BITCHES BREW - Page 2

Absolutely essentially, imo. And only 36 bucks from yourmusic.

I don't think so. I have a McCormack UDP-1 univeral disc player which sounds great as my digital frontend and a Linn Sondek LP12 turntable with a Lingo power supply, an Ittok tonearm, a Zu Xaus tonearm cable, a Grado Statement cartridge and a Grado phono preamp as my analog frontend. I just happen to feel that analog sounds at least as good as, if not better than, digital but that's not really the point of this discussion.

Teo Macero, while he was right there beside Miles in the trenches, so to speak, fighting the good fight for electric jazz, and producing some of Miles' most controversial recordings, did not make high quality recordings from an audio standpoint. They pretty much sounded like mud. That has nothing to do with whether they are played back via digital or analog. Plus, as I already stated, I will give a listen to the various versions an report back my impressions.

My comment was addressed to the threadstarter, not to you.

Mea culpa. So sorry.

as you see, i got a live evil as my avatar. i don't like just like the record. i love the record. this is easily a top, 5, maybe top 3 of my favorite record of all genre. so when the six cd box set the cellar door sessions 1970 first came out. i got it in the first week and i haven't done this for a long time. as for now only 36 bucks? i still don't regret that i paid a hundred dollars for them. worth every single penny and more.
one side note, the box set is an not really extent version of live evil. yes but there are songs you don't find in the box set. so for those of you thinking getting which one. this is really your call. of course if you ask me, i say get the live evil first. it's cheaper and you get a taste of this and if you want more. you'll know what do to.

as for bitches brew. i remember i got it like, about a month after i got live evil. it's just not the same. i don't know. i'm not saying bitches brew is bad but just not the same as live evil.

Well as I promised a couple of posts back, I got out all my various copies of "Bitches Brew" and gave them a listen.

First I listened to the first 5 to 6 minutes of "Pharaoh Dance" from each different version. Here's the versions that I listened to: the original LP issue that I bought back in the early 1970s, the original CD release, the Mosaic LP reissue of "The Complete Bitches Brew Sessions", which was made from the analog masters and the CD remaster of the 4 CD set of "The Complete Bitches Brew Sessions".

My impressions.

The original LP - sounded very good, nice overall sound, good balance, crisp and clear cymbals

The original CD - totally sucked, No cymbals what so ever, none, as in they just were not there, a fatal flaw. Do not buy this disc, even used for a dollar!!!

Remastered CD - Sounds just like the original LP. Clean, crisp, lots of energy, good cymbals. A very good remastering job.

Mosaic LPs - Not a crisp as the original LP or the remastered CD. The high end is lacking, the cymbals are there but rather recessed. Too laid back.

I have to say that many of the early CD releases, and "Bitches Brew" was an early CD release, were rather badly done and many have benefitted from remastering. As you can see, you can also try to find a copy of the LP at a yard sale for $1 and save some money but then you can't get a copy onto your iPod quite as easily.

I'm reviving this old thread because I have a question about the sound of the Rhodes piano on this album.  I have the original cd release and I find it very difficult to listen to because of the harsh distortion I hear, quite apart from the generally muddy sound.

 

I would like to know if the distorted sound of the Rhodes is present or as prominent on any other versions of Bitches Brew, particularly the Legacy re-masters.  I find the music to be quite compelling and I would very much like to get into this album and enjoy it more, but the Rhodes sound is very off-putting.  I will buy this album again if I could get a version with a smoother Rhodes sound.

 

TIA (c:

 

I have the 99 release and the Rhodes sounds okay to me. I've never had any problems with the sound.

Can you hear even a mild distortion on the Rhodes?  I think a small amount is normal as I've heard it on other recordings.  I just feel that it is unnaturally pronounced on (my copy of) Bitches Brew and is quite distracting.  There is no unnatural distortion that I can discern on Miles' trumpet and other instruments in the same frequency range, which leads me to believe that it's a problem with the recording and/or the mastering.  I'm hoping that it's the latter (and not just me, either ).

It is. Distortion is part of the Rhodes Piano sound. But in the 99 release it sounds pretty good. It isn't too much and it doesn't sound like any was added accidentally or otherwise during production.

Thank you, much appreciated.  This has bothered me for a while and I'm very pleased to have it cleared up.

No problem. If possible why don't you try to demo that particular release before you buy it? Just to make sure.

Good idea, I will if I can.

Cheers.

I prefer the original mix be it on vinyl or CD.

Did you mean the original master?  Any comments re: distortion of the Rhodes between different masters...