Customer Reviews

Brain Salad Surgery [Vinyl]

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

I'm not going to talk about whether I like ELP or their music or this album other than I really liked this LP as a kid and was happy to bump into a "Re-Mastered" CD version of it.

However, I have to say that the sound is about the worst re-mastered CD I've heard to date. Most noticable on my system is that the precussion parts have been severely obliterated - the cymbals are mostly missing and when noticable sound unreal - not at all like the LP - and most of the rest of the drum kit is noticably muted. Levels are inconsistent within single tracks and from track to track. Karn-evil 9 part 1 seems to have grossly filtered, muted, and muffled. The other reviewer's comment about low pass filtering seems accurate. This CD seems to have lost much of the realism and clarity of the LP.

What a disappointment.

Brain Salad Surgery, ELP's 1973 crowning achievement. There is a lot to like about this record. The music of course, which was highly innovative for that era. The interesting and thought provoking cover art. Even the title of the album was innovative. In the short span of four years and five albums, Emerson Lake and Palmer truly pushed the envelope of early progressive classical/rock fusion to another level. In fact they took it right to the top of mainstream music on both sides of the Atlantic.

As much as I've enjoyed the other Shout! Factory re-issues, I have to agree with some of the other reviewers and say this time, they fumbled the ball. The games not a total loss, there are some high-lights. I commend the fact that Shout tried to recreate the original style opening cover art. But why on earth did they crop the artwork so bad? (see my thumbnail photo). That is the actual view on the front cover. P. Jackson's photo gives a good example of how it is designed to open, but does not show the mis-alignment of the outer cover with the inner photo. The inner circle is supposed to lay exactly over the photo beneath it. Notice how high up the skull's eye sockets are? They don't match the woman's face underneath. Also, see the letters ELP at the bottom. They are virtually cut in half! This is how badly the cover is cropped. I have an original album, and this is not how it's supposed to be. The inclusion of a replica of the original poster is nice. But, again, the cover art is cropped and it's not printed on all sides as was the original poster. The booklet is great. Interesting liner notes and good photos of the band on stage from that era.

Now let's get to the most important part: the Sound of the Music. As Noel Pratt points out, there are some problems with the mastering. At approximately 1 minute and 30 seconds into Jerusalem the volume level jumps up dramatically. About 10 decibels in just a few seconds. It's as if someone in the control room noticed how low the level was and tried too quickly to run it up to the correct level. If it was done slowly over the course of 30 seconds or so things would have been much better. I think this is just a bad case of the producer trying to make this re-issue more dynamic than previous renditions. My suggestion would be to skip track one and record the alternate mix of Jerusalem provided here as a bonus track (#9). And as far as the complaints about "muffled" sound. I agree...somewhat. In a close comparison of this re-issue with the former Rhino issue from `96, there is major difference. The Shout issue has a more prominent bottom-end. The problem is it's not isolated to the bass or kick drum, it's an over-all increase in the entire low-end spectrum, even effecting the vocals. The impression is the vocals getting slightly "buried" in the murkiness and sounding a little more distant. The Rhino issue has a much cleaner and crisper sound. Note that this comparison took place on a pair of high-quality head-phones that allow every little nuance to be heard. If one is comparing sound on various speaker systems it can be a very different and subjective comparison to the human ear. For instance, If you played this Shout re-issue in a car with a stock stereo system, you may want the extended bottom-end compensating for the lack of, due to poor quality speakers.

Now I'm glad I picked up a copy of Rhinos `96 re-issue of Brain Salad Surgery at a used record store (it's currently out of print). I liked the 3-D cover that changes as you tilt it from the Skull shot to the Female face. I actually bought it because I thought it would be a collector's item. Now I think I prefer the sound on it to any thing else that's been put out so far.

Maybe, just maybe, some record company will finally create the Definitive Remastered Expanded Deluxe version with all the possible bonus tracks available, and get all the newest most creative packaging avialable to bring it all together for the Grang Finale of this most deserving Masterpiece. Until then...

Apparently the remastering process consisted of feeding the original analog tracks through a low pass filter. Everything is bottomed out and the CD sounds like you're listening to it with a blanket wrapped tightly around your head. To add insult to injury, this effect is not consistent from track to track, or even within the same track.

