New reissue of Exile on Main Street

What version do I have? I've lost the inserts (doh!) and have only the disk. It shows: Virgin and 1972. Is this the '94 Ludwig remaster (holding out hope)?

Rockadanny:

It sounds like you might have the Ludwig remaster. When Virgin bought the Stones catalog, they initially remastered everything from "Sticky Fingers" up to "Tattoo You." (They later remastered "Undercover," "Dirty Work," and "Steel Wheels.") Ludwig did most of the remastering, and IMO did a great job. These latest remasters from Universal, though, are horrid: compressed to hell and piercingly bright. If you have the Virgin remasters, hold on to them.

Each reissue is a new opportunity to revisit Atco COC 2-2900 vinyl. A tad lite on bass, but generally fantastic, detailed, spatial recording with brass balls, Stones on top. If it sounds murky on your system it's your problem.

Unfortunately, the vinyl and cd are both overly compressed and harsh-sounding. The original Artisan cut vinyl is still the best way to listen to this album. Here's a full review of the Super Deluxe Edition Box Set, which includes impressions of the vinyl and photos from the hardcover book:
http://myvinylreview.blogspot.com/2010/05/exclusive-sneak-preview-rolling-stones.html

Have to revise my initial impression of the CDs. Last night I played them on my just-assembled main system, which is MUCH more resolving than the system I initially played them on. The other posters are right: they ARE overly compressed and bright, much like the other Universal Stones remasters. What a disappointment, since I love the packaging and it probably will become a collector’s item in future years. I toyed with the idea of returning it, but then I got the bright idea of popping the 1994 Ludwig remaster into the deluxe packaging—and, voila, I’ve got the best of both worlds: a collectible deluxe box set AND a better remaster!

As a side note, with the Universal remaster, details pop out more, but they come at the expense of musicality and the ability to turn the music up with minimal compression. I’ll take the latter any old day.