50th Anniversary all things Beatles White Album

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by tinnox, Feb 8, 2018.

  1. MusicFan57

    MusicFan57 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Orlando
    I was excited about the release until I saw the price, and thought, no way am I paying $130 for this. As luck had it, at the end of November, it started stair stepping down in price about every 12 hours on Amazon. So I kept watching. When it hit $109, my wife started "you have to get this". That night before bed, it hit $103. Next morning it was $95 and I thought under $100 was too good to pass up, so I hit the button. Dropped once more after I ordered to $89 and then shot back up to $130. I came for the book, and the fact that it was numbered, but I stayed for music. I love the remix and the sound quality of the Esher demos is amazing. Also, very much enjoy the 3 CDs of outtakes, etc... Seems like this remix is getting higher praise than the Pepper one, although I really enjoy that one as well.
    After only having the original stereo mix for my whole life, and then 2 years ago getting the mono cd set and hearing the white album in mono and now this new stereo remix, is just great for a white album fan. So currently have the white album on a mid 80s vinyl, 87 CD, '09 mono CD, 2014 mono vinyl and '18 remix on CD and the 4LP vinyl, plus the mono transfer on the blu-ray. I think I'm set on the White Album for a bit!
     
  2. YpsiGypsy

    YpsiGypsy Forum Resident

    Location:
    Michigan, USA
    This Blu Ray you speak of, will it be the album or the movie of Let It Be?
     
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  3. tinnox

    tinnox Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Maryland
    Spinning

    [​IMG]
    Beatles 50th anniversary Esher Demos
     
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  4. Ken Wood

    Ken Wood Forum Resident

    Believe it or not I only now listened to the whole remix in one sitting or rather moving as I was doing household chores during it.
    So it was not a very scientific approach. :D
    First thought? What a great album this is! How much fun! Remix or no remix.
    I did notice some unfamiliar moments but not too many. So basically it worked for me the same way like the "old" version.
    Did it need a remix then at all? Well, I think not really but it was very enjoyable. It brought out a lot of presence that was not there.
    It is up for debate (oh wait you already DID debate it ... for 1383 pages ... lol) wether the mixing choices sometimes brought up the "wrong" instruments, emphasizing sounds that were not "meant" to be heard that loud or clear.
    I rarely thought so, only from time to time I was like "huh?".
    Next time I should listen to it sitting at a table with a notebook at hand but for now I am glad I got this!
     
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  5. It could also be leakage from the control room monitors (through the glass) or even from headphone monitors if they were worn around the neck (and not on the ears) when the first or second vocal was recorded.
     
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  6. Mal

    Mal Phorum Physicist

    Piano track panned slightly right - vocals/claps in the centre. It sounds to me like the leakage is on the piano track:



    If the brass leakage is on the piano track it would imply it was played live with the piano (presumably along with drums and guitar).

    Then there's the strings which could have also been cut live despite not being heard via leakage ( the horns really cut though on the break and were closer to the piano and are still only barely audible).

    Take numbers weren't kept for these Trident sessions but maybe a full live take for the backing track (including brass and strings) makes sense given the efficiency with which all these parts were recorded (one session).

    Another possibility is crosstalk from adjacent tracks on the 8-track tape - maybe one of the brass channels (trumpets) is next to the piano track - although, to me the sound characteristic is more like acoustic leakage.
     
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  7. seacliffe301

    seacliffe301 Forum Resident

    Is this Feb.05 date confirmed? The reason I ask is I've seen the other pics from this very session and George's hair seems to be considerably longer than Jan.30/31 as seen in the movie.
    6 days hardly seems likely as a time frame considering hair grows about a half inch per month. I've seen questimates of late Feb. which seemed more likely.
     
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  8. Arnold Grove

    Arnold Grove Senior Member

    Location:
    NYC
    More info here:

    Beatles February 1969 Mystery Session
     
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  9. seacliffe301

    seacliffe301 Forum Resident

    Yes, those are the photos that I was referring to. It looks to me like George's hair is a lot longer than the 6 days that have elapsed since the rooftop. I may be wrong.
     
