The Beatles :: Charts & Sales History

[stollar]

The Beatles is coming too vinyl in November

[blackbird]

The Beatles is coming too vinyl in November

I'm a bit specptical about that, because we had so many unofficial announcements about the vinyl release. Wait until wee see an official statement.

[bigred]

The Beatles is coming too vinyl in November

I'll believe it when I actually see em.

[stevieb]

The Beatles is coming too vinyl in November

I'll believe it when I actually see em.

From Beatles Examiner:

The Beatles remastered vinyl box set, first mentioned in 2009 and rumored increasingly more often this year, will be released Nov. 13, according to advance listings from two retailers that surfaced today and subsequently disappeared.

Both Elusive Disc and Music Direct were openly advertising the box set for a retail price of $399 earlier today when we first published this story, but those listings have now been removed. List prices ranged from $449 to $499. Acoustic Sounds has what appears to be a listing that used to be there, but also was removed. That listing notes the set will be officially announced Oct. 1.

Additionally, Bill King of Beatlefan told us he also had the box set confirmed by two sources. There was no comment on an inquiry about a possible release by EMI.

“Each album features original U.K. vinyl album artwork, original U.K. track listings, expanded booklets containing original and newly penned liner notes, recording notes, rare photos, and fold-out packaging. Everything comes housed in a tall, glossy, hard black lift-top case augmented with a magnetic clasp,” read some of the now missing description of the set from Music Direct.

“This stereo box set includes all 13 albums plus 'Past Masters.' It is comprised of the original 12 Beatles albums in stereo, with track listings and artwork as originally released in the UK, plus 'Magical Mystery Tour.' In addition, the collections 'Past Masters Vol. I and II' are now combined as one title, for a total of 14 titles over 16 discs all housed in a Super Deluxe Box!,” according to Elusive Disc.

“Proper care and a painstaking series of steps were taken to ensure that music lovers would hear the Fab Four in all their glory. With EMI’s legendary Abbey Road Studios providing the backdrop, the four-year restoration process combined veteran expertise, state-of-the-art equipment, vintage studio gear, and rigorous testing to net what is without doubt the highest fidelity possible and authentic, jaw-dropping sound guaranteed to rival the original LPs. There is no longer any need to pay hundreds of dollars for Japanese pressings,” Music Direct's listing said additionally.

Before the release of the remastered CDs in 2009, Abbey Road engineer Allan Rouse told us, “Each track was dealt with individually. Whilst bass may be one of the differences, so too are other frequencies, which were used to enhance and in some cases reduce. A small proportion of the tracks were not EQ’d at all as the improved transfers to digital had provided a sound that the engineers felt could not be improved upon. Many more had very little EQ applied and some a bit more, but at all times with the utmost consideration for each song.”

In 2009, talking about a release of Beatles vinyl remasters, Apple CEO Jeff Jones told Mojo, "We're working on them now. I don't have a release date. To put a release date next to them forces us into a situation where we're releasing something that might not be ready."

Now it appears they are ready. Start saving your pennies.

[stevieb]

The Beatles is coming too vinyl in November

I'm a bit specptical about that, because we had so many unofficial announcements about the vinyl release. Wait until wee see an official statement.

I think from the Examiner article, that there's too much detail for this to be another false alarm. Also, Giles Martin did tell the BBC in July that the vinyl remasters were on their way, and Amazon UK and US have been out of stock on most, if not all, of the vinyl albums for around six weeks now. I hope there'll be a both a mono and stereo box set, plus individual stereo albums, as with the CDs, but the price quoted would be way too high for many fans and is clearly aimed at the Christmas and Thanksgiving Day gift market.

I also think that iTunes may have something for the 50th anniversary, possibly promotion of the album catalogue (or maybe Love Me Do), or perhaps a new 'playlist' album.

[NothingFails]

Excited about the White Album vinyl... might also get Rubber Soul and Revolver. Beyond those I already have the Beatle vinyl I want and I'm satisfied with what I own.

[blackbird]

We've been so used to get SoundScan figures each and every week since more than one year. But at the moment nothing leaks out.

Week 36 (up to 09/09/2012) was the third anniversary of the release of the remastered Beatles catalog.

Abbey Road was the best seller among these albums.

743,279 copies of Abbey Road were sold from week 37/2009 to week 34/2012.
437,908: week 37/2009 - 36/2010
195,114: week 37/2010 - 36/2011
110,257: week 37/2011 - 34/2012

[bigred]

I could never understand why soundscan sales figures are so confidential.Why can't soundscan just publish the top 200 sales figures every week (like billboard posts the top 200 albums)? I asked this question a while back over at the U.K.soundscan site and was told "that people pay big money for this info". Why the big secrecy? Were not talking about government secrets that could imperile a nations security, were talking album sales figures.I have tried to contact soundscan a few times, but was of course ignored.

