Jeff Buckley: Just Passin' Thru Session (Revisited)

 

TREON028R

I've noticed a worring trend recently with a few Jeff Buckley releases. I think I'm right in thinking that the last official release we got is the boxset "Grace Around The World" in 2009 but since then we have gotten a small influx of Unofficial releases. Last year we got "Dreams Of The Way We Were" which was taken from Jeff's wonderful solo performance on WFMU's weekly music programme, 'The Music Faucet' on October 11th 1992. That performance deserves a crystal clear official release but what we got was a taped FM boardcast complete with hiss and sound distortion.

Yesterday I discovered another radio broadcast release. This time a two CD set entitled "It's Not Too Late", openly admited that the tracks were an FM "remaster". I gave serious consideration to buy it but I thought I'd better checkout the sound quality before I part with my hard earned cash. I found plenty of album previews online and I can honestly say it was pretty poor listening to say the least. Some of the tracks were playing at the wrong speed and sound way too slow as well as a good amount of tape wobble in places.
I'm not sure who did the "remastering" here but it doesn't sound as if they have made any attempt to improve the sound other than some pretty heavy handed noise reduction which as left the whole thing sounding muddy and flat.

Now, I'm no expert in this. I'm not as sound engineer or a producer, I am an enthusiastic amateur with a home computer and a few free audio editing softwares to play with but even with the little skill and technology I have, what I have made available here (for free!) has a lot better quality to what is being made available in the shops. That simply isn't right.

Download this sample of Dink's Song to hear the difference. >>>>DOWNLOAD<<<<

Track 01 is taken from my clean-up effort, found here: Jeff Buckley: The Music Faucet '92
Track 02 is taken from "It's Not Too Late".

Last week I was made aware of another unofficial release due out in May. "So Real: Live At East Orange 1992 / Studio Cleveland 1995" contains two performaces that are already available HERE and if this release gives us those sessions at a much higher audio quality then that is excellect and I welcome it with open arms (but I don't hold up much hope of that given the releases we've had so far) but what really makes me mad with this release is that on the back cover it has a photo of actor and musician Reeve Carney.
Don't believe me? Here is the back cover:

Source: Amazon.co.uk

And here is a link to the intervew with Reeve and the photoshoot accompanying it: 

http://patriksandberg.com/2012/03/22/hiding-out-with-reeve-carney/

It's just sloppy. As if they just used the first picture that google threw at them without even checking who was even in it.

How Jeff's legacy is being allowed to be treated at the moment is a little worrying but as long as this blog is still going I will do my best to treat Jeff's music and memory with the love and respect it deserves.

On that note, here is my final remaster of one of my favourite radio sessions from Jeff and his band: Live on WHFS-FM ''Just Passin Thru'' (Omega Studios, Rockville MD, 16th April 1995). I felt I over-cooked my remaster effort in the Asking To Stay... mix tape so I thought I'd go back one last time and do a final version.

Tracklist:
01 - Last Goodbye
02 - Lover, You Should've Come Over  
03 - So Real  
04 - Grace

 >>>>DOWNLOAD<<<<