New reissue of Exile on Main Street

i finally succumbed and bought the new exile reissue. to my ears, it does sound better than the original cd and vinyl releases--more detailed and less murky, without the overly-digital brightness of most such exercises--drums and piano, in particular, are better articulated. the new, bonus material sounds mainly like works-in-progress--no real lost classics--but an interesting listen nonetheless. i just heard that the reissue is top of the charts in the uk, which is either a tribute to its timelessness or a sad commentary on the state of modern rock.

Loomis: i agree. just finished doing a direct a-b comparo's with the original release. your comments are spot on imo. drums and piano both come through cleanest but almost everything sounded tidied up a bit to me.

still don't like disc #2 but to my ears using my gear.....the remasters of the original release do sound better. still has the exile edge/sound.....just a bit sharper. glad i spent the $20.

A dissent . . . compared the new reissue CD my friend brought over to my earlier Greg Calbi mastered CD (Rolling Stones Records) and found the older CD much better. The new reissue is uncomfortably bright on the top end, the older is much better . . . musical, listenable, natural, but rockin'. Both my friend, who I believe has a great ear, and I agreed . . . not even close! We were shocked when we put on the Calbi CD, the difference was so apparent and vast. Go figure!
BUT, my 1994 Bob Ludwig mastered Virgin vinyl reissue is far superior to both.
Reading the comments here, I think I'll pass on the new vinyl.

I've had Disc 2 of the reissue in constant rotation of late, and, like everyone else I may have unfairly dismissed it earlier as merely pleasant filler. It's actually pretty great in its own right--loose, swaggering, free of a lot of the studio sheen that sucks some of the enrgy of their regular releases. Plus there's a lot of that inimitable, jagged guitar. I think the songs are there, too--perhaps a little tossed-off in the lyrics, but they stick in your head. As a standalone record, I'd place it near the top of their canon. Wonder what other old stuff they have buried away.