Steve
Wordles & Heardles
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Post by Steve on May 8, 2020 11:36:32 GMT
For me it's hard to split it into "modern style vs good production" so I find that I judge everything by "does this sound like it could be released in the last 10 years?". I feel like Ride the Wild Wind is incredibly ahead of its time so that would be my nomination for best sounding. It's synth heavy but primarily strings which you hear a ton in modern songs anyway. It has a very dark, night-ambiance sound, it sounds crisp and clean, and to me the drums sound fantastic even if they're not necessarily real (which I'm not sure about). Another nomination would go to Need Your Loving Tonight - very crisp and clean sounding again, but this time it's a very raw song with very few effects and no synth that I can hear. It might be an older "style" of song but that stuff always tends to come back around anyway - just look at how many 80s sounding songs we have nowadays For bad sound I'd have to say The Night Comes Down. I don't mind the song but it has an old sounding style *and* the drums sound like someone whacking a cardboard box. Overlooked RTWW. One of my fave songs. Sounds fresh too!
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Post by theadmiester on May 8, 2020 14:05:43 GMT
For me it's hard to split it into "modern style vs good production" so I find that I judge everything by "does this sound like it could be released in the last 10 years?". I feel like Ride the Wild Wind is incredibly ahead of its time so that would be my nomination for best sounding. It's synth heavy but primarily strings which you hear a ton in modern songs anyway. It has a very dark, night-ambiance sound, it sounds crisp and clean, and to me the drums sound fantastic even if they're not necessarily real (which I'm not sure about). Another nomination would go to Need Your Loving Tonight - very crisp and clean sounding again, but this time it's a very raw song with very few effects and no synth that I can hear. It might be an older "style" of song but that stuff always tends to come back around anyway - just look at how many 80s sounding songs we have nowadays For bad sound I'd have to say The Night Comes Down. I don't mind the song but it has an old sounding style *and* the drums sound like someone whacking a cardboard box. Overlooked RTWW. One of my fave songs. Sounds fresh too! Indeed, loved it since I first heard it. It's such a different sound, and anything that has Audi Quattro S1 sounds in it is a win in my book lol.
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Post by Oh Carrots! on May 9, 2020 1:08:21 GMT
Apologies for the following lecture, it seemed shorter when I typed it out than it appears on the forum! Strap in and hang on tight...
Obviously best and worst is majorly subjective, but if we want to compare which songs/albums sound timeless or of-their-time, I personally feel it’s breaks down as follows:
Queen I (1973) sounds very much of it’s time, in fact it’s interesting to compare albums from around the time or just before it, as to how they have fared. Just comparing to artists who Queen have been said to draw inspiration from, The Beatles and Led Zeppelin. Both Abbey Road (1969) and Let It Be (1970) sound much more timeless than Queen I, despite Let It Be’s ‘wall of sound’ production thanks (is that the right word...?) to Mr Spector. Houses Of The Holy (1973) and the couple of albums directly preceding are arguably amongst the best sounding rock albums out there. True the vocal style of Robert Plant isn’t something you hear much in popular music nowadays compared to the Beatles and even Freddie, but the music itself is leaps ahead of Queen I. Maybe down to the relatively low budget set up Queen were working with at the time? Would they have preferred to have sounded like Zep at the time?
Queen II (1974) also sounds rooted in its time period. The’ same a slight improvement to my ears over Queen I, and starting to approach what you’d associate with the sound you’d expect from them, but still makes you think of the early 70s.
Sheer Heart Attack (1974) again is starting to sound like what you’d expect Queen to sound like, but definitely sounds of it’s era again on the whole. I say ‘on the whole’ as songs like She Makes Me and BBTLB have specific productions styles that suit their sound, but sound different to the rest of the album.
A Night At The Opera (1975) I think Still sounds very much of it’s era, although better sounding that previous albums. I think maybe the overblown bombast of that era, although brilliant, does root the music in the time it comes from. Again, certain songs have a vintage style to them as per SHA album which definitely roots them in the era, if not an earlier sound (as you’d expect).
