Thank you Wollensack re: Sharing Capitol Beatles Boxed Set 2 Findings

All of us who have been following the long Beatles thread know Wollensack has been silent following the various levels of attacks he has received for doing us the favor of listening to and giving us his opinion (now validated by 3 people) on the problematic new boxed set. I'm dismayed at how many people have attacked his credibility, told him he was "full of it," and generally been dismissive of him, because they didn't like or want to believe the information that he had.

I'm grateful to him for having bothered to share the bad news with us. My guess is that he'll think twice before sharing any 'bad news' info with us after all this. I would hope this forum would foster an environment to welcome and encourage people like him. If we keep treating our friends on the forum like this, then I'm afraid we'll scare good members away.

 

Thanks Wollensack! I had never doubted yours and Harry's observations, although I was hoping you were wrong

Just be glad in knowing that the eBay price for a nice mono Beatles VI is going to climb sky high once the word of these fold-downs is spread. As if Capitol monos aren't over priced already...

 

Frankly, I wouldn't blame him if he decided to never post here again.

 

I was hoping that what he got wasn't representative of what was to be released to the public, and that his set had discs made in error or something. I appreciated the info (and still do), even if I didn't like what I heard. Don't shoot the messenger...

 

Wow, my own thread!

Seriously, it was never my intention to cause all this ruckus in the forum. I was only reporting what I heard, shocked as I was, literally minutes after receiving the set, and reporting it to the one group of people I knew would really care about these things.

To clear up a few issues without breaking any confidences, I was given the set (US official issue, not an advance or bootleg) legally. I produce a nationally syndicated Beatles radio show, and since it is done a few weeks in advance, I was given the set and the sampler in advance to enable me to produce in time for the 2/9/06 broadcast of my show.

When I realized the incorrect mono mixes were used on Beatles VI and Rubber Soul, I posted a few observations on this forum, then contacted several people who are very close to the project with the information. They were understandably horrified and asked that I no longer discuss it, which I did not. It was NOT an intentional move on Capitol's part to use these mixes...a mistake was made somewhere down the line and will be corrected. How it will be corrected is unknown right now.

I admit to being quite amused at some of the postings questioning my integrity, and the integrity of HGN2001 (Harry), but that's human nature, I suppose. Of course, I thank all those who gave Harry and me the benefit of the doubt on this.

Of course I will continue to enjoy the SH Forums and the wealth of information they provide.

Regards,
Wollensack

PS - To Brainwashed...I believe we have to discuss a little eBay auction that you'll be having...

 

He gave us another scoop!:

So we finally have someone from the inside who confirms that it wasn't intentional, thus restoring my faith (and future dollars) in this set!

We should send Wollensack a big box of flowers. Thanks for returning and for sharing yet another nugget from your basket.

 

I am very pleased to learn that "a mistake was made," and that an attempt will be made to correct that mistake. As cynical as I am about the recording industry, I simply could not believe that Capitol would do this on purpose. Still, it surprises me that Capitol's quality control was so lax--especially given all of the marketing hype regarding the authenticity of these releases.

 

Hi Wollensack,

Thanks for posting an update...we all appreciate it immensely. I would also say that I don't think people on here were questioning your integrity as such, I think it's more a case of being baffled and confused as to how this has happened in the first place. I think this, combined with the sheer silence from those involved in the bringing of this set to the market, has created an uneasy atmosphere.

Let's face it, there's a lot of confusion around this set as it is without the issue of incorrect mono mixes being brought to our attention! Examples: - there is no mention of this set on thebeatles.com, there are different release dates in Europe and the US (didn't happen with Vol.1), and nobody I've spoken to in the UK retail business (or the music industry itself with access to EMI product) has seen or heard diddly squat other than a sheet with a release date. Certainly no sampler CDs have emerged over here AFAIK.

In terms of putting this right, my guess would be they (meaning Capitol/EMI/Apple) will rectify this by implementing something like the Back To The Future DVD disc replacement/exchange scheme of a few years back. This was something that was done by Universal before they corrected it with later pressings. Proof of purchase of the original box set entitled you to receive free discs with the correct framing on BTTF II & III. I would say, IMHO, this would be the sensible route to take rather than a full-scale recall.

Cheers,

 

If this is all true...yes, we have a deal to discuss. But you must admit that something is still VERY amiss here. Fact: These mono fold-downs DID NOT exist in the Capitol Tape Library prior to this project. How could Capitol, or people close to the project, claim to be horrified that the "wrong" mixes were used, when they didn't exist previously??? And how could they possibly allow an Official Press Release to be made public just a few short weeks ago, surely they knew THEN about this "mistake".

