Artist:The Beatles Brand: The Beatles Edition: Music CD Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language) Format: Box set, Original recording remastered CD Release Date: 2009-09-09 Music Label:EMI Product features:
BEATLES THE STEREO BOXSET WITH DOCS (16CD+1DVD)
Soundtracks:
Music CD 1
I Saw Her Standing There
Misery
Anna (Go to Him)
Chains
Boys
Ask Me Why
Please Please Me
Love Me Do
P.S. I Love You
Baby It's You
Do You Want to Know a Secret
A Tast of Honey
There's a Place
Twist and Shout
Music CD 2
It Won't Be Long
All I've Got to Do
All My Loving
Don't Bother Me
Little Child
Till There Was You
Please Mister Postman
Roll Over Beethoven
Hold Me Tight
You Really Got a Hold on Me
I Wanna Be Your Man
Devil in Her Heart
Not a Second Time
Money (That's What I Want)
Music CD 3
A Hard Day's Night [from the Film "A Hard Day's Night"]
I Should Have Known Better [from the Film "A Hard Day's Night"]
If I Fell [from the Film "A Hard Day's Night"]
I'm Happy Just to Dance with You [from the Film "A Hard Day's Night"]
And I Love Her [from the Film "A Hard Day's Night"]
Tell Me Why [from the Film "A Hard Day's Night"]
Can't Buy Me Love [from the Film "A Hard Day's Night"]
Any Time at All
I'll Cry Instead
Things We Said Today
When I Get Home
You Can't Do That
I'll Be Back
Music CD 4
No Reply
I'm a Loser
Baby's in Black
Rock and Roll Music
I'll Follow the Sun
Mr. Moonlight
Kansas City/Hey-Hey-Hey-Hey!
Eight Days a Week
Words of Love
Honey Don't
Ever Little Thing
I Don't Want to Spoil the Party
What You're Doing
Everybody's Trying to Be My Baby
Music CD 5
Help! [from the Film "Help! "]
The Night Before [from the Film "Help! "]
You've Got to Hide Your Love Away [from the Film "Help! "]
I Need You [from the Film "Help! "]
Another Girl [from the Film "Help! "]
You're Going to Lose That Girl [from the Film "Help! "]
Ticket to Ride [from the Film "Help! "]
Act Naturally
It's Only Love
You Like Me Too Much
Tell Me What You See
I've Just Seen a Face
Yesterday
Dizzy Miss Lizzy
Music CD 6
Drive My Car
Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)
You Won't See Me
Nowhere Man
Think for Yourself
The Word
Michelle
What Goes On
Girl
I'm Looking Through You
In My Life
Wait
If I Needed Someone
Run for Your Life
Music CD 7
Taxman
Eleanor Rigby
I'm Only Sleeping
Love You To
Here, There and Everywhere
Yellow Submarine
She Said She Said
Good Day Sunshine
And Your Bird Can Sing
For No One
Doctor Robert
I Want to Tell You
Got to Get You into My Life
Tomorrow Never Knows
Music CD 8
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
With a Little Help from My Friends
Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds
Getting Better
Fixing a Hole
She's Leaving Home
Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!
Within You Without You
When I'm Sixty-Four
Lovely Rita
Good Morning Good Morning
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise)
A Day in the Life
Music CD 9
Magical Mystery Tour [from the Film "Magical Mystery Tour"]
The Fool on the Hill [from the Film "Magical Mystery Tour"]
Flying [from the Film "Magical Mystery Tour"]
Blue Jay Way [from the Film "Magical Mystery Tour"]
Your Mother Should Know [from the Film "Magical Mystery Tour"]
I Am the Walrus [from the Film "Magical Mystery Tour"]
Hello Goodbye
Strawberry Fields Forever
Penny Lane
Baby You're a Rich Man
All You Need Is Love
Music CD 10
Back in the U.S.S.R.
