Got a copy of the Triple J 1975 Archive Collection DVD/CD yesterday anticipating rare live tracks of Stranger Than Fiction and Late Last Night. Was not to be

Late Last Night is the standard video promo - but it is the old all-colour version with the 7" recording (still sounding terribly muffled).

Stranger Than Fiction is from Second Thoughts and has clearly been remastered although not indicated in the credits It is difficult to describe the difference with the standard CD. The volume is overpowering and the clarity is awesome - definitive proof (as if we didn't know it already) that the whole catalogue needs to be remastered soon. I've got a feeling this is going to happen judging by a cryptic comment Peter Green made in his latest online diary.

As for the rest of the package - I haven't really explored it yet. There seem to be hidden features on the DVD - if you leave it unattended, it starts playing old ABC clips - the one I saw was about a nudist beach somewhere in Australia!

quote:

Originally posted by David Goldsmith:
[qb] The volume is overpowering[/qb]

Uh oh. Are the quiet bits still quiet and the loud bits still loud, or is it all loud?

Jaffa - it's sublime - can hear all sorts of little details that I hadn't noticed before.

The ABC site claims the recordings are live. I know 2JJ used to play a lot of the enz and mental notes - perhaps this is part of a live set. If so we ought to lobby for the full set to be released.

The 'claim' seems to be an advertising gimmick, not much of either the DVD or CD is live, and there is certainly no live
Enz. So far the best of gotten from JJJ is a Crowded House Live At Transformers Melbourne 1992? as part of a Paul Hester tribute.

Retraction - now have it on good authority that STF was NOT remastered for this release. Need to get my ears remastered obviously:-)

The strange thing is that, according to ABC Archives, there is a tape in their collection of Split Enz playing live at Manly Beach in Sydney, New Year's Eve 1976. "Stranger Than Fiction" is included in the line-up, along with "Amy", "Lovey Dovey" (mis-titled "I Still Think of You") and "Another Great Divide". I wonder if this was considered for the CD?

Addendum-dum: I think I'm going mad. I forgot that I'd already mentioned this today in another thread.

Jaffa,

How do you know about this recording? JJJ is currently runnning a campaign to request re-runs of old live material. They have Split Enz but I think its 1979. Once we have confirmation that they have earlier concerts we should pile the votes on for these to be rebroadcast.

When I was searching for the 2JJ 1975 radio doco "A Day With Split Enz" to use in Enzology, the 1976 concert also turned up in ABC's records. I didn't request a copy of that tape because I was trying to keep costs down and figured I wouldn't be able to fit in in anyway. As for the JJJ concert request, I assume that the '76 show isn't included in the line-up because it's only four songs long, whereas the 1979 concert is about an hour long and has more familiar songs.

Jaffa, Did a quick search on the ABC site and couldnt find any reference to "a day with split enz" - have you heard it? whats on it?

You won't find it listed on the site anywhere. "A Day With Split Enz" was a one hour fly-on-the-wall programme following Split Enz around on a typical day in Sydney, mid-1975. There are a few excerpts from this in episode 2 of "Enzology". The original features everything from waking up at the Squire Inn, going to the local sandwich shop, Eddie trying to find a piano tuner and somewhere to rehease with Wally (including a "maritime" thing he was working on, which later became "Pioneer"), discussions about that evening's setlist and a brief bit of the opening of the show.

Coupla corrections to my last post: The title is "A Day in the Life of Split Enz" and it's almost an hour and a half long. No narrator.