Pretenders / multi-disc deluxe reissues and limited box set

Which CD master (first edition/2006/2015) you prefer, is a matter of personal taste/preference. I think the original vinyl pressings still have the best sound.

The following tracks are missing, but should have been included:
Suicide (1977 demo)
Do I Love You (1977 demo)
1969 (1988 single)
Tattooed Love Boys, Precious and Mystery Achievement (Santa Monica Civic 1981 concert)

Got mine and my name on the poster as well ;-)

Yet apparently the original DVD release does not have these sound issues. So, either the mastertape has deteriorated in the time since, or someone at DMG is not being entirely honest.

I have noticed the same problem with the audio on the “Isle Of View” dvd so wrote to Edsel. This was the reply I received:

“Thanks for your email.

We’ve asked our authoring house to investigate these issues on the DVD. The audio engineer at the DVD authoring facility has listened to this DVD and comments that there are sections where the audio is heavier on the right but this is due to the mix itself, evidently a creative decision made at the mix stage. This occurs only in certain sections (like acoustic guitar and voice only), as per the source tape. It’s particularly evident on “Back On The Chain Gang”, roughly 3dB different at times which is noticeable, but is not an error or a fault.

If you feel that the above is not sufficient, please send in your copy to the below address and we will investigate further.

Demon Music Group
Television Centre
101 Wood Lane
London
W12 7FA

With thanks,
DMG”

Therefore, they don’t seem to be acknowledging that there is a problem that needs to be rectified.

Not sure if this is actually is an improvement on the first CD edition. Personally I don’t think so… but music, more than anything else, is a matter of taste. This box certainly sounds bright and compressed.

I’m not very keen on digipacks either, I agree the EBTG reissue format would have been nicer.

The sound is not a problem to me, an improvement on the originals, i don’t have the other remasters to compare. A lovely comprehensive box. My biggest gripe is that Edsel have used those horrible unwieldy plastic and thin-card style digipaks. Such a shame and unexpected given the lovely feel of quality in the ‘hardback book’ format of their ‘Everything but the girl’ and ‘Deacon Blue’ re-issues.

I’ve just compared a few tracks from the debut album from the last remasters and the new box set.

I have to agree with Andrea that they do sound a bit thin.

If you don’t have anything to compare the box set with, you’d probably say what a clean sound to the new remasters, the guitar intro to Brass In Pockets for instance sounds fresh and clean. The down side to this approach is there is a lack of bass to drive the songs along.

Some of the new The Jam remasters have the same thin sound so I’m not sure if this is now being seen as the norm.

If you like your remasters sounding bright and thin, you’ll like this box. If you want a bit more ummph and bass and low end, stick with the previous remaster.

But, the one review that has been posted on Amazon.co.uk says that there are many left channel audio drop-outs on the “Isle of View” DVD. Fortunately, I’ve got the original U.S.A. Rhino DVD, and the sound is fine.

But, if I were buying the “Isle of View” video program for the first time via the Edsel 2-disc set or the Edsel boxed set, I would be outraged. If the reports of problems with Edsel’s DVD are correct, they should supply a replacement disc to consumers.

To read reports of disappointing mastering and a defective DVD immediately after Amazon.co.uk shipped the boxed set to me, is heartbreaking. I’ve just spent $126 to buy a product released by a reissue label that doesn’t give a damn about quality control. The boxed set may end up being a worthless paperweight. Part of the blame resides with Warner Music, who licensed the recordings to Edsel.

I’m left wondering(after 31 years of CD collecting) whether I should even continue buying CD’s at all, when there’s infinite amounts of music available for free on the internet. And it’s not the only time recently that I’ve been burnt by record label carelessness. Shortly after Amazon.co.uk shipped Universal Music’s two recent deluxe CD+DVD Rick Wakeman reissues to me, I read a review on Amazon.co.uk claiming that the quadraphonic mix included on “King Arthur & the Knights of the Round Table” has been dubbed from vinyl with no de-clicking, and that run-out groove noise is audible. Those two sets are a week overdue to arrive. Now I don’t care if they get lost in the mail.

