These don't work as well - a note on Bob's golden ear.
1
By Thunderclese
Dear Bob - I read your post on the "Greatest Hits and More" entry on iTunes, and was offended. Now I see you've repackaged the same album with a new title, and now I have to say something. You re-recorded these because of inferior recording techniques of the 70s? Stop it. If you re-recorded them because it was an artistic challenge, or if you wanted them to sound differently, fine. I think that's admirable. But to claim the 70s produced poor sounding albums is ludicrous. There is a library of 70s albums that are considered benchmarks in audio fidelity - Dark Side of the Moon, Crime of the Century, Aja, GoodBye Yellow Brick Road - the list goes on and on. Those albums have been used to test drive turn tables and speakers for decades. And, somehow, modern technology has allowed those original master tapes to be cleaned up and damn near perfected over the years; its why companies like MoFi and Audio Fidelity are thriving amongst audiophiles. Don't tell me you couldn't clean up your own original tapes. Your most popular albums were released in the late 70s, a time that was defined by a very specific recording quality. Like it or not, that's how your listeners remember your music. And, like it or not, that's how your listeners want to hear your music now, as most of your songs are tied to very specific memories your fans have. Ironically, I think these re-recorded versions have lost sonic quality; they have a computer feel to them. It doesn't feel as if there are actual musicians involved, here - rather, it sounds like you laid down all the parts and mixed them together yourself. Which is fine, when it works. Here, the songs seem to lack soul, I'm sorry to say. (With the possible exception of "Sentimental Lady," which actually sounds pretty good.) I can appreciate the effort, but don't blame it on inferior recording of the originals.
