Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band 50th Anniversary Reissue (with 5.1 surround mix)

[seilerbird]

You must remember there was no stereo then. It was but only in movies! everyone had mono record players, and AM radio was the thing. One mono speaker. It was not until a few years later stereo became available to us. The old man worked at GE where I live years ago they made radios here, and he brought home a GE stereo, with FM! There was no FM radio then. I can remember going thru the FM dial and nothing came back. This music I first heard in Mono. I loved the shit out of it! Did not know better! So, to say the mono version 'sucks" is a wrong statement, it should be the mono version is not close to the 5.1 version. That was made from mono master.
If you look you will see the absolute inferior recording equipment they had then. So, although I have not had the chance to hear it yet, I will never forget the day my friend played it for me the very 1st time. I was 16 and this music was new! It was different, this was not the Beatles I knew. The very reason I am so passionate over this album.

You clearly were not alive in 1967 like I was. I owned Pepper in stereo and played it on my 67 Cougar 8 track all summer long. I also has a stereo in the house and I had been listening to stereo Beatles albums since Rubber Soul. I also listened to a lot of stereo on FM radio back then. RIAA approved the standards for stereo records in December of 1957 and stereo LPs were produced starting in 1958. I said the mono version sucks compared to the surround version not the mono version sucks, very different thing. I worked all of 1966 in a record store and we had to order two versions of each album, stereo and mono. Your history book is all screwed up.

 

[JonUrban]

You clearly were not alive in 1967 like I was. I owned Pepper in stereo and played it on my 67 Cougar 8 track all summer long. I also has a stereo in the house and I had been listening to stereo Beatles albums since Rubber Soul. I also listened to a lot of stereo on FM radio back then. RIAA approved the standards for stereo records in December of 1957 and stereo LPs were produced starting in 1958. I said the mono version sucks compared to the surround version not the mono version sucks, very different thing. I worked all of 1966 in a record store and we had to order two versions of each album, stereo and mono. Your history book is all screwed up.

Yep. My parents had one of those console stereo things in the living room. I remember that clearly, in that the second part of it (The other speaker) was an option. My uncle who was a musician paid for the optional speaker (my parents weren't rich by any means) and that plugged into the console and became the other channel. The stereo LP's were $1 more, and sometimes we got the stereo (but most times got the mono because it was cheaper).

Stereo was there. But, like color TV, not everyone had it.

 

[marpow]

That sucks! What did you end up paying for each set?

I haven't seen my credit card statement, but $161.00 plus shipping = $238.64=26520 Yen. I'm going to shoot myself, you better believe I'm going to play with the diorama and vote 10 on the poll at that price. They are SHM CD's so that's an extra bonus. That is $100.00 more than some others have paid with the regular RBCD's and no diorama. I bet if you just want the stand alone BD you think I am Ca-ra-zy. I don't know what I will do with the extra box, CDJapan only has 5 left as of this writing.

 

[4-earredwonder]

the interviewer wouldn't let him continue/elaborate on that tack but i wonder what he objects to about this new reissue so much?! is he anti the remix itself? or it being remixed in 5.1? disgusting's a strong word..

Adam, that's NOT the impression I garnered from that wonderful interview. I just think Emerick opposed the change in tonality that certain instruments took on in the MONO version which didn't translate well into the stereo remaster.

What I would love to hear is a reaction from anyone who has heard Giles Martin's 7.1 ATMOS Sgt. Pepper REMIX currently playing in theaters.

Guaranteed that version will be released on UHD 4K and BD~A.

As far as Perpendicular's objection to Emerick's 'casual' mention of the Beatle's 'drug usage.....' well, back in the late 60's everybody and their kid brother was experimenting with drugs.....so NO big deal, IMO. He certainly wasn't telling tales 'out of school!' Thankfully, there were NO drug overdoses among the Beatles, that's for sure!

 

[ar surround]

Yep. My parents had one of those console stereo things in the living room. I remember that clearly, in that the second part of it (The other speaker) was an option. My uncle who was a musician paid for the optional speaker (my parents weren't rich by any means) and that plugged into the console and became the other channel. The stereo LP's were $1 more, and sometimes we got the stereo (but most times got the mono because it was cheaper).

Stereo was there. But, like color TV, not everyone had it.

Same here. We had The Magnificent Magnavox with all of 5 watts (tubes) per channel. It could be played with both channels in the console or with an outboard speaker hooked up for wider separation. My father chose to put the outboard speaker in the kitchen since most stuff was mono anyway. I remember trying to sneak him the stereo version of A Hard Day's Night in the checkout line, but he caught me and had me get the mono version for a buck less...like $8 more in today's money.

 

[j9]

…Thankfully, there were NO drug overdoses among the Beatles, that's for sure!

Well there was their manager who died of an overdose not too long after the release of Sgt. Pepper.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[4-earredwonder]

Well there was their manager who died of an overdose not too long after the release of Sgt. Pepper.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Quite true, but during that period we suffered the loss of Janis, Jimi and Jim [Morrison] and the Beatle's 'casual' drug use certainly had NO effect on their music.......or maybe it did but in a creative sense!

