Magical Mystery Tour (Remastered)
I grant it was my fault. I should have checked to see if there were any non remastered copies of the Beatles Magical Mystery Tour available. I have learned my lesson. I had bought an entire set of Beatles CD's while living in Germany ten years ago including a numbered limited edition of the white album (1 million copies). These were beautiful records (actually Cd's) and even though they were not vinyl for CD's they were fantastic. However, they were lost in transit when I came home. I have been slowly rebuilding my collection but the quality of the American versions are horrible and SIR--Ha-HA-- George Martin has done a disservice to us all in his remastering. He has cleaned up things like when Paul's voice doesn't quite make that note on Lovely Rita and his voice breaks, a beloved moment for me, now gone. However the worst yet is my recently purchased Magical Mystery tour. It's Bass is so over done and the highs are pumped up. It sounds like some group trying to be the Beatles and almost but not quite pulling it off. It is all shiny and new and polished but nothing like the original. It also seems to be a tradition to rip off Americans on Beatles recordings. I really wish I had my european Beatles CD's back. The were un-remastered and sounded like the records I grew up with. Why george Martin felt he had to clean up these recordings I don't know. It is the biggest sin since the evil munchkin felt the Beatles needed a wall of sound for their Let it Be album. But for me The Magical mystery is the worse by far. Do yourselves a favor and try to find used CDs for all your Beatles recordings from now on and especially avoid this one it is the worst of the lot so far. Why Sir Martin, Why? You would never had gotten away with it if John was still here. What's next removing Revolution #9 from the white album because it's odd and most people don't like it? But to be on point. It just doesn't sound as good as my old CD and in no way sounds anything like the album I used to have.Hope this helps.
P.S. Does anyone know the difference between enhanced and remastered?? Thanks.
I hope someone wakes up and reisues these recordings as is.
1967-1970 (The Blue Album)
Just wanted a cd with good array of songs on it and this fit the bill.Plus, the price was the best I could find; but it was still to high.
Received it in perfect condition and in timely manner.
Love
I saw the documentary 'All Together Now' they did about the 'Love' Beatles show in Las Vegas and just couldn't get over how awesome the music sounded. I've been a life long Beatles fan so I came on here to see if they had made a soundtrack. THANK GOODNESS they had!! I have almost literally played a hole in this CD.The fact that the masters were reworked for the show by George Martin and his son Giles only makes it better. No one could have done a better job that the original magic man. The way some of the songs flowed into each other was just brilliant.
If you're a Beatles fan you HAVE to own this CD!
With The Beatles (Remastered)
Like my dad I really love The Beatles but we were both very dissapointed when we sat down with a good glass of wine to listen to the CD we ordered. It didnt take long before we turned the CD off. Its was what we both called a "flat" sound. We couldnt believe we spent money on such poor quality sound! We compared the sound quality to the old tapes dad had and we quickly disposed the CDs. It wasnt only this particular CD. We ordered 3 CDs of The Beatles and they were all "bad". They were all lacking the sound depth. Just to compare we borrowed the same CDs from my dads friend, but recorded in 1994. Beautifull sound depth! Im sorry Amazon.com but the CDs does not deserve even one star for such poor sound quality.
A Hard Day's Night (Remastered)
Thirty minutes of dazzling studio brilliance - and the first Beatle album comprised entirely of Lennon-McCartney originals. "A Hard Day's Night" runs the gamut from smash hits ("Can't Buy Me Love") to fiery rockers ("You Can't Do That") and haunting ballads ("And I Love Her"). The title song's innovative opening chord delivers every time. A masterful soundtrack to the Fab Four's 1964 film debut.
1962-1966 (The Red Album)
You almost can't go wrong with a collection of The Beatles' best work from 1962-1966; they had so many outstanding tracks that most songs just pick themselves. But even allowing for this, 'Red' does an excellent job of collating the hit singles and key album tracks from the Fab Four's most commercially successful period.All of the band's major British and American hit singles are here, from 'Love Me Do' to 'Eleanor Rigby/Yellow Submarine'. What else can be said about these songs apart from the fact that they're some of the greatest music ever made; from the boyish enthusiasm of 'Please Please Me' and 'A Hard Day's Night' to the more sophisticated 'Yesterday' and 'Paperback Writer'.
