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| Muddyw |
I am pretty sensitive about the recorded sounds albums have. There are many different qualities in recorded sounds from Stones albums.
The best recorded sound on a live album in my opinion, is Love You Live. It has a raw and warm sound. If you have a good Hi-Fi set, you'll notice. Don't be misunderstood, I am not talking about the performance of the Stones, only the actually recorded sound. Flashpoint for instance is a very thin and shrill sound, it hurts in my ears. That also counts for Stripped. Both albums are terrific performances, but the sound is poor I think. Voodoo Lounge and Bridges To Babylon have a great recorded sound, Steel Wheels is a bit shrill. If you listen to other albums you can hear clearly differences in quality.
In these times of high technical standards one could expect more attention to the overall sound of the album, I should think. I must say that if the upcoming new album from the Stones will be the same quality as their latest four songs, Keys To Your Love etc, I fear for the worst, cause the sound is not well recorded I think.
Does any other musiclover care about this?
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| Steel Wheels |
What kind of Hi-Fi gear do you have?
Also, why compare the sound quality of their live output against that of the studio recordings? |
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| Egbert |
This may sound like blasphemy to most, and I can't say if the reason has anything to do with a "warm sound" or not, but Love You Live is my favorite official live Stones' recording.
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| TheSavageYoungXyzzy |
quote:
Egbert wrote:
This may sound like blasphemy to most, and I can't say if the reason has anything to do with a "warm sound" or not, but Love You Live is my favorite official live Stones' recording.
Not blasphemy at all. I think the same thing.
-tSYX --- Ev'rythin' is turnin'... |
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| corgi37 |
Love you Live is simply awesome. Its everything that makes them great. Grandiose, outrageous, intimate (El Macambo) and blistering (last 4 tracks). My mate and i, whenever the beer is flowing, still pop this into the cd player, crank it up and sing along. And isnt it a bummer that jagger hardly makes any amusing quips any more? Where's the "Busted a button on my trousers" from this tour. Its all so serious. To my mind, Undercover is a brilliant recording too. Dirty work is horrible. I hate that fake 80's drum sound, and its at its worst on here. I shiver now as i recall WInning Ugly. Ewww. Steel Wheels was the 1st and only all digital recording by the band. Remember the early days of cd when you searched for albums that were DDD as opposed to AAD, just to hear the difference? Aroung the same time, Neil Young recorded the incredible Ragged Glory in DDD & Aerosmith did Pump in ADD. The foldback on Rock and a hard place is fantastic. Yet, Voodoo has a warmer, intimate sound. Bridges is very well produced. Very crisp, with Charlie sounding gigantic. But, for me, one of the warmest albums is Some Girls. Listening on good headphones reveals some fantastic sonic surprises. I love the hand drum on shattered. Let it bleed and Sticky fingers are warm too. I always thought Goats head was dreadful. Very murky. Probably intentional, ala Exile, but i aint too pleased with it. Its only rock and roll is very well recorded. WHo can resist the deep, deep toms of kenny jones on the title track. or time waits for no one. But i urge people to listen to black and blue. i have long considered this the best recorded stones album. That German efficiency, i guess. Charlie's drums sound different to any record prior. God, those gorgeous long splash cymbols on hot stuff. ANd what a pleasure to actually hear his bass drum, which is virtually non-existant on the old versions of goats and exile (the re-mixed versions in 94 fixed that a bit). ANd how about his boomy toms on Memory Motel? As for exile, that record is perfect. But a lot of people missed the point and said 'you cant hear the lyrics", "the sound is muddy". In fact, here in Oz, a pretty good, but still a jerk, guitarist called Tommy Emmanuel said he always loved the Beatles due to their production, but hated the STones because they were sounded sloppy. Dickwad just doesnt get it. He even had the nerve to say that many of the stones songs sounded out of tune. Whitebread fool probably neve heard of Keiths tunings. That satanic rocker, Cliff Richard even bagged the them on his last Oz tour, saying he hated the way the Stones guitars sounded!!!! |
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| Daethgod |
Cliff Richard is the devil !
I have been wearing a Keef Skull Ring for nearly 20 years now, and I remeber one night out on the turps, a mates girlfriend said, "Hey Mobbsy, show us ya Cliff Richard ring.." i then politely informed her that it was a KEITH RICHARDS ring - not a cliff richard ring...
sheeeesh
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| sammy davis jr. |
Corgi- as a recording musician, I much prefer analog over digital-and every musician I know agree's, except maybe the ones who use digital to do dance or trance music. 2'' tape is still the way to go. The main advantage to digital lies in the editing capabilities, which have their place, but the sound just has no warmth, no matter how many tube products you run it through. Steel Wheels does sound thin- listen to Mixed Emotions on 40 Licks. It sticks out like a sore thumb form the two songs it's sandwiched between. The funny thing is, Exile is considered the classic, yet most people say it was recorded the worst- technique-wise. I happen to love it. I love Black and Blue as well. Of the recent Stones records, Voodoo sounds the best to me. |
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| Egbert |
Tattou You sounds great as well. |
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| ianbillen |
Voodoo Lounge is recorded and produced on an exceptional level. Best recorded Stones I heard yet. Here is why I think so. �Voodoo Lounge� Rolling Stones
From a technical standpoint the album is impeccable. The first single from the album,
�Love is Strong�, is incredibly rich sounding. The bass line provides a thick full wall of sound for the rest of the instruments and vocals to slither along with. Mick Jagger sang into a harmonica microphone on this track which makes the vocals sound seductive and
more detailed than normal which fits the mood of the song much better than a typical vocal microphone. Keith Richard�s guitar is very solid on most tracks and Producer Don Was insisted Richards use the open low G tuning on several songs (Blinded by Rainbows, Thru and Thru, The worst) as opposed to his normal high open G to add solidity to the songs on the album. �I go Wild� is a very intricate rock n roll number because the string arrangements make the song sound multi-layered and elaborate yet smooth on the ears. Don Was had Charlie Watt�s drums recorded in a stair well for a more spacey sound with a lot of reverb for this one which makes the track more than just an overzealous attempt to capture a typical Stones guitar based rocker because even though the guitars are in your face the drums never let them get over emphasized. The slower tracks are warm and full bodied because analog tape was used as a base before the digital transition was made on these songs. From front to back the album takes you on a ride, which is what a good album should do, and from a technical observation the analog base on the ballads makes the album smooth and fluid, and the digital based numbers are never tinny or too edgy. The result is a classic Rolling Stones album with a lot of breadth and texture.
Ian Billen
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