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SOME STUFFS: The Beatles’ remasters will finally arrive on the day of the sacred 9

Edit | Published April 7th, 2009 at 7:16 am in Music News with no comments
Tagged with George Harrison, John Lennon, Macca, Paul McCartney, remasters, Richard Starkey, Ringo Starr, The Beatles


Huge news in Beatleland. After years of taunting, impatiently waiting, hoping, weeping, sobbing, and every other -ing out there, it seems as if hell has officially been frozen over for millions of Beatles fans. It was announced officially today that Apple/EMI will be reissuing remastered versions of all of The Beatles’ proper album catalog and a few other key albums with a few tracks that may have been released as single-only tracks (i.e. Past Masters.)

For those who don’t know, fans in the mid to late 80’s were waiting for The Beatles to be released on CD, as the only thing available at the time was a very expensive Japanese edition of Abbey Road (which currently commands high prices today). Unfortunately fans were not happy with it because their early albums were released on CD in mono-only, not stereo. Each of those CD’s could have have both the mono and stereo mixes for each album but back then that wasn’t a consideration (record labels were still uncertain that the general public wanted older music on compact disc). Also, some felt that the sound quality was not as good as it could have been, even though in the late 80’s mastering techniques were not as developed or complex as it is today, which means most likely fans were hearing quality discs. In fact, the CD for Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band was almost universally praised as a 5 star disc. Knowledge of the remastering business has made people become more aware of sound quality issues and what is possible from an old master tape.

Word of Beatles remasters has been rumored for years, as fans have wanted to have something better than what exists. It would eventually develop into such underground figures as Dr. Ebbett and Purple Chick, both of whom have hunted down vinyl editions of key pressings of Beatles records and released them in bootleg and digital form. Avid/rabid record collectors know that certain pressings of records are considered to be sonically superior, making the initial Beatles CD pressings obsolete. As they have grown in popularity, the people at Apple and EMI have been put into the dark ages.

The Beatles remasters will be released on the 9th of September, 2009: 09/09/09. It’s the perfect number, especially for anyone who appreciated John Lennon’s love of the number nine, and these discs will hopefully be the recording industry’s last hurrah as it hopes to make these CD’s sell massively.

This is what it says at the official Beatles website:

The collection comprises all 12 Beatles albums in stereo, with track listings and artwork as originally released in the UK, and ‘Magical Mystery Tour,’ which became part of The Beatles’ core catalogue when the CDs were first released in 1987. In addition, the collections ‘Past Masters Vol. I and II‘ are now combined as one title, for a total of 14 titles over 16 discs. This will mark the first time that the first four Beatles albums will be available in stereo in their entirety on compact disc. These 14 albums, along with a DVD collection of the documentaries, will also be available for purchase together in a stereo boxed set.

Within each CD’s new packaging, booklets include detailed historical notes along with informative recording notes. With the exception of the ‘Past Masters‘ set, newly produced mini-documentaries on the making of each album, directed by Bob Smeaton, are included as QuickTime files on each album. The documentaries contain archival footage, rare photographs and never-before-heard studio chat from The Beatles, offering a unique and very personal insight into the studio atmosphere.

A second boxed set has been created with the collector in mind. ‘The Beatles in Mono‘ gathers together, in one place, all of the Beatles recordings that were mixed for a mono release. It will contain 10 of the albums with their original mono mixes, plus two further discs of mono masters (covering similar ground to the stereo tracks on ‘Past Masters’). As an added bonus, the mono “Help!” and “Rubber Soul” discs also include the original 1965 stereo mixes, which have not been previously released on CD. These albums will be packaged in mini-vinyl CD replicas of the original sleeves with all original inserts and label designs retained.

Bad economic times? Don’t say that to the millions of Beatles fans who will be buying each remastered album on 09/09/09, freaking out the lady at Best Buy with the piercings on her lip and eyebrow. BTW - this is also the same day that The Beatles: Rock Band video game will be released.

are you reading this prince? are you? are you f-ing reading this?

IstenSzek said:

We're on the same wavelength

I actually made fantasy tracklistings for remastered editions of Dirty Mind, 1999, Purple Rain, Sign O' The Times, and Lovesexy

good news, too expensive for some poor old student like me, though

Shame on Prince for not doing something like this!

I may just go ahead and buy the stereo box set.I've been wanting all the Beatles albums for awhile.I'm glad I waited...that box set is gonna be amazing!

