New Beach Boys 2012 Remasters!

[Catbirdman]

The Beach Boys Today!
All mono tracks are remastered versions of the original 1965 mixes.
No vintage stereo mixes exist for any tracks on this album. All stereo tracks are new 2011 mixes using the multi-tracks, except:
In addition to the multi-tracks, the stereo mixes for “Do You Wanna Dance” and “She Knows Me Too Well” utilize some digital extraction to capture overdubs made directly to the original mono mixes.
“Bull Session With The Big Daddy” was originally recorded in stereo. The version here is (don’t know)

"Bull Session" is in mono both times on the mono/stereo "Today!" disc.

Thanks TV, I've modified my post. I had meant to type "...orginally recorded in mono..." - that was a typo. But I wasn't sure if they tried something wacky for the "stereo" version. Thanks for the confirmation.

[Bean Bag]

I might redact my last comment about Sunflower & Surf's Up.

I feel comfortable in saying this, even though I hate to, Andrew Sandoval's mastering on the 2000 release is better.  That's just one man's opinion.

I always liked the 2000 Brother remasters.  I was blasting 15 Big Ones/Love You this morning.  Totally digging the mastering: clean, nice separation, crisp.

I did some headphone comparisons (many moons ago) between them and the same tracks found on the GV box.  The 2000 remasters were - hands down -- much, much better.  Cleaner.  Instrument placement was clear, etc.



The 2000 Capitol twofers, on the other hand, were a little more mixed.  Most (if not all) were EXTREMELY LOUD. 

[Andrew G. Doe]

Surfin’ U.S.A.
All tracks are remastered versions of the original 1962 mono and stereo mixes.

1962 ?  

Somebody mentioned something about “A Young Man Is Gone” being a digital extraction – is that true?

Don't see why it should be, seeing as a perfectly good stereo mix from 1963 exists.

[Catbirdman]

Oops - I've fixed the year for Surfin' U.S.A.

And removing the comment about "A Young Man Is Gone."

[monicker]

Novice Hour here, i know, but what are the exact elements that were recorded live during mono mixdown on the following?

“I Get Aorund”
“Do You Wanna Dance”
“She Knows Me Too Well”
“Girl Don’t Tell Me”

For Rhonda it's only the guitar "solo," right?

[hypehat]

Novice Hour here, i know, but what are the exact elements that were recorded live during mono mixdown on the following?

“I Get Aorund”
“Do You Wanna Dance”
“She Knows Me Too Well”
“Girl Don’t Tell Me”

For Rhonda it's only the guitar "solo," right?

Solo for Do You Wanna Dance, too. And vocal elements, but some exist on the multis.

[PhilCohen]

Surfin’ U.S.A.
All tracks are remastered versions of the original 1962 mono and stereo mixes.

1962 ?  

Somebody mentioned something about “A Young Man Is Gone” being a digital extraction – is that true?

Don't see why it should be, seeing as a perfectly good stereo mix from 1963 exists.

Mr.Doe: go listen to the stereo "Little Deuce Coupe" L.P.(and any of its CD releases). Even on the stereo album "A Young Man is Gone" is in mono, not even Duophonic, but pure mono.

[drbeachboy]

Surfin’ U.S.A.
All tracks are remastered versions of the original 1962 mono and stereo mixes.

1962 ? 

Somebody mentioned something about “A Young Man Is Gone” being a digital extraction – is that true?

Don't see why it should be, seeing as a perfectly good stereo mix from 1963 exists.

Mr.Doe: go listen to the stereo "Little Deuce Coupe" L.P.(and any of its CD releases). Even on the stereo album "A Young Man is Gone" is in mono, not even Duophonic, but pure mono.

The same thing with Why Do Fools Fall In Love on SDv2. Mono on the stereo album, as well.

[Andrew G. Doe]

Bloody hell... so it is. My profound apologies. How did that one slip through the net ?

Getting 

[PhilCohen]

Surfin’ U.S.A.
All tracks are remastered versions of the original 1962 mono and stereo mixes.

1962 ? 

Somebody mentioned something about “A Young Man Is Gone” being a digital extraction – is that true?

Don't see why it should be, seeing as a perfectly good stereo mix from 1963 exists.

Mr.Doe: go listen to the stereo "Little Deuce Coupe" L.P.(and any of its CD releases). Even on the stereo album "A Young Man is Gone" is in mono, not even Duophonic, but pure mono.

The same thing with Why Do Fools Fall In Love on SDv2. Mono on the stereo album, as well.

