I’ve collected Japanese Beatles albums since 1974 . One thing you must understand is in Japan the Odeon label was replaced by the Apple label in 11-1968 or 1968-11 depending where you are - I’m in San Francisco- . That meant that ALL the Odeon reissues after November 1968 would be on the Apple label . The main issue is the Ever Clean red vinyl pressings . I LOVE THEM ! The quality is possibly the best in the world in respect to vinyl. These albums do sound fantastic even after heavy use . Obviously you can’t expect a record with deep scratches to sound good , but other than that they are remarkably clean sounding . The first mono pressing on Odeon Ever Clean are probably the crème de la crème . What you should take note of is the OR ,and OP Odeon pressings became AP initially in late 1968 . If you have an AP red wax White Album or Abbey Road those are first pressings to the best of my knowledge - Hey Jude ,and Let It Be as well - You can also tell most early pressing have flip back covers as well. I’m seventy six years old now, and have been a studio musician on bass ,and guitar since 1967 , ie my hearing is shot on the high frequencies. The Japanese did not skimp on quality ,yet their prices are far below the UK ,and Italy - which I believe are for the most part as good as it gets overall. The problem with critiquing vinyl is you must cherry pick . I would say your biggest bang for your buck would go to the AP White Album, and Abbey Road. They should be first pressings in either red or black vinyl , which cost a fraction of the UK or even more so Italy . As I live in the USA ,and worked as a musician in Los Angeles, - I did ONE session with part of the Wrecking Crew before that moniker existed - I’m well ,rather I was well acquainted with Capitol Records . Capitol in the 1950-early 1960s - prior to the Beatles - pressed great records . With that said some of the old school bean counters were still there when the Beatles broke in the USA ,and their top A&R dept heads had no idea what they were doing . As my mothers family is English I got the Parlophone pressings a year or two after only having Capitol Beatles albums to listen to. When I finally heard the UK pressings I understood what a hatchet job Capitol did on Beatles albums all for the love of money. I’m not even aware to this day how many Beatles albums Capitol released given that both Vee Jay ,and United Artist also had two complete Beatles albums originally so you must add those to Capitols output in the 1960s. The older I get the more I appreciate the high end on records. Leave the treble flat,boost bass up all the way on your preamp . Ps. Your playback system means much.
@@trappenweisseguy27 I have a late '70s Japanese pressing of Dark Side of the Moon from that Pro-Use Series that blows my socks off every time I play it, and I don't even have the greatest system in the world. I've been offered $$$ by a few Floyd fans for it, but it's one of those records that's part of my DNA and won't be leaving my house any time soon.
Totally agree about the system, but I advise folks not to get caught up in chasing ephemeral "audiophile" subjective weirdness. Steve Guttenberg, an ex-high end dealer, is a good resource. One can put together a quite decent system for under $1000. The front end will most likely be the most expensive component. I suggest checking out estate sales for possible bargains. Regarding bass/treble, I have a graphic equalizer which serves me well (there is also both graphic and parametric EQ add-ons for Firefox). I think you got the EQ backwards. I'm 69, played drums in a rockabilly, 60s garage, punk band in Houston (The Love Noodles), and my high frequency hearing is also impaired. I lower 250Hz and below, and boost 500Hz and above. Perhaps that's what you meant?
I'd just like to share some things: 1. The Japanese version of the "Ballads" compilation album has a unique mix of Norwegian Wood 2. The Japanese insert for the lyrics of Rain attempted to interpret the backward vocals section
@@clivefernthecamper7831 the Japanese Ballads LP mix of Norwegian Wood has it this way: Bass - Center channel Guitar - Center channel Vocals - Center channel Percussion - Center channel Sitar and 12-String - Right channel
I picked up all of the Beatles "Flag Obi strip", U.K. series, as well as the 1986 mono vinyl reissues. I also purchased, possibly all of their Japanese solo vinyl singles, with picture sleeves, at original price. How, you ask? I served in the U.S. Air Force and was stationed in Tokyo, 1984-'87. It was perfect timing, you might say. I was also able to purchase "The Beatles Box", Japanese and U.K. pressings, while I was over there. Still have them all to this day.
I’m not sure about Japanese vinyl, but Japanese remastered CD’s sound great. Some people complain they sound too bright, but they get a lot of separation in the musical instruments, more so than the US remasters. I’m not sure if it’s their equipment. Anyone know how they remaster? Their process?
If the Japanese CD you're about is Abbey Road CD, that is due to pre-emphasis. High frequencies will be boosted when the CD is carelessly ripped-and-played on PC (iTunes-ripped one is OK). As far as I know there is no Japan-unique remastered-CD on market. Another possibility is higher quality of Japan pressing CDs. Off-centricity and dull-edges of pits will deteriorate consistency of the data, this may induce loss of details on the waveform.
1982 mono presings have a simple and slim black and red obi with a note "original mono record series". Those are not in blue. 1986 mono issues have an indication of the expiration date for rental-service restriction. So, it's easy to distinguish to each other even without obi.
I've been waiting a LONG time for this! I have been collecting them for about a year. The red vinyl is gorgeous and can sound really good. The OBI's are also a really nice addition!
Decades ago, I received as a gift the Japanese pressings of their BC 13 boxset and the red and blue albums on colored vinyl. Since I already had American versions of the records, I never listened to them. I just checked out the unusual inserts. I was wondering how the sound compares to the European counterparts.
Totally agree with your assessment of Japanese Beatles' pressings. At one time, we owned a sizeable number of Beatles' Japanese pressings. Then, we learned how to listen in a more critical manner, and now we DON'T own a sizeable number of Beatles' Japanese pressings. We've managed to hold onto the late-70's Beatles Collection EAS-50031-44 box-set mainly for the AHDN, which we think sounds better than the UK, or any other pressing that we have heard. The World Records box we also kept, but it has such a dull high-end throughout (which, as discussed in this video, is unusual for Japanese pressings), the UK version is our to-go for listening needs. We can say without reservation that our Japanese All Things Must Pass is better than the UK equivalent, in our opinion. Your mileage may vary....
We had Japanese albums sold in the Los Angeles stores before 1985. And I think today is the Blue and the Red album anniversary. 🥳Thank you for the Blue and Red !
(Here's some "American sportz colloquialisms" for description...). "TOUCHDOWN!" "HIT IT OUTTA DA PARK!" "Badda-BOOM!" "HAT-TRICK!" and "NOTHING BUT NET - (swish!)"... (And a spare English one;) "Spot-on!!!
I have the original Japanese Abbey Road as my friends Mum lived there and I think it sounds great. What's more interesting is the single of Come Together/Something which is possibly the clearest mix of Come Together I think I've ever heard.
I can't speak, so much, on the Japanese vinyls, but I absolutely know that early 80s versions of the cassette tapes were amazing! Some of these tapes (I specifically recall Sgt Pepper and Magical Mystery Tour) had different mixes/longer fade-outs. This trend continued into some of the solo releases of the former Fabs.
