I bought the vinyl replica Bob Ludwig '94 Virgin CD of Sticky Fingers the other day. I've never had a physical copy of this album before. I'm plenty happy with it. The sound is as impressive as the Exile On Main St. he did. You cannot go wrong for the price. It cost me £5.
Nice deal on amazon Germany for Japanese SHM-CDs (mono, miny vinyl replica) from Decca-London period Box Set and Reissue Deals for January 2024 – SuperDeluxeEdition
For those who likes Virgin CDs better than the others. Here is a comparison of EU vs. Japanese pressings. The Rolling Stones Virgin CDs: EU vs. Japan comparison
I'm still going to say the Japanese SHM SACD masterings are the best for the 70s and a few of the 80s albums they did. I do think the 1994 Virgins give you a more cohesive sound to the 2002 ABKCO remasters though.
I just asked on another thread —does anyone have the El Mocambo SHM version and is it less “loud” or otherwise worth the extra $? Thx!
I would assume it is the same as the domestic mastering, I don't know if it had any bonus tracks, but I doubt it would be less "loud."
Same mastering. No extra bonus tracks. The only thing is SHM (and Japanese extras like OBI, extra booklet in Japanese and plastic sleeves to protect CDs).
Finally got my hands on the 1985 West Germany CD of Aftermath. Hopefully this will be an upgrade on the 2002 ABKCO I have. Maybe I'll compare them.
It's just outstanding, especially with headphones, well worth your search! My quest to have one began immediately after reading this many years ago in the amazing Stones Abkco CD treatise with @lukpac and the Aftermath passage below: The original ABKCO CD was absolute garbage, as it used the (IMO) inferior US tracklisting, with several tracks collapsed to near-mono. This collapsing also destroyed the fidelity of most of the tracks, rendering them into muddy, indistinct mush. By contrast, the original London disc (which seems to be constant in all of its German/Japanese versions) is a sonic gem, utilizing the wiiiiideee stereo mixes from the original UK LP and having the 14-track UK tracklisting. As a note, these mixes were never released completely intact on LP, as all vinyl issues suffer from the slight fold- downs that're inherent in vinyl mastering; thus, the London CD actually marks the debut of the fully-separated versions. It's a clear indication that some excellent-quality tapes were used.
I also prefer the UK tracklisting. The benefit to the WG disc is the wide stereo mixes. I ended up just staying with my 2002 as it sounds fine and was easy to get. Neither one sounds bad.
Anyone know the best source for "Sittin' On A Fence"? I've been using the old More Hot Rocks 2 CD from London and I'm wondering if the recent release on SHM improved on it (or the 2002 transfer) in anyway
It's my go-to. I had no problem with the 2002, but after hearing the WG, it was clear the sound was better, and the stereo image wider.
Hey, it's nice to see you outside a Beatles thread! I like the WG Aftermath; don't get me wrong. The thing is when it comes down to milk and cookies the US track list is much better. Two things accomplish it. Moving Going Home to the end of the album and getting rid of the 5:40 Out of Time entirely (shaving two minutes for Flowers was more like it). Paint it Black for Mother's Little Helper is a wash. To be brutally honest, Take It or Leave it and What to Do are negligible in the long run and work better as add-ons to Flowers and More Hot Rocks respectively. Don't try the "proper" British version point on me. This isn't the Beatles and the pre 1968 U.S. track lists were set up by the Stones management. Also, I'm not really a fan of wide stereo to begin with and with the Stones it's a novelty. Don't get me wrong. I know which of these CDs sounds better although I don't think the US is nearly as bad as Luke and his partner make it out to be,
Re: Aftermath (UK) I cant imagine a 54 minute vinyl LP from the 60's sounding all that great to begin with. I bet the cutting engineers were pissed when it was given to them.
The US albums are valid, as stated before, and make sense as a listening experience. Howver, It's hard to justify cutting some of the best songs from the UK Aftermath and Between The Buttons, "Out Of Time" and "Backstreet Girl", respectively.
Some Girls. Apparently, they pulled the wrong tape or that blurb about flat transfer is not true. Tattoo You is OK if you do not care about long Slave. Exile is running on slightly different speed. But it won't hurt you if you don't pay attention to 430 vs. 432 Hz difference. Spanish Sticky Fingers used 2009 brickwall remaster. Some might find it unnatural. Hot Rocks overall is good but a few dubious equalization choices for a few tracks on CD1 (e.g. LSTNT). In this world there is no ideal CD of The Rolling Stones in terms of sound quality. Maybe old CBS Black And Blue is the closest. WG Aftermath UK is another one.
Thanks for that info. I think I must be used to hearing so many wonky sounding stones discs I'm used to it.
Yeah these days I go towards the American albums but I've always stuck to the UK versions for s/t, Aftermath, and Between the Buttons. There are arguments to be made about the US version of Buttons though, I think that one works nicely as well.
What do people think of the Virgins? I have gone back and forth with these and the SHM Platinums I have. I keep the Virgins on my car playlist because they're a little louder. But I don't find them harsh sounding.