Yes, and "Denny's Drums" on "Shut Down Vol.2" is also mono. A true stereo "Why Do Fools Fall In Love" wasn't offered until one was mixed in the 21st century for the "Summer Love Songs" CD. Also, as for "The Surfer Moon"(on the "Surfer Girl" album), what has always been offered(even on the new Japanese CD) is not really stereo. The 2 tracks of vocals are placed in the center, and the 1 track of instruments is spread(left to right) in simulated stereo. A true stereo "The Surfer Moon" is available on the unofficial "Unsurpassed Masters Vol.3" CD. In that mix, the backing track is in the center, and the 2 tracks of vocals are separated; the lead vocal on the right, the harmony vocal on the left.

[PhilCohen]

Novice Hour here, i know, but what are the exact elements that were recorded live during mono mixdown on the following?

“I Get Aorund”
“Do You Wanna Dance”
“She Knows Me Too Well”
“Girl Don’t Tell Me”

For Rhonda it's only the guitar "solo," right?

Actually, for "Help Me Rhonda", it's the guitar solo, piano, percussion(castanets?) & one layer of identical vocals(intended to thicken the vocal sound)

For "Girl Don't Tell Me"(whose unofficial "Sea of Tunes" stereo mix is missing many things), it is apparent that (for the "Summer Days...and Summer Nights" sessions) that "Sea of Tunes" only had access to the "stage one" multi tracks(before the 3-track to 8-track transfers and subsequent overdubs). If there was a "Stage 2" multitrack for "Girl Don't Tell Me", we don't know whether Mark Linett could have created a satisfactory true stereo mix, but apparently he decided that he couldn't.

For "Do You Wanna Dance", "Sea of Tunes" had access to only the "Stage One" multitrack. The Beach Boys DO have the "Stage two" multitrack, and with these two tapes, Mark Linett has almost every element of the original released mono record, EXCEPT the re-recorded Western Studios guitar solo(which was done live during mix down). The multitracks have only the rejected guitar solo that Carl Wilson played at Gold Star Studios. It will be interesting to hear how Mark Linett will handle the guitar solo section. My guess: that he'll switch to Duophonic for the guitar solo section only(to be able to use the correct solo)

[Catbirdman]

OK, thanks for the feedback so far everyone. From what I've read, these changes need to be made to my list:
1. “A Young Man Is Gone:” no vintage stereo mix; multi-tracks missing; new stereo mix is a digital extraction.
2. “Why Do Fools Fall In Love:” no vintage stereo mix; new stereo mix made from multi-tracks.
3. “Bull Session With The Big Daddy:” recorded in mono, and both versions appear in mono on this release.

And these questions remain – can anyone please help:
1. “Denny’s Drums:” is new stereo mix actually mono, is it a digital extraction, or is it a real stereo mix using the multi-tracks?
2. “Our Favorite Recording Sessions:” same questions as “Denny’s Drums.”
3. Which Pet Sounds stereo tracks utilize the 1996 Mark Linett mixes, and which ones utilize later stereo mixes (and what is different about them)? Or all they all new 2011 mixes (that would surprise me)?

[PhilCohen]

OK, thanks for the feedback so far everyone. From what I've read, these changes need to be made to my list:
1. “A Young Man Is Gone:” no vintage stereo mix; multi-tracks missing; new stereo mix is a digital extraction.
2. “Why Do Fools Fall In Love:” no vintage stereo mix; new stereo mix made from multi-tracks.
3. “Bull Session With The Big Daddy:” recorded in mono, and both versions appear in mono on this release.

And these questions remain – can anyone please help:
1. “Denny’s Drums:” is new stereo mix actually mono, is it a digital extraction, or is it a real stereo mix using the multi-tracks?
2. “Our Favorite Recording Sessions:” same questions as “Denny’s Drums.”
3. Which Pet Sounds stereo tracks utilize the 1996 Mark Linett mixes, and which ones utilize later stereo mixes (and what is different about them)? Or all they all new 2011 mixes (that would surprise me)?

"Wouldn't It Be Nice" will be the later mix which has Mike Love vocal (extracted from the original mono mix) flown in to the middle section of a stereo remix. "You Still Believe in Me" is the recent remix heard on the "Mobile Fidelity" SACD. It has a simulated double-tracked lead vocal.

[Johnston65]

So I really want one of these because I read on Amazon Japan that these are in fact Japan only remasters, which is a damn shame. Where can I find Smiley Smile for the cheapest price?