Dear Prudence
Glass Onion
Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da
Wild Honey Pie
The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill
While My Guitar Gently Weeps
Happiness Is a Warm Gun
Martha My Dear
I'm So Tired
Blackbird
Piggies
Rocky Raccoon
Don't Pass Me By
Why Don't We Do It in the Road?
I Will
Julia
Music CD 11
Birthday
Yer Blues
Mother Nature's Son
Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey
Sexy Sadie
Helter Skelter
Long, Long, Long
Revolution I
Honey Pie
Savoy Truffle
Cry Baby Cry
Revolution 9
Good Night
Music CD 12
Yellow Submarine
Only a Northern Song
All Together Now
Hey Bulldog
It's All Too Much
All You Need Is Love
Pepperland [Original Film Score]
Sea of Time [Original Film Score]
Sea of Holes [Original Film Score]
Sea of Monsters [Original Film Score]
March of the Meanies [Original Film Score]
Peppeland Laid Waste [Original Film Score]
Yellow Submarine in Pepperland [Original Film Score]
Music CD 13
Come Together
Something
Maxwell's Silver Hammer
Oh! Darling
Octopus's Garden
I Want You (She's So Heavy)
Here Comes the Sun
Because
You Never Give Me Your Money
Sun King
Mean Mr Mustard
Polythene Pam
She Came in Throught the Bathroom Window
Golden Slumbers
Carry That Weight
The End
Music CD 14
Two of Us
Dig a Pony
Across the Universe
I Me Mine
Dig It
Let It Be
Maggie Mae
I've Got a Feeling
One After 909
The Long and Winding Road
For You Blue
Get Back
Music CD 15
Love Me Do [Original Single Version]
From Me to You
Thank You Girl
She Loves You [Mono Version]
I'll Get You [Mono Version]
I Want to Hold Your Hand
This Boy
Komm, Gib Mir Deine Hand
Sie Liebt Dich
Long Tall Sally
I Call Your Name
Slow Down
Matchbox
I Feel Fine
She's a Woman
Bad Boy
Yes It Is
I'm Down
Music CD 16
Day Tripper
We Can Work It Out
Paperback Writer
Rain
Lady Madonna
The Inner Light
Hey Jude
Revolution
Get Back
Don't Let Me Down
The Ballad of John and Yoko
Old Brown Shoe
Across the Universe
Let It Be
You Know My Name (Look Up the Number) [Mono Version]
Free Music Notes for The Beatles Stereo Box Set
Free Music Review: The Beatles Re-Masters: A Comprehensive Evaluation Hit: 5 Stars
The following review, which has not been altered, was originally posted as a review for the Beatles Mono Box Set, but is also applicable to the Beatles Stereo Box Set.
I held off completing and submitting this review until I had ample opportunity to listen to each of the newly re-mastered Beatles CDs, both in Mono and in Stereo, as well as to revisit many of the original 1987 Beatles CDs. I have now done so. Although I own many of the original LPs, I have not yet compared those. All listening was done on an excellent, but not quite audiophile (but very close!), stereo system.
Like many of you reading this, I debated over which set - Mono or Stereo --- to purchase. I ultimately purchased and received first pressings of both sets. So what's the scoop? Here is a comprehensive - but lengthy - analysis.
First, its all about the music -- really the best thing about these releases is that it reintroduces the wonderful music created by the Beatles into the popular culture. Love them or hate them, it is undeniable: The Beatles were a unique musical phenomenon and wrote and performed some of the best and likely longest lasting music of the Twentieth Century. In addition to the quality of the music, the Beatles were incredibly prolific: from 1962 through 1970 (a period of roughly seven years) they recorded an incredible twelve (12) UK albums, (albeit short albums by today's standards) plus Magical Mystery Tour and a couple of CDs worth of singles that did not appear on the UK albums (but which are collected on the Past Masters and Mono Masters collections, included in the new box sets). Unlike most popular music of the last fifty years, the music of the Beatles will likely still be played not just throughout the Twenty-First Century, but also in the Twenty-Second. The Beatles are the Beethoven of our lifetime. Teenage children of women that I date currently have Beatles posters on their walls -- forty (40) years after the Beatles (collectively) last recorded a record. That is amazing. The continued popularity of the Beatles is evidenced by the fact that the first pressings of both the stereo box and the "limited edition" mono box of re-mastered CDs immediately sold out upon - or before -- release.
