Surrealistic Pillow [Original recording remastered]

Jefferson Airplane | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 19, 2003)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: RCA
• ASIN: B0000A0DRY
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (135 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,143 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #21 in Music > Classic Rock > Psychedelic Rock
  • #51 in Music > Rock > Folk Rock

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

When she joined the Jefferson Airplane in 1966 as replacement for original vocalist Signe Anderson, Grace Slick brought with her two songs she'd performed in her previous band, the Great Society: "Somebody to Love" and "White Rabbit." Featured on this classic 1967 album, they became Top 10 hits, and helped establish both the San Francisco and the emerging counterculture they celebrated. With Jorma Kaukonen's sinewy guitar, Jack Casady's probing bass, and Spencer Dryden's inventive drumming swirling around Slick and co-vocalists Marty Balin and Paul Kantner on songs like "She Has Funny Cars" and "3/5 of a Mile in 10 Seconds," Surrealistic Pillow virtually defined the communal spirit of Summer of Love hippiedom. --Billy Altman

Product Description

Feed your head with the rare mono edition of this spellbinding time-capsule from the epicenter of the Summer of Love, San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury, circa 1967. On their groundbreaking first album with Grace Slick, the Jefferson Airplane brought their freshly-blooming psychedelia to the world at large with "White Rabbit" and "Somebody to Love." On high-definition vinyl, from the original analog masters. --This text refers to the Vinyl edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

207 of 214 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Surrealistic critques from tripped out reviewers..., December 26, 2003

By 

J. Wade (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Surrealistic Pillow (Audio CD)

This latest CD incarnation of Jefferson Airplane's second album, Surrealistic Pillow, is the third U.S. version to be issued by RCA/BMG. I have owned all three versions. The first CD version was in the mid-80's when CD technology was in its infancy. Many of us were abused by the major labels as they exploited us by charging premium prices for CDs of classic albums mastered from very bad (as in worn out) LP masters that were never intended nor engineered for the dynamic range capability of the compact disc. At any rate, all of the criticism about the first version is valid. It is easily identified because it has shoddy packaging as well and the old Airplane label moniker, GRUNT. The second version wasn't issued as an individual CD until 2001. It was significantly improved and included liner notes from Jefferson Airplane/Starship historian Jeff Tamarkin. The "audio restoration" for that one was done by BMG engineer, Bill Lacey. This CD was originally part of a four disc boxed set, and it included both mono and stereo versions of the album. Interestingly, the credits list two different engineers for the digital transfers of each version (stereo by Eddie Tallia and mono by Mike Hatry).
The third and most recent reissue of Surrealistic Pillow is part of BMG's Heritage series which is supposed to be as close as they are going to get to mimicking the fine reissue works of competing labels like Rhino (WEA), Hip-O (Universal), and Legacy (Sony). In fact, BMG Heritage contracted with independent engineer, Bob Irwin, to do the latest Jefferson Airplane remasters (also includes - Takes Off, After Bathing At Baxters, and Crown of Creation). Bob Irwin's past remastering credentials includes the fabulous Legacy reissues of The Byrds classic catalogue. If you have heard those albums, then you know he has high standards. His work on Surrealistic Pillow is not an exception, despite the belly aching criticism some other Amazon reviewers have written. Irwin is based at the independent label, Sundazed when he's not doing contract jobs.

For those who say that this latest CD sounds hideous, I think they protest too much. This is as good as it is going to get as long as they use the original two-track stereo masters. The only other possible way to improve the sound is to remix from the multi-tracks, and that rarely happens if the record is a classic. The biggest exception to this was the reissue of the Who's catalogue in the late 90's, but Pete Townshend himself was involved with approving each remaster. While I thought they sounded great, there was a lot of protest from fans that they did indeed sound different. When the Beatles catalogue was being prepared for CD transfer by George Martin, he remixed the earliest albums, but wisely chose to leave the later albums as was. It is possible to make an old two-track master sound good if the LP EQing is removed and the dynamic range is expanded. The late engineer/producer Gus Dudgeon (he engineered early albums by Moody Blues, Bowie, and produced many classic Elton John albums as well as remastered his entire catalog) wrote a very interesting technical article about the remastering of older albums and how it can and should be done. It can be found by searching on Google. His remastering of the 70's Elton albums is flawless.

So, my opinion is that the 2003 CD of Surrealistic Pillow is the best there can and will be using the original mixes. The packaging has been restored with all the original elements and there are 6 bonus tracks including mono single mixes of the classics, "White Rabbit" and "Somebody To Love". Therefore this is the definitive remaster...unless Paul Kantner and Marty Balin are allowed to remix the multi-tracks with a very good engineer.

