From: dave@RAY.MET.FSU.EDU (Dave Faciane)
Newsgroups: rec.music.beatles
Subject: Re: "The Making of Sgt. Pepper" on Disney
Date: 4 Oct 92 21:50:31 GMT

In article <88u2RB1w164w@sheltie.chapel-hill.nc.us> rberry@sheltie.chapel-hill.nc.us (Robert Berry) writes:
>US30139@VM.CC.LATECH.EDU writes:
>
>> Here's a thought.  Wouldn't it be grand if 4-track cassettes were available
>> to play back Pepper like George Martin did.  Just take your 4-track
>> cassette recorder--like a Tascam or Fostex--and be able to listen to Pepper
>> in parts.
>
>Great minds think alike. :-)  I had this thought some time ago, probably
>after reading Lewisohn for the first time.  By listening to various
>released versions and bootlegs, and reading The Book, it's possible to
>form a pretty good idea of how a particular track was recorded.  But
>nothing could compare to actually having access to the multitrack tape
>and mixing it yourself -- soloing the French horns on "Sgt. Pepper's
>Lonely Hearts Club Band" (like GM did in the special) or whatever.
>Since it's unlikely I'll ever be allowed to play with the real tapes in
>the EMI archives, that would be the next best thing.  (Sadly, however, I
>am quite sure it will never happen.)
>

You know, it's quite possible that the bootleggers that are
responsible for all of the fantastic outtakes on the Unsurpassed Masters
and Ultra Rare Trax series may have just such a capability. Consider
this: most of the tracks on all of these boots have been mixed down
for us and post-processed (i.e., echo has been added, which is not
usually added at the recording stage) into stereo mixes, some of which
we know from Lewisohn don't exist in officially produced EMI versions
(cf. the numerous Strawberry Fields Forever outtakes). It is possible 
that they (the nefarious underworld figures responsible for these bootlegs)
either (a) mixed down the four-track tapes at EMI using the Abbey Road
consoles (a la G. Martin) and seruptitiously recorded the resulting
mixes, or (b) recorded ALL FOUR TRACKS to a cassette and
smuggled this tape outside the studio environment to perform the
post-processing and subsequent illegal mastering. This latter
possibility would suggest that they could then isolate particular
tracks, as we hear on Unsurpassed Masters' "Here There and Everywhere"
(monitor mix). But the poor recording quality of this track suggests
that is was miked from the monitor speakers at Abbey Road, either
during the actual 1966 mixdown or in a subsequent 1990's playback.

>By the way, did I understand George Martin correctly when he was
>discussing (and playing) "Strawberry Fields Forever" for us?  We all
>know the story of the two versions of the song that were eventually
>spliced together to form the released version.  But Martin played
>*three* different versions of the song. [...]
>
>I checked Lewisohn, and he makes no mention of that first, simple
>version. What's the explanation?  Does it appear on any bootlegs?  I
>thought it was gorgeous, and I'd love to hear the whole thing.
>
It's there in Lewisohn; November 1966. It is also available in great
stereo sound (IMHO a bit raw, no post-processing was done *here*!) on
Unsurpassed Masters Volume 3 and other bootlegs as well.

---

David Faciane        | "I was just singing it in the toilet so I think
dave@ray.met.fsu.edu |  I should get it --Lennon, Abbey Road, 1965
Newsgroups: rec.music.beatles