Second, chronologically listening through the entire Beatles catalogue gives one a sense of the development of the Beatles as a group and of the individual members. It certainly has been a labor of love (albeit somewhat time consuming!) The early Beatles, as a pure rock outfit, were clearly led by John Lennon, who sings lead on most of the early tracks. As time went on, John became the most experimental of the four in his songwriting and in the studio, and Paul emerged as the primary hit maker in the band, and, over time, composed more of the band's material than he had in the early years.
Third, the 1987 Beatles CDs have been unfairly maligned in the reviews on this site and elsewhere. I have re-listened to quite a few of them and - as stand-alone CDs -- they sound just fine. The problem with those CDs is that - like most CDs of that era -- they are a bit shrill on the high end, and lack the warmth of analogue LPs. Moreover, they do not offer the clarity, detail and bass response offered by the new re-masters. Having said that, if your purpose is to listen to this music in MP3 format, through ear buds, or through tiny speakers, the old CDs will serve you just fine.
Fourth, the new CDs offer sound that runs the gamut from just a marginal improvement (some of the tracks on the earlier albums) to a dramatic improvement (especially for the later albums, starting with Revolver) over the older CDs. OVERALL, the new CDs, both mono and stereo, offer much greater clarity and detail than do the old CDs, and the sound is warmer (especially the mono CDs) than the old CDs. Moreover, the new CDs have greater bass response (especially the stereo CDs). Overall, the deeper (chronologically later) into the catalogue that you go, the greater the sonic improvements. The vocals, Paul McCartney's terrific bass lines and Ringo Starr's steady drums - on most of the songs -- are now oh so clear. You will (especially on some of the mono tracks) hear or notice things you never heard or noticed before. The sound quality of these CDs is not, however, quite at the level of the SACD releases offered for Bob Dylan, the Moody Blues and the Rolling Stones, respectively. In particular, SOME of the tracks on the mono CDs lack definition, particularly in the midrange. These are, however, much improved CDs that are incredibly faithful to the original music. Here, the engineers - commendably -- did not succumb to the "loudness war" so prevalent in CD re-mastering since the advent of the IPOD. With respect to the mono set, there has reportedly been no compression whatsoever. The CDs are actually lower in volume than the 1987 discs. They have a warmer sound that one associates with LPs. With respect to the stereo CDs, there has reportedly been only minimal compression added, and the fine sound reflects that. Only Abbey Road struck me as being somewhat louder. Lastly, the CDs have not been remixed. Although the remixed 1999 Yellow Submarine CD (which I have not heard) and the remixed 2006 Love CD (which I have heard and is fantastic) have been well received, I think that the fact that these new CDs were not remixed is a good thing, as what we getting here are better sounding versions of the original releases, not new (changed) versions of the music (although the mono versions will be a revelation to many). To me, remixing classic music has been hit or miss. I love the remixes of the Doors CDs, but am less than pleased with the remixes of the Genesis CDs, which, in addition to being remixed, are overly compressed. That is not the case here.
