Tull Remastered
Posted by: Harry on 26 August 2006
Songs From The Wood has been complimented more than once in here for the quality of the remaster. So it won’t come as a surprise to see a thumbs up coming from this direction. Magnificent. I don’t know how it was done, but it sounds like a whole new album. Only spoiled for me by skipping on the last track. Now we’ll see what HMV Japan are like at handling returns.
However, the reason for this post is to alert any who are interested that Under Wraps remastered is also a tour de force. Probably one of their least admired albums and forgotten by many, this has always been a favourite because of its un Tull like presentation and quirkiness. I think at the time the musical direction of this album set alarm bells off but it turned out to be no more than a momentary detour. It’s always been a difficult recording to listen to on sound quality. Bright and hard. Successive upgrades have not tamed it but have allowed a better appreciation of the compositions and playing. The Japanese remaster (in miniature LP sleeve) has the kind of weight and scale that the album always deserved and majors on well balanced detail and subtlety. A long time coming but worth the wait.
With the exception of Warchild (which to my ears is an abomination and a huge disappointment since I like the album so much) all the Tull remasters I now have are of superb quality, rendering their predecessors flat at best and unlistenable at worst. But the dodgy knock off that is Warchild makes me wonder if there are any more howlers lurking in the remastered catalogue. I’ve got Benefit, Living In The Past, Aqualung, Warchild, Under Wraps and Stormwatch. Songs From The Wood is probably the strongest of them all as an advert for remastering – but my defective copy will have to go back.
Cheers
However, the reason for this post is to alert any who are interested that Under Wraps remastered is also a tour de force. Probably one of their least admired albums and forgotten by many, this has always been a favourite because of its un Tull like presentation and quirkiness. I think at the time the musical direction of this album set alarm bells off but it turned out to be no more than a momentary detour. It’s always been a difficult recording to listen to on sound quality. Bright and hard. Successive upgrades have not tamed it but have allowed a better appreciation of the compositions and playing. The Japanese remaster (in miniature LP sleeve) has the kind of weight and scale that the album always deserved and majors on well balanced detail and subtlety. A long time coming but worth the wait.
With the exception of Warchild (which to my ears is an abomination and a huge disappointment since I like the album so much) all the Tull remasters I now have are of superb quality, rendering their predecessors flat at best and unlistenable at worst. But the dodgy knock off that is Warchild makes me wonder if there are any more howlers lurking in the remastered catalogue. I’ve got Benefit, Living In The Past, Aqualung, Warchild, Under Wraps and Stormwatch. Songs From The Wood is probably the strongest of them all as an advert for remastering – but my defective copy will have to go back.
Cheers