Beatles MONO boxed set

I posted this a few weeks ago on my old blog, but here 'tis with updates!

9/9/09 finally brought reissues of The Beatles' entire catalog on CD. And most of you know that they are being released in stereo, too, as you'd expect. But the mono versions (i.e. "one speaker") are the ones to get. The Beatles assumed most pop listeners only had a mono turntable. AM radio was king, and it was in mono. TV was in mono. And (I'm surprised no other "reporter" has mentioned this) ABBEY ROAD STUDIOS WAS "IN MONO." Geoff Emerick (engineer on almost every Beatles session from 1966 forward) has said he was only allowed to monitor recording sessions through one speaker. EMI management apparently didn't want to "waste" two speakers on mere "pop" recordings, saving the wear and tear for classical recordings, or the necessary evil of stereo mixdowns.

The Beatles themselves rarely attended mixdown sessions until the Sgt. Pepper era, and then it was only the mono mix sessions. The stereo mixes were prepared much later by George Martin and an engineer, often accidentally leaving out important bits (or leaving in extraneous material) compared to the mono mix. In fairness to Martin and Emerick (who were integral to the Beatles' success), the stereo versions are more refined when it comes to editing, clarity, etc. The Beatles' perceived sound "balance" is the key in the mono mixes.

Every Beatles album was mixed and released in BOTH mono and stereo in the US and England through 1967's Magical Mystery Tour. After that, albums were all stereo in the U.S. (England/Europe did get a mono White Album, the majority of which was mixed by John and Paul in one marathon session. And again, the stereo mixes were done at another time by an engineer). In January, 1969, the Yellow Submarine soundtrack was released in England in mono, but it was merely a "fold down" of the stereo mix (i.e. like hitting the "mono" switch on your hi-fi). Unique and separate mono mixes HAD been prepared, though, and they are being released (for the first time) in the mono box.

Just as I did when the original CDs came out, I spent my first evening skipping around the Beatles' new mono boxed set. With a vast knowledge of not only the Beatles, but also recording technology and music theory, I am happy to share some observations/highlights with you...

REVOLVER-the whole layer of "grit" that seemed to be on the album is gone. I think it came from doing so many effects and sub-mixdowns to free up tracks, and they were new at it, and they had a new engineer (Geoff Emerick), so that's why it'll never have fidelity as high as Sgt. Pepper.

-Taxman-MORE COWBELL!

-Got to Get You Into My Life-punchier; fade out is different

-I'm Only Sleeping-more backwards guitars

-Tomorrow Never Knows-the guitar solo is differently mixed; tape loops not as prominent


SGT. PEPPER-cleaner sound

-She's Leaving Home-faster

-Good Morning-chicken cluck at the end is much less refined. Also, I noticed that John's pronunciation of "ruined" is the same as Stewie's on Family Guy.

-Sgt. Pepper (reprise)-mix is much less refined

-Within You Without You-seems "brighter"; laughing at the end is much more prominent


MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR

-Magical Mystery Tour-slightly different sound effects

-Your Mother Should Know-echo sounds slightly different

-I Am the Walrus-QUITE different... effects are timed differently, verse intros, etc., have extra beats in places, echo is different

-Baby You're a Rich Man-punchier


WHITE ALBUM-quite different. At first, it will sound more "closed in" than the stereo (i.e. a tad more muffled), but I consider it "cozier"

-Back In the USSR-different effects

-Don't Pass Me By-faster, different ending

-Helter Skelter- VERY different. More effects and totally different ending (no "Blisters," alas)

-Savoy Truffle-last 60 seconds are quite different. More extraneous noise in the track. Different guitar punch-ins/solos.

-Yer Blues-vocal echo is different

-Long Long Long-vocal echo is different

-Good Night-MUCH more prominent strings at the beginning



MONO MASTERS-a compilation of singles tracks, etc. not on any official album (essentially the "Past Masters" disks)

-Paperback Writer-this is the ORIGINAL mono 45 mix, which has vastly different and more jarring echo coming out of the chorus (reminds me of the Monkees' "Pleasant Valley Sunday")



Additionally, despite the release of the mono and stereo boxed sets, the recent "Capitol Albums" boxes, and the original 1987 CDs, there are STILL Beatles mixes (and recordings) out there that are currently unavailable through legitimate means. None are really mind-blowing, but if you found a garage sale flyer designed by Picasso, wouldn't you at least want to tell people about it?!

-"All My Loving": a rare German compilation, "Beatles Greatest," features a hi-hat intro to this song

-"And I Love Her": alternate German version with six-bar ending, available on the 1980 LP, "Rarities"

-"I Feel Fine": version on the British "1962-66" album has strange "whispering" in the intro

-"Help!": mono single mix with different vocals than LP, available on the 1980 LP, "Rarities"

-Live at the Hollywood Bowl (1977): An LP of songs from shows at the venue in 1964 and 1965.

-rare mixes of "Day Tripper" and "We Can Work It Out" are on the U.S. "Yesterday and Today" album

-early mixes of "I'm Only Sleeping," "Doctor Robert" and "And Your Bird Can Sing" appear on the US "Yesterday and Today" album

-"Penny Lane": U.S. promotional 45 has mono version with extra piccolo trumpet solo on the end

-"Tomorrow Never Knows": VERY early British mono pressings of Revolver feature an alternate mix of this song. These pressings were apparently deleted after the first day and replaced with the "common" mix (on the Mono boxed set). The matrix number (in the runout groove of side 2) on this pressing is XEX 606-2.

-"A Day In The Life": version with "clean" opening (no applause leftover from "Sgt. Pepper (Reprise)") is on "The Beatles 1967-1970"

-"I Am the Walrus": stereo version compiled from various mixes features six-bar intro and extra beats before the "Yellow matter custard" verse; available on the 1980 LP, "Rarities"

-The Beatles' Christmas Album (1970): All 7 of the group's annual Christmas messages, compiled on one LP and sent to fan club members in 1970.

-This doesn't even take into account bootlegs (alternate takes of familiar songs), video soundtracks (the Shea stadium concert; the 1968 documentary "Music!"), BBC recordings (many of which remain unissued), songs "missing" from the vaults (such as the slow version of "Please Please Me" and Paul's "Et Cetera"), unissued songs ("Carnival of Light" and the long version of "Helter Skelter"), the whole 1962 Decca audition tape, the complete 1968 Kinfauns demos for "The White Album," the entire 1969 "Get Back"/"Let It Be" Sessions, concerts that are known to have been recorded in some form (Budokan, Candlestick Park, Sam Houston Coliseum, Cleveland), the "Let It Be" film, their Saturday Morning cartoon series, etc....