[stevieb]

I could never understand why soundscan sales figures are so confidential.Why can't soundscan just publish the top 200 sales figures every week (like billboard posts the top 200 albums)? I asked this question a while back over at the U.K.soundscan site and was told "that people pay big money for this info". Why the big secrecy? Were not talking about government secrets that could imperile a nations security, were talking album sales figures.I have tried to contact soundscan a few times, but was of course ignored.

And there's your answer...if they can sell the stats for 'big money' then that's what they'll do, rather than tell us. It's a mad, mad, mad, mad, world, as someone once said.

The BBC are reshowing the George Harrison Living In The Material World doc. on Friday and there's a new documentary called Love Me Do on October 5th about how the band changed in the last year or so before the Love Me Do single was released, via Hamburg and meeting Brian Epstein...just for once, Pete Best gets to be asked for his opinions!

[ouf]

http://www.inquisitr.com/322382/pain...00-at-auction/

[Cyril]

7" single listed on EMI website

The Beatles - Love Me Do

Release Date: 8/10/2012
Catalogue:C017 4017
Bar Code:5099901740172

7" Single (1)

Side 1
1. Love Me Do (Original Single Version) (2009 - Remaster)

Side 2
1. P.S. I Love You (2009 - Remaster)

[blackbird]

Is it time to re-evaluate the Beatles' Magical Mystery Tour?
John Harris, The Guardian, Tuesday 25 September 2012

[blackbird]

The best books on the Beatles
John Harris, The Guardian, Wednesday 26 September 2012

[blackbird]

Top 100 Albumes in Spain Week 38: 17/09/2012 - 23/09/2012

TW | LW | WOC | Artist | Title
77 57 46 The Beatles 1

[blackbird]

Rare Beatles LP sells for over $22,000
Karen 'Gilly' Laney, Wednesday 26 September 2012

[stollar]

The Beatles is coming too vinyl in November

It"s official: November 9th

[stollar]

The price of the vinyl box set is 4399 kr > around 600 Euros, so too expensive for me.

[bigred]

The Beatles is coming too vinyl in November

It"s official: November 9th

Are the LP's going to be sold individually or just as a box set?

[blackbird]

The Beatles is coming too vinyl in November

It"s official: November 9th

I couldn't find an official statement.

[bigred]

I found my answer: http://www.billboard.com/news/meet-the- ... ost_recent

[stollar]

The Beatles is coming too vinyl in November

It"s official: November 9th

Are the LP's going to be sold individually or just as a box set?

You can buy them individually.

[stollar]

The Beatles is coming too vinyl in November

It"s official: November 9th

I couldn't find an official statement.

Platekompaniet have them for sale on nov 9th,that"s

official enough for me..

[blackbird]

The Beatles is coming too vinyl in November

It"s official: November 9th

I couldn't find an official statement.

Platekompaniet have them for sale on nov 9th,that"s

official enough for me..

Ok, but amazon had (some of) them for sale since last year with varying release dates.

Now amazon.com offers the Stereo Vinyl Box Set for $399.99 to be released on November 13, 2012.