'Red' also collects many important album tracks from the period; 'All My Loving', 'And I Love Her', 'You've Got To Hide Your Love Away', 'Drive My Car', 'In My Life', 'Nowhere Man'. These are inspired selections, and their presence really highlights how brilliant The Beatles were. Most other bands would have been proud to have these as their best single...The Beatles relegated such masterpieces to album tracks!
The songs are presented in chronological order, which allows us to follow the band's growing ambition and experimentation, culminating in the pre-psychadelia of the 1966 singles. As well, the album contains the complete lyrics, plus a selection of photographs from the period. Again, we witness the evolution in the band's style from the clean cut lads of 1962-3 to the self-conscious cool of sunglasses and cigarettes in 1965-6.
Since the band had so many memorable tracks, it's easy to complain about what's missing. If you wanted to be picky, you might question whether 'Rubber Soul' deserves SIX tracks here. Maybe 'Girl' could have made way for something like 'Rain', 'No Reply', 'I'm A Loser', 'I Should Have Known Better' or 'I Saw Her Standing There'. Others also have noted that the 26 songs here could probably have fit on 1 CD instead of 2. But overall, these are minor quibbles.
Obviously, anyone with more than a passing interest in The Beatles should pick up the individual albums. But since most of the band's singles never appeared on albums, 'Red' is still an important collection to own, for die-hards as well as casual fans. A really comprehensive, complete package that does its job well. You can't ask for much better than this.
Five stars.
Beatles For Sale (Remastered)
Beatles for Sale is the Beatles at their early best! The vocals in harmony, the playing at their own standards make this LP a must for any true Beatles collector. Grab this while it's available, you won't be disappointed!!
Past Masters (Remastered)
In 1988, Capitol/Parlophone rereleased The Beatles' entire catalogue (well, the British albums anyway) onto CD. At the time of their releases onto compact disc, people loved them. They all sounded great, they thought. 'What a vast improvement this is to my vinyl' all were comments made at the time.As the times changed, technology changed and vastly improved. Sound quality on Beatles issues started becoming vastly inferior to other reissues, and it began to irritate Beatles fans and music critics that The Beatles were not getting CD remasters, unlike many other artists of that era.
Finally, in 2009, 21 years after the first CD reissues of The Beatles' catalogue came out, The Beatles' finally got the treatment they have deserved. Their entire catalogue was remastered on compact disc. And, although I must admit, I only have but one remaster (as of February 18, 2010, that being 'Sgt. Pepper'), I have heard most of them, and let me tell you, they sound INCREDIBLE. Forget the 1980s CD reissues. THESE 2009 remasters are the ones to get if you are a new Beatles fan.
Now, enough with me boasting about the CD remasters. It's time for me to review to product on hand.
It was nice to have all of the original British records in on CD, but part of what made The Beatles great were their non-album singles. Many of their essential songs did not appear on any of their records, and it was quite nice to have them on CD again. They were not included on the albums as bonus tracks. Instead, Parlophone released 'Past Masters, Vol. 1,' collecting their first three years on Capitol (1962-1965) and 'Past Masters, Vol. 2,' which collects their latter day singles (1966-1969).
I have always thought that these should be reissued as one little package together as a two CD set. And finally, along with the other albums, in 2009, 'Past Masters' was remastered and re-released into a two CD set, something that is long overdue.
Now, to the review.
