I am the Walrus is a disaster. Using technology to change the way we hear music is one thing, changing the music itself is another. What theyve done to this song is comparable to fading out She Love You or taking the 1234 count off of I Saw Her Standing There.. by omitting parts they have fundamentally changed the concept of the song.
I bet this was the most challenging mix of the lot especially trying to keep the integrity of its compressed, wall of sound zaniness. Wasn't the last third of the original locked in mono? AI demixing has finally solved that by the sounds of it. Agree that the fade out has strayed too far from the original to be acceptable to fans.
Your granular details on what are in effect production errors/oversights with some of these remasters puts this video above so many other reviews. Well done! Amazing!
I never owned either the Red or Blue album growing up, mostly because I trying to collect all the original albums instead. But these updated versions do seem very interesting, and I will listen to them on Apple Music. But I haven't decided if I will purchase a hard copy, I do like the red and blue vinyl. Great video, and thanks for sharing.
Same here. I bought everything but these albums since 1981! Finally nice to have them - ordered the two limited editions on slipcased CD’s and red and blue vinyl set.
John, i'll make 2 comments here. Firstly the track listing. Totally agree with your choices of some of the songs that SHOULD have been included!! I Don't Want To Spoil The Party, And Your Bird Can Sing, Rain.
As for hearing Pepper songs out of context, these albums were my introduction to The Beatles in the late 70s, and it was many years before I stopped hearing The Marseilles in my head as the Pepper album came to an end.
My problem with 'Old Brown Shoe' is the ridiculously loud bass. I don't like the whole "produce the songs for today's listeners" approach, cranking up the rhythm section so you can dance to it. I listened to a dozen or so of the Red album tracks this morning, love the clean separation of instruments, centering of the vocals, improvement on rhythm guitar in some songs; but occasionally something seems missing or something is too loud. The new technology is fantastic but I'd like to see it used in other hands. I don't need Martin's ideas of 'improved' production. Just make them cleaner, clearer, put the vocals in the center; don't re-write the songs in your image.
Very helpful review, John. I don't have the original Red and Blue albums and won't be buying these as I can't see how they would add to what I have. Very good point about playing Pepper tracks next to White Album tracks (for example). Many thanks.
If I listen to current pop records nothing sounds "too loud". In fact, they are exceptionally clean and balanced because they are done by the best in the industry... Unlike these.
Man, I so agree with you! Paul’s bass is just way too loud on many of Giles Martins remixes, and his decision to play with the integrity of the original mixes (I mean, what the hell is up with those bongoes on A Hard Days Night?). For me, the Yellow Submarine Songtrack, which was remixed by Sir George Martin, is the template for what a Beatles remix should sound like.
Think people forget these may be aimed at new comers , the new generation, I got the CDs , they sound great , the vinyl albums were my introduction to the wonderful world of The Beatles back in the mid 80s ,
I really like these new remixes. They sound clean, crisp, and fresh! I think Giles Martin did a great job with these Beatle songs. Also, if anybody doesn't like the new versions, they can always go back and listen to the 2009 remasters, which sound good! Beatles forever!!❤❤
Im not too happy with Giles Martin's mixes. They should have got the people that worked on the Yellow Submarine Songtrack to remix the Red and Blue sets.
Thank you once again for a helpful video ... will give the Red album a go on Qobuz to check out any upsides from the remixing of the earlier material ... CMcG, Aberdeen, Scotland
When you already own these albums on original vinyl and also on CD, I would think that not too many people of my age(over 60) would pay 75 quid for these recordings. I picked up a very early copy of the red album at a charity shop last year , 5 quid, and it sounds absolutely amazing. A wonderful pressing , luckily. One of my friends said to me ' the Beatles are overrated " he likes ABBA. He's an idiot.
I messaged MeanmrMustard who in his review of the red blue noted that I am the walrus has been ruined by Gyles Martin who I think is just undoing his father's original work and I wish he would stop messing with Beatles albums. I think the object is to resell Beatles and make shed loads of MONEY.
The whole point of the Red Album was all song writing credits were Lennon/McCartney. I'm glad they've added some important Harrison tracks but I don't get why they have added covers like Twist and Shout and Roll over Beethoven... I know they are great and popular songs but for me they don't belong on the Red Album.
