David Bowie – Images 1966 – 1967 (UHQCD)

Das Album Images 1966 – 1967 enthält David Bowies komplettes Debütalbum sowie sieben bis dato unveröffentlichte Singles und Aufnahmen. Bei seiner Veröffentlichung im Jahr 1973 sorgten diese für Aufsehen unter Kritikern und Ziggi-Stardust-Fans, die Bowie bis dahin nicht als Allround-Entertainer kennengelernt hatten. Nichtsdestotrotz schaffte es einer der Titel, Laughing Gnome mit seinem Chipmunk-artigen Backgroundgesang, zum Hit zu werden. Images 1966 – 1967 bietet einen hervorragenden Überblick über das frühe Schaffen von David Bowie. Das Album erscheint im Mini-LP-Cover, einer Reproduktion der in Japan veröffentlichten Vinyl-Version.

UHQCD stands for Ultimate High Quality Compact Disc and is a joint development of the Japanese CD replication company Memory-Tech and the Audio Quality CD Company from Hong Kong. Unlike conventional CDs, UHQCDs are not pressed from polycarbonate, but cast from a photopolymer and cured with UV light. Another layer of high-purity polycarbonate is applied to the softer photopolymer for scratch protection. The combination results in significantly reduced reflection of laser light inside the CD and an unmatched precise edge transition between pits and lands of the CD. UHQCDs are 100% compatible with standard CD players. Musically, the result is a sound image strongly reminiscent of analog master tapes.

While Universal Music Japan’s first UHQCD series relied on the DSD data of previous SHM-SACD releases, with increasing popularity, albums that had not previously been released as SHM-SACD are now appearing. Typically, the Universal Archive master tapes are re-converted to DSD for this purpose. UHQCDs are ideal for music lovers who want to get as close as possible to the sound of the recording, but do not own an SACD player.