The US mixes
 |
| The new american boxed set will be released on January 20th around the world and the 21st in USA. Photo: © 2013 Apple Corps Ltd. |
Seems they kept the unique US mixes but substituted other tracks, including the duophonic stereo by the new stereo remasters.
It appears that the new US Albums will contain a mishmash of mixes, most from the recently issued UK remasters (2009), but the unique US mixes found on some songs will also have been used.
Example: The US mono version of “I’m Only Sleeping” has the backwards guitar licks in other places than on the UK mix, thus it will be preserved on the new release.
However, where Capitol created their fake-stereo aka “duophonic”, these will be replaced with their true stereo counterparts, taken from the 2009 UK remasters. This will also apply to their reverb-drenched versions “made for American listeners”.
Example: The US stereo version of “I Feel Fine” was created from a mono master tape and fake “duophonic” stereo applied. On the new release, it is likely to be replaced with the true UK stereo remaster.
 |
| Looks like you can peel back the trunk cover on “Yesterday and Today” by yourself. |
Perhaps they read my initial thoughts regarding the “butcher” cover when I first announced this new release back in November?
 |
| From the booklet. This is a still photo from the ad for the boxed set. |
Of course, this revisionism has been subject to criticism from the American fans already. The albums will no longer sound like they used to. It all boils down to that you should probably keep your Capitol Albums boxed sets.
Further reading about anomalies and mixing variations:
So what's She Loves You gonna sound like on the stereo version? Anyone have a clue?
If you get this in your country, here's how it used to sound like. On the new release, it's likely to be in mono only.
As is often the case with Beatles reissues, this box set will probably upset as many as it pleases.
I loved hearing those US mixes – I wasn't aware that they differed from the UK releases. Also the peelable Butcher Cover is a great touch.
I think it's annoying that the fake stereo tracks are gonna be either the UK stereo or plain mono…that's so stupid! And it's annoying how the Mono mixes are played first on all the CD's. I'd rather listen to stereo
If you really want to hear them the way "they used to sound," bust out with the LPs. Any self-respecting Beat-ard still has their classic LPs in (relatively) good condition, and a functioning turntable set up. It'll still be a fun box to have! ("Hey Jude" album on CD? 8-year old me is thrilled!!)
If your a Beatles mix fan you already have these mixes on CD, LP or MP3. Unless your a completest these new LP's are overkill.
How about they remix the ENTIRE Beatles catalog and release that. At least it's something different and new. Just having 1999 Yellow Submarine is such a tease.
On "The Capitol Albums Vol. 1", "Beatles '65" definitely contained the reverb versions of "I Feel Fine" and "She's A Woman" in mono and duophonic. I think it's especially important to preserve the mono reverb mixes of these two songs (whether you like them or not) because that's also how Capitol released them on the single, thus these WERE the authentic hit versions of these tracks in North America when originally issued in 1964. Even the original "1962-1966" album from 1973 contained the reverb mix of "I Feel Fine" in North America! The "clean" mixes of these two tracks weren't even issued here until "Past Masters Volume One" was released in 1988, in stereo of course.
I suggested a removable sticker of the trunk photo on Yesterday and Today back when you wrote your initial article…maybe they read my comment.
Look for your credit on the cover, Caveman! 🙂
After reading this post, I guess I'm puzzled. On the one hand, we're told that they did not use the original Capitol masters to produce this box set. But we're also told that they're adhering to the unique Capitol mixes, except in the case of duophonic or "fake stereo."
I'm not an audiophile, so bear with me. How can you reproduce the original Capitol mixes without going to the original Capitol masters? Can someone explain?
I would have thought that the whole point of the box set was to reproduce the sound that American fans heard in the '60s — even if that sound was not precisely what the Beatles intended.
I'm a first generation fan and an American, so I'm biased on this whole subject. But until the 2009 remasters of the British catalog, the Capitol Albums Vols. 1 and 2 were by far superior to the original 1987 CD releases. I don't know who remastered the Capitol albums, but whoever did managed to capture the warmth of vinyl on CD in a way I've seldom encountered.
