Reissue roundup.

Dire Straits: Brothers In Arms Twentieth Anniversary Edition SACD; Vertigo 9871498 (UK import)

Not so many years ago I reviewed the lion's share of the Dire Straits catalog when it became available as higher bit-rate CD reissues. I concluded then that there wasn't much difference between these and the earlier digital reissues, except that a much greater degree of compression was evident, and, as a result, the sound level on the CD was much higher. Since then my own interests in reissued classics has centered on Super Audio CD reissues given that the promise of increased dynamics and lower digital noise are two of the new medium's important benefits. I had hoped to hear improvements in all of the recordings I've sampled as SACD reissues, but was often disappointed. In many cases, the mere fact that earlier PCM masters sometimes provided the basis for the SACD version meant that very little improvement to the sound would be discernable. As a matter of convenience for me, the two paragraphs that follow originally appeared in my earlier article.

Brothers In Arms was released originally in the spring of 1985. The album is Dire Straits' most popular by a wide margin. It was on the Billboard album chart for more than a year, and peaked at Number 1 for nine weeks beginning June 1985. Strangely enough, two of its three singles hits are, in my opinion, the weakest songs on the album, while its three most interesting songs, "One World," "Ride Across the River" and "Brothers In Arms" apparently went unnoticed (perhaps record buyers never bothered to flip over to side two). Many of Dire Straits' fans might consider this album to be a continuation of Mark Knopfler's despair running through all of an earlier album, Love Over Gold, especially in consideration of those three songs I just mentioned. The LP's content differed slightly from the CD in that three of its songs were shortened to allow all of the songs to fit on one record comfortably.

I can recall the disappointment I felt upon first hearing the LP. Unlike the group's four earlier albums, this one sounded thin and tipped-up throughout much of the midrange and treble, and grossly lacking in dynamic contrasts. It sounded very homogenized. Upon buying the CD version of the album two months later, though, I discovered that the two sounded almost identical. Any differences I heard were probably a result of my equipment and not the software. The CD version of Brothers was the very first CD I bought, and since the CD compared so well with the vinyl I was positively impressed with the then new medium from the outset. I didn't consider at the time that the new album's sound differed so greatly from the earlier LPs because it, as the album's jacket so proudly proclaims, is "a full digital recording," but only that my one CD sample, by its similarity to the vinyl, must be indicative of the medium's promise. It was, I thought, just that the album was recorded relatively poorly. Since many of the first CDs I bought were reissues of music I had always enjoyed on record, I was soon to discover that while the promise was there the fulfillment was not.

Tacking just one other bit of information on to the above, Brothers In Arms held the distinction for quite some time following its 1985 release as being the single largest selling title in the then fledgling CD format. Perhaps it could be inferred that the compact disk might not have taken off so quickly were it not for this release. As for the new hybrid SACD reissue, it is only available as an import. Warner owns distribution rights for the Dire Straits catalog in the USA, and they have chosen to continue their stance against the format. Rumors abound, though, that a domestic version will appear in the Dual Disk format later this year. Everywhere else, Universal owns the rights to the Dire Straits catalog.

Mark Knopfler and Chuck Ainsley produced and engineered this new reissue in the SACD format, although original mastering is still credited to Bob Ludwig's Gateway Mastering. This new hybrid release offers both stereo and 5.1 multi-channel sound in SACD as well as conventional CD on its other layer. Additional details in the production of this disk are that the work was undertaken in Knopfler's own studio in London, and that the original digital master was converted to analog prior to the creation of these new remasters.

Prior to having heard the new BIA, I must admit that I was skeptical about any major improvements that a recording such as this might provide. It would seem impossible to me that there might be any useful information on an early digital recording that would benefit from anything other than, as one T$S reviewer described years ago, "tricks with equalization." Let me assure you that I hear none of that. Any "tricks" that might have been employed did nothing to alter the basic sound of Brothers In Arms, but they certainly improved this recording's overall presentation significantly. I am taken by how much air there is to the upper frequencies here, and by a lack of digital "grunge" so common to the typical, mass-produced CD for the popular market. This is substantially superior to the domestic SBM reissue from a few years back, and this comment is not only for those who own a top-quality SACD player. My comments on the sound quality, so far, describe what I hear when comparing the CD layers; there are even more goodies for those who bought into SACD. What you'll get when you load the SACD layer of this disk into your player is an enhancement of the sound stage depth and width (and I am speaking here of conventional two-channel playback).