A comprehensive career retrospective of The Beatles has to include Twist and Shout. I prefer several songs on Please Please Me, such as Ask Me Why and There's A Place, but they aren't generally known amongst casual listeners, whereas Twist and Shout is hugely famous. That said, I think they deliberately omitted some obvious choices, like I Should Have Known Better, If I Fell, No Reply and I'm A Loser, in order to keep those big hitters for future remixes of their appropriate albums.
The mess that Giles Martin made of 'She Said She Said' on his version of Revolver decided me to never fork out for any of his mixes again. Funny you showing the blue HMV box, as just the other day I rescued mine from a dusty cupboard at our old house during another clear-out!
I like how you show all the copies you have of the album you're discussing. Also when you pull an interesting quote from an out of print book. A lot of things I've only heard here.
hi john always interested on your take on all things Beatles, i agree bit pricey for me but has said before happy with my 1sT pressing of the red and blue albums not sure im wanting extra tracks however each to his own back in the day a album and cassette still is my collective needs, yes i guess we pick our own extra tracks given the chance still feel now and then would have been better on a rebooted anthology album with rebooting free has a bird and real love, i guess the bottom line is they will be a market for it like yourself i raise a eyebrow mixing pepper with the white album and abbey road, would like to have seen Georges its all too much and only northern song instead of within you not sure about i want you(she is heavy) on there nothing against the song not sure if it fits, think Ringo's dont pass me by or goodnight was worth a place on the blue, just a thought however ill be taking a rain check on these have the other tracks on there respective albums good update john keep them coming sir.
Absolutely see no point in these new, extended red and blue albums. Other than Revolver being underrepresented on red, the track listings were perfect the way they were.
Hi John, just got round to listening to these new mixes, some were a revelation (if I needed someone like you said has such a brightness and clarity and the fool on the hill was another favourite) but others just did not do it for me (agree with what you said about both hey bulldog and old brown shoe), glad they have been done as the original mixes were never brilliant (stereo especially was super rushed back in the day so mono was the only way for many albums) but some of Giles martins decision have been head scratching to say the least
Giles got the job because of his Dad. In the great scheme of things, Now and Then being on here (2023) just seems silly being on an LP marked 1967 to 1970. Going forwards it just seems the wrong place for it... and dumping the extra tracks on a 3rd disk instead of being mixed in to the track order on vinyl is weird.
The Beatles were never 'conventional', sometimes 'weird'. They always seemed to include a track or two on their LP's that divided opinion - so nothing's changed!
Remembering my own “history” - confronting the red & blue albums for the first time back in ‘73. Those releases coincided with my own renewed interest in The Beatles after a period of me virtually ignoring them. Was a fan (like everyone else in the US after seeing them on Ed Sullivan’s show) then having Beatlemania burned into my psyche after the release of A Hard Day’s Night. This wave carried me through the Sgt Pepper & Magical Mystery Tour LPs - both occurring during my 8th grade year - the worst academic period in my life - which I blamed on my obsession with Sgt Pepper. I Ignored the White Album but bought the Hey Jude & Come Together singles when released but, by then, I’d moved away from their oeuvre. Next thing I know there were rumors of them breaking up - and I really didn’t care all that much. I was not familiar with Yoko or when she came into the picture and certainly knew nothing of the Get Back/Let It Be sessions. That all changed in the summer of ‘73 when I went to visit my best friend who was seated on his bed with a old beat up Gibson guitar and a Beatles chord book. He was playing badly and his singing was even worse. I thought I could do better so he loaned me the guitar and book and I realized very quickly that I couldn’t do better (at that point I’d been playing drums for 7 or 8 years). Seeing me struggle My dad bought me a brand new Yamaha guitar and I got my own Beatle songbook (virtually every song was in the wrong key!). I then went and bought the Red album (wouldn’t touch the Blue one because of the Pepper tracks - still superstitious about those songs. Then bought Hey Jude around then, later adding The White Album and Let It Be, Ram, Plastic Ono Band, and All Things Must Pass. The Beatles were back in my life!! Until supplanted by Lennon’s solo work and my interest in his life with May Pang and what little information I could find about that. Watched Lennon’s televised performance at the Lew Grade tribute - then he seemed to have gone into seclusion. By then I had become obsessed with Bob Dylan (his songs were infinitely easier to play on guitar) and The Beatles were, once again, relegated to the “back-burner.” Lennon’s death was shocking and sad but listening to Double Fantasy didn’t seem to help soothe the hurt. In the mid-80s a Houston radio station devoted to The Beatles (collectively and solo) was on my dial - day & night - until the channel went silent. Fast forward to The Anthology and all the anticipation that series brought! Fast forward again - to 2020. In January that year my wife and I went Vegas to see Cirque du Soleil’s “Love” performance, then during the lockdowns that summer started putting together Beatles jigsaw puzzles while listening to countless hours of the Nagra tapes. Was really stoked when I heard that Peter Jackson was working on Get Back and, when it finally debuted, I subscribed to Disney+ and watched it five times!! Now here we all are - excited that new mixes/additions to Red & Blue are available and being hotly debated. I’ve not heard both LPs yet - so I can’t really opine about them yet. I’m interested in hearing/reading what others have to say about them.