A Day At The Races (1976) pretty much the same as ANATO, although it does sound better in places, e.g. drums sounding closer to what you’d expect them to sound like nowadays, but only a bit better compared to ANATO.
News Of The World (1977) now this is the the stand out one for me as being the most timeless sounding album of the band’s 70s output. Aside from WATC which sounds in the vein of the previous 2 albums, and GDML having some effects definitely of its era, the rest sounds like it could have come from the band even up until their last album. I think for this reason it serves as being one of my favourites to listen to.
Jazz (1978) I have often wondered what was Going through their minds when they were producing this album as it feels to me like the production had gone back to somewhere between Queen II and SHA, but worse! I mean, that drum sound is appalling considering what came directly before and after it. If there was ever an album that hasn’t aged well from Queen’s 70s works, it’s this one. It’s a shame really, as there are some good songs on there that I find almost unlistenable because of how awful the production is.
The Game (1980) now this one again to me has a very timeless feel in production style, though the use of the early synthesisers can sometimes root it back in the era it was recorded in (Play The Game predominantly).
Flash Gordon Soundtrack (1980) I think aside from Flash and The Heron, which feel almost like they could have come straight off The Game or even NOTW, the rest sound very much of their time because of their instrumentation. Saying that, I view it as a bit of an aside from their main album output, not really being in the mould of previous and subsequent albums in terms of the songs (rather than snippets of film score and dialogue)
Hot Space (1982) is very much an early 80s sounding album for the most part, aside perhaps from Under Pressure, POTF, Calling All Girls and Life Is Real, which could have come from any Queen album from the previous 4 or 5 years (except maybe Jazz...) songs like Body Language and Staying Power though are firmly rooted in their era!
The Works (1984) a bit like Hot Space, mostly sounds very much of its time, aside from a few tracks which could fit in with several previous albums (IAHL, HTF mainly). There are one or two I’m a bit unsure of though, basically the rest except Machines, IWTBF and Radio Ga Ga, essentially don’t specifically sound like 80s songs, but have an 80s production that would be hard to disguise in any of the mid to late 70s/early 80s albums.
A Kind Of Magic (1986) definitely 1980s sounding, from start to finish. Even synth-light songs like One Vision and POTU still sound firmly from their era.
The Miracle (1989) pretty much the same as the previous couple of albums, aside from perhaps bits of WIAWI, it’s unmistakably 80s sounding.
Innuendo (1991) again, same as previous, however one or two of the songs sound almost like their style of production could fit in with some of the songs in the charts today. For example, I get a similar vibe from RTWW as from The Weeknd - Blinding Lights (and before anyone gives me stick for it, I do only mean a similar feel, if anything, Blinding Lights sounds more like a song from the 80s that RTWW does! (Which is true, as it’s from 1991, but I digress!))
Made In Heaven (1995) the eclectic mix of songs, on this album feel to like they have a late 80s/early 90s feel to them, meaning they’re very much of their time, but some more so than others. For example, IWBTLY and Made In Heaven sound slightly more timeless
So basically, in my opinion, you could probably put a double album together of about 20-25 tracks, mostly From NOTW, The Game and a light smattering of early 80s stuff, that I feel would sound as new today as when they were released. Don’t take this post as a criticism of the productions values of their catalogue (aside from Jazz, which I’m only too happy to criticise!) as I think the songs are mostly brilliant, but just feel like they belong in the eras they were recorded in.