Chilean Cassettes from 1993 blows away the japanese tapes, the Chrome pre recorded Chilean tapes are the best sounding cassettes from the beatles ever made
In my area, a regional record store chain had kept up a constant stock of Japanese issues on Apple. These would be late 1970s early 1980s pressings and certainly not the colored vinyl versions you've shown here. Following the death of John Lennon, the chain immediately bought up extensive stock of Japanese issues, following the UK and US issues. The chain stocked so many that by 1981 and 1982, they dropped the price on them to match domestic pressings. The sound of the earliest albums was pristine, but to me RUBBER SOUL and REVOLVER sounded extremely flat, at least in my opinion. Soon enough that chain sold out of the Japanese pressings of SGT. PEPPER on out and I never heard them. 40 years have passed now, and I've never had a look inside those earliest pressings you've shown here. Thank you.
Another great, enjoyable, informative video!Back in the mid 80s, after finishing university in Canada and starting a paying job, I was introduced to the Japanese Flag series from a friend who was somewhat older than me. I was blown away by the quality in both packaging and sound. I had only the US versions of the LPs up until that point. I then sought out and purchased most of them, primarily the UK versions.
Japan in general usually has incredible pressings. They press with quality in mind of quantity, they can be harder to find but it's sound quality is amazing.
My buddy up in North Jersey sold me his 40 bins of mostly Beatles,Andrew,I think I mentioned it From most every country you could think of(originals,mind you)He had a few Everclear Odeon original OP's without the OBI's though.A Hard Day's Night and Rubber Soul were 2 of them.He had some EP and 45 Everclear red vinyls as well.All gone now,unfortunately,now.He has gotten more though.I need to see him,I guess.
@@TheHutt Beside being pressed from mostly the same sources, the first pressings might even have slightly more bass than the Beatles Forever series due to the thicker vinyl.
Great overview - I have bought over 20 Japanese Beatle albums including a few red vinyl copies. I particularly like Flag series. I am a sucker for great physical media and graphics. I particularly like sleeves and gatefolds including Japanese version of Help with US style gatefold but UK content.
This year I got a japanese UK flag of Live From The Hollywood Bowl from 1977, superb condition of both cover and record plus all the insert, together with a Metal Blade Records first pressing of Lizzy Borden's Murderess Metal Road Show had been my best and most valuable vinyl purchases in 2022.
Thanks again Andrew for a wonderful video. These are quickly becoming a Sunday tradition at my house. I don't have any direct experience with the flag (EAS) series, but I've always heard that they, like MFSL ,suffer from questionable eq choices. Conversely, while the EAS series might not be a great alternative to European pressings, I have been very impressed with the AP (Beatles Forever) Series. I have a pristine copy of Abbey Road (AP-8815) and I think it compares favorably to my -2/-1 UK pressing of Abbey Road. Everything that makes the UK so good is also present on my copy. Realistic and full bass, crisp but not overly brittle highs, and warm mids. When I want a big smile on my face I pull out the UK because it just has that extra something (life like presence) , but when I want to hear every detail of Abbey Road, I pull out the AP series. If the UK is life-like, the Japanese is more clinical and 3-D. The only problem that might be an issue is that side 2 suffers from a slight tape flutter issue, which I believe is prevalent on other AP series pressings.
my favorite thing to watch while i eat. low-key, informative, and just about the perfect length. would love to see a video about the japanese singles sometime!
I have a few Japanese pressings. One is an EP from Revolver, which sounds great. I also have a Sgt. Pepper, which I haven’t listened to in quite awhile, and an Odeon red vinyl of the 1962-1966 double LP that I’ve only listened to once. I may have another that I can’t recall. Anyways there’s a guy who owns a record store, the In Grove, and a UA-cam channel here in the US who really talks down the Japanese pressings. Not only for the Beatles, but for others as well.
I recently purchased a big pile of Japanese vinyl. It wasn't something I was planning to do, but I started collecting laserdiscs during lockdown and because Japan was a big market for those, a lot of the best bargains come from that country. One seller that I've bought a lot from, Good Squid, occasionally sells vinyl as well and when I saw what he was selling I thought I'd give it a go. I've not listened to everything yet as there really is a lot of records in that lot, but I've found them to be a mixed bag so far. The Rolling Stones Japanese releases mostly sound amazing. The Beatles Japanese releases vary greatly. Some seem to be mixed differently as some elements seem to disappear in the mix, perhaps this is just due to the quality of the tapes or the EQing. There's a couple where the vocals are almost buried. Others though sound really good. As you mention, the Japanese vinyl is always of the highest quality and the Japanese tended to really take good care of the records and so there's rarely any surface noise, it's very crisp and clean sounding. The best Japanese Beatles albums I've heard are on the same level as the local Australian pressings, the worst are just okay. It's a good way to get some of those albums in great condition for a decent price though. A lot of the reissues here tend to be rather expensive. Then there's also the US albums which are very hard to find here. The Japanese pressings of these albums are a good and much cheaper alternative.
Dear sir, Thank you for your very informative program on the Beatles Japanese albums!! I commend you on your knowledge of the subject. My name is Kenneth Jeys and I live in Denver...Anyway back in 1984 when I was just getting out of the military I was stationed at Albuquerque new Mexico and answered an ad in the local paper where someone listed original vinyl albums for sale. I ended up buying most all of them that he had. He had been in the Vietnam War and had bought a few of his albums over in Japan. HE had a Japanese Beatles white album he had bought over there and the number on the front is no. A.041365. The Beatles is embossed or raised in the cover and the records are red vinyl numbers as 8570 and 8571 and yex numbers under them as well. The album has the listing of song titles in Japanese as well as English, and has an original which may not be original...the album has the poster and pictures in the black UK sleeves, and the poster has Japanese lettering on it as well as the lyrics to the songs in English. It was made by Toshiba musical industries Tokyo I always understood the the first 50,000 albums were red vinyl and the rest were plain black, but I could be wrong about that.....as I mentioned, the album number is no. A041365. What can you tell me about this album as far as it being an original 1968 or 1969? Thank you. Sincerely Kenneth jeys..ps the album on the lower back has Japanese lettering on it also.
Thank you again! Very nice presentation! I would have been interested in knowing a little more about the source tapes for the Red / Blue albums and Magical Mystery Tour LP format. Did they take the US duophonic MMT cuts or did they properly source the stereo mixes? I think that the bass situation can be modified by people adjusting their systems. It gets frustrating for people to adjust based on each album, but if the entire country has a particular sound on their pressings, then you can have a universal adjustment for the equalizer.
I have Japanese vinyls of Meet The Beatles and The Beatles' Second Album. But mine were released by Apple. They are first pressings. I still have them and the OBIs that came with them. I bought them in the seventies, in Vancouver B.C. I like the track listings on both of them.
Hi Andrew, as always an intriguing video. I have a handful of Beatles Japanese LP pressings. The Obi Flag series looks desirable and I have seen the whole series up for sale as a set a couple of times. Your explanation about the sound quality surprised me. I guess I should do a comparison with my UK & Australian pressings. Take care. Cheers mate 👍😊
A nice and informative video about a subject I didn't know much about. I never went through the 'trouble' of collecting Japanese vinyl pressings but I bought a Japanese stereo pressing of Revolver from 1976 on a record fair in Utrecht for a colleague and he was very happy with it. That is as far as I got....
Hello Andrew, it was really neat to see the Japan originals from the 60's! My experience has been that the 1976 "flag" series are pretty bright sounding, but the early 70's "Beatles Forever" series can be pretty nice if not the equal of the best UK and German pressings.
