Rubberlips wrote:I ask the question because Jarre himself has claimed that he wasn’t 100% happy with the original ‘kitchen’ recording. There can be no doubt that the original is excellent and there will be a natural bias towards it, but sonically is it as good as the 30th anniversary ‘re-recording’? Jarre presumably recorded this new version because he wanted to iron out his own issues with the original?
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Jarre would say that because Recording technology has advanced now,back then it was all he had to work with in terms of best possible sound Quality,and he would have been 100% happy way back in 1976 with the recording or it wouldn't have been released,no matter how anyone says it,if your not Happy with something you don't put it out,and as I've already stated in another thread,you will always wish you could of done this or that to fine tune or perfect anything you thought was otherwise perfect because you lose a Subjective view on things when you've been recording day in day out listening to the same thing time and time again.You no longer hear how the general person interprets it,simply because your ears grow tired of it.Few Months down the line away from it,you hear that magic and wonder how it could be improved,or hear new Ideas that you didn't otherwise find,No artist is never unhappy with what they record thye just simply grow bored of it over and over.there is no such thing as a "Perfect" recording,otherwise what would be the point in recording more stuff.
It was the same with the 5.1 technology,Jarre said he always had this idea to "Step inside" the recording and be submerged in the Audio,Technology has now given him the ability to do that,the same with the Audio bit rates and equipment we have now to hear those Albums in the best possible Audio experience we can,Jarre would have never been able to do this with the original recording,because he was limited,he always said the same thing about the remastered reissues of the Sony albums,they had a nicer sonic Quality,pure and simply because they had a better bit depth and wider sound.the same with this New recording,which to me is not a rerecording of the Tracks its a remastered Version of the Original with a few Additional Overdubs of timbres in order to make it sound like its been rerecorded.
Personally I prefer the Original Oxygene,but I like the newer version too,it has its own sound,not as Warm as the original and a wider image,with a few random Overdubs that give it a new edge,the album has no real difference apart from Audio Quality,the newer version is "Too clean" my memories of the Original were sitting beside my Mums old Record player,listening to the Album with all the cracks and Pops and falling asleep to it,many times this happened and perhaps in the same way,this will always be my fond memories of what started me on the Jarre Journey,thats why I will always prefer the original,I recognise the importance of this newer release and I'm glad I'm able to hear "Oxygene" 30 years later in todas technology world,the newer version gives it that updated sound and ambience,but it will still only be simply a "Clinical" recording
I also like the Prelude and Variation parts from the latest Live performance. Those tracks are also something new.
