It is hard for me to believe that this year has really been enormous for the legendary rock band The Beatles (and Michael Jackson.) 2009 was the year Beatles fans have been waiting for because it was the year that the remastered versions of their albums finally came out on CD and digitally.
The box set that has created the most excitement of serious Beatles fans is the mono box because it represents the very first time that the original mono mixes of their music have been available on CD.
Many “purist” Beatles fans believe that the mono mixes are really the way their music was originally meant to be heard and the purists have good reason for believing that. It was the mono mixes that most people listened to back in the 1960s and it was the mono mixes that the band and it’s producers spent the most time perfecting. In comparison the stereo mixes were little more than an afterthought.
The Beatles Remastered Stereo CD Box Set
The most popular Beatles release of the year has been The Beatles in Stereo Box Set. It’s been a huge seller and for a very good reason. It includes the band’s entire ’62-’70 discography in brilliantly remastered stereo. It sounds absolutely brilliant (these discs are definitely far better than the ’87 mastered Beatles discs you likely have at the moment.)
The really big improvement compared to the old discs are heard in the way Paul McCartney’s bass guitar cuts through the mix more so than ever before and Ringo’s drums sound far better too. Another obvious improvement is in the way the vocals sound, particularly the clarity of the backing vocals.
The Beatles USB is essentially a digital version of The Beatles Remastered Stereo Box Set. It includes both 320kbps mp3s and 24bit FLAC files. Along with the obvious audio component, this Apple USB stick also contains the visual elements from the stereo box set such as the thirteen album documentaries, the extended liner notes for each album, and the unpublished photographs.
The Beatles USB stick is compatible with both Mac and Windows computers. The mp3s that it contains should work with no hiccups with any mp3 player (whether you own an iPod, a Zune, or a generic brand.)
