STRAWBERRY in deadwax

A recent Rod Stewart thread turned into a thread about pressings with the word "STRAWBERRY" stamped in the deadwax.

http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?p=532605

What the scoop with Strawberry? Anybody know?

 

A lot of the 70s UK pressings ... Asylum, Warner Brothers, Atlantic, Riva had Strawberry in the dead wax. THEY SOUNDED DIABOLICAL. I had some Warren Zevon, Jackson Browne, Led Zeppelin, Don Henley albums with Strawberry in the dead wax. I spent years replacing all my UK pressings with US ones that had the original mastering.
The best way I can describe these pressings is to imagine listening to your hi-fi and someone walks into the room and throws a couple of jackets over your speakers. Behold, no treble, no bass no separation. Flat, lifeless sound and the pressing quality wasn't much better.
JG

PS: In all the years buying UK LPs I never saw Strawberry credited on a sleeve as the mastering house on any LP.

 

I listened to my Strawberry copy of "In Through The Out Door" last night. Tonight I will compare to my remastered CD, but my initial reaction was similar to what you described. It wasn't terrible, but it was mostly midrange. This was a US copy that I bought in the early 80s. If memory servers me right, I bought it new at a local department store (Murphey's Mart). It was in the bargain bin... mostly cut-outs, but the Zeps were not. They were in the paper sleeves... I should have bought them all for the different covers, but I was just a kid and barely afforded the one I bought.

 

I have two versions of the following albums ...
Manifesto (Roxy Music) mastered by George Piros at Atlantic - excellent
Manifesto (Roxy Music) mastered at strawberry - awful

Don Henley I Can't Stand Still mastered at the Mastering Lab - excellent
Don Henley I Can't Stand Still mastered at Strawberry - dull and flat.

When you listen to Dirty Laundry on the TML version the opening bass and drum sound is very alive and punchy.
On the Strawberry pressing half of the percussive instrument are non existent and bass is muddy and indistinct (like what bass sounds like when your speakers are out of phase).

It is only when you compare the two pressings that you see how bad the Strawberry stuff is.
JG

 

WOW! This is why I love this site! Great info.

 

Came across this from a recent Elvis Costello review on Analog Planet:

I compared this Mo-Fi reissue with a UK original F-Beat mastered by "NOEL" (Sommerville), who worked at Pye when this album was first issued, with a German F-Beat that was mastered at the always excellent STRAWBERRY mastering, a facility owned by 10CC, with a FIEND reissue (E.C.'s label) with a Japanese pressing.


I think I own a few German WEA albums with the Strawberry stamp in the deadwax, I will give them a listen...

 

I'll sort of second the 'average sound quality' at Strawberry mastering. Some of the stuff isn't too bad (they were credited when they did the *first* mastering of a record, though strangely 10cc's Sheet Music retained the US Sterling credit - you'll have a hard job telling any sonic difference though).

Sometimes the originals are bad, and so seeing that Strawberry mark or scribble does at least point to an alternative.

One of my memories is of a Strawberry 'Rickie Lee Jones' trashing the Popular Hi-Fi Supercut of the same recording at an audio show.

 

I've never heard a good Strawberry mastering.

 

i've got a 70s uk copy of rainbow bridge that has strawberry in the dead wax.should i be looking for a better sounding version of this album?sorry if this is a threadcrap.

 

They didn't just master UK pressings. I recall some US pressings from Strawberry as well. I think Yes' Tormato (US Atlantic first pressing) was mastered there...

 

All my UK Gary Numan pressings are marked "Strawberry" and they sound amazing!

 

My copy has a credit "Disc cutting Sean Davis at Strawberry Studios, London" on the inner sleeve, and side one has "STRAWBERRY Sean" in the deadwax.

 

I've seen Strawberry quite often in the deadwax but don't necessarily associate it with poor mastering. I wish I could name some titles but all I can remember offhand is that I've often seen it on UK Warner LPs pressed in Germany so you get Strawberry and R/S Alsdorf stamped in the same deadwax. Alsdorf pressings can sometimes be a bit ticky but I can't recall taking a strong dislike to any masterings.

 

The mastering engineer who signed as "Strawberry" was named Sean something. Don't know his last name. He mastered Going for the One and Tormato. All the plates for these two albums came from those masters for The U.K., The U.S. and Japan.

There was a later George Piros cut of Going for the One that is better. Not very common.

 

The odd thing with Strawberry is that most of the LP masterings I have come across, with the exception of their Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, have been indifferent to mediocre.

Their 7" singles are a different matter entirely. I have lots of them; I'm not exaggerating when I say that I believe every one of them to be definitive. Each time I find one, I think it will be good; it turns out to be superb.

The 7" singles of "Are Friends Electric?" and "Cars" were done at Strawberry - enough said.

 

Was Strawberry stamped or handwritten?

JG

 

How strange, Strawberry Studios (North and South and in S France) had the highest regard in the 70s
Eric Stewart ( 10 cc gtr) had great ears..... and kit.

 

Handwritten

 

The only LP I have seen with Strawberry handwritten is Roxy Music's 'Manifesto', I have a US copy as well but it was mastered by George Piros.

I used to have a lot of UK Asylum LPs, e.g. Warren Zevon, Jackson Browne, Linda Ronstadt, John David Souther which had Strawberry stamped in the deadwax. I was never impressed by the sound, finding them woolly, indistinct and flat. It was only when I bought a US copy of Don Henley's first solo LP originally mastered by Doug Sax at The Mastering Lab that I realised how bad they sounded, so over the years I replaced all my UK Asylum LPs with US copies, the best decision I ever made.

I was surprised when Michael Fremer recently praised Strawberry masterings on his AnalogPlanet website. I hate them!

JG

 

My copy of Going For The One doesn't mention Strawberry but it does have "Sean" (handwritten) who I assume is the same guy who cut Tormato.

 

There are both stamped and handwritten Strawberry mastered discs.

Like I said upstream, they're probably OK for original work, but many of those UK reissues (from who-knows-what tapes) are not impressive even if they're the only copy you've heard.

 

the link to the rod stewart thread does not seem to work.is it just my computer or is anyone else having problems?

 

My original copy of New Order's Power Corruption & Lies has Strawberry stamped in the deadwax and it sounds great?