For all the complaints about what Capitol did to the Beatles' albums in those days, the company did a lot of good. "Meet the Beatles!" is flat-out one of the great rock albums ever recorded — and probably better than its British counterpart. "The Beatles Second Album," awash in reverb, is still a great record. The American version of "Rubber Soul" is a different listening experience — a homage to folk-rock. "Yesterday….and Today," a helluva record, too, a sort of bridge between "Rubber Soul" and "Revolver."
But if this box set is, by and large, simply resequencing the 2009 remasters for the American albums, what's the point? I've already got the Beatles In Mono and the other stereo CDs to round out the catalog. Why should I shell out $150 to buy this new box set?
I think they WILL use the US mixes, from the original US master tapes, but ONLY on a few songs. Most will be the UK remasters, but for the few tracks that have unique edits, they will bring out the old US masters (or use the "Capitol Years" versions).
Re. I Feel Fine/She's a Woman: According to Doug Sulpy, who again quotes Lewisohn, the US mono versions of these songs (single + Beatles '65) were actually distinct mixes supplied by George Martin/EMI – reverb included.
These reverb-laden mixes were then given the "duophonic" treatment for the U.S. stereo album, creating a genuine abomination…
The thing is, why should people pay a lot of money for something promised to be authentic, when it isn't the real deal as it used to be in the 60's? I'm from Germany and even we had some very special Beatles releases, that were unique to our country in the 60's and that I would greatly love to see reproduced in their original form on CD. I'll give you three examples: 1. "The Beatles Beat" – a compilation LP that has some of the early single A & B -Sides in their original stereo mixes (e.g.a reverberated "Thank You Girl" with harmornica inserts) and some of the great "duophonic" mixes from the US like "You Can't Do That". 2. The german version of "Something New" that contains a "mock-stereo" version of the german song "Komm, gib' mir deine Hand" opposed to the true stereo version on it's US-counterpart and the unedited version of "And I Love Her" with a six bar ending instead of the usual four. 3. "The Beatles' Greatest" – another unique Germany only collection from 1965, containing those fantastic reverberated duophonic versions of "I Feel Fine" (with even more reverb than the US-version from "Beatles'65" which was also released in Germany) "She Loves You", "Long Tall Sally" (from the US-"Second Album") and "Ticket To Ride" in true Stereo, something that wasn't the case on the US-version of the "HELP!" soundtrack in 1965. Why don't the companies give the fans what they want? EMI was very often not satisfying and unlogical when it came to re-packageing, compiling, remastering and re-releasing new or old Beatles albums, so a lot of bootleggers made a lot of money for fulfilling the demands of the Beatles' main customers which grew up with their product and passed it on in this way to at least three other generations of fans. Why does Universal Music do the same mistake again? You can't modernise something in this way that is already a part of (not only but also) musical history in it's own way and that should not be touched and tempered with besides from little technical improofments of it's original content (e.g. digital remastering!)! I'm also an avid collector and a big fan of the US-LPs and want all of them in their original form on CD, otherwise it it not be worth the money or it's historical content! 🙁
Hello Roger,
I know it was I who requested such a peelable album cover for Y&T way back when I returned my Capitol series discs for the correct mixes. lol So I expect my credits to be spelled correctly. 😉
Anyway, I find it odd they would skip past using the original Capitol masters which sounded so good with Volumes 1 & 2 that they stepped up the effort to remaster the UK catalog. By trying to re-create something like the echo on the albums using better source material, you are actually creating yet ANOTHER mix to chase down over time! So wouldn't it make more sense to just use what exists? I think so anyway. Instead they keep creating mixes.
Oh and the Yesterday & Today sticker is that, an optional sticker you may choose to place on your sleeve. I'll be buying a couple separately CDs just for fun with the butcher! lol
I'm curious about the packaging. That box looks a hell of a lot like the Mono Box set.
It makes me wonder if the album jackets are the same size as the mono albums jackets and not just the Capitol albums put in a new box.
What a hoax, I just listened to the US albums on iTunes, most of the tracks are the UK rematered mixes, The heavily distorted She's A Woman is not there, also fake stereo mixes on A Hard Day's Night is the UK real stereo mixes…….
Just as we thought, isn't it?