J.A.W.

As was stated in the press release in which the remasters were announced earlier this year, the stereo remasters have a bit of added compression and limiting, whereas the mono remasters have none - at least no added compression and no limiting. Maybe that accounts for the bass lines being more clearly delineated and "louder" in stereo; it should also account for the stereo remasters having less dynamic range than the mono remasters.

The mixes in the Mono Box are the original ones, they're not new

I have only heard the Mono Box, so I can't comment on any comparisons with the Stereo Box (though comparing mono and stereo mixes sounds like comparing apples and oranges to me), but in my opinion the mono set sounds great and is something to look forward to.

They're talking about listening to the various albums on "normal stereo equipment" without defining whatever that might be and without giving any specifics of the actual setup they were using, and they're presenting personal opinions as facts (which also happens a lot on the Hoffman forum). All this makes their reviews rather unconvincing in my view.

According to their inserts the remasters that came out in Japan in 2007 were done in NYC, not in Japan.

As I said in my earlier post, the first Weather Report album was DSD-remastered by Mark Wilder and released on CD in Japan in 2007. It's now OOP.

This is Sony's repricing and phasing out (deleting) of the titles that are left in their Legacy series. This album was NOT remastered after 1992. In fact, I gave up waiting and bought a Japanese version. The Weather Report albums Weather Report, I Sing the Body Electric, Live in Tokyo, Sweetnighter, Mysterious Traveller, Tale Spinnin', Black Market, Heavy Weather, 8:30 and Mr. Gone were all "DSD remastered" according to CD Japan (scroll down to "description"). I have two of those remasters, Mysterious Traveller and Tale Spinnin', and they were both "DSD remastered" by Mark Wilder at the Sony BMG Music Studios, NYC. As far as I know Mr Wilder remastered all the albums mentioned above. I didn't check if any of them were released in the United States.

According to Vol.5 of Bruyninckx' "Swing" discography the Jazztone date was recorded in New York City on November 8, 1954.

The Beatles in Mono box is a very pleasant surprise. The albums sound much better than I had expected. Great box!

To my ears the remaster of All Things Must Pass doesn't sound good. Compared to my original Japanese CD issue it sounds as if noise reduction was applied. I sold it. I'll have to keep an eye out for the Japanese version for comparison then. Thanks. The catalogue number is EMI CP28-5459-60. It's hard to find and it can be expensive.

To my ears the remaster of All Things Must Pass doesn't sound good. Compared to my original Japanese CD issue it sounds as if noise reduction was applied. I sold it.

A pretty penny indeed I won't be able to buy the Pullen (the only one I'm looking for) anyway, as half.com is "U.S. only".

Prolly? I'm just a simple non-native English speaker - what does that mean?

I hope you're kidding ... I wish I were! Talked to Wenzel this morning. No news. See also Ghost of Miles' message here (end of second paragraph). By the way, as far as I know no one has said that the Jamal tapes were destroyed, they are just difficult to locate.

And there you have it. That's why everyone who can afford it has jumped all over the mono box. The first two albums are only of historical interest to me. HDN, BFS and H are hugely enjoyable but... It's Rubber Soul, Revolver, Sgt P (with reservations), the White Album and Abbey Road + the singles album that are the big atraction for me (I've not heard 'Let It Be' as an album ever!...should be remedied in the next couple of weeks). Mono, stereo, cylinder disc, download...doesn't enter into the equation for these ears. Ah! now here is where tastes differ! Please Please Me to my ears is one of the greatest power pop records of all time, I love it! I always return to PPM when I need a jolt of rock 'n roll. Listening to these box sets has caused me to "rediscover" early Beatles. Those first 5 albums are definitely loaded with charm and great R 'n R for me again. However, this rediscovery does not deter me from the opinion that their later albums are their best musically --- Rubber Soul on up is where it's at for me. I am still kind of befuddled as to why many Beatles fans find Revolver to be their best offering. Can this really be said about an album that has "Yellow Submarine" on it? "Revolver" IS their best album. Yes, it has "Yellow Submarine" (which I think is a perfectly charming track), but it also has "Taxman," "Love You To," "Tomorrow Never Knows," "She Said, She Said," "I'm Only Sleeping," "Doctor Robert," "Eleanor Rigby," etc., etc. "Taxman" has to be the best opening track since, well, "I Saw Her Standing There" on "Please Please Me"! (It still amazes me that only three years separate those two albums. And notice that both start with a count-in!) You say this as if it's a given!!! Mileage varies, as they say. I agree. Opinions presented as facts and all that jazz...

For those interested, the two albums on the Lonehill were issued separately on CD, Nothing But the Blues, of course, on Verve 521 674-2, and Herb Ellis Meets Jimmy Giuffre in the Verve Elite series, 314 559 826-2. Both are recommended.

You're probably right.

As I recall, getting down that staircase safely after a couple of pints could be problematic ! Wasn't there an Honest John's shop on Portobello Road, with a jazz section in the basement? (Edit) Oops, that must be their current shop. Got several beautiful records there in the 1980s.

