Edsel Records reject Robert Palmer MP3 mastering claims

Online music forums are buzzing at the moment with fans claiming that Edsel’s recent Island-era Robert Palmer reissues show signs of being mastered from an MP3 source.

Using sound editing software such as Audacity, audiophiles often like to ‘look’ at the sound of tracks via waveforms – it’s a way to check the state of the mastering. Some fans of the late English singer have been doing just this with the latest reissues and are unhappy with what they see. “There is absolutely no musical information above 16 kHz, which is a dead giveaway” stated one person –  the implication being that this was an indication of an MP3 source. Many fans have emailed us in the last 24 hours asking if they should not buy the reissues and if we knew whether there was any truth in these claims.

So we put these allegations to Edsel label manager Val Jennings and he was adamant that the masters had been nowhere near an MP3 file.

“We were given flat transfers by Universal for all the albums and bonus tracks, on CDs with Universal’s Belsize Road Tape Library inlays. Since they came directly from the tape library, I can’t see how MP3s would come into it. The CDs certainly don’t have MP3s on them”, he said.

When pushed about the actual source and details around the transfers themselves he told us:

“I can but assume that they would have been new transfers from the tapes with no extra EQ. They were done in 2006 for Universal’s very own catalogue team, who were all set to reissue the albums, until the whole project was shelved for reasons no-one involved can remember”.

Clearly frustrated with the situation Val added, “I really don’t know what else to say. It’s shame that people can’t just be glad that someone has reissued the records, instead of trying to find or invent faults.”

The Robert Palmer reissues were released at the end of August. Full details and track listings here.

Sneaking Sally Through The Alley / Pressure Drop

• • UK Pre-order: Sneakin’ Sally Through The Alley/Pressure Drop
• • USA Pre-order: Sneakin’ Sally / Pressure Drop
• • CANADA Pre-order: Sneakin’ Sally & Pressure Drop
• • GERMANY Pre-order: Sneakin’ Sally Through the Alley+Pressure Drop (Re

Some People Can Do What They Like / Double Fun

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• • CANADA Pre-order: Some People Can Do What They Like & Double Fun
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Secrets / Clues / Maybe It’s Live

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• • CANADA Pre-order: Secrets & Clues & Maybe It’s Live
• • GERMANY Pre-order: Secrets+Clues+Maybe It’s Live

Pride / Riptide

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• • CANADA Pre-order: Pride / Riptide
• • GERMANY Pre-order: Pride+Riptide