THE NICE/THE THOUGHTS OF EMERLIST DAVJACK Z12 52004 (-67) US
After posting the UK mono here I got a comment saying the 1st edition US stereo was crippled by too much reverb and then thought I'd better avoid it, but when finding this copy (stamped matrixes AA-Z 12-52-004-1/-2) at a very affordable price decided to give it a try anyway. Never had a UK stereo so can't value against that, yet in comparison to the mono this actually has a lot to offer. I do get somewhat more reverb though to my taste not enough to injure the overall impression. I quite like it. Since it is one of the true classic psych records I'm willing to forgive volume shifting between and within tracks - just call it "dynamic" - the sometimes unbalanced stereo mix or part messy outcome. More positive - the picture is wider revealing further details and flaunting David O'List's crazy turned on guitars even more. A mix like this would have been a catastrophy if appearing on a Barbara Streisand or Celine Dion album, however since it pictures a couple of skilled and as it seems stoned musicians playing barefaced games in the studio - it fits in a way. I wont do a track by tracks mono-stereo comparison since I don't know how much this differs from the 1st UK stereo, but as soon as I find one of those I'll be back to finish the job. (YZÄ*) (YDÄ*) (ÄPY*)
Buddah Records put out a Nice compilation in the early '70s called Autumn to Spring. It includes superior stereo mixes of almost all the Emerlist Davjack tracks - I believe only the two instrumentals are absent.
The Autumn to Spring album was also released in Europe as Autumn '67 to Spring '68 on Charisma. It was largely remixed in 1972 from the original masters by Lee Jackson and Keith Emerson to fulfill their Charisma recording contract (by that time Emerson had already moved on the ELP and Jackson had Jackson Heights).
There was some loophole where apparently Immediate (which had gone bankrupt in 1970) still owned the rights to the mixdowns, but not the actual original masters which included longer unedited versions of both "Flower King Of Flies" and "Thoughts of Emerlist Davjack", both of which gain an additional verse.
The the stereo mix on Bonnie K from Autumn to Spring is far superior to the original stereo. There is a stereo version of America that some have claimed to be the US edit, however this is not the stereo mix of America that appeared on the US copies of Ars Longa Vita Brevis as it lacks the gun shots. While neither this or the US edit contains the "America is pregnant...." line, the edit on Autumn to Spring is more abrupt than on the US Ars Longa.
The stereo mix of Diamond Hard Blue Apples of the Moon is superior in every way, however I cannot hear much difference in this version of Dawn from the original. The Autumn to Spring stereo version of Tantalising Maggie is similar to the mono one on Thoughts... as the vocals have better presence in the mix, however the mono Thoughts still wins as the vocals in the versus in Autumn to Spring are an inferior alternate take.
The Cry of Eugene on Autumn to Spring features full double tracked vocals rather than having them stupidly panned as on Thoughts. It has all the benefits of the mono mix, but it is in stereo. Autumn to Spring concludes with a completely different version of "Daddy Where Did I Come From" with O'List on guitar and Jackson on vocals (as opposed to the Ars Longa version with Emerson on vocals). The Hang On To A Dream book about the Nice, it seems like that Jackson is saying that he and Emerson recorded parts on this track as late as 1971 or 1972 to finish it up for this release.
Buddah Records put out a Nice compilation in the early '70s called Autumn to Spring. It includes superior stereo mixes of almost all the Emerlist Davjack tracks - I believe only the two instrumentals are absent.
SvaraRaderaThanks for the info Dharma...good to know. Will keep my eyes open.
RaderaThe Autumn to Spring album was also released in Europe as Autumn '67 to Spring '68 on Charisma. It was largely remixed in 1972 from the original masters by Lee Jackson and Keith Emerson to fulfill their Charisma recording contract (by that time Emerson had already moved on the ELP and Jackson had Jackson Heights).
RaderaThere was some loophole where apparently Immediate (which had gone bankrupt in 1970) still owned the rights to the mixdowns, but not the actual original masters which included longer unedited versions of both "Flower King Of Flies" and "Thoughts of Emerlist Davjack", both of which gain an additional verse.
The the stereo mix on Bonnie K from Autumn to Spring is far superior to the original stereo. There is a stereo version of America that some have claimed to be the US edit, however this is not the stereo mix of America that appeared on the US copies of Ars Longa Vita Brevis as it lacks the gun shots. While neither this or the US edit contains the "America is pregnant...." line, the edit on Autumn to Spring is more abrupt than on the US Ars Longa.
The stereo mix of Diamond Hard Blue Apples of the Moon is superior in every way, however I cannot hear much difference in this version of Dawn from the original. The Autumn to Spring stereo version of Tantalising Maggie is similar to the mono one on Thoughts... as the vocals have better presence in the mix, however the mono Thoughts still wins as the vocals in the versus in Autumn to Spring are an inferior alternate take.
The Cry of Eugene on Autumn to Spring features full double tracked vocals rather than having them stupidly panned as on Thoughts. It has all the benefits of the mono mix, but it is in stereo. Autumn to Spring concludes with a completely different version of "Daddy Where Did I Come From" with O'List on guitar and Jackson on vocals (as opposed to the Ars Longa version with Emerson on vocals). The Hang On To A Dream book about the Nice, it seems like that Jackson is saying that he and Emerson recorded parts on this track as late as 1971 or 1972 to finish it up for this release.
Thanks a million for Your input. A lot here I didn't know. I'm sucking it up all of it :)
Radera