And it was interesting to note in the documentary "The Making of Sgt. Pepper" that Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds had NOTHING to do with LSD [as was commonly thought] but was rather inspired by a nursery school drawing which Lennon's son, Julian, had drawn.

 

[4-earredwonder]

Now, after NOT getting a response from CDJapan with my OK for additional shipping charges, I panicked, ordered another, thinking I could cancel when they respond. They responded, both are already shipped as of yesterday, Japan time. What a mess, now two Japanese editions are on the way, probably will get Wednesday. Anybody have any experience sending back to CDJapan ?

Mark, perhaps you can PM Lute [Brett] who lives in Tokyo and ask his advice.

That's a pretty hefty boxset [size/weight~wise] and it'll cost you a pretty penny to ship it back, I'm sure.

 

[milt]

Yep. My parents had one of those console stereo things in the living room. I remember that clearly, in that the second part of it (The other speaker) was an option. My uncle who was a musician paid for the optional speaker (my parents weren't rich by any means) and that plugged into the console and became the other channel. The stereo LP's were $1 more, and sometimes we got the stereo (but most times got the mono because it was cheaper).

Stereo was there. But, like color TV, not everyone had it.

We had a Zenith Mediterranean Modern console.
My Dad loved Bonanza, hence it was a color TV.
Didn't have remote though as Dad ruled the programming.
Other than Bonanza, I remember watching primarily CBS.
In those days our small town had CBS, NBC & the precursor to PBS.
Popular ABC shows, like Wide World of Sports were picked up by the 2 above stations.
We didn't have an ABC affiliate until 1970ish.
Sheesh, seems like a million years ago.

As far as Sgt. Pepper and the other Beatles recordings up until that point, they weren't recorded in stereo.
I thought that was common knowledge.
And yes I do remember many Stereo albums being $1.00 more than Mono.

 

[ar surround]

As far as Sgt. Pepper and the other Beatles recordings up until that point, they weren't recorded in stereo.
I thought that was common knowledge.
And yes I do remember many Stereo albums being $1.00 more than Mono.

In the US, we were 'blessed' with early Beatles albums mixed in stereo...duophonic fake stereo. I guess somebody likes them as they are still available on CD.

The book that came with the Pepper deluxe box set and other sources state that it was mixed rather quickly into stereo about a month after the mono mix. I went back and listened to tidbits of the original stereo mix to refresh my memory. I find it to be variable. On many songs it has hard panning of the vocals while others have them centered. The Pepper original stereo mix is not as consistently extreme as most tracks mixed in stereo on Rubber Soul. Now wouldn't it be grand if we could get the same 5.1 treatment on Rubber Soul and Revolver as we've gotten with Pepper?

 

[marpow]

PBS, airs a Sgt. Pepper special on June 3rd.

 

[H.A.L.]

You think not opening this box set yet is bad? Look what else I purchased of The Beatles that I've yet to open.

I also have the dual format HARD DAY'S NIGHT, and the sound is excellent on it (however, after playing nicely all the way through on my Denon universal player the first time, the dual layer format the last time I tried stopped on the first half and wouldn't go beyond ). When I'm really bored, I'll have to find a software update, I suppose.

But not to hijack the thread! My Sgt. Pepper box arrived on Monday, and I immediately went to the 5.1 DTS. Took me a song or two to get into the new sound mix, but I really fell in love with it (especially George's astral sitar!). Flipped to the Dolby 5.1 to compare, and it sounded a bit more "solid" in the sense some "airiness" was missing; I'll do a full run-through of that at some point. Curious about the PCM stereo -- why listen to the first CD if you have that?

Really hope it is true they'll do WHITE ALBUM and ABBEY ROAD with similar treatment, although my bank account will complain mightily :yikes

Btw, I freaked out for a moment when I opened the box and it seemed to only contain a mono vinyl album copy -- they sent me the wrong box, waaah! Of course, joke on me, the CDs/blu ray were nicely set inside what appeared to be an unopened vinyl. Nice touch!

 

[skindzier]

Something to throw out there to the rippers... Make sure you grab the 5.1 and Hi Rez Stereo from the Day in the Life video - it is the stand-alone version of the song without the transition from the Sgt. Pepper Reprise. I've always loved to play A Day in the life on its own with just the acoustic intro, going back to the old Blue hits album (love it as presented in the album too, but the stand-alone gives you a nice option if you're just playing tracks instead of albums)...

 

[skherbeck]

Something to throw out there to the rippers... Make sure you grab the 5.1 and Hi Rez Stereo from the Day in the Life video - it is the stand-alone version of the song without the transition from the Sgt. Pepper Reprise. I've always loved to play A Day in the life on its own with just the acoustic intro, going back to the old Blue hits album (love it as presented in the album too, but the stand-alone gives you a nice option if you're just playing tracks instead of albums)...

Nice suggestion... I rip and play randomized tracks, but I've combined "Good Morning", "Reprise", and "A Day In The Life" into a single track (I just love the progression ). That being said, I also have the stand alone "Day In The Life" from the Love album in my playlist!