I’m one of the minority of music consumers who still want to buy physical product, and the industry treats us like this. Sad.

I have received my boxset (and poster) on Friday 13th too.

Excellent packaging work! Note that the final design differs from the computer images posted at the top of this article. All digipaks have the same spine design now (black and white) for the better.

Mastering is done by Phil Kinrade, according to the booklets. The few tracks I have listed too sound great.

PS: I have already listed all 8x sets in Discogs!

I haven’t received my box set in the States yet ($99.92 USD incl. shipping) but I hope it doesn’t arrive with a case of the Laupers.

Just received my box set today from myplay.com.
For those complaining about their lack of service, I received the confirmation e-mail last Thursday that it had been shipped and it actually arrived on Friday !!! I only received it today as I wasn’t home on Friday.
I haven’t listened to anything yet but overall presentation looks very good.
And yes Paul Sinclair’s name is on the poster !

Well I never!… It IS Phil Kinrade at Alchemy after all… :-)
and what a tinny sounding mess he has done

I’ve just come across the Everything But The Girle reissues, and guess what, they’re not remastered by Phil Kinrade either.
So I guess they DO not use Phil Kinrade a lot, at Edsel :-)
cheers

PS any update about the mastering of the Pretenders reissues?

Hi..
any news about the remastering if any? release date is approaching…

Thanks for your kind answer.
Of the reissues you mention, the only one I’m familiar with is Robert Palmer, and I’m quite positive they didn’t use Phil Kinrade on that one.
The reissue credits state “mastering at Universal” (or something of the kind, I don’t have it with me now), and Edsel executives have been reported saying that they were given already mastered CDs from Universal, so they (Edsel) had no idea about who remastered and from source and which bit rate.
Just saying…

Sorry, I didn’t ment to be rude, at all. English is not may first language, not even my second at that, so maybe I expressed myself badly.

I just asked some info about the remastering, and forgive me if I think that Phil Kinrade remastering Deacon Blue or other projects doesn’t mean he has remastered this one; as you said Edsel has notoriously dropped the ball in the past.

So if information about remastering is unavailbable the moment, let’s just leave it at that…
Thanks for you time!

Paul,
we still need info about the remastering! That’s *THE* thing we need to know… The thingamajig that will make the difference between buying it /not buying it (for me and I’m pretty sure for many fans who bought the – excellent – remastered and expanded Rhino reissues).
Thanks for any light you can shed!

Where is the full length ‘Talk of the Town’? The LP version is very short in comparison to the superior single version, which I don’t see listed. And I too am curious if these have been remastered, even though I’m only interested in the first 2 albums.

The pre-order price has dropped more than 35 quid to £74 on amazon UK, although I expect it will rise and fall several times between now and Feb 16th, so might be worth pre-ordering now.

Wil these be the same remastered versions that were released in 2006 by Rhino?

As stated by previous comments, the news we really need to read is about the remastering.
Edsel is known to mess it up big time lately, most famously on the Robert Palmer reissue series. Universal handed them Palmer’s legacy on CDs, and Edsel released it without even realizing is was heavily compressed 16-bit mastering.
Now heaven knows how long we’ll have to wait before Palmer’s legacy finally gets justice.

So if SDE can shed some light on the remastering of this set, I guess that’s what we’re all eager to read. Thanks!

The debut album is also missing the single version of The Wait, from the flip of Stop Your Sobbing. A minor quibble, but a shame its not on there. Perhaps these are not definitive track listings yet?

Fantastic looking set- can’t wait – and as someone else said, Denon do expanded’s much better than others….
Questions : Are these remastered? Doesn’t mention mastering on the sleeves? – and there are a couple of omissions that really need to be addressed : Talk Of The Town – the 7″ version must be included, and ‘1969’ also should

I just hope they don’t resort to the compression and limiting they used on the 2006 reissue.

