Hi folks-- For background, I am 22 and hail from the Northeast US. I have grown up with needledrops and the 2009 mono/stereo remasters of the Beatles catalogue, so the UK singles and album tracklists are ingrained in my brain. I always thought: why would I listen to the US albums, they're Dexterized messes! However, I just picked up secondhand copies of the Capitol Albums Vol. 1 and 2 CD box sets plus LPs of Y&T, Revolver and MMT (I usually listen to the album as: 1-2 All You Need Is Love single 3 Hello, Goodbye 4-9 Double EP 10-11 Lady Madonna single 12-14 New Yellow Submarine tracks although my best friend in high school loved the canon MMT, so I'm familiar...) Long story short, these records are so EXCITING! What the Heck?? Like listening with totally new ears on patently familiar material. They hit me in the gut, like the Beatles do at their best... I've ordered Bruce Spizer's companion V1 Booklet and want to save up for his books covering the US catalog. Anybody have fond reminiscences (contemporary or later) of these albums? Do you think they deserve a fair shake?
Those Capitol albums were the albums that served as my introduction to Beatles music. Never even saw a British album until the 80s but once I became familiar with them that was the end of listening to the American ones but I can understand and appreciate the love some have for them. Would I go back and reacquaint myself with them? No.
The coolest thing for me right now is hearing new stuff -- Paul and John's whoops are more upfront on "I Wanna Be Your Man", the overdubbed harmonica on "Thank You Girl", and even *ducks tomatoes* Duophonic! They're certainly not better, and the UKs with singles and session tracks attached chronologically before and after the album proper are my go-tos (i.e. "From Me To You", With The Beatles, and "IWTHYH" plus "One After 909" '63), but these are fresh and different for me, and I think that's really cool... Second Album kicks butt!! Money with a Lennon yell and pounding reverb! Cavern-style!
The US albums are not what the Beatles intended, but Capitol knew how to program the LPs for maximum impact by including the hit singles. I grew up with these albums so they have a high nostalgia factor for me. However, when I started collecting the UK LPs I found them far superior in sound and in presentation. Some of those US ‘add-mixes’ are rather noisy but lots of fun as a novelty!
I'll say for the umpteenth time here ... I accept that it wasn't their "artistic vision" ... but IMO Rubber Soul is supposed to start with "I've Just Seen a Face" and have the false start in "I'm Looking Through You." That track list at least to my ears is much more cohesive than their "artistic vision." In fact, I've made my own 14-track Rubber Soul mix that adds back in "Nowhere Man" and adds "We Can Work It Out" that I think works even better, again at least to my ears.
I acquired most of the mid- to late 70s reissues on capitol vinyl. I also have the newer versions as well. never did a comparison. I've played a few. I think they sounded fine. I enjoy listening to both capitol and UK versions.
I I will have an almost-complete collection of these purple big dome label pressings a friend is going to sell to me. It’ll be fun to play these albums again! I have the US LP CD box sets from the early 2000s. Great fun, but looking forward to playing the LPs.
I enjoy Beatles in many different configurations. The Capitol albums do sound a bit more exciting much of the time. That may just be in my head. However when I use digital files for listening, I tend to like the mono Capitol box mixes over the 2009 mono box. Granted, some of those mono mixes are folds so I'm discounting Early Beatles, Second Album, and Help!
After the big dome, collect the small domes. I just finished collecting all the small dome purple 1988s. AAA and simply amazing sound quality. Plus, the vinyl is super quiet.
I think what I like about them (albeit factoring in their new-to-me quality) is that I'm not hearing Studio 2, or Forthlin Road, Bombay, India, or tour jet-lag; I'm not hearing The Beatles, iconic rock band, I'm hearing THE BEATLES! the newest lads from Liverpool! Hype over history, if that makes sense... Altho the Duophonic kills the Hard Day's Night songs dead, IMO.
I didn't grow up with them, I grew up in the late 80s/90s with mostly the cassette track listings. But I love the Capitol albums.
Beatles don't have a large discography like Miles Davis for instance. So, another reason I'm glad to have the Capitol albums around (in addition to the 2009 remasters and the Giles remixes) is to keep things fresh.
I was born in the mid-80s, so I have no nostalgic connection to the Capitol albums. To me, they aren’t the “real” Beatles albums. But I can appreciate the fact that for many people, they represent their first introduction to the band. And I would wager that there are still a lot of casual American Beatles fans who have no idea the Capitol albums aren’t what the band intended to release. So while I consider my collection complete with the Parlophone first pressings (though I do have a few of the Capitol albums that I’ve gotten free from other people), I appreciate what the Capitol albums mean to a lot of people.
MEET THE BEATLES is better than WITH THE BEATLES. I do like "I've Just Seen A Face" to start RUBBER SOUL, the false start to "I'm Looking Through You", the inclusion of "It's Only Love", and the absence of "What Goes On". But I miss Nowhere Man, If I Needed Someone, and Drive My Car. BEATLES 65 is helped by having I Feel Fine, She's A Woman, and I'll Be Back, but is hurt by lacking What You're Doing and Eight Days A Week. THE BEATLES 2ND ALBUM was the first Beatles album I ever had so it fills a sentimental space and also does a good job picking up a bunch of songs not on other Capital albums (and many not of the UK albums either). YESTERDAY AND TODAY does a nice job putting a bunch of stuff together, but overall I prefer most of the songs from that album to be on the proper UK albums. Combining SOMETHING NEW with the HARD DAYS NIGHT United Artists soundtrack would make a great album, but either on their own is lacking. THE EARLY BEATLES is missing some key tracks. HELP is pretty much useless in the US version unless you like soundtrack music and the US REVOLVER is completely useless. I am so glad that I (quite by accident) got the UK REVOLVER back in the late 70's.
(One of my fave Fabs album covers). Said it before and I'll say it again, there are several U.S. masterings of the Fabs songs that I prefer to the UK's... not nearly a majority, but still more than a few. To diss the U.S.'s out of hand, because it's the hip thing to do on this Forum, is caca, IMO.
I'd never heard the Capitol versions until this year (bought the Capitol Albums boxsets a few months ago). I quite enjoy them. Being a European, this different sound was entirely new to me. I like them quite a bit. Are they better than the originals? No. But a great alternative for sure. They are in my regular rotation now.
You should check your Vol. 2 to see if you got the true mono tracks. The easiest way to do that is too see if the "mono" has the false start or not. If it does you got the stereo fold downs.