Biggest head scratcher on Hey Bulldog was the “shovelling” noise on the “You can talk to me…” parts. What kind of mad choice is that. Distracting and unnecessary. Shame
The packaging is awful for this amount of money. It should’ve been a trifold for the vinyl. Shoving two records into the same pocket is lazy/cost cutting design. Yeah, be sticking with what I’ve got too John. Great review as always.
The Red album is a powerhouse? I think they have tried to capture the energy of them as a live act, something that please please me nearly did ? I would say mixing wise Giles Martin does rock tunes well but more subtle tunes not so much? His dad i think softened the Beatles a little but no doubt his orchestral inputs are beautiful and balanced? Two different ears i think ? The first RED cd is just so beautifully dynamic the rhythm section just rocks ? Question you say you don’t need another red or blue yet you have so many anyway 😂 Glad to hear a more positive review as your Now and Then was almost written before you had heard it ? Take care now all the best
I have the red and blue albums on compact disc bought them durings the 90s still in perfect condition . Why would i waste my hard earned cash it coming up to Christmas . I hope Giles Martin actually produced a new album instead of trying to rehash the Beatles albums its tiring now.
Hi John, A couple of points... ~ I'm glad they included 'I Want You (She's So Heavy), Within You and Without You and Tomorrow Never Knows as they represent deep dives and fans favourites ,,all three of these tracks are ground breaking in their own way and provide a lot of substance along with the hits.... ~ For me 'I don't want to spoil the party' is not a top class Beatles song it's good but not at the level needed to be put on the red album. 'No Reply' (also from Beatles for sale) on the other hand is an all time classic Beatles song. ~ I agree with you about the exclusion of 'Rain' this one is a big omission . But I also feel Because from Abbey Road. I've Got A Feeling is a classic beatles song i would have liked on these. ~ Apart from Twist and Shout I would have kept it just to originals only and instead included 'She's A Woman' and 'No Reply'. From A Hard Days Night,,,,,,'I should have known better' is a much better known Beatles song than 'You can't do that' and should have been picked. Another early song that I personally love is 'There's a place' which has just magical Beatle harmonies. Yes It is as well. - For the blue album i agree with all of the track selections except to swap... - Happiness Is A Warm Gun for Glass Onion - Because for Oh Darling! - They should have found a way to include Free A A Bird and Real Love in this project , whether on the Blue album or as a B side to Now and Then. It doesn't make any sense to include now and then on the blue and not these. Even the as yet classic officially unreleased beatles classic jam 'The Palace of the King of the Birds' would have made a more interesting B side than a mix of 'Love Me Do',,,, and would have been a b side in the tradition of 'You know my name (look up the number)' .... Picking Love Me Do for the B side was playing it very safe. One thing about the Beatles in their career , they never played it 'safe' . Probably the most famous Beatles song omitted is 'When I'm 64' which is now a standard even outside the rock music circles. I was very surprised within you without you was instead chosen off pepper!
Actually, I've always preferred the Blue album. But to each their own. I can understand your reasons why you prefer the Red, however. I've ordered the colored vinyl set and the CDs. I've liked the recent re-mixes, so why not get these? No matter what decisions they make on the songs to include or the order that their in somebody will find something to gripe about.