A great set of reissues. Who compiled them though? As already mentioned, 1969 is missing. So many hard to find tracks are included, its a shame that that one is absent – a rights issue maybe? But what’s really frustrating is having Cuban Slide and Porcelain as bonus tracks on the debut album. They are outtakes from Pretenders II. But I can overlook that as these really are good, and long overdue for a band as good as the Pretenders.

I, too am concerned about possible remastering brickwalling. …And am very miffed that a music business that does nothing but cry poverty will not sell in the U.S.
That said – there’s always importing ($hudder), but does enyone know if these are all-region DVD’s that will play on R1 DVD players?

Is everything from the previously expanded re-issues on these?

Intriguing story of a CD single, Philip. Your comments are always worth a quick read. Thanks. :)

Notably absent: the song “1969”, which appeared on the UK 3″ CD single of “Windows of The World”. Most copies of the CD single rotted, due to Philips-DuPont Optical’s decision to use silver as a reflective material(versus the usual Aluminium/Aluminum), and the pressing plant not properly sealing the discs’ edges. As a pressing plant spokesman later said, “As any housewife will tell you, silver tarnishes.”.

After my original CD single became unplayable, I visited the UK, and went to the specific shop from which I had mail ordered the disc(“Adrians” in Wickford). I tried the 3 remaining copies of the disc. Only one was playable. I bought it. All these years later, though the label side has become badly discolored, the disc still plays, but I wasn’t taking any chances. Within weeks of getting back to the U.S.A., I made a CD-R clone of it.

Oddly enough, “1969” was not included on the film soundtrack album of the same name.

a waste .. 90% of these songs, demo’s and live cuts ARE ALREADY RELEASED on Rhino’s amazing 4 MINI LP’s all with the same tracks only in different order ..

Thrilled to see this coming out – and as disappointed as I am to have yet ANOTHER set or reissues come out – this does seem darn cool.
TR

Paul, will you please pass this along to Edsel? We LOVE them!!! They set the standard for their deluxe reissues.

The Official Pretenders Store website link does not open!

One word for all the Pretenders Deluxe Editions – BRILLIANT !

My original comment is awaiting moderation, so.here it is withiut the URL.

You could try Spin CDs (uk independent retailer) and see if they ship the box to the USA

Google “Spin CDs Pretenders box UK” and that should get you there.

You won’t get the poster though.

Excellent news, even though there are lots of tracks missing here, especially those originally released on tribute discs. But I’m grateful to see that “Blue Sun,” previously available only on laserdisc, will be included on this version of “Isle Of View.”

Argh!
I am a huge fan, and got to see their original lineup when they opened for the Kinks in ’81 (or was it ’82?). At that show, the Pretenders mgmt. and the promoter couldn’t come to terms on shirt sales, so I was crushed not to get a Pretenders shirt, and settled from a crummy Kinks shirt.

Their first two albums tower over their others, but still the box would have been great to get. But I am in Colorado and so it is a no go.

Once again, a major disappointment delivered at the hands of those who manage the Pretenders…………..

Unfortunately, the “My Play” Pretenders Store won’t sell to people in the U.S.A. /The music biz executives should be happy that there are still people who want to buy “physical product” instead of erecting barriers such as this.

Still, I Do intend to buy the individual titles from Amazon.co.uk

Hurray for Chrissie. A last we get a remastered Last Of The Independents !

Any details on remastering?

I could be wrong, but i’m almost sure that the cassette, that came with the UK 7″ of Don’t get me wrong included a remix/extended version of the song – i’ve definitely heard one and i’m sure it was from that release??

Is there any way someone in the US (me) can get the set from the Pretender’s Store? I checked the country options and we seem to be exclude.

No video for “Tattooed Love Boys” on the first set? Why does that video always get passed by? Does Chrissie not like it? Are the masters destroyed?

Shame they’re not planning to include both versions of Talk of the
Town on Pretenders II – I’m pretty sure the single version was a different mix from the original album version.

I would be all over this if the price was right, and the CDs weren’t brickwalled