5つ星のうち5.0A masterpiece given the royal 24-bit treatment
2008年7月8日にアメリカ合衆国でレビュー済み
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I received my 24-bit paper sleeve copy of Aretha 1986. I made time to listen to this all the way through. To me, this is CONTROLLED reckless, soulful and belted singing like only Aretha can do and is my favorite of her Arista releases. So when I saw this was available, I made it my business to check it out.
WOW. Ultra-clear sonics. Among other things my ears heard for the first time: on I Knew You Were Waiting For Me, all this time I thought the squall right before "when the valley was low" was a wordless one. Turns out Aretha says the word "or", pronounced "aaaarr." You may be able to catch this on the regular release if you're trying to, but it really stood out to me on this reissue.
There are many other little nuances audiophiles and Ree-heads will catch that may have slipped past on the muddier-sounding original CD release ... especially if you're a die-hard Aretha fan and already know this album like the back of your hand, lol.
The sonics also bring out what perfect pop-soul production Aretha 1986 has. Narada was on point in the 80's, no question. Everything was calculated perfectly and the songs have stood up well over time. When you think about it, this record is BLISSFULLY free from gimmicks and cliches of the time, something that can't be said about 1989's Through The Storm.
Aretha's productions of her own songs are not as polished; but then you wouldn't expect them to be since the role of producer is not her primary one. But those squalls, soars, and belts are more audible than ever. This is Aretha doing what you love Aretha to do.
There is a faithful reproduction of the liner notes and lyrics, mimicking what was on the LP release.
All told, this reissue is definitely worth the money for fans of Aretha's Arista years. Although this is the only one I own so far, I'm sure the other Arista 24-bit sets have gotten the similar royal treatment.
5つ星のうち5.01 of the 2 best Aretha Franklin '80's Arista albums
2014年8月24日にアメリカ合衆国でレビュー済み
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Fantastic Japanese remaster of one of Aretha's best from the '80's. I bought the Japanese remaster of the 'Who's Zoomin Who' album in '07 and have always regretted not purchasing this gem which was released at the same time. Both discs have so many standout songs but, while I love the George Michael duet, my favourite here is another Simon Climie composition- 'An Angel Cries', a beautiful ballad which Aretha sings perfectly. There is not a dud track on the album, but then Ms Franklin doesn't do duds...10/10!