THE HOLLIES/BUTTERFLY UK STEREO PMC 7039 VS. MONO PMC 7039

Feel I have to apologize for my condemning of this stereo in my first post on the mono a couple of years ago. I only had the mono back then so my judgement came from part faint memories of playing it on a lesser equipment and part after being disapointed by the "Evolution" stereo catastrophy (see earlier post). I have rewritten it since after finding this first press stereo and realizing that it actually has a lot to offer. Playing it now I hear a totally ok mix as made from a four channel recording - strong and though some of it is panned there's enough overlapping to get a satisfying picture. There are quite a few differences between the formats. E.g. the "Wish You A Wish" mono has birdsong at the beginning and end, stereo a waterfall at the beginning and nothing at the end. "Dear Eloise" and "Charlie and Fred" monos have more reverb. "Try It" stereo has a longer intro seemingly cut off from the mono. On "Postcard" stereo has slightly longer intro and and outro and the seagull noises differ. There's more but as all cuts apparently got separate treatment too much to get into here. Since both these copies are very early pressings it's more surprising that the song title "Wish You A Wish" is written together as "WISHYOUAWISH" on the stereo (-1 matrix/1R mother-stamper) while the mono (-1 matrix/1A mother-stamper) has the separate words. Also on the mono the vinyl show clearly visible gaps between the tracks while they are hardly noticable on the stereo, only seen in strong light (as on early Sgt. Pepper). Still whatever format you choose it is a great album with a perfect blend of emotional and experimental - catchy melodies spiced by well endowed effects. Mono remains my first choice but the stereo has so much to offer it's good to have both. Japan 2014 CD came with both mono and stereo versions plus two mono bonus tracks. EU 2016 2xLP set (PMC 7039/PCS 7039) with one mono and one stereo album, both cut from the original tapes with yellow/black Parlophone labels. Premiere UK had labels as shown here and laminated flip-back covers with EMI ad inner. (HÖLY*) (PÖX*) (MÅW*) (CPYC*)