It would be nice to know the truth. If it's some weird mistake, like they used one of Jensen's CDR comparison mixdowns or something...still, how can they justify this release to the public? It CAN'T be due to extra cost...Remember the fiasco concerning Anthology 2, when Macca ordered the track shuffle causing millions of booklets to be destroyed and new one's to be created? If this is all true, it sounds earily like the bootleg company Yellow Dog releasing CDs with only one channel of the the stereo signal on their initial run of Unsurpassed Masters series. I don't think anyone would complain if the set was delayed a week or two....remember the initial run was just pressed within the last 2 weeks. Easily time to fix whatever is wrong. This "mistake" will forever tarnish Capitol if it's not rectified before the sets are available for retail sale. Ron

 

PLEASE tell me this is the best Beatles-related April Fool's stunt ever done... There have been a bunch over the years, but only two have sucked me in.. A 1975 'reunion' one that my local radio station did and now (hopefully!!!) this?

 

I also wanted to thank Wollensack and Harry publicly. But I also thank 22nd Row for starting this very deserved thread. As I said in Part 1 of the other thread when this first broke, Wollensack is the real deal. We are all very fortunate to have him as member given his work, resources and industry contacts.

 

I too give Wollensack a lot of credit. The first thing he did when he got the set was come straight to this forum to share what he could with us!

 

Thanks a million, Wollensack, for your continued updates on this already legendary boxset. Much appreciated.

 

Wollensack For President!

 

Thanks for the new update, Wollensack.

 

Good job, and thanks for cluing us all in Wollensack!

I also agree with brainwashed that this is truly astonishing, because if these are "newly created foldowns", then why were they created in the first place? And if they were, then SOMEBODY had to know what they were doing and what was being done.

 

I feel the same way. I can't really fathom such an error like this concluding with newly made mixes that's never been before. I hope Capitol ends up with egg on their face for this. They should delay the set and re-schedule. Anything less is BS.

Chris

 

Hey Wollensack I'd love to hear your syndicated Beatles show. Is that possible here in Memphis (or streaming?).
Dave-0

 

There are lots of horror stories on how things like this happen (if in fact the alleged new mono mixes did happen) outside this particular project, as anyone working in a large and not-so-large organization can tell you. I once had an article published that was an early draft, with an accompanying photo and caption lifted from another source!

I remember reading about a CD manufacturing facility that took all submitted masters, and using the output from the analog outs of a normal CD player performed their own in-house analog-to-digital conversion to create a new digital master -- to ensure that clients weren't submitting out-of-spec redbook files that led to messy arguments when defective CDs came back from customers. In other words, every disc this particular plant pressed went through an extra stage of D/A/D conversion.

The Gin Blossoms NEW MISERABLE EXPERIENCE was issued with the left and right channels reversed, for no particular reason. This wasn't corrected until the two-disc Deluxe Edition.

Someone might have assumed that the mono mixes were just fold-downs, or that the submitted mono mixes didn't sync up exactly with the stereo mixes -- "Hey, it's easier to just collapse the channels from the stereo tapes." More likely, there was no intent; someone might have mistaken file names on a computer. It's not like everyone in the chain of custody would be a Beatles expert.

 

I thanked Wollensack and Harry and Hawkman in the earlier thread for alerting us to these problems, and I thank all three of you again! It is important never to "shoot the messenger."

I am truly baffled by this and how this could have possibly been a "mistake." I'll listen to whatever Capitol has to say on the subject. However, I am NOT going to purchase the set until the mistakes are corrected.

 

NOW....................how do we get the RIGHT one???????

 

Good question.

Capitol better do something.

 

You'd think that the most important recording catalog on earth would warrant a little quality control along the way, eh?

 

With all due respect, reversing channels is hardly a major mistake...Even Beatles tracks have had this happen too. It's very minor. WHO assumed the mono mixes were fold-downs? Ted Jensen would surely know...remember, EVERYTHING on Volume 1 was done properly. And if it's a "chain of command" issue...how could they screw it up. Jensen surely marked his final mixdown master as THE CD MASTER...And there were NO mistakes on the first set. Something is just VERY AMISS here. Even Wollensack saying openly Capitol knows about the "mistake" is bizarre, though much appreciated...The set hasn't even been issued yet...Capitol needs to recall these before they go to retail, delay the street date a few weeks...and do it RIGHT. Ron

 

While I would like to think that all official press releases are 100% accurate - I've been around long enough to know this just isn't the case, sadly. The person tasked with writing the release is given information to include in it. They may very well not even be in the same location as the people tasked with directing the project. I never trust press releases as "gospel"...any more that I trust the press!

A question that our more learned members of the forum might be able to answer: Do we KNOW FOR SURE that these mono fold-downs are really brand new? Could they have been produced way back when (for some unknown reason) & never used...and then the wrong mono tape was sent to Sterling? With the mono versions of 2 albums in this set being fold-downs officially, maybe it was thought that they all were?? Personally, I would never destroy a reel tape with the word "Beatles" on it, even if I knew it was junk! (One never knows, right?)

Thank you, Wollensack, for your efforts to keep us in the know!!! Why do I think that in a few weeks time, we will all look back at these threads, laugh & say "What a weekend THAT was!!!"

Dexter

P.S. Now - Let's assume that Capitol allows these to come out on schedule...and then offers an exchange or something. Do you exchange...or just buy a new set with the correct mono versions...and keep the orginal because it has those "ultra-rare, mono fold-downs of Beatles VI & Rubber Soul?" (It's a disease - we really aren't well at all!)