Now, where’s that ladder gone? This soapbox is mighty high... 😊
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Dimitris
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Post by Dimitris on May 10, 2020 13:09:42 GMT
Apologies for the following lecture, it seemed shorter when I typed it out than it appears on the forum! Strap in and hang on tight... Obviously best and worst is majorly subjective, but if we want to compare which songs/albums sound timeless or of-their-time, I personally feel it’s breaks down as follows: Queen I (1973) sounds very much of it’s time, in fact it’s interesting to compare albums from around the time or just before it, as to how they have fared. Just comparing to artists who Queen have been said to draw inspiration from, The Beatles and Led Zeppelin. Both Abbey Road (1969) and Let It Be (1970) sound much more timeless than Queen I, despite Let It Be’s ‘wall of sound’ production thanks (is that the right word...?) to Mr Spector. Houses Of The Holy (1973) and the couple of albums directly preceding are arguably amongst the best sounding rock albums out there. True the vocal style of Robert Plant isn’t something you hear much in popular music nowadays compared to the Beatles and even Freddie, but the music itself is leaps ahead of Queen I. Maybe down to the relatively low budget set up Queen were working with at the time? Would they have preferred to have sounded like Zep at the time? Queen II (1974) also sounds rooted in its time period. The’ same a slight improvement to my ears over Queen I, and starting to approach what you’d associate with the sound you’d expect from them, but still makes you think of the early 70s. Sheer Heart Attack (1974) again is starting to sound like what you’d expect Queen to sound like, but definitely sounds of it’s era again on the whole. I say ‘on the whole’ as songs like She Makes Me and BBTLB have specific productions styles that suit their sound, but sound different to the rest of the album. A Night At The Opera (1975) I think Still sounds very much of it’s era, although better sounding that previous albums. I think maybe the overblown bombast of that era, although brilliant, does root the music in the time it comes from. Again, certain songs have a vintage style to them as per SHA album which definitely roots them in the era, if not an earlier sound (as you’d expect). A Day At The Races (1976) pretty much the same as ANATO, although it does sound better in places, e.g. drums sounding closer to what you’d expect them to sound like nowadays, but only a bit better compared to ANATO. News Of The World (1977) now this is the the stand out one for me as being the most timeless sounding album of the band’s 70s output. Aside from WATC which sounds in the vein of the previous 2 albums, and GDML having some effects definitely of its era, the rest sounds like it could have come from the band even up until their last album. I think for this reason it serves as being one of my favourites to listen to. Jazz (1978) I have often wondered what was Going through their minds when they were producing this album as it feels to me like the production had gone back to somewhere between Queen II and SHA, but worse! I mean, that drum sound is appalling considering what came directly before and after it. If there was ever an album that hasn’t aged well from Queen’s 70s works, it’s this one. It’s a shame really, as there are some good songs on there that I find almost unlistenable because of how awful the production is. The Game (1980) now this one again to me has a very timeless feel in production style, though the use of the early synthesisers can sometimes root it back in the era it was recorded in (Play The Game predominantly). Flash Gordon Soundtrack (1980) I think aside from Flash and The Heron, which feel almost like they could have come straight off The Game or even NOTW, the rest sound very much of their time because of their instrumentation. Saying that, I view it as a bit of an aside from their main album output, not really being in the mould of previous and subsequent albums in terms of the songs (rather than snippets of film score and dialogue) Hot Space (1982) is very much an early 80s sounding album for the most part, aside perhaps from Under Pressure, POTF, Calling All Girls and Life Is Real, which could have come from any Queen album from the previous 4 or 5 years (except maybe Jazz...) songs like Body Language and Staying Power though are firmly rooted in their era! The Works (1984) a bit like Hot Space, mostly sounds very much of its time, aside from a few tracks which could fit in with several previous albums (IAHL, HTF mainly). There are one or two I’m a bit unsure of though, basically the rest except Machines, IWTBF and Radio Ga Ga, essentially don’t specifically sound like 80s songs, but have an 80s production that would be hard to disguise in any of the mid to late 70s/early 80s albums. A Kind Of Magic (1986) definitely 1980s sounding, from start to finish. Even synth-light songs like One Vision and POTU still sound firmly from their era. The Miracle (1989) pretty much the same as the previous couple of albums, aside from perhaps bits of WIAWI, it’s unmistakably 80s sounding. Innuendo (1991) again, same as previous, however one or two of the songs sound almost like their style of production could fit in with some of