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  10. tjannace

    tjannace Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Long Island
    i didnt have time to read all 1383 pages of this threat lol. I'm thinking of buying this 50th-anniversary stereo mix off amazon. is it good?
     
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  11. tinnox

    tinnox Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Maryland
    Absolutely if buying vinyl get the 4 LP set
     
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  12. tjannace

    tjannace Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Long Island
    wow really? its as good as the originals? whats on the other 2 lps?
     
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  13. Former Lee Warmer

    Former Lee Warmer Emotional Rescue

    Location:
    NoBoCoMO
    Esher demos. must own.
     
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  14. tinnox

    tinnox Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Maryland
    Correct worth owning IMO
     
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  15. tjannace

    tjannace Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Long Island
    it didn't really get good reviews on Amazon, that's what i was worried about
     
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  16. Former Lee Warmer

    Former Lee Warmer Emotional Rescue

    Location:
    NoBoCoMO
    CD and LP reviews often get lumped together, and amazon doesn't screen, so you get 1 star reviews with such illuminating commentary like : "the original is fine, don't know why they would need a remix" - from someone who obviously hasn't heard it at all
     
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  17. tjannace

    tjannace Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Long Island
    yea thats true but on the vinyl reviews a lot of people said the bass is dead in a few songs like helter skelter
     
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  18. Lewisboogie

    Lewisboogie “Bob Robert”

    The White Album feels all kinds of creepy...

    I don’t understand how Lewisohn could not have known for sure. Didn’t hear these tapes?
     
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  19. Former Lee Warmer

    Former Lee Warmer Emotional Rescue

    Location:
    NoBoCoMO
    It's dead because it's John thunking away on the Bass VI :


    It's kind of what he played, real flat and ratty. Suits the song quite well, imho. The remix is a quite accurate representation of how the track sounded on the multis, and maybe how it sounded live in the room, probably more so than the original LP/CDs, and definitely more so than the 2009 CDs, on which the number was quite compressed (probably as a response to the Who's "I Can See For Miles", itself a heavily compressed number)
     
  20. culabula

    culabula Unread author.

    Location:
    Belfast, Ireland
    Amazed nobody has commented on just how awful Sexy Sadie is on this mix. Or have they ?

    Tuneless, meandering, draggy, bum notes, you name it ...
     
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  21. Former Lee Warmer

    Former Lee Warmer Emotional Rescue

    Location:
    NoBoCoMO
    So...it sounds like 'Sexy Sadie' then?
    :D
     
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  22. culabula

    culabula Unread author.

    Location:
    Belfast, Ireland
    Not half as much as it does now.
     
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  23. Onder

    Onder Senior Member

    Actually, it's Paul playing the bass (Fender Jazz Bass) on the released version of Helter Skelter. If you listen to the Take 17 on the deluxe version, he's giving instructions to his bandmates how he wants to treat the "intro" bit after the solo and he's accompanying himself on BASS. Also the bass plectrum strumming is picked up by his vocal mic quite heavily.

    That Take 17 is probably the best representation of how the bass sounded live in the room. It's definitely more clangy compared to how it sounds in the new remix. It's even more clangy in the original mono/stereo.
    In the new mix it just doesn't cut through the mix, it's too polite. The lead guitar also lost its bite. Rhythm guitar is too low in the mix, buried. Overal, the remix of this song was a big let down for me.

    Ondra
     
  24. DragonQ

    DragonQ Forum Resident

    Location:
    The Moon
    I honestly can barely detect the presence of a bass guitar on my AKG-K550s. Most of the new mixes are an improvement but not this one. I wonder if some EQ magic could help it?
     
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  25. Onder

    Onder Senior Member

    Unfortunately, it can't be done as any EQ move is going to affect the other elements too. It must be done to the isolated track.
    I tried to filter out the missing mid frequencies from the isolated bass track and paste that into the 2018 remix.
    Helter Skelter bass re-eq

    Ondra
     
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