crapfromthepast
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| Posted: 29 November 2016 at 6:25pm | IP Logged
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10cc's "I'm Not In Love" is one of the most interesting productions of all time. Rather than repeat the whole story here, I'll direct you to an outstanding article from Sound On Sound - CLASSIC TRACKS: 10cc 'I'm Not In Love'. This is a stellar read, and is well worth your time.
LP version (about 6:02)
The guys in the band would want you to hear the full LP version, which runs around 6 minutes.
The version on Mercury's 10cc collection Greatest Hits 1972-1978 (copyright 1979) sounds pretty dismal, with a narrow soundstage and what sounds like a high-generation source tape. My copy of the CD is from France, and is the '80s-era "atomic" design; don't know if the US disc uses the same mastering.
The version on Polydor's 3-CD Classic Rock Box (1992) is only marginally better than GH, and seems to have noise reduction or an EQ that blunts the high end.
Much better than the above two is Razor & Tie's 2-CD Break Up To Make Up (1999), which sounds very nice. Excellent dynamic range, nice hissy fade with no hint of noise reduction, and an EQ that lets the high end sparkle. This song particularly benefits from a lot of high end, which emphasizes the higher harmonics in the 624 voices on the song. (Read the article.) Based only on the length of this disc, I speculate that it may be based on Mercury's The Singles or possibly Mercury's Very Best Of - can't confirm, though. There's a differently-EQ'd digital clone on Skifan Iceland's 2-CD Pottţétt 70's (2001).
Even better than the Razor & Tie disc is Time-Life's 2-CD Singers And Songwriters Vol. 17 1973-1975 (2002), which has the same full sound but a slightly longer fade. The discs in this Time-Life series are almost always based on previous masterings, but for this track, I don't know what the source is. There's a digital clone on Time-Life's Ultimate Love Songs Collection Secret Lovers (2004; digitally exactly 0.8 dB louder).
45 version (3:46)
The 45 kept 0:18.0-3:35.6 and 4:18.9 to 4:47.7 of the LP version, with a fade from 4:40.6-4:47.7 in the LP version or 3:39.2 to 3:46.3 of the 45 edit. (Timings based on Singers And Songwriters Vol. 17 1973-1975.) The edit (which falls at 3:17 in the 45) requires some kind of splicing magic, because even though I got the edit in the right location, I couldn't make it sound right. Fortunately, there's a Rhino disc that gets the splice to sound good, so you won't have to. (See below.)
I think the first disc to feature the 45 edit (and the proper 45 length) was Time-Life's 4-CD Great Love Songs Of The 70's And 80's Vol. 4 Endless Love (1991). It sounds just OK here, with a slightly blunted high end. The same analog transfer is used on:- Warner Special Products' 2-CD Easy '70s (1993)
- Warner Special Products' 2-CD Night Songs (1994)
There's a slightly more lively analog transfer on Time-Life's Sounds Of The Seventies Vol. 16 1975 Take Two (1991). This has more high end than the earlier Time-Life disc, which is good. The same analog transfer is used on:- Time-Life's 2-CD Body Talk (1994; digitally exactly 1.1 dB quieter)
- Razor & Tie's 2-CD Super '70s (1995)
- Time-Life's AM Gold Vol. 22 1975 (1996; digitally exactly 0.7 dB quieter)
- Time-Life's 2-CD Seventies Music Explosion Vol. 2 Escape (2005; digitally exactly 0.9 dB louder)
- Time-Life's 2-CD Classic Soft Rock Vol. 3 Into The Night (2006; differently-EQ'd digital clone)
Finally, there's one more different analog transfer on The Singles 1975-1992, which blunts the high end more severely than all the other discs with the 45 version, and sounds like a relatively high-generation tape source.
12 seconds longer than the 45 version (3:58)
Bill Inglot found some great-sounding source tapes for Rhino's Have A Nice Day Vol. 14 (1990). He recreated the 45 edit from scratch, letting it run longer than the true 45. There's a differently-EQ'd digital clone on Time-Life's Body Talk Vol. 7 Hearts In Motion (1996).
Have A Nice Day Vol. 14 sounds significantly better than the other 45 version discs, listed above, and sounds on par with Singers And Songwriters Vol. 17 1973-1975.
The downside is that the left and right channels are swapped on Have A Nice Day Vol. 14. To check, the keyboard part at 1:40 on the 45 (2:00 on the LP) should be in the right channel. It's in the left channel on Have A Nice Day Vol. 14.
My recommendation:
For the LP version, go with Time-Life's 2-CD Singers And Songwriters Vol. 17 1973-1975 (2002).
For the 45 edit, swap the left/right channels on Rhino's Have A Nice Day Vol. 14 (1990), and live with the 12 extra seconds on the fade, or manually fade it 12 seconds sooner.
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There's a lot of crap on the radio, but there's only one Crap From The Past.
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Topic: 10cc - I’m Not In Love
