City Hall, Sheffield

Source:
2004 digital transfer from Tony Ryan's (aka: Captain Ransid) 1st or 2nd gen tapes > Aiwa Tape Deck > Traxdata Audio CD Recorder > Audio CD-R > EAC > FLAC

Lineage:
Radio Hallam original broadcast > unknown FM recording equipment > ??? > TDK SA90 & TDK SA60 (unknown generations but thought to be 2nd, received in trade in 1980.)

Finally, a remaster that does this show full justice. The sound is worlds beyond SAB 12, which was way better than any of the old versions - and the quality of this makes me beg for more TM-relesaes! The sound is a *tiny* bit metallic at places, which would be due to the excessive noice reduction performed on some parts, but that is more than easily forgiven, and overall I'd rate the sound quality somewhere between 95 and 98 %. [kaspergm]

It's another "A+"... "A+" for the big improvement that this recording has gained from the old BURP and even from the excellent SAB remaster. "A+" for Tom and his great work on those precious tapes. The sound itself should be classified as an A/A-, as kasper said, there's a flanging sound (due to the necessary NR added) on the highs that sometimes modulate Phil's vocals and the cymbals... BUT, and let me say BUT, that's a so-exciting experience for take a trip back to 1980 and enjoy this performance in a way that you've never listened before. Tom, thank you again. Gigio. [gigio67]

Much better than the other versions that are out there. Great job again Tom. [mdekoning]

oh my goodness. this is the most beautiful performance of duchess i have ever heard. why have i been listening to the lyceum show for so long??? [bryantm3]

If Lyceum '80 is A+, then this show is more like a B+. It is nice, but sound quality and balance issues (prsumably in the source) make this less essential now IMO. [ca1ore]

Tom did a wonderful job with what he had here but we are dealing with a source that just cannot compare to the stellar quality of the May 7th Lyceum show. Being aware of the sluggish quality of the broadcast to begin with, this was a good job but still sounds a tiny bit on the slow side to me. However, it is highly enjoyable and Tom is to be praised highly for this!! Definitely recommended! Love the Duke Suite on this one! [duke23]

Notes from Dan : The Hallam FM source was provided by Tony Ryan, which he says is at least a 2nd gen FM, but probably a 1st. The source recording (two cassettes) were transferred direct to digital as WAV's. They suffered from the same speed abnormalities as all other versions of this show. The WAV CD's were sent to 'Speedy' Sussman for speed correction (how appropriate) and editing. A couple of snippets were used from another source for a couple of song intros but the music portions are all from Tony's excellent source. The remastering was done be me in the usual (analog) way. Upon review, the initial version was lacking in highs, so I made a few tweaks in digital land using Adobe Audition with a couple of WAVES plug-ins. Audio CD's were then sent to Mr. Sussman, which he SHN'd and put on the hub. [Simon_Funnell]

Call me biased, but this one is the best of the Sheffield bunch. [speedy]

I can't disagree with Speedy, finally a version of this show that I actually want to listen to. I really want to give this an A+ just for running at the right speed and all coming from one source, but it can't quite compare to the best Pre-FMs (of other shows) out there so it gets a good solid A. Well worth tracking down even if you have one or all of the other versions. [LivingForever]

I'd had these tapes since 1980 and had been advocating them as a great source for many years - but with the other versions about there was not much interest. Speedy and Dan have done a superb job and am very glad that they now have a wider audience - my earleir version of these (non-speed corrected) is out as CRAP01. Tony [CaptainRansid]

Once again, this remaster showcases Dan's ability with FM sourced recordings. He achieved a great result over a very good sounding source tape. This is easily the best version of the concert. AV [squonkduke]

Radio Hallam FM Broadcast
Andy Hill (Broadway) raw source - Patched and speed corrected

