Greatest Hits
Overview
I've had to do this one differently to the other comparisons, beause of course Greatest hits is a compilation. There have been many compilations over the years, and obviously they aren't always the same album or collection of tracks. This may inform you, primarily about the dynamics of the compilations. Most compilations draw from Olivia's pre-digital albums (Physical and before), because that was the era where Olivia sold her music in the highest numbers.
Olivia's Greatest Hits
Unusual release from EMI UK, Olivia's Greatest Hits, possibly their first ONJ release on the new medium of Compact Disc. EMI did, of course, have the original pre-Grease Greatest Hits out, and the vinyl version of Olivia's Greatest Hits 2 which was a travesty with far too many tracks for a single album
UK EMI CDP 7 46019 2
| Track | Title | True Peak | LUFS Integrated |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01. Physical | +0.23 dB | -16.34 dB | |
| 02. Deeper Than The Night | +0.27 dB | -15.52 dB | |
| 03. A Little More Love | +0.22 dB | -16.35 dB | |
| 04. Magic | +0.24 dB | -17.47 dB | |
| 05. Heart Attack | -1.10 dB | -18.06 dB | |
| 06. Make A Move On Me | +0.14 dB | -15.57 dB | |
| 07. Tied Up | +0.32 dB | -17.21 dB | |
| 08. Suddenly | -0.82 dB | -19.31 dB | |
| 09. Changes | -4.93 dB | -19.63 dB | |
| 10. If Not For You | -0.30 dB | -16.25 dB | |
| 11. Banks Of The Ohio | -2.37 dB | -16.33 dB | |
| 12. Take Me Home Country Roads | -2.21 dB | -16.48 dB | |
| 13. Sam | +0.19 dB | -17.11 dB | |
| 14. The Promise (The Dolphin Song) | -2.96 dB | -22.06 dB | |
| 15. I Honestly Love You | -4.82 dB | -21.09 dB |
You can see the old vinyl album tendency in the mastering of this album, only one year on from the lauch of the new medium of CD. They were perfectly able to find the upper limit of 0dBFS, arguably they pushed A Little More Love, Magic and Tied Up a little too hard, though there isn't the sustained clipping of loudness wars digital remastering. But they also lined up the ballads like I Honestly Love You and Changes at a significantly lower peak level, because they will have been sung quieter
the original MCA release
This is a reissue of the original 1977 MCA vinyl album on CD in 1984, very soon after the launch of CD. It has many of Olivia's 1970s hits and the compilation predates the successes of Grease and Physical.
US MCAD-5226
| Track | Title | True Peak | LUFS Integrated |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | If Not for You | -0.13 dB | -13.95 dB |
| 02 | Changes | -1.33 dB | -16.78 dB |
| 03 | Let Me Be There | +0.19 dB | -13.29 dB |
| 04 | If You Love Me (Let Me Know) | -0.61 dB | -15.27 dB |
| 05 | I Honestly Love You | -2.11 dB | -17.88 dB |
| 06 | Have You Never Been Mellow | -1.07 dB | -15.52 dB |
| 07 | Please Mr. Please | -1.04 dB | -16.16 dB |
| 08 | Something Better to Do | +0.09 dB | -15.54 dB |
| 09 | Let It Shine | +0.22 dB | -13.87 dB |
| 10 | Come On Over | +0.44 dB | -14.25 dB |
| 11 | Don't Stop Believin' | +0.24 dB | -13.19 dB |
| 12 | Sam | +0.22 dB | -14.65 dB |
Australian Greatest Hits 2 (similar to MCA above release)
