Reader's Digest Bacharach Medley 1993 vs. 1997 mix

As I've re-archived my collection upon completion of the Legacy book, I asked @Cuyler to send me both recordings so I could take a listen.

He's correct—these are two different mixes, and the bass track (both clearly played by Richard utilizing the same keyboard patch) is different on both!

The mix from '97 is much more dynamic overall, with a more creative (and ballsy on Richard's part) baseline! :)
Fascinating, thank you, Chris! When I received Magical Memories, I wasn't expecting the mix to be different... but when I played it, the kick drum popped out way more on the 1993 version (is this actually the 1989 version? I don't have Anthology) -- but I think I still prefer the 1997 version, since the bass is much more present.
 
I didn’t doubt for a second what you posted, what I was saying is that the date was wrong. There’s no way that was done in 1977. The Anthology notes support that:

When the request was received to include the “Bacharach Medley” for this compilation, it dawned on me that we had the live recording from 1974. We pulled the multi-track and much to our surprise and chagrin, discovered that certain things did not get recorded. Thankfully Karen did, along with the orchestra, guitar, and drums; save the “kick”. The bass, piano and male vocalist did not. The resulting version the listener will hear is “live/studio” with a new “kick” drum and bass, piano and vocals handled by “yours truly”. The bass, incidentally, is played on a Kurzweiler synthesizer. Karen’s performance, again, is flawless. I admire her more with every passing day”.
How do we know that they weren’t planning to include the Medley on the scrapped album? Richard’s said different things about different songs before, like “Slow Dance” having had its strings and that recorded in 83 but not appearing on an album until 87.
 
Richard’s said different things about different songs before, like “Slow Dance” having had its strings and that recorded in 83 but not appearing on an album until 87.

It was under consideration for the VOTH album which is why additions were made in 1983. For whatever reason Richard decided to hold it back until later - stylistic reasons I’d guess, as it doesn’t really fit with the mood or feel of any of the other songs on there.
 
It was under consideration for the VOTH album which is why additions were made in 1983. For whatever reason Richard decided to hold it back until later - stylistic reasons I’d guess, as it doesn’t really fit with the mood or feel of any of the other songs on there.

That’s why I said, were they considering including it on the scrapped album that was suppose to be released in January 1979?
 
That’s why I said, were they considering including it on the scrapped album that was suppose to be released in January 1979?

Aside from mention in the newsletters (which were fluffy at the best of times), to this day I’m still not actually sure we really know what the plans were for 1979, and why they were recording all these songs amongst the Christmas sessions. I’ve never read or heard any evidence of proper, scheduled recording sessions for a new album. Were these recordings part of a coordinated plan for another album in 1979 or were they just taking advantage of studio time to record a few non-Christmas songs they’d come across, for possible future use? If there were plans to release another album in 1979, at what point were the brakes put on? I’m guessing Richard’s decision to seek treatment and take a year off was the key factor.
 
I've amended the Resource to indicate the two different editions of the expanded Bacharach Medley. The earlier version first appeared on the 1985 ANTHOLOGY (1989 on CD) in Japan. This version was repeated sans spoken intro on the MAGICAL MEMORIES issues around 1993.

The whole thing was updated and remixed by Richard for the 1997 ANTHOLOGY in Japan and repeated on the READERS DIGEST set then as well. And I've given thanks to Cuyler for his tenacious abilities to spot these differences.
 
Aside from mention in the newsletters (which were fluffy at the best of times), to this day I’m still not actually sure we really know what the plans were for 1979, and why they were recording all these songs amongst the Christmas sessions. I’ve never read or heard any evidence of proper, scheduled recording sessions for a new album. Were these recordings part of a coordinated plan for another album in 1979 or were they just taking advantage of studio time to record a few non-Christmas songs they’d come across, for possible future use? If there were plans to release another album in 1979, at what point were the brakes put on? I’m guessing Richard’s decision to seek treatment and take a year off was the key factor.
If you saw my post from earlier in the week on the CBS issued I Believe You German Promo single, CBS was promoting a new Carpenters album in January 1979 for the German market.

Post in thread '[Single]: 26. "I BELIEVE YOU"/"B'WANA SHE NO HOME" (2097-S)'
 
I just got in the mail this morning a German promo copy of this single on the CBS labela. The back had this write up

CBS -Blitzinformation. CARPENTERS

Karen und Richard CARPENTER sind das erfolgreichste Geschwister-paar der Popmusik. Seit 10 Jahren liefern sie Hit auf Hit — die Palette reicht von „We‘ve Only Just Begun“ über „Postman“ bis hin zu „Sweet Sweet Smile“, einem Song, der dem deutschen Publikum noch in bester Erinnerung ist. Die vorliegende Single ist der neueste US-Erfolg der CARPENTERS von denen im Januar eine neue LP zu erwarten ist.


(English translation)
CBS - Lightning Information. CARPENTERS
Karen and Richard CARPENTER are the most successful siblings of pop music. They've been delivering hits on hit for 10 years - the palette ranges from "We've Only Just Begun" to "Postman" to "Sweet Sweet Smile," a song that is still best remembered by the German audience. This single is the latest US success of the CARPENTERS, from which a new LP can be expected in January.

Also, CBS did a better marketing job with the single jacket as it’s purple with a photo of Karen in a blue suit leaning against a post and Richard in a blue & white cowboy button up shirt and navy pants, with his left arm stretched out behind Karen and touching the same post. In the US A&am just used a generic A&M jacket framing the 45’s center label.

It’s interesting how CBS was promoting a new album for January 1979.
 
Cuyler you have a good ear..I never really noticed these changes. I have the original 89' Anthology CD set (thanks to a friend) and bought the Readers set from the phone when it first appeared. It's funny because if you only had the Anthology set one might be content that the medley is the best available. However, I prefer the Readers version as it sounds a lot cleaner/brighter.

I'm happy we have both versions and nice to hear how Richard can improve certain tracks from prior releases. I'll never forget hearing Karen's speaking intro for the first time here...I must have replayed it 10x's, love hearing her introduce this medley.
 
I just checked the Complete Recording Resource and found that the first appearance was on Anthology (1987)! Now I'm here wondering if that version is identical to the one on Magical Memories (1993). If that's the case, then I should have titled the thread 1987 remix vs. 1997 remix!
The one on the Anthology actually sounds very different from the one on Magical Memories. The Anthology version basically sounds live and includes intros by Karen and Richard. The Magical Memories sounds more "muffled" to me. One difference that always catches my ears are you can hear the bass more in the Anthology version during "(There's) Always Something There To Remind Me" (my preference). Another difference is the transition from "(There's) Aways..." to "I'll Never Fall In Love Again".
 
This one would be the Anthology version:


Thank you! I’ll have to take a listen in my headphones but it’s definitely not the “Magical Memories” version. Sounds to me closer to the “Their Greatest Hits and Finest Performances” version.
 
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