A distinguished member of the Better Records Rock and Pop Hall of Fame.
White Hot Stampers on side two with a side one that’s right up there with it, this Glyn Johns-mixed rocker is really ROCKIN’! The big hits — Rock The Casbah and Should I Stay or Should I Go? — sound SUPERB on this copy. Last time around we played nearly a dozen pressings including imports and reissues, but this time we stuck with the copies we knew to have real Hot Stamper potential, and that meant original pressings made right here in the good old U. S. of A. (Look for Masterdisk in the dead wax, the mark of quality.)
Side two is the real killer here. It’s very lively with great bass and lots of WHOMP. Most of the other copies we played failed in one of two ways: either they were too bright, a sound we didn’t care for much; or they were smeary, veiled and pretty much dead as a doornail. But this copy knocked them all out with correct tonal balance and tons of energy.
Side One
Side one earned a sonic grade of A++ to A+++, a close second to the best we heard. It’s full-bodied and smooth, but still clear and open. Up against one other copy it was just a tad lacking in energy, so we dropped the grade half a plus. Side two has the full energy of the best copies, so when you flip this one over listen for that quality, it should be subtle but still quite noticeable. (If you have big speakers and don’t hear it, try turning up the volume. Rock records like being played loud and this is no exception.) (more…)