Great video. Just in terms of the track selection. With the possible exception of Twist and Shout, which is a landmark early hit, I would not have included any cover versions. The Beatles have enough great originals without resorting to covers. Also, I would have stuck to the core 1962 to 1970 catalogue. If you include Now and Then you should include Free As a Bird and Real Love for completeness but in all honesty all three pale beside the core works and don’t warrant inclusion. Regarding the other selections, I agree Within You Without You is a strange choice for a compilation and personally I would rate Glass Onion as one of the weakest White Album tracks. Helter Skelter, Piggies, Sexy Sadie, I’m So Tired or Happiness is a Warm Gun would have been better choices. Also, would like to have seen She’s a Woman, Rain and Baby You’re a Rich Man included as great B-sides rather than This Boy and You Can’t Do That. The Red Album is still much shorter in duration than the Blue Album and could have included extra tracks. Great to see Revolver now properly represented but what about the underrated Beatles For Sale?
I'd much rather they deliver on Deluxe versions of the original 13 albums than bothering with Greatest Hits compilations, and as an exercise in gathering up all the singles over two sets they muffed up by not including "Free As A Bird" and "Real Love." With the addition of the last Beatles single, the title "1967-1970" no longer makes any sense, and with everything going 5.1, what good are the 2009 remasters now...?
Let’s be honest this is Apple’s and The Beatles cooperative aiming at Beatles Generation 6. Purely a marketing strategy (Apple is a business after all) they of course have every right to do whatever they wish with their own product, but as the saying goes ‘If It’s not broken why need to fix it’? Adding Now And Then totally takes away the story of the Blue album, perhaps they should have titled it 67-2023…… I would be far more interested in something like another Love album with a fresh selection of Beatles mash ups or a best of solo Beatles album 70-80 which Apple has overlooked. Naming it 4 for following the success of 1, which remains to my knowledge one of if not the biggest selling album of the millennium. Alternatively they will probably come up next year with a new album called Flogging A Dead Horse And Scrapping The Barrel.
I’ve listened to the red album on Amazon music, up to Paperback writer. It sounds rather brilliant to me. The blue album (which was always my favourite) has mostly tracks from the actual remixed full albums. Won’t be buying that but the red will be purchased on CD.
These Remixes are absolutely fabulous, except for Walrus, which sounds unfinished near the end. It is not mixed at all. Has the wrong file been used. Would love to hear Giles Martin speak about Walrus and why this was done.
My copy of the red album came with a gold foil sticker on it announcing "Special Double Album - £3.99" which I stopped trying to remove once I discovered it was destroying the cover underneath. But that sticker tells me that in today's terms, it cost £40.
liked to have seen rain on the red album think you find the reason why georges within you on the blue album is all down to royaties we all know olvia does not like to be short changed great review
I feel these mixes try to re-create an “in-studio with the guys” vibe, as the panning/isolation is quite liberal in a generally dry (reverb-less) setting.
I just listened to the She Loves You remix and im surprised you didnt mention it - pretty bad distortion/compression going on, its not a pleasant listening experience.
Due to have my CD versions delivered today. So pleased that You Cant Do That is included. Would also have chosen Julia for the Blue album. The originals were a great introduction.
7:37 - I haven't gotten "Blue" just yet - I'll wait a little while to download the tracks I don't have on the LP reissues, but I listened to Waltus on You Tube Music. I didn't like that crossfade between the first and second half of the song, either. I don't know why Giles chose to do this, but what was funny was as Walrus was playing, I realized I left regular You Tube on in the background, so whatever was running on that platform, it came through on I Am the Walrus, so it was an impromptu version of mixing in "King Lear", 🤣🤣🤣🤣
Giles' mixes are so hit and miss for me. I would think they are many more people more capable of such an important role, but that's nepotism I guess, how it's always worked.
I completely agree with you. For me, the bass is just so much more prominent in his mixes, to the point of being distracting. He seems to often focus on one instrument that he feels needs to be in the spotlight and mixes it too loud (the bongos on A Hard Days Night are a good example). I’m just happy we still have Sir George Martins original mixes because, for the most part, they are far superior.