[PhilCohen]

So I really want one of these because I read on Amazon Japan that these are in fact Japan only remasters, which is a damn shame. Where can I find Smiley Smile for the cheapest price?

Apparently, at a Taiwanese dealer CD Banq($36 to $37 after shipping charges) though, starting August 7th, when Amazon.com permits its 3rd party sellers to offer the discs, we may start to see better prices there(or at least, better than Amazon's $51 per disc)

It's difficult to believe that no one in The Beach Boys or their management is aware that Capitol released these remixes only in Japan. Undoubtedly, the group members or their managers had to sign off to give permission for these remixes to be created and released.

[runnersdialzero]

They should attempt this "digital extraction" shtuff on the bridge of "Wouldn't It Be Nice?" The existing stereo mixes that attempt to restore Mike's vocal are totally dreadful in that they lay a stereo mix atop a mono mix - it sounds incredibly messy and phases like crazy. "Good Vibrations", judging from the clip, doesn't sound ideal (albeit not bad considering the limited resources), but if they could just do this for Mike's vocal on "WIBN?" and have the rest be the proper stereo mix, I'd bet the results could be good.

[The Shift]

Apparently, at a Taiwanese dealer CD Banq($36 to $37 after shipping charges) though, starting August 7th, when Amazon.com permits its 3rd party sellers to offer the discs, we may start to see better prices there(or at least, better than Amazon's $51 per disc)

A few already showing up on amazon uk but take some finding, and some crazy prices!

[TV Forces]

So I really want one of these because I read on Amazon Japan that these are in fact Japan only remasters, which is a damn shame. Where can I find Smiley Smile for the cheapest price?

cdbanq.net

[PhilCohen]

Apparently, at a Taiwanese dealer CD Banq($36 to $37 after shipping charges) though, starting August 7th, when Amazon.com permits its 3rd party sellers to offer the discs, we may start to see better prices there(or at least, better than Amazon's $51 per disc)

A few already showing up on amazon uk but take some finding, and some crazy prices!

This ridiculous situation created by Capitol is (essentially) auctioning off these stereo remixes to the highest bidder.

[Heysaboda]

This ridiculous situation created by Capitol is (essentially) auctioning off these stereo remixes to the highest bidder.

Ya know, I agree that it IS a ridiculous situation.

Now, I realize that Capitol USA has a grand plan all worked out for the Beach Boys, and there are going to be several very cool sets released by Capitol in the months to come; it's very exciting.  What we've already received is pretty freaking awesome!

But, can you imagine, if it were THE BEATLES that we were talking about, that EMI Japan would be going rogue like this?!?!?!?!
They Most Certainly Would Not.

So, as a fan and as a consumer, a little extra "heads up" from Capitol USA would have been nice, such as, "don't worry BB's faithful, these sets WILL be released in the USA eventually" or "go check 'em out, as they are Japan only".

But, what ev's.

That said, I'm buying 2 or 3 of these -- more if I like them.

[I. Spaceman]

As said before, if exclusive releases by The Who, a much higher CD-selling classic rock act than The Beach Boys, have appeared in Japan, there is no reason to think these issues will see the light of day here, at least in a physical format.

[Al Jardine: Pick Up Artist]

Ok.

When my Dad gets back from Japan this Friday, I will be ripping the CDs as FLACs.

I like to share stuff.

[runnersdialzero]

A friend sent this to me after a bit of badgering on my part, saying he couldn't share (he rarely posts, but knows people in charge read the boards and is a bit paranoid) but wanted to go a bit more in depth with a review of the stereo Smiley Smile tracks.

"Heroes"
Stereo mix sounds better than I remember the TSS mix or the Hawthorne mix sounding. Still a bit too bright, but the vocals don't overwhelm the track as much as I remember. Stereo separation on the vocals in the verses is better than I remember other mixes of the song being, but isn't jarring or too wide. I'm normally not a fan of things being hard panned left or right and being really prominent in the mix without anything in the other channel and center to compensate, but it sounds nice, here.

Organ before "Once at night" is not there. It's on the Hawthorne mix, thus likely exists on the multis. It's also not on the TSS mix. A bit annoyed, as I wanted it on my Smile mix and now the only stereo source for it is the incredibly harsh Hawthorne mix. Hopefully this will be resolved before these mixes are released elsewhere in the world.

Chorus is pretty bright, but again, seemingly not as harsh as past stereo mixes. The Smiley organ is present (it wasn't on TSS), but the vocal fade isn't quite as drastic as the album version.

