Toga Rock Dunhill Compact Classics DZS029

Back in the late 1980s, when 1960s-era "oldies" were hard to come by on CD, there was one particular compilation CD that was a big deal:

Toga Rock (Dunhill Compact Classics DZS029, originally released 1987, rereleased 1988)

Toga Rock included 16 well-chosen garage-rock oldies, which played well with college kids in the late '80s (I was one of those college DJs), and continued to be staples of wedding playlists into the early '90s (I was one of those wedding DJs).

The original release was OK, but the rerelease was especially prized. The only way to tell them apart was a line of "Remastered by Steve Hoffman, 2/88" printed at 6-o'clock on the CD itself. This disc, and the first six Rock The First collections released in 1992, were where I first recognized the name Steve Hoffman as a mastering engineer. (I didn't find out about the first 10 Vintage Music Collectors Series discs from 1986 until much later.)

I will document the differences between the 1987 original release and the 1988 rerelease (fully aware that no one really cares at this point).

1. "Louie Louie" - The original release sounds terrible. Possibly taken from vinyl? Possibly uses noise reduction? The tail of the fade is really short, no hiss. The rerelease sounds nice, and is clearly taken from a tape source. The original release is 2.1% faster than the rerelease.
2. "La La La La La" - The rerelease uses the same analog transfer as original, and sounds just about the same as the original.
3. "Double Shot Of My Baby's Love" - The rerelease is a differently EQ'd digital clone of the original.
4. "Wooly Bully" - The rerelease is a differently EQ'd digital clone of the original.
5. "Expressway To Your Heart" - The original seems to have the left and right channels out of synch by about one sample. The rerelease is a differently EQ'd digital clone of the original, and fixes the synch problem.
6. "Devil With A Blue Dress On" - The rerelease is a differently EQ'd digital clone of the original.
7. "I Fought The Law" - The original release is the 45 version and is in fake stereo, and runs faster than the 45 or LP. Might be from vinyl? I think I hear vinyl crackles on the fade? The tail of the fade is really short, with no hiss. The rerelease is the LP version and is in true stereo.
8. "Nobody But Me" - The rerelease is a differently EQ'd digital clone of the original.
9. "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" - The rerelease is a differently EQ'd digital clone of the original, but the remaster cuts off a portion of the attack of the opening note. The original version includes the full opening note.
10. "Pushin' Too Hard" - The original and rerelease use different source tapes. The original has a well-defined high end. The rerelease has a very muddy high end, but extends about 8 beats longer than the original.
11. "Little Bit Of Soul" - The original is in mono, and has an indexing error so that the opening notes are at the end of the previous track. The rerelease is in stereo, and has no such indexing error.
12. "Dirty Water" - The original seems to have the left and right channels out of synch by about one sample. The rerelease is a differently EQ'd digital clone of the original, and fixes the synch problem.
13. "Twist And Shout" - The original has the mono 45 version and mono LP version. The rerelease has the stereo LP version.
14. "Land Of 1000 Dances" - The rerelease is a differently EQ'd digital clone of the original.
15. "Mony, Mony" - The rerelease is a differently EQ'd digital clone of the original.
16. "Jenny Take A Ride" - The original release has an indexing error so that the opening note is at the end of the previous track. The rerelease uses the same analog transfer as the original, so it sounds basically the same as the original, but has the opening note fully intact.

Folks, this mess is why you never, ever get rid of a
pressing especially on stuff that was recorded before the
cd era. Sounds like a real nightmare.

Can you hear where it's off by a sample or does that just
show up on your computer analysis?

I bet you could though her differences depending on the
mastering. There really is no definitive version so you
need both but most of these are now elsewhere fortunately.

A slew of Rhino releases rendered Toga Rock all but
obsolete in a few years. One could re-compile it with
much better sources for each song, if one were so
inclined.

For example...

1. "Louie Louie" - I think it sounds just fine
   on Rhino’s Billboard Top Rock and Roll Hits 1963.


2. "La La La La La" - Doesn’t show up a lot of places
   but found in decent quality on Rhino’s Son of Frat Rock
   CD as well as Rhino's Brown Eyed Soul: The Sound of East
   LA Vol. 2.


3. "Double Shot Of My Baby's Love" - The mono mix shows
   up on Rhino’s Frat Rock CD as well as Rhino’s Millenium
   60’s Rock Party. It appears in stereo on Polygram’s 45s
   On CD Volume II (‘60-’66).


4. "Wooly Bully" - Also found on Polygram’s 45s On CD
   Volume II.


5. "Expressway To Your Heart" - The original mono mix is
   found on Rhino’s Dick Bartley Presents One Hit Wonders of
   Th e 60s Vol. 2.


6. "Devil With A Blue Dress On" - You can’t go wrong
   with Rhino’s Rev Up: The Best of Mitch Ryder and The
   Detroit Wheels CD.


7. "I Fought The Law" - The mono 45 is a noticeably
   different vocal take than the stereo. The mono mix is, of
   course, the “hit” and is found in all it’s glory on
   Rhino’s Son of Frat Rock CD.


8. "Nobody But Me" - Rhino’s Frat Rock CD.


9. "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" - Rhino’s Super Hits
   of The 70s: Have A Nice Day Vol. 1 CD.


10. "Pushin' Too Hard" - Rhino’s single-disc Nuggets -
    Classics from The Psychedelic Era CD.


11. "Little Bit Of Soul" - Rhino’s Billboard Top Rock n
    Roll Hits 1967.


12. "Dirty Water" - Rhino’s single-disc Nuggets CD.


13. "Twist And Shout" - Found in stereo on Rhino’s
    Grandson of Frat Rock and Sony’s The Ultimate Isley
    Brothers.


14. "Land Of 1000 Dances" - Rhino’s Son of Frat Rock CD.
    


15. "Mony, Mony" - Rhino’s Son of Frat Rock CD has the
    full, unedited take so you get a little more Mony.


16. "Jenny Take A Ride" - Rhino’s Rev Up CD.

Edited by LunarLaugh