The Beatles At The Beeb w/Pete Best!

Drexel, 1988

US equivalent of Meet The Beeb!, compiling the earliest and rarest BBC radio broadcasts, from different (sometimes superior and more complete) tape sources. Still only fair quality, but historically amazing.

Side 1:

- Dream Baby (How Long Must I Dream?)

- Memphis, Tennessee

- Please Mr. Postman

- Ask Me Why

- Besame Mucho

- A Picture Of You

- Some Other Guy

- Keep Your Hands Off My Baby

- Beautiful Dreamer

- From Me To You

Side 2:

- I Saw Her Standing There

- Misery

- Too Much Monkey Business

- I'm Talking About You

- Please Please Me

- The Hippy Hippy Shake

- I Saw Her Standing There

- A Shot Of Rhythm And Blues

- There's A Place

- Twist And Shout

- Ooh! My Soul

Bellan Howl

As part of the promotion for the new Plastic Ono Band single, "Instant Karma!", John and Yoko were interviewed by David Bellan for BBC Radio. The conversation was taped around the end of January, 1970 at Apple for the World Service program Profile, broadcast May 28th and then forgotten about for 35 years, when it resurfaced online.

David Bellan interview

The Stereo Walk

Rubber Soul, 1988

A compilation of mostly-common tracks, although the spoken material on side 2 is unusual. And no, "The Walk" isn't in stereo!

Side 1:

- Suicide

- Bad To Me

- I'll Be On My Way

- Catswalk

- Goodbye

- All Together On The Wireless Machine

- Step Inside Love

- The Walk

- Back Seat Of My Car

- Commonwealth

- Spiritual Regeneration

- Suzy Parker

Side 2:

- Back In The USSR

- Ding Dong, Ding Dong

- Dark Horse

- Hello Little Girl

- Beatles In The Studio

- Some Other Guy

- John Wizardo talks to John Lennon

- Syracuse press conference

- Grammy Awards

Georgia On My Mi-mi-mi-mi-mind

Apart from Shea Stadium, the August 18th Atlanta concert was probably the highlight of The Beatles' 1965 tour, thanks to the state-of-the-art P.A. system which allowed the group to hear themselves clearly for perhaps the only time in a stadium performance.

Before the show, there was the requisite press conference, and individual interviews with disc jockey Jerry G. Bishop and reporter Larry Kane.

Codename Russia

Core, 1988

Yellow Dog's follow-up LP to The Real Case Has Just Begun, this time featuring only Twickenham recordings.

Side 1:

- Another Day

- I've Got A Feeling

- Hello Dolly

- Please Mrs. Henry

- "Ramblin' Woman"/"Is It Discovered"

- Picasso/Taking A Trip To Carolina

- Brown-Eyed Handsome Man

- Well... All Right

- Back In The USSR/Every Little Thing

- Piece Of My Heart

- Sabre Dance

- Frere Jacques/It Ain't Me Babe

- Two Of Us

- Hear Me Lord

- Lowdown Blues Machine

- What'd I Say/Carry That Weight/Shout!

Side 2:

- A Shot Of Rhythm And Blues

- You're So Square (Baby I Don't Care)

- Across The Universe

- Rock And Roll Music

- Don't Let Me Down/Devil In Her Heart

- Jenny Jenny/Slippin' And Slidin'

- Let It Be

- That'll Be The Day

- Hi Heel Sneakers

- I'm Talking About You

- Till There Was You

- Don't Be Cruel

Like A Cup Of Tea, Madam?

On October 9th, 1963, BBC Television broadcast The Mersey Sound, a documentary on the exploding pop music scene in Liverpool. Naturally, The Beatles were the focal point, and a camera crew followed them around from August 26th - 30th.

