I've got my eye on the Raging Slab reissue and the other Coney Hatch reissues, since I already have the first one.
Listening to the Armored Saint "Delirious Nomad" Rock Candy remastered by Andy Pearce. Sounds great, like you would expect from probably the best name in metal remasters. Too bad he didn't work on March of the Saint, I think I like that one better song wise.
Did anyone get either of the first two Enuff Z'Nuff reissues? I'm listening to the samples on nehrecords and the first one sounds a little hot but Strength seems to be a bit better. Both were remastered by Jon Astley.
I have the self titled, but to my ears it’s no better or worse than the original. Great liner notes though...as always.
For March of the Saint, the '95 Metal Blade CD mastered by Bernie Grundman sounds very good. I've looked for a Chrysalis copy of it but never found a clean one for a price I wanted to pay.
Just bought the two Hotel albums. Mastered by John Astley, if anyone's interested and they sound great. This is why I love Rock Candy. I've known Hotel by reputation since I was a teenager but never got to hear them. All this time later, here they are! Both excellent too!
Just picked up the debut album by Stillwater, a band I'd previously not heard of, but given I like Southern Rock and the band were originally on Capricorn, I thought I'd take a risk. Glad I did! Excellent album! A bit like a less jazzy Marshall Tucker Band meets Playin' To Win era Outlaws. Great vocals and harmonies, lovely tunes and some wonderfully fiery guitar work. Definitely going to pick up their second album. oh, and kudos to Rock Candy. It all sounds sublime.
I just listen to Greg Lake’s 2nd solo record. It is an exception in Rock Candy's catalog. Full dynamic range.... DR 12.
Only loosely related to the topic at hand, but are Lake's solo albums worth seeking out for someone who liked him in Crimson and ELP? I know his voice changed dramatically in tone over the years and have zero idea what kind of music he defaulted to left to his own devices. I'm a big fan of John Wetton's solo work, but I get why it can be a jolt to people expecting more King Crimson or UK-type stuff from him. Hell, even Asia fans might find it a bit overly personal in comparison...
Not heard much solo Greg Lake (must remedy that) but John Wetton's solo records are excellent. You're right, they are not desperately proggy, but they're full of great songs and of course, that voice!
I just acquired Rock Candy's two SPYS "remastered" albums on CD (2012, for both). I have never heard the original LPs of either of these albums, so I have nothing to compare the RC remasters against. That said, color me impressed. The artwork and extensive liner notes are superb. As far as the sound, I ran the Dynamic Range Meter utility in Foobar and obtained good results (see below). Qualitatively, the sound is "very good" (again, w/o having original vinyl to compare it to). foobar2000 1.3.13 / Dynamic Range Meter 1.1.1 log date: 2019-01-26 22:13:44 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Analyzed: Spys / Spys [Rock Candy remaster] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DR Peak RMS Duration Track -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DR11 -0.04 dB -11.85 dB 3:50 01-Don't Run My Life DR11 0.00 dB -11.76 dB 3:28 02-She Can't Wait DR12 0.00 dB -13.09 dB 3:49 03-Ice Age DR11 0.00 dB -12.23 dB 5:11 04-Danger DR11 0.00 dB -12.69 dB 3:43 05-Over Here DR11 0.00 dB -12.55 dB 3:53 06-Desiree DR11 0.00 dB -12.59 dB 3:46 07-Don't Say Goodbye DR11 -0.02 dB -12.26 dB 4:22 08-Into The Night DR11 0.00 dB -13.00 dB 4:06 09-Hold On (When You Feel You're Falling) DR11 0.00 dB -12.86 dB 4:02 10-No Harm Done -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Number of tracks: 10 Official DR value: DR11 =========================== foobar2000 1.3.13 / Dynamic Range Meter 1.1.1 log date: 2019-01-26 22:13:19 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Analyzed: Spys / Behind Enemy Lines [Rock Candy remaster] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DR Peak RMS Duration Track -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DR12 0.00 dB -13.29 dB 4:29 01-Rescue Me DR11 -0.02 dB -12.80 dB 4:00 02-Midmight Fantasy DR12 -0.19 dB -14.60 dB 5:20 03-Behind Enemy Lines DR13 -0.14 dB -15.02 dB 3:23 04-Sheep Don't Talk Back DR12 -0.82 dB -15.07 dB 4:06 05-Reaction DR11 -0.23 dB -13.43 dB 3:26 06-Heartache DR11 0.00 dB -12.89 dB 3:40 07-Race Against Time DR11 -0.03 dB -14.16 dB 5:25 08-Younger Days DR11 0.00 dB -12.60 dB 5:17 09-Can't Stop Us Now -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Number of tracks: 9 Official DR value: DR12 S·P·Y·S* - S·P·Y·S SPYS - Behind Enemy Lines
I just got all of the Rock Candy Blackfoot CDs. I am checking out the summaries on the back of each CD, and when I get to Tomcattin', there aren't any song titles! I email Rock Candy to see if I can get a back insert with the song titles, and they tell me they decided to change the artwork so that the titles are only on the inside booklet. I email them again and ask if they are going to be doing this with all of their albums from now on? They say no, this was a one time thing. I am still pissed. I don't know why they would make this change, and I don't want to have to look into the booklet everytime I want to know the song titles. If anyone has an extra back artwork for a Rock Candy Blackfoot Tomcattin' with the song titles, PM me.
The Andy Pearce Rock Candy remasterings are excellent. Here are some Andy Pearce Rock Candy DRs I have: - Steve Walsh Schemer-Dreamer / DR12 - Morningstar ST / DR10 - Streets Crimes in Mind / DR9 - Tangier Four Winds / DR11 All sound excellent, smooth and dynamic (enough). I just got the Morningstar ST CD a couple days ago. Outstanding album with a superb remastering by Andy. Highly recommend this for fans of late 70s hard rock. The early John Astley Rock Candy remasters are compressed to death. The newer John Astley remasters are less compressed, but they don't sound as nice Andy Pearce's efforts. My rule is thus: Rock Candy remasters by Andy Pearce are excellent, however try to avoid John Astley remasters.
I don't, but I will indeed. The first Morningstar album rocked my world, and it has a superb remastering.
The new Overkill "Under The Influence" was done by Jon Astley, DR of 7. It sounds good at lower levels but it's certainly not crankable.
