Who remembers album covers?

[J T]

Here's some steps in NY that were on an album cover

 

[Blind Lemon Chicken]

But CDs sound better than streaming.

Fight me!

They Do.

 

[goldtop0]

The early days of the '60s looking at the backs of the albums, the songs and the writers noted, simply written as Berry, Goffin/King, Lieber and Stoller etc etc and thinking, who the hell are these guys..............all will be revealed in good time young man

 

[J T]

Here's another NY Spot

 

[EdF_PA]

This one got a bit of a reaction, didn’t it?

Ed shared 1 photo with you

www.amazon.com

 

[charliechitlins]

But CDs sound better than streaming.

Fight me!

The guy who mastered my first record said, "...and then it will all be converted to high-quality MP3, which, of course, is an oxymoron."

 

[Xpensive Wino]

The guy who mastered my first record said, "...and then it will all be converted to high-quality MP3, which, of course, is an oxymoron."

Cool story, man.

 

[Xpensive Wino]

This one got a bit of a reaction, didn’t it?

Ed shared 1 photo with you

www.amazon.com

I tried to 'ave a butcher's but it's too small to see.

 

[EdF_PA]

I tried to 'ave a butcher's but it's too small to see.

Just click on it!

 

[Ed Driscoll]

Here's a slightly larger version, and the story behind it:

By 1966, the band was already an international sensation, with hit songs, critically acclaimed albums, and a massive fan following. They were also experimenting with their music and image, pushing the boundaries of what was expected from a popular music act. The Yesterday and Today album was intended to be a compilation of previously released tracks for the North American market. However, the Beatles decided to use this opportunity to make a statement.

The album's original cover was designed by the famed photographer Robert Whitaker. Whitaker was known for his avant-garde and controversial photography, and the Butcher cover was no exception. The cover art concept was the brainchild of John Lennon, and it was intended as a protest against the way Capitol Records had "butchered" their albums for the American market. The Beatles were unhappy with the way their albums were altered in the United States, with tracks rearranged and sometimes omitted to create a different product from the original UK releases.

The Butcher cover was meant to be a subversive and satirical commentary on the music industry. The Beatles donned white butcher smocks and posed with pieces of raw meat and dismembered baby dolls, creating a surreal and unsettling image. The dolls were meant to symbolize how they felt like puppets being controlled by the industry. It was a bold and provocative statement, especially for a band as beloved and influential as The Beatles.

When the album was initially released with the Butcher cover in June 1966, it created an immediate uproar. Many fans and music retailers were shocked and appalled by the cover, finding it tasteless and disturbing. There were also concerns that it would be seen as disrespectful to the memory of John F. Kennedy, whose assassination had occurred less than three years earlier.

Amid the controversy, Capitol Records decided to recall and replace the Butcher cover with a more conventional cover featuring the Beatles gathered around a steamer trunk. This new cover, known as the "Trunk cover," was used for subsequent pressings of the album. The Butcher cover was pasted over with the new cover image, and many copies of the original cover were destroyed or returned.

Today, the original Butcher cover is a highly sought-after collector's item and one of the most valuable Beatles collectibles. It's estimated that only a few thousand copies of the Butcher cover survived the recall, making it a rare find. The cover's value has increased significantly over the years, with pristine, unpeeled Butcher covers fetching astronomical prices at auctions. These are known as "first state" Butcher covers.

 

[Xpensive Wino]

Just click on it!

If I have to explain a pun , it wasn't worth making, I suppose.

 

[EdF_PA]

If I have to explain a pun , it wasn't worth making, I suppose.

I got that it was a pun but wasn’t totally sure of the meaning. I guess it’s cockney slang, butcher’s hook, have a look? I just still thought you made it because the pic was small. Bad interpretation on my part but I got the gist.

 

[gibboboy]

I remember buying Rush Hemispheres when it came out with the gatefold sleeve and then having to buy it again on the other great vinyl medium… picture disk

 

[garywright]

Who remembers the giant rolling paper in the Cheech and Chong Big Bambu album?

Better yet, who used it for its intended purpose?

I do ! ..I think that paper musta been the same size used for the Labrador substance “ cop..where’s your license ?....cheech..it’s on the bumper !”

 

[Ed Driscoll]

But CDs sound better than streaming.

Fight me!

Eventually, they sounded very good, indeed. The early CDs got a bad rap for a variety of reasons. Some were simply straight transfers from the master recordings created for LPs, which meant that their narrow EQ settings, which minimized bass so that the needle wouldn't skip on an LP, suddenly sounded rather wimpy in CD form. Others were very harsh and brittle sounding. Eventually though, I remember hearing Peter Gabriel's So, and some of U2's later-80s CDs, which had a much louder and deeper bass now that their engineers were freed from having to mix for LPs, and the first Led Zeppelin box set, where Jimmy Page had remastered the back catalog to sound fuller and richer on CDs.

I love the portability of MP3s, having a service like Amazon Music Unlimited, where virtually every popular album is available on demand, and SiriusXM, and I'm willing to accept the tradeoffs in sound quality for the benefits of complete mobility and variety.

 

[Ed Driscoll]

If I have to explain a pun , it wasn't worth making, I suppose.

I think it might be a bit much to expect those of us who don't live on Old Blighty to be familiar with cockney rhyming slang. The only phrase I know is "the Sweeney," and only because I looked it up after Top Gear did an episode where they filmed some of the car stunts for the 2012 movie reboot.

