The BEATLES "Paperback Writer" ... In mono!

It is pretty raw and distorted for '63. Also, the handclaps are very prominent in the mono---like a vital component of the song, whereas in the stereo they are just kind of an ornament.

 

The stereo image of Paperback Writer on "Oldies! ... but Goldies" and the "Hey Jude" are reversed, i.e. left and right channels are inverted.

The stereo image of "Oldies" and "Revolver" are consistend for Eleanor Rigby, with vocal on the right during verses.

Best regards

 

Who is playing the high electric guitar in the right channel?

I hardly hear any bass guitar.

Best regards

 

George

 

Thanks!
So, John is doing the "muddy" guitar on the left...?

Best regards

 

"Paperback Writer" is easily the Beatles' best mono mix ever - straight in your face Rock, full of attack and power.

The stereo version may as well be a different song. Me suspects McCartney was there at the stereo mixing stage, seeing how prominent his (admittedly) lead bass is on this version, to the detriment of the rest of the instrumentation.

 

I very much like the bass guitar on PW and on Rain.
It must have been a pain in the a** for McCartney to play maybe elaborate bass parts on Beatles singles, but never get heard because of the humble mixes and mastering of their singles.

Best regards

 

The rhythm guitar being pushed back into the background is what's happening in Giles' "1" remix of IWTHYH. On the original stereo mix it's "right there". But overall, yes, the track sounds best, most powerful in mono.

 

I never thought of John's guitar as muddy; it always felt more percussive to me than anything else giving the studio track a uniqueness which was never remotely close to being duplicated live.

 

PW was the one they used a speaker as a mic to record the bass.

 

I don't care if he was or wasn't there, his bass is my favorite thing on PW and Rain, it's brilliant and deserves to be heard. Heck as it is I usually turn up the bass even louder. So I don't think the "admittedly" lead bass was to the detriment of anything. If it's "admittedly lead" then why in the world shouldn't it LEAD? lol Why should some brilliant bass be barely audible in the background simply because "that's how it's supposed to be"? It's not like you can't hear the guitar and the drums clearly even if the bass was given a bit of a kick up. Those instruments get plenty of chances to shine.

Plus I mean given Paul played the guitar too, it's hardly like he was cheating someone else out of anything.

 

George and his old SG bring a lot to song too!

​

 

No Beatle attended the 1966 stereo mix sessions for A Collection Of Oldies.

 

I never said you couldn't hear John's guitar on the older stereo mix---I can hear it fine. It is just panned to the side and loses the force it has in the mono version (that is one of the reason so many Beatle tracks are better in mono---pushing the rhythm section to side often dilutes the energy of the song). I was mainly remarking how prominent the handclaps are in the mono version, how they are right in your face. But the aggressiveness of the track in mono compared to stereo caught me off guard. Growing up hearing the stereo version, I thought of it as a poppy song---in mono, it is much more rock. very different feel entirely.

 

U OK Hun?

 

Ironic bit about it all is that the bootlegged tape is actually stereo but some of the early "Unsurpassed " pressings only used one channel of the stereo tapes in both channels in error making it "mono". Corrected copies were subsequently released, in stereo.

 

o ou

 

I just picked up a mono copy of Buffalo Springfield's first LP and it stopped me in my tracks. I was multi-tasking when I first put it on and I just pushed everything else aside and let that thing wash all over me....fantastic!

 

It's not just the guitar riff that is more powerful in the mono mix, it is that the drum track (probably locked in the same track with the guitar) is also louder in the mix, to the mono mix's benefit.

The downside is that the much-ballyhooed bass guitar is not all that powerful sounding in the mono, but is deeper and fuller in the stereo mix.

Giles had the opportunity with 1+ to fix all this once and for all, and it's better than the original stereo mix but not quite as good as it should be. IMO. As someone else said previously, too much vocal in the new mix.

 

Sorry to go slightly off topic, but since it was already brought up earlier in the thread:

Has the mono mix of "Baby, You're a Rich Man" had a legit CD release anywhere?

 

The Beatles In Mono?

 

I was wondering about that. I don't remember why or how, but I was led to believe that the mono MMT didn't have the same mix as the mono single (the one which is described earlier). But if it does, that would answer my question.

 

Someone led you astray....

 

OK, thanks. And of course, the answer was so easy. A curse on erroneous information!

 

You might have been thinking of the 80's Capitol Starline single that has a short bit at the beginning that sounds like half of the word seven or eleven. Same mix though as others have stated.