HiRez Poll Franklin, Aretha - LIVE AT FILLMORE WEST [Blu-Ray Audio]

[BillTubes]

Most live surround mixes disappoint me and this one is no different. Aretha’s live at Fillmore was an early quad recording so maybe it is not to be expected that it be very discrete. The loud crowd noise is intended to add to the excitment like you are at the concert, but to me it is a distraction from the music (even when I am at a live concert I hate people screaming during the performane) .
When I compare Joni Mitchell’s Miles of Ailes live quad the difference is major both in fidelity and descrete mixing. None of this is Rhino’s fault, it is a historic recording and it is what it is.
My rating is a 6.

 

[par4ken]

Unlike the previous poster I like live recordings as they are much more spontaneous. Performance wise this one is top notch. I don't know why she chose to do so many covers though. The first couple of tracks are front oriented, almost nothing in the rear, not even crowd noise.

Also as has been stated the mix sounds as if it was recorded in a small club. At times instruments can be heard in the rear along with the crowd, those moments sound great. If the entire recording sounded like that I would rate it a nine. Rating on surround only I would vote a six. So I'll go with an eight rating overall, pulled up by the great performance.