Reggae albums with great sound quality

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Kingston12, Sep 27, 2020.

  1. rcsrich

    rcsrich Forum Resident

    Location:
    Virginia
    I've always been impressed with the sound quality of the Bob Marley I have on vinyl. Warm & relaxed top end with nice solid bass.
     
    Man at C&A likes this.
  2. Timos

    Timos Forum resident

    Oh man, yeah - those early 90’s Marley CDs sound incredible. Barry Diamant, I think? Kaya in particular is a revelation. So much space for the music to breathe.

    In fact, any of the Island CDs from around that era sound great - the ones with the black type on white background on the back and the little multicoloured Island logo on the spine.

    I’ve got a Shanachie CD of King Pablo Meets Rockers Uptown that has butchered the artwork but sounds superb, as well.

    I also like the Lee Perry Arkology box set - could be a bit warmer, but it’s very clear. You can hear that chicken wire lining the drum booth!

    I’m not a huge fan of the VP releases from a short while ago - too loud. BUT at least they’re making some previously hard to find albums available. And, with the state of a lot of those master tapes, beggars can’t be choosers!
     
    Last edited: Dec 14, 2020
  3. jimmydean

    jimmydean Senior Member

    Location:
    Vienna, Austria
    Mighty Diamonds - Right Time sounds good imho
     
    Timos, speedracer and Dubmart like this.
  4. Ed the Dog

    Ed the Dog Forum Resident

    Location:
    Greeley Colorado
    speedracer likes this.
  5. Grower of Mushrooms

    Grower of Mushrooms Omnivorous mammalian bipedal entity.

    Location:
    Glasgow
    I Wah Dub by Blackbeard (Dennis Bovell)

    World War 3 and SWALK by Mikey Dread

    Dutch Man Dub by The Revolutionaries
     
    speedracer likes this.
  6. Casino

    Casino Senior Member

    Location:
    BossTown
    Hard to go wrong with Toots ("the Otis Redding of Jamaica").
     
    riverrat and speedracer like this.
  7. Mookielagoo

    Mookielagoo Marky-mark Vinyl Nut

    Location:
    UK
    Absolute gorgeousness in terms of production and quality is my treasured copy of Handsworth Revolution by Steel Pulse... im also really liking Holly Cook's albums too...(I never thought i liked reggae until these records landed on me from above!) Chills me right out
     
  8. 99thfloor

    99thfloor Senior Member

    Location:
    Sweden
    That one I've never heard. Do you have other CD versions of the album, and if so is the speed different?

    Shanachie did an expanded 30th Anniversary Edition where they had the sides in the correct order but instead moved "Calling Rastafari" from it's opening position, that one seems like a better source but it is very thin sounding. VP have also done it several times, as part of a 4-CD box set (At Joe Gibbs) and a stand alone (possibly the same mastering) and then most recent the 4oth double CD (or triple LP), I think all the VP's sound better than the Shanachie's. VP have gotten better, but it's still on a case by case basis, one has to check who mastered it.

    For some reason Shanachie always changed the artwork for everything they released (except when they did the US counterparts to Greensleeves releases).

    The mastering style is probably not to the taste of many Hoffmanites. There have been members here complaining about Blood & Fire being too loud. I think if one is very sensetive to anything that is not very dynamic and soft/lush sounding one should probably just stay away from Reggae reissues from the last 30 years. For me if a release is good is primarily about if they're using good sources and doing proper transfers (and that part has mostly improved in the last couple of decades), one can't worry about if the EQ is just right or if there has been compression added when there really aren't any choices in most cases (Two Sevens Clash, being a very popular album, is an exception), like you say "beggars can’t be choosers".
     
    Last edited: Dec 14, 2020
    Timos and GyroSE like this.
  9. Casino

    Casino Senior Member

    Location:
    BossTown
    OK, so you're saying the VP 2-CD set actually sounds better than the Shanachie... If so, I may pick it up - and the second disc apparently has some dub versions of the tracks...
     
  10. 99thfloor

    99thfloor Senior Member

    Location:
    Sweden
    I am a bit reluctant to give advice based on sound as I'm not as picky about mastering as most are around here, but think I can recommend the VP, the first Shanachie is not a particularly good sounding disc. I guess some may think the VP is loud, I like that it has a full bottom end (but I guess some may think that the bass is too boosted since, as mentioned, it was a rather light sounding to begin with on LP). If you do streaming you can get an idea how they compare.

    (The bonus material has been reissued in various places before, but if you don't have it that of course makes it more worthwhile.)
     
    GyroSE likes this.
  11. Casino

    Casino Senior Member

    Location:
    BossTown
    OK, thanks for the reply, 99th.
     
  12. crozcat

    crozcat Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sweden
    This is what I have for Two Sevens Clash:

    Lightning LP (1978)
    Blue Moon CD (1987)
    Shanachie 3oth Anniversary CD w/bonus tracks (2007)
    VP Culture at Joe Gibbs 4-CD mini-box (2011)
    VP 2-CD (40th Anniversary) (2017)

    After a quick re-listening to "See Them A Come" -
    Speed sounds the same on the Lightning LP and the Blue Moon CD, the other CDs run fast (as did an earlier Shanachie CD that I used to have).
    Though I´m not an audiophile, the Blue Moon CD is not as loud as the other CDs and is "easier" on the ear, also a bit "warmer"/"fuller".
    So to my ears (with my modest equipment), the Blue Moon CD is definitely the best. The others I keep for the bonustracks.
    (I´m not going into the "LPs vs. CDs" minefield...)
     
