Queen's first album production

I've always wondered whether Queen's first album would of performed better at the time if it had of had better production. To me the mix is really quite muddy and dull and the drum sounds are horrible. I know this was recorded in 'down time' at the studio but having heard other albums from that era they seem a lot more álive' than Queen.

Curious for others opinions on this.

Other albums from who? Established acts with more time to get the sound they want?

That album didn’t flop because of its production/sound engineering. Sonically, it’s actually a better sounding album than Queen II... and that was a hit.

The first album flopped because no-one knew who Queen were and the single didn’t even chart.

I don't hear anything wrong with it, tbh.

That said, I feel the original Japanese LP sounds superior to other issues of it (just my opinion) - you should grab yourself a copy of that, they're fairly commonplace.

mooghead wrote:

Other albums from who? Established acts with more time to get the sound they want?

Just as an example, late era Beatles (yeah I know a bit before) , Kiss' first LP, Dark Side Of The Moon etc. I just thought if De Lane Lea were using it for promoting their studios shouldn't they have spent a little more time on the mix? It's not the bands fault as I guess they had no say in time restraints etc.

Thistle wrote:

I don't hear anything wrong with it, tbh.

That said, I feel the original Japanese LP sounds superior to other issues of it (just my opinion) - you should grab yourself a copy of that, they're fairly commonplace.

Thanks Thistle. I will see what I can find just to compare and hear if there's a difference.

the first album by an unknown band sounds different to their later trademark sound shocker.

Queen I & II indeed suffer from insufficient production budget, especially because they were not recorded on 24track machines.
And nothing can be done about it.

Ziggy_SD wrote:

That album didn’t flop because of its production/sound engineering. Sonically, it’s actually a better sounding album than Queen II...

That was surprising to read. I've always considered Queen II as one of their better-sounding albums. Soundwise, it stands the test of time much better than their first album.

It depends what the listener likes, and there will always be a chin stroker with a contradictory opinion dressed as fact.

Not that I'm arguing of course, I can see the plus points and negatives of both records.

De Lane Lea weren't using it to PROMOTE their studio. They were using it to ACOUSTICALLY TEST their studio.

That was surprising to read. I've always considered Queen II as one of their better-sounding albums. Soundwise, it stands the test of time much better than their first album.

We should clarify the difference between general production and sound engineering.

Queen II is a masterpiece in terms of songwriting and composition. But it suffers from gross overproduction. There is barely any space between the instruments. I remember first listening to this album on cassette and I remember it just sounded awful. Then I got the remaster and realised it wasn't just the cassette...

Back to Queen I, while the songs aren't nearly as inventive as QII, the mix engineering is vastly superior. Songs like The Night Comes Down sound crystal clear.

I suspect QII became a victim of it's own over-the-topness -- I really do believe they literally wore the tape out... because it sounds like it.

The Night Comes Down is the only track from the album which sounds differently as it was recorded 1 year earlier at the De Lane Lea studios, while others were recorded at the Trident studios.

I'm sure remix of both I & II albums will reveal that they were recorded very well. The original mixing process is the low point here.

I can't believe how cross this thread has made me.

Awful drum sound on the debut - down to the engineers and producers taping up and muffling drum heads, and the band not being experienced enough, or having enough time, to argue that it should be otherwise.

That 'cardboard box' drum sound was on a lot of stuff around late 60s to mid 70s, then - James Taylor, Billy Joel, ABBA etc..etc...