Category Archives: Beatles Related

He Photographed Paul McCartney – and Upset the Beatle

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When you see an iconic image like this one it is often fascinating to hear the backstory as to how it came about.

Photographer Chris Floyd has a fantastic tale to tell about working with Paul McCartney and the process of capturing an image of him for the ages:

If Floyd’s photographs looks familiar, that’s because another from that same shoot eventually made it’s way (some 12 years later via Paul’s own company MPL) onto the cover of Paul Du Noyer’s 2015 book, Conversations With McCartney:

As well as the YouTube above, Chris Floyd has written in detail about the session too, both in his book Not Just Pictures, and also at his substack.com page. His article there is well worth a read. It’s got some great additional information and images, plus two very surprising postscripts which add delightful new elements to the tale!

Grail McCartney/Fireman – Strawberries Ships Ocean Forest

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It’s been quite a while since we’ve seen a decent Beatle and Beatle-related auction held in our own hometown by a small auction house, but one happened about a week ago and it turned up quite a rare Paul McCartney/Fireman double LP from 1993, Strawberries Oceans Ships Forest.

We’ve had the CD version of this for a long time, but the vinyl has always been elusive. The problem is that you hardly ever see it for sale, and when it does come up it’s usually very pricey.

The standard edition is in a bright red/green cover with clear vinyl. But there’s an even rarer, limited edition in a white cover. And this is why we were very interested when a copy came up for grabs at a local auction place here in Sydney, Australia.

We made a single bid – and got it!

This rarer 2LP vinyl edition comes in a very plain white outer sleeve:

The album title wraps around the cover onto the rear, where there’s a limited edition number stamped in black in the centre (ours is No.263).

Apart from that, there’s no other info on the outside, except on the spine there is the catalogue number FIRE 1:

Inside there are two clear vinyl records. Both come in plain white, non-poly-lined paper sleeves:

And here are the labels in close-up. These too are different to the standard release:

So, this has been something of a grail find and Strawberries Oceans Ships Forest on vinyl can at last take its rightful place in the collection.

At the same auction we nabbed a selection of Dark Horse Records singles. These were Australian pressings from some of the more obscure bands that were signed to the label in the 1970s. More on that next time.

The Pre-Christmas Bealtes Release List – Even More To Add!

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In late October we published a graphic titled “If You Want To Keep Up, Here’s Everything You’ll Need To Order” showing what we then thought was every Beatle, solo, or Beatle-related title released (or about to be released) this holiday season.

It didn’t last long. Some helpful readers pointed out we’d left out Ringo’s Stop & Smell The Roses – the numbered, liquid vinyl edition – limited to 400 copies.

This was due November 14, but seems to have been delayed. It is currently looking like December 5 now.

And the other Ringo Starr was a red vinyl re-issue of his 14th studio album, Choose Love from 2005. This had first been slated for Record Store Day Black Friday, but was quietly removed from official lists prior to the day. It’s popped up again on the Friday Music site, this time with a late January 2026 release date (though knowing Friday Music that is extremely likely to change):

Then came news of the John Lennon and Yoko Ono ‘War Is Over (If You Want It)’ 12″ Zoetrope pressing issued to coincide with the release of the children’s hardback book and the premiere of the short animated film of the same name on YouTube.

Then Dark Horse Records announced it would be issuing a further title from the Yusuf/Cat Stevens back catalogue that the label now has the rights to. It’s called Tell ‘Em I’m Gone and it will be on yellow vinyl:

So, each of these were duly added into a revised graphic and we were just about to re-publish when last Friday came news of yet another collectable, this time linked to the Beatles’ Anthology re-issue – and in particular Anthology 4. On it are the 2025 re-mixes of ‘Free As A Bird’ and ‘Real Love’ and they are now being released as a limited edition, double A-side 7″ translucent milk white vinyl single. This is the 2025 mix of both songs.

There’s been no indication of a CD version of the single being made available (except for Japan where there’s been an exclusive Japan-only CD announced). Nor has there been any talk of updated versions of the ‘Free As A Bird’ and ‘Real Love’ EPs (or “maxi-singles”) which were originally released to accompany Volumes 1 and 2 of Anthology back in 1995 and 1996. That means all of the extra tracks on those EPs will remain unavailable, with the exception of the song ‘This Boy’, which has been added to the Anthology Volume 4 discs.

The ‘Free As A Bird’ (2025 Mix)/’Real Love’ (2025 Mix) 7″ coloured vinyl single is only available from Beatles official stores (e.g. in the UK or the US), or from certain Universal Music online stores (eg. this one in Germany).