I had a whole tone of excellent to mint vinyl for years. I collected it from the 1980's onwards. Some of it was worth a lot of money. I sold the collection. I ripped most of it onto a digital format. I cannot tell the difference. Its sounds great. Its easier to play, i still enjoy the music as much.
I don't seek out the Japanese versions as a rule, but I do have a couple from the "Flag" series that I think are pretty decent. Lovely, quiet pressings and sleeves made from thicker cardboard stock. Slightly off topic, but the crown jewel in my Beatle collection as regards issues from Japan is a CD of "Abbey Road" on Odeon (CP35-3016). I purchased it in a Hi-Fi shop a few years into the CD revolution but way before anything of The Beatles catalogue had been legitimately released on compact disc. Not sure how it slipped out but it is a fantastic sounding version of "Abbey Road", equally on par with Mobile Fidelity or recent re-masters. And no lack of low end, to be sure.
One correction: The Japanese LIB box set came in a domestically printed box, not an imported UK-printed box. The book was printed by G&L in the UK (the only place the book was printed). The box was also printed in Germany, Canada, Spain, Mexico, Peru and Argentina.
I never got involved with the Beatles Japanese pressings. Largely because I wasn't aware of them until the late '70's/early '80's, when this one record store near me started selling Beatles import albums. I looked at them, curious to see the American flag OBI's, and their song listings. The albums looked good, but by that time, I had already collected the US pressings. Didn't have the money at the time to invest in imports with a higher price tag.
I've managed to get myself an original Japanese Come Together/Something and Get Back/Don't Let Me Down. They are beautifully clear, and Don't Let Me Down especially sounds ethereal and has so much presence in the room.
I bought a 1982 Japanese pressing of 'Please Please Me' ten years ago from a used book /vinyl store for $29.99 (a real steal in near mint condition) and thought it sounded amazing. I'vd since collected every red vinyl pressing from '82 with the thin black obi. Still like to play them, but I think the 2014 mono has them beat; fuller sound with more bass. Thanks again, Andrew.
In the distant past I collected quite a few Japanese LP's as I liked the low noisefloor of the vinyl and the quality of the record covers. As I improved my equipment over the years, the limitations of th SQ became more obvious. I do need to sell my Japanese collection.
Thank you for this video on the Japanese pressed album series. I have a complete set that I started collecting in the late 70’s and early 80’s. I thoroughly enjoy them and, in my humble opinion, they sound great. The very sturdy album jackets are also a plus. Thanks again for yet another informative video.
Another excellent episode. I agree about the sound of these pressings. I master albums here in Canada and always found it fascinating how little bass they put on their pressings. But that seems to be with Beatles pressings...having collected a lot of Japanese pressings of other bands (Rush..Kiss. ..Frank Zappa...David Bowie)..I think the mastering engineers in Japan got the message and started using the dreaded V - Eq setting...where there was a lot of bass and treble. .but a very scooped mid range. Personally I find the flag series a hard listen. ..but I enjoy the 2003 Japanese DMM remaster pressings. They are in Mono and sound great.
I own an NM/M- Japanese Abbey Road (YEX-749 1S3 32 〄 IK IL / YEX-749 1S2 〄 (not red)) and it sounds incredible. Interesting to finally learn it was a second hand tape as this pressing is super dynamic with plenty of slam. Ty for sharing!
Wonderful presentation! I have a Japanese vinyl version of Yesterday and Today which has a great gatefold design. It had an Apple OBI strip, but as you mentioned, the sound quality lacks bass. Although not a Beatles LP, I have a 1972 Badfinger Straight Up LP that has a great laminated cover but also fine sound quality as well.
I had AHDN,Beatles For Sale and Rubber Soul on original "Everclean"red vinyl Odeons.Didnt have the Obis,of course.Just picked up a Let It Be on green Apple Everclean.
I would agree on the sound quality for the early releases, but there are three Japanese vinyl pressings I find to be pretty good -the red and blue issues from 2014 and Let It Be…Naked.
Hello. I'm Japanese collector. I also think that Japanese records have a lively treble range. Or should I say, those has clear and crisp sound. The quality of the vinyl is very high, but it is not comparable to the British records of the 1960s. So I always looking for UK original in good conditions!
I bought the Liverpool Boxset from Japan, I've got to say this. There is no better packaging than Japanese packaging. 1. Creased covers, you'll never have trouble removing the record. 2. Included lyrics and description (in Japanese) 3. Shaped inner sleeves making it hard to get stuck. 4. Cool images everywhere, and fantastic vinyl. Plus, they make some albums gatefolded which I don't think any other country did like Yesterday and Today.
Spot on. At one time, when I had a cheaper turntable stereo set, I purchased and played the Japanese vinyl. But the high end was just to much for me when played on a better system. Sold my Japanese albums.
I boughr many Japanese pressings and very satisfied with them. I had the Blue Box Set. Please Please Me was a disappointment as Miaery and There's A Place was in stimulated stereo
I have some japanese pressings that sounds fantastic, like the original The Birds, The Bees & The Monkees, but on the other hand some that sounds just ok, like a 1977 reissue of Lennon's Mind Games. However, they are all dead quiet vinyl, which I do appreciate as well, and mostly come in nice packaging, including inserts, obis and booklets, for instance. In some cases records originally released in single covers everywhere, might be released in gatefold covers in Japan, as you have pointed out by showing the Yesterday and Today japanese album. Cheers, Andrew! Nelio.
To me, the gold standard for Beatles recordings are the re-released mono versions from the master tapes done a few years ago. Great analog sound and very cheap.
I’ve got 3 of the Japanese LPs - Help!, Rubber Soul, and A Collection Of Beatles Oldies. As well as the bass issue you mention, all 3 titles are approximately 4dB quieter than the UK equivalents. Oldies is the worst of the three, Help! is the best. Because of the extreme separation in Rubber Soul, it also has sibilance problems on the vocal track. As you say, nice sleeves.
Great episode! My Japanese HEY JUDE LP sounds much more dynamic than the U.S. pressing. The same can be said for my Japanese pressing of YESTERDAY AND TODAY. But as you say, Andrew, that’s just my opinion! Cheers!
I agree with the lack of bass. They also sound a bit sterile to my opinion, but they are pretty much free of clicks and distortion. The initial run of 7" singles and EPs were also pressed on the red Ever Clean vinyl. They also in the 70's pressed the Sgt Pepper and Abbey Road picture disc LPs and released the 1962-1966 and 1967-1970 sets in their respective colours.
It seems with these Japanese vinyl issues that they look good but don't sound so good! I would say that they are still worth collecting though. Thanks for a great explanation about these releases, Andrew, which I didn't know much about!
Odeon Ever Clean records are practically immortal. Both my discs (Beatles' Hits, Long Tall Sally) are absolutely silent and pristine after 41 years. Both still have their original lyric sheets and protective sleeve too. I'll say that the sound is definitely different, it's less sweetened and clear. Closer to a Capitol 45, really. Not to imply they're bad to the ear, they're actually rather satisfying.
