Rick Wakeman - Six Wives and Arthur
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I would agree with my man RT. Please let's keep things civil. Everybody has a strong opinion. I'm sure things were done as they could be. Could they be better - maybe so but they are what they are. Now that you know, buy 'em or don't buy'em. But, please, let's keep things friendly around here.
Thanks for your cooperation.
I felt pretty much the same way as you, to a certain extent, wishing Universal had consulted the huge knowledge base (here at QQ and elsewhere amongst Quad collectors & enthusiasts) when they did that hatchet job on Black Sabbath's Paranoid Deluxe -- the quad on the DVD of that was seriously sub-par.
However, I'm guessing things must have changed @Universal in that regard in the years since then, as these two discs sound absolutely leaps and bounds better than that Paranoid disaster in every way! It strikes me with things like the now common knowledge OD connection and Neil Wilkes, etc with these Rick Wakeman sets, the label may just have learned from their previous mistakes and actually consulted people in the Quad community this time round who have helped them out? Just my take on why these are such a drastic improvement despite/in spite of sources used.. who knows!?
Yes! I'm curious about this also.
Does anybody here have a catalogue number or UPC etc. of the relevant CD, please?
Thx in advance
Oh RT.. You have no idea how many posts I have written here in this thread and deleted without posting.. what good would it do going off on a tirade, I've done it here before and regretted it afterwards.. I can't be bothered arguing with anyone about these.. they are what they are.. people who've never heard them are entitled to hate them on principle since potential source info has come to light.. I've heard them, I like them, I'm enjoying them and hope for more Quad mixes on DVD/SACD etc I can actually BUY! Ideally from master tapes but if no can do I'll take the best they can do!
himey
2K Club - QQ Super Nova
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There is always 1 in every thread on every forum. I can normally just overlook the crap but this forum is different in the fact that civility reigns supreme here and to call someone ( actually more than 1 person) names should not be tolerated. The almost zero back and forth name calling make this forum special and I want it to stay that way. Take your petty name calling and all your personal butt hurts somewhere else so we can talk some surround tunage. Peace.
There was never an SQ release of "Arthur" or "Journey" anywhere in the world.
"Six Wives" was SQ/Q8 only, but by the time the other two albums were released, A&M had permanently switched over to CD-4.
Any talk of an SQ decode of "Arthur" is a fabrication, unless someone decoded a stereo or quadradisc with an SQ decoder, which would be pretty dumb.
https://www.quadraphonicquad.com/aandm.htm
"Six Wives" was SQ/Q8 only, but by the time the other two albums were released, A&M had permanently switched over to CD-4.
Any talk of an SQ decode of "Arthur" is a fabrication, unless someone decoded a stereo or quadradisc with an SQ decoder, which would be pretty dumb.
https://www.quadraphonicquad.com/aandm.htm
Owen Smith
1K Club - QQ Shooting Star
Rick Wakeman became aware of some of Oxford Dickie's earlier quad conversions of his work, and Wakeman mentioned them on his web site saying something like it was nice this stuff could finally be heard again. It is believed this is how OD got into this project in the first place. So don't say Rick would be appalled by these conversions, the available evidence suggests otherwise.
Superglue the seperated bits!
Owen Smith
1K Club - QQ Shooting Star
DS234f on OD's blog is Six Wives decoded from SQ CD. Now withdrawn due to the commercial release. Nothing sinister, let's face it underground conversions and rips are basically piracy (of stuff they won't sell you at any price usually) and it's a good idea not to antagonise the record companies.
Owen Smith
1K Club - QQ Shooting Star
There's been no talk from me of an SQ conversion of Arthur. What I said was that there is an SQ CD of Six Wives, but OD found the SQ vinyl sounded better (and he usually prefers CDs, so that's not a biased decision he took there).
And someone earlier on this thread (in Luton, so not too far from me) claimed to have a Japanese CD-4 of Six Wives (but nothing to play it on).
Arthur on Ice and a splice.. :brew
Which CD is this please? I'd like to get a copy and try it out. Thanks!