I don't think that has ever been a reason for Mosaic not to issue a box.

I couldn't find any Mosaic Selects on their site. Can you post links to the Selects and the customer reviews? Downtown Music Gallery also lists some Selects as being "available", but when I asked them about it they told me they didn't have any stock and were trying to get the sets...

A return home for him - well, almost, he's from Hull, Yorkshire. Malcolm Addey

I am still hoping to find a reasonably priced and in-stock Don Pullen, but this set seems to be one of the more elusive ones.

The disease is dementia. I keep hoping that one day the "legal limbo" will be solved and Mosaic will after all be able to release a Garner set.

Ah, you remember the old moniker. Might be confusing for a lot of people. Re Ringo: I've always been a gut-feeling kind of guy and what has fascinated me about his playing is that you can actually hear that he was having fun. I have absolutely nothing theoretical or else to back that up with (although I often notice that loose and relaxed approach to what he was doing), but there are so many tunes that just ooze that "fun" vibe and that is something that - in my eyes (to my ears) - has become more and more rare. There are too many highly-skilled drummers out there today that have had excellent schooling from before they were able to walk and are today, often at a rather young age, able to play things that people a decade or two before them wouldn't have been able to wrap their brains around. And then they start playing ... and it bores me. To. Death. It all sounds so forced and so damn polished, every note placed meticulously and every other tune streamlined to death. Sometimes you can even predict this or that change just because their upbringing and teaching told them to shift the beat, to insert a radically different break or to entirely drop out of a song just to "surprise" the listener. It's like watching those formulaic slasher films in which you just know that someone had planned that one single scene nobody was supposed to expect. Nevertheless, if you have seen more than 5 or 10 of those films, you know that it's time for that "surprising/let's trick the audience" moment ... again. Predictable. Boring. Tiring. In short, I never get/got that feeling when I listen to Ringo play, and that makes him an excellent drummer in my book. Everyone else's mileage may vary considerably on this. You know, I've ranted and raved against Charlie Watts' style for ages, simply because I thought he played the same beat over, and, over and over again, but today, as I have grown older, I'm beginning to appreciate that approach a lot more as well. Yes, predictable like hell, but so much better than all that modern wanking too many players display who are, unfortunately, idolized by the next generation of drummers growing up. Note: Yes, there is a slew of excellent drummers today as well, I know, but ... I have the same feeling about a lot of instrumentalists these days, both classical and non-classical. Many of them are technically flawless and sometimes even brilliant, but the "feeling" (or whatever you want to call it) is lacking, at least to my ears; the music sounds emotionally detached and lifeless to me.

Be allowed to keep it? You said yourself that aloc changed his own avatar; nobody forced him to. Likewise, Berigan could choose to change his (which he has done from one that some people considered really offensive (why the Joker is offensive is beyond me) to this one, which is just childish but also somewhat funny.) I guess I just have a thick skin. I don't get upset by people who I know completely disagree with me politically using a silly picture as their avatar. Is it a political statement outside the political forum? I guess so. Are we going to be that strict with the rules? In that case, I know of some aliases that should be deleted, post-haste. A couple people should probably be banned right now, too. Then we can institute a massive crack down and everybody can tip-toe around trying not to offend each other and the moderators can have fun censoring the crap out of everything. Let's get rid of all material that could be deemed sexist or sexual in nature. Any avatar that is suggestive at all or any pictures in a signature. Might offend someone. In fact, let's just do away with the ability to post pictures. Too risky. Let's get rid of all material that could be offensive to a certain religion or belief structure. I'm sure that would make the Catholic contigient here very happy. In fact, let's not talk about religion at all. Too much of a slippery slope. Politics, too. Let's get rid of it. Let's get rid of all material of opinionated nature that might upset those who don't share that opinion, be it about art or music or literature or movies or TV or sports or what have you. Want to say you think Wynton sucks? Sorry, can't do it. Might offend somebody. In fact, let's just not talk about art at all. It's too subjective. "Boy, the Browns really stunk up the joint yesterday, didn't they?" Deleted. Sorry, might offend someone. No talking about sports. Too much emotion. Won't this place be splendid then? Gosh, I'd visit every day just to see a couple people talking about... nothing. I'm being a bit mean-spirited, but I just get tired with the notion that somehow people think they have a right not to be offended by something. Yes, it's bending the rules a little bit to have an avatar that is political in nature. Same with a signature quoting a political figure (what constitutes a political figure? Could Bono be considered a political figure or is he simply an artist?) But c'mon people. TURN OFF THE COMPUTER. It's not that big of a deal. Hm. This is the result of not having a clear stance on what goes and what doesn't. That's all. One day it's this, the other day it's that, depending on the moment. I've seen you take a clear stance for complete free speech, and I've seen you rant against the results of that stance. Gotta make a decision at some point. Sorry. You may kick me off now. I agree. It's one thing to set rules (such as "no politics outside the political forum"), but quite another to follow them and act accordingly; it's a lot easier to bend them a bit, and no one's feelings will get hurt. Sorry if this sounds harsh, but it's how I see it.