"Brain Salad Surgery" was ELP's undisputed masterwork.Released in December 1973,it hit #11 on the Billboard Album charts and it is home to some of the band's most popular and enduring songs:the gentle ballad "Still...You Turn Me On",the spellbinding hymn "Jerusalem",the Moog-fried classical-rock piece "Toccata"(an adaptation from Ginastera's 1'st Piano Concerto,4th movement)and the towering muti-part epic "Karn Evil 9".But unlike the previous ELP Shout! Factory remasters,this reissue's remastering of this album is an inept disaster."Karl Evil 9(1st Impressions Parts 1 & 2)" is viturally unlistenable-the volume is so low and muffled you have to crank it up to 12 to hear it,and "Jerusalum" has a volume increase halfway thorough the track-very poor QC at Shout!Factory. Unlike the others,however,it has two bonus tracks,one's an alternate mix of "Jerusalem",with Greg Lake's vocal more upfront than in the original mix,and an instrumental version of "Karn Evil 9: 1st Impression Parts 1 & 2".It also has a cool gatefold sleeve-opening design of the controversial H.R Giger album cover,a neat foldout poster of the trio containing lyrics,and a deluxe 24-page booklet with informative liner notes by Dave Thompson and rare photos of the band live in concert.I would advise fans of BSS,however, to hold to the Rhino CD version,which has none of the sound quality problems and has held up very well.(Updated:6/25/2010)

1. Atlantic USA SD 19124 (made by WEA Manufacturing)
2. Atlantic USA SD 19124/D154608 BMG Club edition (made by CMU)
3. Atlantic USA SD 19124 CRC edition (made by DADC)
4. Victory USA VC 20020 CRC edition (made by Sony)
5. Victory USA 3834800152 Digipak edition (made by JVC)
6. Rhino USA R2 724592 3D edition (made by WEA manufacturing)
7. Shout Factory USA 2666310642 Mini-LP edition (made by Sony/BMG)
There are several different masterings present here.
1, 2 and 3 are basically the same mastering (by Barry Diament), except 1 has the very opening note starting immediately after pressing Play, whereas the later 2 and 3 have a small amount of silence inserted before the opening of Jerusalem. Otherwise, they appear to sound the same. There is no evidence of the scraping sound at the start of Toccata that was present on UK Manticore vinyl. Karn Evil 9 First Impression is quite dull and is split into 2 parts as per Manticore vinyl. The sound has a nice unstrained dynamic (particularly in the mid to upper bass) and seems to have been mastered to make the very bright high hat sound less glaringly obvious. This makes it easy to turn up without aural pain, but may be classed by some as too dull, especially Karn Evil 9 First Impression.
4, 5 and 6 are the same (in the core album) mastering efforts by Joseph Palmaccio, whereas 6 has "The Making Of Brain Salad Surgery" appended. Although the mastering of 6 has been credited to Bill Inglot and Dan Hersch, there is no difference in the sound of 4, 5 or 6. I suspect that their "remastering" involved adding the extra track mentioned above. This mastering has the scraping sound at the beginning of Toccata (as per vinyl), but Karn Evil 9 First Impression is no longer dull, nor is it split into 2 parts (unlike the vinyl Manticore copies or Atlantic CD). The person supervising the remastering of the ELP catalogue for the 1993 Victory releases, Bill Levenson, while investigating the cause of the varied sound during Karn Evil 9, discovered a tape containing an unseparated Karn Evil 9 First Impression that also had sound consistent with the Second and Third Impressions. It appears that this is the original mix-down stereo master tape, whereas even vinyl used something at least one generation removed from that master to enable the fade out/in between Karn Evil 9 First Impression Parts 1 and 2 that separated the two vinyl sides. The sound is much brighter than the Atlantic and is mastered to try and give a reasonably balanced listening experience - not as dull as the Atlantic, but without the same mid bass dynamic as the Atlantic. I love the Rhino 3D cover (and I suspect H. R. Giger would too, as it is much more anatomically correct than any other - the nose is exactly where it should be, unlike all other attempts). 4, 5, and 6 sound identical to me despite different manufacturing plants. The Rhino interview is great, but it sounds like Carl was interviewed on an extremely poor telephone line from Afghanistan.
7 is where things aren't quite so good. The mini-LP cover chops off half the ELP insignia for a start. The sound appears to be made from a similar tape to the Manticore vinyl and Atlantic CD by Mark Chalecki at Capitol USA, in that it has the dull Karn Evil 9 First Impression, but that track is not split into Parts 1 and 2. It is possible that the two halves were digitally joined. There is no scraping noise at the beginning of Toccata (much like the Atlantic CD). The sound in general appears to have been equalised to be both brighter and boomier than any prior and is not terribly successful in my opinion, as it doesn't sound relaxed at higher volume. The 2 bonus tracks (an alternate mix of Jerusalem and an instrumental mix of Karn Evil 9) are great and the booklet contains a good essay and some great concert photos.

