Steve Hoffman--You Have RUINED My Life

I find this entire thread very interesting! While I agree that once you've heard well mastered CDs you'll more readily notice the problems in most (poorly mastered) CDs, it seems that almost everyone has missed the point!

Don't you listen to music for the music, not the mastering? Sure, if I have multiple copies of a CD or LP I'll listen to the one that sounds better. However, when I listen to music I do it for the enjoyment I get from the performance. I grew up in the 60's listening to top 40 AM radio in Philly and enjoyed almost every minute of it. Did it sound good? Of course not. But I love the music!

There is still no better musical feeling, to me, of singing along to Tommy James' I Think We're Alone Now in the car with my 14 and 12 year old daughters! Now that's what music is for!!!!

 

I appreciate good mastering, but more than anything, if the music moves me, the quality of the recording becomes secondary. I do know that I'll tend to listen to music more often if the sound is more lifelike and easy on the ears. But I also have some wretched-sounding recordings that I could not live without hearing. It would be ideal to have everything mastered to Steve's high standards, but we all know it can't happen. So I make do.

I don't usually buy much in the way of classic rock or modern Top 40, so I guess I'm not abused as often by the horrible mastering on a lot of today's CDs as some of you are. Jazz IS affected by the brick-wall compression bug, but I find that more on bigger-selling jazz (like the David Benoits and George Bensons of the world). Reissues don't get it as bad, at least for the titles I've been buying.

 

I will agree with that.

 

Well stated... echoes my own feelings very closely.

 

True enough.

In addition. Steve's mastering can find that "moving" quality in a song.

Steve has the remarkable ability to allow you to feel the song.

 

I agree with you John.

 

Didn't you mean: "Amen to that"?

 

Don't forget that you're supposed to mentally add "...in bed" to the end of anything you read in a fortune cookie.

I should also mention that Steve may have ruined my life as far as recordings go, but at least he didn't run off with my girlfriend like that bastard Bob Ludwig.

 

Robert,

Somewhow, I think eating a Steak in bed is not quite what Todd had in mind in his post!

Your thoughts?

Bob

 

Not in mixed company, Bob.

 

Ah, that's right! 6 Women are members here - I forgot!

Thanks for the Gortly reminder!

Bob

 

A fellow where I work said his family adds "...out behind the barn" to the end of the fortune.

 

While I agree with the food analogy put forward, I would amend it to say that a good remastering (such as DCC's "Hotel California") is like steak and a bad remastering is like hamburger. And if it's really bad, a soy or veggie burger.

 

More aptly put I would say it's hard to go back to Purina dog chow after you've tasted the Filet Mignon.

 

Buddy Holly From The Original Master Tapes actually does sound better than the Buddy Holly Collection 2 CD "remastered" set by a long shot, even better than a clip restored version of the 2 CD set remaster. FTOMT will definitely be my listening CD of Buddy Holly as the sound is great and the track selection is excellent. Thanks Dave.

 

Now that was well put!

 

I've had (and loved) FTOMT since it first came out. But it is lacking a few tunes.

A MCA CD The Very Best of Buddy Holly and the Crickets sounds pretty good and fills in the gaps admirably. It's MCA 112 046-2. I've used the two to put together a 28-track "ultimate" Buddy Holly compilation.