Geoff Emerick was The Beatles principle recording engineer from Revolver through Abbey Road which is when The Beatles were doing their most adventurous work. Emerick was greatly responsible for the sound of those Beatles albums. When I say sound, I mean the sound – not the music. The music itself was made by The Beatles themselves with the help of George Martin on arrangements.

Because of Emerick’s close relationship to The Beatles recordings it makes sense to listen to what he says as far as the mono mix vs. stereo mix debate. I think they are enlightening as far as making clear why The Beatles Mono Box Set is so essential for serious Beatles fans. What follows are some quotes from Emerick on The Beatles in mono.

“Back in 1967, most people’s record players were mono; stereo was still largely the purview of high-end audiophiles. True Beatles fans would do well to avail themselves of the mono versions of Sgt. Pepper and Revolver because far more time and effort went into those mixes than into the stereo mixes.”

“In contrast to the way they carefully oversaw the original mono mixes, the group had expressed no interest in even being present when we did the [stereo mixes of Sgt. Pepper] that’s how little thought we all gave stereo in those days.”

“Only stereo mixes were done [for Abbey Road] (that had been the case since The White Album.)”

The Beatles Mono Box Set

The box set includes the original mono versions of The Beatles first 10 albums. The Beatles songs from Yellow Submarine are actually included as well (in the Mono Masters double disc set of non album tracks.) The Beatles final two albums Let It Be & Abbey Road are not included because (as Emerick’s quote above mentions) they were never mixed in mono.

These original mono mix Beatles CDs are not available for individual purchase, only as a part of this box set. The individual CDs available are only those in stereo. So if you want to hear The Beatles as Geoff Emerick believes you should hear them you will need to Buy The Beatles Mono Box Set and then you can purchase the stereo mixes for Let It Be & Abbey Road to complete your collection (although personally I ordered the entire Stereo Box Set too as I want to hear both versions of their albums.)

As of today (9/2/09) both of these box sets are sold out on Amazon but they are currently available at a store called Collectors Choice Music (but they seem to be going in and out of stock very quickly – so don’t wait around if you want to make sure you get your copy.)

www.CCMusic.com