Horrible early stereo mix


Why don't record re-releases correct the horrible stereo separation from many early stereo recordings?
You know the records: half the band in the left channel; half the band in the right channel; nothing in the center.
All the early Beatles in stereo are like that. I just got a reissue of a Dinah Washington record. The fidelity is great but the stereo separation is crazy.
I know these recordings were probably mixed for a console stereo where the speakers were only 24" apart.
But why keep this awful flaw?
The only way I can listen to these records is to move my speakers together.
maxh
I've always noticed that on Dinah Washington recordings going back to my childhood, Mom was a huge fan and I came on board because, well I had little choice at the time. Her voice is always far left and sounds separate from the rest of the mix. For her recordings, mono would definitely sound better. I too appreciate the recordings for what they are. In the case of Dinah, her interpretations and voice make the shortcomings of the recordings a moot point to me.
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This reminds me of something a college friend said in the 70's. He was from Mexico City and he said that the city had installed a new stereo music system on the metro buses. But when he finally heard it he realized they were sending one channel to the north/south buses and the other channel to the east/west.

Now THAT could be off-putting.