Terrible Recordings that sound beautiful

[oblique strategies]

c'mon now Lee Perry is a wonderful example, we're not judging music here although I never get enough of perry he definitly didn't go to mit, I love the abuse of compression on alot of stuff like that and the things they did to drums and bass are just magical to me. can you imagine if that stuff was recorded today the thought is almost a sin itself

Nothing to do with his music -I just don't consider his recording techniques to be bad. Especially during the mid-70's Black Ark period.

Some of his earlier work is closer to poorly recorded -but not by much in my book.

[oblique strategies]

LEE PERRY... supa ape...etc...(...and a lot of music from that era in Jamiaca)

I would not consider Super Ape, or the majority of Lee Perry's Black Ark productions to be terrible recordings; not even remotely. Nor do I find a lot of vintage 70's Reggae to be poorly recorded.

I do think that they qualify as beautiful though.

...you've misunderstood me somewhere along the way....
what I meant that the track quality / fidelity sucks...
super ape is overdubbed/oversaturated to death....
beautiful ...I agree..

No misunderstanding at all. I am referring to his use of the studio & his recording techniques. I do not consider it to be incompetent.

[q.musgrove]

The crappy recording of the likes of Leadbelly does irritate me a little because I do feel it distracts the ear from the music somewhat but at the same time I do appreciate the limited resource around at that time so I guess it all balances out in some kinda hippy karma fashion?!

If someone were to release something with those production values now I would porbably call them a twat though

With total respect for your opinion I'd like to point out that if someone was seeing some type of old -say- cave painting or something... I would be really unimpressed with them to hear "well they could have done so much better to use this color here..." or something to that effect. ::OPINION ALERT:: I find it very cool when people are able to experience things they might not even like and then do so with a appreciation for what it is, instead of disdain for how it's not what it isn't. I guess respect for the producer of any given piece of work can play a part in that though too. It would be way hard to have a record sound like Leadbelly's I assume. It's just not the norm these days so it could also be a breath of fresh air.

[Minimal Justice System]

The crappy recording of the likes of Leadbelly does irritate me a little because I do feel it distracts the ear from the music somewhat but at the same time I do appreciate the limited resource around at that time so I guess it all balances out in some kinda hippy karma fashion?!

If someone were to release something with those production values now I would porbably call them a twat though

With total respect for your opinion I'd like to point out that if someone was seeing some type of old -say- cave painting or something... I would be really unimpressed with them to hear "well they could have done so much better to use this color here..." or something to that effect. ::OPINION ALERT:: I find it very cool when people are able to experience things they might not even like and then do so with a appreciation for what it is, instead of disdain for how it's not what it isn't. I guess respect for the producer of any given piece of work can play a part in that though too. It would be way hard to have a record sound like Leadbelly's I assume. It's just not the norm these days so it could also be a breath of fresh air.

Perhaps I'm not so eloquent with written word as with spoken and I'm therefor misunderstood, I do appreciate the sound of old recordings for what they are regardless of sound but I find it almost soul destroying to know I will never hear what the man really sounded like but instead the closest I will get is with a distorted and unclear recording. (I live for live music of all kinds) Same goes for the cave painter, to experience first hand would give you so mch more understanding than a faded impression.

[starving student]

^^ very good point, the many 'sounds' that we love from tmes past are nearly impossible to get they're like black arts or something. I'd love to have the sound of some old al green or anything rick rubin touched in the beginning of his career plastered all over my techno..........(yes i do make techno)

[adventurepants_]

[q.musgrove]

Word.^ It does suck to realize that I'll never get to sit in front of the likes of Coltrane or who have you at some tiny club and melt my face off. I can totally feel that.

[pulsoc]

on the blues tip - one of the greats http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MCHI23F ... re=related

The rap links are cool lofi hiphop examples - Ill Bill and Non Phixion had some great sample work done for their stuff, not sure who produced it. It is interesting how the various recording techniques color the listening experience. Steve Albini, T-Bone Burnett, and Rick Rubin (of course) are some of my favorite producers, very influential on how a recording comes out I think.

Some of my favorite stuff is Steel Pole Bathtub's first and second albums, came out on boner records in the eighties, the sound quality by conventional standards is terrible, but to me captured this incredibly raw emotional power. Plus you can't top a band with a bass player named Dale Flattum.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFUQIliE ... re=related

[porfiry]

I guess on some level though, you have to be highly pleased with the fact that you can hear Leadbelly at all, unlike any musician who came in the centuries before.

Also, you'll probably be able to hear him a lot better at some point...they'll figure a way to wipe out all the crackling with some kind of miraculous algorithm, and it'll sound like fuckin' Rick Rubin recorded him.

[knotkranky]

Quality is only as good as the victrola

[Musashi]

If Hedrix was alive now.................... he would be old

If Hendrix was alive now, we'd probably be discussing the merit of the disco albums he released in the late 70's.

[hurlingdervish]

If Hedrix was alive now.................... he would be old

If Hendrix was alive now, we'd probably be discussing the merit of the disco albums he released in the late 70's.

no hed probably be hanging with Flying Lotus making his last studio album

[starving student]

If Hedrix was alive now.................... he would be old

If Hendrix was alive now, we'd probably be discussing the merit of the disco albums he released in the late 70's.

no hed probably be hanging with Flying Lotus making his last studio album

naw he'd be asking Glitchmob if he could collaborate with them....................Not

[starving student]

even the early stones records have delicious ambience

[porfiry]

In a lot of ways the recording they did in the 50s and 60s was far more proper than what's come more recently...it was all about ambience. Stick all the players in a room, give them one mic apiece, or maybe even make some of them share one between several people, crank it up until the tape is saturated, EQ things a little if your studio is even that luxurious, and go. Full takes of the whole song, and even if it takes a few tries to nail it, you've got it done in an afternoon. Singles are pressed and headed off to radio station days later.

I've read through several of these articles and gained a lot of perspective on how much different things were in those days...the CCR article was particularly interesting, talking about mic placement and such. Highly recommend - http://mixonline.com/classic-tracks/