The Beatles released twelve original albums, twelve EPs (mainly consisting of material also available on their albums), one double EP, and twenty-two singles (mainly featuring original music not found on their albums) in eight years (1962-1970) in their native United Kingdom. Their international discography is complicated, however, due to sometimes different versions of their albums released in other countries, particularly in their early years on Capitol Records in the United States. In addition, most of their releases are available in both mono and stereo mixes.
Historical background
The first ten (of twelve) Beatles albums were released in both mono and stereo mixes. Since mono record players were the most common at the time, producer George Martin and the Beatles gave more time and attention to preparing mono mixes of their recordings, particularly for their early records. Therefore, the mono versions are considered by many to be the "official" versions, as opposed to the stereo releases (In fact, when the Beatles discography was released on compact disc (CD) in the 1980s, the mono mixes of the first four albums, rather than the stereo mixes, were used). The last two albums, Abbey Road and Let It Be, were originally mixed and released in stereo only.
The Beatles UK discography was released on CD in the late 1980s. However, the sound of the digital transfers of the current discs, produced by George Martin in 1987 and 1988 using the best equipment available during the early days of the format, no longer meet standards achievable using current techniques. The sound on the remastered catalogues of Bob Dylan, the Bee Gees, the Beach Boys, and the Rolling Stones, among other heavyweights from the 1960s, have been greatly enhanced using technological developments that have occurred since Martin's initial digital mastering, and as of 2007, similar work for the Beatles is long overdue. In addition, many Beatles enthusiasts feel that the CD releases of the albums are inferior because the recordings were originally mastered to be played on vinyl, which, when played back, arguably possess a warm sound which CDs are not able to reproduce. Many purists today still listen to Beatles albums only on vinyl.[citation needed]
Olivia Harrison recently stated that the Beatles songs and albums had been remastered, and were in the final production stage. However, Harrison did state that she feels these may not be released until the end of 2008, possibly due to changes that may need to be made. [1]
Official canon
This section lists the canon of material currently sanctioned by the Beatles as part of their official catalogue[2]. After the band's breakup, EMI, who controlled the Beatles material, "explored a range of repackaging schemes to exploit their Beatles catalogue"[3], without input from the Beatles themselves. It was not until "an agreement reached with EMI/Capitol in 1989... gave the Beatles control of future use of all their EMI recordings. This meant that any shoddy repackaging ideas... could now be nipped in the bud by Apple"[4]. The canon of official Beatles releases include the following albums, EPs, and singles.
Studio albums
The official canon of Beatles studio albums consists of the original albums as released in their native UK from 1962 to 1970. The single exception is Magical Mystery Tour, which was released as a double EP in the UK and a longer LP in the United States. The Beatles now consider the U.S. version to be official [2].
Please Please Me (#1 for 30 weeks, plus another 20 weeks at #2; 74 weeks on chart)
Live at the BBC Apple Records (1994-11-30) (Contains 69 songs The Beatles recorded for various BBC radio shows that never were recorded for Parlophone/Capitol/EMI. #1
Anthology 1 Apple Records (1995-11-21) (Containing early performances, live shows, demos, out-takes in the period 1958 to 1964 and the first "new" Beatles song since the band broke up in 1970) #2
Anthology 2 Apple Records (1996-03-18) (Containing unreleased tracks, live shows, demos, and out-takes from 1965 to 1968) #1
Anthology 3 Apple Records (1996-10-28) (Containing unreleased tracks, demos, and out-takes in the period 1968 to 1970) #4
The Beatles 1 Apple Records (2000-11-13) (A collection of The Beatles' #1 hits on the Billboard [U.S.] and Record Retailer [UK] charts, including both sides of their double-A sided singles if both hit the top slot. The collection has 27 songs in it.) #1
Let It Be… Naked Apple Records (2003-11-17) (Remastered and remixed cut from the original sessions, devoid of arrangements by "re-producer" Phil Spector. The first copies released shipped with a 21-minute Fly on the Wall bonus disc.) #7
The Capitol Albums, Volume 1, Capitol Records (2004-11-16) #35 U.S. (Box set compilation comprising The Beatles' 1964 American Capitol Records releases)
The Capitol Albums, Volume 2, Capitol Records (2006-04-11) #46 U.S. (Box set compilation comprising The Beatles' 1965 American Capitol Records releases)
Love Apple Records (2006-11-20) #3 (A soundtrack to the Cirque du Soleil production Love, featuring remastered and remixed versions of the Beatles' songs by Sir George Martin and his son Giles Martin)
Magical Mystery Tour (1967-12-08); #2 (in the UK singles chart topped by "Hello, Goodbye"). The second Beatles EP to feature otherwise unavailable material. In the U.S., this was released as a longer LP with additional songs not found on this release. It is the U.S. LP version that is now considered official.
Singles
The UK Singles Chart is compiled solely from sales figures; airplay statistics are not used. For this reason the chart positions for the UK Singles are indicated per disc, not per song. Pos column indicates the peak position in the charts.
This list reflects the various albums, EPs, and singles released in the UK which are not considered a part of the official Beatles catalogue. Most of these were released by record companies apart from the consent of the Beatles.
Magical Mystery Tour Parlophone Records (1976-11-19) [sic] (Official UK issue of the American album using the Capitol masters, except for "Penny Lane," "Baby You're a Rich Man," and "All You Need is Love," which were the German mixes released on the Hör Zu! label in 1971. It became part of the official catalogue with its release on CD with every track in true-stereo. As an American import, the album peaked at #31 in 1968. Continued sales of the album as an import led to this release.)
Rarities Parlophone Records (1978-12-02) (Although not made explicit on the sleeve, this album consisted of every Parlophone and Apple Beatles B-side and EP track which had not been included on their UK studio albums, or on the 1973 "Red" and "Blue" Albums. It included 2 songs in German ("Sie Liebt Dich" and "Komm Gib Mir Deine Hand"), a song recorded for an American album and an alternative version of "Across The Universe") #71
Hey Jude Parlophone Records (1979-05-11) (Official UK issue of American album)
The Beatles EP Collection, Parlophone (1981-12-07) (15-disc 7" EP set, featuring all 13 Beatles British EPs, with both mono and stereo editions of Magical Mystery Tour plus an EP of 4 stereo mixes, new to the UK, of "The Inner Light", "Baby You're a Rich Man", "She's a Woman" and "This Boy", housed in a blue flip-top box similar to The Beatles Collection. The set was issued on CD in a black box for the first time in the UK on (1992-05-26 with releases in the U.S. and Japan in the following month)
22-disc 7" singles set, featuring the complete Beatles EMI singles catalogue, with new picture sleeves for many of the discs. The set was first issued on CD in the UK 1992-11-02, and in the U.S. 1992-11-09. The set was first packaged in Japan using a longbox housing the complete set of 3" CD singles in December 1989.
U.S. discography
U.S. albums
The first seven Beatles albums appeared in different versions in the U.S., where Capitol Records mixed UK album tracks with UK single tracks to create different albums altogether, with different titles, track listings, and often different audio mixes. The first eight of these records have been released on CD as The Capitol Albums, Volume 1 (2004) and The Capitol Albums, Volume 2 (2006). The Capitol release of Rubber Soul is preferred by some over its UK counterpart, due to its more folky flavour[citation needed]; it was this version of the album that greatly influenced the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson, who "answered" it by releasing Pet Sounds in 1966[citation needed]. Upon the release of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band in 1967, the Beatles albums had the same track listing in both the U.S. and the UK (The only exception to this is Magical Mystery Tour, which was released as a double EP in the UK, and a longer LP in the U.S.).
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (#1 for 15 weeks, plus another 6 weeks at #2; 175 weeks on chart) (6/24/1967) "Grammy Award Winner for the Album of the Year in1967"
Track listing is identical to the UK release. It should be noted, though, that the two seconds of gibberish placed on the concentric groove of the UK release was left off the U.S. release.
Magical Mystery Tour (#1 for 8 weeks; 91 weeks on chart) (12/30/1967+) (1/6/1968-) {The Movie Soundtrack & 1967 singles}
The Beatles Collection, Capitol Records (1979-12-01) (Unlike the British release, the American issue was a limited edition with only 3000 copies made. The British release which was not a limited edition became a popular import for the U.S. market as a result.)
The Billboard Hot 100 chart in the U.S. is compiled from sales and airplay statistics, so the individual songs on any given disc can be charted separately.
The division of Capitol Records in Canada released three unique albums and nine singles in 1963 and 1964 before aligning with the American division and releasing the same albums as in the U.S. The first Canadian release was the "Love Me Do" single (72076) on 1963-02-04.
After this album, Capitol of Canada synchronised its catalogue production with the U.S. market, beginning with United Artists' A Hard Day's Night and concluding with Apple's Hey Jude. Notably, the albums Something New and The Beatles' Story were only produced in mono when originally released. In 1967 the American back catalogue was released in Canada:
This reflects the Beatles singles which appeared on the "CHUM Hit Parade" charts between the weeks of Monday 6 January1963 and Saturday 8 January1977.[5] Capitol of Canada took on the Beatles early on and issued early singles in their 72000 series of Canada only releases[6] before aligning with the American company's numbering system when the American company began issuing Beatle singles. American Beatle recordings issued on the Vee-Jay, Swan and Tollie labels were issued by Capitol of Canada with 72000 series catalogue numbers. Capitol Canada was the only country outside of the U.K. to issue version 1 of "Love Me Do" with Ringo on the drums.
The Beatles also recorded annual Christmas records for their fan club members. From 1963 to 1969 these were released as 7" flexidiscs on LYN. In 1970 the 7 previous records were put onto a 12" vinyl record, From Then to You. These remain largely unavailable today (although they have been widely bootlegged), with the exception of one track, "Christmas Time Is Here Again", which was edited and released on the Free As a Bird CD single in 1994:
There are currently plans to release remastered versions of the Beatles catalogue according to Olivia Harrison, who claims that the plans are nearly complete. [2][3]
Bootlegs
See The Beatles bootlegs for a rundown of some of the more popular unauthorized bootleg material.
Bibliography
Castleman, Harry and Walter J. Podrazik (1975). All Together Now: the only Complete Beatles Discography 1961-1975. Ballantine Books. ISBN 0-345-29794-6.
Wallgren, Mark (1982). The Beatles on Record. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 0-671-45682-2.