The flag series albums were common to see in Australian record stores in the 80s. They never appealed to me enough to purchase them. Another great video Andrew..thank you 👏
Personally, I think the 70s Japanese 'Flag Series' pressings sound great with plenty of rich bass and the covers are nice and thick plus there's the bonus poster in some of the albums as well. The cover artwork isn't as good as the English pressings. I first started buying them in the mid 80s and I clearly remember being knocked out at how good they sounded. Andrew, have you considered a video on the 'Help!' and 'Rubber Soul' albums, telling the story of the remixes done in 1987 by George Martin, which are now core catalogue. Or maybe the 'Magical Mystery Tour' story from two EP's, the abysmal US stereo pressing with the duo-phonic tracks on side two which became core catalogue in the mid 70s to the Abbey Road 2009 remasters?
Are you going to a video of the 5 export cd box sets for Japanese export only (JBCDBOX1-5)? I’m pretty sure they were pressed in the UK for the Japanese market. I remember having JBCDBOX2. 🙂
I was very reluctant to watch this video, as I didn’t want it to open a rabbit hole where I felt I had to go collecting the Japanese pressings. Then I remembered that Japanese pressings has not featured highly in your video about the best sounding Beatles albums, so thought it would be safe to watch. Happily, it didn’t convince me to buy these albums, as I like to hear the low end. Very interesting to hear the story of the pressings, though, and certainly they look like high quality productions, particularly in terms of sleeve design.
You can get the Abbey Road (the AP version with the green Apple obi). One of the finest-sounding versions out there (not counting the UK -2/-1 of course).
Hi Andrew Love the video on the beatles records I have no Japanese records but I did get to beatles records form Singapore Not in the best condition but nice to have Andrew keep up the good work you do dave.
I remember buying the stereo Beatles For Sale in the UK flag series in the early 1990s as it was a good way of getting a stereo version of the album when it wasn't available in the UK. Seem to remember getting it from the Beatles Shop in Matthew Street and it wasn't too expensive. I though it sounded good and it's a good pressing. Wish I'd have got some more of these!
My old record shop used to have these in large quantities and I seem to remember that they were selling at a premium price. I have learned to pretty much avoid Japanese pressings, though (unless the recording was made in Japan to begin with). Which is a shame because I think the manufacturing quality of Japanese lp's is generally exemplary. Alas, I agree with you that the sound just isn't there... Thank you for another interesting presentation and keep up the good work!
Brilliant video Andrew. I collect the flag series. Love the quality and the fact that most have an Apple label. Yes the sound lacks a little low end but still sound very detailed to my ears. They actually continued up to no 40 although the higher ones didn’t have the flag obi or the number in the Apple
I would love to add some Japanese Beatles records to my collection. Great video today Andrew! Lots of great information today! Keep up the interesting entertaining content and have a happy Easter, oops sorry about that, I guess Easter is already over over there in England. Hope you had a great Easter Andrew👯♂️👯
i have the older japanese red vinyl pressings. About 10 of them. Also the beatles story boxset on odeon. It came with booklets etc.I believe it was the first beatles boxset ever.
The only Japanese pressing I have so far is a flag series Abbey Road from '76 and it sounds great! It was recommended by Michael Fremer, so I figured it was worthwhile to pick up a copy and was not disappointed. 👍
Discrepancies between subtitles & audio on this are a bit strange. At one point the audio says “Fresh Sounds from Liverpool vol 3” contains one Beatles track “You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away” where as subtitles says it features “I’m Down”.
Well done! Excelent review. For some reason, they're much easier to find here in Brazil than the european releases. The country flag series seem to have slightly less bass than the Beatles Forever series. Their solo career albums were also released on these series, as well as on the first thin green Apple obi. The 2000's catalog re-release is also pretty good, the albums are all heavy-weight Direct Metal Mastered.
Very interesting, I remember seing at the SAM record store (It was the biggest in Canada back then) in Montreal at around 30$ in the late 70s, a Japanese pressing of the Beatles White album. The vinyl was white!
I only have a handful of Japanese Beatles items, including that gatefold version of Yesterday & Today, which I agree sounded a bit underwhelming the last time I played it, but if they're using a second-generation tape from U.S. sources, that could explain why; it's just a shade too far from the original U.K. tapes! But my Japanese pressing of the White Album remains a personal favourite, apart from the excellent quality of the vinyl it does have a clarity and clean sound that I really appreciate, and the lack of bass never really bothered me that much (I don't have a huge set of speakers, although I do have a powered subwoofer). But because that's the version of those songs I tend to listen to the most, it's no wonder the Giles Martin version of the album didn't appeal to me, since that's the pendulum swinging all the way to the other side of the EQ spectrum. My only '60s pressing of the White Album is a numbered Spanish Odeon copy that has seen better days, but maybe I'll run it through a friend's ultrasonic cleaner and see how it performs in comparison.
I’ve collected Japanese Beatles albums since 1974 . One thing you must understand is in Japan the Odeon label was replaced by the Apple label in 11-1968 or 1968-11 depending where you are - I’m in San Francisco- .
That meant that ALL the Odeon reissues after November 1968 would be on the Apple label .
The main issue is the Ever Clean red vinyl pressings .
I LOVE THEM !
The quality is possibly the best in the world in respect to vinyl.
These albums do sound fantastic even after heavy use .
Obviously you can’t expect a record with deep scratches to sound good , but other than that they are remarkably clean sounding .
The first mono pressing on Odeon Ever Clean are probably the crème de la crème .
What you should take note of is the OR ,and OP Odeon pressings became AP initially in late 1968 .
If you have an AP red wax White Album or Abbey Road those are first pressings to the best of my knowledge - Hey Jude ,and Let It Be as well - You can also tell most early pressing have flip back covers as well.
I’m seventy six years old now, and have been a studio musician on bass ,and guitar since 1967 , ie my hearing is shot on the high frequencies.
The Japanese did not skimp on quality ,yet their prices are far below the UK ,and Italy - which I believe are for the most part as good as it gets overall.
The problem with critiquing vinyl is you must cherry pick .
I would say your biggest bang for your buck would go to the AP White Album, and Abbey Road.
They should be first pressings in either red or black vinyl , which cost a fraction of the UK or even more so Italy .
As I live in the USA ,and worked as a musician in Los Angeles, - I did ONE session with part of the Wrecking Crew before that moniker existed - I’m well ,rather I was well acquainted with Capitol Records .
Capitol in the 1950-early 1960s - prior to the Beatles - pressed great records .
With that said some of the old school bean counters were still there when the Beatles broke in the USA ,and their top A&R dept heads had no idea what they were doing .
As my mothers family is English I got the Parlophone pressings a year or two after only having Capitol Beatles albums to listen to.
When I finally heard the UK pressings I understood what a hatchet job Capitol did on Beatles albums all for the love of money.
I’m not even aware to this day how many Beatles albums Capitol released given that both Vee Jay ,and United Artist also had two complete Beatles albums originally so you must add those to Capitols output in the 1960s.
The older I get the more I appreciate the high end on records. Leave the treble flat,boost bass up all the way on your preamp .
Ps.
Your playback system means much.
Great post. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
As the owner of Japanese pressings Of Dark side of the moon and several Talking Heads albums I can confirm the quality of them.
