How does one critically review the Bible? Who has that kind of audacity? To call one edition better than another could be viewed as the ultimate exercise in examining the minutiae of the typeface and declaring that the mole hill is indeed a mountain but, in the case of The Beatles' catalogue, such criticisms can be met with staggering vitriol. Some people like their tomes of John, Paul, George and Ringo a little more low-fi and view technological “improvements” upon that work as a matter of reinventing the wheel at best and totally abhorrent at worst. People take the music personally and it's easy to understand why; while there are several gods and/or institutions in popular song (Little Richard, Elvis, Chuck Berry and The Rolling Stones are just a few), it's debatable if any of them have had the same sort of profound and lasting effect that The Beatles have had on modern rock n' roll. The band's fourteen full-length albums have been permanently and indelibly ingrained into global popular culture, the songs have been translated into virtually every language on Earth and virtually every band on the planet (except for maybe the Sex Pistols, who purportedly threw their original bass player out of the band for liking the Fab Four) has covered a song or two. That, as they say, is the mark of a body that is cherished, and it becomes more understandable why a re-shined, remastered and digitally toyed-with release of the entire Beatles catalogue would be met with trepidation. The redneck notion of “If it ain't broke, fuck with it until it is” comes to mind as a potential criticism and a variation of it will certainly be echoed by hordes of purists (this may be why the record label elected to issue both a re-mastered version of the set as well as a 'Mono' edition), but there will always be the underlying curiosity and interest in such an endeavor; critics and fans alike will want to know what's different about this box set of stereo reissues, if only so one is able to scream heresy.
So what is the difference? Actually, there is a greater amount of delicacy attached to this new Beatles Stereo Box Set, and it is actually possible for the slightest mishandling to turn a phenomenal listen into a farcical one.
In the case of The Beatles Stereo Box Set, many of the technological advances made in audio playback equipment are no sort of boon. To get the best sound out of the set (as I discovered), leave all of the fancy digital equalizers programmed into your brand new stereo turned off; scooped mid-range settings on any album made before Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band will make the sound thin and seem to polarize the channels such that all the drums (and little else) will be on the left-hand speaker and virtually everything else will be panned hard into the right-hand channel – with nothing in the middle. With the wrong EQ, a worst case scenario can be a case like on “Rain,” where Lennon's vocal gets all but buried but the backing vocals are far too high in the mix. For reasons like that, simplicity is key and, if one adheres to that principle, the set can be very rewarding.
With that knowledge in hand, if one plays by the rules, listening to the stereo mixes of The Beatles' repertoire is a dream. The trebly nature and production of the early albums (like Please Please Me, Help! and Beatles For Sale) and singles like “Day Tripper” and “Rain” ring beautifully and cleanly while the later albums recorded after production technology improved (around Rubber Soul and Revolver) are pristine presentations of the material that, at least in some circles, will be regarded as definitive. There are moments in this set that are, very simply, must-hear material for every fan – purist or not, staunch upholder of tradition or not.
While the later releases are the ones that really shine with the stereo treatment, there are tracks dotted throughout all of the albums that prove to be revelatory. For example, songs like “Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite,” “The Fool On The Hill,” “All My Loving,” “Back In The U.S.S.R.” and “Come Together” all sparkle particularly with the re-thought machinations afforded by the re-mastering process and the flawless separations and clarity between the different instruments and vocal parts is inspiring. In this context, while there's no mistaking that these albums weren't recorded yesterday (some of them strain against limitation and some individual songs resist re-equalization), the spruced up designs here do have a unique value for The Beatles' legacy that enriches it and will certainly hold a revered place in the band's output; it won't be for everyone necessarily, but it will offer new insight and pleasure to both the willing and the open-minded.
Band:
www.beatles.com/
Album:
The Beatles Stereo Box Set is out now. Buy it here on Amazon .
