German 2nd cut (1967)
SHZE 401
Discogs | German Matrix Database
Matrix:
Side A: SHZE-401-A-1
Side B: SHZE-401-B-2
Unbanded
This is actually the 2nd cut of the German 1st pressing of this album. The 1st cut (with the B-1 matrix on Side B) did not have the gibberish on the locked groove and is very rare (if I remember correctly, the B-2 version came within a month after B-1). The German version is unbanded, like its UK counterpart.
Now to the acoustics. Very interesting. The basic source looks just like the UK 1st cut, the overall characteristics are all there and very similar. Let us say, when comparing the UK -3/-3 version to the UK -1/-1, there are some notable differences in terms of clarity, details and instrument separation, and these differences are much stronger than how this German pressing and the UK -1/-1 are different.
On Side A, the differences lie in the EQ. The German version has somewhat more punch to the bass added. That’s it. Everything else is just basically the same, but the German version has a more substantial low end. You might like it or not. I mean, the UK -2 and -3 also had bass added (though to a lesser extent). On “With a Little Help from My Friends” it adds more substance to the singing. On “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” it is a bit distracting, on “Getting Better”, “Fixing a Hole”, “She’s Leaving Home” it is less noticeable, on “Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite” it’s quite noticeable again.
On Side B, German has slightly a higher volume (2db). When reducing it accordingly, the difference to the UK 1st is rather negligible. The EQ feels the same, the voice presence, the bass, the trebles. I suppose when they recut Side B, they did the process somehow different, truer to the source.
As much as I like going into detail, analyzing what’s where in what song, making these texts bloated and unreadable, this is quite needless here. I am really surprised how true the German 1st is to the UK -1/-1 (apart from the stronger bass on Side A, of course).
Note: the final gibberish happens as is intended, in the locked groove.
Overall: Side A has a slightly larger bass, and Side B is louder by 2db. Other than that, a great approximation of the UK 1st. And it doesn’t need to be expensive, either, because this version is probably the most frequent in Germany, having been later rereleased on the blue EMI Electrola label (from 1969 on, both as SHZE 401 and 1C 062 04 177) as well as on the Apple label (both with 072 and 062 price codes). A cover of a 70s reissue is included in the title picture.