Evergreens: Steely Dan’s ‘Do It Again’
I think I’ve found out how to do these, so let’s get started. I’ve got a lot of ground to cover.
Evergreens asks the question: what is it about these classic hit records that makes them so amazing? I’ve spent years, decades, developing the ability to get sounds through the digital medium that still speak to a listener, but is it a waste of time if you’re not the Beatles? Are some heights reachable only by a generation of which we won’t see their like again?
Nope. You only have to know what you’re doing and why, and THAT is what Evergreens is all about.
We’re looking at great records that have stood the test of time, and while we are to some extent interested in their musical value we’re going to take a good hard look at EXACTLY what the music sounds like in its natural, original form: as released, the form that people initially responded to. We have many options: anything people openly use on react channels ought to be available. We can also do a rather interesting thing: you’ll see that a major part of this format is METERING, showing how loud the tracks were and what was happening with the peak energy (you know, what everybody limits or clips off automatically these days).
Through looking at where the peaks are distributed in the sound, the ‘cloud’ showing where they lie on a second-by-second basis, and the color which indicates the frequencies at which these peaks tend to hit, we get a literal picture of the hit record sound… which is also able to show us where the CD remasterings and loudness rebalancings went horribly wrong.
Today’s video never went horribly wrong. Steely Dan always sounds good no matter what. Even so, it’s possible to see how the still-very-good streaming service version is louder, harder-edged and doesn’t deliver the hit record sound as well as the original vinyl does. We talk a little about musical details of Do It Again, including a wild notion (on recording this I felt certain I heard three lead vocals, a triple tracking in L C and R. I’m no longer sure of this: thoughts? Is it only two? I think it may be three).
And then I’ll ask you to study the meters, as we listen through to the uninterrupted Do It Again off the original vinyl. And understand: if I captured this to a simple CD, and played it back, it would be a bit flatter but would read about the same. This is not about fetishization of the original recording materials, or a slam on digital. You ought to be able to get a charge out of this sound directly off YouTube, and that’s not only digital but low bit rate lossy compressed, yet you’ll still get a sense of what’s here. It’ll shine right through.
This is about how to get these sounds yourself, with DAWs, plugins, and the choices you make in recording, mixing and mastering. I know how to do this by now and you can too. Join me on this journey into the evergreens with Steely Dan’s first single, Do It Again <3
evergreens….yay
Interesting, most of the difference to me is in the frequency response – the vinyl has less treble and more bass. Vinyl also sounds a little less wide compared to the stream, and you get the noise as well.
The stream sounds a little bit ‘harsher’ and less ‘natural’ as a result, which may be preferable to some people (but I could imagine it may sound a bit dull and flat relative to other music, depending on the context).
I’m not too sure what you mean about the differences in frequency of the peak energy, and why that’s important for a ‘hit record sound’, but look forward to hearing more about that.
I point Tom – from above post – and everyone interested in this topic to look at the work of Bob Katz – http://www.digido.com – he envisioned the K-system; a metering system that is used for the creation of audio files for a determinate medium… in short words: an audio file that is not excessive in loudness. Peak energy is related to dynamic range, something that the loudness war mindessly killed. Katz also proposed a new term/value: the crest factor. It’s not simple as term; but once grasped; it really explains most of the problems tocuhed in Chris’ topic.
What about the filtering and gain limits in the bass so record needles don’t drift from feedback into the needle? I can hear the needle dragging in this recording like a substandard stylist was used and was too heavy on the record, like way too heavy on the arm. this is a rather played record I suspect.