34 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Only If You Need The Bonus Tracks, August 31, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Surrealistic Pillow (Audio CD)

All the accolades afforded this album over the years are well justified--and if you're reading this, I'm sure you've heard (and likely experienced for yourself) them all. This is truly one of the greatest albums not only of the Sixties & the folk-rock/psychedelic era, but of the entire pop music era period! That said, I'm afraid we've yet to see the ultimate cd issue of this masterpiece--though this latest one offers the added attraction of four songs not on the original LP, three of which were cut during the "Pillow" sessions. Airplane aficianados are well familiar with all these tracks (scattered through various compilations over time), but in fact, the extra tracks are really the only reason to purchase this edition of the album, if you don't already own one of the more recent issues. The real killer in the bonus bunch is "Go To Her," a showcase for Marty Balin's soulful wail, and a song more than deserving of inclusion on the original album. You'll also hear Jorma Kaukonen step out front on an original blues "in The Morning," as well as on an excellent reading of Lightning Hopkins' "Come Back Baby," the latter actually recorded a few weeks after the album came out. Further, there's an unlisted bonus cut at the end, an instrumental run-through of "B.C.D.A. -25," on which Paul Kantner's 12-string rhythm playing takes the spotlight.
All that said, I want to caution you: If you're looking for an improved-quality recording of this album over the gold disk, the 1996 issue or the 2001 issue, you ain't gonna get it here! That's not to say it doesn't sound good, rather to say it's not been improved upon. Fans are well aware of the differences between the mono and stereo mixes of the album: It's great to have both, but this version only has two of the mono mixes (the two monster hit singles.) As for the standard stereo mix, all the tape hiss is still there, not to mention the early fade-outs on the tracks which go on a little longer on the mono album. I've thought for quite a long time that this album begs to be remixed, from top to bottom, from the original four-track masters. Perhaps that'll be done someday--either after someone gets smart or after someone dies! Fact is, the bonus tracks (all of which are in stereo outside of the two singles) are technically of higher quality than those from the original album.
In the meantime, to reiterate: If you have one of the above-mentioned issues of this album, the bonus tracks are really the only reason you may want to purchase this one. They were my reason; I needed them and am quite pleased with them. And oh yes: The liner notes are very good--with stories behind and recording info about--all the tracks, but of course, you can't play the liner notes!

37 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars So What About the Sound Quality?, February 5, 2002

By 

Mr. Get Real (California) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Surrealistic Pillow (Audio CD)

We all know that Surrealistic Pillow is a landmark album. The question is where can I find a decent sounding CD of this essential album? We suffered for more than ten years with the first generation CD - a notoriously bad CD plagued by hiss and crummy mastering. No surprise, RCA showed the same disregard for the Elvis CDs for years until his estate finally stepped in and said enough is enough - suddenly the original masters started showing up and now remastered Elvis sounds great. Will the same good fortune happen to Surrealistic Pillow? Well, there was the expensive Gold disc a few years ago. It sounded better, and even included the mono along with the stereo mixes (22 tracks), but virtually anything would have been an improvement! The problem was that the Gold disc lacked any depth whatsoever, it sounded very flat - and on top of that it had an edgy, harsh treble quality whenever the music got louder. Oh, well... Then a box set came out that included a slightly less harsh sounding Surrealistic Pillow that also had both stereo and mono versions. But again, the basic problems remained - a one-dimensional soundstage, a still too-harsh high-end, and muddied vocals, not to mention that, like the Gold disc, it was going to cost you some major bucks to buy the whole box to get this one disc. And remember, throughout this whole time RCA had continued to mass produce that first generation CD without remastering it - forcing you to either buy the Gold disc or the box to get better sound. Are you starting to get the picture here? Frustrating! Anyway, FINALLY last year (2001) a new single CD was issued domestically and it turns out to be exactly the same as the remastered one in the box set (includes both stereo and mono tracks). Same sound problems, but at least now you can get it without having to buy the whole box. But, that's not all folks! There is more to the story. There was also a new European import CD issued in 2001 with 4 bonus tracks (no mono tracks) that actually sounds ALMOST as good as my LP copy from the 70's, which of course isn't saying much. In any case, for what it is worth, this is by far the best re-issue CD I have heard. My advice is that if you need to get the best sound, then get the import. I can listen to this import CD without cringing and actually enjoy the experience. The remastering on the import is very faithful to the original LP mix (unlike the domestic issue) and on some songs it has some of that warm three-dimensional presence that all the other domestic CDs lack. Now I am not saying this is a fantastic CD, only that it finally begins to approach the minimal quality that you might expect from this great album. Be forewarned that even this import CD still is harsh at times, but it is far, far less annoying than the domestic versions. Let's just say Surrealistic Pillow needs to be totally remixed from top to bottom from the first generation four-track master instead of the worn out two-track Stereo mix-down master to do it justice. Until that happens, get the import CD and skip all domestic issues or better yet dig out that old LP and give it a spin.