I couldn't agree more. I have the blue album cd The balance of the mixes is mostly good but there is overwhelming bass and dullness on the bulk of these tracks . Revolver remix kind of sucked too. @@craigphillips6308
You are correct, his recent mixes have been mediocre at best. I can’t believe that on both “girl” and “in my life” he did not center John’s voice. He certainly ain’t his father.
Hi John I am glad that they kept the original tracklistings on the Red and Blue vinyls. All extra songs are on seperate discs. On the CD'S they change the tracklistings, still chronological. But I am glad they left the Red and Blue vinyl as they are for fifty years. Maybe it's because I am sentimental or autistic 😂. I prefer the vinyl running order. I bought both the 6LP and 4CD set, both in a white slipcase, over here in The Netherlands. I made a short video (about half a minute) on my RU-vid channel Pe Ke. Take care
The original Blue album was always quite perfect for me - the original Red misses too many tracks from Revolver. I don’t think I’ll be buying the triple Red and Blue albums - I have all of the original studio albums. If I find a copy of the original Blue album going cheap somewhere, then I might purchase it.
I rather enjoy those german versions, as I enjoy As tears go by in Italian by the Stones. These remind us that we are dealing with International artists! I find it a pity more artists don't record in other languages
13:15 - 13:20 - I can imagine George did NOT like the blue album ending on THE LONG AND WINDING ROAD. It's nice that they finally buried the hatchet, truly reconciled before poor old George passed away, but wasn't it funny as hell when George would take pot-shots at him all through the 70s and 80s?
You wonder with the issues you bring up with Old Brown Shoe whether too much was being done too quickly. I don't know how this MAL software works but it has done wonderful things. With the volume of tracks processed for especially the Red Album is it rnevitable that mistakes are made? Having said all that I'm generally impressed with what I've heard. £75 for the vinyl is too much for me though
Fair question. I suppose when market conditions make re-releasing an unprofitable situation, they will stop. A generation or two of people will have to fade away before consumer demand dries up. I've got multiple copies of all the music, but the remixing keeps my interest, just to hear if the remixing really does improve the listening experience. The pricing is too high, however, as John Heaton mentioned.
@@AudiophileTommy True and how far into the future will The Beatles be 'classic' for many new buyers and beyond that, a novelty to add to a future collection. People still buy Buddy Holly records, although just not in large quantities.
NOT GOOD FOR ME THE RED COLLECTION TILL…”Drive my Car”. At this point I have an atrocious doubt: have we by any chance started "compressing" sounds, instruments, frequencies and the acoustic scene again to "meet" the same old needs of the same, old and "not very faithful" vinyl technology?
We don't need these albums, we all have the tracks, preferably on cd then by using a computer we can make our own compilations. There are those of course who must have these releases, and on vinyl but I'm not one of those.
@@kevinlindsey6862 but I won't be able to take them with me and my family will have to deal with them. I do buy the box sets with outtakes, they give me pleasure, not a storage problem.
The original Red and Blue Albums are my introduction to The Beatles after a few singles and an EP my mother had. They are probably the only positive things Allen Klein ever did for the band as he selected the tracks. I hadn't actually heard Pepper when I first got the Blue Album so it was my introduction to it and The White Album. I wouldn't have added Roll Over Beethoven, Within Without You, Glass Onion, or I Want You as I think there are better songs. I won't be buying these, I'll stick to my originals but I will listen via online.
Allen Klein did renegotiate with EMI to get The Beatles the best royalty rate in the biz. Even McCartney was on board…so he wasn’t 100% bad. Granted Klein got his share but it did help the Beatles.
@@drummer78Yes I know that and I should have said "few", but he was also the reason that things got so ugly between McCartney and the others. The whole Sue Me Sue You Blues and the f course nasty input for How Do You Sleep? And Klein was a thoroughly nasty piece of work in his music business from Sam Cooke onwards
@@Slydeil Klein made his name in the early/mid 60’s as a financial auditor. He won back a tremendous amount of money owed to artists like Bobby Darin and Sam Cooke. In 1965, he famously gave the Stones a better royalty than The Beatles had at the time. The deal Klein was that he was going to find where the money was hidden by the record companies, but he was going to take his cut and them some. I see him as a lout and an bully but also someone who was willing to take on record companies who were the ones often screwing the artists most. Klein’s biggest misstep was probably thinking he could use his forensic accounting approach to “find” hidden monies at NEMS to fund the buyout of NEMS and thus outbid Triumph Investments. This approach was much more messy than John Eastman’s because Eastman wanted to use a $2 million dollar advance from EMI to fund the buyout of NEMS. In the end, Klein got the Beatles a bad deal.
