Lennon catalog to be remastered and reissued - again

As I said in the Double Fantasy Stripped Down topic, I wasn't really a fan of the look of that left sidebar on the covers of the Beatles remasters last year, and I'm still not totally convinced of it with John's either, though honestly his signature and his little drawing does look a lot better then that tiny Beatles logo.

Definitely going to pick these up though. I had previously purchased a few of the albums via the iTunes Store because at the time I lived too far away from any music retailer (and not a fan of ordering online). Will pick these up in a heartbeat though.

Can someone just answer something for me though, if possible... what's up with the cover of Walls and Bridges? From what I understand from looking at it, it's all different drawings that John did when he was a kid, but the only one I've ever seen was the 'standard' football one (and that terrible alternate one of John wearing all the different sets of glasses).

I'm looking at the covers and realized they changed the Walls and Bridges artwork...again. It's not as good as the original...again.

Just heard the stripped-down "Starting Over" on Breakfast with the Beatles... I dig it!

Nice I can't wait to hear it. Just to clarify aswell, stripped down will be included in the boxset aswell right?

Originally Posted by Traveller

stripped down will be included in the boxset aswell right?

No. If you can believe it... it's sold separately.

Originally Posted by biglou114

I'm looking at the covers and realized they changed the Walls and Bridges artwork...again. It's not as good as the original...again.

I know. What's up with changing the Walls and Bridges artwork? The original was just fine.

Originally Posted by Maia 66

No. If you can believe it... it's sold separately.

Great.... That means ill have two copies of double fantasy.. Cause stripped down comes with the original right? Unless I decide not to bother with the box, then I miss out on some of the extras. :(

Hi.... I'm a bit confused....Maybe someone here can help me clarify the information....

The listing for the DVD configuration of Power to the People: The Hits seems to include all the videos, save "Gimme Some Truth", on the Lennon Legend DVD. Does anyone know if the videos that will accompany Power to the People: The Hits (CD/DVD) are new or have they ALL appeared elsewhere before? Will they be in 5.1 again?

Also does anyone know DEFINITIVELY if I buy the Signature box AND the new Double Fantasy (2CD) stripped down version if I will end up with a duplicate; (other than the original commercial version twice)? I have seen conflicting information about which Double Fantasy is included in the box.

I believe Steve Marinucci included in his examiner column the original album ONLY would be in the box. Has that information changed? Been confirmed? Denied?

Any reliable information is appreciated. Thanx!

I wrote to Steve Maranucci. He quickly replied that the Sig box does not include the stripped down Double Fantasy.

Originally Posted by The_Taxman

I know. What's up with changing the Walls and Bridges artwork? The original was just fine.

According to the official press release, the remaster reinstates the original artwork. I'm guessing there's more to it than we can see from a simple image.

my Box comes tomorrow Yeah

Got stripped down today, in Australia. The boxes are really limited it seems, with two of the stores near me only receiving one each...

and attention the stripped fantasy is not included in the box only as Double Cd with Double Fantasy.

Not long to go.

So they aren't re-releasing some of John's stuff like Live Peace Toronto. What are the rest of the titles that arent being re-released?

Should I track those down aswell, or wait and see if they are released again later? To bad this set is not definitive.

Also are all the out takes in the boxset available on bootlegs of John's? Or is there anything new?

[quote=Badgirl66;1031188]and attention the stripped fantasy is not included in the box only as Double Cd with Double Fantasy.



Hi, anyway you can edit that picture so it fits on smaller monitors?
Thanks.

Here is some interesting info about the package with a good video.

