THE BEATLES/BEATLES FOR SALE PCS 3062 (-64) UK STEREO

Usually I don't post regular Stones or Beatles issues here. They're all disected enough already and I got nothing new to add. But I've been into this a lot lately and thought I'd share some of my musings. As a rule UK pop/rock issues up to 1967 and some after that sounds better in mono. The two-channel technique wasn't perfected yet and old timer producers participating in the youth boom not fully adapted. Had both issues of this long time and always go for the mono at home - easier if you move around and want balanced audio all over. Lately I've seen lots of good things written about the stereo on the net, some even prefer it over the mono, so I sat myself down in front of the speakers for a comparison. Although tuning differs at a few cuts and there are some other minor differences the main impression is the same. What strikes me is the stereo's amazing audio, better than almost anything I've heard from pre-67 on two channels. Where the mono is compact and striking the stereo is soft and overflowing. Some of the tracks have rather annoying ground mixes with most of the music in one speaker and vocals in the other, but there's enough "spill-over" and focusing to avoid a gap in the middle and you get a full, almost natural picture totally adequate for close listening. I still prefer the mono as background or for socials, but when sitting down and relaxing the stereo actually does better. It took me fifty years to realise that. Copies pressed December -64 had both "SOLD IN UK..." and "RECORDING FIRST PUBLISHED 1964" on label as shown here. From 1965-69 "SOLD IN UK..." only. It came in a thin laminated fold/out cover with inside pocket and flips. (BÄ*) (PÖX*) (LGÅ*)