What's up with lousy bass on classic rock recordings?

I think you need to get very granular about particular pressings. I would assume any copy coming off the presses today is pulled from a digital file (not that this is per se bad) but may not represent the best or even close to the best sound that some of the classic rock records can deliver.

I mentioned in another thread that a visitor got to hear a first UK EMI/Columbia of Jeff Beck’s Truth-- he was stunned at how dimensional and real it sounded compared to all the Epic pressings, UK and US, that are in normal circulation.

The early Sabbaths are best represented on Vertigo Swirl UK- not a cheap option;

I have a fondness for the early pink labels from Island. Crimson’s first album really shines on that pressing- an early one--even though it is noisier on the quiet passages than some of the later copies.

Some albums just can’t get out of their own way but I’ve tried to find the best representations. I’m pretty much full up on classic rock at this point and don’t buy much unless it is to fill a gap.

The market is inflated and the early pressings are pricey and not necessarily in top condition. Give it a few years- more of us will die and the market will open up. Being an optimist about this. :)

PS: that Janis Ian Breaking Silence has crazy heavy bass. A better example is Between the Lines, standard issue Columbia press from the era. That's a good quality record, they just knew how to record and press- Brooks Arthur engineered in a little studio in Rockland County, Columbia could manufacture a decent record. I have an approval pressing of it that sounds identical to the commercial releases you used to be able to find in the bins on the cheap. 

Remember the Metallica album where they mixed the bass player out of the Final Cut because they did not like him snd kicked him out of the band. Think a lot of bad production happened when they let the musicians into the engendering room.

@macg19 LA woman was first Doors album with bass player. All earlier Door had Ray playing bass on keyboard. LA Women is fantastic tic and they never looked back!

Maybe they had Cerwin-Vega systems in the control rooms. That would explain it.

As others have noted what mix/pressing you listen to will matter - a lot. One reason is most mass-market produced albums in the 50s-70s were made to be played on one piece consoles with speakers and turntable all in one cabinet. A big bass presence would bounce the needle right out of the track.