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Remasters: which are the good ones?

I have had mixed luck with CD remasters; could others post their experiences with various ones? Some are great, some overly compressed, others just terrible.

Opinions appreciated as I consider which albums to repurchase (some for the 3rd time, starting with vinyl...)

PS: I suggest this thread be (roughly) limited to rock/R&B/soul type stuff.

My experiences:

Good / Worth getting the remasters:
- Bob Marley remasters (excellent!)
- Steely Dan (Gaucho, CD layer off hybrid SACD; Aja CD remaster OK)
- Grateful Dead (HDCD, but I refer to the "regular" CD playback of these. All very nice but Terrapin Station, where I don't appreciate some of the mix changes, though sound quality is good)

OK:
- Fleetwood Mac (Fleetwood Mac)

Poor/bad:
- Baron von Tollbooth and the Chrome Nun (terrible)
- Jefferson Airplane remasters
nas

Showing 2 responses by shadorne

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shadorne
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Bob Marley remasters (excellent!)

This is off topic but if anyone is on the hunt for Bob Marley then get Rebelution "Courage to Grow" - great sound and great reggae with a modern energetic twist.

As for masters - check out Doug Sax at Artists direct - he generally does not overcompress albums although like everyone today he does use some mild compression in mastering.

For example the Aerosmith Collection - it has better sound than previous releases.
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shadorne
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The 25th Aniversary Clash remaster of "London Calling" has better bass extension.

I'll have to get that - thanks for the heads up - I always felt London Calling was a tad bass anemic.

BTW - there was nothing anemic about my 45 RPM 12" "Rock the Casbah" - I bought this as soon as it was released in 1982. I was just in total awe of that sound. I totally wore out the groove on that one. I remember my GF and dorm room mates would role their eyes as this blasted out onto the street and hallways for weeks on end.
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