This is a great album, obviously, but I have a few things to add about the mastering. I've read all the reviews of the Sanctuary import version, and a lot of the same problems are here, as well. The first four tracks are fully remastered on this Shout! version, but the entire Karn Evil 9 suite sounds like it was taken directly from vinyl! I can hear all the same imperfections I remember hearing on vinyl growing up. It sounds like they used the wrong tapes for Karn Evil 9, because that suite is NOT remastered. The difference is very obvious!!!

I agree with other reviewers that the volume increases in Jerusalem and the Karn Evil part 1 is very muddy. Also, the low end is too pronounced. I felt like I was listening to gangsta rap.

Seems like Shout spent too much time on the packaging...

I'm unhappy with this one. This is Shout's first miss, and of course it happens here, the album that's probably been effed with more than any other in ELP's catalog...because it's the favorite (although not mine). Marino below is right when he says "Karn Evil 9 Pts. 1 & 2" are muffled. But so is "Still...", and there are funny drop-outs (or INs) of sound throughout. "Jerusalem": "Bring me my bow" -- did it always go from a 7 to a 9 in volume at that point?? Emerson's shiny background keys are also now erratic in tone, and right where it just breaks your heart and pisses you off that it should be so. I've made sure to get the old Atlantic CD, which at least seemed to follow the vinyl the way it was. And the great packaging? -- I don't think so. They decrease the boundaries of the cover art to make things seem bigger. The Amazon thumbnail doesn't show this. The best thing about this release is the better-sounding bass. Otherwise there is an unforgivable -- and one must fear, irremediable -- muddiness. "Benny the Bouncer" and the final two impressions of "Karn," for now, appear unscathed. Since they didn't hugely increase the overall volume like many other remaster efforts, one might be able to make their own disc from several CDs for a better mix.

You say you've already got a copy of Brain Salad Surgery...and you're wondering if you need this version?

Well, the sound is excellent, the two bonus cuts are quite good, the booklet has informative liner notes and very good photos and is definitely a value add. The music is 5 star classic (on any scale) and the original cover and poster have been recreated and made available in this release.

For an example of a less than stellar remastering and repackaging job, see my review of Blue Oyster Cult's "Spectres". In terms of quality of remastering of the product there's simply no comparison - this release of BSS is clearly the better value for the money.

This is a perfect example of what the "record" companys need to be doing with their back catalogues in order to justify all us old rock dawgs spending money on product (again!). This is my money very happily (and well) spent! Love it!

Buy it!

Well...What can I say...after purchasing the entire remaster catalogue of this band...and then reading these reviews (after the fact).......I finally listened to this CD....what a majort disappointment...

This was just about the absolute WORST remastering job I've ever had the misfortune of encountering..

A total waste of money...unless you enjoy having your ears assaulted.......Altho they did a good job of reproducing the original packaging in minature....maybe the packaging folks should have mastered the sound as well???? They sure couldn't do any worse.

Since then....I have ordered the Rhino version..as I've heard it is a pretty good mastering job. (ie faithful to the original albums sound)

There's a lesson to be learned here: Just because something says "REMASTER"...doesn't neccessarily mean it's an improvement (as in so many cases lately).

UPDATE:

I just scored a near mint copy of the RHINO/WEA version and what a difference...

The liner notes and pics are very informative and very cool.....but the remastering is amazing...exactly like the original LP..only better....nice and full...not muddy....every track is consistent in mix and output (unlike the SHOUT version). The bass in nice and punchy..and very balanced with the drums, keys and vocals.

Am listening to the disc again as I write (2nd time thru)....track 7..Karn Evil 2nd Imp..."cha cha music"....Rhino reproduces this perfectly...Shout had it all fuzzed out and distorted.....WHY???

If you had the misfortune to purchase the SHOUT version...as many of us did.....dont despair.....the packaging is worth keeping..just for the sake of having the original in minature...but now you'll have the recording as it should be with some added reading material that gives some insight to the background of the albums cover art.

What is really confusing to me is....SHOUT put out the other discs in traditional plastic CD cases and did an excellent remastering on each of those albums....but then..they decided to do a big turn and do an exact minature reporo of this abum...and they did it perfectly...but then completely disregarded the important portion...the actual remastered sound of the cd contents....mind baffling..

I was also lucky enough to find this in the used market (on amazon) for about $15..worth every cent.