So, it has been a most busy time for any Beatle collector who is a completist. There’s been so much product so fast it’s been difficult to keep up.

To help, here’s our updated visual. If you want everything, this is what you’ll need to order. There are no fewer that 51 items here! This has got to be unprecedented in the run-up to Christmas:

(Click on the graphic to see a larger version)

New Lennon/Plastic Ono Band Zoetrope, and More Dark Horse

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There’s been a further development in the green vinyl ‘Happy Xmas (War Is Over)’ 7″ single release announced a few weeks back…..

It all seems timed to coincide with the release of a new children’s book, which in turn is adapted from the Academy Award winning animated short film of the same name that Sean Ono Lennon was involved in…….

Anyways, on the official John Lennon store site they’ve just announced a very special 12″ Zoetrope disc featuring the songs ‘Happy Xmas (War Is Over) (Ultimate Mix)’ and ‘Listen, The Snow Is Falling (Ultimate Mix)’ on side one, and on side two ‘War Pigeon/A Game Of Chess/A Sudden Interruption/Then Peace’, from the soundtrack to the War Is Over! animated film, composed by Thomas Newman (who has done everything from The Shawshank Redemption to Finding Nemo, two Bond films Skyfall and Spectre, to 1917 and Elemental). Suffice it to say he is up there with the best! This is the first time soundtrack music from War Is Over! has been available on a physical format.

The 12” Zoetrope picture disc is designed by Drew Tetz using still frames from the film, and features (on the front outer title sticker) an illustration by Max Narciso from the children’s book adaptation.

The disc is 180g and cut at 45rpm, and comes in a PVC clear sleeve with a title sticker featuring the credits.

It looks very cool and is set to become a definite collectors item.

Meanwhile, the team at Dark Horse Records has announced yet another pre-Christmas release. This is in addition to the three titles announced for Black Friday Record Store Day.

It’s another Yusuf/Cat Stevens back-catalogue title Tell ‘Em I’m Gone, and it will be on yellow vinyl:

The album was produced by Rick Rubin and sees Yusuf exploring some of his bluesier influences, tapping into musical traditions that have informed his own work. Fans of Cat Stevens will know that Leadbelly has always been one of his favourite artists and alongside the album’s original compositions Tell ‘Em I’m Gone contains covers of songs dear to him such as Edgar Winter’s ‘Dying To Live’, Luther Dixon/Al Smith’s ‘Big Boss Man’, and a bluesy reworking of the Jimmie Davies/Charles Mitchell song ‘You Are My Sunshine’. Interesting stuff. The album is available for pre-sale now and is released on December 5.


If You Want To Keep Up, Here’s Everything You’ll Need to Order

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It’s been a busy time over the last few weeks and months for Beatle collectors.

There’s been so much product announced it’s hard to keep on top of it.

So, we decided to made a visual representation for you, the avid completist, so that you can keep track.

If you want everything, THIS is what you’ll need to order:

Screenshot

(Click on the image to see a larger version)

Have we forgotten anything?

FYI, the Ringo Starr Choose Love LP announced for Record Store Day Black Friday 2025 seems to have quietly slipped off the list again, so we have not included it here.

National Album Day 2025, Plus More Harrison/Dark Horse

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Apple has announced it will re-issue Badfinger’s Magic Christian Music on a striking blue vinyl as part of National Album Day in the UK.

You might recall last year the theme was ‘Great British Groups’ and The Beatles A Hard Day’s Night was issued on white vinyl to celebrate.

Well, this year the theme is ‘Rock’:

Magic Christian Music is the second album released by Welsh rock band, Badfinger. They recorded 5 albums for Apple Records, and were the first non-Beatle recording artists signed to the label.

This release will be the first time the 2010 remasters of Magic Christian Music are available on vinyl, and the first time the album has been re-pressed since 1996.

Magic Christian Music includes the band’s first international hit, ‘Come And Get It’, written and produced for them by Paul McCartney. Of the fourteen tracks, seven were newly recorded for the album while the remaining songs were lifted from their first album Maybe Tomorrow, which had seen only a limited release. Three of the new tracks were featured in the film The Magic Christian (starring Peter Sellers and Ringo Starr). They were produced by Paul, and the strings on ‘Carry On Till Tomorrow’ were arranged and conducted by George Martin. SIx tracks were produced by Tony Visconti and five by Mal Evans.

This 180g blue vinyl version, out on October 18, is housed in a single sleeve featuring the original artwork, with poly-lined white inner sleeves.

