Discussion in 'A Song For You: The Carpenters Forum' started by Jeff, Sep 29, 2017.
Poll closed Apr 29, 2018.
3rd the prelude to We've Only Just Begun on the Singles collection. Outta this world.
Jamesj75 and goodjeans like this.
I don't have the quadraphonics, unfortunately. Not sure where to look.
I only own SINGLES 69-73, but I remember being bowled over with "Superstar".
If anyone would like to hear, I have hosted a digital transfer of the CD-4 Quadrophonic version of Now & Then online.
Obviously, as 48khz MP3s at 320kbps, not perfect, and never mind attempting to decode on a CD-4 Quad/surround system (it won't work below 88.2khz resolution), but otherwise OK for listening to these unique mixes!
It's an album that always feels like a treat! The sweet harmonica on I Can't Make Music. The airy harmonies on Jambalaya. The strings on Heather. The echoeing on Yesterday Once More (Reprise).
FYI: Anyone can download the playing file with a click of the download box right above the track info.
Rick-An Ordinary Fool, CraigGA, Eyewire and 2 others like this.
Too bad there are some audio glitches with missing bits, like in "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes", one of Richard's words is gone.
Well, it was the only scratch/skip on the album - that blip mistracks and skips regardless of the turnable it's played on.
As far as I'm aware, that's the only discernible 'glitch' - the very end of YOM Reprise fades earlier than the stereo version and as it approaches the noise floor the very last 'so' drops suddenly in volume. It's an LP with one of the quietest noise floors I've ever heard, very little surface noise to me (a little static was inevitable). I'm sure it goes without saying that by having to split up the Oldies Medley into multiple parts, due to online file size restrictions, the audio stream might not flow absolutely perfectly between tracks.
It was transcribed through a Garrard 401 turntable, with a Shure V15VxMR cartridge and a Mullard Valve Preamp, recorded through a 192khz 24 bit soundcard at it's native resolution/bit depth. The LP is otherwise in NM condition, complete with all Japanese inserts & OBI etc. Unless anyone possesses the elusive 4 Channel Reel-To-Reel tape, I'd say that this is as good as we're going to get!
CraigGA and newvillefan like this.
I'm afraid to say that Now & Then is the best I have of Carpenters in quad.
Jamesj75, Rick-An Ordinary Fool, GaryAlan and 1 other person like this.
Sean, just curious did you run the Horizon through any click removal? I know you mentioned it was noisy but I wondered if some of the major ticks could have been removed with a moderate level of click removal. I'm not real technical when it comes to this stuff but when I use audacity I will usually run my rips through their normal (default) of 200/20 which I find removes only the major ticks without removing any of the higher or lower frequencies. I find that setting works very well.
By the way thanks for uploading those as I've never heard the CD-4 LP version. The only Quad LP that I own is The Singles 69-73.
I noticed some subtle differences, Only Yesterday at the end at about 3:57-3:58 when Richard sings Yesterdaaayyy you really hear him draw out the daaay and you don't hear Karen's backing vocals come in right after that 3:58-3:59 where she goes up the notes aaayyy, there missing unlike the original LP.
The track Desperado above at about 2:26 when Karen sings Desperado, more emphasis I can hear when she comes in on Deeesss, it actually sounds quite different than the original LP. Granted it's only a second or so but it's there.
Happy comes in differently, the above the guitar comes in hard right then hard left which is just the opposite of the original LP. It's quite different and jolting in a good way lol. Also for some reason I'm hearing a lot of reverb that I don't get from the original LP. Am I hearing things or what? lol It's really strange because on this track Karen really sounds out of phase with relation to all the other instruments and guitar which are almost at the same level as her vocals. Ha..
I've also noticed that Karen sounds much more upfront in the mix on the original LP version where as this version above "everything" recorded in the mix sounds very close and up front. Definitely a different way of hearing these tracks for sure.
Thanks again for uploading this.
I love these tracks and I just listened to Caught Between Goodbye and I Love You and tears came to my eyes for the voice part separation right before the last chorus to the chorus have more clarity and definition and it sounded so beautiful I couldn’t believe it. The instruments gave the same introspection. I can’t wait to go back and hear it again.
The tracks are a little noisy as you said. I wish someone would send a clean copy to you so you could record the formula you use to make the digital format for us.
Only Yesterday and Happy has added guitar and Solitaire sounds like an in between of the album and single while I Can Dream Can’t I has extra xylophone parts which makes it come alive better than ever. Desperado even sounds different. I really like hearing all of these alternative versions. As in Caught Between Goodbye and I Love You, the clarity in the vocal overdubs of Happy are nice as well. Karen sounds beautiful throughout, as usual! This is her best album, hands down!!
And Wow! - Love Me For What I Am - you just have to listen!
After listening to Love Me For What I Am, again, I am convinced it should have been the next Single in between Only Yesterday and Solitaire.
Thanks for these , Sean !
Now & Then actually got better to my ears !
Horizon, as always, my favorite album !
I agree so much that the added harmonies and instruments in Happy make me like it in a way that I never have.
I have heard Niw and Then and Horizon thanks to Sean. Mowtown-boy has posed some of the Singles online, so by what I have heard so far, the biggest addition is Horizon.
This has been posted before but Richard addressed the Quad mixes on the fans ask page.
A: "No, no, no, no. Quad was a dubious experiment, and Karen & I were on the road and had no time to oversee the quadraphonic mixes ourselves. An A&M staff engineer - not Ray Gerhardt - did the remixes and I was anything but happy with them. Technology has come light years and I can guarantee the 5.1 remixes will be far superior to the Quad."
I got out my Quad The Singles LP and on the back it says Quad remix done at A&M Studios in Hollywood by Marv Bornstein and engineered by Bart Chiate.
So my question on the other Quad LP's are they the same people remixing and engineering?
Very cool article! I’ve got an AKAI quadraphonic reel deck that also plays Q8s (quad 8-tracks). The best sounding quad experience to my ears has always been ‘Now And Then’. There’s so much going on that you really need to listen to each channel separately to catch everything. Karen’s background vocals on ‘Johnny Angel’ and ‘Fun, Fun Fun’ are right in your face and they’re mind boggling.
Thanks for posting these. It's always fun to hear a different mix of something so familiar.
Does anyone have the Singles 69-73 quad they can upload like these?
I have copies of The Singles 1969-1973 (SQ), Now & Then (SQ) and Horizon (CD-4). I like listening to them and comparing them to their traditional stereo counterparts.
How does it sound compare to the LP and a well cared for 8Track? Original album mixes?
I have a Quad LP of Singles 74-78 and it’s my only one.
This is a good review. Download the cuts provided and listen through headphones. A lot of work was put into providing them for our listening. It gives quite a depth of field and provides an alternate field for listening pleasure. It sometimes brings out parts that are hidden. The Remastered Classics CD’s give an alternate take and sometimes those sound better. It’s been ages since I heard an 8 Track but they were just an alternate form of stereo that theorized on speed specification factors and wider tapes providing a better sound. (It would be difficult to believe that those tapes have held up for almost 50 years, but I could be wrong). Feel to Reel probably sounded better, and those that spend over 1000.00 on just turntables/cartridges with more on fuse amplifiers and then speakers chosen and aligned for good sound probably got a great stereo sound from an album. Those were always written up well in audiophile magazines. I believe VHS Hi Fi Stereo sounded great too. It’s really the total system and that varies. A mistake people make is to think that vinyl sounds better then get a 100.00 setup from the book or drug store and think that’s better. It’s the entire package and it takes an investment in whichever direction you travel. Good sound is not a gimmick.