HiRez Poll John, Elton - HONKY CHATEAU [SACD]

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Rate the SACD of Elton John - HONKY CHATEAU


  • Total voters
    132
I am starting to get the feeling that I am not taken seriously around here when I vote a 10. :rolleyes:

Well, if anybody doesn't want to take me seriously you will simply have to get in line behind my: Wife, boss, mom, co-workers, neighbors, ex-shipmates, ex-girlfriends & the car salesman who sold us our Toyota Prius. ;)

I did give Honky Chateau a 10, because I find all the Greg Penny EJ 5.1 mixes to be the best listening experience I've had listening to music. The clarity & depth and soundstage blow me away. It makes EJ's talent more pronounced & intimate at the same time. When I first heard EJ was releasing 5.1 mixes I thought, ok, I like his music, I will buy them. I had no idea it would redefine musical listening for me. I've done electronics all my life & I've done some musical composing & recording. I can not imagine
putting out a better sonic product. Period. Oh yeah, Reginald Dwight is also a very talented musician & singer!;)

Considering the age of some of the early EJ works, the result is amazing and the 5.1 unearths some hidden gems like Jean Luc Ponty playing(nice credit, FredBlue), that the old 2.0 record simply couldn't showcase.

I am not judging the music here, that is subjective, love EJ or hate him or sit in the middle.... The presentation in 5.1 are legacy recordings presented at the highest level.

Now... lets see that crafty German: IMachine, whittle my comments down to an "8" like he does with YES! :howl :rolleyes: ;)

Ok, now the important part. To show I can be objective with 5.1. I personally think that in surround, Jef Beck: Blow By Blow & Frampton Comes alive, both suck the big one.
I give them maybe a 6? Not sure if they are even that good.... Oh, RUSH - 2112 sucked too and I LOVE RUSH!
 
anybody spotted GP's "deliberate mistake"...? ;)

to be fair, it's one of a handful of what I feel are minor remix goofs on these discs.. who knows it may be a conscious thing on GP's part..

if you A-B the old stereo of "Think I'm Gonna Kill Myself" with the 5.1..
the effect on Elton's "I'd" in "I'd make an exception..." is gone and the vocal is dry.

ta-dah! blink and you'd miss it :D still, it's a stone cold "10".

"..tread on my face if you like, little lady.. turn me inside out if you have to, baby.." :banana:
 
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Tread on my face!?!#!
 
While not my favorite of the EJ surround mixes, it's still a '10' for sure!

The opening track is one of the best examples of surround reference material with the horns exploding out at you from the surround channels.
"Rocket Man" is also really nice with the acoustic guitars and harmony vocals enveloping you. The synthesizers in Verse 2 are also very effective in the surrounds.
I also really love "Salvation", probably my favorite track on the album. "Amy" has a really great groove as well, and the surround mix only accentuates that.
The mandolins on "Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters" in the surrounds are a beautiful effect that further enhances the majesty of the track.
And to close, I really love the "Doo-Wop" vocals on "Hercules".

We really were lucky to get 6 great surround mixes of classic Elton albums. Now we just need the rest! Especially "Don't Shoot Me…" :)
 
Killing me with this poll. Guess I thought I had already chimed in...but see I haven't. I've had all the EJ SACD's since their release....and this one is one of my very favorites. I've told others on another forum that Rocket Man (while overplayed on FM) will simply blow you away in surround. Not often that music gives me chills, but when Rocket Man builds right before Elton's first "ROCKET MAN" verse....whoa. The sonics coming from the rear speakers is astounding!

To me - Honky Chateau is a 10. Musically, and the mix. Super warm mix all around. I have played this at reference volumes and it just sounds amazing. Glad you revived this poll....
 
I so wish Universal could get those 5.1 mixes Greg Penny created of Caribou, Westies, Blue Moves and Don't Shoot Me released at last..

Saying it for the gazillionth time.. an apt lyric, in the words of EJ himself;

"I feel like an old jukebox playing the same song all the time.."

..Big sigh! :(
 
Full range bass, plus percussion in the sub channel on Rocket Man! (And something that sounds close to a low pitched theramin towards the end.)
Other tracks have info beyond what would/should normally be in the sub channel too.
 
I likewise JUST voted a 10. Classic EJ and the mix is to die for ....... Greg Penny is one of our premier 5.1 remixers!

Mr Penny can certainly show a few other mixers how it should and can be done...imo.
I wonder if he ever had apprentices learning the finer points of surround mixing...or do the new kids on the block play it by ear?...:D
 
Mr Penny can certainly show a few other mixers how it should and can be done...imo.
I wonder if he ever had apprentices learning the finer points of surround mixing...or do the new kids on the block play it by ear?...:D

And to think there are FOUR unreleased Greg Penny EJ 5.1 remixes languishing in the vaults. What is EJ and Universal waiting for? Elton's 100th Birthday?
 
I didn’t vote on this one before? Oh well.

It’s a “10”. Elton was my favorite as a kid and I am hard pressed to find SONGS of his I don’t like from his “classic” period, let alone albums.

Just like all the others from that period, I played this one to death. I believe this was the first album of his I owned. “Slave” is maybe the only song here I don’t love. So the material still gets a “10” from me. And the fidelity and mix are as excellent as are all the other Penny mixes. With just enough previously-unheard/previously-undermixed bits to make it fun.

Elton’s first album with the classic band. He dropped using the Paul Buckmaster string arrangements that dominated the previous three, but this one rocks harder to make up for it. Maybe his most “rock” album.

The Jean Luc-Ponty electric violin parts are a fun addition to the sound.

I hope everyday that the remaining EJ surrounds will eventually see the light of day, but that one of my all-time favorite artists has 6 of his classic albums in surround and that they sound so great is something for which I am forever grateful.
 
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