Reviews and Commentaries for the Music of Bread
Radio Friendly Pure Pop Albums Available Now
One of our good customers had this to say about some Hot Stampers he purchased recently:
Hey Tom,
I’m listening to this Bread Hot Stamper… just stunning. The simple 3 minute songs… Keyboards coming out of the speakers and the bass from this pressing is just ridiculously deep, solid and tight. I can’t believe how much I love this music in all its glory.
Andy
Hot Stamper Pressings of Radio Friendly Albums Available Now
This very nice looking Elektra Butterfly Label LP has the best sound I’ve ever heard for this compilation. Keep in mind that this is an album of mostly weak material, not in the class with the first ’Best of Bread’ by a long shot.
However, some of these songs sound quite good here, easily better than the typical Bread album from which they are taken. Listen to ‘Been Too Long On The Road’ or ‘He’s A Good Lad’ to hear the best sounding Bread.
This is an Older Review.
Most of the older reviews you see are for records that did not go through the shootout process, the revolutionary approach to finding better sounding pressings we developed in the early 2000s and have since turned into a fine art.
We found the records you see in these older listings by cleaning and playing a pressing or two of the album, which we then described and priced based on how good the sound and surfaces were. (For out Hot Stamper listings, the Sonic Grades and Vinyl Playgrades are listed separately.)
Bread’s fourth album has wonderfully sweet and rich 1972 ANALOG sound. The acoustic guitars are to die for on the title track. Talk about Tubey Magic, this copy has got bucketfuls of it on the voices and guitars.
Whatever happened to that sound I wonder?
When you hear music sound this good, it makes you appreciate the music even more than the sound. This is in fact the primary raison d’etre of this audiophile hobby, or at least it’s supposed to be. To hear the vocal harmonies that these guys produced is to be reminded of singers of the caliber of the Everly Brothers or The Beatles. It’s Pure Pop for Now People, to quote the famous wag Nick Lowe.
Of course, by Now People, I’m referring to people who appreciate music that came out close to forty years ago. Whenever I hear a pop record with sound like this, I have to ask myself “What has gone wrong with popular recordings for the last three or four decades?”
I can’t think of one recording of the last twenty years that sounds as good as this Bread album. Are there any?
Side One
A++, Super Hot. Rich but a bit of smear and hardness in the midrange holds it back from our top grade.
Side Two
Side two is almost as good with a grade of A+ to A++. It too has a little smear on the transients, and it can get congested when loud. It’s musical and enjoyable though.