Olivia Newton-John - Physical

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   Not much to report on for this song; this post is just a convenient place to log my comparison notes.

The first CDs that included the song were the MCA Japan-for-US pressing of the full-length Physical album (copyright 1981), and the far more common MCA [IOlivia's Greatest Hits Vol. 2 (copyright 1982).  Both sound good.  It also turned up on the extremely hard-to-find 4-CD promo set from MCA called MCA Hits Sampler (1988), where it has a mild dropout during the fade.  All three of these appear to be unique analog transfers.

Mastering engineer Dan Hersch did a new analog transfer for Geffen's Back To Basics (1992).  To my ears, it sounds like Back To Basics used lower-generation source tapes than the previous three discs.  The highs are more crisp on this disc, and I hear a better defined soundstage than the others.  No evidence of noise reduction on any of the four discs I've mentioned.

The same analog transfer as Back To Basics is used for:Rhino's Billboard Top Hits 1981 (1992; differently EQ'd digital clone)
Time-Life's Sounds Of The Seventies Vol. 38 Celebration (1994; too loud and clips a lot - avoid)
Razor & Tie's 2-CD Everything '80s (1995)
Time-Life's Sounds Of The Seventies Vol. 47 '70s Dance Party 1979-1981 (1997; differently EQ'd digital clone)
Time-Life's Sounds Of The Eighties Vol. 24 Everything '80s (2002; differently EQ'd digital clone that adds compression/limiting - avoid)
The song also appears on EMI's 5-CD 101 Aussie Hits (2010), where it's severely compressed/limited -avoid.

For the song "Physical", I heartily recommend Geffen's Back To Basics (1992), Rhino's Billboard Top Hits 1981 (1992), Razor & Tie's 2-CD Everything '80s (1995), and Time-Life's Sounds Of The Seventies Vol. 47 '70s Dance Party 1979-1981 (1997).  All sound stellar for this track.

As a side note, I think the whole Physical album may have been recorded with a drum machine, or at the very least a taped loop for the basic patterns.  The song "Physical" on Back To Basics runs at 124.3 BPM, except during the guitar solo from 2:19-2:50, where it runs 124.1 BPM and has a slightly different drum pattern than the rest of the song.  All the other analog transfers show a similar slowdown during the solo.

Edited by crapfromthepast

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crapfromthepast Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Music Fan Joined: 14 September 2006 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 22	Post Options Post Reply Quote crapfromthepast Thanks(0) Quote Reply Topic: Olivia Newton-John - Physical Posted: 03 January 2014 at 10:17am
	Not much to report on for this song; this post is just a convenient place to log my comparison notes. The first CDs that included the song were the MCA Japan-for-US pressing of the full-length Physical album (copyright 1981), and the far more common MCA [IOlivia's Greatest Hits Vol. 2 (copyright 1982). Both sound good. It also turned up on the extremely hard-to-find 4-CD promo set from MCA called MCA Hits Sampler (1988), where it has a mild dropout during the fade. All three of these appear to be unique analog transfers. Mastering engineer Dan Hersch did a new analog transfer for Geffen's Back To Basics (1992). To my ears, it sounds like Back To Basics used lower-generation source tapes than the previous three discs. The highs are more crisp on this disc, and I hear a better defined soundstage than the others. No evidence of noise reduction on any of the four discs I've mentioned. The same analog transfer as Back To Basics is used for: Rhino's Billboard Top Hits 1981 (1992; differently EQ'd digital clone) Time-Life's Sounds Of The Seventies Vol. 38 Celebration (1994; too loud and clips a lot - avoid) Razor & Tie's 2-CD Everything '80s (1995) Time-Life's Sounds Of The Seventies Vol. 47 '70s Dance Party 1979-1981 (1997; differently EQ'd digital clone) Time-Life's Sounds Of The Eighties Vol. 24 Everything '80s (2002; differently EQ'd digital clone that adds compression/limiting - avoid) The song also appears on EMI's 5-CD 101 Aussie Hits (2010), where it's severely compressed/limited -avoid. For the song "Physical", I heartily recommend Geffen's *Back To Basics* (1992), Rhino's *Billboard Top Hits 1981* (1992), Razor & Tie's 2-CD *Everything '80s* (1995), and Time-Life's *Sounds Of The Seventies Vol. 47 '70s Dance Party 1979-1981* (1997). All sound stellar for this track. As a side note, I think the whole Physical album may have been recorded with a drum machine, or at the very least a taped loop for the basic patterns. The song "Physical" on Back To Basics runs at 124.3 BPM, except during the guitar solo from 2:19-2:50, where it runs 124.1 BPM and has a slightly different drum pattern than the rest of the song. All the other analog transfers show a similar slowdown during the solo. Edited by crapfromthepast
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