• Welcome! The TrekBBS is the number one place to chat about Star Trek with like-minded fans.
    If you are not already a member then please register an account and join in the discussion!

Fixing A Hole-A Look At The New Beatles Box Set

Dusty Ayres

Dusty Ayres

Commodore
“This device isn’t a spaceship, it’s a time machine. It goes backwards and forwards.... It takes us to a place where we ache to go again.”

Mad Men advertising guru Don Draper’s pitch to the Kodak executives about their photo Carousel was slick but effective; Draper knows how fragile memory is, how quickly and completely a cherished moment can slip away into the void. By contrast, we’re surrounded by mementos of The Beatles, but only the very young can actually hear their music. It’s inescapable; part of the sonic wallpaper; as reliable as death, taxes and minority governments.

So EMI’s massive four-year remastering job isn’t really about sound quality at all. There aren’t that many audiophiles left out there, and aside from the occasional nagging complaint about how you can only ever hear John or Paul’s voice in one earphone when listening to the old 1987 CD mixes, it’s not like there was a Greek chorus bemoaning the quality of the discs already on the market, and you’ll forget your mother’s maiden name long before you stumble over the first verse of “Yesterday.” How, then, does a troubled multinational company struggling through the worst market in the history of the business get people to buy CDs of the best-known (or the least-forgotten) music in the world?
Click to expand...
Fixing A Hole-A Look At The New Beatles Box Set

0b1799204d5da98bcc80d7c7acfb.gif
 
So these CDs aren't available individually? Just in that massive set?

Not that I'd buy it anyway, as the Beatles are still not available on iTunes yet. :(
 
If they swear on a stack of Popes that they won't release the CDs individually, do not believe them.

Joe, digital
 
I hope they can work out a deal with Apple. I stopped buying CDs long ago, so if something's not on iTunes, it's not for me. Maybe that will be part of Apple's big media event next week...
 
All of the stereo remastered albums will be available individually. Fear not. Amazon has pre-order listings for each of them.
 
Since I don't actually own any of of the Beatles' Albums (what I have is the soundtrack to "Across the Universe"), I sort of want to get this.

But only when I have $200 burning in my pocket.
 
Mr. Laser Beam said:
Allyn Gibson said:
Mr. Laser Beam said:
Not that I'd buy it anyway, as the Beatles are still not available on iTunes yet. :(
Click to expand...
Last time I checked, iTunes let you rip CDs. :confused:
Click to expand...
I know. Also don't care. I made my choice long ago to only buy from iTunes directly. CDs are useless to me. I'd just end up throwing them away, because I never actually listen to CDs (only my iPod or AppleTV) anymore.
Click to expand...
Fair enough. :)

I wonder how Apple (the music company) would want the Beatles' music configured on iTunes. I don't find it inconceivable that iTunes wouldn't be allowed to offer individual tracks -- either buy the whole album, or don't buy it at all. That may sound absurd, but as the Beatles objected to the Capital albums, which reconfigured the running orders for the American market, I could see the offering of individual tracks as a sticking point because that would "damage" the integrity of the albums. It's for that very reason that the Beatles remasters don't have bonus tracks, like remasters for the Stones or The Who's contemporary albums. The albums are of a piece; iTunes breaking them up into the individual components may be a line in the sand.
 
There was some sort of settlement between the two companies in 2007, with Apple (computer) buying out the Apple (Beatles) trademarks for something like 500 million dollars, with Apple (Beatles) being allowing to license the "Apple" name.
 
I so wnt to get the mono box set, but I can't afford it in the foreseeable future.
 
Guess I might as well stick this in here from the other thread...

09-09-09
The Beatles invasion returns.

The stereo and mono remastered CDs arrive worldwide tomorrow. The Beatles Rock Band game as well. The Washington Post has a nice write-up with two articles each arguing the respective pluses of the stereo and mono CDs. The mono article is linked from the stereo article I linked above.

Let's not forget The Beatles: Rock Band. It looks fantastic, and the amount of detail that has gone into the game is amazing. The NY Times had a fascinating look at how the game ended up getting made, and the difficulties in working with some of the older tracks. A really interesting (and lengthy) read - "While My Guitar Gently Beeps."

I expect to be rocking to the game in the morning, followed by lengthy sessions with the mono CD set, and a couple of the stereo versions that I'm picking up as well. The remastered CDs sound really great. Bring on The Beatles!
 
I would love to get the boxed set, but I think I may just pick up a few individual albums. I can't see myself spending that kind of money on CDs of music I have elsewhere in different forms.
 
If you are a more casual fan, I suppose you could say that you'd settle on what is out now. Having heard the remasters, heard the crispness of the vocals and harmonies, and the new clarity, they are definitely a superior release to the muddied 80s CDs. There are parts of many of these songs that you can hear quite clearly now that were kind of lost in the muddy sound with the previous releases. This music is great enough, that I absolutely want to hear all that.
 
So I take it these remasters aren't going to be your usual "LOL LETS COMPRESS THE HELL OUT OF EVERYTHING AND MAKE IT LOUDERZ" affairs?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
If you are not already a member then please register an account and join in the discussion!

Sign up / Register


Back
Top