do YOU think the Beatles remastered catalog

[Cory Ander]

Originally Posted by BrunoRepublic

Yes, they will be big sellers. In fact, they already are, and they haven't been released yet. Several major online shops are already sold out of the stereo and particularly mono box sets, and aren't taking any more pre-orders. Plus the video game will be a huge boost too. And it's not like these albums ever stopped selling either.

I'm annoyed that the mono mixes of the albums are only available in the limited-edition box set. Up until the white album, the mono versions are generally far superior to the stereo ones. But I don't care for much of anything the Beatles did before 1966. Really, I just want Revolver, Sgt Pepper, and Magical Mystery Tour in mono...

in what way are mono versions superior to stereo versions? I have both the mono and stereo versions of the Beach Boys' "Pet Sounds" and the mono version sounds flat, while the stereo version is much brighter and more lively, at least to my ears.

[BrunoRepublic]

Originally Posted by Cory Ander

in what way are mono versions superior to stereo versions?

I'm not familiar with Pet Sounds so I couldn't say whether the mono version is a genuine mono mix or merely a fold-down.

To answer your question, it depends on the original song, but generally, the monos are more focused, punchier, better instrument balance, and better editing. A few have effects that are not on the stereo versions (like flanging on some of the vocals on "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds", the "cluck" guitar at the end of "Good Morning, Good Morning").

In the case of the 2-track recordings, the stereo is nearly unlistenable: vocals in one channel, instruments in the other. Painful in headphones. Most of the Beatles other material was done on 4-track, and that's simply not enough to create a convincing stereo spread.

[Disco Funk]

I think Brian Wilson was the person who either mixed Pet Sounds or oversaw it's mixing. From what I understand, he was deaf in one ear, so mono was the only way he could really hear it. I don't know if he had a hand in mixing the stereos or if they left it up to the engineer to do it.

I've heard similar things about the Beatles recordings. In some cases (I think probably from '65 onwards), the guys were there at the time the monos were mixed, but when the stereos were mixed, they didn't hang around and left it up to the engineers.

With that Yellow Submarine Song Track record, they tried to make the mixes more balanced by doing stuff like putting the drums down the middle. But I think certain things were lost in the process. Like on Hey Bulldog, I liked the 'thunk' sound of the bass as the strings were plucked on the original mix, but on the song track, the plucking was gone. All you got was the 'ambient' bass sound. With the exception of With The Beatles and I think the original mix of Rubber Soul and some Help! tracks, I think the instruments are reasonably well balanced for 60s recordings.

I haven't bought Love, but I've heard snippets, and it's just a bunch of samples of beatles tunes layered on top of each other. It's cool, but it's not music the beatles intended to make.

Disco Funk

[Cory Ander]

Originally Posted by kdavid13

It`s hard to predict. But in the last few weeks - I`ve never seen so many Beatles CDs in used record shops.Seems like people are getting rid of their copies in order to buy the new re-mastered versions.

I,myself,have rediscovered the Beatles after buying (and playing to death) the Love CD/DVD. George Martin (and son) did an amazing job on the album.

And I also truly enjoyed Across the universe,too.

The liner notes in the new copies are supposed to be amazing,though.

no one in my area is doing that....funny how people have different buying and selling habits in different areas. Where I live in Northern California, vinyl albums by the Beatles, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath command high prices, often about twice as much as the readily available CD versions of the same titles.

[Disco Funk]

Getting rid of the CDs before having the new ones is a bad idea. Suppose they really mucked it up and the previous release was better? I know that's a stretch, considering those CDs were more than 20 years old, but it could happen. I know with DVDs, sometimes a previous version turns out to have been done better than a later release.

Disco Funk

[BrunoRepublic]

Originally Posted by Disco Funk

Getting rid of the CDs before having the new ones is a bad idea. Suppose they really mucked it up and the previous release was better? I know that's a stretch, considering those CDs were more than 20 years old, but it could happen. I know with DVDs, sometimes a previous version turns out to have been done better than a later release.

Disco Funk

That's definitely good advice.

A lot of "remastered" CDs are worse than the previous ones: crushed dynamics, goosed EQ, heavy NR causing that lifeless sucked-out sound. Many were worried that any "remastered" Beatles discs would suffer these modern maladies, like the 1 compilation did.