    Sabu, ParanoidAndroid, Casino and 2 others like this.
  13. sonofjim

    sonofjim Senior Member

    I like all the Marley Island vinyl pressings but the best IMO is Uprising. I have a latter Island reissue of Natty Dread that comes close.
     
    Man at C&A, rcsrich and Preston like this.
  14. frimleygreener

    frimleygreener "It 'a'int why...it just is"

    Location:
    united kingdom
    Jacob Miller..."Who say Jah no dread".....
     
    bad_penny likes this.
  15. Bobby Buckshot

    Bobby Buckshot Heavy on the grease please

    Location:
    Southeastern US
    Thanks for this. Love this song but it does have different speeds out there...makes me wonder if the 7" single I have of it is the right speed. Need to check it out...
     
  16. bRETT

    bRETT Senior Member

    Location:
    Boston MA
    The UK pressing of Steel Pulse-- Handsworth Revolution is quite nice.
     
    Man at C&A likes this.
  17. Preston

    Preston Forum Resident

    Location:
    KCMO Metro USA
    +1 on Natty Dread. I have a Japanese LP of this that is a killer. Subterranean bass. Ditto for my Japanese LP of Uprising.
     
    rcsrich and sonofjim like this.
  18. riverrat

    riverrat Senior Member

    Location:
    Oregon
    Could you elaborate on what aspects you think sound better on the Blue Moon? I'm going to pick this recording up on vinyl (have the Shanachie CD on FLAC) and trying to decide which pressing to seek out. TIA
     
  19. Casino

    Casino Senior Member

    Location:
    BossTown
    Good info. The Lightning LP seems to run at similar speed as compared to the original Jamaican vinyl (if we want to use that as a reference, that is). And from what you say, Blue Moon CD seems like good bet for digital...
     
  20. imagnrywar

    imagnrywar Senior Member

    Location:
    San Francisco
    At some point, I posted about my experience with CD versions of Culture "Two Sevens Clash" on the Crucial Reggae thread. Too lazy to dig up the link, but the gist of it is that either of the Blue Moon CDs (there are two different ones) are better than the Shanachie or VP CDs.
     
  21. Casino

    Casino Senior Member

    Location:
    BossTown
    Apparently out-of-print, the Blue Moon CD's are going for a premium these days...
     
  22. florandia

    florandia Forum Resident

    Location:
    Florida
    Ijahman ,first album ' Haile I Hymn[Chapter 1] and as Ijahman Levi ' Are We A Warrior' , two high water mark roots records with great sound quality.
    Agree with various posters about Brit roots bands Aswad and Steel Pulse.
    Gregory Issacs and the Roots Radics in that 5 year period that led up to 'Night Nurse' .
    Jimmy Cliff ,Burning Spear and Toots and the Maytals.
     
    Man at C&A likes this.
  23. Marc Perman

    Marc Perman Forum Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    These two:

    Lee "Scratch" Perry/Dub Syndicate - Time Boom X De Devil Dead (On-U Sound)
    Linton Kwesi Johnson - Forces of Victory (Island)

    These happen to be two of my favorite records of all time.
     
    Last edited: Dec 15, 2020
    CDFanatic and uzn007 like this.
  24. TerpStation

    TerpStation "Music's not for everyone."

    Location:
    DC Metro
    Regarding Two Sevens Clash, I have the 3LP vp records 2017 and the Shanachie 3oth cd set. Listening to LP 1 now.....Its not an audiophile experience but its pretty decent as these things go...not nearly as good sound as the Island Marley stuff, but not rough like my vinyl of like Heart of the Congos....and since its been a bit since i played this, i am reminded of how fantastic TwoSevens Clash is....all time classic.
     
    Man at C&A likes this.
  25. 99thfloor

    99thfloor Senior Member

    Location:
    Sweden
    I dove into the Crucial Reggae thread, as I knew we had been over this before, and we came to the conclusion then that the Blue Moon CD is different to other CDs and matched the LPs. I wonder why all other CDs are at a different speed, the original tape must have been lost along the way and they started using a "faulty" copy tape (all the other CDs are from the US, which may also be a factor).

    Since I like the LP counterpart it seems Blue Moon did a good job all around with this (or had access to a good source), it's a bit of a surprise because Blue Moon have also done some terrible releases (a totally botched Dennis Brown Wolf And Leopards comes to mind).

    In an old post I see I have described it as "louder, clearer and fuller sounding", but it's not like the Lightning is bad and since that is more common don't hesitate if you see it.

    I actually did dig up those posts, a lot of the same suspects here, posting the same stuff all over again. :)

    I'd say for example the Culture albums on Virgin/FrontLine are better sounding recordings than Two Sevens Clash (and I actually think they are better musically as well).
     

Share This Page

molar-endocrine