Owen Smith
1K Club - QQ Shooting Star
I've posted everything I know about it. Oxford Dickie's email address is on his blog, you could try emailing him and asking him about the SQ CD of Six Wives and what the catalogue number is. Please be nice, there's been a lot of ill will betweem him and QQ (not saying anyone's at fault, there are two sides to every story) and you don't want to be associated with that set of arguments. Really, you don't.
Owen Smith
1K Club - QQ Shooting Star
OD got some email from Universal. His contact has been away and has just got back. Anyway this is from someome called Steve (they don't seem to have surnames):
"Copying in Richard in who helped us with the source for both, the quad tapes don't exist so we used Richard (copied) versions, him and Neil can explain the process"
"They are sort of needle drops but fully restored versions to the highest possible quality and approved , we should have made a note in the book to be honest - they were then authored by Neil"
So two things:
1) someone at Universal realises they should have said what the source is in the books. Hurray!
2) they're both OD's tranfers, CD-4 for Arthur and SQ vinyl for Six Wives decoded with SQ/II-and-a-bit process.
As someone else said in this thread, every release of Six Wives had wobble in Anne Boleyn so that isn't indicative of being a Q8.
I hope people are now convinced of the sources for these releases. I'm not bothered whether you like them or not, I'm just trying to bring clarity so that people know where these came from and can make an informed decision whether to purchase.
I just hope that those who spend their well earned cash on them knowing this, feel they got value for money and like the music and the transfers.
EDIT: I accept that people who bought before knowing this might feel aggrieved. Some on here don't need someone else's transfer. That's no-one's fault except Universal.
"Copying in Richard in who helped us with the source for both, the quad tapes don't exist so we used Richard (copied) versions, him and Neil can explain the process"
"They are sort of needle drops but fully restored versions to the highest possible quality and approved , we should have made a note in the book to be honest - they were then authored by Neil"
So two things:
1) someone at Universal realises they should have said what the source is in the books. Hurray!
2) they're both OD's tranfers, CD-4 for Arthur and SQ vinyl for Six Wives decoded with SQ/II-and-a-bit process.
As someone else said in this thread, every release of Six Wives had wobble in Anne Boleyn so that isn't indicative of being a Q8.
I hope people are now convinced of the sources for these releases. I'm not bothered whether you like them or not, I'm just trying to bring clarity so that people know where these came from and can make an informed decision whether to purchase.
I just hope that those who spend their well earned cash on them knowing this, feel they got value for money and like the music and the transfers.
EDIT: I accept that people who bought before knowing this might feel aggrieved. Some on here don't need someone else's transfer. That's no-one's fault except Universal.
Ok.. I'm grateful for the info you've provided and you're right I don't want to get involved in anything like that! None of my business!
I guess where I'm at with these records, they are two albums (and in turn Quads) I knew little to nothing about until recently so it's all an exciting personal voyage of discovery! I sense not everybody's knocked out by these two records in a musical sense but it's all good.. part of life's rich tapestry.. it wouldn't do for us all to be the same and all that!
I wonder what the general reaction has been to these two Deluxe Editions (outside of this forum etc) have they been well received generally by the music press and so on?
Owen Smith
1K Club - QQ Shooting Star
Actually most folks at home can't do as well, or do anything at all with legacy quad. I've never heard King Arthur before, I don't own any legacy quad gear (I have neither the space nor time for the TLC it needs), and I'm enjoying this release. Yes there are conversions by many people on QQ plus OD's releases, but they only reach a small audience. A commercial release like these will reach a much larger audience than any semi underground conversion ever could.
Or do you want to keep the glory that is quad all to ourselves here in our little niche, never letting the masses hear it? That would be unfair on the masses, and self defeating for a forum that wants to see quad reach a wider world and become more popular.
Any ill will between QQ and OD is solely the fault of OD, and the tale can be told in his posts here in the forum and in his own mind. Let's not drag that all up again because is really pisses me off.
If his conversions were in fact used for these releases, and they do sound good (not saying they do because I don't have them), than he should get the credit.
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