Beatles U. S. Boxed Set Question

Yep, and no need to get a SK1 if you have the Japan box!

 

yes I agree...but unfortunately it can be pricey...but damn it's a beautiful thing...and all the mixes are correct.

 

Maybe....because the fan has come to realise that the US tracks are not what the group & George Martin intended. Seeing the true picture.

 

I just found both vol 1 and vol 2 together on eBay for $40 bucks. Should I go for it or are they probably pirated copies?

 

well then they have the UK 2009 stereo and the UK MONO box to see "your true picture theory" ..your statement has nothing to do with the fake/lie US box...there is absolutely no reason for that existing...we were given 2 authentic Capitol original mixes US boxes then that ridiculous box to ERASE the original US mixes at retail forever...no excuses.

 

While it is true that the original tapes weren't used for these, some information.

AHDN: All of the mono mixes are correct here. The stereo version is a brand new version comprised of the 2009 stereo versions (except for "I'll Cry Instead", which is mono) and the original George Martin instrumental stereo tracks. It can be appreciated for what it is given that the original stereo LP did not present the Beatles' songs in true stereo. In other words, it is historically inaccurate, but can still be enjoyed.

Y&T: All of the mono mixes are correct except for "Drive My Car". Also, "Doctor Robert" is faded out early, so John saying "OK, Herb" is not audible. (To some, this matters.) Most of the stereo mixes are wrong, but this is the only CD that contains the American mixes of "Day Tripper" and "We Can Work It Out".

Revolver: All the mixes are correct, but since the 2009 tapes were used for the whole thing, it's no different than ripping the 2009 mono and stereo CDs and then burning them onto one without "I'm Only Sleeping", "And Your Bird Can Sing", and "Doctor Robert". (Personally, I think the stereo tracks on the 2014 CD sound slightly better than the 2009 CD, but most would say there is no difference.)

 

The original US mixes were erased back in 1987 when the albums first came out on CD. It's all to do with money, getting us to buy the product over & over. Just like when Dexter split up all the Uk albums to make more Capitol ones. Just look at the Elvis catalogue, how many times has that been released?

Perhaps Universal could have issued the missing Vol 3 albums in the original US versions & the rest using the 2009 versions. Maybe that would be too confusing. They must have reckoned that a full set of US albums was more profitable than just a 3 or 4 Vol 3 CD.

 

This is not true. The US albums were not discontinued until the late 90's.

 

Yes you are right. All the US versions were last re-issued on the purple Capitol label (except for The Beatles Story & The Early Beatles) in 1998 on vinyl. As far as CD's go, it was to be the UK versions only, from 1987. Until 2004 when the Capitol Vol 1 came out. Capitol/ Universal will put out anything if they think it will sell. You only have to look at all the compilation albums that came out in the 70's, some totally pointless. The info there came from the Bruce Spizer Swan Song book. I had to go through a few of them before I found that info.

 

Shaker Steve said: ↑
I respect your views on the 2014 US Box Set but I have to say that you are totally wrong. What you heard back in the 60's was Dave Dexters Duo Phonic disasters. They were the real fakes, not what The Beatles & George Martin intended at all. Don't forget that Dexter was a middle aged jazz snob that hated pop music & The Beatles in particular & he did his best to ruin the sound.

Per https://www.amazon.com/Beatles-Second-Album-Rock-Ages/dp/1536635014

"The Beatles' Second Album runs only 22 minutes, with just 11 songs - many of which the group didn't write. Despite all that, the album personifies the Beatles: the world's greatest rock'n'roll band, according to well-known rock'n'roll critic and author Dave Marsh. With its overload of rock'n'roll, R&B, and early soul influence, including "Roll Over Beethoven," and "Long Tall Sally", The Beatles' Second Album - the audiobook and the album - offers a great vantage point from which to see the group's enormous impact on pop music and culture. Marsh breaks new ground by focusing on the Beatles' US recordings and how they evolved from British releases at a time when the two nations' approaches to rock'n'roll production were vastly different."

Dave Marsh named The Beatles' Second Album, I believe, as the best rock and roll album ever. And wrote a book on it! Dexter wasn't perfect and yes...Capitol Records had their reservations about the Beatles early on.

But if you're going to quote Dave Marsh...you have to also acknowledge how he praises The Beatles Second Album. And elevates it. The album that Dave Dexter is most known for.

It rocks. The selection of the songs. And yes, the added effects/duophonic effects that took the dry/thin sounding U.K. recording and made them into something much more alive and exciting. Like being in a smoky cavern alive with rock and roll, excited fans, and a feeling of soul and rock and roll. Not a "white" sounding and "proper" U.K. album...

And some of the songs on The Beatles Second Album wouldn't even show up on a U.K. Beatles album until Past Masters!

So, try to see the positive because, like many others, we have heard hundreds of times the negative about Capitol Records, Dave Dexter, and the great American Beatles albums many of us grew up with.

