Special Section: Audiophile Discs

Queen – A Night At The Opera (1975) {1982, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Queen - A Night At The Opera (1975) {1982, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Queen – A Night At The Opera (1975) {1982, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Quality / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 926 MB (Hi-Res) + 266 MB (CD-Quality) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | Pressed in Japan | Cat#: MFSL 1-067 | Genre: Classic Rock
Half-Speed Mastered

A Night at the Opera is the fourth studio album by the British rock band Queen, released on 21 November 1975 by EMI Records in the United Kingdom and by Elektra Records in the United States. Produced by Roy Thomas Baker and Queen, it was reportedly the most expensive album ever recorded at the time of its release. The album’s title is taken from the Marx Brothers film of the same name. Continue reading “Queen – A Night At The Opera (1975) {1982, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}”

Queen – A Day At The Races (1976) [1996, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

Queen - A Day At The Races (1976) {1996, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Queen – A Day At The Races (1976) {1996, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Quality / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 972 MB (Hi-Res) + 274 MB (CD-Quality) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | US | Cat#: MFSL-1-256 | Genre: Hard Rock, Classic Rock
Half-Speed Mastered

In every sense, A Day at the Races is an unapologetic sequel to A Night at the Opera, the 1975 breakthrough that established Queen as rock & roll royalty. The band never attempts to hide that the record is a sequel — the two albums boast the same variation on the same cover art, the titles are both taken from old Marx Brothers films and serve as counterpoints to each other. But even though the two albums look the same, they don’t quite sound the same, A Day at the Races is a bit tighter than its predecessor, yet tighter doesn’t necessarily mean better for a band as extravagant as Queen. Continue reading “Queen – A Day At The Races (1976) [1996, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]”

Cream – Wheels Of Fire (1968) {1985, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Cream - Wheels Of Fire (1968) {1985, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Cream – Wheels Of Fire (1968) {1985, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}
2x Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Quality / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 1.74 GB (Hi-Res) + 509 MB (CD-Quality) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | Pressed in Japan | Cat#: MFSL 2-066 | Genre: Blues Rock
Half-Speed Mastered

If Disraeli Gears was the album where Cream came into their own, its successor, Wheels of Fire, finds the trio in full fight, capturing every side of their multi-faceted personality, even hinting at the internal pressures that soon would tear the band asunder. A dense, unwieldy double album split into an LP of new studio material and an LP of live material, it’s sprawling and scattered, at once awesome in its achievement and maddening in how it falls just short of greatness. Continue reading “Cream – Wheels Of Fire (1968) {1985, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}”

Journey – Escape (1981) {MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Journey - Escape (1981) {MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Journey – Escape (1981) {MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Quality / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 952 MB (Hi-Res) + 284 MB (CD-Quality) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | Pressed in Japan | Cat#: MFSL 1-144 | Genre: Pop Rock
Half-Speed Mastered

Escape (stylized as E5C4P3 on the album cover) is the seventh studio album by American rock band Journey, released in 1981. It topped the American Billboard 200 chart and features four hit Billboard Hot 100 singles – “Don’t Stop Believin'” (#9), “Who’s Crying Now” (#4), “Still They Ride” (#19) and “Open Arms” (#2) – plus rock radio staple “Stone in Love.” It was certified 9x platinum by the RIAA and sold over twelve million copies worldwide, making it the band’s most successful studio album and second most successful album overall behind Greatest Hits. Continue reading “Journey – Escape (1981) {MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}”

Little River Band – First Under The Wire (1979) {1980, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Little River Band - First Under The Wire (1979) {1980, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Little River Band – First Under The Wire (1979) {1980, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Quality / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 979 MB (Hi-Res) + 285 MB (CD-Quality) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | Pressed in Japan | Cat#: MFSL 1-036 | Genre: Country Rock
Half-Speed Mastered

This was the last time this popular Australian band released an album that matched the earlier Sleeper Catcher and Diamantina Cocktail. With a mix of harmony-drenched pop tunes and unthreatening rockers, they appealed to a wide audience. This album features some of their most poignant lyrics. You can empathize with Glenn Shorrock when he earnestly sings about the albatross and the whales being his brothers in “Cool Change,” this release’s standout track. If you haven’t heard “Lonesome Loser,” you just weren’t listening to AM radio in 1979. Continue reading “Little River Band – First Under The Wire (1979) {1980, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}”

Billie Holiday – Body And Soul (1957) [1995, MFSL Remastered CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

Billie Holiday - Body And Soul (1957) [1995, MFSL Remastered CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

