Beach Boys vinyl reissues thread.*

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by dvakman, Dec 30, 2014.

  1. Wade Burrow

    Wade Burrow Bound to get lucky

    Location:
    Austin, TX
    The Sound Quality of Beach Boys Party is excellent. It really is a good listen after hearing the other 3 records. Changes gears in a good way I think, hearing The Boys in a more relaxed production gives them a more edgy sound and allows some of their personalities to come through. If you don't own this record or own a good sounding version don't pass this one over.
     
  2. Wade Burrow

    Wade Burrow Bound to get lucky

    Location:
    Austin, TX
    Wow, there is some serious low end on Pet Sounds. The low end is big, punchy and well defined. The Vocals and other mid-range instruments are not as clear/detailed as I would have hoped. The instrumentation of this album is a bit pummeled by the production quality but the genius of the song structures, melodies are on full display and still a pleasure to listen to. The vocal harmonies are still too Warm/Distorted to my ears in places and prevent the full harmonies from being heard. I have a feeling some of the digital stereo mixes may out do the Analog Mono Mixes as far as SQ and lifting the veil on some of Brian's amazing work on this album and the others getting the Stereo treatment on Vinyl for the 1st time. Well, with Beach Boys Party as the exception maybe, that one sounds just fine the way it is. Well, maybe take out the banter/chit chat, but it wouldn't be a Party anymore I guess.
     
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  3. Dr. Psych

    Dr. Psych Member

    Location:
    USA
    How do the early albums' tracks that are on the DCC Endless Summer compare? Or is it apples and oranges?
     
  4. Al Smith

    Al Smith Forum Resident

    All mono releases of the 'All Summer Long' album have had these aforementioned issues regarding "Drive In" and "Dont Back Down". They've always sounded like that, unfortunately. Something went screwy back in '64.[/QUOTE]

    My speculation re Don't Back is it was something to do with the preparation of the "Four by The Beach Boys" EP, ie the track from the original master got split out to a comp reel and replaced with 2 gen dubs - this spec, of course, goes clunk for "Drive-In" which isn't on said EP. Maybe the tape got chewed and replaced with a fold down via the stereo master
     
  5. I was afraid of that... I just might have to buy the stereo versions now too...
     
  6. Drive-In is def. not a fold down in the mono mix - it is actually missing the double-tracked lead vocal from the stereo mix- I prefer the stereo mix for this one and Don't Back Down by a wide margin.
     
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  7. hishou

    hishou Forum Resident

    Location:
    Berlin, Germany
    I completely agree regarding the warm/distorted harmonies comment. I first heard Pet sounds in Mono from the Mono/Stereo release from a few years ago, and it was a painful listening. Then i got ahold of the AF and listened to the DCC, which are somehow better, but still not the most pleasant. But the MOFI in stereo was a wonderful revelation. This is why i'm torn between getting the mono or the stereo vinyl... and I'm usually a mono guy and really don't mind muddy mixes.

    Thanks guys for your comments, been waiting for these titles for way too long, it's great to have some feedback. Now i might have to consider the Stereo releases for Pet Sounds and Summer Days...
     
  8. Wade Burrow

    Wade Burrow Bound to get lucky

    Location:
    Austin, TX
    My sense is that the Mono is going to have more low end grunt/drive which was fun to listen to for me. Some of the highs actually had some depth and air, i.e. the Sleigh Bells and Chimes come to mind. If the new stereo has the same powerful low end and clears up the mids it could be the holy grail of Pet Sounds cuts.
     
  9. chacha

    chacha Forum Resident In Memoriam

    Location:
    mill valley CA USA
    When does the stereo come out?
     
  10. Dr. Psych

    Dr. Psych Member

    Location:
    USA
    Sometime in December I believe.

    Again, has anyone done any comparison between the new issues and the DCC Endless Summer and DCC Spirit of America?
     
  11. GetHappy!!

    GetHappy!! Forum Resident

    Location:
    NYC
    "Don't Back Down" is noticeably bad. In fact, the only instance where the mono track sounds good is on the Good Vibrations box. Something tells me that was a covert remix done for that collection, although Linett has never stated so.
     
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  12. Wade Burrow

    Wade Burrow Bound to get lucky

    Location:
    Austin, TX
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  13. john beacham

    john beacham Forum Resident

    I know I'm probably in the minority here, but I don't think the Capitol 'From the Vault Series' PET SOUNDS vinyl re-issue sounds all that bad. In fact I listened to it yesterday, because I'm probably going to get the new one as well. In particular 'I Know There's an Answer' has a well defined bass, a nice 'space' around the vocals, and is overall pleasing to listen to. All of Side 2 is excellent IMO. I've never had a problem listening to this record. Some of the tracks on side 1 seem a bit muddy, but this IS a 1966 recording. Even on their his best day, Brian couldn't match George Martin's touch in the studio, so I don't expect the Beach Boys records to sound as good as the Beatles mono re-issues. Still, PET SOUNDS is an essential record, that I revisit frequently, and it always puts me in Brian Wilson unique world.

    My question to all you discerning listeners, is the new mono re-issue THAT much better than the Capitol Vaults records? and worth getting in addition to the stereo? Is it going to blow my mind?
     
  14. Tommyboy

    Tommyboy Senior Member

    Location:
    New York
    I picked up the Good Vibrations box a few weeks ago and noticed the same thing about Don't Back Down. It sounded fine.
     
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  15. EdogawaRampo

    EdogawaRampo Senior Member

    In past threads SH has said the reason for that muffly, phasy sound on the mono mixes of Drive-In and Don't Back Down was the result of a mono tape being played on a misaligned stereo tape head.

