F#<€ me! I'm listening to a vinyl reissue of Bill Fay's first album. It is SOOOOO MUCH BETTER than the crappy CD. Who the f^C€ was responsible for the CD version of that album? It's atrocious. Loudness, and the vocals overtake the music. A real travesty. I'm glad I kept my turntable, if only for this album! A real sh]tty CD.

which CD reissue are you talking.. SFM or Esoteric?

I have the edition on Eclectic. I didn't know there was another one. The vinyl I have is not the 4 Men With Beards, but the one that looks pretty much like a straight knock-off of the Deram/Nova vinyl (but of course a lot less expensive!) I've read some people questioning if that vinyl a straight transfer from the vinyl, which it may well be, but I still think it sounds better than the CD. It probably isn't from master tapes, but the vinyl version captures the range of the album, which is as you know an odd mixture of small and large. Like Leonard Cohen backed by Odessa-era BeeGees....

Hi Joe,i have 1998 see for miles twofer cd and also updated with the 2008 Esoteric cd.....now i thought the sound was ok on the Esoteric cd to be truthful....but i cant compare to vinyl as i haven't had a record deck for nearly 20 year it must be.As for the See For Miles cd ,from what i remember that sounded fine too,i thought with it being 10 years between both cds and as i thought cd technology had improved since the late 90s i took the jump and purchased it.I have a few Esoteric Recordings cds and on the whole they are good and if masters are available im sure thats the source they use.As for the Bill Fay album,good album and i love the description of Leonard Cohen backed by the Beegees,nice one joe.

Hi Stu, that first Bill Fay is an interesting album, in that the orchestration can be a bit bombastic, like he used the orchestra that did the James Bond theme. But on occasion it works, especially on side two where it's marginally more restrained. Something about the vinyl recording captures the dynamics of the music better, so that it sounds less like a wall and more nuanced. I found the CD overwrought, but with only one or two exceptions, enjoy the album when I spin the vinyl. I guess I shouldn't be surprised because I often find jazz and classical sound much more natural on vinyl (my system: Harman Kardon 430 receiver, Technics turntable, Klipsch Forte II and Heresy II speakers) than on CD or especially mp3 from my computer. That Bill Fay is definitely a more "classical" rock album, so that's probably why I reacted so strongly to the CD.