'PAST MASTERS, VOL. 1'
Review: This is, in my opinion (although believe me, this was a tough call) probably the weaker of the two volumes. This is The Beatles during their early years, although towards the very end of the disc, you can hear The Beatles maturing musically and giving a foretaste of things to come. The first track on this disc is the single version of 'Love Me Do,' released in 1962. This features Ringo Starr on drums (this is actually quite different than the version that is typically featured on Beatles compilations; that version was featured on the 1963 'Please Please Me' album and featured British session pro Andy White on drums, and Ringo only on tambourine). This also features early songs like 'I Want to Hold Your Hand,' 'She Loves You' and 'Thank You Girl,' three of their best early songs.
It's also interesting to hear two German-sung versions of 'I Want to Hold Your Hand' and 'She Loves You.' The Beatles were not the only band to rerecord a song in the German language; The Beach Boys also rerecorded their hit 'In My Room' in the German language as well. These are interesting, but were clearly included for the Beatles collector as opposed to the casual fan.
But the highlights of this disc come at the very tail end. 'She's A Woman,' 'Long Tall Sally,' 'Bad Boy' and 'Yes It Is' (why John Lennon hated this song is beyond me) are among the best songs of theirs from 1965 (and believe me, there were two studio albums worth of material in 1965, but that's a different review).
While this isn't as strong as 'Vol. 2,' this is a very good disc. It's the early Beatles, and it's very interesting, actually. You can hear the Beatles mature throughout the disc, as I stated earlier. They were experimenting with several different styles of music ('She's A Woman' is very much a 1950s-R&B influenced track, and McCartney proves how much Little Richard influenced him), something they would do frequently, especially during the next two years. This is a recommended listen for a seasoned or new Beatles fan. My rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars.
'PAST MASTERS, VOL. 2'
Review: On this disc, you will hear The Beatles' single releases from 1966-1969. As I've mentioned several times, this is the superior disc of the two volumes. It starts off with 'Day Tripper,' a song about an LSD trip (or so I've heard) and 'We Can Work It Out,' two songs that were non-album singles in the UK but did appear on the 'Yesterday...And Today' album in the United States. These songs both reached #1, and rightfully so. The Beatles, as they proved here, were no longer a "Beat group from Liverpool."
As this disc goes on, you'll hear The Beatles as they enter their psychedelic rock phase. 'The Inner Light,' a George Harrison composition that is heavily sitar-driven, is a song that is quite interesting, and also showed Harrison's fascination with world music. It's a great song indeed; if I'm not mistaken, I think he's the only Beatle that appears on this track. It appeared as the b-side to 'Lady Madonna.'
Speaking of 'Lady Madonna,' that also appears here as well. It was yet another smash hit for the Fab Four; this was also a #1 single for the band. It's piano driven, and it shows the band as they are starting to move away from the psychedelic rock genre and back into the pure rock sound.
Perhaps the most beautiful and moving song in The Beatles' entire catalogue is 'Hey Jude.' This song was written by Paul McCartney in 1968 to comfort John Lennon's son, Julian, as his parents were divorcing. The song is incredibly uplifting, and it's not only one of The Beatles' best songs, but one of the best songs of all-time in my opinion. Why this didn't appear on an album is beyond me. (Note: In 1970, Capitol Records released a compilation album of rarities in America, entitled 'Hey Jude (or The Beatles Again).')
Now, we have two singles that were intended for release on the aborted 'Get Back' album, which was supposed to be produced by Glyn Johns. The title track and 'Don't Let Me Down' were both released as singles in 1969, and are among my favorite Beatles songs. They're just so rocking, unlike anything else in their catalogue.
Some new fans may be asking why 'Let It Be' appears here, after it appeared on an album (it even had an album named after it in 1970). This is the single version, released in 1969. Producer Phil Spector remixed the track to have a more "stinging" guitar effect for the album. This version is probably the better version, if you ask me.
As you all know, The Beatles disbanded in 1970 shortly after the release of the 'Let It Be' album, and all chances of a Beatles reunion died when John Lennon was shot and killed in December 1980.
Overall, 'Past Masters, Vol. 2' is an outstanding compilation of some of The Beatles' most interesting tracks that should have been released on studio albums, but weren't. Every song here is worthy of a billion stars, and it's the better of the two volumes (although not by much). My rating: 5 out of 5 stars.
