The Rolling Stones 1964-1969 - Limited Edition Remastered Vinyl Box Set [Box set, Limited Edition, Original recording remastered]

The Rolling Stones | Format: Vinyl

Product Details

• Vinyl (November 22, 2010)
• Number of Discs: 13
• Format: Box set, Limited Edition, Original recording remastered
• Note on Boxed Sets: During shipping, discs in boxed sets occasionally become dislodged without damage. Please examine and play these discs. If you are not completely satisfied, we'll refund or replace your purchase.
• Label: Abkco
• ASIN: B00461MY30
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #79,375 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

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Editorial Reviews

Review

THE ROLLING STONES 1964-69/THE ROLLING STONES 1971-2005

Upper Manhattan, mid-1980s, an underfurnished railroad apartment. Three young men whose last meal was almost certainly noodle-based sit on overturned milk crates near a turntable. They're listening hard. To what? To a fixation: the first five Rolling Stones LPs in mono.

We weren't ridiculous. We weren't wrong. If you bought these records new at Sam Goody, you'd hear sound fit for a dog: old mono reprocessed into fake stereo, bassy in one speaker, trebly in the other, sloshed with reverb. If you got yourself around a used mono version, not so hard to find in those days -- especially of the sacramental "Out of Our Heads" -- you'd hear the band's greasy transmission, its full feckless assault, much more clearly.

We didn't have the British versions, though, some with different songs in a different order. We weren't that pro. We were 20 years too early. In a breathtaking all-vinyl boxed set, ABKCO has reissued the Stones' studio-album corpus up through 1969, and those that were originally mono (pre-"Aftermath") have been kept that way. Some of these probably sound as good as is currently possible. Simultaneously, Universal has released its own vinyl-only boxed set for the rest of the band's work, from "Sticky Fingers" to "A Bigger Bang." These will be more familiar to anyone who grew up with them: there was no mono-stereo issue here, no track-order scrambling between markets. They look and sound beautiful, using the best recent remastering and vinyl cutting. And here, cultured reader, would be the occasion to start building your defense of the undervalued "Goats Head Soup." -- The New York Times, November 26, 2010

Product Description

Strictly limited edition 13 vinyl LP box set that encompasses the Stones' early UK releases. The box set includes nine remastered Rolling Stones studio albums, two remastered EPs, plus two 'Big Hits' collections. The first five titles in the set are presented in their original mono format, affording, for the first time in years. The inclusion of the band's original two Hits collections was mandated by the fact that UK album releases in that era most often did not include contemporaneously released hit singles.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Never sounded better November 25, 2010

By Kevin Dutcher

Format:Vinyl

I agree with the reviewer above re: the packaging. It's not what it could be. That said, the reason I bought it was for the sound, and in all honesty, it was like listening to the albums for the first time. I heard things I hadn't realized were there. The vinyl is so quiet, it's really stunning. If you're on the fence about making the purchase, I can honestly say that it far exceeded my expectations.

27 of 30 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An Awesome Investment November 29, 2010

By Tome Raider VINE™ VOICE

Format:Vinyl|Amazon Verified Purchase

I just received both of the box sets today and I have to say I'm enormously relieved. The negative reviews of the packaging of these had scared me. Let's face it: this is quite a bit of money here, especially during the holidays. And, if you delay, you wonder will they still be available into the New Year? Will the price be the same? It's all kind of a gamble, isn't it?? The price could go down, but with the Stones I don't think it will go down much. (Both boxes are numbered on the bottom, but they don't indicate out of how many total printed. I presume it is a big number, but I expect the world-wide demand for these will be significant.)

