Search - Isaac Hayes :: Shaft (Hybr)

A Soundtrack Better Than The Movie - A Sonic Masterpiece

Daniel A. Cooper | New York, NY USA | 07/24/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It's not often that a movie soundtrack surpasses the film for which it is created. Too often today, soundtracks are simply slapped-together compilations of songs by various artists that don't flow well as albums. However, this soundtrack from the early '70s is an exception to that rule.



Those who only know Isaac Hayes as the voice of Chef on South Park are missing out on one of the true giants of early 70s soul/jazz/pop/rock music. His recordings for Stax are legendary, but perhaps nothing he did is more well known than The Theme From Shaft. With the Bar-Kays and The Movement laying killer grooves, the music here breaks all the rules and can't be pigeonholed - tough, gritty street music that is as smooth as satin at the same time.



A lot of care was taken in the original recording, and that shines through on this SACD. From the high-hat and wah-wah guitar riff that opens the CD, you know that you are in for a sonic treat. The whole CD is full of surprises, both musically & sonically. George Horn did a terrific mastering job on this and the warmth and detail of all the instruments here is breathtaking.



This is an incredible version of a classic recording!!"

Timeless masterpiece - excellent sound quality

B. E. Busch | Portland, OR | 03/03/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This has been a favorite album of mine for nearly as long as I've been alive. This album came out the same year I was born (1971) and I remember as a kid staring at my dad's reel to reel deck while this played. It must have made a real impression on me in my early years because it's still a favorite of mine to this day.



The sound quality of this SACD is just excellent. The regular cd from years ago sounded decent but it was too bright and the instruments all sort of blended together. The SACD takes care of those problems and you get to hear this masterpiece the way it should sound. The instruments all have their own space and the little details really stand out like never before. George Horn must have spent some time remastering this because it really does sound great. I've owned this SACD for nearly a year now and played it at least a couple dozen times, but every time I listen I hear little things that I'd never heard before. It's almost hard to believe that a 37 year old recording can sound this good.



As a bonus this disc is a hybrid so it'll also play in your normal cd players. The cd layer sounds very good, much better than the original cd and it absolutely kills the 24 bit remaster CD from 2004 that is a sonic disaster, horribly bright and sounds really compressed. Even if you don't have a SACD player I still recommend buying this hybrid because the cd layer sounds much better than any other CD version available. The SACD layer is another step above in sound quality and is as close to the master tape as any of us will likely ever hear. If you love this album do your ears a favor and buy this disc so you can hear how great this album really sounds. :)"

An audiophile masterpiece.

Hudson G TANNIS | LAURELTON, NEW YORK United States | 05/22/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The best souding SACD i have ever purchase.If you have a state of the art SACD surround system that can split Stereo into Multichannel Surround..you will be blown away by this disc..and it also sounds amazing in stereo with or without SACD decoding...get it now."