Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band [VINYL]

Since being able to hear the mono version of SGT. PEPPER'S ONELY HEART CLUB BAND after buying the BEATLES IN MONO boxed set, I have always been rather torn over which is the “superior” version. Most now believe that the mono mix is the authentic version of this landmark album - not least because The Beatles were present when the mixes were being prepared. However, I have always been more used to the stereo configuration and, indeed, this was the version my Dad purchased back in 1967. Due to the fact that the Fabs packed so much detail into these songs, I have tended to feel that the mono mix struggles in places to reproduce a lot of this detail. On a technical note, I swear that I can hear the splice in the tape between the cockerel at the end of ‘Good Morning, Good Morning’ and the initial guitar note of the title track’s reprise, whereas the stereo version pans these two sounds across the channels and therefore makes this edit inaudible.Bearing all of this in mind, I have been looking forward very much to hearing what Giles Martin and his team have done with this new 50th anniversary stereo remix, and it’s an impressive result. Crucially, ‘She’s Leaving Home’ is now running at its correct speed in stereo; this detail was - for me, at least - the one inexcusable flaw with the original stereo mix. Furthermore, the general sound of the album is now in much nicer balance: you still get the effect of stereo where it counts, but the sometimes overcooked separation between different instruments between the two channels has been rectified. I once read that George Harrison was initially a little underwhelmed by stereo and felt that the songs sounded “naked”. They don’t any longer, as the whole album now boasts a fullness which the original stereo mix lacked and the mono version had in spades, only now all the little details are audible and the songs have been freed from the constrictions of mono. I think my dilemma has been solved and this may well be the version of SGT. PEPPER that I will play the most from now on.As for the rest of the package, the second disc offers a motley collection of all of the album’s songs as works in progress, with the orchestral backing track for ‘She’s Leaving Home’ and the Asian Music Circle’s foundation for ‘Within You, Without You’ holding up well as individual pieces of music in their own right. Meanwhile, the new stereo mixes for those other two key tracks from the sessions - ‘Strawberry Fields Forever’ and ‘Penny Lane’ - are, like the album itself, highly satisfying. Once again, both have a pleasing balance of sound, while ‘Strawberry Fields...’ has its “backwards” percussion sounds reinstated, an effect that was all but lost on the stereo mix featured on the MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR album.The booklet has been beautifully put together and there are some interesting notes to accompany the tracks on the second disc. However, die-hard Beatles fans might not find a great deal of revelatory information here as so much has been written about this album already. Nevertheless, the whole thing looks smart and I think that a lot of care and diligence has been taken with this whole release (and yes, the cut-out insert included with the original album hasn't been forgotten either).Many happy returns, SGT. PEPPER - a splendid time is STILL guaranteed for all!

To start with, I'm a big Beatles fan. I was born in the sixties, and grew up with them like so many other people. They have been a constant through my life. From my childhood days of playing the singles and albums, to later when I ran my own disco, and bought the first CD releases on their release dates, to the Anthology years and more. I've also picked up bootlegs from various record fairs over the years. I also studied to be an audio engineer, so sound quality is a big thing to me. I've got a reasonably high end Primare stereo, so this should set the scene accordingly.I went through the whole Beatles Rock Band thing on PS3 when Giles Martin worked with getting the Beatles tracks engineered for use on the game. I loved what he did with the tracks, as they sounded fantastic through 96kHz audio. But for whatever reason, I didn't hear much about the successive remaster from him until the White album remaster a couple of years ago, when my daughter bought it for me for Christmas. I was blown away with how perfect it sounded. White album was always a messy affair, but he'd polished it up to perfection.This year I got the Abbey Road remaster for Christmas too, and again, I was blown away with how good it sounds.So I got to searching what else was out there, and learned that Giles had also done the "1" album (which I then bought) and Sgt Pepper (amongst the obvious "Love" album and Hollywood Bowl stuff which I had already known about).Sgt Pepper for whatever reason has never been my favourite album. I didn't hate it at all, it just never fully resonated with me.Until now.In much the same way that Giles' remaster of the White album made it sound cohesive and tracks well matched with each other, he's REALLY improved this album. With the wide range in musical styles on offer, that's no mean feat. Every track sounds far more detailed and open right from the opener of Sgt Pepper. Listening through either my Primare stereo or on Grado headphones it sounds warm, detailed and has so much more space to breathe.Giles is also a master of understanding the subject and he's managed to correct small errors in the originals - from tweaking the mix of various instruments to removing the odd bit of leakage - whilst remaining absolutely true to the Beatles' spirit.So, Sgt Pepper has now become one of my favourite albums and I can't thank him enough for that.the additional tracks are also well chosen for the most part, and treated with similar care. This is unsual because demos and early mixed are usually just bunged out as they are without much care or treatment. Not so with Giles Martin.So for me, this is a perfect collection. Unless some much better media comes out in the future, I can't see me getting another release of this, as this is as close to perfection as one can get. Along with the additional tracks, well, they're just the cherry on top.If you've bought rematsered albums in the past and been disappointed that you can't really tell much different, you could do worse than go for this.

Nothing I can write here will do an album this strong and this timeless justice, really. Whether you're a big Beatles nerd or not, Sgt. Pepper's... is quite possibly their finest hour in the studio, and should really be a staple of any record collection, or perhaps even the start of one!This pressing of the album is from the recent, 2017 remaster/remix by Giles Martin, which sounds nothing less than incredible. The whole album has a crisp sound, real depth and each track holds another layer of freshness over an already enduring legacy. Martin did a phenomenal job behind the desk.I experienced no skips, jumps or crackle throughout my playing of this record, it just sounds perfect. As for the physical packaging itself, it's an extremely faithful replica of the original; housed in a gatefold sleeve with the cut-out 'props' card and an extra, 'psychadelic' record sleeve, which is a neat bonus. It also has a little booklet about the album, as well as a breakdown of exactly who appears on the iconic front cover of the album. Some good little extras in here.The Beatles really are a stellar group, and it's albums like this which mean they'll never fade from the public eye. And so they shouldn't. Sgt. Pepper's... is home to some of the best pieces of pop *ever* produced, and it's a thrill to own it on vinyl. The thing looks great and, most of all, sounds great.