Got the new Beatles disc in today. Two discs...one the album, the other bonus material and a nice booklet.
The Phil Spector hissy-muck-string-choir mix is gone as are two of the *throwaway* songs (Dig It and Maggie Mae). One song was added, "Don't Let Me Down". The track sequence is entirely different and the mix is much cleaner with fill work and other things that were padded down, now having been brought up to level. The thing that is hard to get use to is there isn't any pause between the tracks and all the studio chatter is now gone. It all goes by rather fast and furious and it will take a couple of listens to digest it. All in all a much better album. BTW: Dig It, Maggie Mae and a few other snippets are included on the bonus disk.

Sounds like a must-have to me, it's on my list!

Thanks, Carl

Its good, don't get me wrong, but the have dried up the ambience too much and mucked with noise reduction on some of the vocals(Long and Winding Road).Otherwise, I agree.

You are right on the ambience. It sounds like Pauly managed to get more of a *studio* sound out of it, especially with the quick fades and lack of chatter. Still, I prefer it over the Spectorcide version.

Originally posted by CELT
You are right on the ambience. It sounds like Pauly managed to get more of a *studio* sound out of it, especially with the quick fades and lack of chatter. Still, I prefer it over the Spectorcide version.

Me too. It sounds more like a Band.:)

I also prefer it to the Spector version, but I do miss the chatter between the tracks. And the sound is much improved, but the quick fade outs are disconcerting, particularly on One After 909. And I do generally agree with the choice of takes used (I was pleasantly surprised that they used George's original guitar solo on Let it Be. Since there was so much material I do wish they had tried to put more on the bonus disc, like alternate takes (e.g. the fast Two of Us), jams, or the complete roof top concert...one can hope...

I miss the fade on Get Back.

I like the un-Spectorizing but miss the snippets of chatter, especially Lennon at the start of Get Back.

But once again (like Beatles 1) we are treated to POS sound quality.

The music has been No-Noise and digitised to death.
This obsession with getting rid of every little bit of noise is responsible for also removing a large part of the music.

Add in a bit of vocal goosing and some heavy handed compression and you have another Beatles sonic disaster.

C'mon John and George, hurl a thunderbolt or three at the dimwits inhabiting EMI Abbey Road !

Has anyone heard the vinyl ?
I'm betting it will be like Beatles 1 and sound worse than the CD.


cheerio

I bought Naked Sunday and am disappointed in the sound quality
also.
I have a mint first US pressing LP with the old black label and
it really sounds great. A lot of US pressings from this period don't
but this one does. The mixing could have been better on naked too, IMHO. Not that the LP is perfect.
But the material presented is truly outstanding and makes it worth owning.

Carl

"Black label"? The first pressings of "Let It Be" were on a red apple label. Is yours a UK Parlophone copy maybe?

Nope, I just looked and it's made in LA. Maybe it is a reissue and just doesn't say so like the ones I've bought new in the last few years.

Carl

I could help myself and bought the vinyl Let It Be...Naked.

Big shock, it sounds ever so slightly better than the CD !

Vocals aren't quite as strangled in No-Noise hell, and seem to be less forward while dynamics aren't quite as squashed as the CD.

Cost more than the CD though.

Sales of this album will keep Macca on the UK music richlist for a long time to come...


cheerio

Carl, alot of the "Let It Be" re-issues were in NON-gatefolded jackets and manufactured on the Capitol label. Some were pressed on white vinyl and some had the orange 70's Capitol label or the later throwback 50's purple or black labels. A first pressing will always be on Apple with a red background, in a gate-folded sleeve with extra pics and will have "With Love from Phil and Ronnie" (Spector) inscribed between the lead out grooves. I also have a DJ copy of Abbey Road that is pressed on dark green vinyl sans a jacket. It was released to radio stations before the cover was ready and had "She's So Heavy" split into two bands (one for a short AM version...the other for FM). Also came with a letter from Apple giving direction as to which cuts should be played. All of Apple's USA copies were manufactured by Capitol, but at some point in the 70's the Apple label was dropped from most titles. Collecting vinyl can be an adventure. I don't get the same thrill with CD's...even when they are rare and I have plenty of those too. Have fun with it! P.S. If you can find a purple label "Rubber Soul" you will rewarded with amazing dynamics!

Hey Celt, You sure know your Let It Be's! I just came back in from
digging through the LP overflow in my garage and couldn't find my other copy. :rolleyes: It's sorta organized :p: sure found a few things I forgot I had including an old UK Beatles greatest hits and a copy of the Tony Sheridan stuff. Ah well thanks for the info, guess this is a re-issue then. As you can tell I'm not a collector - I would have to inventory all these albums!:headscrat

Carl

Carl, if your Beatles Greatest Hits is the one on Odeon with the "roaring twenties" colour artwork, it is valuable! They are fairly rare. I still have most of my rainbow label Capitol's from the sixties, but a majority of my album collection was taken from me while it was in storage during my move to Little Rock. *sheesh* :(

This is it, sounds like what you're talking about. The album is
great but someone put a checkmark next to each songlisting!

Carl

Yeah, that's the good one. I'm gonna get one soon!!!!!!!!!!!!Also Die Beatles.

Yup, that's it alright! I see where yours has the Parlophone logo on it. I gave one to a friend in the early 70's that was made by Odean...(just another EMI division). I have an Abbey Road on CD that I bought in 1984 that is on Odean-Toshiba that is currently worth around $300. Also have the White Album pressed on white vinyl (Apple-Pathe France) and the Red and Blue album sets on USA Capitol pressed on red and blue vinyl with red and blue labels.

Hey hey I ve got it too it was my first Beatles album bought in UK at Jersey...;)

Dom.

Small world isn't it? I bought mine I now remember at a wherehouse over in SF 20+ years ago. It wasn't them but they leased the balcony to a guy who sold used records. That sure was a great place to go at the time. Nothing but good stuff! My
first was Beatles 65 when it was new. Still got it.

Carl