HA! Well, as long as they keep the mics unplugged and recording heads disengaged, then no worry for any "new" AC noise! I'm sure there will be some to notch out on the masters, however.Of course, makes sense
Any aircon units to be worried about during these sessions?
ullalume
Well-Known Member
So essentially it'll be a double set of both albums in their entirety, is that correct?They're all on there. A segment from the Nutcracker medley in '84 couldn't be found in storage (the master), so Richard is planning to recreate that and edit it back into the rest of the piece. There are a couple of other slight modifications, but the bulk of it is to clean up the tracks, bring Karen out front and ditch the reverb!
You're on it, @newvillefan!
From my understanding, yes. However Iām not completely certain whether the sequencing will be identical.
newvillefan
I Know My First Name Is Stephen
Wishful thinking but if we get clean (cold opening and ending) versions of tracks like āSleigh Rideā, āWhat Are You Doing New Yearās Eveā, āDo You Hear What I Hearā and āHome For The Holidaysā, Iāll be ecstatic!
David A
Well-Known Member
Yes! I haven't commented on this thread as yet but felt the need...I cannot WAIT for this. Carpenters and Christmas are for me the same as Santa, Christmas movie classics, Christmas lights - a fundamental element of my enjoyment of the Holiday season. I am really looking forward to this release!ANYTHING new Carpenters at this point in time is a thrill!
tomswift2002
Well-Known Member
Wouldnāt he be getting the analogs re-transferred to modern digital, considering that aside from the Merry Christmas Darling, Santa Claus Is Coming To Town & The Christmas Song masters for the SACD and the two Singles collections, none of the Christmas multi-tracks have been touched/remixed since 1996 when the Winter Wonderland Medley was remixed for the Collection (and the Silent Night, Jingle Bells on the Japanese set were just the 2-track masters from CPSE and CC)? 24-bit recording wasnāt added to Pro Tools until 1997, and 20-Bit audio wasnāt available until ADAT was released in 1992. Otherwise any other Christmas release was sourced from the 2-track album masters. So unless Iron Mountain did a bunch of retransfers to a 24-bit medium in the last 30 years, (I would assume that, since nothing was being done with the Christmas tapes, upgrading their digital backups was probably a low priority for Iron Mountain), any digital copies of the Christmas multitracks were probably on 16-bit/48 DAT or 16/20-bit/48 ADAT from the early-90ās.
ullalume
Well-Known Member
Perfect. Thanks Chris.
newvillefan
I Know My First Name Is Stephen
This is why I originally asked the question. If heās going back and redoing everything, why not redigitise from the original source tapes to start afresh with the best possible source, especially if the majority of the multis still exist?
I believe thatās what they did. He started working on this a couple of years ago.
JohnFB
She was born to belong to the lines of a song...
newvillefan
I Know My First Name Is Stephen
Chris
Well-Known Member
Such exciting news to hear that Richard is working toward this again! It will be heaven to hear "Christmas Waltz", "Have Yourself.." etc. get those clean, pure treatments. Thank you, Richard, and thanks to Chris.
Not only a Christmas wish come true, but a lifetime treasure. The greatest holiday albums in history.
Not only a Christmas wish come true, but a lifetime treasure. The greatest holiday albums in history.
Hereās to hoping!I know we are pushing your patience here Chris ... but I guess we are all wondering if this is intended for Christmas 2023 ...
JohnFB
She was born to belong to the lines of a song...
Yes, and I'd do my best to see it stayed that way!You would @JohnFB, thereās no doubling on Karenās leads on this album (teasing of course)
Seriously, the removal of all or most of the reverb is also a giant step in the direction of naturalness and purity of sound quality - something her voice not only deserved, but demanded. This should always have been sacred, untouchable.
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Well, and like Richard has stated off the record many times, "Her voice didn't need it."Yes, and I'd do my best to see it stayed that way!
Seriously, the removal of all or most of the reverb is also a giant step in the direction of naturalness and purity of sound quality - something her voice not only deserved, but demanded. This should always have been sacred, untouchable.
JohnFB
She was born to belong to the lines of a song...
Speaking of reverb - I've always thought that Karen's rendition of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" on the CP album was one of her very finest recorded efforts ever, and one that set a new standard for that beautifully nostalgic song that no one else will ever equal - yet, it "seems" to have just a tad too much reverb on it - not enough to spoil my enjoyment, but still...does anyone else hear this?
Faithful Fan
Member
newvillefan
I Know My First Name Is Stephen
Yes Iāve always heard the reverb on that track but I think it complements her voice perfectly, especially when she belts out that last āhang your shining star above the highest boughā. Just beautiful. One of the few times the reverb doesnāt get in the way at all.
This was Karen's favorite as well. A real gem ...
JohnFB
She was born to belong to the lines of a song...
Yes, exactly!
I think this is also the song during which one can hear her vibrato best -it is almost always present on most other songs, but subtle (which is the best way for it to be for any singer) - but on this song when she holds those long notes on "bough" and at the end of the phrase "from now on our troubles will be miles away" - it really stands out in a stunning way...
I listen to this all year round ( just like MCD) and have even learned to play a simplified version of it on my Yamaha Digital Piano - her vocal of it is always running through my mind as I play...
