Remember, something went wrong with side two of the RCA Hunky Dory. But side one sounds fantastic on RCA disc.
I've collected all the US Ryko Analogue pressings on vinyl, plus the Euro EMI Sound+Vision LPs for Young Americans through Lodger. Love giving the Rykos a spin for the bonus tracks and the quiet vinyl surfaces. That said, the music is more alive and present on my old US, UK or German RCA pressings.
I'm glad I'm not the only one gripped by this irrational nostalgia (although I suppose all nostalgia is by definition irrational). The Rykos really seemed like the future at the time...
I started getting this series when it was available from EMI. Diamond Dogs quickly became one of my favorite albums and still is, with the bonus tracks as an encore I consider part of the experience. And hell yes the Au20 Low is worth it's weight in gold. Plus two more bonus tracks that make an essential encore (but I can't hit stop fast enough before the Sound+Vision remix kicks in.) My first Bowie album was EMI's Best of 69-74 in 1997 and I think the mastering of those tracks is well done and in the vein of the Rykos. Plus it has All the Young Dudes and the sax version of John I'm Only Dancing which were unfortunately missing as Aladdin Sane bonuses. I am referring to the original slipcase version, not the later issue with the solarized photo cover. If that edition has the same mastering pick it up because it's dirt cheap. The sequel, Best of 74-79 also has much better mastering than the 99 Virgin series albums (and probably the latest series too.)
I think he said they wanted to keep the saxophone "John" for the S+V box set, for some unclear reason. But he later regretted not adding it to Aladdin Sane.
They managed a whole bonus disc for the 30th anniversary - another Bowie reissue series that annoyingly included only a few albums!
For what the RYKO's offered at the time of release, I'm cool with them. ~ Perhaps there are sonically "better" versions. I'm glad those RYKO CDs exist (not least because they contain(ed) extra tracks). I have most of them and will not give them up for the forseeable future.
Lodger and Scary Monsters sound great on the RYKO/EMI discs IMO. The others I’m less enamoured with but admittedly I haven’t heard them in quite a while.
Space Oddity... Oh dear, I think Ryko dropped the ball on this one! Compared to the WG RCA, the title track sounds quite similar at first but then one notices that the vocal balance on the Ryko seems slightly shifted off-centre compared to the RCA. On "Janine", the Ryko sounds like AM radio compared to the WG RCA, which sounds more grounded and balanced across the EQ. I don't hear that RCA top end roll-off on Space Oddity, so perhaps this is one where the European team found a good tape? It's clearly a copy compared to the Ryko but evidently not as far removed from the master as some other RCA discs. All irrelevant of course as I haven't made up a fake gear profile for snoopers to check against their wallet!
Huge fan of the RCA CDs but since I got hold of some of the Ryko 20au editions these are my fave so far A shame they did not do the whole catalogue
Only a couple of albums and only for some pressings. The Au20 are generally the same mastering moves as the standard Ryko but on a new transfer and with added limiting in some cases.
So, it's the new transfer my ears detect and like then? I find them not so bright as the standard Ryko
Is there any concrete information about the au20 cds, anywhere? Obviously the gold business is bunk, (though I love my Au20 Low) but the fact they used different masters is notable. Who thought the standard Rykos could be improved? Or was it just to purposefully sound different? Are they really different transfers?
Yes but that was mostly live and single versions iirc. But quite a scarce release, which I failed to buy. Would be great to hear stuff from the actual sessions.
I had the 30th Anni Aladdin - it was a bit on the loud side. And "John I'm Only Dancing" sax version was on disc 2 and had a quieter mastering, which meant you still had problems if you were hoping to integrate it with the main album.
Indeed, in fact I'm surprised we haven't already been assailed by someone already for asking the same questions over and over. I think the Ryko v. RCA debate is really down to the individual listener. But the questions keep coming up because each of us has their own way of wording the questions in order to ascertain the facts. I've settled happily for the following: The Man Who Sold the World, Hunky Dory...Parlophone 2015 Aladdin Sane, Young Americans... Ryko/EMI 1991 Station to Station...EMI 3-Disc mini-box 2010 Low, "Heroes", Lodger, Scary Monsters...Ryko/EMI 1991/92
I have all the Ryko’s which I liked until I got the Box Set remasters which made me curious about the RCA’s which for the most part are now my favorites. The one Ryko that’s always stood out to me is Heroes. It’s just cleaner sounding or has less murk to it. None of the 3 I’ve listed are to me listening travesties. Of the RCA’s, Station to Station (WG) and Alad insane stand out as different enough from the others to recommend fans search them out otherwise if you have the Rykos, they aren’t bad and the extras are great.
I have a complete set of 1991/92 UK EMI with a couple of Rykos (Space Oddity and Lodger), most of the RCAs (omitting Space Oddity, TMWSTW, Ziggy and Diamond Dogs) and a few 2015. I don’t feel I’m missing out. The CD era for Bowie’s RCA catalogue isn’t perfect but it’s not terrible and I would endorse the RykoEMIs as serviceable.