@@trappenweisseguy27 I have a late '70s Japanese pressing of Dark Side of the Moon from that Pro-Use Series that blows my socks off every time I play it, and I don't even have the greatest system in the world. I've been offered $$$ by a few Floyd fans for it, but it's one of those records that's part of my DNA and won't be leaving my house any time soon.
Yup, I don’t even have a turntable right now bud have held onto my Japanese pressings and direct to disc vinyl.
Totally agree about the system, but I advise folks not to get caught up in chasing ephemeral "audiophile" subjective weirdness. Steve Guttenberg, an ex-high end dealer, is a good resource. One can put together a quite decent system for under $1000. The front end will most likely be the most expensive component. I suggest checking out estate sales for possible bargains.
Regarding bass/treble, I have a graphic equalizer which serves me well (there is also both graphic and parametric EQ add-ons for Firefox). I think you got the EQ backwards. I'm 69, played drums in a rockabilly, 60s garage, punk band in Houston (The Love Noodles), and my high frequency hearing is also impaired. I lower 250Hz and below, and boost 500Hz and above. Perhaps that's what you meant?
I'd just like to share some things:
1. The Japanese version of the "Ballads" compilation album has a unique mix of Norwegian Wood
2. The Japanese insert for the lyrics of Rain attempted to interpret the backward vocals section
Ooh, I didn’t know that. What’s unique about it?
@@clivefernthecamper7831 the Japanese Ballads LP mix of Norwegian Wood has it this way:
Bass - Center channel
Guitar - Center channel
Vocals - Center channel
Percussion - Center channel
Sitar and 12-String - Right channel
"Day Tripper" doesn't have backward vocals. Do you mean "Rain"?
@@TheHollowBodiesBand OHHHH SORRY. Yes, that's the one. Thanks for correcting! Didn't notice it 😅
"Stare it down and nourishes what comes near you" I loved it
I picked up all of the Beatles "Flag Obi strip", U.K. series, as well as the 1986 mono vinyl reissues. I also purchased, possibly all of their Japanese solo vinyl singles, with picture sleeves, at original price. How, you ask? I served in the U.S. Air Force and was stationed in Tokyo, 1984-'87. It was perfect timing, you might say. I was also able to purchase "The Beatles Box", Japanese and U.K. pressings, while I was over there. Still have them all to this day.
Do you prefer your Japanese or UK Beatles Box? Any major differences?
I love the early coloured mono pressings which I never knew about. There's always something to learn about The Beatles on this Channel. Brilliant.
I’m not sure about Japanese vinyl, but Japanese remastered CD’s sound great. Some people complain they sound too bright, but they get a lot of separation in the musical instruments, more so than the US remasters. I’m not sure if it’s their equipment. Anyone know how they remaster? Their process?
With chopsticks
If the Japanese CD you're about is Abbey Road CD, that is due to pre-emphasis. High frequencies will be boosted when the CD is carelessly ripped-and-played on PC (iTunes-ripped one is OK). As far as I know there is no Japan-unique remastered-CD on market. Another possibility is higher quality of Japan pressing CDs. Off-centricity and dull-edges of pits will deteriorate consistency of the data, this may induce loss of details on the waveform.
1982 mono presings have a simple and slim black and red obi with a note "original mono record series". Those are not in blue.
1986 mono issues have an indication of the expiration date for rental-service restriction. So, it's easy to distinguish to each other even without obi.
I've been waiting a LONG time for this! I have been collecting them for about a year. The red vinyl is gorgeous and can sound really good. The OBI's are also a really nice addition!
Decades ago, I received as a gift the Japanese pressings of their BC 13 boxset and the red and blue albums on colored vinyl. Since I already had American versions of the records, I never listened to them. I just checked out the unusual inserts. I was wondering how the sound compares to the European counterparts.
Nice to know you didn't play them so they're all still in mint condition. Long-term thinking is rare
Totally agree with your assessment of Japanese Beatles' pressings. At one time, we owned a sizeable number of Beatles' Japanese pressings. Then, we learned how to listen in a more critical manner, and now we DON'T own a sizeable number of Beatles' Japanese pressings. We've managed to hold onto the late-70's Beatles Collection EAS-50031-44 box-set mainly for the AHDN, which we think sounds better than the UK, or any other pressing that we have heard. The World Records box we also kept, but it has such a dull high-end throughout (which, as discussed in this video, is unusual for Japanese pressings), the UK version is our to-go for listening needs. We can say without reservation that our Japanese All Things Must Pass is better than the UK equivalent, in our opinion. Your mileage may vary....
My EAS-50031-44 sounds much better than UK , especially from With the Beatles to Revolver.AP Rubber Soul is better than EAS one.IMHO
We had Japanese albums sold in the Los Angeles stores before 1985. And I think today is the Blue and the Red album anniversary. 🥳Thank you for the Blue and Red !
Thank you for another superb video, Andrew! BTW, 95 Million People’s Popular Request is now my favorite album title ever.
(Here's some "American sportz colloquialisms" for description...). "TOUCHDOWN!" "HIT IT OUTTA DA PARK!" "Badda-BOOM!" "HAT-TRICK!" and "NOTHING BUT NET - (swish!)"... (And a spare English one;) "Spot-on!!!
I have the original Japanese Abbey Road as my friends Mum lived there and I think it sounds great. What's more interesting is the single of Come Together/Something which is possibly the clearest mix of Come Together I think I've ever heard.
I can't speak, so much, on the Japanese vinyls, but I absolutely know that early 80s versions of the cassette tapes were amazing! Some of these tapes (I specifically recall Sgt Pepper and Magical Mystery Tour) had different mixes/longer fade-outs. This trend continued into some of the solo releases of the former Fabs.
Chilean Cassettes from 1993 blows away the japanese tapes, the Chrome pre recorded Chilean tapes are the best sounding cassettes from the beatles ever made
In my area, a regional record store chain had kept up a constant stock of Japanese issues on Apple. These would be late 1970s early 1980s pressings and certainly not the colored vinyl versions you've shown here. Following the death of John Lennon, the chain immediately bought up extensive stock of Japanese issues, following the UK and US issues. The chain stocked so many that by 1981 and 1982, they dropped the price on them to match domestic pressings. The sound of the earliest albums was pristine, but to me RUBBER SOUL and REVOLVER sounded extremely flat, at least in my opinion. Soon enough that chain sold out of the Japanese pressings of SGT. PEPPER on out and I never heard them. 40 years have passed now, and I've never had a look inside those earliest pressings you've shown here. Thank you.
Another great, enjoyable, informative video!Back in the mid 80s, after finishing university in Canada and starting a paying job, I was introduced to the Japanese Flag series from a friend who was somewhat older than me. I was blown away by the quality in both packaging and sound. I had only the US versions of the LPs up until that point. I then sought out and purchased most of them, primarily the UK versions.
Step 1 . Drop the needle
Step 2 . Locate the bass knob
Step 3 . Wind it up
… & enjoy !
Wow! You certainly did your homework on this one. Talk about complicated.😳Is there any particular reason for the Obi strips? Thank you again, Andrew.
The obi strips were included so that original album art was not altered. All the relevent info in Japanese was written on the obi strip
Purely for marketing purposes. They were common on all Japanese LPs, and remain so.
Japan in general usually has incredible pressings. They press with quality in mind of quantity, they can be harder to find but it's sound quality is amazing.
Very cool video Andrew. Thanks for sharing this!
