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Iron Butterfly - In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida Audio CD

A fair review of the Iron Butterfly "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Iron Butterfly reviews here, or go back to the Iron Butterfly tabs.

Iron Butterfly Band: Iron Butterfly
Title: In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida
Rating:
Release Date: 2006-05-23
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Most Anything You Want 2: Flowers and Beads 3: My Mirage 4: Termination 5: Are You Happy 6: In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida

A superior digital remaster to the 1990 compact disc, with an improved cover.
The cover is a nifty 1990s hologram which is actually an improvement of the bland 1968 cover. The 1995 updating and remastering of the pychedelic classic In-Gadda- Da-Vida by Iron Butterfly is a step in the right direction. The sound is definitely superior to first edition compact disc (1990), but it could be improved with higher volume and dynamic level remastering. Tape hiss is still evident at times, and there could be improvements in balancing the highs and lows. I still prefer to listen to this album on vinyl where the volume range is not a problem and the sound is more balanced, more dynamic and actually sonically superior. This disc seems to be at a digital midway point. I am certain that a superior digital remastering at a higher volume and dynamic range with a sound that is more like the vinyl, will occur or has occured. Perhaps I will try the 2003 Japanese disc, but its pricetag is hefty, and I am unsure if it will measure up to the vinyl. I will still recommend this disc, because the original 1990 compact disc was one of the worst sounding discs of all time. This disc is still worthwhile because everyone needs to experience all 17 minutes of In-Gadda-Da-Vida in some form; plus the new cover is a wonderful improvement. .


Old music never dies.
I was looking for a copy this music to place on my iTunes. I have owned a cassette tape of this album for many years. I went to the iTunes store and looked for the 17 minute song I loved, In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida, but iTunes did not have this version. Having listened to this song hundreds of times, I was not going to settle for anything less than the extended play version. So I went to Amazon, used the search feature under Mp3 category and there it was. I purchased immediately and am quite satisfied with the CD.


Luv It!
I found this version hard to find from other sellers, which had shorter radio station versions. This is the full version of In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida for a playtime of over 17 minutes. This company is great!.


Anthem for an age


What the reviewer also neglected to say is that all of the members of Iron Butterfly were truly legitimate musicians, trained in the classics. I know that the "professional" reviewer thought it over the top, but he must be under the age of 50! I've had five vinyls of this album, all ripped off at various times, and am THRILLED to see a CD version. Most played more than one instrument. If you listen closely to the extended version, you can easily hear the jazz roots, the blues roots, the classical roots, and the astounding musicality of the piece. The old "so stoned" story has been refuted several times (and repeated several times) by members of the band, but it makes such a good story for those who want to put the group down that it keeps getting repeated. The same reviewer probably loved Mick Jagger, who mumbled so badly on many of his songs that official lyrics had to be published to settle all the bar arguments (have you ever tried to figure out the words to "Jumpin' Jack Flash"?).

If you were a member of the flower power generation, or really want to understand something of the times, this is a seminal piece of music.

I will admit to have been underwhelmed by some of the cuts on the flip side, but even the worst of those are better than some garbage from the 90s!.


2006 Japanese Remaster vs. 1995 Rhino Remaster


In the mid/late-1990s I was ecstatic to replace my old Atlantic "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" CD with the new Rhino remaster with its auxious animated artwork and thoughtful bonus tracks (i. Amazon lumps all reviews of different versions of the same title together without regard to which version is being reviewed. e. the live and single-edit versions of the classic title track). I thought I had finally obtained the best-sounding version of this classic album possible - but having just compared the 2006 Japanese remaster with the 1995 Rhino remaster in a track-by-track headphone listening competition, I am shocked (and stunned) by the differences I have heard. Rhino's 1995 offering is drenched in a hollow reverb that is largely absent from the Japanese 2006 edition. The result is a much cleaner sounding 2006 version of this album with strikingly improved clarity in both the vocals and music. I've actually found new magic in the 5 songs which comprised "Side 1" of the original LP because of this difference. Ironically, I will not be retiring my Rhino remaster because the mix is so different it's more like an alternate version of the album rather than just one that's been sonically bested by the use of superior source tapes and/or new and improved technology in the hands of a few caring engineers.

When I was a teenager I would sometimes turn my stereo's balance knob all the way to the left during the intro of the title track because I found it interesting (and funny) to hear so much tape hiss on a vinyl LP while the keyboard solo in the other channel could just barely be heard bleeding through in the background. The 2006 Japanese remaster makes this possible again as opposed to the 1995 Rhino remaster where the aforementioned reverb makes the keyboard intro much more audible in the left channel than I originally remember it being. I am now left wondering where all of that "Rhino reverb" originated. Without really destroying these recordings, it noticeably blurs Doug Ingle's already dense vocals and makes the music much less well-defined than it should be. By this I am reminded of some of the more notable differences in the UK Parlophone and US Capitol versions of The Beatles earlier albums.


You can see a complete list of all Iron Butterfly discography, or go back to the Iron Butterfly tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.

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