The odd effect near the end of the the acapella section before the "My children were raised" section is back - I didn't hear it on the TSS version and am not sure if it's on the Hawthorne mix. Hopefully you know what I'm talking about.

"My children were raised" section seems to have a lot more digital reverb than the "Sunny down snuff" section. Was the album version like this, too? (obviously not with digital reverb, but yeah)

Overall a pretty decent stereo mix of the song and, again, better than I remember the Hawthorne or TSS mix being. I'll likely use sections of this for my own Smile mix.

"Vegetables"
A bit less digital reverb/gloss than the Hawthorne mix, which is welcome given how dry Smiley is in general. Stereo separation is really well done.

Structure edit is just like the album, not like the extended Hawthorne version.

The organ that plays the verse melody (I wish I knew proper names of this stuff - I know "organ" is too vague) over the ending "I know that you feel better" section taken from the Smile sessions with Al on vocals is back! I thought the track didn't exist anymore and was a Smiley Smile mixdown overdub. But nop, there it is. Really wish this would have been on the TSS edit during the 2nd verse - I managed to do a makeshift version of it for my own mix, but it was a pretty painful process.

"Fall Breaks"
A lot more clarity than the mono album mix. A tiny, tiny bit of the "eerie"ness is lost as a result, but it's still such a great mix. Upon listening the album on headphones, when I got to this song, there was a moment of, "The stereo mix of the album is probably going to go down as being a lot more palatable to most folks." I still love the original, but this is definitely a good listen and a fresh experience.

Not much else to say about this one. Nice separation throughout.

"She's Goin' Bald"
Ah, to finally hear the verse in proper stereo instead of the SOT mix which was missing a lot of the tracks. The backing vocals really shine a bit more on the verse without being overwhelming.

The "what a blow" speedup section starts out in proper stereo but then seems to go into fake stereo. I could be very wrong here, but that's what it sounds like to me. I imagine this was done to perfectly preserve the speedup as per the album, which would sound quite different if done digitally with Pro Tools or something. Once more people are able to buy/pirate these, someone with some audio editing software should check into it.

Rest of the song sounds great - as with "Fall Breaks", not a lot else to say. I will say that there were a few things I never noticed about the song before - for instance, what I thought was percussion on the "Upside your head" part is actually a bass. Some vocals I never noticed before came through in the same section.

"Little Pad"
Some speaking in the left channel (sounds like "Hey!") at the very beginning over the "Do it!" which is not on the original album. I laughed for the first time in years at the laughing "If I only had a little pad" backing vocals. Again, so cool to get a fresh experience out of something I've been familiar with for years.

The 2nd section indeed comes in a bit too early and it is noticeable. It could probably easily be fixed by utilizing the stereo and mono mix, as could the banter in the beginning. It's not horrible or anything, just sayin' - it's noticeable. This is one of the very few things on this I'm hoping get fixed before these are released in the rest of the world.

The ukelele (?) section with the wordless doubled Carl vocals has the ukelele in the center, with Carl's doubled vocals panned left and right. Not ideal to me, but that's mostly me being picky - I hate doubled vocals being hard panned left and right. The humming section prior sounds really nice, as does the "By the sea, that's where I'll build a pad" section.

"Good Vibrations"
I was skeptical given it's not a legitimate stereo mix. There is a tiny bit of noticeable phasing in the first verse between the vocals and organ track, but the song always had a bit of that quality to it. Most fan mixes have heavy phasing elsewhere - the theremin or the woodwind instrument in the verse, for instance. The verse goes down fairly well - a very slight odd quality to the vocal, but that's to be expected and isn't especially distracting.

As someone earlier pointed at, the timing from the verse into the chorus does feel slightly off, if only for a very small fraction of a section. Can't really put my finger on it - it just comes in ever so slightly late to the extent that most probably won't even notice it.

The chorus starts with a "holy sh*t" thing going for it in how good it sounds, which quickly disappears once the "Ooh, bop bop" vocals come in and you notice a tiny bit of clashing between the tracks from the extraction. It's not so much bad as it is said "holy sh*t" feeling kind of going away and things slipping back into a more "Well, it still sounds pretty good" territory. Again, the results are more impressive than a lot of other attempts out there that I've heard. The theremin is nice and dry, just like I like it, in the left channel.

Vocals on the beginning of the "I don't know where, but she sends me there" section are probably the most odd, sonically. The "-tations" part, that is. As it progresses, the sound evens out a bit more and sounds pretty decent.

The organ bridge (which again brought back a bit of those old feelings I had when first getting into the band - I know this has existed in stereo for years, but still.) sounds really nice, although the bass feels slightly too loud.

Ending "Nah nah nah nah nah" part sounds really good, too, and is a high point of the extraction job of the last half of the song. Can't be more descript - as with some of the earlier stuff, it just sounds good and not much more to say beyond that.

Overall, the effort is pretty darn good. I can't say I'm as disappointed as I thought I'd be with an extraction mix. Should be noted that the structure is the same as the single/album version - no "hum-be-nah" bridge tacked on and drawing things out too long as per TSS, and the abrupt fade is intact.

"With Me Tonight"
Beginning sounds like it may be an alternate take - is it? Brian and someone else are much more pitchy than I remember the original being. The "Good!" is indeed more distant than the album version.

The final section sounds pretty nice overall with a few small exceptions. The bass vocal is really, really loud compared to the album version. It totally overwhelms me and really dominates a lot of the mix. Not sure how to word it - it brings out this "lol Jungle Book" bullshit in the song that I just didn't pick up from the original mix.

Overall, this is the only semi-disappointing track thus far. It seems to rely too heavily on the thought of the Beach Boys having to sound "important" and the mix is just really odd as a result when compared to the original. That may not be the best way of putting it, but I'm not sure how else to express it.

"Wind Chimes"
The "room" noise which is present on the album is really present here, which is fitting, as it was always up there in the original song, too. The "wind chime" noises are part of that, obviously, but it's more than just the chimes. Stereo separation on the first part is, as with the earlier songs, good but non-descript in the "sounds like the mono mix, but in stereo" way, which is a good thing.

Final section was something I braced byself for, as I've wanted to hear it in stereo for ages. Somehow, it didn't affect me in the way I thought it would. There's seemingly more effect on Mike's voice, although I don't know if there actually is, if that makes any sense. Maybe it was always there, but just more apparent.

Overall, a good mix. The end still sounds great (which I imagine isn't hard to do given the excellent source material), don't get me wrong with my description in the previous paragraph.

"Gettin' Hungry"
Beginning sounds great - the rough edges of the original album are still here, but the clarity has been upped a bit. The percussion stands out a little more on this part without overwhelming. Same is true of the chorus for obvious reasons.

The verse still feels very subdued, but again, I'm hearing the guitar and piano a lot better than I had before. I don't even know if I had heard the piano before. The "And oh, come the night time" vocal doesn't leap out of the mix as much as the original, but it's not as drastic as the "Deep and wide" thing in "Time To Get Alone". There's some banter going on in the 2nd verse that I'd never heard before - glad to hear it's been kept intact. The gruntier "And oh, come the night time" by Brian on the 2nd verse seems to fade much earlier than in the mono mix, and the background vocals come to the front instead. Strange move, but maybe the original track is compromised or something.

Bridge section sounds great and, dare I say, brings out a bit of, uh, "prettiness" I never really noticed in the original.

"Wonderful"
Of anything on the album sans the two Smile session holdovers, this one always felt like it was kind of made to be heard in stereo. My assumptions weren't wrong - this one really shines in the new mix. Again, feels just like the mono mix, but in stereo.

"Whistle In"
Never noticed the distant piano in the beginning, but it's indeed in the mono mix. Chalk this up as another "feels like the mono mix, but in stereo" track, which is to be expected given its simplicity. I will say I never noticed the little "all through the night" part before. It's a bit more buried in the mono mix, so that was cool to hear.

[runnersdialzero]

Ok.

When my Dad gets back from Japan this Friday, I will be ripping the CDs as FLACs.

I like to share stuff.

^_^ much appreciated.

[runnersdialzero]

As said before, if exclusive releases by The Who, a much higher CD-selling classic rock act than The Beach Boys, have appeared in Japan, there is no reason to think these issues will see the light of day here, at least in a physical format.

What was the nature of the releases, though? Was it like this - first time stereo mixes of some of their albums?

Many, many stranger stuff has been released into the world by bands and labels. Consider the great number of redundant "Who the f*** is gonna buy this?" items Capitol themselves have released, especially within the last decade.

"Let's repackage this comprehensive Christmas song collection, but remove the liner notes and one song, then retitle it with new album artwork."

"Brilliant!"

If a band with more of a cult following than a mainstream following like The Stooges can get a box set devoted entirely to the recording sessions for one of their albums (not even their most well known album), the Beach Boys can get some original mono mixes and new stereo mixes released. I'm not saying it's a sure thing that we'll see them, but I think it's too early for folks to be saying it's a sure thing the US and UK will never see releases containing these mixes.