Loaded 45th Anni box drama

[rnranimal]

I'm actually surprised at how bad this looks. I knew material was limited and they can't help it if Freeman won't make a deal for his tape (if that's the case, who knows), but that set is a hodgepodge mess. How do you come up with these decisions? Hey, let's not have the original version of the album, just that '95 Frankenstein. Let's waste a whole disc on mono fold downs and make it the Frankenstein version as well (not that it matters, it's useless crap either way). And even though we're really reaching for content, let's go ahead and leave off a few relevant tracks from previous releases. They have Max's missing a Sweet Jane but with both Lonesome Cowboy Bills. WTF?

I see a download of a DVD in my future and money staying in my wallet.

[Kill Mick]

I'm actually surprised at how bad this looks. I knew material was limited and they can't help it if Freeman won't make a deal for his tape (if that's the case, who knows), but that set is a hodgepodge mess. How do you come up with these decisions? Hey, let's not have the original version of the album, just that '95 Frankenstein. Let's waste a whole disc on mono fold downs and make it the Frankenstein version as well (not that it matters, it's useless crap either way). And even though we're really reaching for content, let's go ahead and leave off a few relevant tracks from previous releases. They have Max's missing a Sweet Jane but with both Lonesome Cowboy Bills. WTF?

I see a download of a DVD in my future and money staying in my wallet.

And still no complete "Honeymoon Tape" demo release...

[searchin4mymainline]

Yes this does look pretty disappointing to say the least, especially after the third album anniversary box. I guess, as has been said already, the fact that Rhino are doing this rather than licensing to Universal could account for the rest of the Matrix stuff not being used here.
If they're going to put Max's on there they should at least put the whole thing on and speed correct it so that it's worth buying again! And maybe put the Max's rehearsals with it. And obviously the Freeman tape if that were possible.
Will be nice to have the new transfer of the Second Fret stuff though, but that looks like the only thing that's of real interest to me.

[rnranimal]

I'm actually surprised at how bad this looks. I knew material was limited and they can't help it if Freeman won't make a deal for his tape (if that's the case, who knows), but that set is a hodgepodge mess. How do you come up with these decisions? Hey, let's not have the original version of the album, just that '95 Frankenstein. Let's waste a whole disc on mono fold downs and make it the Frankenstein version as well (not that it matters, it's useless crap either way). And even though we're really reaching for content, let's go ahead and leave off a few relevant tracks from previous releases. They have Max's missing a Sweet Jane but with both Lonesome Cowboy Bills. WTF?

I see a download of a DVD in my future and money staying in my wallet.

And still no complete "Honeymoon Tape" demo release...

You're right, I forgot about those! 4 more tracks they left off.

EDIT: Just 3 tracks missing, assuming the I Found a Reason demo is the acetate one. So why not include all of them if they will include 1 of the tracks?

[iaredatsun]

I don't quite see why this one is any more disappointing that the 3rd was. 'It is was it is'. To inappropriately quote John Cale.

[bobbydriver]

On the plus side - it looks like the Matrix tapes will get a full boxset in their own right!

Couple of other observations - I'm surprised that they haven't included the original edited mixes of SJ and RnR. I know that Lou wasn't happy with them, but for 20+ years they were THE official versions. Surely just as valid to include these for reference as it is some mono fold-downs?

Or is the Disc 6 "96/24 Hi-Resolution Original Stereo Mix" going to be exacty that? The ORIGINAL mix/edits?

What's this about restoring an intended segue between IFAR and HHH? Is this genuine? If so, why only include it on the surround sound version?#

[rnranimal]

I don't quite see why this one is any more disappointing that the 3rd was. 'It is was it is'. To inappropriately quote John Cale.

I understand "it is was it is" in regards to the material that is available. What I don't understand are their decisions to leave off relevant tracks that are available (and have even already been released on other sets). They are leaving off tracks that were previously available on Peel Slowly and See, Fully Loaded and the Max's 2CD. Why would they do that? And instead, we get a whole disc of fake mono again. They also are leaving off three 1969 acetate tracks and including one. Two of the other tracks have even already been officially released. It doesn't seem very "Super Deluxe" to be leaving off tracks readily available.