However, apparently this was all taken into consideration during the remastering process. The discussions over it (and there is MUCH discussion!!) has revealed that very, very little NR and limiting were used, and there is no limiting at all on the mono box. Certain things which were done wrong the first time around (i.e. mono tapes played back with a stereo head, causing phase problems) were fixed, plus A/D converters are a lot better these days too.

It seems they made a real effort to get everything right this time, because this is probably the last time these recordings will be mastered for CD.

[remicks]

*****


On a somewhat similar note.
We've got some local excitement up the road here a bit in Atascadero :

Long "lost" original Beach Boys session tapes have turned up here !!!

The story of how John came to possess the tapes is murky at best. Apparently “a guy he knew” had them, and not just these three, but perhaps as many as nine reels. John had a friend he went to school with in Torrance who knew a guy who lived near the Wilsons in Hawthorne. Somehow the boxes of tapes traveled from one teenager to another, eventually landing in Lance’s hands. One thing is certain: They weren’t stolen from Capitol Records.

Lance stored the reels all these years, never playing them. They’d be sitting in his closet still if it weren’t for a New Times article I wrote about local author and Beach Boys expert Jon Stebbins, who had written a book about Dennis Wilson. After seeing the story, Lance contacted me and said he had some old Beach Boys tapes and wanted to talk to Stebbins about them. I put the two in contact.
-----

Lance’s tapes were the only multi-track versions in existence of six classic Beach Boys songs. (including DON'T WORRY BABY) If Brother Records, Inc. and Capitol wanted to present a new stereo remix of any of these songs, these tapes were their only chance.

Historically they’re extremely important as well, and their excellent condition, not to mention the wealth of outtake material and fascinating studio chatter, make them a rare look into the very private world of early Beach Boys recording sessions.

Here's the full story:

New Times SLO | Publishing Local News and Entertainment for over 20 years in San Luis Obispo County

*****

[Disco Funk]

I guess in the end, how well they do the CDs will depend on the listener. I would love to get my hands on the mono, but the price is way too steep, plus I don't have Beatles music on heavy rotation. Every so often I'll feel like pulling out a CD, but that hardly happens. I guess I'll just wait for the reviews to make my mind up.

Remicks, that's a pretty cool story. I didn't realize the Beach Boys had missing master tapes. Funny how music was considered disposable back then, literally. I hope the guy got a ton of money for those three tapes. If they were the only copies in existance, then they were invaluable. Capitol stands to make tonnes of money with those, so it stands to reason that the guy should get a good cut. I wonder if he negotiated a percentage of future sales of the songs? Would he even be able to?

I think the Beatles were lucky that all of their master tapes were archived and stored fairly early on. There are 4 songs (5 if you count one of them as two) which don't have the original multi-track masters in existance: Love Me Do (the original version and the re-recording that appeared on the Please Please Me LP), PS I Love You, She Loves You, and I'll Get You. I don't recall if Sie Liebt Dich, which is in stereo, was created from the master tapes of the original She Loves You recording, or if it was a re-recording. The second half of I Am The Walrus was also mono only, but they made it fake stereo for the stereo version. The master tapes exist for the backing track and vocals, but the King Lear radio broadcast that is dubbed into the mix was done live onto the mono mix, if I'm not mistaken.

Disco Funk

[SandraDee]

Originally Posted by BrunoRepublic

But I don't care for much of anything the Beatles did before 1966. Really, I just want Revolver, Sgt Pepper, and Magical Mystery Tour in mono...

I'm just the opposite, I really like their early stuff before they went too hippy-dippy.

[BrunoRepublic]

Originally Posted by Disco Funk

don't recall if Sie Liebt Dich, which is in stereo, was created from the master tapes of the original She Loves You recording, or if it was a re-recording.

It's a re-recording.

Originally Posted by Disco Funk

The second half of I Am The Walrus was also mono only, but they made it fake stereo for the stereo version. The master tapes exist for the backing track and vocals, but the King Lear radio broadcast that is dubbed into the mix was done live onto the mono mix, if I'm not mistaken.

Yup, along with the shortwave radio effects.