the songs in the charts today. For example, I get a similar vibe from RTWW as from The Weeknd - Blinding Lights (and before anyone gives me stick for it, I do only mean a similar feel, if anything, Blinding Lights sounds more like a song from the 80s that RTWW does! (Which is true, as it’s from 1991, but I digress!)) Made In Heaven (1995) the eclectic mix of songs, on this album feel to like they have a late 80s/early 90s feel to them, meaning they’re very much of their time, but some more so than others. For example, IWBTLY and Made In Heaven sound slightly more timeless So basically, in my opinion, you could probably put a double album together of about 20-25 tracks, mostly From NOTW, The Game and a light smattering of early 80s stuff, that I feel would sound as new today as when they were released. Don’t take this post as a criticism of the productions values of their catalogue (aside from Jazz, which I’m only too happy to criticise!) as I think the songs are mostly brilliant, but just feel like they belong in the eras they were recorded in. Now, where’s that ladder gone? This soapbox is mighty high... 😊 Very wide and general analysis. I agree at some degree. The first album had tiny drum sound but it is clean and not dry, guitar's are very bright and the sound effects are well balanced. Vocal is well put in the final mix and master. Much better than some other bands and artist of their time, despite their lack of time, experience and cost. QUEEN II The power of this album is the big choir style vocals and the guitar sound. Great balance low ends and high ends. Super mix considering it is 16 track. The bass is prominent and clear, also it is the first time of signature snare drum sound and higher in the mix drums, which Roy used to do. However there are places where it suffers like FTS and Ogre Battle. Sheer heart attack great sounding edge, great low ends and high both drums and bass. Bright strong guitars, clear and big vocals. Queen between 72-74 they were not audiophile but chose to have some compress and big clean sound. Much better than Deep Purple, Bowie, (especially ziggy stardust and Aladin which the first sounds mud and the second sounds tiny and mud) ANATO - NOTW big sound albums with similar techniques all of the have different degrees of compression. Best of all ADATR crystal clear in many occasions. Better than the Physical Graphity, Toys in Attic, a d the First edition of Wish you were here and Animals Jazz They wanted the dry, tiny tight sound of Cars and new wave. The output wasn't the one they wanted, it was engineering nightmare since in the tape everything was under a veik In the 70s Queen vocals, guitars and drums were very different than the usual despite using the same technology. Songs where they provide their help like You nearly dig on me and man from Manhattan are good examples how defferent was their approach and how good was their albums sounded. Few producers could do Queen production sound. The Game is very good Save me, CLTCL and AOBTD are the best. Flash Gordon is a level below the Game maybe it needed much more time for its mastering. Hot Space has some songs with better production than The Game and with great editing. Back chat, Staying Power, Dancer, Cool Cat and Life is Real. Mack on these songs is a genius. The Works - AKOM some songs have great production like Radio Gaga, Princes of the Universe, who Wants to live forever and One vision. Great editing, very well balance and good mix. However while Freddie vocals are well recorded, in post production the sweetness was lost. The Miracle is the worst. I never like it. Very mid late 80s. In the early 90s it was a return in 70s sound and dry snare. Specially in early brit pop and grunge. Innuendo is almost late 80s album with some 70s sound but it still has many 80s inputs. Dense big sound. Made in heaven is very well produced album with great balance of analog and digital sound. Very 90s but in the good way. Overall Queen were never Audiophile but they had good production different from other artists - bands.
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BrƎИsꓘi
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Post by BrƎИsꓘi on May 10, 2020 15:04:02 GMT
For bad sound I'd have to say The Night Comes Down. I don't mind the song but it has an old sounding style *and* the drums sound like someone whacking a cardboard box. that Love Of My Life (outro) / '39 (intro) on Live Killers could've sounded so differently "you want to sing some more? well. i'd like to welcome to the stage the rest of the Queen group. On whacking a cardboard box and tigerskin trousers - Mr Roger Taylor"
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Lord Fickle
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Post by Lord Fickle on May 10, 2020 17:20:40 GMT
I've always wondered what happened to The Hitman on Innuendo. On the initial release, it was a lower volume to the rest of the tracks, and the drums sound like they were recorded from down the street. The remaster was slightly better, but this really deserves a full remix, in my opinion, with a big powerful rock sound, and a proper bloody ending!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 10, 2020 19:01:00 GMT
I really like how CLTCL sounds, apart from the vocal. The echo on it is horrible. Ruins the track for me. Am I in the minority on this?