Shaker Steve said: ↑

"I respect your views on the 2014 US Box Set but I have to say that you are totally wrong. What you heard back in the 60's was Dave Dexters Duo Phonic disasters."
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The duophonic "disasters" that were most prominent on The Beatles Second Album. Thanks to Capitol Records, Dave Dexter, and most importantly...The Beatles.

The album Dave Marsh wrote a book about and elevated to its proper place in history as a great Rock and Roll/R&B album.

https://www.amazon.com/Beatles-Second-Album-Rock-Ages/dp/1536635014
​

 

Michael, do you prefer the American Stereo Capitol mixes over the original UK stereo mixes?

 

You can like both the American mixes as well as the U.K. mixes (and remixes in the case of Help! and Rubber Soul). Which results in a diversity of mixes to listen to. And yet still want any product daring to call itself the US albums...with the same tracks, cover, and liner notes as the original Capitol albums...to ALSO have the same American mixes. That's what's so great about Capitol Albums Vol. I and II. (Yes, Vol II now is priced higher than Vol II, particularly the preferred brick version...)

 

You seem to forget the added EQ, duophonics, folddown monos and even folddowns of duophonics. Even when having the true mixes available, like the mono Ticket to Ride.

It's funny how in another thread you bragged about your superiority over other people's "lack of standards" in your own words, and yet here you are, defending lower generation tape and all kinds of unsanctioned manipulation to the original music.

 

LOL...very funny,

 

That's because that's how the US abums were originally released and remained for 30 years, duh.

If the Capitol box sets had been folded in, badly re-equalized, noise reduced and cleaned of anomolies, and then sold to suckers in hi-res for top price, then you would have a valid comparison.

But thanks for playing.

 

So, according to you, all kinds of atrocities can be made to music without the artists' consent as long as they were made many years ago. Vintage atrocities and manipulation are acceptable for you.

Thanks for clearing up your "standards". Now I'm glad I lack those.

 

Oh please. I could turn it around and say the same thing about you. You're staunchly defending crappy, heavily manipulated hi-res remasters that commit almost every audiophile sin, while at the same time crapping all over the original Capitol albums from 1963 for supposedly committing the same sins.

But since we're actually talking about digital remasters from 2009 and not the original releases, your comparison is invalid.

 

That's not true. I don't defend the narrowing of stereo in the remastered AHDN, I just said I find it slight and not annoying. That doesn't mean I agree with that decision. I don't.
Another difference is I don't insult people who like "dexterization", duophonics and the rest. I don't like it and explain why, but I would never talk about "lack of standards" of other people. You were arrogant and now that arrogance is biting back at you.

Except you were not talking about digital remasters, you were defending Dexter because he "only" added reverb to one album:

But of course, you conveniently "forgot" the re-EQ, duophonics, folddowns, folddowns of duophonic ("no different from the UK version", huh?), and... oh yes... narrowing of the stereo image in the Second Album. Now your standards have suddenly disappeared for that, what do you know...

 

So, having eerything else, I can conclude that I would only want one thing from the American box, and that is Y&T...and that, just for the removable sticker!





... Umm, and Hey Jude...maybe?

 

It amsuses me that people like you spout hyperbole about the Capitol albums and then will defend the horrible 2009 remasters in the same breath.

See how you can turn that around?

 

Is it documented anywhere which tracks on the U.S. albums were, how do I phrase this, at least the same tape generation as their UK equivalents? Mark Lewisohn probably covered this in his books, but has it ever been compiled into a simple list?

 

You'd still be missing the "Hey Jude" & "Beatles Story" CDs on top of those 3 you mentioned. Might be cheaper to buy the US set and replace the 8 Capitol CDs into the set.

 

Well, "cheaper" if you hadn't already purchased the two Capitol boxes, eh? Add those to the tally...

 

I have both Capitol boxes and all of the Capitol records from the sixties. I love 'em and I DO feel that they are the only authentic way to hear those albums. But I have to say that my stance on the 2014 US Albums release has softened. I had decided before the box came out that I would not be purchasing, but when the price got to a pretty low level ($89 for a new, sealed set from a reputable dealer) that I would go ahead and get it. Obviously from a quality of production point of view it is a top notch set. Plus it has the monos! Does the set sound great?? Yes! Is it an authentic experience?? No! And granted, some songs like "Thank You Girl" are an outright abomination, but many, if not most, are pretty close.

When I'm wanting to hear the real thing, I've got it. With the 2014 box, I just wish they had marketed it for what it is. The UK releases presented in US artwork and running order. Nothing more, nothing less. Maybe if they had done that it wouldn't have created such an uproar.

BUT I STILL WANT A CAPITOL BOX THREE!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

How many times are you going to tell everybody how much you hate the US albums set? I think you made your point. It's okay to move on, you know.