Various Artists - I Love Rock & Roll: Hits of the '50s

A "Digital Mastering" that's worse than the original

I grew up listening to these songs when they were new, and own well over fifty '50's-Rock CDs, so I know how these songs sound, and I almost always LIKE digitally remastered songs. (For example, see my review of "Elv1s 30 #1 Hits.") Thus I was quite surprised that something sounded off when I played this CD in a low-fi environment (at water aerobics, through Tivoli Songbook radios that have 2.5 inch speakers).

My guess is that the "Digital Mastering" consisted of eliminating some static by basically eliminating essentially all high pitched sound (probably all sound above about 10 mhz), and boosting the bass. Conceptually the idea sounds good. In practice, it doesn't work for me, because: gone is the zing of the higher guitar notes and vocals, and the most noticeable effect on the bass is higher distortion. This problem is particularly noticeable with "Chantilly Lace."

Perhaps on a bottom-of-the-line boombox (such as GPX or Craig) this "Mastering" actually would sound better than the originals.

For a far better '50s-Rock collection, one need go no further than the "Better Together" CD listed; that CD is: "The Ultimate Rock & Roll Collection: The 50's." January 25, 2006

duplicate item

recieved & was charged for two of these (2 seperate shipments) - returned the duplicate. waiting for credit August 9, 2005

Not a bad compilation CD.

One of the on line reviews I read stated that these tracks were not by the original artists, which made me debate whether or not to return the CD. I decided to give it a try. I really enjoyed it.
Except for one track I believe these are the original artists.
I have my doubts about Love Potion #9. But Summertime Blues and
Rumble make up for it. Also, I don't remember at all Bill Haley's recording of R O C K. Overall it's a good compilation. It's a keeper. July 26, 2004

Terrific Little CD

This is an excellent compilation of 50s hits. The lineup is solid, but the remastering isn't notable and more songs could have been included. Nevertheless, in the glut of compliations where the tracks aren't the original hit recordings, this is a terrific little CD. June 2, 2004

I love rock & roll; hits of the '50s

This is, by far, the worst CD I have ever heard. I grew up in the '50s and know that these are not the original artists who are listed. Whoever is pretending to imitate them is not even close. The musicianship and recording qualities are horrible; if the songs had been done well by other musicians, it would not be quite such a disappointment! November 5, 2003

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