Billie Holiday – Body And Soul (1957) [1995, MFSL Remastered CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Quality / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 440 MB (Hi-Res) + 130 MB (CD-Quality) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | US | Cat#: MFSL 1-247 | Genre: Vocal Jazz
Half-Speed Mastered

This session comes from close to the end of the line (1959) in the erstwhile swinging company of Barney Kessel on guitar, Ben Webster on tenor, and naysayers will be quick to point out that Lady Day wasn’t in peak form here. But Billie Holiday with some of the platinum chipped off the pipes is still way better than a buncha finger-snappin’ wannabes anyday. Continue reading “Billie Holiday – Body And Soul (1957) [1995, MFSL Remastered CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]”

Ry Cooder – Jazz (1978) {1984, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Ry Cooder - Jazz (1978) {1984, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Ry Cooder – Jazz (1978) {1984, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Quality / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 792 MB (Hi-Res) + 218 MB (CD-Quality) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | Pressed in Japan | Cat#: MFSL 1-085 | Genre: Jazz, Blues
Half-Speed Mastered

Beginning with his self-titled debut in 1970, Ry Cooder’s records seemed to be as much history lesson as they were entertainment. Not because Cooder was trying to club you over the head with this stuff; he simply gravitated to great songs, no matter what the era or genre. Released in 1978, Jazz seems to be his first conscious attempt at a concept album, in the historical sense. Here he pays homage to some of the early tunes and masters of jazz, ranging from the late 1800s through the “coon songs” of the early part of the next century, to the ragtime and “Spanish” music of Jelly Roll Morton, and the sophistication of cornetist Bix Beiderbecke. Continue reading “Ry Cooder – Jazz (1978) {1984, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}”

Poco – Legend (1978) [1979, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

Poco - Legend (1978) [1979, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

Poco – Legend (1978) [1979, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Quality / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 820 MB (Hi-Res) + 231 MB (CD-Quality) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | Pressed in Japan | Cat#: MFSL 1-020 | Genre: Country Rock
Half-Speed Mastered

Poco’s biggest-selling album of all time also presented the biggest personnel change at one time for the then-decade-old group, whose lineup had hardly been a model of stability up to that time. Co-founding drummer/singer George Grantham and longtime bassist/singer Timothy B. Schmit were both gone, the latter off to the Eagles. Listening to parts of this album, one gets the sense that, with the arrival of Charlie Harrison (bass, harmony vocals) and Steve Chapman (drums) in the group, Poco was deliberately adopting a change in sound similar to what the Eagles went through when Joe Walsh joined, into much harder rocking territory, at least part of the time. Continue reading “Poco – Legend (1978) [1979, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]”

Queen – The Game (1980) [1995, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

Queen - The Game (1980) [1995, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

Queen – The Game (1980) [1995, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Quality / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 783 MB (Hi-Res) + 230 MB (CD-Quality) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | USA | Cat#: MFSL 1-211 | Genre: Classic Rock
Half-Speed Mastered

Queen had long been one of the biggest bands in the world by 1980’s The Game, but this album was the first time they made a glossy, unabashed pop album, one that was designed to sound exactly like its time. They might be posed in leather jackets on the cover, but they hardly sound tough or menacing — they rarely rock, at least not in the gonzo fashion that’s long been their trademark. Continue reading “Queen – The Game (1980) [1995, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]”

Spandau Ballet – True (1983) [1984, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

Spandau Ballet - True (1983) [1984, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]

Spandau Ballet – True (1983) [1984, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Quality / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 766 MB (Hi-Res) + 215 MB (CD-Quality) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | Pressed in Japan | Cat#: MFSL 1-152 | Genre: New Wave, Pop
Half-Speed Mastered

By 1983, with the new romantic movement they’d sprung from a rapidly fading memory, the members of Spandau Ballet showed they had no intention of traveling the same path. Always ambitious, the British quintet really got down to business: Gone were the kilts, frilly shirts, and makeup — as well as the sometimes chilly electronics of their first two albums. Instead, after recording at Compass Point Studios in the sun-soaked Bahamas, the group turned up in smartly tailored suits, with a sleek and mainstream sound to match. Continue reading “Spandau Ballet – True (1983) [1984, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip]”

Blondie – Parallel Lines (1978) {1981, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Blondie - Parallel Lines (1978) {1981, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}

Blondie – Parallel Lines (1978) {1981, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}
Vinyl Rip | Hi-Res / FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 96kHz | CD-Quality / FLAC Tracks / 16bit / 44.1kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 924 MB (Hi-Res) + 279 MB (CD-Quality) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | Pressed in Japan | Cat#: MFSL 1-050 | Genre: New Wave, Pop Rock
Half-Speed Mastered