SoulAlive said:

i think he will once he gets control of his masters.

ehuffnsd said:

yeah but how many more years will that be?

wow,
I don't know how many times in my lifetime they have trotted out the Beatles catalog.
I love the Beatles but the copies I have, plus the anthology and such, I don't think I'm going to fork over any more money unless I lose mine in a fire or something..

SoulAlive said:

35 years after the release of the album. For You becomes his in 2013, Prince 2014, Dirty Mind 2015, Controversy 2016, 1999 2018, Purple Rain 2019, so on and so forth.

Ugot2shakesumthin said:

That's wrong!

The CDs were released only ONCE - in 1987.

All the CDs (save for some specials like Red and Blue albums, Past Masters, Anthology) you can buy are from 1987.

If you compare that with others (Michael Jackson, Pet Shop Boys, Queen, U2 many more) that's quite little!

ehuffnsd said:

is this slated in the contract or is this usual in the business?

graecophilos said:

business as usual

ehuffnsd said:

andy why do the Beatles not own their own stuff now? Will MJ do?
And Madonna?

I'm getting the Mono box... that's if the remastering job isn't a limited/compressed massacre.

The stereo mixes were done as an after thought for most of their albums, as mixing in stereo was thought of as more of a novelty initially.

All the time and love was put into making the mono mixes amazing....they're not just the stereo mixes collapsed into mono, they're actually completely different mixes!

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE!!!!!

DON'T COMPRESS THE LIVING BEJESUS OUT OF THEM!!!!!

IstenSzek said:

PRINCE HAS NO CONTROL over what is done with his work for the most part, the BEATLES have 100% control.

oh!

lastdecember said:

actually, that's the problem. he does have control, which is why his albums aren't remastered (and some of them aren't even in print).

if he had NO control, it would be better for us.

and for him, honestly. because he'd be making shitloads more money off of them.

errant said:

the control he has is limited to publishing, that is all. The truth is that WB doesnt have the $$$ to put into remastering, they didnt do it with Madonna either, it costs alot, and the payback is not there, i know peeps dont like to hear it, but unless you are the Beatles, these things are not profitable to a label and there isnt alot of demand there for Prince remasters.

lastdecember said:

No, the control is that he gets to say "No" to WB remastering and re-releasing his catalog.

The point is not whether or not it is profitable. They will make back their profits from the hardcore fans who will buy these, no matter the artist.

They've got the albums in print anyway, so why not a remastered version?

graecophilos said:

The Beatles do own their stuff Apple Music is the company run by Peter, Ringo and the estates of George and John.
[Edited 4/7/09 17:58pm]

errant said:

in theory once P own the Masters he can go to another label have them distribut the back catalog and/or prevent Warner Music from reprinting his cds.

errant said:

Again, not a profitable thing at all, they balked at the Madonna catalog too. Prince's control is very over estimated by people, he lost ALOT of his money and control when he left Warner, or should i say BOUGHT his way out of Warner. Prince's contract is up with warner, so they have to contact him if they want to re-issue something, BUT warner has NO DESIRE to do this, for one reason, Prince would never promote for them, so why would warner step to prince and say "hey prince we are going to re-package and re-sell your cds" Prince's reply would be give me ownership or im not standing by it, and there goes to joint venture. YOU will almost never see re-masters after an artist is gone from a label unless he has total ownership, and Prince does not have that by any means.

lastdecember said:

the master recordings return to the artist after 35 years. which means he will have total control.

lastdecember said:

"Ultimate Prince"

errant said:

Part of what he owed them still, was not profitable in the long run, and didnt do well. Purple Rain is about the only thing that would possibly garner interest enough for a re-issue, and at this 25th anniversary, it would be time, but there again wont happen. Honestly though, WB could just put this cd out again and make money for themselves (which they will) just by slapping a 25th anniversary sticker on it, and they can do what they want with it, they have that control since they are the ones that have pulled alot of his cd's out of print.

lastdecember said:

He didn't owe them that. They used up what he owed them with "The Very Best Of Prince" which has done very well. "Ultimate Prince" was a limited release, so it isn't surprising that it hasn't sold well.

errant said:

Compilations are within their right to release, and all that material is theirs not his. This version basically replaced the Very Best of, and was within their right to release, without any input from Prince, this is material he turned over to them. The only thing they cannot do with his work is put it on compilations of MIXED artists, you will not see Prince on any of these "best of the 80's" or RB classics etc...that he has power of

lastdecember said:

Actually, it wasn't within their rights to release. When he left WB, Choas, The Vault and a compilation to be named later (TVOB) were what he owed them.

The had to get his permission for "Ultimate" and they got it. They even even cooperated with his request to take off Erotic City and Sexy MF.