Christmas Eve – “Christmas Kisses” Rare Vinyl and More…..

Posted on December 24, 2012 by beatlesblogger

On this Christmas Eve a post to mark the time of year. Paul McCartney always seems to have ways of making his releases just that little bit collectable and sometimes very difficult to keep up with…

Take his holiday release “The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)“.

For those completists among us you’d think it’d be a simple thing to secure a copy for your collection. It’s just one song after all – done in the same crooner style and the light jazz instrumentation of Kisses on the Bottom, Paul’s LP from earlier in the year.

The first we heard of this song’s existence was that it was coming out on a compilation CD called Holidays Rule:

Christmas Rules front US

Easy. Just order a copy of the CD, or download the song from iTunes and you are up-to-date. Not so because then comes the news that it is also to be released as a vinyl single. But not just any vinyl single. There will only be 5000 copies made, it will be on coloured vinyl, it will have custom labels, and will only be available from independent record stores… Oh, and in the Christmas spirit some of the vinyl will be red, and some will be green:

Thanks to Andrey in Russia for sending through these scans. He got them from a mate in Germany who ordered the single from two different sources and was lucky to get one copy of each colour. Apparently one of his friends in the USA ordered five copies but got all of them in the red colour. Another collector in Japan ordered four copies and got all of them in the green….As the covers are all sealed in heat-shrink plastic nobody knows what colour vinyl will arrive until they open them. And, given it’s limited release status, the single has been for sale on Ebay at very inflated prices…..

You’d think that would be the end of it. But no. There are two different versions of Paul McCartney’s rendition of “The Christmas Song” (and thanks to the WogBlog site for this information).

One version comes with strings and is only available as a bonus track on the digital download album called Complete Kisses. This is an iTunes exclusive, digital-only album released in conjunction with the DVD/BlueRay of Paul performing all the songs from Kisses on the Bottom live.

However, the song on the vinyl singles above and on the Holidays Rule CD are without the strings, just Paul singing backed by a small jazz ensemble.

So, if you want every version of just this one McCartney song you have to hunt around – and reach deep into your wallet – this Christmas.

Happy Christmas, happy collecting, and happy holidays everyone.

Mojo – The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour Special Edition

Posted on December 20, 2012 by beatlesblogger

OK. So I didn’t know this was out until I stumbled across it in my local newsagent store yesterday while looking for something else. Turns out it’s been out since October…

That’s the front cover of a special edition of “Mojo” the British music magazine. Clearly timed to co-ordinate with the release of the digitally remastered Beatles Magical Mystery Tour DVD and BluRay sets, this is a very good collection of articles and sometimes eye-poppingly good photographs – many of which I have not seen before. There’s a section called Unseen Photos, featuring snaps by Henry Grossman of the Beatles homes and parties, many of which have never seen the light of day:

This 132 page special focusses on the period 1967 and where the band was at at the time. It combines, amongst other things, archival features on the albums Rubber Soul, Revolver, Sgt. Pepper and of course Magical Mystery Tour:

There’s a whole section on the influence of Indian music at the time, quite a coincidence with the passing just last week of master musician Ravi Shankar who played such a key role in the sound of the band at the time. And of course this period saw the Beatles play their last live concert at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. The magazine features a lengthy transcript of a press conference given in Los Angeles – again the last they would give as a touring band.

If you can get yourself a copy of this special edition of Mojo I think it’s worth it. Very well put together and lots to interest the avid collector or those only occasionally interested in the band and the late 1960s era. Here’s the magazine’s rear cover:

POSTSCRIPT: I’ve had a couple of readers contact me about a special, limited edition cover to this magazine. After a bit of research I understand that there were only 1000 copies of an alternate “Walrus” cover produced and these were only available via online order. So, those people who got them have a bit of a collectors item:

Label Variations Part Nine – Plastic Ono Band “Cold Turkey”

Posted on December 16, 2012 by beatlesblogger

In Label Variations Part Eight an unusual New Zealand Parlophone label version of John Lennon’s “Imagine” was featured.