Fifth, with respect to the present mono v. stereo debate, I would suggest that a purchase of either set, or any of the individual CDs, would be satisfying. The preferred version depends on the song and/or the CD in question, as well the listener's tastes. If I HAD to choose one box set, it would be the mono. The mono CDs are better packaged (see below), are warmer sounding, in some cases offer unique mixes and are more engaging. Having said that, to my ears, OVERALL the stereo CDs do SOUND better than the mono CDs. They offer greater clarity and are brighter, without being overly harsh the way the older CDs were. That makes sense - the intent was to create a better sounding uniform Beatles catalog, and that is the stereo version. Moreover, the stereo box set includes ALL of the Beatles original catalogue, including Yellow Submarine, Let it Be and IMO the Beatles' finest album, Abbey Road, each of which are not included in the mono box set, as they were not originally mixed in mono. [Note: Yellow Submarine only contains four "new" Beatles songs, which are included in the mono set on the Mono Masters collection.] Further, as of this writing, each stereo CD contains a video component, which are collected on a separate DVD included in the stereo package, concerning the making of each album.
Nevertheless, for many of the CDs or for specific songs, the mono versions are indeed superior. To my ears, and this is consistent with other reviews listed here, of the ten Beatles albums included in the mono CD box set (not counting the Mono Masters collection), five are (overall) preferable to their stereo counterparts: Please Please Me, With The Beatles, Help, Rubber Soul and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. For me, the mono White Album also comes close. As many reviewers have noted, Please Please Me, With The Beatles, and to a slightly lesser extent, Help and Rubber Soul, are all superior in mono, in large part because the mono versions do not have the left-right issue (all vocals on one channel and all instruments on the other channel) and the latter two CDs also offer the original stereo mix (George Martin remixed Help and Rubber Soul for the 1987 CD releases, and a re-mastering of each of those versions is what is included on the new stereo CDs). As many reviewers have correctly noted, the mono versions offer more punch than the stereo versions. For the early albums especially, the sound is akin to a live rock performance. Further, SOME of the mono versions are a revelation. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band -- which is incredible in its new stereo incarnation - is MINDBLOWING (and very different than the stereo version) in mono. This one CD - which I had once thought was over-rated (silly me) -- practically justifies, in and of itself, the higher price of the mono set. It is undoubtedly the crown jewel of the mono box set and if that box set does go out of print there will be - at a minimum -- tremendous demand for the release of the mono Sgt. Pepper's. Further, the mono White Album, which had never before been released in the U.S., is so very different - and some of the tracks reveal so many different layers -- than the stereo version! Here are some other examples. For me, "Yesterday" (which appears on Help) in mono just sent chills down my spine. I did not experience that in the stereo version. Similarly "Nowhere Man" (which appears on Rubber Soul) is just stunning in mono. On the other hand, to me, John's breathy "Girl" (also on Rubber Soul) sounds better in stereo, as, being on one channel, the distinctive vocals are clearer, and George Harrison's instrumental break (with a call and response guitar line) is more engaging. As aforesaid, in many cases it simply depends on the particular album or song, and the listener's tastes.
Sixth, the packaging for both the mono CD box and the stereo CD box is gorgeous. As is well known, the re-mastered mono CDs are not (currently) available individually and are only offered in the purportedly "limited edition" box manufactured in Japan, which has a stellar reputation for production of outstanding sounding CDs with packaging that is faithful to the original LPs. (The packaging for this set reminds me of the recently released and excellent Led Zeppelin Japanese made box, which I also reviewed here). The box itself, which will fit nicely on most CD racks, is constructed of a hard cardboard material and is coated with a white sort of laminate, with very simple and tasteful title graphics and the familiar green apple. Each individual CD package and CD is an exact replica of the original UK mono LP release (except for Magical Mystery Tour, which is a replica of the US mono release), down to including all of the original inserts. Like all Japanese made CDs, each album is housed in a re-sealable cellophane envelope (there is no OBI strip, however). As advertised, this set was clearly designed with the collector in mind. The stereo box is made here in the USA. It is larger than the mono box (about the size of a shoe box, similar to the two Grateful Dead box sets of their [mostly] studio albums). Like the mono box, the stereo box has a sort of laminate, this time in black, with tasteful graphics and the familiar green apple. The box closes with a hidden magnet, like, for those who are familiar with it, the Phish box set Hampton Comes Alive. The box itself is housed in a (temporary?) cardboard sleeve. Each individual CD is housed in a digipak which contains a nice booklet, printed on glossy paper stock, which contains the original liner notes (if any) of the album along with recording notes and very nice pictures of the fab four. The White Album is nicely housed in a slip case with the embossed: "The Beatles." As other reviewers have noted, the stereo CD digipaks house the CDs in a slip with no protective sleeve. Why didn't designers of the packaging include a CD holder, like the Bob Dylan re-masters? Nevertheless, the cardboard stock of the digipak is study enough so that the package can be propped open (without damaging the packaging) to permit safe removal of the CD, although you may have to touch the edge of the CD to do so (possibly leaving fingerprints). I suspect that the digipaks will soon be history and will be replaced with more conventional (and horrid) jewel boxes, which would at least more safely store the CDs. (Collectors note: the original pressing of the Magical Mystery Tour stereo CD label has a misprint re: the Let It Be documentary video being on the disc. That misprint is reportedly being corrected for future pressings of the CD).
