Jethro Tull-Aqualung VK 41044 DIDX 68 CD

Roland's comment about Aqualung on CD is very interesting here:

I like the UK blue box edition CDP 32 1044-2

 

Rarely seen - (Blue Box) 25 years of Chrysalis records

Released to celebrate 25 years of Chrysalis records - not to be confused with the completely different 25 years of Aqualung remaster.

Box and jewel case:

 

I have the Japan-for-Europe pressing with catalog number 610 016-222, and it sounded good on a quick listen awhile back. The West German-for-Europe pressing with catalog number CCD 1044 sounds poor to me.

In reviewing Roland's table, it is interesting to see that some tracks on the CCD 1044 disc have much lower peaks than the other European issues listed, while other tracks are nearly at the same level.

 

It seems like I had an anniversary version in a grey jewel box case and an interview with Ian Anderson at the end. I have the DCC so I have not pulled this one out in years. Is this the one you are talking about?

 

That is the 25 years of Aqualung remaster. Remastered to death.

 

Mine is a 42F9 and times in at 42:57

I just listened to couple of tracks, it sounds good. I will try and listen to my DCC and compare them soon.

 

I have three Aqualungs:

a) the DCC; sonic ambrosia, and proof (to me) that CD can be every bit as good as clean vinyl.

b) the 25th Anniversary reissue; Exhibit A for the misuse of NR. And finally

c) a standard-issue US pressing, with an "RE-1" on it to the left side of the label under the catalogue/matrix info. Compared to b), it sounds pretty good. Probably mastered from a 2nd gen. tape in the Reprise vaults in LA, it's wooly but warm; the same sort of sound I associate with Joe Sidore's Led Zeppelin IV CD.

 

Other than the DCC this is my chosen digital copy.

 

Corrected=Complete Wind Up...

Yes, Dark Grey almost Black Print on CD...

 

what CD are you referring to?

 

MoFi did, I believe. There is an interview somewhere on the 'net with the guy from MoFi who did the Stones remasters that appeared on a few early London cds, wherein he mentions that he also mastered several Tull titles, and Robin Trower's Bridge of Sighs.

 

so, most likely he just did the first mastering with the missing parts? All the other Aqualung masterings sound nothing like this one...how the heck could he/they not know about the last 25+ seconds of Wind Up? Amazing!
I'd like to know what other Tull titles he mastered back then...

also, do you have a link to the interview?

 

Thanks, Michael. My Japan-for-U.S. pressing, which is the earliest pressing for the U.S. market clocks in at 43:32, so it must be complete. It seems that they chopped it later (i.e., your early U.S. DADC pressing, 42:57) and then issued it complete again later (i.e., my later U.S. DADC pressing, 43:27)

 

It's on Lukpac's Stones faq. The guy's name is Gregg Schnitzer, with Mobile Fidelity until 1986. He doesn't specifically mention Aqualung, but does say this (regarding the lack of a credit for MoFi on non-MoFi releases which they mastered):

For instance, I mastered Robin Trower "Bridge Of Sighs" and most of the Jethro Tull stuff for Chrysalis but you won't see any mention of us on the released product.

http://www.lukpac.org/stereostones/stones-cd-faq.txt about 1/4 down the (long) page.

 

thanks for the link!

 

does this bother you as much as it does me?...why would they master this again and leave off the ending???

logically this CD should be the first mastering with the corrected versions following.

It makes no sense????

I'd love to get to the bottom of this.

It would be interesting to speak with the above mentioned fellow who may have mastered this CD?

I find it amazing lost gems can be found again 25+ years later...

for the love of music!

 

I have the VK corrected issue of this disc as my VK 41044 times at 43:27.

 

found some info from one of my ICE MAGAZINE back issues...

September 1987 Vol.1, No.6 - Page 2.
CD Watchdog...
begin...