This is a reissue of the original 1977 GH2 (in Australia) vinyl album on CD in 1990
AU D 36449
| Track | Title | True Peak | LUFS Integrated |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Changes | -1.20 dB | -16.90 dB |
| 02 | Every Face Tells A Story | +0.25 dB | -16.16 dB |
| 03 | Let It Shine | -1.56 dB | -16.58 dB |
| 04 | Come On Over | -0.82 dB | -15.31 dB |
| 05 | Love Song | -2.14 dB | -16.93 dB |
| 06 | Have You Never Been Mellow | -0.25 dB | -15.35 dB |
| 07 | Don't Cry For Me Argentina | -0.58 dB | -18.38 dB |
| 08 | Please Mr. Please | -1.51 dB | -17.54 dB |
| 09 | Something Better To Do | -1.68 dB | -18.00 dB |
| 10 | Jolene | -0.25 dB | -14.69 dB |
| 11 | The Air That I Breathe | -0.30 dB | -16.65 dB |
| 12 | Don't Stop Believin' | -0.54 dB | -16.10 dB |
| 13 | Making A Good Thing Better | -1.24 dB | -18.03 dB |
| 14 | Sam | +0.03 dB | -18.11 dB |
Australian Greatest Hits 2 Remastered
Remastered version of the above, from 1998
AU D 21049
| Track | Title | True Peak | LUFS Integrated |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Changes | -0.55 dB | -13.75 dB |
| 02 | Every Face Tells A Story | -0.41 dB | -10.28 dB |
| 03 | Let It Shine | -1.66 dB | -10.90 dB |
| 04 | Come On Over | -1.28 dB | -11.96 dB |
| 05 | Love Song | -1.02 dB | -12.81 dB |
| 06 | Have You Never Been Mellow | -1.17 dB | -11.72 dB |
| 07 | Don't Cry For Me Argentina | +0.17 dB | -16.14 dB |
| 08 | Please Mr. Please | -0.71 dB | -12.63 dB |
| 09 | Something Better To Do | -0.72 dB | -11.41 dB |
| 10 | Jolene | -0.98 dB | -11.93 dB |
| 11 | The Air That I Breathe | +0.23 dB | -13.86 dB |
| 12 | Don't Stop Believin' | +0.01 dB | -9.70 dB |
| 13 | Making A Good Thing Better | +0.08 dB | -12.77 dB |
| 14 | Sam | +0.11 dB | -10.79 dB |
US Back to Basics - GEFD 24470
1992 compilation with which Olivia was going to relaunch her career, before having to call this off because of her diagnosis with breast cancer.
US GEFD 24470
| Track | Title | True Peak | LUFS Integrated |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Deeper Than a River | -0.28 dB | -14.60 dB |
| 02 | Not Gonna Be the One | -0.50 dB | -14.15 dB |
| 03 | I Want to Be Wanted | +0.24 dB | -17.49 dB |
| 04 | I Need Love | -0.43 dB | -16.65 dB |
| 05 | Twist of Fate | +0.10 dB | -13.83 dB |
| 06 | Physical | -1.33 dB | -14.93 dB |
| 07 | Magic | -0.44 dB | -15.61 dB |
| 08 | Deeper Than the Night | -0.08 dB | -15.38 dB |
| 09 | A Little More Love | -0.61 dB | -15.68 dB |
| 10 | You're the One That I Want | +0.02 dB | -14.91 dB |
| 11 | Summer Nights | +0.06 dB | -14.85 dB |
| 12 | Hopelessly Devoted to You | -1.65 dB | -16.08 dB |
| 13 | Please Mr. Please | -1.40 dB | -16.59 dB |
| 14 | Sam | +0.12 dB | -15.39 dB |
| 15 | Have You Never Been Mellow | -0.61 dB | -14.67 dB |
| 16 | If You Love Me (Let Me Know) | -0.82 dB | -14.52 dB |
| 17 | I Honestly Love You | -2.38 dB | -17.52 dB |
MasVis results (Summary only shows dirst 12 tracks but therest are there individually)
back to the CD sound quality index of albums
back to the four waves of digitally remastered Olivia CDs
- It is possible for the output of a digital system to go beyond 0dBFS under certain circumstances.↩