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:
This disc is highly recommended for any Beatles fan. Regardless if you are new or a longtime fan of the Fab Four, buy this 2009 two-disc remaster/reissue. The sound quality is slamming, and everything here is essential material.
Highly, highly recommended.
ENJOY!!!
Please Please Me (Remastered)
Perfect cd for Beatles enthusiasts. I had all of the Beatles albums growing up as a kid but the way they were put out in the US versus the UK labels, certain songs like "Misery" and "Theres A Place" were left out. So I really appreciate a second chance to buy some of their early stuff as it was intended to come out.
Abbey Road [Vinyl]
The music is wonderful BUT the sound quality is crap - it is thin and harsh. I have other CDs recorded in analog and remastered to CD that are vastly superior to this. I do not have the original record so I cannot guess as to whether the original recording was this bad. This was a great disappointment to me - I was so looking forward to hearing these songs in sonic splendour.
Anthology 2
This group of dvd's is awesome. I enjoyed every minute. The Beatles were amazing songwriters, musicians and singers and I am very happy that there is so much documentation on what they did. I thought that I purchased Anthology 1, but it is indicated that I got Anthology 2. Not sure which is correct. Anthology 2
Yellow Submarine (Remastered)
If you don't have this (all) the Beatles remastered cd's. buy them as soon as you can. The sound is the best you will ever hear. I'm a musician and i can hear the hands sliding on the guitars. It's like you are there watching them create these masterpieces.
Anthology 1
You might think that you are getting your favorite Beatles songs here, but beware that most of them actually are rehearsal versions, different takes (some of them partial), there are several different takes of the same song here and there, and sadly, some of the most popular songs' original versions are missing (again, replaced by annoying rehearsal versions). You are MUCH better of buying separate albums than collecting this hodgepodge of "takes"
Anthology 3
This Anthology 3 complete my collection of The Beatles music, so you may imagine my satisfaction. The quality of discs is superior, so everything is great.
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
"Sgt. Pepper" is arguably the Beatles most recognized album. Released in 1967 at the peak of the 'hippy/flower power' movement, it combined art with music in a way that no album had previously done. From the way upbeat, "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" to the surreal, somewhat somber, "A Day In The Life", every song is a classic. The sound is what makes this album amazing. George Martin and his son remastered and remixed several songs for the "Love" album. This same remarkable remastering has revitalized "Sgt. Pepper's" to an unbelievable clarity. Mixed with an array of sound effects, the remastering not only enhances the instruments and vocals, but brings all those art/music sound effects throughout the album to a vivid height. It's really remarkable how great this album sounds.Also included in the great album is a multi-paged booklet with some excellent liner notes. There is also a diagram identifying all the famous people in the cover photo! On your computer, you can play the five-minute mini-documentary about the album (Quick-time), which showcases comments from all four Beatles and George Martin. All of this is mixed in with rare photos never seen before. Imagine learning that this album was recorded at night with over 400 hours devoted to it. That's perfectionism and its shows. In fact, there is a mini-documentary for all the Beatles albums. This CD is a collector's item and a perfect showcase for the Beatles genius.
Rubber Soul (1990)
The Beatles were on to something here, and well on their way to becoming the great songwriters and performers that they eventually became. Rubber Soul proves that with it's collection of well-crafted pop songs.
Love (CD + Audio DVD)
I bought this CD/DVD-A for something to play in my new car's 5.1 Surround Sound system. It lives up to all expectations: entertaining, high quality sound, and it beats the demo DVD-A that came with the car.This is not a "best of" Beatles music; it's a soundtrack of Cirque du Soleil's "Love"...a show (at the Mirage, Las Vegas) built around a montage of Beatles songs. There aren't many early Beatles songs here; they don't fit the Cirque format (if you've ever seen a Cirque de Solei show, you know what I mean) or the 5.1 format (many were recorded in mono).
