Frank Zappa - Entire Catalogue Remastered and Reissued

So my summary on AbFree: pretty damn good. EQ wise, it's very close to the original Verve final. Much as on Freak Out, Zappa's original CD-era EQ job considerably brightened up the sound while removing the AM-like midrange (something similar happened on the remix of The Who Sell Out). For those used to the old CD, then, the new release can sound a bit muddy, a problem that can easily be fixed by some home-EQing. Outside of the tape damage on Plastic People, a stellar effort all around.

 

Why would a future deluxe version of UM preclude them issuing a proper remaster now? Is the world not big enough for both a mail-order only deluxe edition and a standard retail edition of 'Uncle Meat' that BOTH sound good?

There was no good reason in 1986 for any of Frank's albums to not sound great on CD and there was no good reason in 1993 for all of Frank's albums to not sound great on CD and there's no good reason in 2012 for all of Frank's albums to not sound great on CD.

 

I kind of agree. See my point above: just because you're planning something awesome later on doesn't mean that you need to forgo great stuff now. While some Zappa titles have been "reissued" two or three times, many have been the same discs each time, and Uncle Meat falls into that category. It's due an upgrade, especially as the entire programme plus the MGG remix fit easily onto one disc.

 

Very disappointing news re Uncle Meat. I want to get back the warm organic bass ( 'Mr Green Genes' is the best example) that my original Bizzare LP had and that has been missing on CD to date and is obviously is still missing. Plus I would like them to ditch the extra (one listen only) material added to boost the CD time to justify a double.

 

I am loving the sound of Absolutely Free. Anyone heard Freak Out yet?

 

Why does WOIIFTM have a little label that says "Grand Rights Project/Object" on the back cover? Never seen that before.

 

No, but presumably it's the same as the '95 Ryko edition (maybe with a slight boost).

For what it's worth (which is probably not much), I listened to the adulterated Ruben and the Jets for the first time in many years today and found that I didn't mind the overdubbed drums and bass as much as I used to. That could be because the drums on the original mix sound pretty bad (imo)?

 

I dropped in my local Best Buy during my meal break from work and was pleasantly surprised to see most of the new Zappa titles in stock and available for $9.99. I know somoene earlier in the thread made the comment that they heard Best Buy wouldn't have these at the stores but they did have them at my location. I picked up Freak Out, Absolutely Free, and Hot Rats. Definitely looking forward to listening to these over the next few days!

 

We've discussed Absolutely Free enough, is there enough of a difference between the new editions of Freak Out and We're Only in it for the Money to warrent a purchase if I already have The Mofo Project and the Lumpy Money sets?

I even have the Mofi We're Only in it...

 

I know I'd said they wouldn't be there...at my local BB anyway, but I went by today and lo and behold...they had a few ! When I looked at the customer service guy's sheet the other day he had '0' for 'stock' of Chunga's Revenge. I also saw other 0's for titles. Of the few they DID have today, I got the Absolutely Free. I ordered 3 others from their website. I wonder if they'll replace the one and only copy I bought today.

 

Chunga's Revenge arrived damaged. Back insert askew, broken tray teeth, cracked disc spindle. It's playable, but I'm still heading to Best Buy tomorrow to return it.

After a cursory listen to all of the discs*, some thoughts:

I detected no brickwalling or compression of any kind on any disc. All of these sound very clean.

Absolutely Free does sound bassier than I've heard it before, but, for me, it is quite welcome. Reverting back to mono for the singles was a wise choice.

Uncle Meat sounds like the Ryko CD, as you would expect. I haven't A/Bed the two yet, so I don't know if one gets a slight edge over the other. (I have no intention on comparing the first penalty track on both.)

Hot Rats sounds just as good as the 2008 LP. Fans of the LP should be pleased.

Pretty much all of the discs sourced from the analog masters are excellent, but Burnt Weeny Sandwich, Chunga's Revenge, and Just Another Band From L.A. show the most improvement. They sound heavenly.

Fillmore East sounds a lot better than the Ryko version, but a comparison to Playground Psychotics shows that the original LP master wasn't that great to begin with. The Fillmore material on Playground Psychotics still sounds better.

As someone mentioned before, the glitch at the beginning of "Little House" on BWS appears to be gone.

Much of the packaging is indistinguishable from the 1995 Rykos, just with different disc designs and spines. There are a few variations here and there, but, for the most part, they look the same.

I still need some time with these, but, so far, I like what I've heard.

*I did not buy Freak Out!, Money, Lumpy Gravy, or Ruben.

 

I also thought it was interesting that they didn't indicate that the price of $9.99 was a sale at the store. That would lead me to believe either they are sticking with the $9.99 price on these or (the more likely scenario) they are selling all the stock each store gets at $9.99 and then most of them won't be replenished. They had about seven or eight of the new releases in stock with anywhere from one copy to about three copies each. So, not a ton of them but I didn't even really expect to see that.

 

For those who're curious, this is the difference between the earlier, reverby version of Burnt Weeny Sandwich and the reissue. I find it to be...unsubtle?

http://www.sendspace.com/file/ziy1zz

 

It was on the releases from last year Feeding The Monkies and Carnegie Hall.

 

Wish they'd have moved
the single to the end after a
10 second gap !

 

I LOVE the bassier Absolutely Free ! It sounds SO MUCH better than the Ryko IMO.

Oh...besides the tape anomolies in Plastic People...there are several noises of Why Doncha Do Me Right. Could this have been sourced from vinyl ? They're not digital clicks but sound like vinyl imperfections. Anyone ?


After reading about Just Another Band...looks like I'll have to rebuy that one too, and Weasels, sheesh ! I've now got 4 and really don't plan to get any of the digitally sourced cd's...just the original analog sourced ones. Back to the bread line for me....

 

I went to my nearby Best Buy tonight, and they didn't have a single Zappa CD there .

 

The Price on Amazon was lowered on most of the new disc's yesterday, They are right around $10 to $11 now.

 

Thanks to all the people who've contributed their thoughts on the remasters. One question: I already have the Ryko WOIIFTM, is there any sort of sound difference that's worth rebuying?

 

From what I've read, the new one is digitally identical to the 1995 Ryko CD. No need to rebuy, unless you like the new packaging.

 

Although I do not have it myself, I must agree.

We have already been informed that the 1993 digital master was used.

At least one reviewer has indicated that there is no difference soundwise between the 1995 Ryko and the new CD.

I do have the new Uncle Meat and I can tell you that it sounds exactly like the 1995 Ryko. In addition, I compared the waveforms for "Uncle Meat: Main Title Theme". They look identical. Even the amplitude is the same.

It has, also, been reported that the new Lumpy Gravy CD has the same mono glitch as the 1995 Ryko CD.

All of this leads me to the conclusion that if you already have the 1995 Ryko CDs of Freak Out!, We're Only In It For The Money, Lumpy Gravy, Cruising With Ruben and The Jets, and Uncle Meat, you don't need the 2012 reissues. If you don't have them, feel free.

The other seven, however, are must buys.

 

If I can manage to get all of those ones for under $10 shipped eventually I'll replace my Rykos, just because the new ones look better.

 

What is the glitch anyway? I've never owned the '95 CD. Does it just fold down to mono for a few seconds?

I only got into Zappa about a year ago and have bought Money and the 2-disc MOFO. I was holding out on buying more until more of the original mixes were released, so I'm stoked with this reissue campaign, even if it’s far from perfect. Hopefully the next batch will kick @$$. Apostrophe and Over-nite Sensation are ones I've wanted for a while.

 

I'm actually planning to get rid of my Ryko Uncle Meat, not the new one. I prefer the slimline case since it takes up less space.

103 seconds, actually. (1:48 through 3:31 during "Part 1".)

It still sounds good, though. Let's keep some perspective. It's not a deal-breaker. It is still probably the best sounding version released.

I believe that they will use the lauded Au20 master for Apostrophe('). Hopefully, they will do the original analog for Over-nite Sensation, as well.

 

Does this edition of Ruben finally credit the 80s overdubs?