Entire Beatles catalog remastered and re-released!

[tjcurtin1]

Read about it here:

http://www.beatles.com/core/news/

Release date is 9-09-09, anniversary of the rooftop concert (last live Beatles performance), and it appears that the films are included - which means, AT LAST Let it Be will be available!

[tot_Ou_tard]

I just saw the ad last night.

YEAH! YEAH! YEAH!

[R_of_G]

Release date is 9-09-09, anniversary of the rooftop concert (last live Beatles performance), and it appears that the films are included - which means, AT LAST Let it Be will be available!

The rooftop performance was January 30, 1969.

[tjcurtin1]

The rooftop performance was January 30, 1969.

Oops! You are so right R of G....how could I have forgotten the cause of those oh-so-cold fingers..... My careless misreading of two headline links at the bottom of the page for Let it Be. the 9-09 date corresponds with the release of a new Beatles video game....

Actually, while all the films are listed, I can't find any SPECIFIC reference to the re-release of any of them. Does anyone know anything more?

[tjcurtin1]

Oh, no! Further research on the site makes it clear that the films are not part of the reissue!!!! Aaarrgghh! What are they waiting for!

[wingsdad]

It seems obvious to me that the scheduled 09-09-09 release date of the Rock Band video game and now the remastered catalog are cosmically connected to John Lennon's fascination with the number 9 and his playing with it in song: Revolution Number 9, Number 9 Dream and one of his & McCartney's earliest songs that they finally put to record with the filming of Let It Be, One After 909. :eek:

But I don't get this digitally remastered catalog thing, like it's anything new and earth-shattering.:thwap:

All of their original EMI vinyl LP's were already remastered and reissued on CD, as well as other loose ends ('Past Masters I' and 'Past Masters II') almost 20 years ago. And Capitol already did the Mono album reissue thing with a couple of their early American LP releases. I've collected all of these to retire all my original vinyl LP's. And then there was 'Let It Be Naked', that stripped away all the Phil Spector over-production from that album, and added a couple of previously unreleased outtake gems to it.

I guess as a Beatles Fan since '63, it annoys me that this is just milking the cash cow one more time.:mad:

:deadhorse:

[tot_Ou_tard]

All of their original EMI vinyl LP's were already remastered and reissued on CD, as well as other loose ends ('Past Masters I' and 'Past Masters II') almost 20 years ago. The claim is that, in common with many reissues in the early days of CD, the remastering was done poorly & displays digital artifacts to a greater degree than current methods produce. In other words, the remastered catalog is long overdue.

Separate mono & stereo boxed sets?!? No alternate takes?!?

[R_of_G]

To be honest, I'm not all that much in favor of remastered versions of those albums. They're historic documents and I'd rather hear them the way they sounded when they were released and had the impact on the world that they had. When I worked at the radio station, I use the equipment to transfer my vinyl to cd and I prefer those cd versions to the officially released cd versions. I prefer the warmth of vinyl to the so-called "clean sound" of digital.

[Fab4]

To be honest, I'm not all that much in favor of remastered versions of those albums. They're historic documents and I'd rather hear them the way they sounded when they were released...

Then your only alternative is the original vinyl. Mastering tapes for CD necessarily involves judgments and compromises...but of course, so did mastering those same tapes to vinyl in the first place.

Mastering tapes for CD is an art/science that has come a long way since the Beatles catalog was first issued on CD. The technology exists to get CDs a lot closer to feel of vinyl now, but you also can't discount the ears of whoever is doing the mastering.

Tom Scholz of Boston always hated the CD versions of his albums. He finally got the chance to remaster the first two Boston albums (the good ones) himself. I was skeptical, but since the remastered CDs were only $10 each, I gave 'em a shot. Even in my car on the way home from Best Buy, I had to say that they sounded subtly but effectively better...smoother and just easier to listen to.

I'll have to reserve judgment on the Beatles remasters until I hear them. They could be great, they could be not so much different to justify the cost, but I'll wager they'll be better. That said, I didn't like the remastering done to the music in the DVD version of "A Hard Days Night," but that may have been because it stood out as "different" in the context of the movie soundtrack.

As I understand it, there will be some video features in the Beatles remasters (but not the movies), along with studio banter like what was featured in the Cirque du Soleil "Love" show. Will those extras and the new mastering job be worth the bucks? We'll see in September.

[tjcurtin1]

I guess as a Beatles Fan since '63, it annoys me that this is just milking the cash cow one more time.:mad:

:deadhorse:

I just wish they'd milk me for a copy of Let it Be (the film)! But if you really want to see milking, check out the store on that site: how about a 40th anniversary White Album fountain pen for $528.00? (Yes, the decimal point is in the right place...!) I was stunned - page after page of junk - coffee mugs, plates etc.

[markb]

...

I guess as a Beatles Fan since '63, it annoys me that this is just milking the cash cow one more time.:mad:

:deadhorse:

Thank you, Wings for saving me from having to say this. :bravo:
I'll assume that these "new, improved" Beatles records will still sell for full price. Under UK law the first Beatles records go out of copyright in 2012, this is probably EMI's last chance to do this.

[wingsdad]

To be honest, I'm not all that much in favor of remastered versions of those albums. They're historic documents and I'd rather hear them the way they sounded when they were released and had the impact on the world that they had. When I worked at the radio station, I use the equipment to transfer my vinyl to cd and I prefer those cd versions to the officially released cd versions. I prefer the warmth of vinyl to the so-called "clean sound" of digital.
I've got the gear for that, and I've done that with all my original mono and stereo vinyl Beatles LP's (been working on doing this with all my vinyl for...years...I have....'a few', collected from c. 1961 - early 80's). I don't bother filtering out the lovely little snap, crackle and pops, either...lest I trim out some actual sound.

Among that vinyl are the 2 Boston LP's you refer to, Fab4...and like, you, I got the fresh Scholz remastered CD's. I've compared them to my vinyl's, my cd's of the vinyl, and the 'first issue' cd's of them. I'd class them as 'like the vinyl', only 'cleaner'.


I just wish they'd milk me for a copy of Let it Be (the film)!...

+1,001 on that, man.:AOK: But that would be too obvious. When they do, they'll do it like the did the 2nd release of the 'Help!' DVD...big expensive box package....I've got 'HDN' and the 1st issue DVD of 'Help', and dubbed the 'Yello Sub' vhs to dvd...so, I wait, patiently....:mad:

[Jipes]

I guess as a Beatles Fan since '63, it annoys me that this is just milking the cash cow one more time.:mad:

:deadhorse:

I can only be in total agreement with you :(

[Fab4]

I just wish they'd milk me for a copy of Let it Be (the film)!

And to sweeten the milk a little, can they do a bonus feature of the rooftop concert that doesn't cutaway to people milling around on the street EVERYtime George or Billy plays a fill or solo. Geeze, I hate that!

I know all that original footage still exists because somebody did a book that transcribed it all to get a better idea of happened at the sessions. Get someone to go through it, clean it up, and cut in shots of THE BAND wherever the original editor cut to the crowd. How hard could it be? I'd pay good money for that.