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Post by ThomasQuinn on May 11, 2020 9:33:24 GMT
Regarding Queen II - I was recently listening to Father To Son on a good pair of tracking headphones through a high quality sound card, and it struck me that, at some points, the guitars sound less than perfect - not-so-smooth clipping. On speakers, it still sounds very good, but when carefully listening to the details, I think the guitars could've been recorded better.
Is it just me, or have others had the same experience? Is this just a cock-up on the 1994 remasters, or is it a problem on the original tapes?
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Rick
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Post by Rick on May 11, 2020 17:35:23 GMT
Jazz is a piece of merda, production-wise. I hardly listen to it, despite having incredible songs. I wish it had ADATR/NOTW production quality. The drums are a joke on Jazz.
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Post by randomqueenie on May 24, 2020 22:00:27 GMT
For me the songs with the worst sound are those made with synths mainly: Body language, staying power, rain must fall, my baby does me. They sound very dated, 80s through and through.
Some of Roger's songs sound pretty bad too, in my opinion, like Modern Times Rock and Roll, Fight from the inside, Fun it. I hate that echo/hall sound effect Roger's voice has in these songs. He has such a beautiful voice but sounds so crappy with that effect. The instruments don't sound very clear either. The first time I listened to "Fun it" I thought there was something wrong with my headphones, but no, that's just the way the song was recorded.
"Funny how love is" sounds dated too, but I think it was because Freddie was trying to recreate the "wall of sound" that was so characteristic of the 60s.
Now, the songs that sound the best for me:
We are the champions: I don't know if it's because I've been listening to this song my whole life and because it's used for so many things but I think it doesnt sound outdated at all.
I want it all: sounds very clear and modern to me. If someone told me it was released some years ago, I'd believe them.
Dragon Attack: very clear, crisp sound
It's Late/ Spread your wings: sound very contemporary too.
ALBUMS: I think the Miracle sounds the worst and News of the World the best.
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Post by theadmiester on May 27, 2020 20:39:01 GMT
I want it all: sounds very clear and modern to me. If someone told me it was released some years ago, I'd believe them. Definitely have to (mostly) agree on this one. It's the least synth-laden song on The Miracle by far, with just a little bit in the choruses and bridge to add some depth to the sound. The string synths are fairly timeless, the bridge arpeggio is a little cheesy but works where it's used. Overall it's a very "raw" rock/metal song.
The only part where I'd disagree is the #1 giveaway to me that any song is from the 80s - a massive, gated snare sound. With a punchier, crisper drum track I reckon it could sound amazing though.
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itsm
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Post by itsm on Nov 3, 2020 0:43:17 GMT
Ride the Wild Wind and My Baby Does Me sounds fresh.
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Post by peacelovingguy on Nov 5, 2020 1:06:11 GMT
I find A Dozen Red Roses For My Darling is a strikingly good sonic experience compared to Don’t Lose Your Head. Not saying it’s the best sounding Queen song ever, but it’s an interesting comparison. I think saying a song “sounds 80s” can’t be used as a pejorative if one likes that style.
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georg
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Post by georg on Nov 5, 2020 2:12:43 GMT
I find A Dozen Red Roses For My Darling is a strikingly good sonic experience compared to Don’t Lose Your Head. Not saying it’s the best sounding Queen song ever, but it’s an interesting comparison. I think saying a song “sounds 80s” can’t be used as a pejorative if one likes that style. Red Roses has a nice crispness to it that is muddied in Don’t Lose Your Head. I do wonder where the hell Roger came up with that title...