@@olavirannisto3552 I love that song but as John H said it's a tad long, and it's also quite heavy compared to anything else...a deep cut rather than as an introduction.
One is looking forward to listening to both these John.. You’ve no problem with glass onion and I me mine? I do. Comps are to get new fans into the Beatles..who has EVER said I got into the Beatles bcus of I ME MINE
I look forward to your video where you say you found them for 50 quid on Amazon and decided to get the red and then got blue too, know, just to be compleat.
I've downloaded RED and plan to rip the tracks onto a CD (or two). I'm with you, the 75 dollar tag is way too much, especially when triple record set used to cost between 15 and 20. It's a great set so far - I'm up to "Yesterday", I listened on the commute on the I pod, so I'll hear the whole thing tonight. I love the sound of what I've heard so far. and I'm really chuffed about the rest of it.
I have the blue album. There are more losers than winners on it. The mixes are mostly fine, but the fidelity on many tracks has been degraded . 5 out of 10. I was also disappointed with that Revolver remix. No more Beatles cd purchases for me if they plan to use that AI technology for all future releases.
I would have stayed with the originals only policy of the 1973 Red & Blue albums., and not put on any covers. Instead, they could have included "Don't Bother Me," "If I Fell," and "I'm Down."
I.M.H.O.: “She loves you”: a truly mono-binaural disaster 😖👎; “I want yo hold your hand” compressed in the middle and bad👎; “A hard day’s night”: very, very bad 😢👎, better “ONE” version (Remastered 2015); “Can’t buy my love”: 😖 loss of panning and biting, better “ONE” version (Remastered 2015); “Help” and “Eight days a week” are sonic murders 🤮 👎👎, better “ONE” versions (Remastered 2015); "Nowhere man" 😑 crispy chorus, way better the "Yellow submarine soundtrack" version, except for the odd little post-delay eco at the beginning.
@@craigphillips6308 👍🏻👍🏻 "Help!" seems no longer a shout slammed in face, "Cant' buy me a love" has loss hi-hats, ADR effect and biting to gain a swing-Sinatra like Mood... Songs from the beautiful 4 tracks tape machine era coming from "A hard day's night", "Help!" and "Beatles For Sale" are way better with the Martin Sr. mixes!
The German language versions have always made me laugh - Sie Liebt Dich" - she likes WHAT? 😅😅😅 Komm gib mir deine hand isn't really that much better. Even if the lyrics were actually riaque, everything sounds naughty in German.
While I like the Red album mixes, the Blue album mixes are unnecessarily bad, with I am the walrus being the worst. Improve the audio quality by all means, but leave George Martin's classic masterpiece mixes alone. I wish GM was still here to moderate the changes being made to the albums.
The Abbey Road selection is unbalanced, as it features nearly all the individual songs, and none of the medley. I would have left out Oh Darling or I Want You and instead added the closing part of the medley Golden Slumbers/Carry that weight/The End, which is far more iconic than either of those two songs, and has been played by Paul a few times.
All these saddoes whining about Giles Martin's remixes. No-one is forcing you to buy them. The original mixes still exist. He hasn't broken into your homes during the night and stolen your Beatles collection. They're primarily aimed at gaining The Fabs a new audience which is only a good thing. Barely anyone listens to mono anymore and George Martin's stereo mixes ( that sound like they were knocked up in five minutes) are fucking appalling.
John, my second comment. The remixes are very hit & miss. The early 2 track recordings are VERY poor - with the exception of "Twist & Shout". This remixing technology has been around for 10 years plus. There are many more much more capable remix engineers out there. There are WAY better mixes of "Love Me Do" , "Please Please Me" & "She Loves You" for instance.
The new Mixes sounds more cleaner, modern and you can hear more details. So far so good. But I don't like them. I always liked this little muddiness in old music. This is too polished... Will definitely NOT buy it! And what perverted prices!
