Search - The Beatles :: The Capitol Albums Vol. 1

A fresh listen ! As good as the 09 09 09 remasters !

gil | france | 10/21/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I was raised with the British versions of the beatles albums. They are tremendous of course. I recently bought the capitol boxes (Vol.1 and 2) and I was surprised how great the US albums were. Meet the beatles is easily as good as its Brit counterpart With the beatles, and it's nice to have the track This boy on an album. The Beatles US second album has a great and unique rock'n roll feel. The US Help soundtrack is funny and enjoyable, much more a soundtrack for the better and the worse. The US version of Rubber Soul is more folky and that's good for me. The sequencing of the Early beatles US album is better than the Please please me one, with Love me do and Twist and shout as track one and two.



My advice would be to buy the capitol Vol. 1 and 2, even if you already own the new remastered box of the UK albums. It's a fresh listen !"

This is What I Grew Up With

Benedict J. Likens | Whiting, IN USA | 12/11/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"For my eighth birthday, my mother bought me Meet the Beatles, at my official request. I had recently heard the band on WLS AM in Chicago doing "Ticket to Ride." I'd been gifted with that single (which was backed with the beautiful, sad "Yes It Is") along with "We Can Work it Out" b/w "Day Tripper" by the brother of one of my mom's friends. I listened to those singles incessantly, knowing nothing of the cultural impact for which The Beatles had been responsible. I just loved those songs. As "Ticket" played on, I thought to myself, "Gee, these guys are on the radio, so they must be pretty good! From now on, they're my favorite band."



Anyway, back to that eighth birthday present, when "I Want to Hold Your Hand" came blaring out of my little phonograph, it felt like the skies were opening up. Little did I know that it was a duophonic, or "fake stereo" version to which I was listening. Of course, then, I couldn't have cared less about any kind of technical nonsense. I was much too into the actual songs. Well, the skies have remained open to this day, thirty-six years later, and one of the things I absolutely love to do these days is compare the mono and stereo versions of these wonderful songs, because sonically, they're VERY different from each other, and that "technical nonsense" to which I just referred is treated by me now in a slightly more open-minded fashion than before.



When Capitol released these US LP's on CD (in stereo AND mono, no less), I couldn't have been more happy or excited. I could listen to, in pristine form, what I remember these incredible songs sounding like, and compare the mono versions to the stereo versions, which I hadn't been able to do back in those heady days of the early '70's.



Meet the Beatles was the first US LP and, of course, the first CD I put into my player, the which is connected to a sound system that betters my childhood phonograph just a bit (OK, maybe a LITTLE more than that). It didn't disappoint at all. The clarity of the sound is a testament to the care that the Capitol people put into this set overall. It was a little jarring to hear "I Saw Her Standing There" come in in full, unadulterated stereo, but a distinct pleasure, nonetheless. We're back to duophonic for "This Boy," then real stereo again for "It Won't Be Long." Interesting listening, to say the least. On the following CD, entitled simply The Beatles' Second Album, "Roll Over Beethoven" leads off with that layer of reverb to the fore, which the US engineers back in '64 slathered on, and which has been endlessly criticized by professional and amateur listener alike. Personally, I love it. I think it's just the personal memory factor. It just sounds so BIG, like it did back "in the day!" I remember hearing the UK versions of The Beatles' output for the first time years ago (with which the '87 release of the band's material was standardized throughout the world and remains so for the current remasters) when my best friend shelled out the extra money for the imported stereo UK versions, and being slightly put off by the "reigning in," at least as I heard it, of the overall sound of the songs.



Anyway, back in the US, this "Second Album" also has more "fake stereo" cuts on it than its brother recordings in this particular set. Both "I'll Get You" and "She Loves You" are treated with duophonic, and again, it sounds funny to today's more sophisticated ears, but I still get a great kick out of them. The low frequencies in one channel and the highs in the other -- now that's technology! Notice the significant variations between the stereo versions of "Long Tall Sally" and "I Call Your Name" and their mono renderings, particularly in the latter's lead guitar work.



Ready for Something New, the third US release? Notice how "I'll Cry Instead" in stereo is shorter than its mono counterpart (the latter containing a repeated first verse). Notice again the differences between "Slow Down" and "Matchbox" from stereo to mono, again, particularly in terms of the guitar solos, this time in both songs. Overall, bits are added and taken out, and consequently make for fascinating listening.



Beatles '65, the final installment in Vol. 1, is relatively consistent until one gets to "She's a Woman" and "I Feel Fine." I remember being bewildered at the "mushy" quality of these two songs, even back when I first heard the album. I can't help but wonder today who saw these versions as radio-worthy. The mono versions are an ever-so-slight improvements over the terrible stereo versions, but I must say that it's a relief to hear the "normal" sounding "Everybody's Trying to be My Baby" after suffering through the mistreatment of two fine, fine songs. Even today, when I hear the "reigned in" UK versions of these two classics, it's always surprising and refreshing.



I don't really prefer the mono versions to the stereo or vice-versa. I love them both for different reasons. I still listen to this set often, even though the UK versions are sonically superior, especially the recently released remasters -- they're truly amazing! However, the work done on these US versions is also quite impressive, and represent the deserved care that the folks at Capitol are putting into these immortals. I'd like to thank them for issuing this box set. It was overdue, but better late than never, which I thought was going to be the case at one point. My hat's off to you, you Capitol people!"