Revisionism in Genesis remixes?

I read on another thread that with the 2007 remixes of the Genesis discography, some revisionism took place, namely a changed vocal track on Nursery Cryme. Is this true and are there other changes like this?

 

I think, and take this with a tad or two grains of salt, that there was some tweaking of live parts in the box sets. Poor old Tony wasn't quite up to speed so they had to slow the tape down to let him redo some keyboards!

 

What about the studio albums, particularly the Gabriel-era? Do you know of any changes between the original and 2007 versions of those albums, (besides the obvious remix/remaster) such as using alternate takes on vocal tracks or cutting guitar parts etc?

 

Nothing was added or removed. Just remixed. Some argue for the better.

 

Ok, thanks. I will now proceed to purchase Nursery Cryme as planned.

 

Go for the Rhino 1/2 master. It truly beats the 2012 U.K from the Gabriel box set.

 

Thanks for the advice, I'll be sure to shop around, with the different masters being such a hot topic among Genesis fans.

 

Well some like them some dont. I am a HUGE Genesis fan and to me everything turned out great except A Trick Of The Tail, And Then There Were Three and Duke.
The rest from that catalogue definitely improved. Even Trespass and The Lamb from the box sound amazing but when I compared Cryme, Foxtrot and Selling England to the Rhino versions they seemed much more alive and the vinyl much more quiet.
Seems they are reissuing the whole lot again this week or next month but I doubt any significant changes will be made.

 

Incorrect. The 2007 versions did drop and add tracks. For example no guitar on the outro of Misunderstanding. Quite a few instances where alternate takes of an instrument or vocal are used rather than the original.

In general, they made everything loud, increased the drums in the mix, and increased the vocals in the mix. It's as if they wanted every album to sound like Invisible Touch.

Best bet IMO is stick with original vinyl. Except for Trespass and maybe Duke (because it was too long) all of their albums sounded great originally. Plus you get dynamics and no compression.

 

Of course on Archive 1 Gabriel redid the vocals for The Lamb.

 

Are you talking about vinyl or CD reissues that are coming out soon? I haven't seen anything on any Genesis reissues coming out soon.

 

I recall hearing some different vocal tracks in Foxtrot... but where exactly, I don't know. Not a fan of the remixes. They're interesting...but....

 

Yes, you're right about Misunderstanding. Also, there are added guitar parts brought forward on Dancing With The Moonlit Knight. Pitch correction was rectified at the end of Supper's Ready, the climatic brass build on Behind The Lines etc etc.
I call that remixing.
The way the original post was questioned (in my view) was if any instruments were purposely added (re-recorded) to the mix. Hence my answer.
I actually love the remix....just another interpretation in my view but as I said, certain albums got butchered from being overly compressed. The three I mentioned definitely sound like FM radio. The rest are great. Selling England and Foxtrot really sound much better now in my opinion.
Guess it depends.

 

Yes, either this week or they are out already.
Rhino didn't do the Lamb, Trespass, Shapes, Invisible Touch, We Can't Dance and Calling All Stations last time. So, from what I have read it seems they are ALL coming out once again. It was supposed to be end of Sept but its either now or in the next week or so.
Unless they're out already.
I am aiming for the red box in the end.
Not sure why everyone poo pooed on Calling All Stations. Some amazing songs on there.

 

The one change that killed me was the removal of the long fade out at the end of "Seconds Out" where they play "There's No Business Like Show Business" over the PA. I always thought it was a perfect way to close the album and it bugged me that it was taken out; perhaps a rights thing?

 

I think some of the revisionism was accidental. I'd like to see a comprehensive list of missing or added or out-of-sync elements, does that exist anywhere? I can only think of two intentional revisions: pitch-shifting in Supper's Ready and the "megaphone" vocal effect in Pigeons, but there must be others, right?

 

The Canadian version never had that but it was on my old Japanese pressing. The first time I heard it was on my U.K. Three Sides Live so I thought it was exclusive to that album. Then I heard the Japanese Seconds Out. Things you learn.

 

those aren't the remixes or box sets they're referring to

 

I can think of one revision that I don't mind: what sounds suspiciously like a bum note at the end of the intro to Duke's Travels (that's a guitar synth, I presume) is missing on the remix.

 

also not the remixes or box sets they are talking about

 

Maybe it depends on how you feel about compression. The sound quality of Selling England is terrific but the heavy-handed compression kills it for me. It's like every single instrument is at EXACTLY THE SAME MAXIMUM VOLUME and all the dynamics are gone. In my opinion, of course.

 

I could be wrong here... But I got into the group via the 1970-1975, 1976-1982 and 1983-1998 boxes and then later acquired the original CD's. Half of my time as a Genesis fan has been spent listening to the box sets, and the other half of my time as a Genesis fan has been spent with the original CD's which I now go to; those are the ones that sound natural to me. Differences I noticed - and mind you, nothing's official here, this was just by ear so I could be wrong - the last three minutes of Dancing with the Moonlit Knight which is the guitar-based, free form dreamy section seemed to kick in earlier and more audibly on the original CD. The opening vocals of Supper's Ready were different also, as were the fly away you sweet little thing stylings Phil did... Also noticed whistling and aah's on A Trick of the Tail (the song) in the fadeout... Also, Harlequin and Fountain of Salmacis fade into each other on the 1970-1975 box remix but not on the original CD.

 

Back in NYC from the Lamb sounds a lot different from the original version, specifically when Gabriel sings "as I cuddle the porcupine...". Very different, less vocal engineering magic on the 2007 version.

 

These are the sort of revisions that bug me the most, the little things that feel like they really shouldn't be there - particularly the added "aah" on Undertow...

 

Sorry, what I meant was this: The whistling and aah'ing appears on the original LP and CD but not the 2007 remixes. So in a way they didn't add anything, but they removed it - just as bad, I suppose.

Personally a thing I liked about the boxes was the bonus discs, probably there was some tinkering there as well. The included version of It's Yourself includes an extra verse and is just a rich, full production. I've never owned the original vinyl of this but I have heard a needle drop, and this makes this song one of the few I think genuinely sounds better than the original in this 2007-08 remix campaign.