We’re about the get the 50th anniversary edition of Sgt. Pepper. It is truly a cause for celebration. The people at Apple, including especially Giles Martin, George’s son, have proven simultaneously meticulous and creative in remastering a stereo version that matches the ambition of the original mono. (The Beatles did not pay any attention to stereo editions when recording, until they started recording in stereo, long after Sgt. Pepper.)
I did not love this album the way I loved Rubber Soul, Revolver and Abbey Road or even Help and A Hard Day’s Night until I got to hear the new version at a event organized by Apple at the end of April at the World of McIntosh in Soho. It On that system, with the new mix, I had a near-religious experience. This was the album the Beatles thought they were making—or at least the one they heard—now transferred to stereo and playable on equipment that far outstrips what was available a half-century ago. Remember, as Martin pointed out at the session, recording equipment back then was just (about) as good as it is today, but it’s the playback technology that has grown. With the new mix, Ringo’s drumming and Paul’s bass playing stand out as never before and this rhythm section drives the whole project in a way that makes it almost impossible to sit down while listening to it. (I did, but it was hard.) At least until the end . We all felt compelled to give the record a standing ovations. You will feel this way too if you are at all a decent person and you pick up one of the many versions of it being put out on May 26.
Taking questions after the event, Martin explained that while remixing the album. “I realized each song sounded better next to each other. I realized what an album is.” One could argue that this album actually invented the “album” something that has meant the world to me but like most things that meant the world to me, appears to be passing, or has passed, into history. Get the album by all means. If you can afford it, get the “super deluxe” four cd, Blu-Raydvd box set set. That come with, and this is from the press release two extra cds, in addition to the remixes cd that comes with the two cd version “with over 100 minutes of audio illustrating how the album was created. Newly mixed from the original four-track tapes, most of the material is previously unreleased. Also contains the original 1967 mono mix of the album and bonus tracks including three previously unreleased mixes.” Also, on Blu-Ray/DVD, you get a “fully restored 1992 documentary The Making of Sgt. Pepper, including interviews with Paul, George and Ringo and fascinating in-the-studio footage introduced by George Martin. Restored promotional films for 'A Day In The Life', 'Strawberry Fields Forever' and 'Penny Lane'. 2017 Giles Martin 5.1 surround sound mix and high-resolution stereo audio in 96KHz/24bit of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band plus 'Strawberry Fields Forever' and 'Penny Lane'. There’s also an 144-page hardback book featuring an introduction by Sir Paul McCartney, comprehensive song-by-song details and recording information, in-depth essays about the design of the cover, the album's musical innovations and its historical context... and much more. Illustrations include photographs from the recording sessions, handwritten lyrics and Abbey Road documentation. Also a replica of the original card insert and two bonus posters.”
Again, it’s not cheap but it’s an affordable treasure and one that makes my life a little better every time I look up and see it on the shelf, to say nothing of when I put it in the cd player. You might say it fixes a hole. I am not a religious person or even a spiritual person. But the miracle of the Beatles is, to me, one a “reason to believe.” To see how that miracle came together is well, worth waiting 50 years.
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