 

[JonUrban]

Nice suggestion... I rip and play randomized tracks, but I've combined "Good Morning", "Reprise", and "A Day In The Life" into a single track (I just love the progression ). That being said, I also have the stand alone "Day In The Life" from the Love album in my playlist!

"Good Morning - Reprise - A Day in the Life" is a good choice for a track. I grew up in the '60, and was a huge Beatles fan. Bought everything as it came out. Lived it and loved it. However, after 50 years I can honestly say that while I love this stuff, I don't like it as much as I once did, mostly because I played it all so many times that it's almost burned out of my brain. I probably hadn't listened to Sgt Pepper all the way through in over 20 years.

The 5.1 helps break the burn-out but still I can't listen to it over and over, so I prefer to take it in doses. And the "GM-R-ADITL" section I can still listen to a bit more than the rest because the 5.1 makes "Good Morning" fresh, Reprise is short, and ADITL is, well, ADITL. That track stands the test of time and the test of burn out.

So yeah, good choice. I listened to that section a couple of times today, in DTS in the car, with the rears +3dB. Hey, I liked it!

 

[EMB]

Every so often I've come back to Pepper, and wouldn't even want to estimate how many times I've played it all the way through, but we'd be talking low to mid three figures, I'm sure.

My first hearing of this was in mono, presumably because, as I was eleven and had a small paper route at the time, bought it because it was a buck cheaper than the stereo edition (not that I thought about mono, stereo, fake stereo, or such sonics things at the time; after all, I was a kid). Bought the stereo version a few years later, not only because I had more money to spend, but both my sister and I had worn the mono pressing out (and of course, bought yet another copy to replace it, probably sometime in the late '70s). My collection also has an original UK stereo and a '71 US Apple label pressing. Oh yeah, and a mono plastic sleeved edition from Uruguay (!).

Overall, though, I think the original stereo mix was on the main very good--for 1967. The intro to the opening track, though, was kinda maddening, because it really wasn't a great start, compared to the more powerful mono mix. Which is why I'm glad this stereo remix referenced the mono in approach. Of course, if a listener is unfamiliar with the mono, the sped up "She's Leaving Home," like the White Album's "Don't Pass Me By" can be very jarring at first.

As for its being either THE GREATEST ALBUM EVER MADE (Rolling Stone) or "A Day-Glo tombstone of its time" (writer Greil Marcus), Pepper has been nothing if not ubiquitous when the topping is rock albums. Yet if we go back to 1967, consider how many remarkable albums there were. Here are my faves:

Beatles: Pepper & MMT
Bee Gees 1st
Judy Collins: Wildflowers
Country Joe & The Fish
Cream: Fresh Cream & Disraeli Gears
The Doors: The Doors & Strange Days
Four Tops: Reach Out
The Jimi Hendrix Experience: Are You Experienced
The Kaleidoscope: Side Trips & A Beacon From Mars
Jefferson Airplane: Surrealistic Pillow
Love: Forever Changes
Moby Grape
The Mothers of Invention: Absolutely Free
Nico: Chelsea Girls
Pink Floyd: Piper at the Gates of Dawn
Otis Redding: Live in Europe
The Rolling Stones: Between the Buttons
The Velvet Underground & Nico
The Who: Happy Jack & The Who Sell Out
The Young Rascals: Groovin'
VA: The Stax/Volt Revue Live in London (Vol. 1)

And those are just the obvious titles that come to mind...what a year!

ED

 

[JediJoker]

Yet if we go back to 1967, consider how many remarkable albums there were.

Not listed in your faves: Days of Future Passed by The Moody Blues.

 

[marpow]

Being in cyberspace limbo with Pepper on the way, last week I ordered this new release book to get up to date on all things Pepper, quite good, lots of facts on Mono vs stereo release, etc.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0983295743/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[ar surround]

...However, after 50 years I can honestly say that while I love this stuff, I don't like it as much as I once did, mostly because I played it all so many times that it's almost burned out of my brain. I probably hadn't listened to Sgt Pepper all the way through in over 20 years.

The 5.1 helps break the burn-out but still I can't listen to it over and over, so I prefer to take it in doses...

Oh how I would love to get to that state. Listening to this new 5.1 is just like when I first got the album. I have played it every day since it arrived last Friday and I am totally addicted to it. Even delving into the out take CDs doesn't satiate my appetite for the 5.1. Is there a Pepperholics Anonymous? .........

Help me. :ugham:

 

[skherbeck]

A few months after my first child was born, my wife and I both struggling in college, our newly born daughter would often wake up crying at night. When it was my turn to comfort her, I would go to the living room of our tiny apartment and turn on music really low (I didn't want to wake mom up since it was one of her nights to sleep) and walk back and forth around the room, gently bouncing her in my arms, softly singing along with the music. The album I played the most was Sgt. Pepper's... the song that seemed to help her sleep the best was "She's Leaving Home", so I would often play that song on repeat, just for she and I, in the darkness barely lit by the low lights of the hi-fi, in the wee hours of the night, whispering along with Paul into those barely used baby ears. It's a memory I cherish.

It's so weird to think that here I am, 17 years later, listening once again to those same tunes over and over, my first-born daughter likely to be leaving home soon. Great music is eternal.