 

[jb_abides]

Eventually, they sounded very good, indeed. The early CDs got a bad rap for a variety of reasons. Some were simply straight transfers from the master recordings created for LPs, which meant that their narrow EQ settings, which minimized bass so that the needle wouldn't skip on an LP, suddenly sounded rather wimpy in CD form. Others were very harsh and brittle sounding. Eventually though, I remember hearing Peter Gabriel's So, and some of U2's later-80s CDs, which had a much louder and deeper bass now that their engineers were freed from having to mix for LPs, and the first Led Zeppelin box set, where Jimmy Page had remastered the back catalog to sound fuller and richer on CDs.

I love the portability of MP3s, having a service like Amazon Music Unlimited, where virtually every popular album is available on demand, and SiriusXM, and I'm willing to accept the tradeoffs in sound quality for the benefits of complete mobility and variety.

Agree on CDs 'done right'. I only buy vinyl over CD for limited edition collection purposes, or when special mastering matters. Otherwise, the good CDs are... better. Proper master transfer, Nyquist theorem, don't brick wall, compression and good A/D-D/A and reproduction trumps hipster vinyl aspirations.

FWIW, most of the streaming with download services have a lossless 'HD' option, so you don't have to limit to MP3 for mobility assuming your mobile device has enough storage, or you have ample bandwidth on hand.

 

[MarcB]

Agree on CDs 'done right'. I only buy vinyl over CD for limited edition collection purposes, or when special mastering matters. Otherwise, the good CDs are... better. Proper master transfer, Nyquist theorem, don't brick wall, compression and good A/D-D/A and reproduction trumps hipster vinyl aspirations.

FWIW, most of the streaming with download services have a lossless 'HD' option, so you don't have to limit to MP3 for mobility assuming your mobile device has enough storage, or you have ample bandwidth on hand.

This was the issue with CDs back when they first appeared on the market.. record companies direct transferred masters digitally without remastering or re mixing in a lot of cases, so classic albums sounded awful.. when the industry finally caught up and the likes of Sting (and others) released their first “digitally recorded” albums.. it was a game changer.. I remember hearing these digital albums for the first time as a teenager.. and was utterly blown away with the sound and these albums quickly became the industry standard for “the sound” and hi-fi shops adopted them to play to sell equipment.. and so the modern era of digital sound reproduction was born.
there’s still a large number of people who swear that analog recordings sound better..which has it’s merits.. but my take on it, it really depends on the engineer and producer..
in my opinion Bob Clearmountain is the “master” of modern recording.. and thusly transformed the digital realm with his methodology and techniques. I still think the “Boys and Girls” LP by Bryan Ferry is one of the best produced sounding albums ever..

 

[jb_abides]

This was the issue with CDs back when they first appeared on the market.. record companies direct transferred masters digitally without remastering or re mixing in a lot of cases, so classic albums sounded awful.. when the industry finally caught up and the likes of Sting (and others) released their first “digitally recorded” albums.. it was a game changer.. I remember hearing these digital albums for the first time as a teenager.. and was utterly blown away with the sound and these albums quickly became the industry standard for “the sound” and hi-fi shops adopted them to play to sell equipment.. and so the modern era of digital sound reproduction was born.
there’s still a large number of people who swear that analog recordings sound better..which has it’s merits.. but my take on it, it really depends on the engineer and producer..
in my opinion Bob Clearmountain is the “master” of modern recording.. and thusly transformed the digital realm with his methodology and techniques. I still think the “Boys and Girls” LP by Bryan Ferry is one of the best produced sounding albums ever..

True, there's great 'DDD' output, although what I wrote doesn't depend upon digital versus recording at all. You can have great CD reproduction from 'AAD' and 'ADD' from any master source which -- when properly handled -- will reproduce pleasantly and accurately sans vinyl, and can work better than vinyl...

BTW the first 'DDD' that really got me to sit on edge with new CD technology was Donald Fagen's 'The Nightfly' although somewhere in the overall process in went through an analog console.

 

[MarcB]

True, there's great 'DDD' output, although what I wrote doesn't depend upon digital versus recording at all. You can have great CD reproduction from 'AAD' and 'ADD' from any master source which -- when properly handled -- will reproduce pleasantly and accurately sans vinyl, and can work better than vinyl...

BTW the first 'DDD' that really got me to sit on edge with new CD technology was Donald Fagen's 'The Nightfly' although somewhere in the overall process in went through an analog console.

I agree.. it did depend on who transferred the audio..and how.. which I think was the point I was trying to make (from the consumer pov).. as most record companies just directly transferred from tape to cd. That said the consumer at the time did prefer the lack of perceived noise from cds (this was a consumer equipment issue tbf) and the practicality of the product.
It’s only when the industry fully adopted the digital recording technology, was when the consumer truly understood the difference and album sales of this AAD/ADD/DDD forced the industry to take notice.

Moving forward to the streaming age.. the arrogance of EMI managements failure embrace this new format was ultimately the demise of the company. Unfortunately this medium was also the death of the music business.. as the deals made by the companies with streaming platforms cut out the artists. As much as this platform is ideal for the consumer, it’s utterly devastating for the (legacy) artist. This then led to the homogenisation of music as we know it today..as the industry needed a “formula” to maintain their dominance of the market. Which has shrunk massively.