The Beatles' acclaimed original studio album remasters, released on CD in 2009, make their long-awaited stereo vinyl debut. Manufactured on 180-gram, audiophile quality vinyl with replicated artwork, the 14 albums return to their original glory with details including the poster in The Beatles (The White Album), the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart Club Band's cut-outs, and special inner bags for some of the titles. The albums are accompanied by a stunning, elegantly designed 252-page hardbound book in a lavish boxed edition which is limited to 50,000 copies worldwide. The book, exclusive to the boxed edition, is authored by award-winning radio producer Kevin Howlett and features a dedicated chapter for each of the albums, as well as insight into the creation of the remasters and how the vinyl albums were prepared. The 12"x12" book showcases a wealth of photographs spanning The Beatles' recording career, including many images which were not included in the 2009 CD booklets. The titles include The Beatles' 12 original UK albums, first released between 1963 and 1970, the US-originated Magical Mystery Tour, now part of the group's core catalogue, and Past Masters, Volumes One & Two, first released individually in 1988, featuring non-album A-sides and B-sides, EP tracks and rarities. With this release, The Beatles' first four albums make their North American stereo vinyl debuts. There has always been demand for The Beatles' albums on vinyl. Indeed, 2011's best-selling vinyl LP in the United States was Abbey Road. Following the success of The Beatles' acclaimed, GRAMMY Award-winning 2009 CD remasters, it was decided that the sound experts at EMI's Abbey Road Studios should create new versions of The Beatles' vinyl LPs. The project demanded the same meticulous approach taken for the CD releases, and the brief was a simple one: cut the digital remasters to vinyl with an absolute minimum of compromise to the sound. However, the process involved to do that was far from simple. The first stage in transferring the sound of a master recording to vinyl is the creation of a disc to be used during vinyl manufacture. There were two options to consider. A Direct Metal Master (DMM), developed in the late seventies, allows sound to be cut directly into a stainless steel disc coated with a hard copper alloy. The older, alternative method is to cut the sound into the soft lacquer coating on a nickel disc - the first of several steps leading to the production of a stamper to press the vinyl. A 'blind' listening test was arranged to choose between a 'lacquer' or 'copper' cut. Using both methods, A Hard Day's Night was pressed with ten seconds of silence at the beginning and end of each side. This allowed not only the reproduction of the music to be assessed, but also the noise made by the vinyl itself. After much discussion, two factors swung the decision towards using the lacquer process. First, it was judged to create a warmer sound than a DMM. Secondly, there was a practical advantage of having 'blank' discs of a consistent quality when cutting lacquers. The next step was to use the Neumann VMS80 cutting lathe at Abbey Road. Following thorough mechanical and electrical tests to ensure it was operating in peak condition, engineer Sean Magee cut the LPs in chronological release order. He used the original 24-bit remasters rather than the 16-bit versions that were required for CD production. It was also decided to use the remasters that had not undergone 'limiting' - a procedure to increase the sound level, which is deemed necessary for most current pop CDs. Having made initial test cuts, Magee pinpointed any sound problems that can occur during playback of vinyl records. To rectify them, changes were made to the remasters with a Digital Audio Workstation. For example, each vinyl album was listened to for any 'sibilant episodes' - vocal distortion that can occur on consonant sounds such as S and T. These were corrected by reducing the level in the very small portion of sound causing the undesired effect. Similarly, any likelihood of 'inner-groove distortion' was addressed. As the stylus approaches the centre of the record, it is liable to track the groove less accurately. This can affect the high-middle frequencies, producing a 'mushy' sound particularly noticeable on vocals. Using what Magee has described as 'surgical EQ,' problem frequencies were identified and reduced in level to compensate for this. The last phase of the vinyl mastering process began with the arrival of the first batches of test pressings made from master lacquers that had been sent to the two pressing plant factories. Stringent quality tests identified any noise or click appearing on more than one test pressing in the same place. If this happened, it was clear that the undesired sounds had been introduced either during the cutting or the pressing stage and so the test records were rejected. In the quest to achieve the highest quality possible, the Abbey Road team worked closely with the pressing factories and the manufacturers of the lacquer and cutting styli. An additional and unusual challenge was to ensure the proper playback of the sounds embedded in the 'lock-groove' at the end of side two of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Requiring a combination of good timing and luck, it had always been a lengthy and costly process to make it work properly. In fact, it was so tricky, it had never been attempted for American pressings of the LP. Naturally, Sean Magee and the team perfected this and the garbled message is heard as originally intended on the remastered Sgt. Pepper LP.

[stevieb]

And here's something else, cheaper and potentially every bit as interesting. From Steve Marinucci's excellent Beatles Examiner pages:

Unusual 10-CD Japanese set commemorates Beatles 50th anniversary
The Beatles themselves haven't done much to commemorate their 50th anniversary, but a 10-CD set being released in Japan in October will pay tribute to various special events in the Beatles history, it was revealed today.

The import set, to be released Oct. 5 and which does not appear to be from EMI, goes across the spectrum of Beatles history for its contents. The CDs include “BBC Special Edition” with songs from their BBC broadcasts, “Apple Studio Tracks” with multiple studio tracks of “Get Back” and “Oh Darling” plus other songs from the “Get Back”/”Let It Be” album sessions, “Love Songs,” with a different lineup of the Beatles' slower songs, another disc titled “Rock 'n' Roll Music” and six discs called “The Beatles Ultimate Collection.”

View slideshow: Beatles' 50th anniversary CD set

Unique Beatles Japanese releases, both on vinyl and CD, are not new and have been part of collectors' lore for years. Some of them have been sought by collectors for rare pictures and music, such as the Japanese vinyl EP that included the stereo version of “I'm Down” years before it appeared in the U.S.

The price of the box set is 12,600 Japanese yen, which comes out to approximately $163 in U.S. currency according to current exchange rates.

[stevieb]

The price of the vinyl box set is 4399 kr > around 600 Euros, so too expensive for me.

...and too expensive for me at £445 (Amazon's price). Apparently, there'll be a Mono Box set next year. Given the price of the stereo box, I imagine that the individual stereo albums will be listed at around £20-£25 each minimum.