Top 40 Music on Compact Disc: America "Horse with no Name" remixed?

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Topic: America "Horse with no Name" remixed?

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budaniel
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Joined: 12 October 2004
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Posted: 02 September 2006 at 9:23am \| IP Logged

Hey all,

on America's Greatest Hits: History CD, all tracks up to Muskrat Love say "remixed by George Martin" in the individual track liner notes. The database notes that I Need You and Ventura Highway are remixed, but does anyone know if Horse with no Name is different from the original version too, since it does say remixed? It's the only CD I have the song on, so I have nothing with which to compare it. Thanks in advance.

MMathews
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Posted: 07 September 2006 at 4:23pm \| IP Logged

Hi
well i have to say thanks for pointing out the remixes, I've been playing their hits from the History album for years and I never noticed they were remixed. I once had all the original albums on vinyl but never compared them to the greatest hits.
I pulled the "America" cd and sure enough, "A Horse With No Name" is a different mix than what's on History. I checked "Complete Greatest Hits" and that has the same mix as the original album.
The most obvious difference, if you're comparing the mixes on cd's:
The original mix has the acoustic guitar track that opens the song pretty much centered and it stays that way.
On the remix, that guitar track starts in the center, and then when he starts singing, that guitar pans over to the right so both acoustic-guitar tracks are in the left and right.
It still amazes me how many little details I learn on this site that I never noticed.
Anyway hope the info helps...
-MM

budaniel
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Posted: 07 September 2006 at 6:14pm \| IP Logged

wow. that's huge info. Thanks. Now I wonder which mix is on all the other CDs/compilations, etc., on which it appears.

Grant
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Posted: 08 September 2006 at 4:36pm \| IP Logged

Bill Inglot, who mastered the Complete Greatest Hits, used the original mixes. Remember that George Martin has a thing for remixing stuff.

Though not the topic of this thread, it's also worth noting that the recent Complete Gordon Lightfoot Gresatest Hits CD also uses all of the original mixes, unlike "Gord's Gold".

Todd Ireland
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Posted: 09 September 2006 at 9:23am \| IP Logged

I used to have the America's Greatest Hits: History CD but immediately got rid of it after purchasing the Complete Greatest Hits disc because I always thought the sound quality on the History set was terrible! But now I'm curious if other CD compilations containing Top 40 hits by America are all original mixes, or do some use the George Martin remixes from the History disc? Anyone have any insight on this?

Pat Downey
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Posted: 10 September 2006 at 12:06pm \| IP Logged

Just as a footnote for subscribers to the database, I do not define moving instruments from the right channel or the left channel to the center as a remix. If I did, I would have to compare every song in its entirety to every appearance on cd which would be time prohibitive.

aaronk
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Posted: 10 September 2006 at 6:05pm \| IP Logged

Are there other differences on "Horse With No Name" other than the guitars switching channels? Added reverb, extra instruments, etc.?

davidclark
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Posted: 12 September 2006 at 6:22am \| IP Logged

Grant, could you shed some light on which tracks on "Gord's Gold" are remixed and how?

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edtop40
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Posted: 02 May 2009 at 7:59am \| IP Logged

i just listened to the version from the cd's below versus the vinyl 45 and the version on "complete" is the same as the vinyl 45.....the "history" cd version is different.....specifically during the fade out.....the "history" cd version, the fade out is louder and doesn't contain the echoing effect that is on the 45 and the "complete" cd version......this MAY not be enough of a diffrence for some but it is for me.....the "complete" cd version also runs just a few seconds short because they faded it out as to not include the truncated ending...

The Complete Greatest Hits
Warner Archives/Rhino 74375

History/America's Greatest Hits
Warner Brothers 3110

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edtop40
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Posted: 05 May 2009 at 2:47pm \| IP Logged

now....i just compared the vinyl 45 versus the cd version on the cd below...

(S) (4:10) Rhino 70633 Billboard's Top Rock & Roll Hits Of 1972

and it matches perfectly....it's the correct version with the proper echoing effects during the outro....and it runs true at 4:10 just like the vinyl 45......this info should be noted in the db....

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Brian W.
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Posted: 05 May 2009 at 5:45pm \| IP Logged

edtop40 wrote:

Thanks for the info, Ed!

crapfromthepast
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Posted: 23 March 2018 at 3:20pm \| IP Logged

The song is not titled "A Horse With No Brain", despite typical conversations at our house.

LP and 45 versions (4:10)

The LP and 45 versions were the same. The 45 was in stereo.

The opening strums of the acoustic guitar are panned a little to the left.

The oldest CD I have with the LP/45 version is Sessions/Warner Special Products' 2-CD Freedom Rock (1987). It's from a high-generation tape source here, and sounds a little muffled. Just about all of the CDs below sound better.

There's a far better analog transfer on Rhino's Billboard Top R&R Hits 1972 (1989), where it runs 4:10. It sounds great here, with low-generation source tapes, great dynamic range, nice EQ, and no hint of noise reduction. There are digital clones on:

Time-Life's Sounds Of The Seventies Vol. 3 1972 (1989) - digitally identical
Madacy's Rock On 1972 (1996) - digitally exactly 0.5 dB louder

Rhino's Mellow Rock Hits Summer Breeze (1997) seems to use the same source tape as Billboard, but blunts the high end. I prefer the EQ on Billboard.

I think that JCI's Only Rock 'N Roll 1970-1974 (1994) uses a different analog transfer of the same source tape as Billboard Top R&R Hits 1972, but has a slightly shorter fade. There are differently-EQ'd digital clones of Only on:

Time-Life's 2-CD Seventies Music Explosion Vol. 1 Sunshine (2005)
Time-Life's 2-CD Classic Soft Rock Vol. 2 Ride Like The Wind (2006)

Time-Life's Superhits Vol. 11 1972 (1991) uses the same analog transfer as Billboard Top R&R Hits 1972, but swaps the left and right channels, so that the opening strums of the acoustic guitar are panned a little to the right. All the tracks on this Superhits disc have their left and right channels reversed. The same disc was later repackaged as AM Gold Vol. 7 1972 (1991), with the same mastering. There was an RE-1 reissue of AM Gold Vol. 7 1972, which swapped out a few tracks, but left "Horse" intact along with its left/right channel reversal. Time-Life's 2-CD Singers And Songwriters Vol. 1 1972-1973 (2000) is digitally identical to these, and also has its left/right channels swapped.

An outlier: Razor & Tie/Warner Special Products' 2-CD Easy '70s (1993) has its left and right channels swapped, and is way too loud and clips a lot. Avoid.

Non-hit 1975 remix from History album (4:07)

I don't recall if all the tracks on WB's History/America's Greatest Hits, but "Horse" is definitely remixed. To my ears, it sounds better than the original mix. It's not a drastic overhaul, but a subtle improvement. To differentiate from the hit mix, the History has the opening strums of the acoustic guitar centered, rather than panned left.

Discogs shows WB's History/America's Greatest Hits as being released on CD in 1987. It sounds quite nice here, runs 4:07, and truncates the tail of the fade. The same analog transfer is used on:

Priority's Seventies Greatest Rock Hits Vol. 12 #1 Groups (1992) - hastens fade
Razor & Tie's 6-CD 70 Number One Hits Of The 70s Vol. 5 (1998) - hastens fade

My recommendation

For the hit version, go with Rhino's Billboard Top R&R Hits 1972 (1989).

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