MFSL remaster of Totally Hot review
Olivia Newton-John: Totally Hot
John Farrar, producer
Half-speed remastered
MFSL 1-040
A purely pop release from ‘77, this is one of those remasters that sets the standard for all others. The original production standards were impressively high, with superb miking, equalization, and instrument placement in the mix. The use of the Aphex Aural Exciter also translates well in the remastering.
The Top-40 hit A Little More Love features outrageously resonant guitar fills and rhythm parts from Steve Lukather, set against a spanking clean snare sound. Olivia’s sweet soprano rides the crest of these great sounds ef fortlessly. Again, slight surface noise is sometimes discernible on the occasional quiet passage and between cuts.
Editor’s note - Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab (MFSL) were a premium vinyl producer, pressing LPs on premium vinyl and mastering from the original master tapes, running cutting lathe and tape playback at half speed to reduce high frequency distortion.