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NathanH
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Post by NathanH on Nov 5, 2020 8:06:02 GMT
I do wonder where the hell Roger came up with that title... Which song do you mean? If it's A Dozen Of Red Roses For My Darling, it's because Roger gave Joan Armatrading a bunch of red roses after she willingly spoke in several places on Don't Lose Your Head.
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velizar
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Post by velizar on Nov 5, 2020 8:56:38 GMT
The Invisible Man. Fresh song, with the sound of the 80s.
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georg
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Post by georg on Nov 5, 2020 12:12:39 GMT
I do wonder where the hell Roger came up with that title... Which song do you mean? If it's A Dozen Of Red Roses For My Darling, it's because Roger gave Joan Armatrading a bunch of red roses after she willingly spoke in several places on Don't Lose Your Head. That is indeed what I meant, and I never heard that before but it sounds mundane enough to be true!
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Steve
Wordles & Heardles
Queen Mab
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Post by Steve on Nov 13, 2020 11:14:21 GMT
For me it's hard to split it into "modern style vs good production" so I find that I judge everything by "does this sound like it could be released in the last 10 years?". I feel like Ride the Wild Wind is incredibly ahead of its time so that would be my nomination for best sounding. It's synth heavy but primarily strings which you hear a ton in modern songs anyway. It has a very dark, night-ambiance sound, it sounds crisp and clean, and to me the drums sound fantastic even if they're not necessarily real (which I'm not sure about). Another nomination would go to Need Your Loving Tonight - very crisp and clean sounding again, but this time it's a very raw song with very few effects and no synth that I can hear. It might be an older "style" of song but that stuff always tends to come back around anyway - just look at how many 80s sounding songs we have nowadays For bad sound I'd have to say The Night Comes Down. I don't mind the song but it has an old sounding style *and* the drums sound like someone whacking a cardboard box. TNCD is my favourite song on Q1.
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Post by primejiveusa on Feb 20, 2021 6:32:46 GMT
I've always hated the production on One Vision. It sounds unfinished. It's a song that wears thin very fast whereas a song like Hammer to Fall I never tire of.
The Invisible Man sounds horrible too. It has to be the worst drum sound of any Queen song(and that's saying a lot). Jackhammer loud.
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Post by stevedorius on Feb 21, 2021 3:18:06 GMT
TNCD is my favourite song on Q1. I love the acoustic guitar on this track.
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cmsdrums
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Post by cmsdrums on Apr 17, 2021 15:40:01 GMT
The Works is a horrible sounding album - certainly drum wise. All the crash cymbals sound like a China cymbal, the toms are indistinct with no body, and the snare sounds totally ‘ un-Roger’ like.
A Kind of Magic as a whole just sounds far too, clean, clinical and soulless.
Yes, the debut album clearly has a terrible drum sound but at least we know why - an inexperienced band, borrowed and rushed downtime in the studio, and the engineers/producer wanting a certain ‘of the time’ muffled drum sound (which didn’t suit the music).
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Post by soundfreak1 on May 8, 2021 12:51:45 GMT
Interesting Topic! I fully agree with "1" and "Jazz" sounding horrible nowadays and "NOTW" being timeless.
But thinking about that now, it never bothered anyone, when those records came out. Cause I remember every of my friends would listen with a different player or system.
Until the mid 70s I had a mono record player connected to a valve driven 50s Radio. It had a nice warm sound - but mono.
Others had a transitor record player with on built in speaker - no bass at all !!! The "rich kids" had a stereo player with two tiny speakers, you noticed that there were different things happening left and right. But no bass.... If a household had a "hifi"-system with huge speakers, it was usually in the posession of some parents. And even those systems often sounded extremely different.
So how could we know, what is the real sound or the right sound? It was more about the songs. It took to the 80s, that the sound differences of equipment slowly disappeared. And then it became noticible, that the recordings sounded different.
When I feel like listening to "Queen 1" today, I usually prefer the BBC recordings. Most of them use the same backing tracks, but sound fresher, they don't suffer from that weird EQ on "Queen 1"
When it comes to "Jazz", I think that was their "headphone" album. Headphones became popular in the 70s and allowed young people to listen to their music "loud" without annoying their parents or neighbours.