My buddy up in North Jersey sold me his 40 bins of mostly Beatles,Andrew,I think I mentioned it From most every country you could think of(originals,mind you)He had a few Everclear Odeon original OP's without the OBI's though.A Hard Day's Night and Rubber Soul were 2 of them.He had some EP and 45 Everclear red vinyls as well.All gone now,unfortunately,now.He has gotten more though.I need to see him,I guess.
I have the 1969 reissue of Please Please Me, it’s my first LP from Japan. I like how the tracks are moved around as it works pretty well.
I agree that many japanese pressings lack bass, but I have the 1st pressing of Abbey Road and it sounds great, with a good ammount of bass.
The second from '72 does as well.
Yes. The first thin green Apple and Beatles Forever series are mastered from the same sources which have more bass than the country flag series.
@@fbt25 Aye, the YEX-749 1S3 / YEX-750 1S2 matrix.
@@TheHutt Beside being pressed from mostly the same sources, the first pressings might even have slightly more bass than the Beatles Forever series due to the thicker vinyl.
Great overview - I have bought over 20 Japanese Beatle albums including a few red vinyl copies. I particularly like Flag series. I am a sucker for great physical media and graphics. I particularly like sleeves and gatefolds including Japanese version of Help with US style gatefold but UK content.
Great Video Andrew!! I bought the Beatles Japan albums on the CD box set. They sound great!!
This year I got a japanese UK flag of Live From The Hollywood Bowl from 1977, superb condition of both cover and record plus all the insert, together with a Metal Blade Records first pressing of Lizzy Borden's Murderess Metal Road Show had been my best and most valuable vinyl purchases in 2022.
Great Episode ! I have a friend in Japan that has a copy of Sgt Pepper on the Apple 🍏 label! It was released by Toshiba EMI
Thanks again Andrew for a wonderful video. These are quickly becoming a Sunday tradition at my house. I don't have any direct experience with the flag (EAS) series, but I've always heard that they, like MFSL ,suffer from questionable eq choices. Conversely, while the EAS series might not be a great alternative to European pressings, I have been very impressed with the AP (Beatles Forever) Series. I have a pristine copy of Abbey Road (AP-8815) and I think it compares favorably to my -2/-1 UK pressing of Abbey Road. Everything that makes the UK so good is also present on my copy. Realistic and full bass, crisp but not overly brittle highs, and warm mids. When I want a big smile on my face I pull out the UK because it just has that extra something (life like presence) , but when I want to hear every detail of Abbey Road, I pull out the AP series. If the UK is life-like, the Japanese is more clinical and 3-D. The only problem that might be an issue is that side 2 suffers from a slight tape flutter issue, which I believe is prevalent on other AP series pressings.
my favorite thing to watch while i eat. low-key, informative, and just about the perfect length. would love to see a video about the japanese singles sometime!
Very interesting. Thank you very much Andrew! 🙏
Thanks for watching, John.
I have a few Japanese pressings. One is an EP from Revolver, which sounds great. I also have a Sgt. Pepper, which I haven’t listened to in quite awhile, and an Odeon red vinyl of the 1962-1966 double LP that I’ve only listened to once. I may have another that I can’t recall.
Anyways there’s a guy who owns a record store, the In Grove, and a UA-cam channel here in the US who really talks down the Japanese pressings. Not only for the Beatles, but for others as well.
Super interesting Andrew. Thanks. You really presented that complicated catalog well.
I recently purchased a big pile of Japanese vinyl. It wasn't something I was planning to do, but I started collecting laserdiscs during lockdown and because Japan was a big market for those, a lot of the best bargains come from that country. One seller that I've bought a lot from, Good Squid, occasionally sells vinyl as well and when I saw what he was selling I thought I'd give it a go. I've not listened to everything yet as there really is a lot of records in that lot, but I've found them to be a mixed bag so far. The Rolling Stones Japanese releases mostly sound amazing. The Beatles Japanese releases vary greatly. Some seem to be mixed differently as some elements seem to disappear in the mix, perhaps this is just due to the quality of the tapes or the EQing. There's a couple where the vocals are almost buried. Others though sound really good. As you mention, the Japanese vinyl is always of the highest quality and the Japanese tended to really take good care of the records and so there's rarely any surface noise, it's very crisp and clean sounding. The best Japanese Beatles albums I've heard are on the same level as the local Australian pressings, the worst are just okay. It's a good way to get some of those albums in great condition for a decent price though. A lot of the reissues here tend to be rather expensive. Then there's also the US albums which are very hard to find here. The Japanese pressings of these albums are a good and much cheaper alternative.
Dear sir, Thank you for your very informative program on the Beatles Japanese albums!! I commend you on your knowledge of the subject. My name is Kenneth Jeys and I live in Denver...Anyway back in 1984 when I was just getting out of the military I was stationed at Albuquerque new Mexico and answered an ad in the local paper where someone listed original vinyl albums for sale. I ended up buying most all of them that he had. He had been in the Vietnam War and had bought a few of his albums over in Japan. HE had a Japanese Beatles white album he had bought over there and the number on the front is no. A.041365. The Beatles is embossed or raised in the cover and the records are red vinyl numbers as 8570 and 8571 and yex numbers under them as well. The album has the listing of song titles in Japanese as well as English, and has an original which may not be original...the album has the poster and pictures in the black UK sleeves, and the poster has Japanese lettering on it as well as the lyrics to the songs in English. It was made by Toshiba musical industries Tokyo I always understood the the first 50,000 albums were red vinyl and the rest were plain black, but I could be wrong about that.....as I mentioned, the album number is no. A041365. What can you tell me about this album as far as it being an original 1968 or 1969? Thank you. Sincerely Kenneth jeys..ps the album on the lower back has Japanese lettering on it also.
Was unironically looking forward to this for a week.
It's Andrew: Who wouldn't wanna watch a vid with him in it?
Thank you again! Very nice presentation! I would have been interested in knowing a little more about the source tapes for the Red / Blue albums and Magical Mystery Tour LP format. Did they take the US duophonic MMT cuts or did they properly source the stereo mixes? I think that the bass situation can be modified by people adjusting their systems. It gets frustrating for people to adjust based on each album, but if the entire country has a particular sound on their pressings, then you can have a universal adjustment for the equalizer.
MMT was US-sourced. It was not before Germany issued the LP in its second pressing that the new stereo mixes were done.
Thanks! That is so sad!
I have Japanese vinyls of Meet The Beatles and The Beatles' Second Album. But mine were released by Apple. They are first pressings. I still have them and the OBIs that came with them. I bought them in the seventies, in Vancouver B.C. I like the track listings on both of them.
Hi Andrew, as always an intriguing video. I have a handful of Beatles Japanese LP pressings. The Obi Flag series looks desirable and I have seen the whole series up for sale as a set a couple of times. Your explanation about the sound quality surprised me. I guess I should do a comparison with my UK & Australian pressings. Take care. Cheers mate 👍😊
Excellent video, Andrew San :)
A nice and informative video about a subject I didn't know much about. I never went through the 'trouble' of collecting Japanese vinyl pressings but I bought a Japanese stereo pressing of Revolver from 1976 on a record fair in Utrecht for a colleague and he was very happy with it. That is as far as I got....