In other Beatle-related release news, the push by BMG to get more George Harrison/Dark Horse Records titles officially onto their catalogue continues. On October 24 they will release the next batch including the self-titled George Harrison (from early 1979) on both vinyl and CD:

The CD has one bonus track, ‘Here Comes The Moon (Demo)’:

Then in June 1981 came Somewhere In England. It too gets a vinyl and CD re-issue on Dark Horse:

The CD is interesting. It comes in the original album concept artwork and has one bonus track, a demo of ‘Save The World’:

And then comes 1982’s Gone Troppo:

The Gone Troppo CD also comes with a single bonus track, the demo version of ‘Mystical One’:

Also due for an October 24 release are CD versions of Brainwashed; Cloud Nine; and Thirty Three and 1/3. Each of these has already seen a vinyl release under the BMG distribution deal. This just makes a CD version available to collectors:

All CD’s are in Digipak packaging. You can get all the details on all these releases, and place pre-orders, at the Official George Harrison Store.

Interestingly, also listed there (for an October 3 release) is a 3LP set of All Things Must Pass. This too is to bring that classic title in under the BMG/Dark Horse Records banner as a vinyl issue (there’s already been a CD released).

The question is, will it come out with Dark Horse Records labels, or will it be on the traditional orange Apple and Apple Jam labels? The pack shot has a prominent Dark Horse hype sticker (click on the image to see a larger version):

This vinyl is the 50th anniversary mix by Paul Hicks and the set includes the original poster – but with the back of the poster containing notes by Dhani Harrison and Hicks about remixing the album.

I guess we’ll just have to wait and see if the LPs have the Dark Horse label. For some reason our money is on Apple labels……look very closely at that hype sticker and you’ll see in the small print the words “Apple and the Apple logo are exclusively licensed to Apple Corps Ltd and used with permission.” So maybe it won’t have Dark Horse labels after all….

Another Day, Another Wings Compilation….

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Announced yesterday out of the blue a new Wings “best of” compilation to accompany the forthcoming book, Wings – The Story of a Band on the Run (and possibly the new documentary film, Man On The Run):

WINGS – The Definitive Collection will contain purely Wings songs (in other words no Paul McCartney solo, or Paul and Linda McCartney releases) and it will come in the shape of a 3LP set, a 2CD set, a 1CD, and there’ll be a separate, exclusive Blu-Ray Audio Disc with Atmos mixes for the first time.

This 3LP set will also be offered as a McCartney Official Store limited edition coloured vinyl exclusive:

If you don’t want to pay US$20.00 for a lithograph and a sticker sheet then you can get a standard 3LP set without the trinkets:

And there’s a single LP on black vinyl containing 12 tracks in all:

The first “exclusive”, “limited edition” coloured vinyl release of the 1LP has been announced. It’ll be available on green vinyl through Target stores in the U.S., in FNAC stores in France, also from jpc in Germany and Austria, and at JB Hi Fi in Australia. In other words, it looks like one retailer per territory will get the “exclusive”. Will this be the first of many colour and cover art variations like we saw with McCartney III?

If CD is more your thing then the 2CD set has all the tracks from the 3LP sets, including the poster:

While the 1CD replicates the 1LP track running order:

The McCartney Store and the SuperDeluxeEdition site are offering an exclusive Blu-ray Audio disc which is likely to be the format that most excites McCartney fans. As site owner Paul Sinclair writes, “For the first time, tracks are available in Dolby Atmos on a physical product. The mixes are by Giles Martin and Steve Orchard. 14 of them have been available in recent times on streaming, but 17 of them are unheard in this format, including tracks from un-reissued latter albums, such as ‘With A Little Luck’, ‘London Town’ and ‘I’ve Had Enough’ (from 1978’s London Town) and ‘Getting Closer’ and ‘Arrow Through Me’ (from 1979’s Back to the Egg). 7 out of the 10 tracks from the US version of Band on the Run also feature on this compilation.

Blu-ray Audio audio streams summary:

  • Dolby Atmos Mix (48/24)
  • 5.1 Surround Mix (48/24)
  • Hi-Res Stereo Mixes (96/24)

This blu-ray audio contains 32 tracks and is presented as a ‘softpack’ with a 16-page booklet:

The  WINGS – The Definitive Collection packaging has been designed by Paul and Aubrey ‘Po’ Powell of the famous Hipgnosis design studio. The two have worked together extensively in the past, not only on album artwork but also the art direction for McCartney tours. The first thing that hit us though was that front cover with the word WINGS populated with a photo montage of the band, and the inner sleeve replicating that was a little bit derivative. Some other band from the past used a very similar idea way back when…..

