Beatles

[Robin L]

Some of it could be the recordings themselves. However the vast majority is just the band. They had a few songs i could appreciate.
But the majority of their stuff just gives me a headache. I may be in the minority here, but i try to avoid their music whenever possible.
It always fascinated me the big appeal they seemed to have world wide. Guess that old saying is true., " Different strokes for different folks"

You are in the minority, which is not the same as being wrong. As of 2021 my favorite Beatles track is Revolution #9. They wrote and recorded a lot of piffle. A legend in a lunchtime. Which reminds me, for those of you not familiar with the best, Beatles approved, telling of the myth of those loveable moptops:

 

[Robin L]

That would have been halftone back then.

Thanks, I knew I was using the wrong term.

 

[scott wurcer]

Thanks, I knew I was using the wrong term.

Running a print shop helps, you had to learn the angles for 4 color separation screens to prevent this.

 

[JuliaCoder]

Les Paul was shocked the Beatles used 4 track in the 60's. He'd been using 8 track all through the 50's.

Story goes, Ampex showed off their 8 track to Bing Crosby. He wanted it but Ampex said he'd have to order 20 of them. He did and gave Les Paul 2 of them. KGO in San Francisco had one of them too.

 

[David Harper]

I do have a thirty year old CD set of the "White" album which has very good sq so I'm not sure why the newer remasters sound so crappy to me.
I have read that the 2009 stereo remaster of Sgt. Pepper on CD (the one I own) was very dynamically compressed to make it louder whereas the mono remaster was not. This makes sense to me because when I listen to the crescendo at the end of "A Day in the Life" on my CD it just sounds flat and lacking entirely the awesome power that I remember from back in the day. The 50th anniversary remaster is reported to be much better so I'm going to get it sooner or later.

 

[concorde1]

The original '87 CD releases I have sound amazing. (Sgt Pepper, Abbey Road, Magical Mystery, White Album.)

But I can't stand The Beatles personally.

 

[pagan84]

The 50th anniversary remaster is reported to be much better so I'm going to get it sooner or later.

All the '50th Anniversary' releases are remixes. Stg.Pepper 2017, White Album 2018, Abbey Road 2019. Sound great to me.

 

[Robin L]

I do have a thirty year old CD set of the "White" album which has very good sq so I'm not sure why the newer remasters sound so crappy to me.
I have read that the 2009 stereo remaster of Sgt. Pepper on CD (the one I own) was very dynamically compressed to make it louder whereas the mono remaster was not. This makes sense to me because when I listen to the crescendo at the end of "A Day in the Life" on my CD it just sounds flat and lacking entirely the awesome power that I remember from back in the day. The 50th anniversary remaster is reported to be much better so I'm going to get it sooner or later.

The 50 anniversary issue of Pepper has a different mix than the original stereo. The 2009 remasters had more focus on drums 'n' bass and a little peak limiting compared to the 1987 issue, commemorated in the hard to track down documentary "It Was Twenty Years Ago Today". Here's an example, it used to a lot easier to find the whole doc in one piece:

The 2013 LP and 2009 CD of the mono mix of Pepper are accurate representations of the original mono LPs, the Mono CD being a flat transfer of the mono master tape, the 2013 LP likewise. As I recall, the band members got interested in the potential of stereo mixing around the time of Pepper, so they were involved in the original stereo mix which is deliberately different from the mono mix in musically significant ways. Giles Martin's stereo remix is neither beast nor fowl, it's the version the characters in Blade Runner 2049 will be listening to. I'm not saying it's bad, but it's not 1967.

 

[Robin L]

I'm watching this documentary "My Generation" on Kanopy right now. It covers cultural shifts in London in the 1960's from Michael Caine's perspective. The Class system of Great Britain is a central concern, the Beatles figure in this documentary. I seems Michael Caine has high friends in places, there's a lot of good, new, interviews with the big actors in that scene, lots of great historical footage, fantastic soundtrack. Though not a "Beatles" documentary, this is one of the best documentaries that happens to include the Beatles. If you can stream Kanopy it's free:

 

[JSmith]

The Beatles' last song Now And Then is finally released

The Fab Four's "emotional" farewell single Now And Then is available for fans 45 years later.

www.bbc.com

In the UK, Now And Then will receive its first play on BBC Radio 2 and 6 Music at 14:00 GMT on Thursday.

Simultaneously, the song will arrive on streaming services like Spotify, Apple Music and Amazon Prime Music.
CD, vinyl and cassette copies will be available the following day. And from 10 November, the song will be included on the newly remastered and expanded versions of The Beatles' Red and Blue greatest hits albums.

JSmith

 

[Joe Smith]

I grew up with all the old versions, but I love the Giles Martin remixes thus far. I did not buy Revolver though, not much to change there. But Pepper, White, Abbey and Let It Be all sound in LP format are all quite good. Looking forward to the last song tomorrow. It will probably be on a par with the other Anthology-project songs, but still...here we are, 60 years on, and a new Beatles song coming out, it's still pretty amazing. Cheers to Paul and Ringo for getting it done, with a lot of help from Peter J.

 

[GaryH]

 

[Philbo King]

Just listened to this one. Interesting, though it didn't really grab me like many of their other songs. Perhaps it's more along the lines of honoring Johns legacy.

 

[Tom C]

I thought it was much better with the video.

 

[DanielT]

I thought it was much better with the video.

Exactly my impression too. With the video and pictures of the four. Nostalgic feelings that go well with the song. It then became a tribute to the Beatles.

 

[mhardy6647]

Just read this rather cynical comment about the new Beatles single Someplace Else:

Seems like a publicity push for the red & blue re-re-releases.

 

[Doctors11]

I love the Beatles but one thing I've always wondered about; why does their music have no detail or transparency or sound quality at all? I know it was recorded 50 years ago but still it seems to me that it should have had better sq than it does. I believe it was recorded on four or eight track studio tape machines (?) but I would think that those recorders would have been capable of better than the abysmal sq we have. Or was the poor quality due to other links in the recording chain? Or is the reason simply because of the primitive tech?

If you have a home theater with a blu-ray player and good speakers this version of Abbey Road is by far the best I've ever heard the Beatles sound.

HiRez Poll - Beatles, The - ABBEY ROAD (Dolby Atmos Mix) [Blu-Ray Audio]

Please post your thoughts and comments on the 2019 Dolby Atmos mix of the classic Beatles album "Abbey Road", originally released in 1969. The Dolby Atmos mix was created by Giles Martin & Sam Okell at Abbey Road Studios and is included on Blu-Ray within the album's 50th anniversary box set. The...

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