Primary Source - Andy Hill (Broadway):
Radio Hallam FM > ? > Unknown low gen cassettes (probably 2nd gen): One TDK C90 cassette, and one C46 cassette > Studer A721 (Dolby B on, as marked on the cassette inlay) > ? > DAT > ? > WAV
Transferred by Tom in 2006

Patching Sources:
Haze (coolcats58) *: Radio Hallam FM > TDK SA C-120 > TEAC W865R (no Dolby) > Audacity (speed correction, volume adjustment) > FLAC

Tony Ryan (Captain Ransid, CRAP) **: Radio Hallam FM > Unknown FM recording equipment > ??? > TDK SA90 & TDK SA60 (unknown generations but thought to be 2nd, received in trade in 1980)
2004 Transfer: Aiwa Tape Deck > Traxdata Audio CD Recorder > Audio CD-R > EAC > FLAC

Lineage for Edits: WAV/FLAC files > Audacity (edits) > FLAC > TLH > FLAC (level 8)

Nice version of this show including some songs not on Steeltown Revelation. Occasional radio static, but generally very good.

not quite as good as Musica in terms of clarity and power [squonkman]

The man who shouts 'Albatross' during the story of Albert - I was that soldier. Also Mike split his yellow trousers at the start of the gig - no smoke machines allowed so the roadies came on smoking instead.[Dave Hodgson]

The best Sheffield 1980 that there is, unfortunately still not perfect. Some tracks are significantly better than others, the Duke Suite being particularly nice sounding. A composite from several sources, surely there is one excellent single source somewhere?! [LivingForever]

BURP release 001. Sound improves after first couple of tracks.

Gotta go against the tide here. This was pitch corrected too far and has a chimpunk effect. The perfect Sheffield still eludes us. [speedy]

Quality floats between the tracks... [Gigio67]

The man who shouts 'Albatross' during the story of Albert - I was that soldier. Also Mike split his yellow trousers at the start of the gig - no smoke machines allowed so the roadies came on smoking instead.[Dave Hodgson]

Copy of 23 year old Radio Hallam, Sheffield FM broadcast - low gen copy (probably 2nd) - Runs a little slow

This one was remastered and speed corrected to make the excellent SAB12. [LivingForever]

Runs far too slowly, which spoils it for me. Also has sections spliced in from the Lyceum show. [LivingForever]

i4detail release.

Here's the good, bad and the ugly: GOOD: contains all introductions and is a generally crisp copy of the FM broadcast; BAD: the playback is slow, noticeably and painfully slow; UGLY: the splice into Afterglow from another show, whilst well-intentioned, is not clean at all. The sudden jump in pitch sounds bad (highlighting the issue under "bad") and the splice is not very clean either. The "slow" problem may have been with the source (and not because of the good folks at I4Detail) but it can be corrected using today's digital mastering tools (easier) or...by simply re-recording from the analogue audio source using a slightly faster tape speed (better) and matching the pitch to something "in tune". The splice would sound better if the slowness is corrected, but it should still be a better splice especially using today's non-linear digital audio tools. I could help on both accounts.... [VariousArtist]

The man who shouts 'Albatross' during the story of Albert - I was that soldier. Also Mike split his yellow trousers at the start of the gig - no smoke machines allowed so the roadies came on smoking instead.[Dave Hodgson]

Identical to Steeltown Revelation, but with the speed problems sorted out.

The man who shouts 'Albatross' during the story of Albert - I was that soldier. Also Mike split his yellow trousers at the start of the gig - no smoke machines allowed so the roadies came on smoking instead.[Dave Hodgson]

The man who shouts 'Albatross' during the story of Albert - I was that soldier. Also Mike split his yellow trousers at the start of the gig - no smoke machines allowed so the roadies came on smoking instead.[Dave Hodgson]

Sound is slow

The man who shouts 'Albatross' during the story of Albert - I was that soldier. Also Mike split his yellow trousers at the start of the gig - no smoke machines allowed so the roadies came on smoking instead.[Dave Hodgson]