    I have waited for what, decades for that to be fixed. Especially for the definitive mono mix of Don't Back Down. It has that wonderful BW falsetto outro that was faded out waaaayyyyy too early in the stereo mix, but you get the full track on the mono.

    It sounds pretty good on the Good Vibrations box and it sounds like it was fixed on the Japan Toshiba Capitol mono/stereo CD I bought a year or two ago, but you just can't win. On the CD there's a digital flaw akin to a vinyl jump. Just a split second, but it ruins it.
     
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  16. dvakman

    dvakman stalking the dread moray eel Thread Starter

    Location:
    New Orleans
    I'm personally less interested in comparisons between Brian's Pet Sounds mono mix and the more recent stereo remixes... that ground has been well tread.

    I would, however, be very interested to hear how the AP mono Pet Sounds compares to old mono favorites like the Brother reissues or the Capitol green label. I held off on ordering Pet Sounds in the new batch but am very interested in what y'all think...
     
  17. Stone Turntable

    Stone Turntable Independent Head

    Location:
    New Mexico USA
    As a fairly undiscerning listener, I’ll answer! The new mono vinyl arrived yesterday and I finally had a chance to run it through the RCM and listen during the wee hours last night.

    It certainly blew my mind. I’ve never heard a halfway decent mono pressing of this album, and my main point of reference has been the 1999 limited edition Capitol stereo version, drawn from the Pet Sounds box (which I've also heard) — the first-ever stereo vinyl Pet Sounds. (Presumably the later “From the Vaults” version is pretty much the same mastering.)

    I love that stereo LP to the degree that I never felt compelled to buy the MoFi, and its sweetness made me skeptical of the claims for the canonical superiority of the mono version. But for me this new Analogue Productions mono Pet Sounds is almost a religious experience. Early on in Side 1 I was a bit worried about the bass being a bit too flubbery and overbearing, but once I adjusted to the weight of the mix it all sounded well-balanced and extremely holographic. The strings, the percussion, the acoustic and electric guitars, the carnivalesque instrumentation, and all the other layers of detail come through with a beautiful musicality that enhances the whole teenage symphony vision and emotion.

    I’ve got to do some more listening and A/B-ing the stereo and mono LPs; meanwhile, my first impression of this release (pre-ordered 49 weeks ago!) is massively positive. It’s been maddening to me that I haven’t been able to hear Pet Sounds in glorious mint mono vinyl unless I was willing to track down a rare original, or that weird Carl and the Passions two-fer, or a pricey out-of-print Hoffman DCC or AF LP. Kevin Gray did a great job on this. Analog or no analog source, this Pet Sounds (along wiith the AP mono and stereo Surfer Girls, the only other albums from this reissue series that I’ve heard so far) is an achievement on par with the 2014 Beatles mono vinyl box.
     
    Last edited: Nov 28, 2015
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  18. EdogawaRampo

    EdogawaRampo Senior Member

    First album I ever bought. Like it every bit as much now as I did when I first heard it more than 45 years ago.
     
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  19. Tommyboy

    Tommyboy Senior Member

    Location:
    New York
    It took me several attempts over the years to get the Beach Boys. I was always a fan of Pet Sounds and some of their hit singles like Help Me Rhonda, but was never crazy about much else. Now, I listen to them regularly. I can't get enough!
     
  20. Tommyboy

    Tommyboy Senior Member

    Location:
    New York
    I finished listening to Summer Days... I think Wade Burrow is spot on with his review. Very pleasant sounding and the bass on Cailfornia Girls really kicks. The worst sounding track on the LP is Help Me Rhonda, which is no surprise. I could very well be wrong, but this could be a dupe.

    It would be nice if others could weigh in.
     
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  21. chacha

    chacha Forum Resident In Memoriam

    Location:
    mill valley CA USA
    It's such a shame that many of the hits seem to be in such bad shape.
     
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  22. EdogawaRampo

    EdogawaRampo Senior Member

    I 'got' The Beach Boys, or more specifically BW from the instant I heard him, from the instant I Get Around starts in. Surrounded by the darkness of a dysfunctional family and all the super depressing hard rock ca. 1971 that people seemed to be listening to, when I dug out All Summer Long from a the abandoned record collection of a friend's sister, I felt like I found a magic window into a lost world -- I world I wished I could have lived in.

    Bear in mind that in 1970, the sounds of 1964 pop and rock sounded impossibly old and outdated, as if they really did come from another, distant and happier world.
     
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  23. Tommyboy

    Tommyboy Senior Member

    Location:
    New York
    Could some be residing on other reels?
     
  24. Wade Burrow

    Wade Burrow Bound to get lucky

    Location:
    Austin, TX
    Yeah, a good portion of the hits just sound "softer" than the rest of the tracks on the Mono Cuts. The Stereo Cuts on the first 5 don't seem to have this issue. I'm far from an expert on how Capital sliced and diced the masters but my ears tell me there are likely better versions of those songs spliced to other tapes. I will say that the Stereo Releases seem less affected. The Stereo version of Surfer Girl in my Opinion is the Star of the lot.
     
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  25. EdogawaRampo

    EdogawaRampo Senior Member

    I think that may have been the star of the lot from day one in 1963 along with the 'new' tracks placed on Little Deuce Coupe. For whatever reason, the voices in the stereo mix come out so rich sounding, so pleasing, I don't think it's ever been matched, except perhaps with the intro and outro to the stereo mix of In The Parking Lot. Far be it for me to know why that is.
     
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