On the 26th, footage was shot of the hysterical audience at their concert in the Southport Odeon. The following day, they mimed to several pre-recorded songs onstage at the Little Theatre; although there was no audience present, the crowd from the previous night was spliced into these scenes in the finished product. "Love Me Do" was lip-synced to the original EMI disc, but the other two were new recordings:

She Loves You

Twist And Shout (assembled from several pieces)

On the 28th, The Beatles filmed extensive interviews in a dressing room at the BBC's Manchester studio:

Beatle interviews

Brian Epstein was also interviewed for the program

The final two days of filming took place at various locations around Liverpool. On the soundtrack of this footage was an instrumental version of "I Saw Her Standing There", most likely recorded by The Beatles along with the other songs:

I Saw Her Standing There

The Beatles Invade Europe

Instant Analysis, 1987

Another live Starlight compilation copied from other bootlegs, including concerts in Paris (1964), the Royal Variety Show (1963), Munich (1966), and the NME Pollwinners' Concert (1965).

Side 1:

- From Me To You

- This Boy

- I Want To Hold Your Hand

- She Loves You

- Twist And Shout

- From Me To You (reprise)

- From Me To You

- She Loves You

- Till There Was You

- Twist And Shout

Side 2:

- Rock And Roll Music

- Baby's In Black

- I Feel Fine

- Yesterday

- Nowhere Man

- I'm Down

- She's A Woman

- Ticket To Ride

- Long Tall Sally

Long Distance Information, Get Me...

Despite all the controversy surrounding John's offhand remarks about Christianity, the concerts in Memphis, Tennessee went largely as planned. There was no large protest or boycott, average attendance compared to the rest of the tour, and only a firecracker punctuating "If I Needed Someone" (thrown by an unruly teenaged boy, not a religious fanatic) during the evening show.

Nevertheless, it was the most heavily covered stop on the tour, due to the anticipation of troubles. Here are a number of interviews and on-the-spot reports covering the events of August 19th, 1966 (the Coleman and Stagg recordings are of poor quality):

Paul on the tour bus (filmed by ITV for Reporting '66)

Bess Coleman live report (during the first show)

Bess Coleman interviews

Richard Lindley interview (backstage between shows for Reporting '66)

Jim Stagg interviews

Ken Douglas live report (during the second show)

Kenny Everett report (in the bus leaving the stadium after the second show)

Reporting '66 concert footage:

Paris 65

Instant Analysis, 1987

Starlight Records, using the old CBM moniker Instant Analysis, issued this LP of the June 1965 Palais des Sports concerts, lifted from the boot A Paris.

Side 1:

- I'm A Loser

- Can't Buy Me Love

- I Wanna Be Your Man

- A Hard Day's Night

- Rock And Roll Music

- I Feel Fine

- Ticket To Ride

- Long Tall Sally

Side 2:

- Twist And Shout

- She's A Woman

- Can't Buy Me Love

- I'm A Loser

- I Wanna Be Your Man

- A Hard Day's Night

- Baby's In Black

- Rock And Roll Music

- Everybody's Trying To Be My Baby

- Ticket To Ride

- Long Tall Sally

Jump In The Mersey

John, Paul, George, and Jimmy Nicol flew from Sydney to Adelaide on June 12th, 1964. After checking in at the South Australian Hotel, they met reporters for their second press conference in Australia. Here is a composite recording of the event from video sources and the bootleg 300,000 Beatle Fans Can't Be Wrong:

Adelaide press conference

The Quarrymen Rehearse With Stu Sutcliff

Pre Beatle Records, 1988

Spelling error in the title aside (Sutcliffe), this was an exciting LP at the time of release. It's the US equivalent of the 1987 LP The Quarrymen At Home, and offers most of the "songs" from the 1960 Beatals rehearsal tapes, leaving out the long and painful instrumentals. Fabulous cover, too!

Side 1:

- Hallelujah I Love Her So

- One After 909

- I Will Always Be In Love Than You

- You'll Be Mine

- Matchbox

- Wildcat

- Some Days

- Cayenne

Side 2:

- I'll Follow The Sun

- One After 909

- Well Darling

- You Must Write Every Day

- Movin' And Groovin'/Ramrod

- That's When Your Heartaches Begin

- Hello Little Girl

- That'll Be The Day

With An Exclamation Point

Here is a very silly interview with four (likely stoned) Beatles, Help! producer Walter Shenson and reporter Sandy Lesberg. It was recorded May 9th, 1965 at the Dolphin Restaurant in London, the exterior of which served as the Rajahama restaurant in the film.

Hedda Hopper and Walter Winchell

Ready Steady Go!

Wind Records, 1987

As the title suggests, this LP offers the soundtrack to several TV performances: Ready Steady Go! on side A, and Around The Beatles on side B. All material is dubbed from commercial videotapes, and all the music is mimed. Exciting, huh?

Side 1:

- You Can't Do That

- interview

- Can't Buy Me Love

- She's A Woman

- Baby's In Black

- Kansas City/Hey Hey Hey Hey!

- She Loves You

Side 2:

- Twist And Shout

- Roll Over Beethoven

- I Wanna Be Your Man

- Long Tall Sally

- Love Me Do/Please Please Me/From Me To You/She Loves You/I Want To Hold Your Hand

- Can't Buy Me Love

- Shout!

Frankie, Paul, and Mary

Legendary British comic actor Frankie Howerd crossed paths with The Beatles numerous times, from early meetings in 1963 (see above) to Howerd's role in Help! as Sam Ahab (a scene cut from the final print). Frankie even portrayed Mean Mr. Mustard in the lamentable 1978 film Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.

In 1968, TV presenter David Frost was producing a series of specials designed for syndication in the US market. One such program was David Frost Presents... Frankie Howerd, which aired in February 1969. Paul McCartney participated in a segment of this show, taped June 16th, 1968. After a bit of banter with Frankie, Paul introduced one of the fledgling Apple label's newest signings, Mary Hopkin, who sang "House Of The Rising Sun".

The original videotape isn't circulating, but here is an off-air audio recording of the original broadcast:

David Frost presents... Frankie Howerd presents... Paul McCartney presents... Mary Hopkin

Who's Shouting In My Ears?

no label, 1985-86

A mish-mosh of mono mixes, BBC and Get Back tracks, and outfakes, with oodles of misinformation on the back cover track listing.

Side 1:

- Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise)

- I'm Only Sleeping

- Mean Mr. Mustard

- All Together On The Wireless Machine

- She's A Woman

- This Boy

- My Bonnie

- Have You Heard The Word

Side 2:

- Dig It

- The Long And Winding Road

- I Forgot To Remember To Forget

- That's All Right Mama

- shout contest

- Shout!

- Birthday

Toppermost of the Poppermost, Part 4

The Beatles' fifth appearance on Top Of The Pops was also their last with new musical content. Episode #32, aired the week of July 3rd, 1965, included two songs from the recent special, The Beatles (Invite You To Take A Ticket To Ride). The third song, "Everybody's Trying To Be My Baby" was reused from the 1964 Top Gear, even though it had been part of the Ticket To Ride show (perhaps because George had sung "Everydobby" in 1965).

Since the host of that show was Denny Piercy, the Fabs sat down with Brian Matthew (date unknown) to tape some chat specifically for this show. Brian also congratulated them on being awarded MBEs in an introduction obviously recorded in late June (the snippet of Beatle dialogue in the intro is mixed in from 1964's Top Gear).

intro/Dizzy Miss Lizzy/chat/Everybody's Trying To Be My Baby/Ticket To Ride/outro

It Was 20 Years Ago Today

"TMOQ", 1987

Not a true Trademark of Quality LP, the highlight of this compilation was the acetate of "A Day In The Life". Everything else (apart from the medley) was copied from other boots.

Side 1:

- A Day In The Life

- Mailman Bring Me No More Blues

- Soldier Of Love

- Get Back

- A Hard Day's Night

- Honey Pie

- That Means A Lot

- A Day In The Life

Side 2:

- Yes It Is

- This Boy

- Medley

- Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da

- I'll Be On My Way

- Side By Side

- Some Other Guy

- Suicide

- That'll Be The Day

- Please Mr. Postman

- Crying, Waiting, Hoping

- This Boy

Toppermost of the Poppermost, Part 3

The Beatles' fourth appearance on Top Of The Pops came in episode #15, broadcast the week of March 6th, 1965, while the boys were in the Bahamas filming Help!

The contents were cannibalized from the well-plucked Top Gear of November 17th, 1964, but also from Saturday Club, recorded November 25th. Since both shows had Brian Matthew as a host, it was easy to recycle and combine chat elements from both on the Matthew-hosted TOTP.

Brian even recorded some special dialogue to keep listeners up to date on the status of Ringo's marriage. He also changed a reference to visiting countries on tour "this year" to "last year", seeing as how The Beatles had yet to perform on foreign soil in 1965. "Honey Don't" has been heavily edited compared to its original Top Gear airing. Finally, note a bit of unique dialogue in the introduction about John's colourful wardrobe.

intro/"a creation in green"

chat/Kansas City/Hey Hey Hey Hey!

Honey Don't

Rock And Roll Music/outro

Dig It!

NEMS, 1987

Side 1:

- That's All Right Mama

- I'll Be On My Way

- Twist And Shout

- Roll Over Beethoven

- I Wanna Be Your Man

- Can't Buy Me Love

- She's A Woman

- Ticket To Ride

- Long Tall Sally

- Yes It Is

Side 2:

- Magical Mystery Tour

- Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da

- Christmas Time (Is Here Again)

- Oh! Darling

- Across The Universe

- Lady Madonna

- I Want You (She's So Heavy)

- Dig It

Toppermost of the Poppermost, Part 2

The Beatles' second appearance on Top Of The Pops was in Episode #04, which aired the week of December 19th, 1964.

The material was taken from their November 17th taping for Top Gear, and includes a unique bit of chat with Ringo talking about his "long nose", which wasn't part of the original Top Gear broadcast.

opening/Ringo chat

I'm A Loser

interview/She's A Woman

I Feel Fine/closing

You'll notice at the end that Brian Matthew mentions their return visit in a few weeks' time. This was in Episode #08, broadcast the week of January 16th, 1965. I don't have a copy of this episode, but written records indicate it included a repeat of "I Feel Fine", as well as "I'll Follow The Sun" and "Everybody's Trying To Be My Baby", all borrowed from Top Gear. I suspect the interview portion was John and Paul describing the covers on Beatles For Sale, and George having "a cold and a cough". If anyone has a copy of this Top Of The Pops, please let me know!

Shea!

TMOQ, 1987

Reissue (in a fetching cover) of Shea... At Last!, an old bootleg featuring most of the soundtrack to The Beatles At Shea Stadium TV special.

Side 1:

- I'm Down

- Twist And Shout

- I Feel Fine

- Dizzy Miss Lizzy

- Ticket To Ride

Side 2:

- Act Naturally

- Can't Buy Me Love

- Baby's In Black

- A Hard Day's Night

- Help!

- I'm Down

Toppermost of the Poppermost, Part 1

On July 14th, 1964, The Beatles recorded six songs and chat with host Brian Matthew for the debut episode of BBC Radio's Top Gear. Some of the content was then repurposed for the premiere of another BBC Radio venture, this time for broadcast in overseas markets.

Top Of The Pops (not to be confused with a UK TV series of the same title) was syndicated in America and other foreign territories via transcription discs, and it's thanks to these discs that high-quality versions of many Beatles performances have survived (the session and broadcast master tapes having been trashed soon after airing).

The first edition of Top Of The Pops was actually a "preview episode", and exists in two slightly differing edits, numbered "Edition #0" and "Edition #00". Here are the introductions for each, with alternate voice-overs by Matthew, and a bit of John Lennon chat appended to the second:

intro #0

intro #00

The Beatles appeared three further times in the episode; since all three are identical between the two versions, I've uploaded them from the slightly cleaner Edition #0.

Long Tall Sally

chat/A Hard Day's Night

Things We Said Today/outro

This episode would have been aired in October, 1964. The Beatles made several more appearances on Top Of The Pops, which I'll examine in subsequent posts.