I haven't listened to the stereo CD version since I bought it specifically for the 5.1 format. But based on its content, I wouldn't recommend this CD/DVD-A except for the novelty of the 5.1 playback or for someone who wants to relive the show itself.
And, finally, buy the mono box set if you are just looking for Beatles music!
Abbey Road (1990)
The music is wonderful BUT the sound quality is crap - it is thin and harsh. I have other CDs recorded in analog and remastered to CD that are vastly superior to this. I do not have the original record so I cannot guess as to whether the original recording was this bad. This was a great disappointment to me - I was so looking forward to hearing these songs in sonic splendour.
Let It Be... Naked
I don't like this album, it doesn't mean I hate either.Listening to it so far just isn't worth my time.
The 1970 released "Re-produced" by Phil Spector, for me, is kind of listening to a hybrid of the Beach Boy albums "Party" and "Smiley Smile" These all albums filled with small joys but owe their respective release to contract obligations. None of them are major artistic statements.
As I remember it, the original issue of "Let It Be" was mixed and sequenced at least twice before it was handed over to Spector to salvage what an expensive project, particularly as it was near nil that they would ever get The Beatles together in the studio since thay couldn't agree together and didn't as a unit appear for the shot of the promotional clip for "Something".
If they could of gotten another studio album, the original album probably would sat on the shelf even longer.
The Spector assemblage of songs and studio chatter at least gave you the feeling they were enjoying themselves in a hanging out with friends sort of way. The McCartney album comes across as an uninspired recital, rather less congenial or warm, but Paul got control over the released product.
Get Back/Let It Be was Paul's baby and he had been denied involvement or approval over the 1970 released album as they simply weren't talking to Paul because of business problems.
Incidential, about the roof top concert owes it existence to the fact that The Jefferson Airplane had done one some months earlier in NYC for a movie that never got finished.
The Airplane, Beatle and U2 concerts all were ended by the appearance of the Police.
Revolver [UK]
Was there any other band in the history of rock and roll that evolved as fast as The Beatles? Within a few short years, the Liverpool lads would go from making simple pop music (VERY good pop music, mind you) to creating the most influential music in history. Revolver is an important step in that process and contains some of my favorite Beatles' songs, including "She Said She Said", "Eleanor Rigby", "Taxman", and "Got To Get You Into My Life". Not only was the music amazing, but Revolver was a technical masterpiece as well, employing the latest recording techniques of the day.Revolver was the first of the 2009 Beatles' remasters I purchased, replacing my original CD version. In my opinion, the remaster is far superior to the original CD release. There's more separation between the instruments, each now having a distinct voice. It's almost like being in the room with the band while they're playing. The recordings just feel a little more alive to me now, with subtle details I hadn't noticed on the original CD. My one complaint with the reissue packaging would be the lack of a plastic tray to insert the CD into. Sliding the discs in and out of the cardboard sleeve will eventually lead to scratching, so I've taken to storing the discs themselves separate from the artwork to better preserve them. The album booklets are printed on thick glossy paper for a nice effect, but I don't think the packaging would have been spoiled by the addition of that plastic tray. I've seen plenty of other albums that are a combination of cardboard and plastic that look just fine.
The album is amazing and sounds better on CD than it ever has before. Highly recommended.
Live at the BBC
I never got to see it because it was a Christmas present for my grand-son-in-law, but said he loved it.
With the Beatles (1990)
Like my dad I really love The Beatles but we were both very dissapointed when we sat down with a good glass of wine to listen to the CD we ordered. It didnt take long before we turned the CD off. Its was what we both called a "flat" sound. We couldnt believe we spent money on such poor quality sound! We compared the sound quality to the old tapes dad had and we quickly disposed the CDs. It wasnt only this particular CD. We ordered 3 CDs of The Beatles and they were all "bad". They were all lacking the sound depth. Just to compare we borrowed the same CDs from my dads friend, but recorded in 1994. Beautifull sound depth! Im sorry Amazon.com but the CDs does not deserve even one star for such poor sound quality.