For the full news story and background on this release see the official Paul McCartney page.

WINGS – The Definitive Collection is out on November 7.

New Details Emerge for McCartney’s “High In The Clouds”

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The entertainment bible Variety is reporting that at last there is definite movement on Paul McCartney’s on-again, off-again animated children’s feature film, High In The Clouds.

The magazine says that “Celine Dion, Himesh Patel and Hannah Waddingham will lead the voice cast of High in the Clouds….which [production company] Gaumont (“Ballerina”) is producing and repping internationally.”

“Inspired by the children’s adventure book by Paul McCartney, Geoff Dunbar and Philip Ardagh, High in the Clouds will also bring together Idris Elba, Lionel Richie, Ringo Starr, Jimmy Fallon, Clémence Poésy, Pom Klementieff and Alain Chabat.”

There’ll also be six original songs by McCartney in the film, which – back in 2023 – was budgeted at €28 million (US$31.7 million). It’ll be directed by Toby Genkel (The Amazing Maurice), and will have a screenplay by Jon Croker (Paddington 2), with Patrick Hanenberger (The Croods, Lego Movie 2) as production designer. Paul McCartney will also voice one of the main characters.

And here’s the exciting bit. Oscar winner Michael Giacchino (Ratatouille, Up, Inside Out, Coco) will score the feature with the original soundtrack set to be released by Universal Music Group. So, we’ll be getting at least six new Paul McCartney songs.

The cast and the characters they voice are:

Himesh Patel (Yesterday) as the main character, Wirral
Céline Dion (Academy Award winner for Best Song) as Sugartail
Hannah Waddingham (Ted Lasso) as Gretsch
Paul McCartney as McKenzie
Idris Elba (Luther) as Barrel
Lionel Richie as Gladstone
Ringo Starr as Roy
Jimmy Fallon (The Tonight Show) as Froggo
Clémence Poésy (Harry Potter) as Doris
Pom Klementieff (Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning) as Mina
Alain Chabat (Night at the Museum) as Bigsby

Two things to note:

You’ll notice on the official poster (above) it says “Coming 2027“, so we’ve still got a while to wait.

Secondly, if you’re wondering about someone who is missing in all this latest reporting on the film, you’re not wrong. When we said this has been an on-again, off-again project across a number of years we weren’t kidding.

Way back in 2015 there were prolific reports on social media showing Paul working with none other than Lady Gaga on one of the key songs for the film. This photo from Instagram dates back to February that year. So, High In The Clouds the movie has been on the boil at least 10 years now. In fact first reports of an animated film based on the book date back to 2013.

This doesn’t mean that Gaga’s contribution has been ditched. She’s just not in a speaking role. Maybe her song will be in the opening and closing credits? Here’s a happy-snap from the same 2015 recording session with Gaga, with Paul and all the musicians in the studio. You can also see Paul’s regular drummer Abe Laborial Jr. at his left shoulder.:

The original book from which the animated film springs goes back even further. It was first published by in 2005.

As is the way with these things ideas, concepts and themes morph. The synopsis of the book now looks distinctly different to that of the film.

Plot of the book (as per the 2005 book cover): “Forced to leave his woodland home, destroyed by the expansion plans of the evil Gretsch, Wirral the squirrel vows to find the fabled land of Animalia, where all the animals are said to live in freedom and without fear. Wirral’s personal quest turns into a full-blown plan to save enslaved animals everywhere.”

Plot of the film (as per the 202 Variety article): “Follows the journey of a headstrong teenage squirrel, Wirral, who lives in Gretschville, a city where music has been banned by a diva-owl, Gretsch, who wants to be the only singer in town. Determined to overthrow Gretsch and bring music back to his town, Wirral joins forces with an underground band of legendary musicians who hide high in the clouds, in a secret place called Harmonia.”

Quite different, don’t you think?

Still, this promises to be a fun watch with a special soundtrack album as an added bonus.

George Harrison: A Gardener’s Life

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Well, here’s something a bit different.

We know that George Harrison was a very keen gardener. There was a beautiful article at the end of 2023 in Country Life magazine on some of the work he did to bring the gardens of his country estate, Friar Park, back to life and the fantastic legacy he left there as those gardens continue to thrive today. With the help of his wife Olivia Harrison, George revitalized the neglected property, which consisted of the mansion, lodges, and 32 acres of grounds.

