At 02:08 PM 10/13/2004 +0100, you wrote:

>So .... which of the US albums were duophonic and which were true stereo?
>Or was it down to individual tracks on albums?  I have a bootleg CD of Rock
>and Roll, it has stereo versions of some of the early stuff.

It was individual tracks on albums, usually UK singles that wernt mixed into
stereo at the time.

I Want To Hold Your Hand
This Boy
You Can't Do That
I'll Get You
She Loves You
She's A Woman
I Feel Fine

I dont have "Something New" so I dont know what tracks on it are in fake
stereo. In 1965-6 EMI engineers remixed all those single into true stereo for
the first time except for "She Loves You" because those 2-track master tapes
had been destroyed. They were on the EMI album "A Collection Of Beatles
Oldies"
and later appeared on Past Masters volume 1.

>Is anyone able to say what was different about the Capitol mixes?  I know
>from the Beatles at Abbey Road book that different mixes were done for USA
>compared to UK, but not sure in what sense.

In genral they have been mega-compressed with lots of reverb added. The
duophonic versions are truely horrible, they sound terrible on headphones. I
wish Capitol would have used the EMI masters instead of the Capitol versions.
Im amazed Paul, Ringo and Yoko signed off on this.

The box set artwork is really cheap looking, it just reeks of a cheap K-Tel
cash in. Still this box set is going to sell like mad  for nostalgia's sake
and
to Beatles fans to get those early tracks in true stereo. And even if they do
put out a second edition with "The Early Beatles" - "Misery" and "There's a
Place" wont be on them because they were never issued by Capitol on LP. (until
1980's "Rarities" album)



 

 

Billy G. Spradlin
http://listen.to/jangleradio