BOOKS BY DOUG SULPY AND OTHER BEATLE BOOK AUTHORS THAT DEAL WITH ILLEGAL BEATLES AND UNRELEASED BEATLES RECORDINGS
Beatle fanatics are always on the lookout to find and/or hear new or previously unreleased Beatles material – the Illegal Beatles by Doug Sulpy are a great source of information. Since the band’s recording career was finite as is virtually everything in life, the fans yearn for one more treasure to listen to bring back happier times when music was so uplifting to the soul. The general quality of the Beatles catalogue was so good that the masses were always imagining what it would be like to see new material come forth from the legendary band. That is one of the curses about leaving the throne when you are at the top of your craft. You may be physically gone, but you remain the reigning king or kings in the minds of the public.
Some may argue that unreleased Beatles material exists but that none of it is worth releasing. You can’t justifiably make that argument about certain previously unreleased material like the BBC musical appearances by the Beatles which spawned two very successful cd releases. The Anthology compilations each attained the #1 chart position upon their legitimate release. The Beatles and their contributions to both history and culture put them into a special category, deserving of studying the creative process of their music. For that reason, I have heard some Beatles scholars use this as a reason to justify releasing all of their recorded music. That reasoning, however, is a subject of a separate debate and an additional blog post…LOL!
Illegal Beatles was begun many years ago by Doug Sulpy. The primary goal of that magazine was to inform Beatles fans of the multitude of Beatles rare and unreleased recordings which were being issued illegally as bootlegs. The unauthorized concerns in America and in Europe were creating vinyl bootleg releases that featured unreleased Beatles recordings that were not available to fans officially. The demand for the material was there and the bootleggers were trying hard to fill that market niche and their pocketbook’s as well. Years later when CDs hit the marketplace, the bootleg industry expanded to selling CDs.
I have always believed that the record companies could stop or hinder the bootleggers from issuing these recordings simply by catering more to what the fans want to hear and releasing it to the public, somewhat akin to what Bob Dylan is doing with his official Bootleg series issued directly by his record company. This way the recordings can be made available in the best possible sound quality and the artist has a stronger input with the decision-making process to make the material available to the public.
There is no excuse for example, for the bootleg concerns to be able to release the BBC Beatles live recordings and a song the Beatles left off one their LPs like Leave My Kitten Alone long before the record companies and artists issue them. In fact, some of the bootleg packaging created for some of the Beatles releases far exceed the quality of the legitimate presentations of the material in both packaging and content.
I suppose the one weakness that argument holds is there are some fans that want access to all of the recorded material by their favorite artist even if the material might be, quite bluntly, bad!
Illegal Beatles
As time progressed, there seemingly was a greater interest by many members of the public in studying what was available by their favorite artists on bootleg recordings. Two paperback books were issued by the mysterious L.R.E. King compiling all but the last few issues of Doug Sulpy’s Illegal Beatles magazines into book form. These 2 books are also featured later in this post.
Mr Sulpy after he ceased producing his Illegal Beatles was to form another very prominent Beatles magazine dealing with rare Beatles recordings, known as The 910, cleverly named for being the One After 909!!! Doug has also been one of the early pioneers in converting from print media to the digital media format in order to present his work. I incorrectly assumed that this decision was due to the extraordinary costs of printing, but Doug set me straight on that assumption.
Doug states:
“I didn’t “go digital” because of the printing costs – it was because it’s simply far quicker and easier to mail out .pdf files than fold, staple, address and stamp paper issues. Same thing with the back issue books. No part of me wants to pack up a couple hundred packages, take them all to the post office and hope they don’t manage to lose or destroy them between here and wherever they’re going.”
The main purpose of this post however is not going to be discussing Doug’s current digital preference or background. It is going to explore and deal with significant contributions to the Beatles print library made by Doug and a few other prominent authors who have dealt with the same subject matter of Beatles unauthorized recordings!!!
Here is Doug Sulpy’s website, which will help to keep you informed of his current activities and offerings:
Doug is a tough critic when he reviews the unreleased Beatles. Some have accused him of being overly-critical when analyzing and reviewing the material, but I disagree. He is strongly opinionated, but so what. Many of us are, and as long as we are able to adequately support and defend our positions, that is all that counts. I enjoy his criticisms even when I may personally disagree with some of them. His comments make you think and ponder whether the release is going to be worth your while in trying to add it to the collection. I have informed him though that I am one of the possible few people that prefers the tactile enjoyment of reading print material over seeing it on a computer or phone. However, that print preference does not inhibit me to continue to read and obtain his pdfs of his 910 newsletters by ordering them Online!
I have spoken personally with Doug only once, at an early Fest for Beatles Fans (then known as Beatlefest) held in New Jersey at a venue that was being used prior to the current location now being held along the Hudson River. Doug is intelligent, humorous, and you know that he knows his stuff.
At this juncture I will be showing you photos of some of the print material I have collected over the years dealing with the aforementioned subject matter of unauthorized Beatles recordings. Several prominent authors work will be mentioned in this piece.
Want to caution the readers of this blog post that this piece does not claim to be complete and fully comprehensive. It only includes books that are in my personal collection. If I have missed out on one of your own personal favorite books dealing with this subject, I extend my regrets.
I never was able to collect the complete collection of the Illegal Beatles fanzine/magazine but I was fortunate enough to purchase the complete collection of the magazines in the 5 hardback volumes of the 19 issues of the magazine that I was able to locate on Ebay! I understand these hardbacks were issued in a very limited print run…
ILLEGAL BEATLES Volume 1 (Issues 1-4)
ILLEGAL BEATLES Volume 2 (Issues 5-9)
ILLEGAL BEATLES Volume 3 (Issues 11-14)
ILLEGAL BEATLES Volume 4 (Issues 15-17)
ILLEGAL BEATLES Volume 5 (Issues 18-19)
Occasionally, (actually a more accurate description-frequently), I do a little surfing on Ebay looking for rare and obscure Beatles print material. I was overjoyed to locate 2 sets of hardback books by Doug Sulpy during one of those searches. One was his hardback collection of all of the issues of Illegal Beatles magazine. It was the 5-volume series of books (shown above) that were privately published, and I quickly purchased them as I love to collect hardcover Beatles-related books! That same day I was also to find the first 15 volumes of Doug’s hardcopy issue of his 910 magazine which he now is publishing exclusively digitally.
This was the description that I responded to when I purchased the 5 hardback books compiling the compilation of all of the magazine issues of the original magazine dealing with Beatles unreleased recordings entitled Illegal Beatles.
The mysterious L.R.E. King was to issue two softcover compilations of some of the early issues of
Illegal Beatles (1991) by Doug Sulpy, on L.R.E. King’s publishing arm called Storyteller Productions. First Edition (January 1, 1991).
Mr. Sulpy told me the two Storyteller publications contain most of the issues of the magazine except for a few of the final issues. He also informed me that the first print issue of the actual magazine may be very difficult for collectors to find as only an estimated 24 copies of the first issue were mailed out when the magazine began.
Illegal Beatles Vol. 2 (1994)
Description-This book is The Beatles Back Issues 1989-90, an archive reference book compiled by Doug Sulpy.
Doug was to expend a considerable amount of time listening to boots of the Nagra Reels from the Let it Be/Get Back era. There were several wonderful books he added to the Beatles book library as more and more material appeared in the marketplace over the years which called for him to make revisions and updates to his initial volume. New discoveries require those revisions to keep the information as up-to-date as possible!
This is the reason I try to obtain all of Doug’s print titles. New information that is made available make the revised editions created by the author as they give the readers a more extensive observations and knowledge concerning the new material that is being discussed and analyzed.
A pioneering title in discussing the Beatles Nagra Tapes from the Get Back/Let It Be Sessions
Drugs, Divorce and a Slipping Image (U.S. Edition) (1994)
Published by the 910
Drugs, Divorce and a Slipping Image (revised edition) (2007)-An updated version of the excellent book
Get Back–co-written with Ray Schweighardt
(U.S. Edition) (1997)
St. Martin’s Press (First Edition)
The 910’s Guide to The Beatles Outtakes 1995 First Edition
Published by The 910, 1995
A later edition of the 910’s guide to The Beatles Outtakes:
1995-Published by the 910
910’s Solo Guide by Doug Sulpy and Chip Madinger
(1996) 910 Publisher
910’s Guide To The Beatles Outtakes Part One
4th Edition (2001)
910’s Guide To The Beatles Outtakes Part Two The Complete Get Back Sessions–Jan 1, 2001 Published by The 910
The 910’s Guide To The Beatles Outtakes Part Three- The Core Collection 4th Edition (2001) Published by The 910
A discussion of the essential Beatles rare recordings that collectors most likely would enjoy the most, or would like to have in their personal collections!
The 910’s Guide To The Beatles Outtakes 2004 Edition (2002) Published by The 910
THE 910
This is one of the crown jewels of my Beatles print collection, my hardcopy collection of the 910 magazine. Doug Sulpy, for a number of reasons has decided in this digital age to go strictly digital with his Online service of providing information about Beatles unreleased material that may have recently surfaced in his 910 magazine. Previously, at the end of roughly a 6 issue run of Online issues, he would eventually get around to printing hardcopy books of the 910 magazines digital cumulative issues of the respective years into a hardback book. I got started in purchasing these by buying the first 15 volumes on Ebay. The balance of the hardcovers I purchased directly from the 910. I believe I have all of the hardback books that have been issued. This series was very attractive to me with their common dark black covers with the photos of the issues that are contained within the respective volume also pictured on the cover.
Here is a photo of the first 15 volumes that were purchased on Ebay. Doug would sign and number each copy and an independent publisher would handle the printing. Due to the expensive printing costs, a very limited number of these books were printed. I was saddened to hear that Doug is considering abandoning the hardcover compilations of the 910 magazine. I seriously hope he will reconsider that decision for all the print fanatics and collectors that still remain. In any event, I will always treasure my hardcover books of the magazine!
A Few Hardcover samples of the 910 Magazine:
Volume 15 of the hardcover 910:
Volume 18 of the hardcover 910
Volume 7 of the hardcover 910 collection of magazines:
Volume 11 of the hardcover 910:
Volume 5 of the hardcover 910: I simply can not praise the author enough for this limited of hardcovers of the issues of 910 magazine!
Doug Sulpy has also produced some limited edition hardcover books that deal with subjects other than their audio rarities like their video material, for example. This is a hardcover of Beatles video material created in 1965. Another excellent offering from Mr. Sulpy!
Conquered!
The Beatles
1965
Video Guide
(2020)–Another excellent small print run title:
Here is another video guide of video material compiled during 1962 and 1963:
Explosion!
The Beatles
1962-1963
Video Guide
(2018)-Great book!
This limited edition hardcover deals with the video material from 1964:
Invasion!
The Beatles
1964 Video Guide
(2017)-Loved this small print run title!!!
The Beatles’ Radio Performances (a.k.a. “The BBC Master Guide”) (2014)
Doug recently informed me that the digital BBC Book (shown below) was updated in a second (digital) edition and will shortly be updated once again. In fact, the third digital edition from 2025 is now available at his website…link is provided below
Third Edition of The Beatles’ Radio Performances. pdf
Doug Sulpy’s Description:
The previous edition of this, from 2021, is utterly outdated now, with many new performances and upgrades having been issued on bootleg since then.
This book examines The Beatles’ radio performances, show-by-show, reviews the performances, steers you to what I consider the best sounding source and, for the first time, contains complete information on the other acts on these programs, putting The Beatles’ own performances in context. This new, third edition is completely up-to-date as of May, 2025.
The pdf file can be ordered at Doug’s website:
The Beatles’ Radio Performances 910’s Master Guide Series Doug Sulpy hardcover.
I had not realized there was a print edition of this book as I thought it was only a .pdf release. I was very happy to come across a copy on Ebay and purchased it for the collection, despite the author informing me that it is outdated. I covered my bases with that revelation as I also purchased the revised 2025 .pdf edition of the book! Up to date, NOW!!! LOL!
The back cover of the BBC hardcover:
September 1, 2006 published by the 910–Another excellent book by Mr. Suply!
It can be safely argued that some of the best unreleased material by the Beatles prior to the official release of the 2 official 2 cd sets was their live BBC material. Despite two cd sets being officially issued, those releases are not the complete catalog of recordings that the Beatles made at the BBC. The quality of the remaining unissued recordings is one of the primary issues preventing further BBC Beatles recordings to be released. Another issue is how many alternate versions of the same songs that have already been issued is warranted, desired, or is a viable marketing strategy by the record company? Hardcore collectors want it all but the record companies want to sell as many copies as possible so that has to factor into any decision that they would ultimately make!
The Beatles: the BBC Archives : 1962-1970 by Kevin Howlett (2013, Hardcover) BBC Books
A box set well-researched by Kevin Howlett detailing the Beatles appearances on BBC radio over the years!
The hardback book contained in the above box set which details the the Beatles recording activities at the BBC:
Jolly and Barber Ltd published this title in 1982–The Beatles at the BEEB 62-65 also, by Kevin Howlett:
A more extensive catalog than the earlier 62-65 title published in 1996 by BBC Books-Kevin Howlett is the author:
The Beatles at the BBC The Radio Years 1962-70
The following two books are not limited to a discussion of only the Beatles underground recordings but there are many mentions in the 2 volumes of a considerable sampling of the bootleg recordings issued of the Beatles throughout the years…
BOOTLEG – The Illustrated History
From TRADE MARK OF QUALITY to GREAT DANE RECORDS
1969/1997
by Fulvio Fiore and Alex Franchi (630 pages, Isla Publishing 2025)
It all began in the summer of 1969…
This is a photographic story that covers two historical phases, 1969-1976 and 1987-1997, but it is also a story to “read”, in fact you will find dozens and dozens of articles taken from the main music magazines of the time (Billboard, Rolling Stone, Cash Box, Melody Maker, Ciao 2001, Rock & Folk etc.etc.) and unpublished documents extracted from the Bulldog and Great Dane Records archives. Release date February 28, 2025. Unfortunately, the books may be nearly all sold out, but you can contact them and ask! Only 50 copies of this limited-edition book were published!
Contact Alex at soundlover30@hotmail.com for more info:
The second volume of the Fulvio Fiore, Alex Franchi books about bootleg recordings…
BOOTLEG – THE ILLUSTRATED HISTORY, PART 2
FROM THE DVD ERA TO ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (1998/2024)
By Fulvio Fiore and Alex Franchi
704 Pages, Isla Publishing 2025 / Release Date March 28th, 2025
Not many copies of the Independent Publication were printed but you can contact Alex at soundlover30@hotmail.com to verify this. Like the first volume, only 50 copies of this limited edition book were published!
A Japanese book written in both English and Japanese about Beatles bootlegs which I purchased a long time ago on Ebay!
Another wonderful book about bootlegs that is not limited to discussion of just Beatles underground recordings. A fabulous book from Genius Publications that deals with the history of The Trade Mark of Quality bootleg label:
Genius Book Publishing – Genius Books
THE UNDERGROUND STORY OF THE LEGENDARY BOOTLEG RECORD LABEL,
by Ralph Sutherland and Harold Sherrick, Genius Music Books 2021, 336 pages The picture on the left is the limited edition slip-cased hardcover which is signed. I purchased a signed hardcopy edition from the publisher. The picture on the right is the open market softcover.
Published by Penguin Books Ltd, United Kingdom, London, 1994 written by Clinton Heylin. One of the most comprehensive books concerning the development of the bootleg recording industry over the years!
Published by St. Martin’s Griffin, 1996 under a different title: The is the Clinton Heylin analysis of the bootleg industry:
One of the first people to deal with the subject matter of unauthorized Beatles material
was L.R.E. King whose identity to many remains a mystery, but here are a few of his book titles:
Do You Want to Know a Secret? Published by Storyteller Productions, Tucson, AZ, 1988
Essentially a 2nd volume of the book above. This one is entitled:
Fixing a Hole, published in 1989, also by StoryTeller Productions!
L.R.E. King also took on the task of cataloging John’s unreleased material aired on the Lost Lennon Tapes radio show. This is Vol 1– Published in 1990 by Storyteller Productions
The harder to find copy of LRE’s Lost Lennon series was volume 2: Published by Storyteller Productions, USA, Paperback, 1992. This book compiled the contents of the 2nd year of the Lost Lennon Tapes radio show!
HELP-A Companion to THE BEATLES RECORDING SESSIONS by L.R.E. King
1989 Storyteller Productions-this is also a difficult title to find. Have seen copies of this on both Abe Books and Ebay!.
An essential companion volume to Mark Lewisohn’s Book Beatles Recording Sessions book as it indexes the takes used by album, and songs by sessions.
63 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 1989
This book- THE BEATLES In The Studio With The Beatles – Nagra Tapes published in 2009 in both Dutch and English was written by author Dennis Dekker.