I’ve stumbled across another from NZ – this time Lennon’s anguished drug withdrawal song “Cold Turkey“, performed by the Plastic Ono Band. It’s definitely original and as you can see pretty beat up, but interesting I guess – especially for one particular reason which will be revealed later:

It is in it’s original New Zealand Parlophone bag – very faded, but the rear side is interesting with it’s groovy “Young Internationals” advertisement for Air New Zealand (only $397.50 one-way to Singapore or Hong Kong!):

The main point of interest though is the black and yellow Parlophone label:

The printing on the A-side is kind of faded and difficult to read because the silver-coloured lettering does not stand out well on the black background. Like the UK edition, this 45 rpm single carries the catalogue number APPLES 1001, and as in other markets around the world the flip-side is the Yoko Ono song “Don’t Worry Kyoko (Mummy’s Only Looking for Her Hand in the Snow)”. However, this New Zealand pressing has a spelling mistake. It clearly says “Don’t Worry Kajoko”, and it has no sub-title printed on the label:

Some people quite like collecting label printing mistakes and so this makes it interesting as well. The spelling should be “Don’t Worry Kyoko….”:

Here are some other label variations from around the world, starting with Australia:

These images following aren’t from my collection but gleaned from the web. Here are two different variations from Brazil:

The original UK version looked like this:

And the US and Canadian versions:

Here’s one variation from Germany, followed by one from the Netherlands:

And since posting this I’ve been contacted by Claude Defer in France with two French variations. He says: “In France, we have 2 types of labels : the first one has «Cold Turkey» on the white part of the apple and the second one has «Cold Turkey» on the green part of the apple. The first one was probably a misprint and the second one fixed it.”:

Also, Andrey in Russia sent another France variation which is very similar to the one above, just a greener Apple:

If you have any other label variations you would like to share please email me.

Amazing Pixelated Beatles Album Covers

Posted on December 9, 2012 by beatlesblogger

OK. These are a bit old now (2003), but this is the first time I’ve seen them. So here goes.

For those of us who feel we know the Beatles album catalogue like it is part of our DNA it is always interesting to have that challenged from time to time.

The visual nature of collecting has always intrigued me. How you can know so many of the variations of album covers and album art. Looking at and handling these all the time I guess means they become ingrained in your subconscious memory. That’s why I was intrigued to see these examples of the catalogue stripped right back to the basics by British artist Jonathan Lewis.

It’s Beatle album cover inspired pixel work. I recommend taking a few steps back (or squinting) to really see how amazing these painting are.

You can see all the collection in an online book called “The Pixles” (after “The Beatles (White Album”)….but these are five of my favourites:

Please Please Me

For Sale

Sgt Pepper

Magical Mystery Tour

And last, but not least, Abbey Road

Weird “Sgt Pepper” Inner Bag

Posted on December 2, 2012 by beatlesblogger

Stumbled across a nice old copy of Sgt Pepper, and a copy of With the Beatles yesterday at a garage sale. They are both Australian pressings. The Sgt Pepper is mono on nice heavy vinyl in the gatefold cover, with the cut-out insert, and it’s on the black and yellow Parlophone label:

That, according to Jaesen Jones’ fantastic reference book “An Overview of Australian Beatles Records“, would make this pressing from around 1969. The weird thing though is the inner bag. It’s one I’ve certainly never seen before and I wonder if it’s an official variation on the original, or just a random bag that a previous owner has adopted for the purpose. It looks like this:

It looks aged and very much like it comes from the same vintage as the LP. The colours are very similar to the famous “psychedelic” original inner sleeve too. As you can see they are shades of pink, red and white – but in regimented stripes. Does anyone know anything about this one? Ever seen it included in a Sgt Pepper before? This is what the usual bag looks like:

At the same garage sale I also got a really nice copy of With the Beatles – with an original Australia-only cover:

These are difficult to find in reasonable condition as they suffered ring-wear badly. With an orange Parlophone label this means this particular copy comes from around 1969:

It would have been amongst the first to use the orange Parlophone label, but amongst the last of the Beatles LPs to have the old-fashioned flipback cover construction:

And it would have been the last to have a black and white “STEREO” sticker on the top left-hand side as these were phased out in 1969:

So, two nice additions to the collection. If anyone can help with information on the unusual Sgt Pepper inner sleeve above let us know by posting a comment below or you can email me.

More McCartney Christmas News

Posted on December 1, 2012 by beatlesblogger

Paul McCartney is to release a vinyl single of “The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)”, from the Holidays Rule compilation CD and the Complete Kisses iTunes-only Christmas release.

The coloured vinyl single will be backed with McCartney’s original 1979 version of “Wonderful Christmastime”, or is it the version of the song on the Holidays Rule CD by The Shins? That is still to be confirmed. A label spokesman quoted by Beatles Examiner said the record comes out in the U.S. on December 4 and will be available through independent record stores.

McCartney’s “Live Kisses”

Posted on November 21, 2012 by beatlesblogger

This just a quick follow up to an earlier post pointing to Paul McCartney’s “Live Kisses” coming out on DVD, BluRay and digital video.