It's the little things that stand out most about the sound on the SACD layer, and, speaking specifically, there's palpability to the trumpet and saxophone in "Your Latest Trick" that first astonished me. The more I listened the more I was impressed by what I was hearing; take, for example, the crickets in "The Man's Too Strong." There's a sense of space between these that conjures up reminiscences of sitting around campfires and sleeping in tents. There's an authority to this version of Brothers I've never heard in any previous release. I do have on nit to pick with this, though, and that is that at times it appears as if Knopfler's voice seems just a bit veiled and indistinct in a few instances.

Having said all of these positives about Brothers In Arms, let me close this segment by saying that I would encourage Knopfler and Ainsley to remaster other Dire Straits titles to SACD precisely as they have this one. I've always held the opinion that both Communique and Love Over Gold were better-sounding records. With the great job they've been able to accomplish here, there's no telling what delights might be in store for Dire Straits' adoring public.

ABKCO Finally Delivers: In my non-audiophile music life, the nostalgic sap in me has, for the past 20 years, been collecting oldies from the fifties and sixties on CD. In fact, my very first article appearing in T$S more than 18 years ago surveyed what was then available for the oldies collector. While my own collection far surpasses what charted as the songs on the radio of my youth, I have, so far, collected 3,046 of the 4,190 tunes to appear in the Billboard Top 40. I've limited my collecting pursuits to the years, 1955 through 1969. If you can think of a Top 40 song that charted in any of those years, there's a 72.7% chance that I have it.

Up until now, what was missing was a host of hits by such artists as Chubby Checker, The Dovells, Dee Dee Sharp, The Orlons, Bobby Rydell, Question Mark & the Mysterians and, last but not least, Senator Bobby. All of these artists recorded for the Cameo Parkway label, and their tunes have not been available to record buyers for decades.

Bearing the brunt of the criticism for the absence of this music for all these years has been Allen B. Klein, whose company has owned the rights to this music for the better part of these past 35 years. Rumors would surface every now and then that an anthology of these great old relics would be appearing soon. One magazine article appearing about 1986 even went so far as to list the artists who would be in this anthology and claimed it to be a work in progress at Rhino Records. Well let me tell you that the wait is finally over, and the product in hand made it well worth it.

On April 26, 2005, Cameo Parkway 1957-1967 (ABKCO 92232-2) finally made its way into record stores. It's a 4-CD boxed set containing 115 titles; 68 of which are bona fide Billboard hits. The four disks in the set are black on both sides with the label side being grooved as if it is a vinyl record. This prompts a warning, since not all CD players can read black CDs. As best I can tell, these appear to be from their original tape sources (with one exception), and they are all the original mono 45-RPM versions. Only Patti LaBelle's terrific version of "You'll Never Walk Alone" appears in stereo.

The 43-page booklet gives us an excellent historical overview of the label along with detailed notes on each of the songs in the anthology. The original recording engineers are also given their credit due, along with the listing of all of those who were involved in every aspect of this reissue project. Bob Ludwig did the mastering for the set. The sound quality is excellent overall, and far better than the 4-CD Phil Spector set that ABKCO released in 1991. Some of the better sounding of these are Senator Bobby's "Wild Thing," and the eagerly anticipated "96 Tears" by Question Mark & the Mysterians. This is a highly recommended set for those who share my appreciation of the past.

Finally, I would like to enlist the assistance of my readers. After having conducted a thorough comparison of the various releases of Harry Belafonte's Live At Carnegie Hall concert, I am looking for copies of a few Classic Records CD reissues that are presently out of print. If you have any of these and would be willing to loan me the ones needed, I would be most appreciative. Rather than take up precious space in the magazine with a list of the 18 I need for my survey, you can reach my email at the address below. Of course, I'm always happy to hear from readers who have questions or comments about the items I review. You can send me your email at [e-mail]. Happy listening everyone.

--SGB