Now comes a stunning tribute to George the gardener in the form of a major exhibition – and it is in Florida of all places.

The Marie Selby Botanical Gardens in Sarasota, Florida have on display now a unique and impressive exhibition exploring the connection between George Harrison and his much-loved hobby.

George Harrison: A Gardener’s Life is on view through to June 29, 2025, and it’s already broken all attendance records for any previous special exhibition at the Gardens.

Selby Gardens has re-imagined some of the Friar Park gardens through horticultural vignettes across its 15-acre Downtown Sarasota campus, including original garden designs by the man who originally built Friar Park, SIr Frank Crisp, and more recent gardens planted by George and Olivia. Highlights include a topiary and sundial garden; an alpine rock garden complete with a scale model of the Matterhorn; a knot garden in the shape of a kolam (a geometrical Indian line drawing); a knot garden design that plays on the treble clef; and a hedge maze.

The Tropical Conservatory features stunning displays of plants. One incorporates Barry Feinstein’s iconic photo of Harrison from the album cover for All Things Must Pass; a sculptural garden combines water, weeping plants, and electric guitars – a nod to his Beatle hit While My Guitar Gently Weeps; and a palm garden references the cover design of his solo album Living in the Material World. A selection of George’s music plays throughout the Conservatory.

The Museum of Botany and the Arts at the Gardens features a dynamic collection of photographs and videos of George and his crews working on the estate grounds, plus maps and photographic references to Crisp’s original designs, and personal memorabilia.

The exhibition has also attracted the attention and support of The Beatles official Facebook page, and the George Harrison website.

To see a spectacular short “walk through” video of the exhibition, just click on the image below:

Huge Number of Dark Horse Titles on the Way

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We knew that Record Store Day this year will have three Dark Horse titles available for collectors of this Beatle-related sub-brand, but did you know that Dark Horse Records is planning a further big push in late April and early May?

RSD will have:

George Harrison and Beck with ‘Be Here Now’:

This is Record Store Day’s “Song of the Year” and it will be on a 12″ single with George’s original version on one side, and Beck’s cover version on the other.

There’ll also be the next installment of George Harrison back-catalogue titles appearing as Zoetrope picture discs. This time its the turn of All Things Must Pass, so it is a 3 LP set in an individually numbered sleeve. It’s catalogue number is DH0037Z:

And for RSD in the UK comes another Cat Stevens back-catalogue item, Back To Earth (DH0027). Like the Cat Stevens releases the label put out for RSD last year, this one will also come in a special lenticular album sleeve:

Then, once we get RSD 2025 out of the way, on April 25 comes a brand new Billy Idol title, Dream Into It. This is his first new, full-length album of original material in over a decade. It will be available on black vinyl, as a limited edition purple vinyl, and on CD:

There’s also limited edition signed copies to be had:

The Idol release will be followed on May 9 with no less than 9 re-issues from Dark Horse that officially bring even more of the George Harrison back-catalogue under the Dark Horse/BMG umbrella. These include All Things Must Pass – 50th Anniversary mix as a 2CD set with Dark Horse and BMG on the label for the first time (instead of Capitol and Universal Music). It will be given the Dark Horse catalogue number DH0037:

All Things Must Pass will be joined by George’s 1974 title, Dark Horse on black vinyl and on CD, with the catalogue number DH0038:

There’s also Extra Texture (with the catalogue number DH0039) on black vinyl and on CD:

And Thirty Three & 1/3 (catalogue number DH0040) – but only on black vinyl at the moment for some reason:

Also on May 9 to bring Harrison more firmly under the BMG banner will be a CD re-issue of his Wonderwall Music (with the catalogue number DH0033). This joins the Zoetrope vinyl with the same catalogue number from Record Store Day last year:

Likewise, Electronic Sound gets the same CD treatment – joining its Zoetrope vinyl partner in carrying the catalogue number DH0034:

And lastly, one further May 9 release. It is Harrison’s Early Takes Volume 1 on CD (catalogue number DH0047). It joins the black vinyl that was issued last year also under the Dark Horse/BMG label:

As if that isn’t enough, on May 16 comes two long-rumoured but also long delayed Jon Lord Dark Horse titles, re-issues of his albums Gemini Suite and Windows. Gemini Suite will be on a spectacular splatter vinyl (with the catalogue number DH0023):

While Windows comes on a cool orange vinyl:

So, collectors who like to keep up with everything Dark Horse is doing alongside their Beatle collecting are going to need deep pockets over the next two months.