"Mustapha" is a typical headphone song, the difference between tiny mono and "brutal" stereo cannot be reproduced on speakers. Also the thunder at the end of "Dead on Time" sounds like "Dummy Head Stereo", that was very popular then. It turned 2-D stereo into 3-D stereo, but only worked for headphones. "Dummy head stereo" on speakers sounds like an audience recording.... Also to widen the sound it seems, that "Queen" have used phase inverting for some instruments on "Jazz" - like the piano on DSMN.
"1" and "Jazz" were okay "then", but it was a lost opportunity not to remix them for the 2011 remasters.
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BrƎИsꓘi
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Post by BrƎИsꓘi on May 8, 2021 13:50:09 GMT
The Works is a horrible sounding album - certainly drum wise. All the crash cymbals sound like a China cymbal, the toms are indistinct with no body, and the snare sounds totally ‘ un-Roger’ like. A Kind of Magic as a whole just sounds far too, clean, clinical and soulless. Yes, the debut album clearly has a terrible drum sound but at least we know why - an inexperienced band, borrowed and rushed downtime in the studio, and the engineers/producer wanting a certain ‘of the time’ muffled drum sound (which didn’t suit the music). agreed. there's nothing about the sound of the LPs from Game - AKOM that can be called good. i'd say those albums are produced loud for loudness' sake or sound incredibly sterile. the warmness of I and Jazz far outweigh their individual "drum sound" shortfalls. can anyone say (for definite) whether Queen deployed room mics for the drums on I & Jazz, because the overall drum sound does sound as if the room mics weren't "on".
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ted
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Post by ted on May 8, 2021 14:17:42 GMT
When I feel like listening to "Queen 1" today, I usually prefer the BBC recordings. Most of them use the same backing tracks, but sound fresher, they don't suffer from that weird EQ on "Queen 1"
I thought only the June 1973 BBC recording of Keep Yourself Alive used backing tracks (from the February '73 BBC recording of the song)?
Ted
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Post by soundfreak1 on May 8, 2021 15:45:08 GMT
When I feel like listening to "Queen 1" today, I usually prefer the BBC recordings. Most of them use the same backing tracks, but sound fresher, they don't suffer from that weird EQ on "Queen 1"
I thought only the June 1973 BBC recording of Keep Yourself Alive used backing tracks (from the February '73 BBC recording of the song)?
Ted
Besides "Keep yourself alive" also "Doing alright", "My fairy King" and "Liar" use the original backing tracks. Even though they may slightly differ in tape speed. When you correct that, they are identic.
"Most" was probably not the right word to use, but these 4 songs are the "most" important for me from "Queen 1".
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ted
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Post by ted on May 8, 2021 17:44:28 GMT
soundfreak1 wrote: Besides "Keep yourself alive" also "Doing alright", "My fairy King" and "Liar" use the original backing tracks. Even though they may slightly differ in tape speed. When you correct that, they are identic. "Most" was probably not the right word to use, but these 4 songs are the "most" important for me from "Queen 1".
Thanks for your reply; neither My Fairy King or Doing All Right were recorded for any BBC session other than the February 1973 one, therefore there wouldn't be any other backing tracks for these 2 songs.
Ted
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Post by soundfreak1 on May 8, 2021 18:26:20 GMT
soundfreak1 wrote: Besides "Keep yourself alive" also "Doing alright", "My fairy King" and "Liar" use the original backing tracks. Even though they may slightly differ in tape speed. When you correct that, they are identic. "Most" was probably not the right word to use, but these 4 songs are the "most" important for me from "Queen 1".Thanks for your reply; neither My Fairy King or Doing All Right were recorded for any BBC session other than the February 1973 one, therefore there wouldn't be any other backing tracks for these 2 songs. Ted Probably a "language problem" - but I can't understand exactly what you mean ? The "BBC" Fairy King is mixed very differently, but it's the same recording from the record. Same as "Doing".
The BBC recordings have always been a little mystery. You never know, what you are hearing. Many recordings are based on the original tapes like "Queen 1" and "Sheer Heart Attack". The ones for "Queen 2" sound most authentic like being done in a BBC studio with a very basic sound. The ones for "NOTW" are also strange. "Melancholy Blues" and "Spread your Wings" sound "live", while "WWRY" and "It's late" are too polished for a BBC recording. They sound more like real studio outtakes.
Interestingly the so called "BBC"-version of WWRY was first released on an american sampler "The best of King Biscuit live" in 1991. There is no mention of the BBC at all, which is quite unusual. The BBC is known for "not being that generous" giving anything away, if it's their production. Queen were never very open about their recordings.
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Lord Fickle
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Post by Lord Fickle on May 8, 2021 19:22:58 GMT
soundfreak1 wrote: Besides "Keep yourself alive" also "Doing alright", "My fairy King" and "Liar" use the original backing tracks. Even though they may slightly differ in tape speed. When you correct that, they are identic. "Most" was probably not the right word to use, but these 4 songs are the "most" important for me from "Queen 1".Thanks for your reply; neither My Fairy King or Doing All Right were recorded for any BBC session other than the February 1973 one, therefore there wouldn't be any other backing tracks for these 2 songs. Ted Probably a "language problem" - but I can't understand exactly what you mean ? The "BBC" Fairy King is mixed very differently, but it's the same recording from the record. Same as "Doing".
The BBC recordings have always been a little mystery. You never know, what you are hearing. Many recordings are based on the original tapes like "Queen 1" and "Sheer Heart Attack". The ones for "Queen 2" sound most authentic like being done in a BBC studio with a very basic sound. The ones for "NOTW" are also strange. "Melancholy Blues" and "Spread your Wings" sound "live", while "WWRY" and "It's late" are too polished for a BBC recording. They sound more like real studio outtakes.
Interestingly the so called "BBC"-version of WWRY was first released on an american sampler "The best of King Biscuit live" in 1991. There is no mention of the BBC at all, which is quite unusual. The BBC is known for "not being that generous" giving anything away, if it's their production. Queen were never very open about their recordings.
I was always so disappointed that they "ruined" what would have been a very good version of It's Late with that stupid interjection from GDML.
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ted
Ploughman
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Post by ted on May 8, 2021 21:23:50 GMT
soundfreak1 wrote: Probably a "language problem" - but I can't understand exactly what you mean ? The "BBC" Fairy King is mixed very differently, but it's the same recording from the record. Same as "Doing".
The BBC recordings have always been a little mystery. You never know, what you are hearing. Many recordings are based on the original tapes like "Queen 1" and "Sheer Heart Attack". The ones for "Queen 2" sound most authentic like being done in a BBC studio with a very basic sound. The ones for "NOTW" are also strange. "Melancholy Blues" and "Spread your Wings" sound "live", while "WWRY" and "It's late" are too polished for a BBC recording. They sound more like real studio outtakes. Interestingly the so called "BBC"-version of WWRY was first released on an american sampler "The best of King Biscuit live" in 1991. There is no mention of the BBC at all, which is quite unusual. The BBC is known for "not being that generous" giving anything away, if it's their production. Queen were never very open about their recordings.
When you state above that many (BBC) recordings are based on the original tapes like "Queen 1" and "Sheer Heart Attack", are you inferring that they used the backing tracks from the album versions/recordings of those songs and just added new vocals and maybe some other embellishments to them for the BBC versions? I've always been under the impression that (with the exception of the previously mentioned June '73 BBC recording of KYA) all of the songs recorded for the BBC were completely recorded on the dates indicated on the releases (At The Beeb, On Air), i.e. Feb.5 '73, Dec.3 '73, etc.
Ted
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 8, 2021 21:53:06 GMT
I was always so disappointed that they "ruined" what would have been a very good version of It's Late with that stupid interjection from GDML. I've just cut that part out (as best I could) If you'd like to hear it PM me.
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