It is a 134-page hardback book and was edited by Henk-Jan Hoekjen and translated into English by Pien Steffes. Dekker was able to listen to the Nagra reels and was able to transcribe many of the conversations. Though he lacked the technical advances available to Peter Jackson, the book represents one of the first attempts to give a fuller picture of what actually transpired at the Get Back sessions. The Nagra reels story itself is fascinating to read about, as apparently they were stolen from the Beatles and were discovered/recovered in a police raid held in the Netherlands in 2021.
Back cover of the Nagra book by Dennis Dekker:
You Can’t Do That – by Charles Reinhart, Published January 1, 1981 by Pierian Press.
This represents a very early title
providing information on unofficial record albums of the music of the Beatles and many of their novelty records as well!
Another hardback cover variation of the hardback book published in 1981 by Popular Culture Inc. aka Pierian Press!
The softcover of the book published in 1984 by Contemporary Books
A wonderful 2 book series published in English from Italy by author, Ivano Poggi. The 2 book series of only 100 copies each was entitled
Standing with a Bootleg in Your Hand. Independently published in 2022.
This wonderful 2 volume set of books which were each written in a numbered and signed edition of only 100 copies of each volume. The books were issued in an English edition of which I purchased copy #100. The description of the two books is provided on the back covers of the respective titles shown below
Back cover of Volume 1:
Volume 2:
Back cover of Volume 2:
The Unreleased Beatles Music and Film by Richie Unterberger
Publisher
Hal Leonard Corporation
Publication Year
2006
The Unreleased Beatles details the spectrum of music The Beatles recorded but did not release, as well as the film footage of the group that hasn’t been made commercially available. I throroughly enjoyed reading this title!
The Lost Lennon Tapes Project by Charles Iscove (8-Sep-2010) Paperback Paperback
by Charles Iscove (Author) Publisher
Charles Iscove (8 Sept. 2010)- I have seen this book listed on Amazon and Ebay
This is the Ebay summary or synopsis of the contents of the book:
An Unauthorized Guide To The Complete Radio Series 1988 – 1992. All 218 episodes catalogued and researched plus: * complete unreleased tracks index * comparison of Bag Records bootleg tracks and Lost Lennon Tapes broadcast versions * comparison of commercially released tracks and Lost Lennon Tapes broadcast versions!
LENNONOLOGY-STRANGE DAYS INDEED A SCRAPBOOK OF MADNESS by CHIP MADINGER AND SCOTT RAILE
Lennonology Volume 1 Strange Days Indeed First Edition 2015
Though this book does not deal exclusively with unreleased material, author Chip Madinger and his co-writer mention significant amounts of previously unknown Lennon and Ono material in this book and more is expected in the sequel that Mr. Madinger is working on. In my personal opinion he is clearly the Number 1 Lennon authority in the world. In addition to this volume, Chip Madinger has co-authored another book with Mark Easter entitled Eight Arms to Hold You, which details the careers of the Solo Beatles and features quite a few of their unreleased songs.
Here is the
Eight Arms to Hold You book that I refer to in the entry above: Publisher : 44.1 Productions Inc; 1st edition (October 1, 2000)
Available now digitally in an expanded edition L E N N O N O L O G Y – Home of the internationally acclaimed music references co-authored by Chip Madinger This book features many details of the unreleased songs by the solo Beatles.
Scott Belmer, known affectionately as BELMO is one of my favorite Beatles book authors. Here are a few of his books dealing with Beatles unreleased recordings.
For quite a while, Belmo ran a Beatles fanzine/ magazine entitled Belmo’s Beatleg News. After he stopped printing the magazine he produced two softcover books compiling all of the issues of the magazine into two large books.
Independently Published-Oct 8, 2019
BELMO’S BEATLEG NEWS-THE COMPLETE ANTHOLOGY VOLUME 1
Back cover of Volume 1:
BELMOS’S BEATLEG NEWS-THE COMPLETE ANTHOLOGY VOLUME 2 -Independently Published Oct 8, 2019 Available on Amazon
Back cover of Volume 2:
Beatles Not for Sale: The Beatles Musical Legacy As Archived on Unauthorized Recordings Paperback – January 1, 1997 Published by Collectors Guide Pub
by Belmo (Author)–A great book by a great guy!
This book written by Jim Berkenstadt and Belmo, whic is another worthy addition to any Beatles book library!
Published by Collector’s Guide Publishing; First Edition, 1995
Back cover of the Berkenstadt and Belmo book:
This may have been the very first book that I ever acquired about Beatles bootlegs. Published way back in the 1970s. I believe this book was published in the English language in the Netherlands!
Koos Janssen and Erik M. Barker; DIG IT: THE BEATLES BOOTLEG BOOK VOLUME 1; Golden Age Printers
In 2009 this book published by Athena Press appeared, written by John Eustace and Phil Boylett – the emphasis being underground recordings of John during the solo years!
Back cover of the title:
ALLAN KOZINN AND ADRIAN SINCLAIR
I can’t forget to mention the excellent research skills of Adrian Sinclair and Allan Kozinn in their first two volumes of the fantastic McCartney Legacy series. Though the primary purpose of their ambitious project is to catalog McCartney’s solo music and activities following his split from the Beatles, their research is also compiling many unreleased McCartney recordings since the split which have proved to be very valuable insights to Macca’s voluminous recording career.
McCARTNEY LEGACY VOLUMES 1 AND 2
VOLUME 1:
Publisher : Dey Street Books (Harper Collins)
Publication Date : 12/13/2022
Volume 2 of the excellent McCartney Legacy series:
VOLUME 2:
Publisher: Dey Street Books (Harper Collins)
Publication Date: 12/10/2024
Allan J. Wiener–an excellent book published in 1992
1992, Hardcover Published by- Facts On File Incorporated
Many Beatles discographies over the years also cover the more well known bootlegs and some of the better known unreleased recordings of the band! I enjoyed this early title very much!
John Winn
John Winn has written many of my favorite Beatles-related books including:
Way Beyond Compare: The Beatles’ Recorded Legacy, Volume One, 1957-1965
That Magic Feeling: The Beatles’ Recorded Legacy, Volume Two, 1966-1970
Lifting Latches The Beatles’ Recorded Legacy Inside The Beatles Vaults Volume 3
All 3 of these titles were published by Multiplus Books and were not specifically tailored to discuss just unreleased material, though some of that was discussed in the three volumes. John Winn was to tackle that subject in a 4-book series that we will show below:
Published by Multiplus
Published by Multiplus
Published by Multiplus
John C. Winn writes specifically about Unreleased Beatles material in this 4 book series
John C. Winn began a print series of books dealing specifically with the Beatles unreleased material. There were four volumes of his Beatlegmania series issued before John made the decision to cease publication of print media due to the effects digital media were having on book creation and sales. John’s presence in the print world is sorely missed. His books were very good and he was a kind soul to me personally by helping me locate a rare Westwood One radio program that I was searching for and could not find until he stepped in to help me.
I have enjoyed all of John’s written work that he has issued!
Here are the 4 volumes of his Beatlegmania book series dealing with Beatles bootlegs and unreleased recordings:
| Beatlegmania: Volume One Publisher: Multiplus Book issued in 2006 Author-John C. Winn |
| Beatlegmania Volume 2: Multiplus Books-publisher, issued in 2007 Author: John C. Winn |
Beatlegmania: Volume Three Published in 2008 by Multiplus Books authored by John C. Winn
Beatlegmania: Volume Four, Published by Multiplus Books in 2010, author John C. Winn
Saw this print on demand title recently that I do not have in my collection. The book was mentioned at Abe Books apparently referencing a Beatles Bootleg book originating in Germany and published in 2012. Despite the cover being in English, I do not know if the content within is in English, only making that as an assumption, as I do not see it mentioned in the book description on Abe books. Another comment, Peace of MindThe Candle Burns that is mentioned on the book’s cover is not given any credence by Beatles scholars as actually being The Beatles.
The Beatles Bootleg Recordings : The Beatles’ recording sessions, Let It Be, Live! at the Star-Club in Hamburg, Germany; 1962, The Grey Album, The Beatles Tapes from the David Wigg Interviews, Peace of Mind/The Candle Burns, Sweet Georgia Brown, Dig It, The Beatles Decca Audition
Published by Books LLC, Reference Series–Published by Reference Series Books LLC Feb 2012
Print on Demand
Condition: New Soft cover
From AHA-BUCH GmbH, Einbeck, Germany
To end this post, I have chosen to use the book The Beatles Recording Sessions by Mark Lewisohn in respect for the man who never ceases to look for recordings by the Beatles that no one ever expects to find. For example, his Recording Session book was the first published source I saw mentioning the McCartney unreleased penned track called Etcetera written in 1968, supposedly for Marianne Faithful, who rejected the composition. There are some who speculate that Etcetera was an early version of Thingumybob, written by Paul McCartney and later recorded by the Black Dyke Mills Band for Apple Records.
I also have no doubts that in Lewisohn’s volume 2 of his trilogy of the Beatles history will have many more fascinating details of the nearly one-hour long concert in the UK from 1963, given by the Beatles at the Stowe School for boys. Many Beatles fans and collectors were shocked to hear that a recording still existed of virtually the entire concert. This was disclosed by the man who made the original recording and stored it away all of these years. Though not in very good quality, it exists, and that is the important thing as an historical artifact. The importance exists of not only saving the recording for posterity but the promise of possibly using the Peter Jackson technology to enhance the recording and make it sound considerably better!
Mark Lewisohn always has feelers out there to track down rare recordings longed to be listened to by Beatles fanatics, like the Lu Walters recording in Germany from 1960 which may have featured the first recorded appearance of the Beatles with Ringo, a picture of the lost disk appears in the Allan Williams biography, The Man Who Gave The Beatles Away. Summertime was listed as one of the tracks supposedly recorded on the disk. No copy of that disk has appeared yet for the public to hear, if any copies remain in existence at all is still an open question!
DOES THIS PRICELESS RECORDING STILL EXIST???
By Hans Olof Gottfridsson-an excellent article by Hans Olof Gottfridsson about this recording:
THE SOURCE – Acetates – (Akustik) Summertime
The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions was written by Mark Lewisohn and details all of the available takes of the recordings housed at EMI recorded by the Beatles and those kept and not wiped away by EMI. A few recordings may have slipped through the tracks, however. I don’t believe that Mark mentions the George Harrison demo for You’ll Know What to Do in his Recording Sessions book, yet the track appeared on one of the Anthology disks. Still, Mark receives numerous accolades for his wonderful research. He instills envy in every Beatles fan longing to have had the same opportunity to listen to the numerous recordings in the Beatles vault!
This is one of 2 copies of Mark’s Recording Sessions book that I own. One is the initial hardcover copy signed by the author and the other one is a softcover edition shown below signed by the man who helped craft the Beatles sound, their producer, George Martin.
The hardcover was published by Harmony books in 1989
The Beatles Recording Sessions: The Official Abbey Road Studio Session Notes 1962-1970
Though the book details the takes actually used on the official releases, it also gives great detail of the numerous outtakes of the Beatles recording sessions.
This is the soft cover copy signed by Mr. George Martin
As stated previously, this post does not claim to be an all-encompassing catalog or study of all of the books covering Beatles unreleased material. It only represents the books in that subject matter contained in my personal collection. Hope you have enjoyed the presentation of the books presented here. More additions may appear in the future as the contents of the old boxes are opened and examined for more goodies!!
A SPECIAL NOTE TO BEATLES BOOK COLLECTORS – Many of the titles that appear in the above post are now out of print. Many of the out-of-print tiles are now virtually impossible to locate at reasonable prices. Be patient, as over time, if you are looking for some of these titles, some of them will eventually show up. Recommend surfing the net for the best price you can find! Abe Books is a good source, and once in a while, a bargain can be found on Ebay!
A special thanks is extended to authors Doug Sulpy, Scott Belmer, Chip Madinger, Scott Raile, Mark Easter, Mark Lewisohn, Kevin Howlett, Scott Belmer (Belmo), Jim Berkenstadt, Charles Iscove, Ray Schweighardt, Adrian Sinclair, Allan Kozinn, Charles Reinhart, Ivano Poggi, John Winn, Allan C. Wiener, Koos Janssen, Erik M. Barker, L.R.E. King, Fulvio Fiore, Alex Franchi, Clinton Heylin, Dennis Dekker, Ralph Sutherland, Harold Sherric, John Eustace, Phil Boylett, and Richie Unterberger for providing all of us Beatles fans with these wonderful books!!!
BUZZ
OUR BOOK OF THE WEEK AT THE BEATLES BOOKSTORE
One Dream Ago
In 1964, The Beatles had their biggest reception ever, with 300 000 people lining the streets of Adelaide to see the band (minus Ringo). Adelaide and South Australia also had other (sometimes surprising) connections to The Beatles, many of which have never been written about before this book. One Dream Ago‘s striking cover artwork was created by Klaus Voormann.
