The Rascals: "It’s Wonderful: The Complete Atlantic Studio Recordings", 7CD Box Set (5/31/2024-Now Sounds/Cherry Red UK)

[quadsome]

Hi and thanks for your note back and for running the waves on Lonely Too Long. That track definitely appears consistant with the earlier release. If you could, please give a listen though to the first stereo track on the album "What Is The Reason". Absolutely it has that crazy, manic stereo ping-pong effect they often used but toward the end where Dino's drum break and the "what is the reason" vocal alternates from right to left channel and back, the volume just collapses very dramatically on the left side in a way I never heard before on the original stereo releases. It sounds that way to me on tracks 2-5 as well but not as obvious since there isn't that dramatic stereo gimmick going on. Side two originally started with "Come On Up" and the left channel channel definitely perks up on all of the side two (tracks 6-11) so it may just have to do with the current master tape levels. I can certainly burn my own copy and fix it but curious what you think. The rest of the box to your earlier post is very good and certainly worth buying for any Rascals completist collector!

 

[esimms86]

The Rascals are in the house. I haven’t spun any tunes yet but I’m really enjoying the 60 page booklet. Richie Untermeyer in particular always does a great job on these kind of projects.

 

[esimms86]

I generally start by ripping my discs first and then enjoying them later from my NAS drive. So far, I've ripped the first 4 discs, but the last 3 don't as yet have metadata in the usual online databases. As I'm admittedly too lazy to type in all of that info for submission to a database, I'll just wait a few days until all of that stuff is easily available online. I also anticipate that I'll be making up my own personal playlist of my favorite Rascals tunes. Question is, do I want to do this in stereo or (more likely) in mono? I know, poor me, LOL!

 

[Victor Bisio]

I'll be watching this thread closely for sonic reviews. I own the two Japan Boxes, The Rhino Handmade Box Set and All of the CC releases.
I can't really justify this purchase (which has never stopped me in the past ), but I'm glad it's available for those you don't have any of the other collections.

 

[Uncle Obscure]

I'll be watching this thread closely for sonic reviews. I own the two Japan Boxes, The Rhino Handmade Box Set and All of the CC releases.
I can't really justify this purchase (which has never stopped me in the past ), but I'm glad it's available for those you don't have any of the other collections.

I'd say that's an excellent rationale for wanting to purchase or not purchase. As someone who didn't own the Rhino Handmade, it was an easy decision for me to pull the trigger on this set. If I had the Rhino, I may well have passed on it. With that said though, I think this is a quality package from beginning to end. As always, YMMV.

 

[Victor Bisio]

I'd say that's an excellent rationale for wanting to purchase or not purchase. As someone who didn't own the Rhino Handmade, it was an easy decision for me to pull the trigger on this set. If I had the Rhino, I may well have passed on it. With that said though, I think this is a quality package from beginning to end. As always, YMMV.

I totally agree with you!