Several readers have written in complaining about Jethro Tull's Aqualung CD in two regards: The final 20 seconds of "Wind Up" (the album's final song) is completely missing, where Ian Anderson laments, "I Don't believe you, you have the whole damn thing all wrong, he's not the kind you have to wind up on Sundays." And Jim Engle of Atlanta, GA says it's "the worst CD I've ever heard...MAJOR TAPE HISS."
We contacted Chrysalis Marketing Director Chris Tobey, who did some research and reported back to us: "When we did the CD originally, there was not a master tape to be found with the missing 20 seconds. The master used for the LP and cassette were no longer in existence ; they had just disappeared. We've been through every known existing tape (including Anderson's own copy) and the one we have, minus the 20 seconds, is the best quality. Obviously, we couldn't transfer (the missing 20 seconds) from an existing LP or Cassette because the quality would've been hell. The UK master was even worse than ours; in fact, if we'd had to use the U.K. tape, we wouldn't have released it at all." The CD is staying on the market because of it's best-available status, but another source at the label tells us they're considering pulling it all together. "Rest assured, we haven't given up," Tobey concluded. "There's still an ongoing search in Europe, Japan & everywhere for a better quality tape."

end...

IIRC, there is another WatchDog article that states they found a tape in Germany with the missing 20 seconds and remastered it complete...

in 1988?

 

I have a copy of 'Aqualung' that has 'DIDX-68 11A1' stamped in the inner mirror band, and has "Made In USA by Digital Audio Disc Corp.", in the clear plastic hub. It's the same mastering as the one Michael started this thread about. It's missing the last :25 of 'Wind Up', but unless my ears are seriously lying to me, I think it sounds pretty damn good.

Here are the EAC peak levels:


TOC of the extracted CD

Track | Start | Length | Start sector | End sector
---------------------------------------------------------
1 | 0:00.00 | 6:31.70 | 0 | 29394
2 | 6:31.70 | 4:08.35 | 29395 | 48029
3 | 10:40.30 | 1:23.00 | 48030 | 54254
4 | 12:03.30 | 3:52.35 | 54255 | 71689
5 | 15:55.65 | 1:55.15 | 71690 | 80329
6 | 17:51.05 | 3:17.72 | 80330 | 95176
7 | 21:09.02 | 7:10.00 | 95177 | 127426
8 | 28:19.02 | 3:18.35 | 127427 | 142311
9 | 31:37.37 | 1:12.50 | 142312 | 147761
10 | 32:50.12 | 4:24.68 | 147762 | 167629
11 | 37:15.05 | 5:42.07 | 167630 | 193286


Track 1

Filename Aqualung.wav

Peak level 77.6 %


Track 2

Filename Cross-Eyed Mary.wav

Peak level 67.4 %


Track 3

Filename Cheap Day Return.wav

Peak level 72.1 %


Track 4

Filename Mother Goose.wav

Peak level 77.6 %


Track 5

Filename Wond'ring Aloud.wav

Peak level 68.2 %


Track 6

Filename Up To Me.wav

Peak level 76.4 %


Track 7

Filename My God.wav

Peak level 75.5 %


Track 8

Filename Desktop\Hymn 43.wav

Peak level 80.2 %


Track 9

Filename Slipstream.wav

Peak level 42.3 %


Track 10

Filename Locomotive Breath.wav

Peak level 80.2 %


Track 11

Filename Wind-Up.wav

Peak level 75.7 %


No errors occurred

End of status report

 

That's weird, because the CDP 32 1044-2 (and others that share the mastering) sounds really good and is complete too!

 

...that article is just another opinion in this Aqualung saga.

I love the MAJOR TAPE HISS part!

 

Thus began the dawn of the "NR" era, which eventually led to compression, etc.....

 

From what I can remember...I had a first West German Chrysalis CD with a green label in 1983, and it was missing the first 6 guitar notes of 'Aqualung' (which are repeated). Then, I bought a UK Nimbus CD in the late 1980's, and it had this corrected. I have this UK CD today, and it's 2nd best to the DCC, IMHO.

 

I have the above mentioned UK Nimbus CDCCD-1044 as well...I'm considering putting it for sale in the classifieds.