I got a copy of the BluRay today so I thought I’s share some photos of the packaging and what’s inside:

That’s it still in it’s shrink wrap. The front cover photo is taken by Mary McCartney. Here it is released from the plastic:

It is really quite a nicely put together package. It’s not in a standard BluRay plastic cover but is more like a small, bound hardback book. (The DVD comes in the same packaging only in a slightly larger format). That dark black stripe you can see down the left-hand side is embossed with a shiny finish. Quite stylish. Here’s the rear cover:

There’s a 41 page book inside which contains some nice photos and the stylish layout begun on the exterior continues:

The design is reminiscent of the “Kisses on the Bottom” CD packaging, but is also quite distinctive in itself. There’s a Foreword from Mr Diana Krall – none other than Elvis Costello:

Costello also conducts an extensive interview with Paul McCartney about the project and the recording and this takes up the bulk of the book. At the rear are a couple of pages containing info on the composers, the song publishing details, and the recording personnel for each track. The disc contents and the bonus features are detailed, and the final page is a thin slot container for the BluRay disc itself:

(click on images to see larger versions)

So, all in all, quite nicely put together. Now to go and watch it! For those wanting a preview, McCartney’s MPL site has just put up an extended promo video package.

Meanwhile, a Paul McCartney Christmas track (which sounds like it may have been recorded during the “Kisses” sessions) is part of a new holiday CD compilation called “Holiday’s Rule” featuring a variety of artists. It’s a project coordinated by Paul’s record companies Hear Music/Concord Music and MPL. He does the classic “The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)”. You can hear the song if you visit the MPL site – it is featured on their embedded music player at the moment.

Beatles with Records – Part Thirteen

Posted on November 13, 2012 by beatlesblogger

In Part Twelve in our series The Beatles With Records I couldn’t identify what disc a young Julian Lennon was holding in this photograph kindly sent in by reader Ariel Caceres:

Well, thanks to Beatles Blog reader Thomas McConnell, who incidentally is a singer/songwriter from Liverpool, we now have an answer:

He is holding the UK 1978 reissue of the 45rpm single “The Ballad of John and Yoko/Old Brown Shoe” from The Beatles Collection box set. This box set contained every UK Beatles single and had specially created picture sleeves. I even have a copy of the set, but I missed connecting the Julian Lennon photo with it! So, thank you to Thomas for solving that one.

Ariel (mentioned above) has sent in another interesting photograph. It’s of John Lennon and Harry Nilsson holding the early artwork for the 1979 Nilsson LP “Pussy Cats” – which Lennon produced and played on. It also featured the likes of Ringo Starr on drums and Klaus Voormann on bass:

If you’d like to read some more about this album – click here.

I’ve also had sent in a simple but striking candid photograph of Paul McCartney clearly enjoying a quiet browse through a box of second-hand LPs. This comes from French collector and author Claude Defer:

I reckon he looks pretty happy and contented. We’ve mulled over just which album that “Jazz Greats” LP could be at the back of the pile. Maybe Paul was doing some research for his “Kisses on the Bottom” recordings? With only the rear cover in view the album we can see could be any number of jazz records which carry that title. If you have any ideas contact me at: beatlesblogger@gmail.com

Russian collector Andrey sent the photo below with a bit of a story attached. In August, 1998 Ringo Starr visited Russia for the first time. Andrey was a winner of the Beatles United Radio-TV-Newspaper competition. The prize was a brief meeting with Ringo. Andrey (thats him in the picture) presented Ringo with one issue of the Russian BEATLESBEAT fanzine (released in 90s) and the bootleg CD-album “Rory Storm and the Hurricanes”:

This photo was taken on August 25, 1998 just an hour before Ringo’s show in the Russia State Central Concert Hall in Moscow (this building doesn’t exist any more). Ringo is taking a good look at the CD, which can be seen well in this enlarged fragment:

Later Ringo put his autograph on the photo specially for Andrey. Here’s the Rory Storm Russian bootleg CD cover that he’s studying:

And here’s an honorary Beatle if ever there was one. It’s their manager, Brian Epstein with a copy of their debut LP “Please Please Me”. Parlophone rush-released the album on 22 March, 1963 in the UK to capitalise on the success of singles “Please Please Me” and “Love Me Do”:

Thanks again to everyone who provided photos and further information. You can see the other parts in “The Beatles with Records” series here: Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16 and 17.

