Re: [ARSCLIST] Pristine's rework of Robert Johnson

[Don Cox <doncox@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On 11/12/07, Ryan Jurison wrote:

> I generally stick to reading most of the discussions on this list, but
> this brought up some interesting thoughts for me. Now, it should be
> noted that I have extremely limited experience with audio engineering,
> and absolutely no professional experience, so I come from the vantage
> point of someone who, at this time, merely enjoys listening to vintage
> records, primarily through CD reissues. I have, however, recently
> begun collecting 78's, but am still quite new to that.
> 
> With that preface in mind, I do think that having very clean and more
> modern sounding versions of these old records is sort of a mixed
> blessing. For all the increased clarity, and ability to pick up
> subtleties that might have been previously obscured by the limitations
> of records that are 70 + years old, there will be a loss of a certain
> charm. I'm 24, so I have no nostalgic feelings about "shellac noise,"
> having rarely and only recently heard it in person, but even on the CD
> reissues, the surface noise transferred over retains an approximation
> of fact, for me... you're listening to an old record on a modern CD,
> but it still sounds like an old record!
> 
And what is the advantage of that?

Personally, I want to hear the nearest thing possible to what I would
have heard had I been in the studio at the time. If I want to hear
bacon-frying noises, I can go fry some bacon.

Of course, attempts to remove all noise will spoil the music, so one has
to tolerate some. But the music is what I pay for, not noise or
distortion.

> Particularly when it comes to guys like Robert Johnson, Blind Willie
> Johnson, Charley Patton, and many other great bluesmen and women, the
> records wouldn't sound "right" all perfectly cleaned up, in my
> opinion. While I can appreciate the academic and otherwise useful
> nature of a perfect and blemish-free sound, at what point does it
> liken to trying to photograph a child's finger paintings with a
> high-definition camera? Just my humble cent-and-a-half.

False analogy, IMO. It is more like removing the dirt and scratches from
an old photograph. 
> 

Regards
-- 
Don Cox
doncox@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx