Tag Archives: Music

Australian “Yesterday” Beatles EP

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A trip to the south coast of New South Wales in Australia has turned up quite a nice copy of the Beatles EP “Yesterday”.

It was discovered in an antiques, books and records store in a little country town called Kangaroo Valley,  proof that its always worth checking out these sorts of shops when you find them. (This is the same place I found my copy of “The Beatles Forever” book).

Good copies of the “Yesterday” EP are quite difficult to find in good condition as the cover is an image that is mostly black – except for the faces of the Fab Four. This means that it’s prone to the deadly “ring wear”, where the 45 rpm disc inside rubs against the outside when it is stacked or stored with other records creating a white “ring” in the centre of the image.

As you can see above this particular copy is in pretty good condition with very little, if any, ring wear on the front cover. This is the Australian release – and dates from between 1966-1968, although these EP’s where released right up to 1979 (thanks to Jaesen Jones and his very informative book “An Overview of Australian Beatles Records” – which has only just been released this year).

You can tell it’s age because the cover has the older-style fold over tabbed or “flipback” sleeve construction (you can see this in the image of the rear cover below). Later editions went to the concealed tabs:

The other indicator of this little record’s age is the style of the Parlophone/EMI logo (seen above on the rear sleeve) and of the record label (below), which indicates again it was released sometime between 1966 and 1968. The serial number for this disc is GEPO 70026.

All-in-all a nice copy of a quite old, four song Beatles Extended Play.

For more on Beatles EP’s see this Japanese box set.

Thinking About Abbey Road Studios at 80

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I stumbled today upon an article on (of all places) the computer/gadget specialist site CNet. It is about the famed EMI Abbey Road studios in St. John’s Wood, London – the site of so much fantastic recorded music including just about all the songs recorded, in one way or another, by the Beatles. The studios have just turned 80 years old and it got me thinking about what an important role this particular pile of bricks and mortar on a nondescript street has played in the history of popular and classical music – not the least of which is the music of the the Beatles.

If George Martin is often referred to as “the fifth Beatle” then surely Abbey Road could be regarded as one of the instruments they played – with as much importance to the Beatles sound as the Gibson acoustics, the Gretsch and Epiphone electrics, the Ludwig drums, and the famous Hofner bass.

The CNet article has some very interesting observations made during a recent tour of the famous building and it’s numerous rooms – so many of which are associated with Beatles tracks. You have got to scroll through the thirty photographs taken during CNet’s visit. Its a terrific tour with some great shots for both Beatles fans and technical nerds alike.

The studio itself has a website which is worth a visit every now and again to catch up on their news – one of the latest of which is the remastering of the Beatles “Anthology” series for digital download.

So much happened at this one address – including the Beatles themselves honoring their home-away-from-home with an album bearing the studio’s name.

Abbey Road photo session - August 8, 1969

Then there was the heritage listing for that famous zebra crossing out the front….and the zebra crossing web cam, now complete with live street sounds. Its no longer in exactly the same spot as the photo on the front of the “Abbey Road” album having been moved down the road a bit from the studios – but countless fans still come each day, month, and year to be photographed striding across it.

Happy 80th birthday Abbey Road Studios. Here’s to 80 more years.

The Beatles With Records

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Despite selling multi, multi-millions of the things, it’s kind of strange that you hardly ever see photographs of the Beatles themselves with, or listening to, records.

Here are a couple I’ve found:

A very early shot of John using an old record player

A much later shot of John listening intently to a range of singles

There is of course the well known launch of “Sgt Pepper”, when lots of photographs were taken inside Brian Epstein’s house with the four holding copies of their latest masterpiece:

A colour shot of the Sgt Pepper launch

The gatefold photograph displayed with pride

Did Linda Eastman (later McCartney) take any of these? She was there….

Given their fame the Beatles would have found it difficult to get out to shop for music like you and me – and this photo clearly shows John and Paul opening a box of LP’s that have been purchased for them. And don’t they look pleased to have some new titles to listen to?

A new box of albums

You can clearly see “The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan”, and underneath that Ben E. King’s “Don’t Play that Song!” LP:

If you have any other photographs of the Beatles actually listening to, or with singles or LPs, send them to:  beatlesblogger@gmail.com

You can see the other parts in “The Beatles with Records” series here:  Parts 2, 3, 4, 5 , 6, 7 , 8, 9 , 10 , 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17.

Concert for Bangladesh at 40

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The official Beatles site, the George Harrison site, the iTunes Store, and a special site created just for the purpose all have it: that the 40th anniversary of the staging of “The Concert for Bangladesh”, and the subsequent release of the film and the records of the same name, will be suitably celebrated – only this time monies raised will go to UNICEF to assist those facing the 2011 disaster of famine in the Horn of Africa.

Forty years after the historic concert, which in 1971 raised so much to help the starving in Bangladesh, comes the first digital download of the music. The Beatles site carries this press release:

To celebrate the anniversary and honor Harrison’s legacy of giving back, the U.S. Fund for UNICEF today announces a special ‘Month of Giving’ donation campaign in August for the George Harrison Fund for UNICEF, helping to provide emergency relief for children in famine and drought-stricken regions in the Horn of Africa. All after-tax proceeds from sales of The Concert for Bangladesh album on iTunes will directly benefit the George Harrison Fund for UNICEF. iTunes, Apple Records Inc., and all artists, songwriters and publishers associated with the concert will keep no income from each sale and have waived all fees.

The iTunes release of The Concert for Bangladesh album includes Harrison’s “Bangla Desh” studio single, originally released July 5, 1971, as an exclusive bonus track. A 5-minute video trailer for the album and a 49-minute radio program about The Concert for Bangladesh are also now available as free streams on iTunes.

In a worldwide, 72-hour online event, The Concert for Bangladesh feature film will be available for free streaming in its entirety from Saturday, July 30 through Monday, August 1 on iTunes.com/thebeatles, GeorgeHarrison.com and TheConcertForBangladesh.com.

When George Harrison was asked in 1971 why he chose to focus his time and talents on The Concert for Bangladesh, he replied, “Because I was asked by a friend if I would help, that’s all.” Monday, August 1 marks 40 years since Harrison and his friend Ravi Shankar, along with several other top music stars, including Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr, Leon Russell, and Billy Preston, shared the stage at Madison Square Garden for two history-making concerts to alert the world to the plight of the Bangladeshi people, victims of simultaneous floods, famine and civil war.

The groundbreaking Concert for Bangladesh and its award-winning double album and feature film releases have since inspired other major, entertainment-led charitable initiatives, including Bob Geldof’s LIVE AID and LIVE8, Willie Nelson’s Farm Aid, and Hope For Haiti Now.

During the George Harrison Fund for UNICEF’s Month of Giving in August, all donations to the Fund will benefit UNICEF’s life-saving programs for children in the Horn of Africa. To jump start this fundraising initiative, the George Harrison Fund for UNICEF is immediately releasing $1 million to UNICEF for emergency efforts in the Horn of Africa.

The Horn of Africa is facing what is being called the worst drought in 60 years, and famine has been declared by the United Nations in two regions of southern Somalia. More than 2 million children are acutely malnourished, including half a million children who are at imminent risk of death if they do not receive immediate lifesaving assistance.

“Forty years ago this August, the friendship between George Harrison and Ravi Shankar forever changed music and the lives of countless Bangladeshi children. Today millions of children in the Horn of Africa desperately need our help. We are humbled by the outpouring of support from the music community led by Olivia Harrison, Apple Records and our friends at iTunes,” said President and CEO of the U.S. Fund for UNICEF Caryl Stern.

Says Ravi Shankar, “I’m so moved that this concert, which emerged from my close friendship with George, is regarded as historically significant 40 years on and continues to inspire musicians of all generations.”

A brief video message with information about how to help is available for streaming on georgeharrisonfundforunicef.org and on iTunes. In the U.S., supporters can text FRIEND to UNICEF (864233) to give $10 to the George Harrison Fund for UNICEF (messaging and data rates apply), or visit TheConcertForBangladesh.com to donate and learn more.

Go there. See what you can do to help.

See also this unusual LP copy of “The Concert for Bangladesh”.

The Beatles Forever

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Nicholas Schaffner wrote this book in 1977, and I gather from what I’m reading on the web that it was, in it’s time, something of a Beatles “bible” for readers back then. So far this book has eluded me – so its good to have an original paperback copy now in the collection.

“The Beatles Forever” has subsequently been reprinted numerous times and the current cover looks like this. But the copy I found last weekend in an old-wares/antiques/records and second-hand book shop has the original cover above. This is a paperback copy.

It is genuinely one of the first really comprehensive survey’s of the band’s output in terms of their record releases, rarities and memorabilia – all accompanied by fairly detailed text describing the history of the Beatles and giving the context in which records were released and the collectable nature of a wide range of Beatles items. There are extensive photographs of the band as well as photos of albums, singles and memorabilia – but all in black and white. I won’t go into a detailed analysis of the contents because this has already been done by a range of writers who have reviewed and critiqued “The Beatles Forever”. Probably the most comprehensive is by Donald Sauter – who has written extensively on his Beatles collection and reminiscences from his youth. His article also contains a small selection of the many photos from the book. There is another interesting page on the book here.

Its a handy reference book to have in the collection – even though it came out more than 30 years ago. It still has lots of information and insights.

McCartney and McCartney II Finally Arrive

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I’ve been very patiently awaiting the arrival (from Amazon in the US) of my copies of “McCartney” and “McCartney II“.

I’d ordered the Deluxe hard back book versions of both titles, along with the 2 LP set (got to have the vinyl!), and the Special Edition CD packs as well. (I had already purchased locally the single CD versions which are only being released in certain markets).

These were all ordered online on May 24th. They were officially released on June 14th, and then had to make the LONG journey via the postal service down under to Australia. I didn’t receive them until last week – on July 12th. That’s almost a two month wait….

As they they were very heavy, I got a notification in the mailbox that had to collect them from the local Post Office. I’ve got to admit when I saw the box my heart sank. As you can see below it was pretty bashed around. On that two month journey it had clearly been thrown around and had frequently been at the bottom of piles of other packages. Postal workers obviously don’t have much regard for “Fragile” and “Handle With Care” stickers. I was particularly  worried about the two LP sets in there. They are the most fragile. Could they have survived intact?

With great trepidation I opened up the box, expecting the worst. Inside there was just a minimal amount of padding:

Thank goodness Amazon had individually sealed the LPs in their own special LP mailers and this really helped. There were two of them, essentially sitting in their own protection at the bottom of the box. The strong cardboard mailers had done a great job of protecting the most fragile of the contents. Thanks Amazon!

These sealed cardboard mailers are great and had clearly been individually pre-packed in bulk by Amazon for the McCartney re-issues. They both had special stickers with the contents on the outside:

All the other precious contents had miraculously survived too:

I actually think that the heat shrinking Amazon uses also plays a big part in protecting CD’s and LPs – especially when they’re being thrown around in transit. The two limited edition Deluxe hardback book versions are sealed and have a sheet inside the shrink wrap detailing the contents:

So, I now have a complete set of the new McCartney releases. Safely, but only just, delivered half way around the world.

McCartney and McCartney II – Single CD Release

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Seems that only certain markets are getting the Standard edition, single-CD releases of “McCartney” and “McCartney II”. Newly remastered versions were released on June 14.

I’ve looked on a number of online store sites in the USA (Amazon, CD Universe and Best Buy) and there is no mention of a standard, single disc version of either disc being available for sale there. You can only get the Special and Deluxe versions on CD, and of course on good old vinyl in a 2 LP set.

Nor is there mention of a single-CD Standard version on the McCartney site itself. You can buy whats called the Standard version (i.e. just the original remastered album on its own), but it’s only offered as a digital download and not as a physical CD.

However, I notice on the HMV online store in the UK there are single CD versions available of both “McCartney” and “McCartney II“. Its these versions – marked “Printed in the EU” – which are available here in Australia. Here are the covers for the EU Standard editions (still sealed, front and rear) of each disc:

As you can see, I grabbed a couple of copies of these. I’m still awaiting my copies of the Deluxe and Special multi-disc versions, plus of course the 2 LP vinyl.

The Beatles Collection – 25 Singles

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We recently came into possession of a UK pressing of the Beatles box set called “The Beatles Collection”, their twenty-five British singles at the time, released by World Records and EMI in 1978. The singles are all encased in a black, textured cardboard box:

It was compiled and sold by World Records, EMI’s mail order division. It was never commercially released to stores – the only way you could get it was through ordering it via World Records.

The earlier titles are pressed on the EMI/Parlophone label while the later discs are on the Apple Records label.

