[Digi-G]

Every time I look at the track list for the updated 1962-1966 Red album, the song You Really Got a Hold On Me just jumps out at me.  Why did they pick that song?  I mean, it's fine but what about Please Mr. Postman or Money?  Thank You Girl or I'll Get You?  No Reply or I'll Follow The Sun?  Baby It's You?  Do You Want To Know a Secret?  I guess I would have chosen something different.  Lol.  All of the other choices seem to make sense to me.

The blue album would have been a no-brainer if Free As a Bird and Real Love were included.  The bonus songs (disk 3) seem fairly random to me.  I wonder if Dear Prudence will have a "clean" intro?  Do we have that anywhere else?

I'm trying to figure out if I'll get these.  I passed on the last remastering offer of these, sticking with my colored vinyl versions and 1993 CD's.  I do listen to them once in a while though.

[WGH]

... but what about Please Mr. Postman or Money?  Thank You Girl or I'll Get You?  No Reply or I'll Follow The Sun?  Baby It's You?  Do You Want To Know a Secret?

Those songs will probably be on the 51st Anniversary Edition Remastered 2024 Box Set 


 "The 50th anniversary edition vinyl release features 75 tracks across six LPs. The “Red” album contains 12 additional tracks, including some of George Harrison’s earliest songs and Beatles covers of R&B and rock hits that were favorites of the band (think Smokey Robinson’s “You’ve Really Got a Hold on Me” and Chuck Berry’s “Roll Over Beethoven”).
 
 "The “Blue” album features nine additional tracks including “Blackbird” and “Glass Onion” in addition to “Now and Then.” Released on Capitol Records, the label says 36 of the tracks have “new mixes” for 2023.

"Everything is bundled inside a collectible gatefold with inserts containing new sleeve notes by journalist and author John Harris. Regularly $149 and up, you can get the Beatles’ “new” compilation albums on vinyl now for just $118 on Amazon.com."
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lifestyle/shopping/buy-the-beatles-now-and-then-red-blue-album-vinyl-1235637116/

[Phil A]

It's all about the money.  With the AI technology invented for Peter Jackson's 'Get Back' and used on 'Now and Then,' it wouldn't surprise me in the slightest if they went back and separated voices from instruments and re-issued other things (e.g. perhaps even including Sgt. Pepper).  That's why I just opted to buy the 'Now and Then' single.  I already have so many versions of their stuff I figured I'll get the new and wait and see what happens with the other albums.

[WGH]

Stereophile has a well written online article about "Red", "Blue" and "Now and Then."
The article also has The Beatles remixing history and a summary of the remixing so far including Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (2017 remix).

The Last Beatles Song (and Other News)
https://www.stereophile.com/content/last-beatles-song-and-other-news

There's more: New 50th Anniversary expanded versions of 1962-1966 ("The Red Album") and 1967-1970 ("The Blue Album") will be released November 10. This release will include both two-CD and three-LP versions, with different song sequences; you can see the track sequences here. In the LP sets, the first two platters contain the same songs in the same order as the original Red and Blue albums; the third record will contain extra tracks. In the CD sets, the extra songs are added in chronological order. All tracks have been remixed at some point since 2015, so the sound is all different from the sound of the original 1973 albums, the first CD releases in 1993 and the 2010-remastered CD releases (see the sidebar). The new song, "Now & Then," starts the 3rd LP of the new Blue. The CD sets offer the symmetry of opening Red with "Love Me Do" and closing Blue with "Now & Then": the first and last Beatles songs.

The newest remixes, everything from Revolver back to 1962, used a machine-learning technology from Peter Jackson's WingNut films, known colloquially as "de-mixing." The process, developed to pull dialog from noisy backgrounds in the Beatles' Get Back documentary series, has been honed to separate individual voices and instruments from individual Beatles tape tracks, which often include multiple voices and instruments.


There will also be a radio documentary about the song [Now and Then], produced by Beatles historian Kevin Howlett. The BBC today released the first 5 episodes of "Eras - The Beatles," a podcast hosted by actor Martin Freeman; episode 6 will drop November 2.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001rzhw


... the December issue of Stereophile, on sale in early November, for a full review of "Now & Then." There was other news at the September 27 press event, relevant to audiophile fans of surround sound, detailed in the December issue's As We See It.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

I have the 24bit/96kHz Revolver 2022 remix that used the Peter Jackson's WingNut Demixing technology, we recently compared it to a pristine, never played AAA vinyl Revolver from the 2009 The Beatles in Mono Boxed set.

The Tucson Audiophiles regularly meet at members house for a gab fest and we get around to listening to music too. Vinyl was featured at our last meetup. I don't take notes but it was a high end VPI turntable with two tonearms, a moving coil cartridge and a very nice adjustable phono preamp, about a $15,000 vinyl front end.

I brought over a CD I made from the Beatles Revolver: Special Edition Remix (2022)* made from the 24/96 download.
Our host had a pristine, never played Beatles Revolver mono record from the Complete Beatles Vinyl Boxed Set.
We compared the two versions.

Guess what? We all preferred the Special Edition Remix CD compared to the AAA mono vinyl. Bass was tighter, individual instruments are easier to hear and the overall balance was better.

The CD player was the PS Audio Memory Player linked to a new PS Audio DirectStream MK2 DAC which upsamples everything to ridiculous high levels.
"DirectStream MK2 converts every one of its galvanically isolated input signals, both PCM and DSD, to a high sample rate 50 bit version which is further converted to pure DSD for its final conversion to pure analog."


* Revolver: Special Edition is an expanded reissue of the 1966 album Revolver by the English rock band the Beatles. It was released on 28 October 2022, and includes a new stereo remix of the album by Giles Martin, with the help of de-mixing technology developed by Peter Jackson's WingNut Films.

Read more about the Revolver remix
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/beatles-revolver-super-deluse-edition-review-1234617075/

[mcgsxr]

My memories of the Beatles are from the late 70's, listening to Sgt Pepper's over and over on vinyl at a friend's house (was older brother's music and setup).  I don't consider them music of my generation, but of the one just before me.

Great commercial move to release this so close to Xmas, and glad the fans of the band are into this "new" release.

I am sure I will hear it streaming, but not going out of my way to buy it etc.

Heard it the day it was released and thought it reminded me of much of their music (which is a good thing I think).

[FullRangeMan]

David Mellor engineer review the song and the cassete audio recovery, the tape was recorded by John on a portable boom box he had on hand.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RamqyE-7Hq4

[FullRangeMan]

It was taking too long.
Now And Then cover:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tSefoJDKsU
Now And Then orchestral:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_drjk_dG_0

[WGH]

Stereophile has a article about The Beatles new Red and Blue stereo remastered albums (which are a revelation if you haven't listened to them yet) and the horrors of the upcoming Dolby Atmos streaming versions.
https://www.stereophile.com/content/beatles-last-stand

"On September 27, 2023, executives from Apple Corps and Universal Music Group held a press event at the Dolby Theater in Manhattan. The event included Dolby Atmos demos of forthcoming Beatles releases."