Search - The Allman Brothers Band :: Beginnings

Beware! First album remixed

Rock fan | Cedar Rapids, IA | 01/03/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I purchased this in the hopes that these remastered versions would yield a significant sonic improvement over the poor quality earlier versions of the first two ABB albums on CD that I already owned.



What I wasn't expecting was that the contents of the first album have been remixed here. (Idlewild South does not appear to have been remixed.) The albums themselves are both five stars in my book. However, I must "ding" this release at least one star for being a remix but not advertised as such.



Among the differences between the original "ABB mix" and the "Beginnings mix" are:

--Intro to "Every Hungry Woman": Original mix has the guitar in the left channel and a faint hi-hat pedal stomp counting out the beat in the right. The remix has the guitar more or less centered, and the hi-hat deleted.

--End of "Whipping Post" fades out in the remix, as opposed to a "cold" end in the original mix. The fade out cuts off the snare drum shots that close out the original mix.

--On several tracks, bass guitar has been moved from center to the left channel and increased substantially. This mimics the approach used on several "Idlewild South" tracks, suggesting that this remix may have been an attempt to apply the "Idlewild South" mixing strategy and lessons learned to the "ABB" session tapes.

--On several tracks, especially where two lead guitar parts play note-for-note harmonies, the positions of the two guitars (one panned 100% left, the other panned 100% right) have been reversed in the remix, while drums and percussion have their positions unchanged (e.g maraccas panned 100% left).

--Vocals in the remix tend to seem a bit "cleaner" and more forward as opposed to the original mix. I haven't yet determined whether this is simply a volume issue, or whether the reverb was cut back.



As a personal preference, I tend to avoid remixes. I view recordings as a document of the times in which they were originally produced. The Allman Brothers Band still had a lot to learn when the were cutting ABB. Given the timing of the release of Beginnings (sometime in 1973), after the deaths of Duane Allman and Berry Oakley in late 1971 and late 1972 respectively, it's quite likely that the remixes took place after one, if not both, of their deaths.



How would this bit of information affect your buying decision? If you're an ABB completist and want to learn more about the music by studying the differences between the remix and the original mix, or don't care about the remix and are looking for the best value, then pick up this package and you won't be disappointed. The vocals and bass are for the most part clearer than in the original mix. But if you do care whether or not you're listening to mixes that were made before the deaths of Allman and Oakley, you'll need to buy the first album individually. Since "Idlewild South" does not appear to have been remixed here, you might consider purchasing both "Beginnings" and the first CD if you want both mixes of the first album plus "Idlewild South.""

Southern blues-rock

Retro Mopar | COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA United States | 10/26/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Great classic selection of Allman originals. Did not notice any huge differences with the remastering, but then, my ears are much older. A must have if you want to hear the original Allman Bros. Band when all were still alive. Dual lead guitars, dual percussionists, distinct vocals, and more! An excellent value and a fine collectable if you like the southern blues-rock genre!"

Sweet classic allman bros.

David C. Costa | portland maine usa | 12/31/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"what an amazing piece of music history, with the original crew...nice to have the first two records together and the blues and edgy toughness of greg's voice is wonderful...add this to the collection..."