The Story Behind The Beatles' US Albums, Including Differences Between US and UK Mixes
As the Beatles' camp gets ready to roll out 'The U.S. Albums' box set this month, we thought it was a good time to explore why this new release even exists. Didn't Apple Corps reissue remastered versions of the group's catalog just a few years ago?
Well, yes. But the 13-CD box, due January 21, includes five albums that have never been officially available on CD. And, as it happens, the Beatles' U.S. catalog is another animal altogether, thanks to the handiwork of Capitol Records, which licensed the British group's music in the states.
First, there are the titles and cover art, which almost always differed from the U.K.'s Parlophone Records releases, right through the end of 1965. Second are the track listings. The Capitol albums typically contained 11 or 12 tracks to the 14 on the Parlophone LPs. Each of the U.S. releases was compiled using tracks from at least two U.K. albums and included songs that were also released as singles, a practice frowned upon by the Brits.
Finally, and most significantly, there is the sound. The American albums released from 1964's 'Meet the Beatles!' through 1965's 'Rubber Soul' were usually brighter sounding and had more reverb than their British counterparts. In addition, the stereo mixes on several songs were produced artificially, as no true stereo mixes had been created yet by the Beatles production team. Which raises the question: Who on earth would mess with the Beatles' music?
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