Steve - a Q for you re: Humorem...

[indy mike]

Hey Humorem and Steve - what's your working relationship? Does our record selling buddy feed the guru the lowdown on what presses to listen to as a reference when mastering tapes is going on, or do you have a more Jan and Dean sorta thing going here??? (you decide who's who with that one...) :D

[Steve Hoffman]

Were friends. Elliot Midwood, an Audiophile equipment dealer here in Los Angeles (Acoustic Image) had a store across the street from Jerry's Deli in Studio City. A bunch of us used to hang out over there. Elliot told me that I should meet Tom and that I would get a kick out of him. Tom supplied Elliot's store with LP's to sell.

So, Elliot, Tom and I had lunch at Jerry's one day back in 1995 and hit it off. I mentioned to Tom at that lunch that I had just read a letter or article in The Absolute Sound that totally went against the popular notion of Audiophile reissue albums being always better than the originals. I said that in some cases I agreed with that statement. Tom said that he wrote that article, (just like in "When Harry Met Sally" actually). So we hit it off! We don't agree on everything, that's for sure, but I like his dedication.

Simple as that.

[Humorem]

Indy Mike,

Steve doesn't need my advice, that's for damn sure. He has the tapes and the skills. What's he need me for? If anybody knows what he's doing, he does!

I see my role as more of a pest, actually, with my posts stirring up trouble that he then has to take time to explain. :D

He doesn't need me to tell him his work his good. We all know it is!

TP

[indy mike]

Official pest poster - Mr. H.U Morem, that could be your sign off signature!!! :D Since I gots your ear, any thoughts on good presses of Spector stuff??? Steve axed about them awhile back on the board, and most of us true believers don't care much (if at all) for the GRABKCO (oops, ABKCO) set...

[Steve Hoffman]

Not his thing, Mono Mike! We are on our own.

[indy mike]

You mean we gotta spend our hard earned geets and listen ourselves - no freebie tips??? Oooooh, I'm dyin' again....

[Humorem]

Indy Mike,
I know all the secret stampers but I'm not telling. Prove that I don't!

Steve's right, no idea on that guy. Doubt if the CDs do it much justice. Need that vinyl magic on stuff like that, purely speculating of course.
TP

[indy mike]

You're right about the cee-dees - they are pretty bad - perhaps our pal Steve might want to elaborate on what went wrong??? Spector's stuff needs to throb and the digital drink coasters don't do it; man, I have got to get my phono section in my Adcom rebuilt - I'm desperate enough to hear Spector via the Warner-Spector set with Phil pictured as a big old balloon! :rolleyes:

[Paul Chang]

Originally posted by Steve Hoffman
So, Elliot, Tom and I had lunch at Jerry's one day back in 1995 and hit it off. I mentioned to Tom at that lunch that I had just read a letter or article in The Absolute Sound that totally went against the popular notion of Audiophile reissue albums being always better than the originals. I said that in some cases I agreed with that statement. Tom said that he wrote that article, (just like in "When Harry Met Sally" actually). So we hit it off! Tom, Steve, anyone,

In which issue of TAS was Tom's Classic RCA reissue "hit piece" published? I give up for I've got no time to look for it! I need the time for catching up all the threads on SH Forums. :rolleyes:

While I was looking for Tom's article/letter, I ran across Master Hoffman's letter in Issue 103 in response to one Barry Diament's bitching about too much noise and bass on the DCC Compact Classics Beach Boys Pet Sounds 24 carat gold CD. That Diament guy sure had no clue about his own gibberish. And it was quite entertaining to reread the exchange between Michael Fremer, who had left TAS to start TTA :mad:, and Diament in Issue 102. MF wrote a letter to defend Steve while slamming BD and HP of TAS at the same time. BD then fired back at MF for being an ungrateful egomaniac and all that. Quite a scene with those two characters. Got to give it to MF for telling the truth on Pet Sounds, though.

[Humorem]

If I knew which issues I would tell you. 1994 or 1995 would be my guess. I have a bunch of back issues in a box where they belong but no time to read them to find it!
TP

[Steve Hoffman]

Originally posted by Paul Chang
Tom, Steve, anyone,

In which issue of TAS was Tom's Classic RCA reissue "hit piece" published? I give up for I've got no time to look for it! I need the time for catching up all the threads on SH Forums. :rolleyes:

While I was looking for Tom's article/letter, I ran across Master Hoffman's letter in Issue 103 in response to one Barry Diament's bitching about too much noise and bass on the DCC Compact Classics Beach Boys Pet Sounds 24 carat gold CD. That Diament guy sure had no clue about his own gibberish. And it was quite entertaining to reread the exchange between Michael Fremer, who had left TAS to start TTA :mad:, and Diament in Issue 102. MF wrote a letter to defend Steve while slamming BD and HP of TAS at the same time. BD then fired back at MF for being an ungrateful egomaniac and all that. Quite a scene with those two characters. Got to give it to MF for telling the truth on Pet Sounds, though.

Yeah, I remember that! Barry meant well, but it was obvious he never actually heard Pet Sounds, other than the mono "recreation" done at Capitol. This is the one that they went back to the multi-tracks and used the beginnings of the songs before overdubs so they would sound "cleaner", and then no-noised them anyway, while shaving off the bass.

