New John Lennon "Gimme Some Truth" compilation announced

https://amzn.to/2QsOmOS (2 CD)

https://amzn.to/34Bi5xl (4 LP box)

https://amzn.to/3hxm29L (2 LP)

https://amzn.to/3hy7uqC (digital)

 

JOHN LENNON’S MOST VITAL AND BEST LOVED SOLO WORKS
COMPLETELY REMIXED FROM SCRATCH FOR NEW COLLECTION
JOHN LENNON. GIMME SOME TRUTH. THE ULTIMATE MIXES.

THE ICONIC ARTIST IS CELEBRATED ON HIS 80^TH BIRTHDAY
WITH A SUITE OF NEW RELEASES INCLUDING
A DELUXE EDITION BOX SET FEATURING 36 TRACKS ACROSS 2 CDS
AND A BLU-RAY AUDIO DISC WITH HIGH-DEFINITION 24-96 STEREO,
IMMERSIVE 5.1 SURROUND SOUND AND DOLBY ATMOS MIXES
PLUS EXCLUSIVE 124-PAGE BOOK

ALSO AVAILABLE IN VARIETY OF PHYSICAL AND DIGITAL FORMATS INCLUDING
1CD, 2CD, 2LP, 4LP AND STREAMING/DOWNLOAD

DUE OCTOBER 9^TH VIA CAPITOL/UMe

“I'm sick and tired of hearing things from uptight, short-sighted, narrow-minded hypocritics
All I want is the truth, just give me some truth
I've had enough of reading things by neurotic, psychotic, pig-headed politicians
All I want is the truth, just give me some truth”
– John Lennon, “Gimme Some Truth”

Los Angeles – August 26, 2020 – In everything he did, John Lennon spoke his truth and questioned the truth. An incomparable and uncompromising artist who strove for honesty and directness in his music, he laid bare his heart, mind and soul in his songs, seeing them as snapshots of his current emotions, thoughts and world view. Believing the one quality demanded of himself as an artist was to be completely honest, he did not disguise what he had to say or conform his messages to be more in line with what he felt others thought they should be. Love, heartbreak, peace, politics, truth, lies, the media, racism, feminism, religion, mental well-being, marriage, fatherhood – he sang about it all, and one just needs to listen to the songs of John Lennon to know how he felt, what he cherished, what he believed in, and what he stood for. 

 

On October 9^th, 2020, Lennon’s 80^th birthday, in celebration of his remarkable life, a collection of some of the most vital and best loved songs from his solo career will be released via Capitol/UMe as a suite of beautifully presented collections, titled GIMME SOME TRUTH. THE ULTIMATE MIXES.

 

Executive Produced by Yoko Ono Lennon and Produced by Sean Ono Lennon, these thirty-six songs, handpicked by Yoko and Sean, have all been completely remixed from scratch, radically upgrading their sonic quality and presenting them as a never-before-heard Ultimate Listening Experience.

 

Mixed and engineered by multi GRAMMY® Award-winning engineer Paul Hicks, who also helmed the mixes for 2018’s universally acclaimed Imagine – The Ultimate Collection series, with assistance by engineer Sam Gannon who also worked on that release, the songs were completely remixed from scratch, using brand new transfers of the original multi-tracks, cleaned up to the highest possible sonic quality. After weeks of painstaking preparation, the final mixes and effects were completed using only vintage analog equipment and effects at Henson Recording Studios in Los Angeles, and then mastered in analog at Abbey Road Studios by Alex Wharton in order to ensure the most beautiful and authentic sound quality possible.

 

GIMME SOME TRUTH. – named for Lennon’s 1971 excoriating rebuke of deceptive politicians, hypocrisy and war, a sentiment as relevant as ever in our post-truth era of fake news, will be available in a variety of formats including as a Deluxe Edition Box Set that offers several different ways to listen to this engrossing 36-track collection with stunning new mixes across two CDs alongside a Blu-ray audio disc containing the Ultimate Mixes in Studio Quality 24 bit/96 kHz HD Stereo, immersive 5.1 Surround Sound and Dolby Atmos.

 

“John was a brilliant man with a great sense of humour and understanding,” writes Yoko Ono Lennon in the preface of the book included in the Deluxe Edition. “He believed in being truthful and that the power of the people will change the world. And it will. All of us have the responsibility to visualize a better world for ourselves and our children. The truth is what we create. It’s in our hands.”

 

The 124-page book included in the Deluxe Edition has been designed and edited by Simon Hilton, the Compilation Producer and Production Manager of the Ultimate Collection series. The book tells the story of all thirty-six songs in John & Yoko’s words and the words of those who worked alongside them, through archival and brand-new interviews, accompanied by hundreds of previously unseen photographs, Polaroids, movie still frames, letters, lyric sheets, tape boxes, artworks and memorabilia from the Lennon-Ono archives.

 

GIMME SOME TRUTH. will also be released as a 19-track CD or 2LP, a 36-track 2CD or 4 LP, and several digital versions for download and streaming including in 24 bit/96 kHz audio and hi-res Dolby Atmos. The vinyl was cut by mastering engineer Alex Wharton at Abbey Road Studios. The Deluxe Edition and 4LP formats will include a GIMME SOME TRUTH. bumper sticker, a two-sided poster of Lennon printed in black and white with silver and gold metallics, and two postcards, one of which is a replica of Lennon’s letter to the Queen of England in 1969 when he returned his MBE in “protest against Britain’s involvement in the Nigerian-Biafra thing, against our support of America in Vietnam and Cold Turkey slipping down the charts.” The 2LP and 2CD will also include the poster and all versions will come with a booklet filled with photos and the MBE letter.

 

The album cover features a rarely-seen striking black and white profile portrait of John Lennon, taken on the day John returned his MBE. The album cover, CD and LP booklets and typographic artworks were designed by Jonathan Barnbrook who created the covers for David Bowie’s albums Heathen, Reality and The Next Day and won a GRAMMY® Award for the packaging of Bowie’s Black Star album.

 

GIMME SOME TRUTH. traces the arc of Lennon’s post-Beatles life and career, bringing together songs from all of his revered solo albums including John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band (1970), Imagine (1971), Some Time In New York City (1972), Mind Games (1973), Walls and Bridges (1974), Rock ‘n’ Roll (1975), Double Fantasy (1980) and 1984’s posthumous Milk and Honey. The collection is bookended with his early non-album singles, kicking off with the one-two punch of “Instant Karma! (We All Shine On),” Lennon’s exuberant exhortation about the karmic forces of action/reaction and equality (“we all shine on like the moon and the stars and the sun”), and the electrifying addiction-themed “Cold Turkey,” and culminating with the holiday classic “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)” and the anti-war protest anthem “Give Peace A Chance,” with its ubiquitous, titular call to action: “All we are saying is Give Peace A Chance.”

 

Sequenced in chronological order by album they were released on, songs on the 36-track version include all of Lennon’s biggest hits and showcase his thoughts, beliefs and convictions about everything from peace (“Imagine,” “Give Peace A Chance,” “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)”), religion (“God”), politics (“Power To The People,” “Working Class Hero”), lying politicians (“Gimme Some Truth”), racism (“Angela”), equality (“Woman”), love and marriage (“Love,” “Oh Yoko!,” “Dear Yoko,” “Mind Games,” “Out The Blue,” “Every Man Has A Woman Who Loves Him,” “Grow Old With Me”), fatherhood (“Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)”), loneliness (“Isolation”) and much more. Some of the many other highlights include the sonically sumptuous “Jealous Guy” and “#9 Dream,” the acerbic “How Do You Sleep?,” the breezy, carefree “Watching The Wheels,” a rollicking live recording of “Come Together” that he had originally recorded with The Beatles, the rapturous Elton John collaboration “Whatever Gets You Thru The Night,” and the jubilant, bittersweet “I’m Stepping Out.”

 

Like all Lennon projects, intense thought and care went into the making of GIMME SOME TRUTH and the remixing of these treasured songs. As Paul Hicks details in the Deluxe Edition book: “Yoko is very keen that in making The Ultimate Mixes series we achieve three things: remain faithful and respectful to the originals, ensure that the sound is generally sonically clearer overall, and increase the clarity of John’s vocals. ‘It’s about John,’ she says. And she is right. His voice brings the biggest emotional impact to the songs.” Hicks continues, “The combination of remixing from all the original first-generation multitrack sources and finishing in analogue has brought a whole new level of magic, warmth and clarity to the sound, along with a more detailed dynamic range and sound stage, and we really hope you enjoy the results.”

 

The results speak for themselves and allow Lennon’s voice and words to shine on, clearer and brighter, at a time when they are needed now, more than ever. When listened to in sequence, GIMME SOME TRUTH. THE ULTIMATE MIXES. plays both like one of the greatest-ever live Lennon concerts and an emotional telling of his life story, from just after the breakup of The Beatles, to falling in love and marrying Yoko, his peace activism, personal soul-searching, inspiration, celebration, confusion, reunion, fatherhood, his five-year break from music while raising Sean, and his triumphant return into the ‘80s with two new albums.

Throughout these incredible, timeless songs we experience the many facets of John Lennon: the songwriter, the revolutionary, the musician, the husband, the truth-teller, the dad, the provocateur, the peace activist, the artist, the icon.

 

 

JOHN LENNON. GIMME SOME TRUTH. THE ULTIMATE MIXES.

 

 

DELUXE BOX SET.

124 PAGE BOOK, 1 FOLD OUT POSTER, 2 POSTCARDS, 1 BUMPER STICKER.

1 BLU-RAY AUDIO DISC: 36 TRACKS IN HIGH DEFINITION 24-96 STEREO, 5.1 SURROUND SOUND, DOLBY ATMOS.

2 CDS: 36 TRACKS IN STEREO.

 

CD1
1. Instant Karma! (We All Shine On)
2. Cold Turkey
3. Working Class Hero
4. Isolation
5. Love
6. God
7. Power To The People
8. Imagine
9. Jealous Guy
10. Gimme Some Truth
11. Oh My Love
12. How Do You Sleep?
13. Oh Yoko!
14. Angela
15. Come Together (live)
16. Mind Games
17. Out The Blue
18. I Know (I Know)

 

CD2
1. Whatever Gets You Thru The Night
2. Bless You
3. #9 Dream
4. Steel and Glass
5. Stand By Me
6. Angel Baby
7. (Just Like) Starting Over
8. I’m Losing You
9. Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)
10. Watching The Wheels
11. Woman
12. Dear Yoko
13. Every Man Has A Woman Who Loves Him
14. Nobody Told Me
15. I’m Stepping Out
16. Grow Old With Me
17. Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
18. Give Peace A Chance

 

BLU-RAY AUDIO DISC
All of the above thirty-six tracks, available in High Definition audio as:
1. HD Stereo Audio Mixes (24 bit/96 kHz)
2. HD 5.1 Surround Sound Mixes (24 bit/96 kHz)
3. HD Dolby Atmos Mixes

A holiday Beatles-Star Wars surprise from Pallette Swap-Ninja

If you recall, we wrote about Pallette Swap-Ninja, who did the Star Wars/Sgt. Pepper mash-up for Billboard in the later part of 2018 on the occasion of their one-and-only live performance of the album in Berkeley, CA., which we attended. 

Well, we got a surprise in our emails this week that they've released a full recording (unofficial) of the live show. The concert, in addition to the album, included a tribute to Carrie Fisher and a sing-along to "Hey Jude." (We posted some videos on our Beatles News and Information group last year as well.)

Here's the information they sent us on the recording and where you can get it:

 Greetings from Palette-Swap Ninja! We really didn't think we'd have a reason to write you again, but it's a good one. It's a holiday miracle! 

We recently discovered an audio recording of the entire live show -- with a caveat. Brendan West captured the ambience of the room on a seperate recording system. It's the complete show including the encores and it's in stereo! But...it's a bit drum-heavy and brass-heavy, and it's hard to make out all the lyrics if you don't know the original work (which you do). We feel it sounds like a decent bootleg. So that's what we're calling it -- the Official Bootleg! 

You can download it from our website here:
http://paletteswapninja.com/songs/Palette-SwapNinja_PLSDSPLive_OfficialBootleg.mp3
or
http://paletteswapninja.com/songs/Palette-SwapNinja_PLSDSPLive_OfficialBootleg.flac

If you have any trouble with those links, drop us a line. We think it's really nice to hear a full document of that incredible night, even if it's not an optimal recording. We have come to cherish all the memories of the live event, so this is worth preserving, warts and all. Huge thanks to Brendan for supplying this file!
Happy holidays and MTFBWY!
Dan & Jude

First thoughts on the new 50th anniversary Abbey Road set

Courtesy Apple

Listen to our latest Beatles News Briefs podcast as we run through the music on the new 50th anniversary Abbey Road set. Also available for streaming on YouTube.

Ordering links

• 3 CD/Blu-Ray (U.S)
• 2 CD (U.S)
• Triple Vinyl (U.S.)
• Picture Disc (U.S.)
• 3 CD/Blu-Ray (UK)
• 2 CD (UK)
• 1 CD (UK)
• Picture Disc (UK)
• Vinyl 180 gram (UK)

An oldie from the Beatles Examiner days ... "How we got engaged" ... a proposal at a McCartney concert that Paul acknowledged

Paul McCartney's Up & Coming Tour -- Thursday, August 19, 2010

"There have many wonderful stories during the Up and Coming Tour, what with all the people who lived their dream to meet Paul McCartney. But how about this? Proposing to your girlfriend during a show and having it acknowledged by Paul McCartney.
It happened in Pittsburgh on Aug. 19th. Here is Luke and Michaela's story as they sent it to us."  

"Our 15 minutes of fame came with a little luck, a little planning but really, it was all due to the generosity of one Sir Paul McCartney. I had planned to surprise Michaela by taking her to the show. I asked her to go to Pittsburgh on the 19th without telling her why. The subterfuge would not last. She soon went to the web, typed in Pittsburgh, August 19th... and bingo! Staring back from her monitor were countless entries about the concert.

In the days that followed, she never let on that she knew, though I always suspected she did. I let her think that I didn't know that she knew. I wanted to surprise her. She wanted me to have fun surprising her. Ah, the games lovers play!

While the concert didn't come as a shock to her, the front row tickets did. I warned that our seats might not be as good as the ones we'd had in Vegas for Macca's show at The Joint last year. They could have an "obstructed view". (You never know just where they're going to put the speakers, right?)

We entered the floor area from the back of the arena. Each step drew us closer to the stage. Upon reaching the halfway point, she turned to me and said "Exactly what row are we?"

"One", I replied. Her smile was priceless.

Upon reaching our seats, Michaela began phoning her parents and friends, excitedly telling them that we were in the front row. While she was doing that, I scanned the vicinity for anyone who looked like they might be able to get a note to Paul. Hope began to dim when I realized that most of the people in the area were locally hired security. I thought to myself, "Oh well, it was a longshot at best".

In any case, I was determined to pop to question during MY LOVE. I mean, how cool is that? Asking the woman you adore to marry you while Paul McCartney is just a few feet away, singing the greatest love song ever written...should make a woman feel special.

Eventually, a lovely lady by the name of Shelley appeared in the restricted area. She began talking with the guards. "Oh, everyone is so emotional backstage. We were all crying back there because tonight is the last show of the tour." she said.

It's now or never.

I approached Shelley with a previously typed note. The heading was simple enough... MARRIAGE PROPOSAL IN THE FRONT ROW TONIGHT. The letter went on to explain that I was going to ask Michaela to marry me during the guitar solo of MY LOVE and that it would mean the world to us if Paul could congratulate us from the stage.

I handed the paper to Shelley, asking if she could take the note backstage.

"Who do you want me to give it to?" she asked.

"Paul, if possible". I revealed the contents and that the element of surprise was key.

She smiled and said, " I'll give it to his head of security." I thanked her and quietly returned to my chair.

A few minutes had passed when I noticed several people in the secure area were looking and pointing at me. Finally, an older, tough looking gent motioned for me to go over there.

"Is this your letter?" His accent sounded like he'd seen his share of fisticuffs in the pubs of England.

"Yes"

"I'm Paul's head of security. I had to come out and eyeball you to make sure you're not a looney."

"I understand completely."

"When do you want to do this?"

"During 'My Love'."

"Right. We'll see what we can do." He disappeared behind the black curtains and velvet ropes.

By this time, Michaela had become curious about my dealings with people I'd never met before now.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"Oh, I just sent back a fan letter."

"You're lying."

My beloved knows that I'm not the fawning admirer type. Because of my line of work, I've met famous people from time to time and have never written to a celebrity...until now.

"Well, I was hoping to get an autograph." That response seemed to placate her.

The show started. Everyone knows how wonderful that moment was. Paul strolled onstage. "Venus and Mars" rolled into "Rockshow." We were off and running.

Knowing the setlist in advance was like being on a Saturn 5 rocket waiting for liftoff. I knew that "My Love" would be the 11th song. With each passing tune, a most important milestone approached.

"Jet." "All My Loving." "Letting Go."

Sweaty palms...(Good Lord! I'm in junior high again)

"Drive My Car." "Highway." "Let Me Roll It."

Hey...I haven't seen the ring since leaving Indianapolis! Is it still in the box?!?!

"Long and Winding Road."

Ring check good. Michaela was facing the stage the entire time so she never saw me sneak a peek.

"Nineteen Hundred and Eighty Five."

Tunnel vision.

"Let 'Em In."

A heart is pounding in my chest. Hopefully, I'll get to propose before the coronary strikes.

Then...a long single note from Wix as Paul introduces "My Love."

The first chord hits. I look at Shelley. She had reappeared along with a number of staff/relatives in the aisle. They were all anxiously waiting for the big moment.

She smiled. "Yes, this is it...go for it!"

Paul was singing. Our little portion of the world grew suddenly brighter. A spotlight was shining down on us. So much for waiting on the guitar solo. I worried that the tech director

would think I was chickening out if I didn't do it right then and there.

So I jumped my cue. I took Michaela by the shoulders, turning her to me. The ring box opened.

"I love you Michaela. Will you marry me?"

With a sudden look of shock, hands to face, tears welling in her eyes my one, my only, my all... said "Yes".

We held each other. The crowd reaction was incredible.

I slipped the ring on her finger...another embrace.

Once again, 19,000 people cheered with us.

As we looked to the stage, Paul smiled at us and gave us the thumbs up. When the song was done, he rose from the piano, looked at us, made the heart symbol
and another thumbs up.

He then approached the center mic and said to me, "I heard you were going to do that!" "Wait a minute, did she say yes?" After I got a confirming nod from Michaela, Sir Paul replied, "Ok, just checking." He then said, "Ladies and Gentlemen, that's Luke and Michaela. They're officially engaged."

We smiled back, trying to yell thank you to him as Michaela waved her new ring and nodded.

Later in the concert, someone held up a sign requesting "Ram On." Paul obliged. As he sang "Give your heart to somebody soon right away..right away"
he looked at us again, gave us a sign of togetherness and hope by raising crossed fingers and thumbs up once more.

Upon leaving the arena, we were greeted by so many well-wishers. Everyone of them was so very kind. We were truly touched. It was an incredible evening for us, the happiest. Imagine, proposing to the woman you love, her acceptance and then the first person to congratulate you and announce your engagement is none other than
Sir Paul McCartney.

Such an incredibly generous act from a man who has already given so much of himself to the world. We can't thank him enough.

As for the marriage plans, no date has been set. After all, this was a surprise. The only people with advance knowledge were my mother and the staff at the
jewelry store in Indianapolis. It's been more than a week since it all took place. Our sleep cycle has yet to return to normal. We're still basking in the glow of it all. The concert, the great seats, the kindness of a living legend and a promise to each other to live out our lives together all combine for the memory of a lifetime.

Every time I think about it I'm stunned. I'm shocked.

No. Maybe I'm amazed."

Luke & Michaela
August 2010

The official Abbey Road 50th anniversary box set announcement

Abbey Road Anniversary Editions To Be Released

OH YEAH, ALRIGHT!

 THE BEATLES REVISIT ABBEY ROAD

WITH SPECIAL ANNIVERSARY RELEASES

Abbey Road Presented with New Mixes in Stereo, 5.1 Surround, and Dolby Atmos; Expanded with Previously Unreleased Session Recordings and Demos 

– AVAILABLE EVERYWHERE SEPTEMBER 27, 2019 –

London – August 8, 2019 – It was 50 years ago today, on August 8, 1969, that the world’s most famous band stepped out from London’s EMI Recording Studios to stride, single-file, across the black and white stripes of Abbey Road’s nearby zebra crossing. With photographer Iain Macmillan balanced on a stepladder and one policeman stopping the street’s light traffic, The Beatles crossed back and forth three times, led by John Lennon, followed by Ringo Starr, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison. Just six photos were taken, with the fifth selected as the cover shot for The Beatles’ penultimate studio album, Abbey Road, named after the tree-lined street in which the studios are located. Released September 26, 1969, Abbey Road was not The Beatles’ final album, as Let It Be followed in 1970, but it was the last one John, Paul, George, and Ringo recorded together as a band. The Beatles will celebrate Abbey Road’s anniversary with a suite of beautifully presented packages to be released worldwide on September 27 by Apple Corps Ltd./Capitol/UMe. Now available for preorder, the album’s 17 tracks are newly mixed by producer Giles Martin and mix engineer Sam Okell in stereo, high res stereo, 5.1 surround, and Dolby Atmos, accompanied by 23 session recordings and demos, most of which are previously unreleased.

“The Beatles recording journey had gone through many twists and turns, learning curves and thrilling rides. Here we were – still wondering at the magic of it all,” McCartney recalls in his written foreword for Abbey Road’s anniversary edition packages.

This is the first time Abbey Road has been remixed and presented with additional session recordings and demos. The album’s sweeping new edition follows the universally acclaimed remixed and expanded anniversary editions of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and The BEATLES (‘White Album’) released in 2017 and 2018, respectively. To create Abbey Road’s new stereo, 5.1 surround, and Dolby Atmos mixes, Martin and Okell worked with an expert team of engineers and audio restoration specialists at Abbey Road Studios. All the new Abbey Road releases feature the new stereo album mix, sourced directly from the original eight-track session tapes. To produce the mix, Giles was guided by the album’s original stereo mix supervised by his father, George Martin.

“The magic comes from the hands playing the instruments, the blend of The Beatles’ voices, the beauty of the arrangements,” Giles Martin explains in his written introduction for the new edition. “Our quest is simply to ensure everything sounds as fresh and hits you as hard as it would have on the day it was recorded.”

Abbey Road’s Super Deluxe box set presents 40 tracks – including “The Long One” Trial Edit & Mix for the album’s epic Side 2 medley – on three CDs (stereo) and one Blu-ray disc (Dolby Atmos, 96kHz/24 bit high resolution stereo, and 96 kHz/24 bit DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1). The four discs are housed in a slip-sleeved 12” by 12” 100-page hardbound book with McCartney’s foreword; Martin’s introduction; insightful, in-depth chapters written by Beatles historian, author, and radio producer Kevin Howlett covering the months preceding The Beatles’ Abbey Road sessions, track-by-track details and session notes, the cover art and photo shoot, and the album’s reception upon its release; plus an essay by music journalist and author David Hepworth looking at the album’s influence through 50 years. The gorgeous book is illustrated with rare and previously unpublished photographs, including many taken by Linda McCartney; never before published images of handwritten lyrics, sketches, and a George Martin score; Beatles correspondence, recording sheets, and tape boxes; and reproduced original print ads. The Super Deluxe digital audio collection presents all 40 tracks for download purchase and streaming in standard and MFiT formats, as well as in high resolution audio (96kHz/24 bit) for download.

Abbey Road’s limited edition Deluxe vinyl box set features all 40 tracks from the Super Deluxe collection on three 180-gram vinyl LPs. The album’s new stereo mix LP is packaged in a faithfully replicated sleeve, with the two Sessions LPs paired in their own jacket, presented with a four-page insert in a lift-top box. The Deluxe 2CD set pairs the new stereo mix with versions taken from the session takes and demo recordings of its 17 songs, sequenced to match the album’s running order. The two discs are presented in a digipak with a 40-page booklet abridged from the Super Deluxe book. The album’s new stereo mix is also available in 1CD and 180-gram 1LP vinyl packages, for digital download in standard and MFiT audio, and on a limited edition picture disc vinyl LP illustrated by the album’s front and back cover art images.

Abbey Road’s Super Deluxe and Deluxe vinyl box sets’ 23 session and demo recordings are presented in chronological order of their first recording dates. “I Want You (She’s So Heavy)” leads the charge:

For an overnight session on February 22, 1969, The Beatles were joined at London’s Trident Studios by producer George Martin and engineer Glyn Johns to record “I Want You (She’s So Heavy).” Abbey Road’s new edition combines a take from that session with the concluding part of the Trident master’s eight-track reduction mix made later at the EMI studios, revealing for the first time Billy Preston’s thrilling overdubbed organ solo. With their amps turned up high, The Beatles received a noise complaint from one of the studio’s neighbors in the Soho area of the city. The take starts with Lennon exclaiming, “My boys are ready to go!,” before the band is told about the complaint. Lennon replies, “What are they doing here at this time of night?,” then lays it down: “Well, we’ll try it once more very loud. And then if we don’t get it, we’ll try it quiet, like it might do it the other way. OK. The loud one, last go. Last chance to be loud!”

In the same month that the raucous Trident session took place, McCartney recorded a home demo of “Goodbye” for the Apple-signed singer Mary Hopkin and Harrison recorded a solo demo of “Something” at EMI Recording Studios. Both demos are featured on Abbey Road’s new edition. “Goodbye” makes its release debut. Although previously released on Anthology 3 in a version featuring guitar and vocal, the new anniversary mix of George’s “Something” demo features for the first time vocal, guitar and piano.  

The Beatles reconvened at EMI’s studios and Olympic Sound Studios for sessions spanning mid-April to early May. On April 14, Lennon and McCartney recorded the single “The Ballad Of John And Yoko” in EMI’s Studio Three, with Geoff Emerick as the balance engineer. Two days later, the single’s B-side, “Old Brown Shoe” was recorded. Session recordings for these tracks, as well as three more songs started during this period, “Oh! Darling,” “Octopus’s Garden,” and “You Never Give Me Your Money,” are featured in Abbey Road’s anniversary edition.

The remainder of Abbey Road’s sessions took place in July and in August with George Martin producing, and with principal engineers Geoff Emerick and Phil McDonald taking turns at EMI’s groundbreaking new mixing console, the TG12345. On July 2, 3, and 4, McCartney, Harrison, and Starr recorded “Golden Slumbers”/“Carry That Weight” as a medley (Lennon was hospitalized in Scotland, recuperating after a car accident). A sequence of Takes 1-3 from the first day’s session is featured in the anniversary edition. Take 9 from McCartney, Harrison, and Starr’s backing track session for “Here Comes The Sun” on Starr’s July 7 birthday is also included.

On July 21, 22, and 23, The Beatles were in-studio to record “Come Together,” followed by additional sessions on July 25, 29, and 30. The anniversary edition features Take 5. On July 23, The Beatles began recording “The End,” which, along with McCartney’s timeless couplet – “And in the end, the love you take / Is equal to the love you make” – features Starr’s only drum solo on a Beatles recording. Take 3 is included in Abbey Road’s new edition. The next day, just before the band’s 34-take session for “Sun King” and “Mean Mr Mustard,” McCartney cut a quick studio demo for “Come And Get It” – later a hit for the Apple-signed band Badfinger. The demo’s original 1969 stereo mix, made with McCartney and Lennon present in the control room, is released for the first time in the new edition, as is Take 20 from The Beatles’ “Sun King” and “Mean Mr Mustard” session. On July 25, two more songs, “Polythene Pam” and “She Came In Through The Bathroom Window,” were recorded as one for inclusion in the album’s epic medley. Take 27 from that session is featured on the new edition.

After Harrison had transported his rare and cumbersome Moog synthesizer to the studios, four songs received Beatle-played synthesizer parts: “I Want You (She’s So Heavy)” (Lennon), “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer” (McCartney), and “Here Comes The Sun” and “Because” (Harrison). This was a very early use of the newly-invented instrument on a pop record. George Martin wrote arrangements for several tracks that were recorded in Studio One toward the end of the sessions in August 1969. The original overdubbed recordings of Martin’s scores for “Something” and “Golden Slumbers”/“Carry That Weight” are included in Abbey Road’s anniversary edition.

August 20, 1969 was the last time The Beatles were together as a band at the EMI studios, for an evening session to compile Abbey Road’s master tapes. The album’s sides were sequenced, with “Come Together” opening Side 1, and with the medley of “You Never Give Me Your Money,” “Sun King,” “Mean Mr Mustard,” “Polythene Pam,” “She Came In Through The Bathroom Window,” “Golden Slumbers,” “Carry That Weight,” and “The End” placed on Side 2. “The Long One,” a different trial edit and mix of the medley, including “Her Majesty” (ultimately placed 14 seconds after “The End” as an unlisted, hidden track) is included in Abbey Road’s new edition.

A few weeks before Abbey Road’s release on September 26, 1969, Apple’s press officer Derek Taylor revealed that the album was “recorded at nice, workmanlike sessions which usually began at 2pm and continued until the end of the evening.” Millions of Abbey Road LPs were pressed at manufacturing plants around the world. The album was another blockbuster release for The Beatles, holding the No. 1 spot on the U.K. albums chart for a total of 17 weeks and topping Billboard’s U.S. albums chart for 11 weeks. For their work on Abbey Road, Geoff Emerick and Phil McDonald won the year’s GRAMMY Award® for Best Engineered Recording, Non-Classical. In 1995, Abbey Road was inducted into the Recording Academy’s GRAMMY Hall of Fame, recognizing “recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance.” The Beatles’ best-selling studio album, Abbey Road’s universal popularity and influence have continued to grow since its debut.

Since Abbey Road’s release, the street’s zebra crossing has been one of the most celebrated and photographed sites in the world, protected as an historic landmark and visited by thousands of Beatles fans each year. Due to the success of The Beatles’ album, EMI Recording Studios was renamed Abbey Road Studios. Owned and operated by Universal Music Group, Abbey Road Studios is the most famous recording studio in the world and a global music icon.

Abbey Road Anniversary Edition

Tracklists

SUPER DELUXE [3CD+1Blu-ray set; digital audio collection]

CD ONE: 2019 Stereo Mix

1. Come Together

2. Something

3. Maxwell’s Silver Hammer

4. Oh! Darling

5. Octopus’s Garden

6. I Want You (She’s So Heavy)

7. Here Comes The Sun

8. Because

9. You Never Give Me Your Money

10. Sun King

11. Mean Mr Mustard

12. Polythene Pam

13. She Came In Through The Bathroom Window

14. Golden Slumbers

15. Carry That Weight

16. The End

17. Her Majesty

CD TWO: Sessions

1. I Want You (She’s So Heavy) (Trident Recording Session & Reduction Mix)

2. Goodbye (Home Demo)

3. Something (Studio Demo)

4. The Ballad Of John And Yoko (Take 7)

5. Old Brown Shoe (Take 2)

6. Oh! Darling (Take 4)

7. Octopus’s Garden (Take 9)

8. You Never Give Me Your Money (Take 36)

9. Her Majesty (Takes 1–3)

10. Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight (Takes 1–3 / Medley)

11. Here Comes The Sun (Take 9)

12. Maxwell’s Silver Hammer (Take 12)

CD THREE: Sessions

1. Come Together (Take 5)

2. The End (Take 3)

3. Come And Get It (Studio Demo)

4. Sun King (Take 20)

5. Mean Mr Mustard (Take 20)

6. Polythene Pam (Take 27)

7. She Came In Through  The Bathroom Window (Take 27)

8. Because (Take 1 – Instrumental)

9. The Long One (Trial Edit & Mix – 30 July 1969)

(Medley: You Never Give Me Your Money, Sun King, Mean Mr Mustard, Her Majesty, Polythene Pam, She Came In Through The Bathroom Window, Golden Slumbers, Carry That Weight, The End)

10. Something (Take 39 – Instrumental – Strings Only)

11. Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight (Take 17 – Instrumental – Strings & Brass Only)

BLU-RAY: Abbey Road

Audio Features:

- Dolby Atmos

- 96kHz/24 bit DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1

- 96kHz/24 bit High Res Stereo (2019 Stereo Mix)

DELUXE 3LP VINYL BOX SET (limited edition)

LP ONE: Side 1 (2019 Stereo Mix)

1. Come Together

2. Something

3. Maxwell’s Silver Hammer

4. Oh! Darling

5. Octopus’s Garden

6. I Want You (She’s So Heavy)

LP ONE: Side 2 (2019 Stereo Mix)

1. Here Comes The Sun

2. Because

3. You Never Give Me Your Money

4. Sun King

5. Mean Mr Mustard

6. Polythene Pam

7. She Came In Through The Bathroom Window

8. Golden Slumbers

9. Carry That Weight

10. The End

11. Her Majesty

LP TWO: Side 1 (Sessions)

1. I Want You (She’s So Heavy) (Trident Recording Session and Reduction Mix)

2. Goodbye (Home Demo)

3. Something (Studio Demo)

4. The Ballad Of John And Yoko (Take 7)

5. Old Brown Shoe (Take 2)

LP TWO: Side 2 (Sessions)

1. Oh! Darling (Take 4)

2. Octopus’s Garden (Take 9)

3. You Never Give Me Your Money (Take 36)

4. Her Majesty (Takes 1–3)

5. Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight (Takes 1–3) / Medley)

6. Here Comes The Sun (Take 9)

7. Maxwell’s Silver Hammer (Take 12)

LP THREE: Side 1 (Sessions)

1. Come Together (Take 5)

2. The End (Take 3)

3. Come and Get It (Studio Demo)

4. Sun King (Take 20)

5. Mean Mr Mustard (Take 20)

6. Polythene Pam (Take 27)

7. She Came In Through The Bathroom Window (Take 27)

8. Because (Take 1 Instrumental)

LP THREE: Side 2 (Sessions)

1. The Long One (Trial Edit & Mix – 30 July 1969)

2. Something (Take 39 – Instrumental – Strings Only)

3. Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight (Take 17 – Instrumental – Strings & Brass Only)

DELUXE 2CD

CD ONE: 2019 Stereo Mix

CD TWO: Sessions

1. Come Together (Take 5)

2. Something (Studio Demo)

3. Maxwell’s Silver Hammer (Take 12)

4. Oh! Darling (Take 4)

5. Octopus’s Garden (Take 9)

6. I Want You (She’s So Heavy) (Trident Recording Session & Reduction Mix)

7. Here Comes The Sun (Take 9)

8. Because (Take 1 Instrumental)

9. You Never Give Me Your Money (Take 36)

10. Sun King (Take 20)

11. Mean Mr Mustard (Take 20)

12. Polythene Pam (Take 27)

13. She Came In Through The Bathroom Window (Take 27)

14. Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight (Takes 1–3 / Medley)

15. The End (Take 3)

16. Her Majesty (Takes 1–3)

STANDARD [1CD; digital; 1LP vinyl; limited edition 1LP picture disc vinyl]

2019 Stereo Mix