New 2006 Miles Davis remasters?

I was browsing amazon.ca for Miles Davis CDs and noticed new 2006 remasters available at domestic prices. What's going on? I haven't seen any announcement on the official MD web site.

Here is what I am talking about:

Nefertiti: Nefertiti (Rm) (W/4 Bonus Tracks)

Bitches Brew: Bitches Brew [Import]

Any ideas?

Thanks

 

I can't believe they'd start anew without completing the current remastering cycle. At minimum they still have the Tokyo concerts that comprised AGARTHA and PANGAEA, the post-sabbatical records, possibly an ON THE CORNER sessions box . . .

 

I bet these are the same as what's already out there, mastering-wise. Same bonus tracks.

 

Funny you should mention it, I was looking at Paul Tingen's Miles Beyond web site earlier today and he mentioned that Bob Belden is back to working on a On the Corner box ...

 

Yay, great news... I'm waiting on any miscellaneous takes of IFE

 

Aren't these the recent Japanese reissues?

 

Meaning, not new remasters?

 

There's certainly no point in revisiting the Miles Columbia catalog. Legacy has done a helluva job over the last several years.

 

hi all,

did a quick search on the net, and without any further investigation, it looks as though Sony Japan is set to re-release a bunch (all?) of Miles' catalogue again, starting around November 2006 - just go to HMV Japan's website and do a search.

it says they are limited edition, paper sleeves.

anyone know if these are just strict reissues of the latest Japanese masterings?



thanx!

 

I think with the exception of the Gil Evans box which sounds very harsh on my ears...

Also, if they reissued all the boxes as Hybrid-SACDs I'd buy them all again and get rid of my CD only ones.

 

i don't care for the sound on the Gil Evans box, either. Phil 'Shrill' Schaap really doesn't belong at a mastering console. harsh, but that's my humble opinion.

 

they usually are. These come out every few years

 

hi GregK,

thanx for the reply.

yeah, i figured they might be, just wasn't 100% sure. anyhow, i may pick some up, especially being that i don't have any of the remasters, bar "Kind Of Blue".

i wonder if these will be DSD masterings, as i believe the last batch of Japanese CD re-masters were.

also, were there hybrid DSD SACD's released of all of Miles' albums? in particular, i like the period from 1968 to late 1970's.



thanx all!

 

The only Miles Davis Sony hybrid SACD is the european edition of "Kind of Blue"

http://www.sa-cd.net/showtitle/1543

 

hi Claude,

thanx for the heads up!

being that i don't have SACD capability (yet), i'll definitely pick up a few of these new Japanese issues upon their release.

i'd imagine they sound wonderful.

thanx!

 

BUMP

has anyone picked up these latest Japanese Miles Davis remasters (and can comment on the sonics)?



thanx!

 

Do you mean like the DSD remasters of Pangea and Agharta? If so, they sound excellent, and are substantial improvements over the only Contemporary Masters U.S. versions. Well worth it if you want to hear Michael Henderson's bass!

 

hi ShowsOn,

thanx for the reply!

yes, i'm referring to the latest Japanese CD releases from late 2006 - just curious how they hold up against the current US CD's.



...BTW, those two in your post above sound like winners! i've never heard those albums, so will have to check them out.

thanx!

 

I'd rather see them release the 5.1 SACD version of Jack Johnson. There are fine CD versions of his catalog currently out that sound great.

 

If you like Miles' Fusion period, then go for Agharta forthwith. Pangea is great as well, but not quite up to the standards of Agharta. Both concerts were recorded on the same day, but apparently Miles was ill during the night session when Pangea was recorded.

Here you can download an MP3 with the first minute of Agharta taken from the old CD version (Columbia/Legacy C2K 46799), followed by 5 seconds of silence, then the same minute taken from from the Japanese DSD remaster (SICP 1230-1).

I'm going to sell my old versions of both albums. The Japanese DSD remasters are expensive, but for these albums I think they're the only way to go. Only go for the old ones if you can get them really cheap (under $10).

 

Thanks for that. Blimey, even through my computer speakers sounds like a completely different recording. Remix?

 

So what about the first pressing Japanese CDs from 1985 that I have? Any idea how they compare?

 

I think this must be a remix, having said that, I've read that the original LPs were far superior to the early CDs. So perhaps these DSD CDs are an excellent transfer of the original mix, and what was used on the CDs was a BAD remix?

On the old CDs the percussionist Mtume is often mixed far too loud, so these thudding congas are constantly drowning out other instruments. Plus the hi hat is too loud, and seems distorted. Ultimately the mix sounds biased too much to the high end, whereas on the DSDs, the mix is changed so that whoever is soloing cuts through the mix a lot more. And importantly, the tone of Miles' horn is a lot better, instead of sounding weak and distant.

This was obviously a very challenging band to record well, but I think the DSD CDs do a much better job of getting across what their live performance must've been like.

Never heard these sorry. You could burn the MP3 to a CD, and see how they compare.

 

I searched for several years for Agharta and Pangaea LPs. I finally found a scratchy copy of the former (the latter was never released in the US). And then the CD age came and I remember finding an import store and I bought them both for $80. But those LPs are very hard to find, ot least were back then. Maybe the CD issues saw more LP versions popping in used bins though.

 

Here's a question for some of you. As I recall, I'd spoken to a record buyer for a store and he mentioned something I found interesting, but, was unable to confirm. He said that when the budget longbox Bitches Brew came out, it was remastered again, as compared to the metal spine version and he urged me to buy the newer one. I'd already committed to getting the series in the deluxe versions with metal spines for the others (I missed the Bitches Brew box on its initial release), and as an anal retentive collector, it's not something I could bring myself to consider checking out at the time -- I ended up tracking down a NOS version of the deluxe version to match my sets. Has anyone done a comparison of the first box set and the budget version? Was there a "secret" remaster/re-remaster, and if so, is the difference notable and was the longbox Gil Evans set given the same treatment?