Please Please Me (1990)
Perfect cd for Beatles enthusiasts. I had all of the Beatles albums growing up as a kid but the way they were put out in the US versus the UK labels, certain songs like "Misery" and "Theres A Place" were left out. So I really appreciate a second chance to buy some of their early stuff as it was intended to come out.
Yellow Submarine Songtrack
I always loved the Beatles. They were one of the safest bands out there, safe for everyone in the family to listen to. I always loved the movie, and the soundtrack is just as good. My three year old wanted a cd for x-mas, and my first line of thought was to get away from those stupid kids song cd's and trying to find her something that I wasn't ready to pull my hair out everything I heard. This cd is fun and the songs are just as fun to sing along to as they were when I was a kid.
Let It Be (1990)
Let it Be is usually placed behind Sgt Pepper, Abbey Road, White Album, Revolver, and maybe one or two other Beatle albums. The fact that this album is considered no better than the Beatles' fifth best work, and yet includes classics (or at least semi-classics) such as Across the Universe, Two of Us, Let it Be, Long and Winding Road, and Get Back, says ALOT about the band. I started listening to it again for the first time in 30 years and became smitten with it again.
Magical Mystery Tour (1990)
I grant it was my fault. I should have checked to see if there were any non remastered copies of the Beatles Magical Mystery Tour available. I have learned my lesson. I had bought an entire set of Beatles CD's while living in Germany ten years ago including a numbered limited edition of the white album (1 million copies). These were beautiful records (actually Cd's) and even though they were not vinyl for CD's they were fantastic. However, they were lost in transit when I came home. I have been slowly rebuilding my collection but the quality of the American versions are horrible and SIR--Ha-HA-- George Martin has done a disservice to us all in his remastering. He has cleaned up things like when Paul's voice doesn't quite make that note on Lovely Rita and his voice breaks, a beloved moment for me, now gone. However the worst yet is my recently purchased Magical Mystery tour. It's Bass is so over done and the highs are pumped up. It sounds like some group trying to be the Beatles and almost but not quite pulling it off. It is all shiny and new and polished but nothing like the original. It also seems to be a tradition to rip off Americans on Beatles recordings. I really wish I had my european Beatles CD's back. The were un-remastered and sounded like the records I grew up with. Why george Martin felt he had to clean up these recordings I don't know. It is the biggest sin since the evil munchkin felt the Beatles needed a wall of sound for their Let it Be album. But for me The Magical mystery is the worse by far. Do yourselves a favor and try to find used CDs for all your Beatles recordings from now on and especially avoid this one it is the worst of the lot so far. Why Sir Martin, Why? You would never had gotten away with it if John was still here. What's next removing Revolution #9 from the white album because it's odd and most people don't like it? But to be on point. It just doesn't sound as good as my old CD and in no way sounds anything like the album I used to have.Hope this helps.
P.S. Does anyone know the difference between enhanced and remastered?? Thanks.
I hope someone wakes up and reisues these recordings as is.
A Hard Day's Night
Thirty minutes of dazzling studio brilliance - and the first Beatle album comprised entirely of Lennon-McCartney originals. "A Hard Day's Night" runs the gamut from smash hits ("Can't Buy Me Love") to fiery rockers ("You Can't Do That") and haunting ballads ("And I Love Her"). The title song's innovative opening chord delivers every time. A masterful soundtrack to the Fab Four's 1964 film debut.
ASK-1544 Karaoke: The Beatles, Greatest Hits
Don't be skeptical of the quality of this CD+G because of it's low price! These versions are shockingly close to the originals and better than the much more expensive ones put out by Sound Choice. Very full sounding! These are the same instrumentals used in the CD+G karaoke versions that were previously released by Top Tunes. Unlike other Beatles karaoke I've sang to and hosted with, these versions are in the correct key, don't have backing vocals that shouldn't be there, don't sound like MIDI, and have mostly correct lyrics!Highly recommend for any karaoke host or karaoke fan who likes to sing The Beatles!
