day before they went into administration) with some vouchers.

My better half had never heard the album but was awestruck by the sound of the 5.1. It's just sumptuous. It is entirely possible that 'The Actor' may be Justin Hayward's single greatest song.

The (innessential) mono mix 45's though had previously been on the Pickwick 'Blue' compilation in the 1980's, not as per what the box says.

'What Am I Doing Here' seems to have been originally a four track recording, then transferred to eight track in the November. The superior later mix is much deeper and appears to have at least more backing vocals than the January mix.

The 'Prelude' CD is still an essential item for completists for the later mix of this song, the Mike Pinder vocal on 'Simple Game' and the superior mix of 'Gimme Little Something'.

 

I think the 5.1 mix of the album sounds fantastic, with one major exception. Ride My See Saw sounds exactly as you describe - it's bass heavy and the highs are missing. Something went wrong with that song. Such a shame. I think the rest of the album sounds great. Even where songs may not envelope you with their surroundy-ness, they do let you hear deeper into the music. With the exception I mentioned, this version rivals my MFSL as the best sounding version of this album I have.

 

A lot of wild memories behind this one for me. My first encounters with the "mystical" world.

 

I bought this box set recently and have thoroughly enjoyed reading through these forum notes while playing the 5.1 and other discs. I didn't buy it initially as I was put off by the mixed 5.1 reviews (especially on Amazon, but I note they are here also), plus I have the SACD release. However I have been pleasantly surprised by the highly enjoyable 5.1 mix. Jakko can get some flak - unfairly I think. He appears to be tackling jobs Wilson has passed up on because no/not enough multitrack tapes exist. And that might mean his results are not always as startling as Wilson's, and undeserved criticism can follow. He has tackled some pretty difficult stuff on some of those fabulous Tull box sets as well. And I for one am glad he's around doing these hard 5.1 jobs and coming up with the best results possible given the circumstances.

 

Guess it's too late in the year for 50th Anniversary announcements for On a Threshold of a Dream and To Our Children's Children's Children then.

 

It's amazing how this high-selling albums' band at the time isn't much celebrated and praised nowadays. Maybe they should have stop for good after Seven sojourn, so their legacy had remained immaculated. Just like the Beatles...

 

II guess it depends on what circles you move in. Lots of people seem to nominate it as their favourite.

I'm glad they did not stop at Seventh Sojourn, as then we would not have Long Distance Voyager. There may be a case for saying they should have called it a day after that one.

As for the Beatles' legacy being "immaculated" (sic) - *cough - no comment.