http://imaginepeace.com/archives/11567#comments

Words from Yoko

Dear Friends
In this very special year, which would have seen my husband and lifetime partner John Lennon reach the age of 70, I was surprised that so many musicians from all over the world sent me their ideas of how they were making a tribute to John this year. But I was surprised the most by a call from EMI presenting me with a very ambitious project to get John Lennon’s voice – his singing, his music and his lyrics – out to the world this year. Their serious and voluminous plan was daring. Not only remastering the albums, but also adding unreleased recordings, a book, repackaging, artwork, collages, prints, and well researched essays & liner notes. They have not done anything like this in their company ever. They had such enthusiasm and respect for John’s work, his music and his voice. I immediately dropped everything and joined the effort.
Going to Abbey Road every day and remastering the songs from his individual albums & singles – 121 of them – was very trying as a personal and professional experience. I took the challenge because it was for John. And because I believe in his work. John Lennon, the one who put together a band and coined the word The Beatles, and later freed himself to yet another level of creativity, was a miracle given to this world. I knew then that this was the most important thing I could do this year – to do the best i can do to bring his voice of great power, energy and wisdom to the people now.
His voice could help us change the world for the better that is now in confusion and sadness. Just listening to his magical voice of truth will give each one of us the encouragement and inspiration we need now. GIMME SOME TRUTH. Truth is a serum that is lacking in our lives. I would like to give the power of truth through John’s voice to the politicians of the world now, most of whom are suffering as many of us are – from confusion created by incredible complications the kind the human race has never before encountered.
It was a joyful and painful experience at the same time for me as I worked, since I kept having the urge to tell John in person how much I still respected him and loved him as a fellow musician, listening to what he had done on every turn so effortlessly.
One day, one of the guys came up with an incredible re-mastering of a rough take. He managed to make John’s voice sound like John again by doing a thorough cleaning of the track, which was destroyed in the process of many reissues in the past thirty/forty years. “Hey, that one was too good for you. Maybe John was helping you” – I said it as a kind of reverse compliment to the guy who did it. But it was also true that all the time we were working, I felt that John was with us looking over our shoulders. “John, am I doing right?” I kept asking in the middle of the night when I repeated in my mind about the things I did that day to his work.
It was great to get back together with Jack Douglas in New York and work together on Double Fantasy Stripped Down, which we originally co-produced with John. This new version really allows us to focus our attention on John’s amazing vocals. Technology has advanced so much that, conversely, I wanted to use new techniques to really frame these amazing songs and John’s voice as simply as possible. By stripping down some of the instrumentation, the power of the songs shines through with an enhanced clarity. It was whilst working on the new version of this album that I was hit hardest emotionally, as this was the last album John released before his passing.
I believe strongly that John wanted his voice to come out for the people and for the world, which is feeling the depletion of energy on many levels. Depletion starts in our minds, our spirit and our soul. So wake yourself up by listening to John’s voice. Enjoy. Dance with it in your heart. Keep John close to you. He loves you.
love, yoko

Originally Posted by Traveller

So they aren't re-releasing some of John's stuff like Live Peace Toronto. What are the rest of the titles that arent being re-released?

Should I track those down aswell, or wait and see if they are released again later? To bad this set is not definitive.

Also are all the out takes in the boxset available on bootlegs of John's? Or is there anything new?

The tracks on the Home demo tapes included with the signature box seems to be new. Once I got it I will compare it to what I have on bootlegs, but I heard these were new and not around on bootleg.

You never know what the future brings, but if you want to be complete now I think Live Peace In Toronoto, Menlove Avenue and Live in New York City are woth getting. You can get "Here We Go Again" on "Menlove Avenue" without having to buy the 4 box set "Gimme Some Truth".

Imagine was really nice to listen to, it sounds a lot crisper and livelier than the previous reissue (this could be either the remaster, the use of the original mix, or a bit of both). Not much more to say really.

Not much to say about DF either - in the end the main attraction is Stripped Down, which I still believe to be beautiful. Yoko's songs sound more just plain remixes as opposed to stripped down like John's, but who cares about those songs? Just Like Starting Over, Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy) and Woman were my favorites. beautiful boy probably being the standout. There's so many little things in John's vocals I had never picked up on before.

The end of the album is interesting - Every Man Has A Woman Who Loves Him has literally been stripped of all instruments aside from a synth, and the vocals are shared by J and Y.

The one Yoko song that I really admired though is Hard Times Are Over, it's now a duet with both of them, and I think it Wouldve been a stunning closer had this been the way the original was mixed.

As "Taylor" once said, "... clue me in on something, will you ?"

On these (latest, LOL) remastered CD's and box-set...

... how many (and which) actually "new" songs (i.e. previously unreleased) ?

From what I could gather from the track list, I think I counted only one or two previously unreleased demos.