Dusty Springfield Dusty in Memphis Review: Rhino High Fidelity Gives the Soul Classic New Life

Rhino Entertainment has been busy digging down into its archives of the legendary Atlantic Records label, restoring many classic recordings to their audiophile best via its Rhino High Fidelity premium reissue series. Just out is a wonderful upgrade of Dusty Springfield’s iconic 1969 album, Dusty in Memphis.

Dusty in Memphis is widely regarded as one of the greatest recordings in pop music history. A stroke of production genius, the decision to bring the acclaimed British pop singer to Memphis for a recording session that blended her pop prowess with American Southern soul resulted in a timeless album that has since been inducted into both the GRAMMY Hall of Fame and the National Recording Registry.

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Official materials from Rhino confirm that the new reissue was “cut from the original master tapes by Kevin Gray and pressed on 180-gram black vinyl at Optimal in Germany. These releases feature glossy gatefold packaging with ‘tip-on’ jackets and newly written liner notes. They are limited to 5,000 individually numbered copies and available today exclusively at Rhino.com and select Warner Music Group stores internationally.”

Dusty in Memphis is available from Rhino’s website for $39.98.

Surprisingly, Dusty in Memphis did not sell particularly well upon its initial release, stalling at No. 99 on the Billboard 200, despite containing Dusty’s spectacular version of “Son of a Preacher Man,” which was a Top 10 hit single in both the U.S. and U.K. at the time.   

Those who did buy the Dusty in Memphis LP back in the day tended to love it, so it can be hard to find original editions in good condition. I know this because it has taken me ages to find one out in the “wilds” of collecting—garage sales, thrift shops, and flea markets!

For those who are not the crate-digging type, obtaining a nice copy on the collectors’ marketplace can be a challenge, at least for the wallet. For example, the five “Near Mint” copies listed on the online music marketplace Discogs at the time of this writing range in price from $45 to $175. So there is some real appeal to a high-quality reissue.

That said, after a reference listen to my 1969-era “Monarch” pressing—considered by many collectors and audiophiles to be among the best-made vinyl records of its day—I found the listening experience offered by the new Rhino High Fidelity edition to be far superior. It sounds more open and far less compressed, offering a wider soundstage, crisp highs, and fuller, more distinct lows.

Most importantly, it sounds the way Dusty in Memphis should sound, which is the bottom line for many fans. At times, it feels as though we are hearing more of that master recording for the first time.

Again, you can order Dusty in Memphis directly from Rhino for $39.98. It’s a limited run, so get one while you can.

Our Ratings

★★★★★★★★★★ Music

★★★★★★★★★★ Sound Quality

★★★★★★★★★★ Pressing Quality

Where to buy:

Mark Smotroff is a deep music enthusiast / collector who has also worked in entertainment oriented marketing communications for decades supporting the likes of DTS, Sega and many others. He reviews vinyl for Analog Planet and has written for Audiophile Review, Sound+Vision, Mix, EQ, etc.  You can learn more about him a LinkedIn.

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