Hello Andrew, it was really neat to see the Japan originals from the 60's! My experience has been that the 1976 "flag" series are pretty bright sounding, but the early 70's "Beatles Forever" series can be pretty nice if not the equal of the best UK and German pressings.
Once again, a fascinating insight into Internaional Beatle records. Many Thanks.
Thanks for watching, Duncan. Glad you enjoyed it.
Would love to hear your thoughts and comparison on the original Beatles 1 album and the 2015 remixed Beatles 1
We've already done a video on that: ua-cam.com/video/FJ4wWKO9uNA/v-deo.html
@@Parlogram thanks! I’ll watch :)
I had a whole tone of excellent to mint vinyl for years. I collected it from the 1980's onwards. Some of it was worth a lot of money. I sold the collection. I ripped most of it onto a digital format. I cannot tell the difference. Its sounds great. Its easier to play, i still enjoy the music as much.
I don't seek out the Japanese versions as a rule, but I do have a couple from the "Flag" series that I think are pretty decent. Lovely, quiet pressings and sleeves made from thicker cardboard stock. Slightly off topic, but the crown jewel in my Beatle collection as regards issues from Japan is a CD of "Abbey Road" on Odeon (CP35-3016). I purchased it in a Hi-Fi shop a few years into the CD revolution but way before anything of The Beatles catalogue had been legitimately released on compact disc. Not sure how it slipped out but it is a fantastic sounding version of "Abbey Road", equally on par with Mobile Fidelity or recent re-masters. And no lack of low end, to be sure.
It's always interesting to see the difference between other pressings
One correction: The Japanese LIB box set came in a domestically printed box, not an imported UK-printed box. The book was printed by G&L in the UK (the only place the book was printed).
The box was also printed in Germany, Canada, Spain, Mexico, Peru and Argentina.
I never got involved with the Beatles Japanese pressings. Largely because I wasn't aware of them until the late '70's/early '80's, when this one record store near me started selling Beatles import albums. I looked at them, curious to see the American flag OBI's, and their song listings. The albums looked good, but by that time, I had already collected the US pressings. Didn't have the money at the time to invest in imports with a higher price tag.
I've managed to get myself an original Japanese Come Together/Something and Get Back/Don't Let Me Down. They are beautifully clear, and Don't Let Me Down especially sounds ethereal and has so much presence in the room.
I bought a 1982 Japanese pressing of 'Please Please Me' ten years ago from a used book /vinyl store for $29.99 (a real steal in near mint condition) and thought it sounded amazing. I'vd since collected every red vinyl pressing from '82 with the thin black obi. Still like to play them, but I think the 2014 mono has them beat; fuller sound with more bass. Thanks again, Andrew.
Thanks for watching, Richard.
In the distant past I collected quite a few Japanese LP's as I liked the low noisefloor of the vinyl and the quality of the record covers. As I improved my equipment over the years, the limitations of th SQ became more obvious. I do need to sell my Japanese collection.
Thank you for this video on the Japanese pressed album series. I have a complete set that I started collecting in the late 70’s and early 80’s. I thoroughly enjoy them and, in my humble opinion, they sound great. The very sturdy album jackets are also a plus. Thanks again for yet another informative video.
Thanks for watching, Stephen.
As always, extremely high quality content in your videos. Thank you so much!
Thank you, Arjuna. Glad you like them!
My '76 Japanese Abbey Road sounds fantastic, even better than my mid-70s UK press. Doesn't go for too much on Discogs. Well worth.
Another excellent episode. I agree about the sound of these pressings. I master albums here in Canada and always found it fascinating how little bass they put on their pressings. But that seems to be with Beatles pressings...having collected a lot of Japanese pressings of other bands (Rush..Kiss. ..Frank Zappa...David Bowie)..I think the mastering engineers in Japan got the message and started using the dreaded V - Eq setting...where there was a lot of bass and treble. .but a very scooped mid range.
Personally I find the flag series a hard listen. ..but I enjoy the 2003 Japanese DMM remaster pressings. They are in Mono and sound great.
Thank you, Mark.
I own an NM/M- Japanese Abbey Road (YEX-749 1S3 32 〄 IK IL / YEX-749 1S2 〄 (not red)) and it sounds incredible. Interesting to finally learn it was a second hand tape as this pressing is super dynamic with plenty of slam. Ty for sharing!
Wonderful presentation! I have a Japanese vinyl version of Yesterday and Today which has a great gatefold design. It had an Apple OBI strip, but as you mentioned, the sound quality lacks bass. Although not a Beatles LP, I have a 1972 Badfinger Straight Up LP that has a great laminated cover but also fine sound quality as well.
Fascinating stuff as always, I didnt really know anything about the Japanese pressings until now. Thanks.
Glad you enjoyed it.
I had AHDN,Beatles For Sale and Rubber Soul on original "Everclean"red vinyl Odeons.Didnt have the Obis,of course.Just picked up a Let It Be on green Apple Everclean.
Another fascinating video Andrew
Thanks Kevin.
I would agree on the sound quality for the early releases, but there are three Japanese vinyl pressings I find to be pretty good -the red and blue issues from 2014 and Let It Be…Naked.
Very interesting and informative as always. Thanks so much!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Thanks again for another informative video.
Hello. I'm Japanese collector. I also think that Japanese records have a lively treble range. Or should I say, those has clear and crisp sound.
The quality of the vinyl is very high, but it is not comparable to the British records of the 1960s. So I always looking for UK original in good conditions!
I bought the Liverpool Boxset from Japan, I've got to say this. There is no better packaging than Japanese packaging.
1. Creased covers, you'll never have trouble removing the record.
2. Included lyrics and description (in Japanese)
3. Shaped inner sleeves making it hard to get stuck.
4. Cool images everywhere, and fantastic vinyl.
Plus, they make some albums gatefolded which I don't think any other country did like Yesterday and Today.
Always enjoy your clips. You have tons of fascinating info and your clips are very professionally made.
Thank you, Paul.
Andrew happy Easter. Thank you for another wonderful video. Great information as always, the Beatles history is ever fascinating.
Thanks Chris. Same to you.
Spot on. At one time, when I had a cheaper turntable stereo set, I purchased and played the Japanese vinyl. But the high end was just to much for me when played on a better system.
Sold my Japanese albums.
I boughr many Japanese pressings and very satisfied with them. I had the Blue Box Set. Please Please Me was a disappointment as Miaery and There's A Place was in stimulated stereo
I have some japanese pressings that sounds fantastic, like the original The Birds, The Bees & The Monkees, but on the other hand some that sounds just ok, like a 1977 reissue of Lennon's Mind Games. However, they are all dead quiet vinyl, which I do appreciate as well, and mostly come in nice packaging, including inserts, obis and booklets, for instance. In some cases records originally released in single covers everywhere, might be released in gatefold covers in Japan, as you have pointed out by showing the Yesterday and Today japanese album. Cheers, Andrew! Nelio.
Cheers Nelio!
wow. I'd love to see a video talking about The Beatles In Italy album
To me, the gold standard for Beatles recordings are the re-released mono versions from the master tapes done a few years ago. Great analog sound and very cheap.
I’ve got 3 of the Japanese LPs - Help!, Rubber Soul, and A Collection Of Beatles Oldies. As well as the bass issue you mention, all 3 titles are approximately 4dB quieter than the UK equivalents. Oldies is the worst of the three, Help! is the best. Because of the extreme separation in Rubber Soul, it also has sibilance problems on the vocal track.
As you say, nice sleeves.
Great episode! My Japanese HEY JUDE LP sounds much more dynamic than the U.S. pressing. The same can be said for my Japanese pressing of YESTERDAY AND TODAY. But as you say, Andrew, that’s just my opinion! Cheers!
Thanks for watching, Matthew.
I agree with the lack of bass. They also sound a bit sterile to my opinion, but they are pretty much free of clicks and distortion. The initial run of 7" singles and EPs were also pressed on the red Ever Clean vinyl. They also in the 70's pressed the Sgt Pepper and Abbey Road picture disc LPs and released the 1962-1966 and 1967-1970 sets in their respective colours.
It seems with these Japanese vinyl issues that they look good but don't sound so good! I would say that they are still worth collecting though. Thanks for a great explanation about these releases, Andrew, which I didn't know much about!
Odeon Ever Clean records are practically immortal. Both my discs (Beatles' Hits, Long Tall Sally) are absolutely silent and pristine after 41 years. Both still have their original lyric sheets and protective sleeve too. I'll say that the sound is definitely different, it's less sweetened and clear. Closer to a Capitol 45, really. Not to imply they're bad to the ear, they're actually rather satisfying.
The flag series albums were common to see in Australian record stores in the 80s. They never appealed to me enough to purchase them. Another great video Andrew..thank you 👏
Thanks for watching, Steve.
Personally, I think the 70s Japanese 'Flag Series' pressings sound great with plenty of rich bass and the covers are nice and thick plus there's the bonus poster in some of the albums as well. The cover artwork isn't as good as the English pressings. I first started buying them in the mid 80s and I clearly remember being knocked out at how good they sounded.
Andrew, have you considered a video on the 'Help!' and 'Rubber Soul' albums, telling the story of the remixes done in 1987 by George Martin, which are now core catalogue. Or maybe the 'Magical Mystery Tour' story from two EP's, the abysmal US stereo pressing with the duo-phonic tracks on side two which became core catalogue in the mid 70s to the Abbey Road 2009 remasters?
Another great review Andrew!!
Thanks again, Tiger!
Are you going to a video of the 5 export cd box sets for Japanese export only (JBCDBOX1-5)? I’m pretty sure they were pressed in the UK for the Japanese market. I remember having JBCDBOX2. 🙂
I was very reluctant to watch this video, as I didn’t want it to open a rabbit hole where I felt I had to go collecting the Japanese pressings. Then I remembered that Japanese pressings has not featured highly in your video about the best sounding Beatles albums, so thought it would be safe to watch. Happily, it didn’t convince me to buy these albums, as I like to hear the low end. Very interesting to hear the story of the pressings, though, and certainly they look like high quality productions, particularly in terms of sleeve design.
You can get the Abbey Road (the AP version with the green Apple obi). One of the finest-sounding versions out there (not counting the UK -2/-1 of course).
I’ve got the UK -2/-1 which sounds great, so I’m happy with that one.
@@clivefernthecamper7831 Well, I have the one, and the other, and some others, too :)
Hi Andrew
Love the video on the beatles records
I have no Japanese records but I did get to beatles records form Singapore
Not in the best condition but nice to have Andrew keep up the good work you do dave.
There really should be a video about the Singapore-Malaysia-Hong Kong pressings.
I remember buying the stereo Beatles For Sale in the UK flag series in the early 1990s as it was a good way of getting a stereo version of the album when it wasn't available in the UK.
Seem to remember getting it from the Beatles Shop in Matthew Street and it wasn't too expensive.
I though it sounded good and it's a good pressing. Wish I'd have got some more of these!
My old record shop used to have these in large quantities and I seem to remember that they were selling at a premium price.
I have learned to pretty much avoid Japanese pressings, though (unless the recording was made in Japan to begin with).
Which is a shame because I think the manufacturing quality of Japanese lp's is generally exemplary.
Alas, I agree with you that the sound just isn't there...
Thank you for another interesting presentation and keep up the good work!
Brilliant video Andrew. I collect the flag series. Love the quality and the fact that most have an Apple label. Yes the sound lacks a little low end but still sound very detailed to my ears. They actually continued up to no 40 although the higher ones didn’t have the flag obi or the number in the Apple
Glad you enjoyed it, Edward.
I would love to add some Japanese Beatles records to my collection. Great video today Andrew! Lots of great information today! Keep up the interesting entertaining content and have a happy Easter, oops sorry about that, I guess Easter is already over over there in England. Hope you had a great Easter Andrew👯♂️👯
Thanks Patty.
Great video again Andrew.
Glad you enjoyed it
very interesting that Mono pressings came back. I was also surprised that in Japan they ended these pressings so early.
i have the older japanese red vinyl pressings. About 10 of them. Also the beatles story boxset on odeon. It came with booklets etc.I believe it was the first beatles boxset ever.
Please make a video about The Beatles South East Asia or Singapore pressing, I want to hear a lot from you
Those translucent red pressings make me crave Lifesavers for some reason.
The only Japanese pressing I have so far is a flag series Abbey Road from '76 and it sounds great! It was recommended by Michael Fremer, so I figured it was worthwhile to pick up a copy and was not disappointed. 👍
The '69 and '72 versions of AR sound great, too.
Great video thanks
Hi,the mid-70s Japanese issues(eas series) sounds good to my ears.
Discrepancies between subtitles & audio on this are a bit strange. At one point the audio says “Fresh Sounds from Liverpool vol 3” contains one Beatles track “You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away” where as subtitles says it features “I’m Down”.
Thank for pointing this out, Tom. It's now fixed.
Well done! Excelent review. For some reason, they're much easier to find here in Brazil than the european releases. The country flag series seem to have slightly less bass than the Beatles Forever series. Their solo career albums were also released on these series, as well as on the first thin green Apple obi. The 2000's catalog re-release is also pretty good, the albums are all heavy-weight Direct Metal Mastered.
Very interesting, I remember seing at the SAM record store (It was the biggest in Canada back then) in Montreal at around 30$ in the late 70s, a Japanese pressing of the Beatles White album.
The vinyl was white!
I only have a handful of Japanese Beatles items, including that gatefold version of Yesterday & Today, which I agree sounded a bit underwhelming the last time I played it, but if they're using a second-generation tape from U.S. sources, that could explain why; it's just a shade too far from the original U.K. tapes!
But my Japanese pressing of the White Album remains a personal favourite, apart from the excellent quality of the vinyl it does have a clarity and clean sound that I really appreciate, and the lack of bass never really bothered me that much (I don't have a huge set of speakers, although I do have a powered subwoofer). But because that's the version of those songs I tend to listen to the most, it's no wonder the Giles Martin version of the album didn't appeal to me, since that's the pendulum swinging all the way to the other side of the EQ spectrum. My only '60s pressing of the White Album is a numbered Spanish Odeon copy that has seen better days, but maybe I'll run it through a friend's ultrasonic cleaner and see how it performs in comparison.
Good morning Andrew. What do you think about japanese Rubber Soul with blue OBI from 2004?