"Famous Blue Raincoat"..

Frogman great post(6-14)! Analog vs. digital is NOT as simple as good vs. evil. I really enjoy many early digital recordings made on the 32-track 3M system. The Nightfly and Swing of Delight(Carlos Santana) are perfect examples. Are these perfect recordings... NO! IMO the weakness with early digital recordings is in the frequency extremes. The bass is soft(restricting dynamics) and the treble is sharp, but the midrange can have a real(human)texture even if it's a bit "glassy". FWIW most early digital recording are near awful but there are many exceptions with FBR being one of them.

I hate to burst you bubble laddies but Famous Blue Raincoat was recorded in analogue.
You should have your golden ears checked.
http://www.leonardcohenfiles.com/cover1.html
I'm anxious to "hear" your comebacks.

So, to be clear, an early digital CD mastering should not be referred to as a
"digital album" if the source material is analog? Fair enough, the
grainy sound of this CD is not the result of early digital recording, but rather
early digital mastering.

Interestingly, rereading the thread it seems that most describe the flaws in
the recording fairly similarly. Where the detractors and apologists for the
sound quality differ is in the severity of the flaws in the recording and how
they detract from the performance.

It may be as simple as those that enjoy and cherish this music are drawn
into the performance and focus less on any flaws, finding them minor.
While those that do not care for the music are more focused on the sound
quality and find any flaws to be greater in magnitude.

"It may be as simple as those that enjoy and cherish this music are drawn into the performance and focus less on any flaws, finding them minor."

That's about as true a statement, to me. The REAL problem with digital recordings was less the recordings than the playback, at least as far as trying to enjoy the music without being distracted by the sound which was quite difficult for me in the early years. Never owned a copy of FBR and don't care to as I am not drawn into the music and had the opportunity to hear the album from a friend before deciding it wasn't my cup of tea after all the accolades. I think it is quite well recorded and that isn't the issue. "Solitude Standing" is the very first CD I purchased in 1987 after hearing the song "Luka" on the radio and being so moved by the lyrics. It is a real masterpiece by a very gifted singer/songwriter/lyricist, couldn't agree more Slaw. I then purchased the album. It really is about the music. Unfortunately some of our favorite music is just not that well recorded or mixed for that matter, we just have to live with it.

There are pure analog recorded records, from the analog era,(before 1982) that sound "screechy", similar to early digital.