Aiyiyi, the sound on Odyssey seared, blistered, and hurt our ears. It was hard, 2-dimensional, with a whitish grain or aura overlaying the music. Moreover, some of the music itself singed our ears. Nevertheless, my friends and I liked "Heaven Tonight," "Memories," and "Crystal Ball." To this day, we do not know why the latter has never been released as a single. A favorite of mine and KJ's, our wedding guests asked why it wasn't played at the banquet. It would have duked it out with Dokken's "Burning Like A Flame" as the heaviest songs at the wedding banquet.

We would later go to Broadway Rock, then located on Broadway & Montgomery. I would buy a black t-shirt, with Yngwie's Fender Strat surrounded by orange flames.

I spent the latter half of the summer of '88 in Honolulu. Just before returning to San Francisco, I was at a party. There was a TV left on MTV. A friendly, happy, very attractive brunette from Punahou got me to sit with her on a couch. MTV played Lita Ford's "Kiss Me Deadly," Van Halen's "When It's Love," and then Malmsteen's "Heaven Tonight." The brunette matter-of-factly told me that lead singer Joe Lynn Turner came from Rainbow. Wow, why can't audiophiles be that knowledgeable about music? I was smitten. She and I went to another room, where music was playing, danced, and... Man, I wish I could have stayed in Honolulu, and transferred to Punahou!

In the mid-90s, my friend ACS and I would shop for speakers. Though we could not afford it, we liked the Martin Logan Aerius i, a stat/woofer hybrid. We auditioned it at S.F.'s Audio Excellence, then located across the street from the Transamerica pyramid. Odyssey drove the staff away. The Aerius' tight bass did a good job on the opening kick drum of "Crystal Ball." The stat panel had the speed and articulation, to keep up with Yngwie's blinding note playing, Turner's soaring vocals, and the amazing keyboard runs. In all honesty, none of the myriad other speakers ACS and I auditioned did as good a job on Odyssey as the Aerius i. But you know, the "professional" reviews said that the Aerius i couldn't rock.

Three years ago, Odyssey was re-issued on SHM-CD. The back of the fold-out booklet is written in Japanese. No, just being an SHM-CD does not magically transform Odyssey into sonic gold. However, that whitish grain is reduced, thus making it easier for you to listen into the recording. Furthermore, the SHM-CD sports slightly better transparency. Coupled with blacker backgrounds, and less 2D imaging, the SHM-CD has a smidgen of space. And Odyssey needs all the space it can get. The crack of the drums is still there. The cymbals are still buried in the mix. While too low in level, the cymbals on the SHM-CD do have better tone and timbre.

The Audiophiles' DJ,
-Lummy The Loch Monster

 I saw him in '84 when he was still in Alcatrazz - Prisoners 16:29:44 01/30/15 (2)
 RE: I saw him in '84 when he was still in Alcatrazz - tonyford65 21:45:48 01/30/15 (1)
 RE: I saw him in '84 when he was still in Alcatrazz - fantja 05:09:22 01/31/15 (0)

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 I saw him in '84 when he was still in Alcatrazz - Prisoners 16:29:44 01/30/15 (2)
 RE: I saw him in '84 when he was still in Alcatrazz - tonyford65 21:45:48 01/30/15 (1)
 RE: I saw him in '84 when he was still in Alcatrazz - fantja 05:09:22 01/31/15 (0)
 He Needs the "J." in there.... - Mahlernut 13:21:31 01/30/15 (0)
 While I appreciate Yngwie's technical skills... - rlw 06:17:38 01/30/15 (0)
 Malmsteen's no Blackmore, and Jo Lynn Turner's no Dio... - semuta 16:55:00 01/29/15 (0)
 RE: Yngwie J. Malmsteen's Rising Force: Odyssey - fantja 15:47:16 01/29/15 (0)