Beatles 2012 Remastered Vinyl – Released (First Pictures)

Posted on November 8, 2012 by beatlesblogger

Is Australia the very first country to see the new Beatles Remastered Stereo Vinyl Box Set delivered?

The new records aren’t due for release in the UK and the USA until next week (12 and 13 November respectively). However, today I got a call from my local record store in Sydney saying “Come on in – your order for the Beatles box set is ready for collection today“. (That’s Thursday, 8 November)

Naturally I high-tailed it down there – and here are the first pictures of it being unpacked. It comes in a big protective outer box:

The large sticker declaring the contents is placed on both sides of the box:

The two shipping labels on the side. Both say “Deliver Thursday”:

When you open the box you see what looks like another box-within-a-box:

It is held in place by two thick white foam inserts that you usually see in packaging for large electrical goods like TV’s, etc. At this point I should say this package is incredibly heavy. You actually have to lie it on its side to slide it out:

What initially looked like an inner box is actually a thick brown cardboard wrap around the main package (above). Once you take it off you see this:

It’s just like the Beatles Remastered Stereo CD box released in 2009. There’s a thin cardboard outer sleeve around the record box itself. As you can see above it has “The Beatles” and an Apple logo printed on the front. This is what’s printed on the rear:

The outer sleeve slides off to reveal the main, lidded box:

Opening the lid – there are two pieces of black foam and two large moisture absorbing packs:

The book and all the LPs are completely sealed in heat-shrink plastic:

“Let It Be” (below) has the green Apple on the rear:

The book is really heavy and looks amazing – even in its heat-shrink wrap:

It has black-edged pages:

One side of the outer sleeve has the record and book edges printed on it. I guess that’s so it’ll look good when sitting on a shelf with that edge facing out:

Well, that’s about it for now. Hope you enjoyed this. Haven’t had time to open up any of the records or the book. Just wanted to get this up quickly for all to have sneak peek at the new Beatles Remastered Stereo Vinyl Box Set.

(Click on images to see larger versions)

Label Variations Part Eight – Lennon’s “Imagine” Single

Posted on November 7, 2012 by beatlesblogger

Last post I wrote about a couple of unusual garage sale finds. One was a vinyl copy of John Lennon’s 1971 single “Imagine” – but on the much less common Parlophone label in New Zealand.

When researching the post I had a good trawl around the internet to see if I could find a similar copy. I couldn’t.

However I did find a huge number of other interesting label variations. I guess that’s not surprising given the fact that this song has become an iconic John Lennon composition. Here are just some of them, starting with the rare New Zealand pressing I found:

Looking around the web I could not find anything about this release – so if you know more details please get in touch. The more common New Zealand pressing, though still quite collectable in my view, would be on the green Apple label:

Of course Lennon releases in Australia also came out on the Apple label, and I own probably the most common original Australian release of “Imagine”. It looks like this:

Searching through Google Images I actually stumbled across a picture of what would have been the original Apple acetate pressing of the song:

These acetates were test pressings, done in-house at Apple so that the engineers and John Lennon could take them away and have a listen to the mix and to the quality of the pressing before saying “yes” to printing so many hundreds of thousands of copies…Those big first press runs would have been in the United Kingdom – which used a green Apple. Here’s an early promo copy sent out to radio stations, followed by the legitimate single released to the public :

And in the United States – which used a plain white Apple label favoured by John Lennon at the time:

Of course other countries quickly followed, including places like Germany:

And the Netherlands:

Such was the fame of this song there were also pressings from unusual countries like Venezuela:

From Mexico:

And from Brazil:

Brazil also released the song on a plain white label – but a variation on the white Apple issued the USA:

In the US the song was so popular it kept getting re-issued on a variety of Capitol labels:

And this purple Capitol example:

Meanwhile back in the UK the single was being re-issued countless times as well. Here are two later examples on the Parlophone label:

Friend Andrey in Russia has sent another two examples. The first is a mono single from France:

And a slightly different image of the white label above from Brazil (different font on the year of issue):

There are no doubt many more examples given the worldwide love of this one song. If you have any other label variations you would like to share please email them through to beatlesblogger@gmail.com

Beatles Blog

Adventures in collecting Beatles music

Category Archives: Beatles Collecting

Mojo – The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour Special Edition

Label Variations Part Nine – Plastic Ono Band “Cold Turkey”

Weird “Sgt Pepper” Inner Bag

More McCartney Christmas News

Beatles with Records – Part Thirteen

Beatles 2012 Remastered Vinyl – Released (First Pictures)

Label Variations Part Eight – Lennon’s “Imagine” Single

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: