I'm back with some more text.
My odyssey through game music has taken me through the music of the Atari ST - and I was sorely disappointed.
The reason? The music scene of the computer doesn't stand on its own. It's all either derived music taken from somewhere else, or original music that was later ported to another platform where it ended up sounding better. (Nine times out of ten that 'other' platform was the Amiga.)
I even delved into the Demo scene and checked out what tunes they had there - and sadly it was mostly the same.
A pity.
But on to something else: I'll just quote the sleeve cover:
Back in Time Vol 1 (1997) said:
Some of the best synth music ever created was never released on vinyl, tape or CD.
It was subject to technical limitations, yet it captured the musical imagination of an entire generation like no other game music before or since. This music has been underground for ten years: on the internet and in people's imaginations, kept alive through imitation and emulation.
Now, it lives again. freed from the limitations of its source medium, ready for any synth music fan to enjoy.
Two man-years of work went into this CD: every note was painstakingly arranged for musical quality and authenticity.
And, best of all, the original composers were involved wherever possible, to make this a definitive C-64 themes CD.
Prepare to relive your past. You'll love what you find there.
~25 years ago a series of audio CDs were released which contained some of the best C-64 tunes in 'modern' day quality, with normal instruments. I chanced upon MP3s of these discs long after they'd gone out of print and were unavailable for purchase, and those became some of my most cherished MP3s.
The minute I learned that the author had re-released (and updated) these discs online, many years later, I purchased all three of them, they're
that good.
But now it's taken the next step: The author has released these albums on The Internet Archive, in FLAC/MP3-format,
for free.
Download Volume 1.
Download Volume 2.
Download Volume 3.
Enjoy. I sure as hell did.
(Want more? Back in Time Vol. 4-6 are available on the author's website for a modest price.)