POLL:The Beatles ‎– Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - which LP do you prefer?

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by bherbert, Jun 3, 2018.

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  1. Psychedelic Good Trip

    Psychedelic Good Trip Beautiful Psychedelic Colors Everywhere

    Location:
    New York
    I've posted this interview on other Pepper threads.


     
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  2. bherbert

    bherbert Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    South Africa
    It doesn’t matter which mix I listen to when With A Little Help From My Friends starts playing. I still get goosebumps when Ringo starts singing :)
     
  3. Gila

    Gila Forum Resident

    On subject I'd say I have to go with 1967 mono being the main version I prefer. I quite like the 2017 remix, but some things about it really bug me.

    That's not entirely true. They were present and participated in stereo mixing of 5 tracks of that album.
    But it looks to me that they started showing interest in stereo mixing but still were "mono-minded".

    Lucy in stereo sounds different because they forgot to slow it down a little bit, which they did deliberately to the mono version to make it sound 'dreamy'.
    They also forgot to use 'correct' speed for She's Leaving Home in stereo and Paul's vocals sound dreary because of that.

    OK that and couple of other things were done better in stereo.
    The transition from Reprise to A Day in a Life was instead done better in mono (in my opinion).
    Did you also notice that intro chicken of Good Morning is also a different pitch/speed? :) Sometimes I wonder why that is.

    On the subject of pushing boundaries and technological advances, yes it all happened but at the same time these experiments were one of the first and not much experienced so they were a bit crude, I guess? They filled in one 4-track tape and then bounced it to another 4-track tape, and maybe again another bounce down - that severely limits possibilities for stereo mixing, when you have 3 instruments on one track and if you EQ/pan them, they all go together, etc.
     
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  4. Wingman

    Wingman Bored of the Rings

    Location:
    Europe
    Here we go again......:-popcorn:
     
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  5. Bingo Bongo

    Bingo Bongo Music gives me Eargasms

    Location:
    Ottawa, Canada
    I just wanted to vote the 1967 UK mono LP
     
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  6. Psychedelic Good Trip

    Psychedelic Good Trip Beautiful Psychedelic Colors Everywhere

    Location:
    New York


    The old yellow Parlophone label.
     
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  7. DK Pete

    DK Pete Forum Resident

    Location:
    Levittown. NY
    Lucy is also different on the stereo mix due to much less phasing; in the remix, it seems to me Giles did the best he could to combine the best/most significant aspects of both mono and stereo versions in creating a new one. He not only gave the album an entirely new listening experience, he tried to make everyone happy. Of course, that ain't never gonna happen.
     
  8. Psychedelic Good Trip

    Psychedelic Good Trip Beautiful Psychedelic Colors Everywhere

    Location:
    New York


    True dat.
     
  9. alexpop

    alexpop Power pop + other bad habits....

    Definitely not the 2017 mix.
    Not the 2014.
    Not the stereo.
     
  10. A well respected man

    A well respected man Some Mother's Son

    Location:
    Madrid, Spain
    Well, that's a different discussion, and one largely subjective. I respect everyone's tatstes.


    That interview was kind of a vindication of his work in the original stereo when the remix came out, but his narrative was different some time ago (in Complete Sessions, for example).


    No, those are examples in which the execution is better in the stereo mix.


    Technically, they didn't. But of course they allowed the people at EMI to do one.
    That said, I'm sure they would have worked on it if they had known in a few years it would become the standard version.


    Sure, they stopped making mono mixes in 1969 (the last three albums). But as things turned out, we have that the real Sgt. Pepper, the true work by the Beatles, is the mono mix. All the other versions (67 stereo, 17 stereo, 5.1) are someone else's interpretation.
     
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  11. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product

    The real work by the beatles? The true work by the beatles? Good Lord ......
     
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  12. A well respected man

    A well respected man Some Mother's Son

    Location:
    Madrid, Spain
    Richard Lush, 2nd Engineer in the Sgt Pepper sessions:
    "The only real version of SPLHCB is the mono version"
     
  13. DK Pete

    DK Pete Forum Resident

    Location:
    Levittown. NY
    I've also heard that Emerick himself did a stereo remix for possible issue in 1997 for the 30th but EMI rejected it...I'd love to hear that one. I wonder how everyone here feels about the Peter Cobbin Pepper remixes for the songs on Yellow Submarine Songtrack; those primarily stay true to the textures of the '67 stereo mix. What Cobbin did was "widen" the overall sound with some revised instrumental balances. It wasn't as much a modernization as it was a sort of "cleanup".
     
  14. aficionaudio

    aficionaudio Forum Resident

    Location:
    Holland, MI
    #1: 2017 remix. Despite how badly the dynamics suck, it's the most enjoyable listening experience for me.

    #2: The mono mix. The 2009 is 100% mono. The 2014 "mono" doesn't have equal dB in both channels (a hair stronger in the right channel).

    #3: Original stereo. I've always felt like this mix was too technologically primitive to what The Beatles envisioned it to be (which helps justify their preference for mono mixes).
     
  15. 81531

    81531 Forum Resident

    Location:
    World
    Won't tell as I don't want it to be sold out and never be able to be bought again without being a millionaire. Haha
    Just look at the price for the 2014 mono issue. Insane!
     
  16. ash1

    ash1 Forum Resident

    Location:
    bristol uk
    original mono. All the extra phasing / ADT and general cohesiveness of sound make this a better listen overall. It's what they intended people to hear and I like it much better except for the chicken cluck into guitar edit which is clucking awful.
    The "new" stereo mix was ok but I don't know why they didn't use phasing etc.. and the orchestra on A Day In The Life was way too quiet. The end of the album felt anti climatic when I heard it.
    The old stereo mix is ok and was my go to for several years as I was precious about not playing original vinyl (not any more I might add). Once the mono box came out I stopped listening to the Beatles in stereo with one or two exceptions.
     
