Dog & Butterfly was Heart's fourth studio album, and the last to feature guitarist and founding member Roger Fisher. In keeping with the album's title, the first side of the LP featured more "rocking" numbers, while the second side tended more toward softer material and ballads. The single "Straight On" reached #15 on the U.S. Billboard charts, and was later released in a slightly different mix on the compilation album Greatest Hits/Live. Heart, along with Blondie, is one of my favorite bands of the 1970s and first part of the 1980s. I have every studio and live album from Dreamboat Annie through to Jupiter's Darling with the exception of the Christmas album, so I am naturally going to be a bit discriminating about the quality of any remasters.
Cook With Fire
1985 original CD release
2004 remaster
High Time
1985 original CD release
2004 remaster
Hijinx
1985 original CD release
2004 remaster
Straight On
1985 original CD release
2004 remaster
Dog & Butterfly
1985 original CD release
2004 remaster
Lighter Touch
1985 original CD release
2004 remaster
Nada One
1985 original CD release
2004 remaster
Mistral Wind
1985 original CD release
2004 remaster
And the winner is:Original 1985 CD release.
The levels say it all. I'm pretty disgusted with the 2004 release, as there was absolutely no reason to do this to the remaster other than to try to match today's typical volume levels. The 1985 CD sounds great, and the levels are already pretty well maximized without compression - although there's plenty of available headroom in some tracks, the songs in question should be taken in the context of the album as a whole. This is an album of powerful crests and soft, quiet lows, and one that deserves the most dynamic transfer possible for the fullest appreciation.