Blondie turned to British pop producer Mike Chapman for their third album, on which they abandoned any pretensions to new wave legitimacy (just in time, given the decline of the new wave) and emerged as a pure pop band. But it wasn’t just Chapman that made Parallel Lines Blondie’s best album; it was the band’s own songwriting, including Deborah Harry, Chris Stein, and James Destri’s “Picture This,” and Harry and Stein’s “Heart of Glass,” and Harry and new bass player Nigel Harrison’s “One Way or Another,” plus two contributions from nonbandmember Jack Lee, “Will Anything Happen?” and “Hanging on the Telephone.” Continue reading “Blondie – Parallel Lines (1978) {1981, MFSL Remastered, CD-Quality + Hi-Res Vinyl Rip}”

Dire Straits – Making Movies (1980) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip}

Dire Straits - Making Movies (1980) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip}

Dire Straits – Making Movies (1980) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip}
EAC Rip | FLAC Image + Cue + Log
SACD Rip | ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz | FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
Hybrid SACD | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 624 MB (CD-Layer) + 1.71 GB (SACD ISO) + 868 MB (SACD FLAC) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: MFSL UltraDisc UHR | US | Cat#: UDSACD 2186 | Genre: Pop Rock, Classic Rock

You know you’re in the presence of sonic greatness as soon as the first few seconds of the opening “Tunnel of Love” pass, as the introductory passage built on organ and piano – new additions to Dire Straits’ palette – intertwine with the unmistakable coil-spring twang of Knopfler’s guitar. The three-dimensional, full-bodied presentation of the latter instrument on this Mobile Fidelity SACD is alone worth the price of admission. Continue reading “Dire Straits – Making Movies (1980) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip}”

Dire Straits – Love Over Gold (1982) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip}

Dire Straits - Love Over Gold (1982) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip}

Dire Straits – Love Over Gold (1982) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip}
EAC Rip | FLAC Image + Cue + Log
SACD Rip | ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz | FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
Hybrid SACD | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 510 MB (CD-Layer) + 1.79 GB (SACD ISO) + 869 MB (SACD FLAC) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: MFSL UltraDisc UHR | US | Cat#: UDSACD 2187 | Genre: Classic Rock

Mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelity’s hybrid SACD of Love Over Gold teems with superb balances, front-to-back soundstages, and crystalline purity. It brings forward previously obscured details, extra information, and mastering-studio-quality transients. The distinctive textures of a host of instruments – marimbas, acoustic and electric guitars, vibes, synthesizers – further enhance the ambitiousness of the 1982 album. Continue reading “Dire Straits – Love Over Gold (1982) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip}”

Dire Straits – Communiqué (1979) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip}

Dire Straits - Communiqué (1979) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip}

Dire Straits – Communiqué (1979) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip}
EAC Rip | FLAC Image + Cue + Log
SACD Rip | ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz | FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
Hybrid SACD | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 540 MB (CD-Layer) + 1.86 GB (SACD ISO) + 933 MB (SACD FLAC) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: MFSL UltraDisc UHR | US | Cat#: UDSACD 2185 | Genre: Blues Rock, Pop Rock

Mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelity’s numbered-edition hybrid SACD of Communiqué elevates Dire Straits’ sophomore album to an even higher plane. Recorded in the Bahamas by Muscle Shoals veterans Barry Beckett and Jerry Wexler, the songs benefit from a laidback approach that makes guitarist/vocalist Mark Knopfler and company’s stellar playing seem even more fluent – particularly when experienced on this collector’s version. Continue reading “Dire Straits – Communiqué (1979) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip}”

Dire Straits – Dire Straits (1978) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip}

Dire Straits - Dire Straits (1978) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip}

Dire Straits – Dire Straits (1978) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip}
EAC Rip | FLAC Image + Cue + Log
SACD Rip | ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz | FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
Hybrid SACD | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 615 MB (CD-Layer) + 1.84 GB (SACD ISO) + 978 MB (SACD FLAC) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: MFSL UltraDisc UHR | US | Cat#: UDSACD 2184 | Genre: Country Rock, Classic Rock

Mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelity’s numbered-edition SACD version of Dire Straits features natural tonalities, superb balances, you-are-there imaging, deep-black backgrounds, and pristine clarity. Even if you’ve heard this album hundreds of times before, you’ve never experienced it with such lifelike sonics and premium richness. Continue reading “Dire Straits – Dire Straits (1978) {2019, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip}”