The Who "A quick one" (1966) mono vs. stereo differences.

Hi there

I would like to know if the mono version (polydor 1988 - CD) and the stereo version (Polydor 2003-cd) has any differences (don't know, some extra riff here, less lyrics there, more of that) or basically is that same version but one is stereo and the other mono.

thanks a lot in advance.

 

in fact, I don't owe the (as i read in this forum many times) best release of "a quick one" mono version. But as extra i wonder if the tracks are slightly differents..

 

thanks a lot Steve

 

Extra lead guitar on mono Run Run Run, for starters. I'll let lukpac take it from here.

 

Thanks a lot!

 

I thought the mixes of I Need You were very different, particularly the volume of the party dialog during the harpsichord solo.

 

Wouldn’t ya know it. Of course I have the 1988 mono.

 

Entwistle sang two vocals on Whiskey Man (right channel and left) which is much more noticeable on the stereo. Interestingly, he said that he always had a hard time singing the word friend - the R was a problem - so on one channel he sang fliend and the other fwiend hoping they would blend into friend. They didn't.

 

That's one track I prefer in mono as the dialog (which I find pretty funny) is easier to make out.

 

If I'm remembering correctly, if you get the HD download, get the stereo version but, So Sad About Us sounds better in mono.

 

Four track.

The dialog was on a separate stereo tape and played on the fly alongside the 4-track. It starts earlier in the mono.

They have both:

A Quick One (Mono Version) | HDtracks - The World's Greatest-Sounding Music Downloads
A Quick One (Stereo Version) | HDtracks - The World's Greatest-Sounding Music Downloads

The HD stereo of So Sad About Us sounds terrible. But that's an issue with the mastering. It's the 2002 remix, horribly distorted. The original stereo mix sounds great.

There are various subtle mixing differences, like most any multitrack rock recording from that era.

 

That was the Talmy stuff. A Quick One came a bit later and was 4-track. Basic layout for most tracks:

1 - backing
2 - vocal
3 - vocal (+ extra instrumental overdubs)
4 - main instrumental overdubs (lead guitar, etc)

Some of the remixes have the vocal tracks swapped but the lead guitar still on the right.

 

Where I can find the 1966 stereo mix?
The only stereo I found for this album is the 2003...

 

For 50 years, I have been trying to figure out what the hell the last words of that dialog are. I hear "In E Avy, in E Avy!", but that's not English, and makes no sense whatsoever (even for Keith). So what are they saying?

 

Your best bet is vinyl but not the current pressing; that's the mono mix.

 

And what vinyl would that be?

 

The Who - A Quick One (Happy Jack)
(Whiskey Man, Heatwave, Don't Look Away in fake stereo)

The Who - I'm A Boy
(Album doesn't include So Sad About Us or A Quick One While He's Away)

The Who - A Quick One Box

The Who - A Quick One

As far as the 2002/3 CD goes, Whiskey Man, Don't Look Away, and the title track are the original stereo mixes.

I'm not aware of a vinyl issue that has the entire album (other than See My Way) in true stereo. The German LP has So Sad About Us in fake stereo, for example.

 

I think Happy Jack is the only record that has that track in true stereo.

 

Which bit of dialogue are you referring to?

Going purely by what you've written it would probably translate into the Queen's English as "Isn't he heavy".

 

Also on Best of Who, Vol 2.

The Who - Best Of Who - Vol.2

 

The talking in I Need You.