Lastly, a word about the pricing. The box sets ARE expensive. In spite of this, demand has clearly - for now - exceeded supply. All box sets tend to be expensive, and with respect to Japanese made mini-LPs, these are often very expensive. The "Japanese" mono box, which likely contains the very same CDs as the Japanese made CDs contained in the "limited edition" mono box sold in the US, costs approximately, or more than, twice as much. If money is an issue, you can avoid the box sets and focus on the following (listed chronologically): Rubber Soul, Revolver, Sgt. Peppers, The Beatles (the "White Album") and Abbey Road, each of which is amongst the very best rock albums ever made, and the very fine stereo re-master of each is readily available at a reasonable price. If you want to experience the early Beatles, the 1987 CDs of the Beatles first four UK albums, Please Please Me, With The Beatles, A Hard Day's Night and Beatles For Sale, all in mono, are likely [for now] still available. You can add the new stereo versions of Help, Past Masters, Magical Mystery Tour, Let It Be [or even better, Let It Be . . . Naked] and Yellow Submarine, in that order, as funds allow.
So what's my recommendation? That depends on who you are (and what your budget is). If money is an issue, see the previous paragraph. If you already own any or all of the 1987 CDs, and plan on only listening on ear buds or a less than high quality system, save your money and stick with those, and supplement your collection as necessary with the individually available stereo CDs. If you want the absolute BEST possible sound now available on CD, overall the stereo CDs are the way to go, and they are and will be readily available (although the first pressing of the box set is currently sold out, the second pressing is available by pre-order). If you want to experience the Beatles as it is reported that they originally intended, if you want to hear different mixes (often revelatory and in many cases superior), if you are a completest and/or if you want collectable facsimiles of the original UK LPs, pick up the "limited" mono box set., which, at the time of this writing, is once again available by pre-order (for the second pressing). As aforesaid -- and this is a personal choice -- if I had to choose just ONE set, I'd go with the mono set, and I would supplement it with the new stereo Abbey Road and the previously released Let It Be . . . Naked. Whether the mono re-mastered box will be available beyond the purported "second pressing" is, at the time of this writing, unknown and the subject of much speculation. If, however, the mono box is history, then the stereo re-masters are terrific.
ADDENDUM: The only additions/modifications to the foregoing review that I would now offer are the following: (1) I believe that most or all the stereo CDs (not just Abbey Road) are a bit louder than the earlier versions of same; (2) I acknowledge that those who submit that the stereo CDs should have been remixed (like the 1999 Yellow Submarine disc, which I have now listened to) have a legitimate point, although I still stand by what is expressed above; and (3) No offense is meant towards those who utilize MP3 players, indeed those who download the CDs utilizing a higher bit rate (256 or Apple Lossless) should notice a difference (overall) between the old and the new CDs. Whether that difference justifies the new purchase is an individual decision.