There was an update in post #33, but I guess I never posted my final conclusion. At the moment I slightly prefer the EMI UK CD over the 1st Japanese pressing. This moment has lasted for several months so far. Both are good in my opinion.
Yep, found it (post 33). Thanks Roland. One more question, does your WPCR version say its remastered near the bottom of the OBI? I was under the impression that after the Forever Young 20P2 series they issued them again (maybe 1995/6?) still under the "Forever Young" banner, but as WPCR numbers and a small "remastered" on the OBI.
My S/T first Japanese pressing is a WPCP-4015, not a WPCR. I think the WPCR are all remastered in 1996 by Lee Herschberg. The ones I heard (mastered by Lee Herschberg in 1996), I didn't like (Burn, Stormbringer). I think it says in the booklet "Remastered by Lee Herschberg in 1996".
Ya know, call me crazy, but I really like the remix. It sounds fine (at least when compared to other remasters), and the stuff done to the songs is pretty cool. I love hearing studio noise before the song begins. It gives the album a very "live" feel to it.
Are you referring to "Machine Head" or some of the remixes on the other remastered Deep Purple CD's (Burn, WDWTWA)? The "Machine Head" remix is interesting and pretty well done, a nice addition and touch. In the end, I still prefer the original mix just because it is the original, but that remix is fun listening to.
Oh, sorry, I was referring to the Machine Head remix. I think I may like it a little bit more than the original mix, actually. I also don't think it's really that squashed, either.
I recently bought the new remixed and complete Live In London 2CD, and while I love the performances, I'm not very impressed with the sound quality, it sounds a little too harsh for me... Are there any other versions that are recommended over the latest one? How about the Japanese VAP double?
I think the VAP double CD is made up of the original single CD release as disc 1 and disc 2 contains the (then unreleased) live version of Space Truckin', as it appears on the Listen, Learn, Read On box set. The sound quality of that song on the box set is not so great. The sound quality of the original single CD of Live in London is also nothing to write home about. It sounds a little less harsh and duller, but not too much. It has many edits, and overall I think I prefer the new 2-CD set over any other issues, despite it soundig a little harsh (I think this is mainly due to the way it was recorded).
Agreed. It's a little harsh for me as well, but that's what we've been given. I feel like the remaster has made Live In London sound closer to a bootleg, than a offical live recording.
I see... I was hoping that a VAP might be the way to go, but if Space Truckin' is gonna be the one from the box, as I suspected, maybe it'd be safer to try hunting down an old japanese Teichiku CD... Does anyone own a TECP, and how does it compare to the others? Thanks guys for chiming in!
I have the 1st Japanese pressing of Live in London: Metal Mania/Teichiku Records 18DN-32 Released 1989 It's decent but there is also some harshness. It has many edits (e.g. almost 2 minutes of Ritchie's Blues interpretation during You Fool No One were edited out). I just listened to the 1st Japanese pressing again and compared it to the new version. The harshness is almost the same on both versions, and it mainly comes from Ritchie's guitar sound. The new version has a little more detail, but that part of the details actually sounds quite warm and not harsh. I can put up some samples if people are interested. For me, the best overall version is the new 2-CD set, and I usually prefer older versions in 98% of the cases.
I was really curious about the japanese Live In London because Last Concert In Japan sounds so beautiful... but I trust your ears, so I'll just be happy with the new version and save some money then... Thanks for the quick reply, Roland!
Congratulations Javimulder..you have just won the secret prize for knowing that the Last Concert In Japan sounds so much better than anything remastered..despite the edits and all that, it is a really well recorded live album. Check out WILD DOGS..the remaster even managed to lose the feedback on Tommy's guitar during the intro..(now it sounds very stilted and sterile, no atmosphere) it's just not the same without the feedback. Actually, Live in London will probably never sound great, it's just one of those recordings which were not well done to begin with. The Original Metal Mania Japan one (with Guitar Tabs for Lay Down Stay Down) still sounds like it was recorded in a toilet. Sorry, but it does.
Well, I did upload some samples for comparison, here are a couple of sample clips (level matched) from "Might Just Take Your Life". One is the 1st Japanese pressing from 1989 (18DN-32), the other is the new 2-CD version. You can compare for yourself to see which version you like better: Sample A: http://download.yousendit.com/6F3F1BC10BA6F4CA Sample B: http://download.yousendit.com/664EC0125CD02472
I just found a copy of this EMI version. I'm not sure it's the same as yours. The cat# is CDP 7 46240 2. It's easily the best sounding version of this album I've ever heard.
Oh man...it's fantastic. You can really hear that great bass drum work by Ian Paice so well. Thanks for pointing this one out. It's my favorite DP album.
Hi Jeff. Sounds just like the original vinyl,starting off a bit bass shy. Unfortunately it's not the best of recordings,in fact on vinyl probably their worst.
I'm listening to the original vinyl as I type this (TPS 3505). The song "Burn" is just mixed kinda weird. All the bass is in the right channel. It's mixed center channel for the rest of the album and sounds much better...but every CD issue I've heard so far is brighter than this LP version.
I'm assuming that all the pressings of Bananas sound the same, but I remember some people complaining about copy controlled cd's. Was the US one copy controlled, or what that the UK one? Or elsewhere?
The U.S. version of Bananas was NOT copy-controlled (it came out on Sanctuary). The U.K. version [or maybe the E.U. version...not sure if there was any difference) on EMI was copy-controlled. To my ears, anyway, the U.S. version sounds better. The U.K./E.U. version (which was my initial purchase, since it came out months before the U.S. version) had some distortion that other listeners have attributed to the copy control technology...and I couldn't import it into iTunes at all. I bought the U.S. version a few months back and sold the U.K. version. Interestingly, the U.K./E.U. version of Purple's lastest studio album, Rapture Of The Deep (on Edel) is listed as copy controlled, but I have no problems importing it into iTunes, and the sound is fine.
