We’re guessing that many of you had Paul MCCartney’s The Lyrics book under the Christmas tree this year.
Not so many though would have been unwrapping the Limited Edition.
That’s the one actually signed by Sir Paul, and there have reportedly been just 175 copies made available worldwide. However, that most likely means 175 for the US market, and 175 for the UK.
Either way, it’s the one that comes in a unique and quite distinctive bright orange box with blue lettering. The design inside is different to the standard as well – as one lucky reader in New Zealand has just shared with us when he received his unique boxed set.
His name is Simon and somehow he managed to get a copy of the Limited Edition sent to him from a UK book store. It is number 105/175. Simon’s done this unboxing video for us of him opening his treasure:
In something of a change of pace, the Super Deluxe Edition site has recently been looking back at a couple of classic box set releases from the past.
Their latest unboxing-style video features the very rare Paul McCartney (a.k.a. The Fireman) box which is based around the 2008 release, Electric Arguments.
This was McCartney’s third album with musician/producer Youth, and as Paul Sinclair from SDE says, “… [it] broke the mould inasmuch as unlike the previous two albums, it was openly promoted by the record label as being the work of the ex-Beatle. A limited box set edition was available only via McCartney’s website and arrived six months late, in July 2009.”
If you’d like some more detail on this one, check out our comprehensive article on all the releases associated with the Electric Arguments project, including the CD singles, promo CD’s, the single CD editions, vinyl, and spme more of the background to this very limited box set. For the real completists out there see also this post.
Paul Sinclair from Super Deluxe Edition has also revisited the wonderful 2009 Beatles in Mono box set too:
The Beatlesofficial site has announced that a limited edition ‘Yellow Submarine’ 7″ vinyl picture disc single is to be released on July 6: This will mark 50 years since the Yellow Submarine animated film hit movie screens around the world:
Of course this isn’t the first time we’ve seen an officially released ‘Yellow Submarine’ 7″ picture disc. As part of its 20th anniversary celebrations for each British Beatle single, EMI issued a series of picture discs. This one came out in 1986 – marking 20 years since the band’s 13th single ‘Yellow Submarine’/’Eleanor Rigby’ was issued in August, 1966:
The new 7″ vinyl picture disc will come in a coloured die-cut sleeve and will be released on Friday, 6 July. A high-resolution, 4K restoration of the Yellow Submarine film will open at selected movie theatres in the UK, Ireland and the US in the following days. Tickets are here.
In the lead-up to Record Store Day 2017 (which falls on 22 April), Paul McCartney has just announced he’ll issue a limited edition, three-song cassette that will be distributed to some participating stores. The cassette will contain three of the “download only” demos he made for the album with Elvis Costello that will form part of his forthcoming Flowers In The Dirt box set deluxe edition. Here’s the official press release:
PAUL McCARTNEY
FLOWERS IN THE DIRT — THE CASSETTE DEMOS WITH ELVIS COSTELLO
RECORD STORE DAY EXCLUSIVE 3-TRACK CASSETTE-ONLY RELEASE
With the Flowers In The Dirt Archive Collection edition’s March 24th release date via MPL/Capitol/UMe fast approaching, Paul McCartney has confirmed a very special Record Store Day exclusive.
To commemorate Record Store Day this April 22nd, a limited edition three-song cassette of Paul and Elvis Costello’s Flowers In The Dirt demos will be made available at participating RSD stores.
The limited edition cassette-only release will be the first time these recordings – ‘I Don’t Want To Confess’, ‘Shallow Grave’ and ‘Mistress And Maid’- will be made available in the same form as when Paul and Elvis first cut them directly to tape.
Speaking about these tracks Paul said: “The demos are red hot off the skillet and that’s why we wanted to include them on this boxed set. What’s great about these songs is that they’ve just been written. So there’s nothing more hot off the skillet as I say. So that was the kind of great instant thing about them. I hadn’t listened to them in ages but when I did I knew we had to put them out. We made a little tape of them and sent them to Elvis, who loved them too. We said we should put out an EP or something and now the moment’s finally arrived.”
