Fame

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Music reviews of Fame

Music Review: A definite sonic improvement
Rating: 4 Stars

The proof that Gore and Pitchford succeeded lies in the enduring popularity of this soundtrack and by comparison with the pale imitations that followed it - eg. the songs for the "Fame" TV series, and well, "Flashdance".

Taken together, the songs on this soundtrack tell a vibrant and moving story.

Irene Cara's performance of the title song remains an exuberant statement of purpose while her performance of the ballad "Out Here On My Own" shows an exquisite mix of control and passion. Other highlights are Paul McCrane's wistful "Dogs in the Yard" and the exciting ensemble finale, "I Sing the Body Electric".

The original CD pressing of this album was one of the first CDs released. Listening to it now, you can hear why a lot of people prefer vinyl. It sounds pretty dull - it's missing a lot of the high frequencies and space which are there on the vinyl pressing.

This remaster is a significant improvement over the first CD edition and the vinyl LP, on most tracks. The music has far more presence and dynamic range - it's like lifting a veil. I do, however, have a few technical queries. Tracks 4-9 seem to have slightly more treble information on the right channel than the left. Checking with the original vinyl, this appears to be partly a characteristic of the stereo mix with cymbals and tambourines mainly appearing on the right stereo channel. However, the vinyl and first CD pressing seem to have compensated for this by shifting the balance somewhat towards the left stereo channel. On this remaster, this does not appear to have been done. Other factors might be responsible for this slight imbalance - the stereo master tape might have deteriorated over the years, or heaven forbid, there was a technical fault in the remastering.

Call me picky, but when you know and love this album as much as I do, these things can nag away at your enjoyment.

But hey, congratulations to Turner/Rhino for realising the need to remaster this album. It sounds great, for the most part.

The bonus tracks are wonderful. Gore and Pitchford's "Mile From Here", which was written for, but not included in the movie, is similar in feel to "Dogs in the Yard". And the instrumental tracks for "Out Here On My Own" and "Fame" spotlight some great playing and arranging and will, no doubt, inspire some singing along.

Description of Fame

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