Yes, we have had lots of threads on this album. There was a thread where we choose our formaty for each Beatles album where they were released in both formats. Just wanted to focus on this lp and the stereo/mono mixes of the songs from the film and the second side of 1967 singles...with your comments and preferences. I seem to be going to the mono mix more than the stereo. One song (which we have also had threads about is Bluie Jay Way... According to this website: http://www.columbia.edu/~brennan/beatles/var-1967.html I and others here don't seem to hear it at all (or maybe I am missing something). However, I still prefer the mono mix despite this. Does it appear the mono has more phasing than the stereo? Or maybe the mono mix brings it out more (?) Also, the cello and organ lower in the mix seems to better present the foglike atmosphere...comments?
A few days ago I listened to the mono cd from the EP collection. I`ve only been playing the mono lately it seems.
I had a wee bit of trouble reading that button...could you enlarge that just a tad? Thanks for chiming in !
From the "Magical Mystery Tour" EP thread: Magical Mystery Tour (stereo) Your Mother Should Know (mono) I Am the Walrus (stereo) The Fool on the Hill (stereo) Flying (stereo) Blue Jay Way (mono) I haven't listened to he mono remasters in two years and don't rememer the mono mixes for side two. My '87 CD is stereo, so stereo it is.
I'm a stereo guy through and through. When I play the EP I choose Mono to mix it up, the LP is always the Stereo version.
This thread you may find useful: http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?t=260666&highlight=
It's interesting some of you guys prefer "I Am the Walrus" in stereo. For me this was the number one track that got me into the mono, because I couldn't stand that duophonic (fake stereo) in the latter half of the track. Uggghhh!
The mono 45rpm Parlophone EP rocks the most, even if it's not the most convenient format to listen to. In my mind, it's the way MMT was meant to be heard.
"DuoPhonic" was a Capitol Records process. The latter half of "Walrus" ain't "DuoPhonic". I prefer the stereo versions. I've got the original Brit. stereo and mono EP sets, U.S. LP's and all the CD versions.
It's on a song-by-song basis for me. I do prefer the stereo "Penny Lane" in particular. I grew up on the stereo (my brothers had a stereo as a kid and I inherited it along with their vinyl when they were drafted) with the exception of "Something New" and "Sgt. Pepper" (although I DID spent more time with the stereo for that title). The Duophonic stuff on the original "MMT" US album I could do without though and prefer the mono for those tracks. Once I heard the German stereo it was like the gates of heaven had opened! (OK that might be hyperbole).
I wasn't using the term duophonic to relate this to Capitol records. I know they didn't have anything to do with. "I Am the Walrus" was fake stereo à la EMI. I know Capitol liked to promote duophonic as something they invented ("after 5 years of experimentation", as the publicity blurb goes), but in the end it wasn't anything special, just a form of fake stereo as RCA had done before them and others after that. So I think I can take the liberty of using "duophonic" as a catch-all term for fake stereo if I feel the artistic need of varying the terms a little bit. But I understand now that using it here can confuse things, because the original MMT on Capitol had some duophonic tracks. Sorry for that. But back to topic, for me the stereo "I Am the Walrus" is botched. Technically speaking, only half of it is stereo. I never liked that. I really only started enjoying the song when I discovered the mono box and have been sticking to that version ever since.
For some reason that annoys me on every mono CD I have (2009, EP, unofficial), but it doesn't annoy me on my US mono LP.
The great thing is we don't have to choose. We have both. For me, like a lot of the second half albums of the Beatles career, it's song by song. I prefer: Magical Mystery Tour - stereo Fool on the Hill - stereo Flying - either Blue Jay Way - either Your Mother Should Know - mono, when I'm in the mood for the weird phasing. Plus the way the vocal moves around on the stereo is odd I Am The Walrus - mono (although remix on Love beats all) Hello Goodbye - stereo Strawberry Fields - stereo Penny Lane - stereo Baby You're a Rich Man - either; almost prefer the mono mix because of longer fadeout All You Need Is Love - mono