Small Faces S/T reissued on Charly /Snapper CD!!

Here it comes - the CD reissue of the self-titled Small Faces record, a masterpiece, on the Charly label issued in 2012 from the original master tapes.

Little need to discuss the music, this is a true classic, essential in every way, a hugely influential band without whom much of the pop and rock of the 60's would have not happened or would have taken a different direction. Yet, at the same time, a band with very few real "hits" to their name, so still underappreciated by the larger public.

The Immediate master tapes have a long troubled history. Immediate crumbled and the tapes ownership has passed through many hands, and have rarely (if ever) been used since these records originally were issued. Previous CD reissues had varying sound quality as a result - and never did the music justice.

That has now changed. This reissue sounds fabulous - as good as this material, not terribly well recorded in the first place, and recorded 'hot' at that, will get. The bass is the first thing I noticed - powerful, 'feel it in the chest' bass, well defined, propulsive. The inner detail is greatly enhanced - the organ now sounds less of a distorted fuzz and exists in its own space, and the vocals are now also removed from the haze and sound fantastic.

No doubt the usual armchair 'experts' are going to whine as usual, so let's go there right off: "Comprssed" - yes, indeed, the masters have very little dynamic range. These tunes were recorded 'hot' - are then limited to punch through on the radio. It's not Pink Floyd. "Noise Reduction" - yes, probably, well used. No doubt these masters, which have changed hands many times and likely were not consistently stored well, need it. "Rolled off" - bullshit. That's imaginary, probably some will think that due to the greatly enhanced power of this remastering.  "Louder" - yes, it is! Thank goodness for that. Louder does not equal bad, in fact, increasing loudness - all to many early Cd's were transferred at way too low volume, at well below the level where both the DAC and the preamp work optimally.

The mono and stereo are here, the mono having more 'punch', but the stereo is really better, particularly tunes like Itchykoo Park that are intended for stereo. But both are excellent.

Don't hesitate to get this. Superb job all around, excellent packaging and booklet, this is an essential purchase.