Including a disc of an incomplete Max's seems like nothing more than a waste of disc to drive the cost up. That is all. If they felt strongly about Max's being included, they'd make sure if was complete. It's wasted space and so is the fake mono disc. There was no 3rd album mono mix and there was no Loaded mono mix. They don't need to crowbar a mono disc into every set. Why not have every album ever released include another disc with the album collapsed to mono? Because that's all they are doing here. It doesn't make it a different mix just because it's in mono.

These sets have allowed some good stuff here and there to make it's way out, but they have also been a major disappointment. A LOT of poor decisions were made with them. From leaving off relevant tracks to unneeded edits to sourcing from common bootlegs (without contacting the guy who has the OH '66 master) to bloating them with useless filler.

[iaredatsun]

I don't quite see why this one is any more disappointing that the 3rd was. 'It is was it is'. To inappropriately quote John Cale.

I understand "it is was it is" in regards to the material that is available. What I don't understand are their decisions to leave off relevant tracks that are available (and have even already been released on other sets). They are leaving off tracks that were previously available on Peel Slowly and See, Fully Loaded and the Max's 2CD. Why would they do that? And instead, we get a whole disc of fake mono again. They also are leaving off three 1969 acetate tracks and including one. Two of the other tracks have even already been officially released. It doesn't seem very "Super Deluxe" to be leaving off tracks readily available.

Including a disc of an incomplete Max's seems like nothing more than a waste of disc to drive the cost up. That is all. If they felt strongly about Max's being included, they'd make sure if was complete. It's wasted space and so is the fake mono disc. There was no 3rd album mono mix and there was no Loaded mono mix. They don't need to crowbar a mono disc into every set. Why not have every album ever released include another disc with the album collapsed to mono? Because that's all they are doing here. It doesn't make it a different mix just because it's in mono.

These sets have allowed some good stuff here and there to make it's way out, but they have also been a major disappointment. A LOT of poor decisions were made with them. From leaving off relevant tracks to unneeded edits to sourcing from common bootlegs (without contacting the guy who has the OH '66 master) to bloating them with useless filler.

Agree about the mono. People love mono. Mono sells. Mono mono mono. But isn't there a test pressing mono LP version of Loaded on the Ultimate Monos & Acetetates 3xCD? I bet that was originally a fold-down.

They're never going to get these things correct. There is no correct. Fans want every single last second of unreleased material. It's always possible that The Great Lou in the Sky forbidded certain stuff from being used.

[Mark]

Being charitable, the new mixes of the outtakes / early versions might be interesting. A lot of the stuff on Fully Loaded sounds a bit flat to me.

Otherwise - broadly agree with everyone else, what a big pile of meh. If there are no more tracks left in the vault following the PS&S / Fully Loaded excavations, maybe the way to go would have been a Funhouse Sessions type idea, with continuous 'fly on the wall' extracts from the sessions including false starts, dialogue etc. I bet that would have offered a few new insights.

I wonder if the Max's tracks are speed-corrected this time?

[bobbydriver]

On the plus side - it looks like the Matrix tapes will get a full boxset in their own right!

Couple of other observations - I'm surprised that they haven't included the original edited mixes of SJ and RnR. I know that Lou wasn't happy with them, but for 20+ years they were THE official versions. Surely just as valid to include these for reference as it is some mono fold-downs?

Or is the Disc 6 "96/24 Hi-Resolution Original Stereo Mix" going to be exacty that? The ORIGINAL mix/edits?

What's this about restoring an intended segue between IFAR and HHH? Is this genuine? If so, why only include it on the surround sound version?#

Answering my own question perhaps on the "restored" segue between I Found A Reason and Head Held High - but I realised that they aren't next to each other in the original running order.

If you listen to them though, IFAR ends with a faded doo-wop outro and Head Held High starts with a brief snippet of the same doo-wop vocal before the main HHH track starts. I'd never noticed this before, so it will be interesting to hear how they've done it and how the new running order works out. Bearing in mind that HHH was Track One on Side B, whichever way they do it will be a big departure from the original LP vision (which we know Lou was never happy with)

I'm also confused by the references to Rock And Roll being the "full length version" - as it's only ever been 4:45 long right back from the first pressing right?

New Age on the other hand my old 80's vinyl issue has a 4:39 edit and then there is a "full length version" of 5:42 and a "long version" of 5:09 on Fully Loaded, but no mention on the new press release of New Age being restored to full length.