  17. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product

    Look, that is a fallacy. The second engineer .... That is an opinion, not a law. I have no problem if you prefer that version. The problem I find in these threads is the constant pounding that it is the only version and every other is excrement in comparison. I stand by my statement, if they didn't want a stereo version, there would not have been one.
    To the best of my knowledge nobody hired one of the beatles as their sound engineer, nor their final mix engineer, nor their mastering technician or any other technical thing. I am sure they sat in with the engineers and producer when these things were happening and i'm sure they said things like "more bass", "what's that sound there", "i wish i had done a better take on that vocal" and all the other things that we musicians say when a professional is piecing together our songs/art/works whatever we want to refer to it as, but I can guarantee that the folks who knew what they were doing would have done it the way they heard it worked best, yes with input, but not some grovelling "oh mr mccartney is that the way you want this to sound for the next two hundred years" nonsense.
     
  18. A well respected man

    A well respected man Some Mother's Son

    Location:
    Madrid, Spain
    Well, he has the benefit of having been there for both mixes.

    Who says that? :confused: Certainly not me, I like both existing stereo mixes. Saying the mono is the true work by The Beatles has nothing to do with quality, it's just based on the fact that the band worked on that mix only (except for a couple of sessions for stereo).


    Nobody says they didn't want a stereo version. EMI published the albums in mono and stereo, but obviously they saw the mono mix as the standard album on which they had to work.

    The paperwork at EMI (and quotes from the people involved, like lush or Emmerick) shows that the Beatles didn't start attending stereo mixes regularly until the White Album. Also, the amount of work devoted to the stereo mixes was much less. And the differences between both mixes (like the tape speed in SLH) hints that not a lot of care was put into it.
     
  19. If I Can Dream_23

    If I Can Dream_23 Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    Just my two cents, but I feel that the "right" mix to any individual is usually always a combination of two key factors:

    1. How you first heard/experienced an album (for the most part).

    2. How the vibe of the album works best, as determined by your interpretation of the album's sound and vibe as a result of that sound.

    I find positive aspects in every Pepper mix. And in a perfect world, I'd mix 'n match the tracks from all three main versions. As a whole, I do find the stereo mix to be the least...cohesive...of the three but it has nothing to do with the band (possibly) not being as connected to its creation. I actually have zero qualms about enjoying any artist's work that isn't what they intended. For me, it's all about the material, what is given, and how it captures a vibe or cohesion.

    For instance, I'll always defend (even to Paul or Ringo, or whoever else) that some of the US albums simply work better and that I prefer them. Artistic intent is ultimately neither here nor there as to why we may enjoy or have personal (positive) interpretations with an artist's music. Heck, if we based our own preferences on what the artists preferred, we would lack a wealth of great stuff! The Beatles US albums and singles, The Song Remains The Same by Led Zeppelin, etc. Not to mention I'd have to listen to my all-time favorite pop album, Pet Sounds, with "Sloop John B" (as Brian apparently intended) as opposed to without (where it works so much better and so much more...focused), to me.

    At any rate, I've rambled enough for now. :p
     
    Last edited: Jun 3, 2018
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  20. A well respected man

    A well respected man Some Mother's Son

    Location:
    Madrid, Spain
    That's another typical misconception: believing that, just because one talks about artistic intent, that's the reason to prefer certain piece of work. No, saying the mono Pepper is the true work by the Beatles doesn't mean I prefer it because of that. Actually, I prefer the stereo mix for other albums. I just happen to like the mono mix better in the case of Pepper.

    I also like some of the US albums, even though the Beatles didn't have anything to do with their assembling.
     
  21. If I Can Dream_23

    If I Can Dream_23 Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    Well said. I'm much the same. Besides the first few albums (where stereo is almost a non-factor in comparison due to its "black and white" placement), and "Revolver and Pepper", I seem to largely be a stereo fan in general, for every other album (US or UK). Which is funny, I guess, because the likes of albums such as Pepper, or the Beach Boys "Pet Sounds" are often said to be much more revealing or tailor-made for stereo. And yet I largely prefer mono for both. Well, the mono for "Pet Sounds" at least. I now prefer the 2017 remix, by and large, for Pepper.
     
  22. A well respected man

    A well respected man Some Mother's Son

    Location:
    Madrid, Spain
    For me it's very balanced:

    MONO
    Please Please Me
    With The Beatles
    A Hard Day's Night
    Rubber Soul
    Sgt. Pepper

    STEREO
    Beatles For Sale
    Help!
    Revolver (very slight edge over the mono though)
    Magical Mystery Tour
    White Album
     
  23. If I Can Dream_23

    If I Can Dream_23 Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    That's almost exactly my general feeling as well. I think the only one we'd differ on would be "Rubber Soul". Well, and "Revolver" too I see. Although I know I'm perhaps peculiar with "Rubber Soul". Most seem to not be the biggest fans of the ultra-wide separation (or George Martin's 1987 narrowings), but for some reason I always felt that hollow "wooden" type of mix fits the album best. I do like some of the tracks in mono as well, but it seems stereo is the one I reach for the most.
     
  24. The Ole' Rocker

    The Ole' Rocker Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ontario, Canada
  25. 2141

    2141 Forum Resident

    And then it even gets down into individual tracks per album. Like I generally prefer the stereo version of the White Album, but a song like Happiness Is A Warm Gun is SOOO much more powerful in mono that it really colors my opinion of the whole album, and how to listen to it.
     
    Last edited: Jun 3, 2018
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