Jimi Hendrix on cd...questions...best version?

My friend is over here right now with the following cds:

Electric Ladyland Reprise 6307-2
Axis: Bold As Love Reprise 6281-2
Are You Experienced? Reprise W2-6261

I'm wondering how these compare to the MCA remasters from '97, which I have somewhere around here. I'm guessing his older discs are better sounding?

 

For many folks, the older the better.

 

Most of the older discs have NR. The MCA '97 discs are considererd best by most people.

 

Seems like every Jimi CD I've ever heard(except for European Polydor issues)seem NR'd, so keeping that caveat in mind, you might as well go with the current EH discs. They seem pretty good sounding to me.

Evan

 

I was referring to the old West German CDs and the even older Japan first releases. I don't think any of those have noise reduction, and I believe the first USA releases on CD didn't either...the noise reduction was added for the second go-round IIRC.

 

The 1997 Experience Hendrix are from original master tapes. For some people they are mastered too loud but IMO they're very musical and carefully produced.
2nd position would be the German Polydor.

 

I have heard several different digital Hendrix discs. My recent fav is this one:

http://www.ralphscomiccorner.com/cds/jimikiss.html

Although not perfect, I think some of the tracks are taken from true masters. Sound is not EQ'd funny or maximized at all. Could use a little bit of Steve's tube warmth, but I haven't heard anything better.

 

Check out this thread: http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?t=32511

 

I have 85 Jimi Hendrix CDs right now, so I do have an opinion on the subject. Actually the current Experience Hendrix remasters are considered the worse Hendrix CDs ever made because they are compressed and maximized and have been eq'ed. You really have to be carefull with Hendrix CDs when you buy older ones, because some of them have been no-noised to heck. My favorites from best to worse are as follows:

1. Japanese Polydor P20P series.
2. Japanese Polydor P33P series.
3. West German Polydor.
4. Early Canadian Warner Reprise.
5. Early US Warner Reprise, before noise-reduction was added.
6. 1993 Mankowitz remasters.
6. Experience Hendrix remasters.

Be careful with the old Warners. Some have been no-noised and some are flat transfers. They are easy to tell apart. The no-noise ones are marked, "Are You Experienced, LTD. Remastered by Joe Gastwirt using the Sonic Solutions Noise Reduction system under the supervision of Alan Douglas."
Happy hunting.

 

Although I only have 85 Jimi Hendrix CDs right now, I did have 122 around December of 202, all of them Polydors, Warners and MCAs. I have gotten rif of a few, but I am also in the market for more. Right now I own:

ARE YOU EXPERIENCED
1. Japanese Polydor P33P
2. West German Polydor
3. Original CINRAM Warner brothers, pre Are You Experienced, LTD.
4. Original DIDX Warner Brothers
5. 1993 MCA Joe Gastwirt remaster
6. 1997 MCA Eddie Kramer remaster

AXIS: BOLD AS LOVE
1. Japanese Polydor P20P.
2. Japanese Polydor P33P
3. US Warner Reprise, pre Are You Experienced, LTD.
4. 1993 Joe Gastwirt remaster
5. 1998 Eddie Kramer remaster

ELECTRIC LADYLAND
1. Japanese Polydor P20P (with nudes on the cover and the correct song sequence)
2. West German Polydor (with nudes and in-correct song sequence)
3. US Warner Brothers 2 disc set with the in-correct song sequence
4. US Warner Brothers 1 disc set with the in-correct song sequence
5. 1993 MCA Joe Gastwirt remastered with proper song sequence
6. 1997 MCA Eddie Kramer remaster with correct song sequence

Of course I have many other Hendrix CDs, but this is a run-down of the most controversial titles.

 

Just for the sake of accuracy... the 1997 releases were actually mastered by George Marino. Eddie Kramer was involved, but he's not the mastering engineer.

 

"Kiss The Sky" sounds good but I don't believe it was taken from the actual 1st generation masters. Those tapes were in the hands of Chas Chandler (he paid for the studio time and held the tapes) who, to the best of my knowledge, allowed them to be introduced to the CD age with the '97 Experience Hendrix discs.

 

Which issue had the Hendrix stamps?

 

The 1993 MCA reissues with the alternate covers.

 

Thanks Mike

 

Rockman is correct in that the Marino/Kramer EH remasters are maximized (reaching the nadir in First Rays), but in my opinion, they mostly sound very good. I don't think that you will go far wrong by getting them. The notes are better written than the "Don't eat the brown acid" notes of the Alan Douglas era releases, and the booklets are better. Certainly, in a sonic shoot out between the similar songs on Voodoo Soup and First Rays, First Rays wins hands down IMHO. The Douglas era MCA CDs sounded pretty good, even though Eddie Kramer claims those remasters were done from tapes at least a generation removed from the ones he used in the EH remasters.

 

Actually, VOODOO SOUP is the only one of the 1993 MCA Mankowitz series that has additional tracks mixed in that were recorded after Jim's death, (the now famous Alan Douglas post-humous tracks), whereas FIRST RAYS does not suffer from this fate . If I were gived the choice to listen to the 1993 MCA remaster of ARE YOU EXPERIENCED or the 1997 Experience Hendrix version of this same title, I would choose to listen to the 1993 Mankowitz version

 

Why do we call the '93 discs the "Mankowitz versions" when they were mastered by Joe Gastwrit? Who is Mankowitz? Does anyone remember the public feud between Gastwrit and Kramer over EH's marketing campaign over who used what tapes? Kramer claimed the Eh discs were the first time the 2 track masters were used but Gastwrit claimed he used the masters of AYE and EL and that the Axis master was lost years ago. Gastwrit said the tapes he used (for AYE and EL) had splices in them and that if they were copies (of course) the splices wouldn't be there. Interesting stuff...

Chris

 

Someone can correct me here, but I think Mankowitz was the fellow that did the "improved" cover art for these releases.

I tried these versions, and they seemed dull to me with too much noise reduction.

Although Jimi is one of my favorite artists, I dont give him as much listening time as I should because I can't find digital versions to my liking.

 

Yes, as SamS states, Gered Mankowitz is indeed the artist that did the unique cover art as well as the pictures on the disc. As far as Jimi's VOODOO SOUP goes, it has always been umored that Hendrix was working on a 5th album before he died, the now in-famous unfinished 5th. After he died, Polydor rushed to market a lot of "new Hendrix material" (i.e. not released before Hendrix's death). Some of these albums sound fantastic on CD and contain none of the dreaded post-humous multi-tracks. Check out MIDNIGHT LIGHTING, WAR HEROES, THE CRY OF LOVE and LOOSE ENDS. All are available on CD and all actually sound very, very nice. I have the Japanese Polydor P20P version of MIDNIGHT LIGHTING (which I paid $100 for) that just sounds drop dead phenomenal. You can usually pick up a mint West German Polydor of MIDNIGHT LIGHTING for under $50, and I have owned one of these and it also sounds great. Very unique material including a sonically flawless studio version of MACHINE GUN. This disc also contains the very famous Hendrix composition TRASHMAN as well as the first version of GYPSY BOY (NEW RISING SUN). Jon Bon Jovi's uncle, Tony Bongiovi, was the producer of this album. It is well worth a listen.

 

Rocky...Was CRY OF LOVE (CD) ever released here in the States on Reprise? Thanks.

Jim W

 

While I've haven't listened to any of the various 80's Hendrix CD's in ages I think it's safe to assume that ALL pre EH Jimi CD's either aren't sourced from the 2 track stereo masters and/or are no noised. You have to choose the lesser of 2 evils....a CD mastered from a random safety copy pulled from the vault or the EH CD's mastered from the 2 track stereo masters but MAXIMIZED. To their credit EH used the right tapes (with the exception of Stone Free) and didn't use any noise reduction (all of the EH stuff is very hissy). Of course they completely dropped the ball by mastering the damn things so loud. Can someone post a screenshot of the WAV's of some EH releases so we can see just how maximized they are? The Berkeley disc doesn't seem as loud as their earlier releases...

 

I'm not Rocky but yes it was.

 

I have the Reprise Cry as well.

FWIW, I've always thought the most recent masterings of the holy 3 Hendrix records work best. I own a few Polydor Lps that have a bit more magic, but the recent MCA's are very good.