So, Barry heard ours and thought that the opening to "Wouldn't It Be Nice" on the DCC disc was "too noisy", and that I (yes, he thought that I) turned the fader up when the drum came in before the vocal! So I told him that "no, I didn't turn the fader up, it was mixed that way, and is that way on every version of Pet Sounds ever released", etc. etc. etc. And I told him that the bass was on the master tapes that way, just like Brian Wilson wanted it, and STILL he bitched. So Michael Fremer stepped in, bless him.

Ah well. I wouldn't have minded any of that, but the guy never had a real version of Pet Sounds to compare the DCC to, so how could he tell? Not his fault I guess.

I wonder what the current silver mono "Pet Sounds" is like on Capitol? Did they just use the master tape, or did they use the "recreated" version that originally came out?

[Paul Chang]

Originally posted by Humorem
If I knew which issues I would tell you. 1994 or 1995 would be my guess. I have a bunch of back issues in a box where they belong but no time to read them to find it!
TP Tom,

Do you remember whether it was a letter or an article? It would be helpful if you can tell me in which section of the magazine to look for it. Thanks!

[Kevin Sypolt]

Originally posted by Steve Hoffman
I wonder what the current silver mono "Pet Sounds" is like on Capitol? Did they just use the master tape, or did they use the "recreated" version that originally came out?
I just pulled out both the latest Capitol remaster and the DCC Gold and listened... Capitol has learned from the master... They use the same version that you did (complete with our friend Mr. tape hiss!) Of course Capitol's does not sound as good as the DCC from that point on, but I think you, as they say, "set the standard". Good job! :)

[Steve Hoffman]

Well thank the Lord for that!

[Kevin Sypolt]

Actually, after listening to each intro five more times, I do believe that Capitol remaster DID use the recreated intro... The DCC does seem to "fade up" slowly with the tape hiss coming up with it (no doubt because of the overdubs that you mention). The Capitol has a solid amount of hiss the whole way through the intro. Interesting. I still prefer yours (and Brian's) way Steve. Sorry for the mis-information earlier. :rolleyes:

[Humorem]

Originally posted by Paul Chang
Tom,

Do you remember whether it was a letter or an article? It would be helpful if you can tell me in which section of the magazine to look for it. Thanks!
Letter. They don't pay bombthrowers like me to shake up the system. They ask people like me to please leave the asylum so as not to disturb the inmates.
TP:eek:

[Paul Chang]

Originally posted by Humorem

Letter. They don't pay bombthrowers like me to shake up the system. They ask people like me to please leave the asylum so as not to disturb the inmates.
TP:eek: Tom,

I have to say that HP made the right call there. You could have scared them inmates out of the asylum. There is already one too many Humorem out scouring hot stampers.

A letter circa 1994/95? Hmm, how come Issue 96, unlike 89-95, has no Better Records ad in it? Wow, a Tom Port letter under the headline "II: Egg on Fremer's Face?" and MF's response! What? MF called TP a "f---ing a--hole" on his answering machine and called him in a letter "a larger number of unprintable names"! :eek: What? TP said in his catalog that MF's review was a joke and Doug Sax must be stopped! :eek: What? MF implied TP "a fool of a used-record dealer, quite jealous of Kassem's enterprise"! :eek: What? TP wrote what MF "doesn't seem to know much about these days is sound"! :eek: What? MF said TP "uses a Technics direct drive turntable with a strain gauge cartridge and Fulton speakers"! :eek:

I didn't know you guys go way back, Tom. But this ain't the letter I am looking for. Where's the RCA Classic Records "reviews"? Did somebody else quote your catalogs in TAS? You ought to keep them for the archive of the future Tom Port Memorial Library!

[Humorem]

That's the letter that Steve saw and got such a kick out of.

MF (and nobody else for that matter) ever mentions those records anymore. Know why? Because they are bad records. It just took them a bit longer to figure it out. They didn't have my Technics table to show them. See, you don't need high priced equipment to know that the emperor is neked.

They didn't like some upstart from LA telling them their business any more than the people on this forum did. But everybody gets used to me eventually. And now I advertise with TAS. Oh happy day.

And the comments that got me tossed out of TAS were in my catalog. I said Harry had lost it when he liked those godawful Classic records, and he disagreed with me.

And if you want to have a good laugh, read the TAS list. Some of the worst records I have ever heard in my life are on that list.

Perhaps we should start a THS list: The Hoffman Sound list. It may not be absolute, but you can listen to it. It ain't Gerhard's The Plague!

I could have my own list, but then I would have to give out the stamper numbers, and I just can't do that.:D

TP

[Steve Hoffman]

Tom's opinions are, of course, his own.

I like Doug Sax's work.

[Paul Chang]

Originally posted by Humorem
I could have my own list, but then I would have to give out the stamper numbers, and I just can't do that.:D

TP No, you don't, not until they contribute enough to your library fund. And have the donors' retinas scanned so only they can read the list through a special viewing device. Need an executive director to run the foundation? :D