First, let me comment on the packaging. I think it is pretty good. It's about as good as one can reasonably expect. At least half of these are fold-opens ("gatefolds," I believe, is the term). You get a lot of classic visuals here. The covers themselves bring back memories. The "matte" finish of the cardboard actually seems like step up to me from the shiny cheap stuff; these look just a little higher-end to me than the original releases, sans the "novelty" items like the 3-D on Satanic Majesties or the zipper on Sticky Fingers, or the cuts-outs on Some Girls. But, overall, these are nicely manufactured covers, printed on cardboard at least as thick as the original releases. Most of you reading this are serious vinyl collectors, so, like me, you will immediately get these into plastic LP cover protectors. I HIGHLY recommend this, as otherwise these covers will soon show abrasion wear if you pull them out and stuff them back in with any frequency at all. Yes, all your albums will still fit in the boxes after you put them in the covers. It is a tight fit, but they are definitely protected this way better than without the covers. By the way, Satanic Majesties is done in a nice metallic cardboard. I was really hoping for that trippy 3-D tip-on plate, but the metallic finish is a nice consolation.

The boxes are pretty heavy duty. The lids fit very tightly, but your treasure is well protected within. I see these sets as virtually the ultimate Stones collectible, and so I will probably put some kind of plastic over the boxes themselves. I want one of my daughters to have these boxes some day. Hopefully one will want the Beatles' stuff, and the other the Stones'. The classic dichotomy: Stones vs. Beatles. The choice one makes between the two almost seems to transcend the bands and relate to something deeper about a person. I know, I know: you can love both, and I do. But, for me, there will always be a slightly stronger allegiance to the Stones. We're talking almost a half century of Stones' output now (versus six or seven years for the Beatles)!!! It is almost unfathomable!!

The sound of these LPs?? Well, I've only listened to one. It sounded great, but to be honest ,I already have many of these in 180g vinyl and the one from this set I listened to sounded about the same. Perhaps a more sophisticated audiophile can tell a difference. So far, I can't. At a bare minimum I can represent with a high degree of confidence that you will not be disappointed with sound quality.

I have to confess, I bought these sets as much to review my own life as to review the Stones' legacy. As a late baby-boomer, I can remember when and where I bought most of these albums (some at the time of their release, some later). Each album brings back good memories, and I can remember well the concerts where the Stones played many of these songs. Some people contend the later albums are not "classics." It seems that it has always been that way. It takes a decade, or maybe even two, before a Stones' album sinks in, and then it finally does emerge as yet another classic.

All told, these two boxes contain a better representation of the "soundtrack of my life" than all my other hundreds of LPs and thousands of CDs. This is the core, the nucleus, the genesis.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A Great Set, But I wish it was mastered ENTIRELY from Analog and that it was ALL Mono January 8, 2011

By Colin Montgomery

Format:Vinyl

I am very happy that they finally released the Stones albums on 180 grams. Although others may say that the packaging is bad, I really do not feel that it is that terrible (save for the unoriginal covers of Their Satanic Majesties Request and Beggar's Banquet). I am happy that the two EPs were included, and that these and the pre-Aftermath albums were in their dedicated mono versions. And everything does sound absolutely fantastic, although you can tell that there was a BIT of a digital process undertaken in re-mastering these albums and whereas all the mono albums, the two Big Hits collections and so on sound great, the Aftermath-Metamorphosis studio album releases are KIND of close to the SACD 2002 releases (although they sound much better on vinyl, and it seems that some of the tracks on these stereo albums even are mono, because Lady Jane and What to Do off Aftermath seem to be in mono, as do a lot of the tracks off of Big Hits 1). Finally, The Rolling Stones are given true audiophile quality, and Ruby Tuesday is once again in its original version with the overdubbed choruses intact!!!! (which the 2002 releases changed oddly enough..). I am very sad that everything that was once in mono wasn't re-issued here in mono, as I REALLY would have loved a completely mono Aftermath, Between the Buttons, Their Satanic Majesties Request, Beggar's Banquet, and Let it Bleed. But then again, many do argue that the stereo versions of these select albums are superior to their mono brethren. But beggars cant be choosers (for now), and the set is really pretty damn good nonetheless!!