The first "modern" sounding recording by today's standards?

[darkandrew]

[quote name='51m0n' timestamp='1387548987' post='2313257']
What is the definition of modern sounding?

Because anything in that sounds classic 80's (Rio for example) sounds immensely dated to me.

In comparison Autobahn by Kraftwerk (1974) sounds infinitely more modern and hasn't aged in the same way at all to my ear.....
[/quote]
I'm thinking in terms of the qualities of the actual recording itself rather than in terms of musical style as such. There's no doubt that albums like Rio or Michael Jackson's "Thriller" have dated in terms of the songs themselves and have more than a sprinkling of 80's cheese on them but sonically (to my ears anyway) the gap between them and the recordings of 10 years earlier is a larger leap in sound quality than a 10 year jump in the other direction.

[merello]

Nightfly - Donald Fagan.

[Mikkoantt]

If I remember right I think that Yes's Talk record is first fully digital recording. So in my mind that would be first "modern" sounding record by today's standards:)

[Mykesbass]

Agree with the comments on 80's recordings sounding very dated and also pick up on 4 Strings comments on classical recordings. It almost seems as though the desire to push technology on hampered the end result. I love the first two Dire Straits album and like all the rest of their work but never listen to Brothers in Arms any more purely because of the "modern" production. Going back even further, an album which would have probably been recorded in the same way as the classical ones 4 Strings likes is Frank Sinatra's Songs for Swinging Lovers - to me it sounds as fresh as anything else in my (oddly varied) collection.

[BetaFunk]

[quote name='darkandrew' timestamp='1387403165' post='2311684']
I'm left with a high regard for the song writing, musicianship, etc but a slight feeling of being underwhelmed by the recording itself.
[/quote]
To me the recording of DSOTM sounds fine. It's the rest of it that has always underwhelmed me.

Edited December 21, 2013 by BetaFunk

[HowieBass]

... Martin Hannett and his pioneering use of the AMS digital delay unit helped shape a lot of what followed... http://www.trustmeimascientist.com/2011/08/01/producer-profile-martin-hannett/

[bassace]

Ok, probably not a popular suggestion to most of you but how about going back to the fifties. Denis Preston was described as Europe's first independent record producer, making recordings in his Lansdowne Studios and selling the results to the major labels. The Lansdowne sound applied to the discs of the day was quite special, having a clarity but also mixed with a smidge of reverb. He recorded Bad Penny Blues with Joe Meek as his engineer and soon afterwards Meek left to do his own stuff.

[51m0n]

[quote name='muttley' timestamp='1387560784' post='2313432']
I'd say the first modern recording was the one that had a convincing stereo soundstage. In other words, you can play it back over a decent quality system and have the impression of the musicians/instruments in the room with you*. That was probably some time in the 1960s.

* Better still, an impression of being transported to the venue where the performance took place. However, as we all know such a performance rarely actually exists so I'm really not sure about that part...
[/quote]

Then you'd be looking at Telstar by the iconic Mister Joe Meek....

[BetaFunk]

This has been a very strange thread. It seems more to do with what someone's definition of 'Modern Sounding' is. Interesting posts but getting nowhere because no one can define it. All we have is a list of excellent producers and productions. As i say it's interesting all the same.