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REVIEW: The Beatles remastered 1967-70
Part 2 of our expert guide to the box sets
Joe Bosso, Tue 8 Sep 2009, 1:10 pm UTC
Helter Skelter is McCartney's raging rock slab, and in mono it's stunning to hear how unhinged he becomes trying to obliterate his image as the 'soft Beatle.' He matches but doesn't best Lennon's Twist And Shout in the vocal cord-shredding department.
Musically, the guitars and drums could knock down trees. My only beef - and the stereo mix corrects this - is the famous false ending. In mono, it's gone; the song fades out normally. Ringo doesn't even have blisters on his fingers. That's a bummer.
George Harrison often felt overshadowed by the hit machine that was Lennon/McCartney, but he was the only Beatle to record in eight-track on 'The White Album' with his first true masterpiece, While My Guitar Gently Weeps.
Even with little bits of sweetening – added percussion, keyboards that don't overwhelm – the mono version carries a decidedly live, less 'studio processed' sound. Harrison's Fender Bass VI is an earth-shaker - it's that heavy. And what of guest star Eric Clapton's lead guitar breaks? They shriek with emotion.
I Will and Julia, individual triumphs by McCartney and Lennon, respectively, spotlight their creators as writers and singers of matchless depth and reach, and the mono mixes do them equal justice.
"George Harrison often felt overshadowed by Lennon and McCartney, but he was the only Beatle to record in eight-track on 'The White Album'."
In Paul's delicate acoustic serenade, he sounds as if he's demoing his song just for you - that's the level of intimacy he achieves. Hooky guitar arpeggios fill the air.
Meanwhile, Lennon's double-tracked voice is as beguiling as the Mono Lisa. Confessional, vulnerable, aching with very different kinds of love for two women (his deceased mother and Yoko One), it's a courageous outpouring.
Revolution 9 is still a nightmare in both good and bad senses of the word, but in the mono version it assaults head on, whereas the stereo version ambushes you from every which way. Pick your poison.