The demos will be made available digitally only as part of the Deluxe Edition when Flowers In The Dirt is released as the 10th installment in the multiple-GRAMMY-winning Paul McCartney Archive Collection.
The Paul McCartney Archive Collection release of Flowers In The Dirt was, as always, personally curated and overseen by Paul himself. (ENDS)
As Paul Sinclair says on his influential Super Deluxe Edition website “…it is ironic that they are coming out on tape when they were denied a release on CD partly because Paul wants to stay ‘modern’ and embrace/drive people to streaming!”
You can read his report on the cassette here, and the saga of the “download only” decision here.
US microphone manufacturer Shure has joined forces with Paul McCartney to produce a limited edition run of 300 numbered and custom-painted 50th Anniversary SM58 microphones.
The SM58 is a legendary workhorse. If you’ve seen a vocalist live on stage any time over the last 50 years, chances are they were singing into an SM58.
As part of the anniversary celebrations, Shure has produced a limited run of 300 mics that feature a photo portrait of Paul taken by his daughter, Mary McCartney. The image was used originally for the front cover and other associated releases associated with his 2012 project, Kisses on the Bottom.
The rare microphones are being made available for sale and auction – with all proceeds donated to the McCartney family charity, Meat Free Monday. Launched by Paul, Mary and Stella McCartney in 2009, Meat Free Monday is a not-for-profit campaign which aims to raise awareness of the detrimental environmental impact of eating meat, and to encourage people to help slow climate change, preserve precious natural resources and improve their health by having at least one meat free day each week.
Each of the SM58 microphones is numbered at its base as a limited edition:Numbers 300 to 011 went on sale on March 1. These are at a set Ebay “Buy It Now” price of US$350.00.
The last ten microphones, 010 to 001, feature McCartney’s signature as well as the image and these will be available by auction only, starting from March 13 and ending on March 23.
When we were in the United States a while back we managed to pick up a nice copy of the standard edition of McCartney’sWingspan – Hits and History two-CDretrospective compilation from 2001.
It was originally issued in a jewel case with an outer cardboard slipcase with a holographic front cover. Getting copies of this in good condition is difficult because the slipcase is often missing or damaged.
Then I learned that there was also a Limited Edition version of Wingspan – Hits and History released as well. It has the same two discs and running order of songs, but is packaged in a hard-back book that fits inside a similar but slightly larger outer slipcase, also with the hologram “hands” image on the front.
Well, we’ve finally secured a copy of the book version on eBay for a very reasonable price: The book inside looks like this:
The CDs sit in two clear plastic holders inside the front and rear covers:
It’s the same 22-page booklet inside. However, it is produced specifically for this set as it’s in a larger format to the standard CD booklet:
The standard CD set in the UK has the barcode number 7243 5 32876 2 7, while this limited edition set was made in the USA and has the catalogue number 7243 5 32943 2 8. It caries the Capitol and MPL logos on the cover and on the CDs.
This set also had this sticker on the outside (which the previous owner very kindly kept and placed inside the book):
Just by way of comparison, here’s the size difference between the standard and limited edition versions:
Friday Music and Sony have just re-issued a special, limited edition, green translucent vinyl pressing of the 1992 Ringo Starr release, Time Takes Time:
This edition comes in a gatefold sleeve. (And BTW for the absolute completists out there, there’s also a red vinyl pressing exclusive to the Collectors’ Choice Vinyl store!)
We also took the opportunity to grab a copy of his most recent release on vinyl as well. Postcards From Paradise was released last year. We already had it on CD…..but it’s nice to now have it in the collection on LP too:
The 18 inch x 24 inch screen print Poster For George (based on a photograph taken by Astrid Kirchherr) is offered in two editions, Red and Silver.
Both editions are limited to 400 signed and numbered copies. Each cost US$65.00.
The Red edition was available only from the Obey Giant web store on October 23 at a random time between 10am and 12pm PST. It looks to be sold out already.
The Silver edition is released today – October 24 – at the George Harrison web store at 10am PST / 6PM BST. There is a limit of one poster per customer.
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