Search - Humble Pie :: Smokin (Mlps)

There must be a better master...

Nels D. Peterson | Los Angeles | 02/24/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Bought the lp when it first came out, loved the music but was disappointed in the sound quality, the previous three A&M albums sounded better. Bought the cd when it first came out, like many first issues, it was very disappointing, so I have not bought any of the subsequent european or japanese copies. I am aware that Bob of L.A. has excitedly reported that Universal/Japan has finally issued a better-sounding cd, twice, but have not attempted to buy one. I was overcome with the news that Analogue Productions would be releasing an SACD version, and have finally received it and listened to it, twice! I was initially a bit underwhelmed, I had hoped the upper midrange/lower treble valley would have been brought up, and a bit of life would have been immediately apparent. While that was not to be, other qualities did immediately command my attention, deeper bass, unrestrained dynamics, and a few more things buried in the mix are audible now, so this is an improvement over the cd that I am used to. Weigh in if you've heard the SHM-CD version, I'd probably buy it if convinced it is better in any way, being an audiophile means you can't sleep knowing there is a better-sounding version out there!!!"