Each single is in a picture sleeve – which are all green on one side but have a Beatles picture on the other. There aren’t different pictures for each and every single, but four main pictures are used multiple times, relating to the Beatles era in which the single comes from:

There are however different photographs used for the three additional discs in this set: one for “Back in the USSR/Twist and Shout”, one for “Yesterday/  Have Known Better”, and the “Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band/With a Little Help From My Friends/A Day in the Life” getting its own, unique picture sleeve:

Also included is a four-page booklet detailing the history of the group:

There’s also an additional, one sided sheet stating that the set now includes the addition of the “Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band” disc, indicating that previous boxes came without this particular record:

The “Beatles Singles Collection” (UK – 1978 – World Records/EMI, 25 Original 45 RPM Records box set) comprises all the Beatles singles 1962-1978:

1. Love Me Do / P.S. I Love You (Parlophone/October 5, 1962)
2. Please Please Me / Ask Me Why
3. From Me To You / Thank You Girl
4. She Loves You / I’ll Get You
5. I Want To Hold Your Hand / This Boy
6. Can’t Buy Me Love / You Can’t Do That
7. A Hard Day’s Night / Things We Said Today
8. I Feel Fine / She’s A Woman
9. Ticket To Ride / Yes It Is
10. Help / I’m Down
11. Day Tripper / We Can Work It Out
12. Paperback Writer / Rain
13. Eleanor Rigby / Yellow Submarine
14. Strawberry Fields Forever / Penny Lane
15. All You Need Is Love / Baby You’re A Rich Man
16. Hello Goodbye / I Am The Walrus
17. Lady Madonna / The Inner Light
18. Hey Jude /Revolution
19. Get Back / Don’t Let Me Down
20. The Ballad Of John And Yoko / Old Brown Shoe
21. Something / Come Together
22. Let It Be / You Know My Name (Look Up The Number)
23. Yesterday / I Should Have Known Better
24. Back In The USSR / Twist And Shout
25. Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band

Finally, you get a “World Records Guarantee” of quality:

Previously Unseen Beatles Photographs

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The fine art auctioneers Christie’s in New York will next month auction some pretty impressive and previously unseen Beatles photographs from 1964.

They come from a collection of photos of the group shot by photographer Mike Mitchell. At age 18 he was at the Washington Coliseum in Washington, D.C. for the Beatle’s first US concert, two days after their historic Ed Sullivan appearance.

Christie’s is calling the event “The Beatles Illuminated: The Discovered Works of Mike Mitchell“. Their website says it’s:

“….a sale comprised of nearly 50 lots of unpublished and never-before-seen photographs of the Beatles’ first hysteria-inducing visits to America in 1964. Shot in black and white by photographer Mike Mitchell when he was just 18 years old, the images have been filed away for nearly fifty years. The complete rediscovered collection is expected to realize in the region of $100,000.

Over eight thousand fans packed into the Washington Coliseum on February 11th, 1964 and they were treated to the Beatles at their very best. The Washington Coliseum was not only their first American concert but also by far the largest venue in which the Beatles had ever played. Its unique setup – it was often used for boxing matches – meant that the Beatles were surrounded on all sides by an adoring, cheering audience. The Beatles were clearly delighted and having a great time on stage, sharing all of the enthusiasm of the crowd. Here they were, performing in America, the land of their musical heroes and cultural icons, the home of Elvis and Chuck Berry – who’s “Roll Over Beethoven” was chosen by the Beatles to begin the show – and Little Richard, who’s “Long Tall Sally” was chosen to end it. The concert given at the Washington Coliseum was part of a defining moment in the Beatles’ career, and it remains both an important event and a notable place in their story. And Mike Mitchell was there to capture it.”

Yahoo has quite a nice photo gallery here. There’s an absolute ripper shot of Ringo in full flight and absolutley enjoying himself:

Paul McCartney On His Cloud Computing Archive

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This is a video (posted earlier this month on June 2) on Paul McCartney’s MPL Music Publishing site detailing further the big project announced last year that he would be digitising his entire, extensive personal archive. Its a little bit commercial in its plugs for the HP computer group who are working with the McCartney team, but its interesting and sounds like they are making good progress on what must be an enormous task.

They’ve posted two different versions of the clip – this one is a shorter version but has some different speakers and information: