By Jim Stewart
You have probably seen the TV ad for ‘THE BEATLES VINYL COLLECTION’ has been released…
Yes, a new 23 ‘partwork’ series of every original Beatles album on 180 vinyl, plus all of the Anthology, Live At The BBC, Past Masters, and other significant compilations of the band’s material.
With a magazine detailing either the recording sessions of the accompanying LP, or the information behind the various collections, it is available fortnightly at newsagents, etc, or via four weekly postal packages containing two issues at a time.
I now have the first two titles ‘Abbey Road’ and ‘Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’ and I have to admit I am impressed not only with the feel of the album, but also the magazine. Although somewhat thin, the pictures are brilliant, and the essay by Beatles historian, Kevin Howlett, is highly informative.
I won’t bother reviewing the actual albums as both are so well-known and loved, but no sooner had I awoken my record deck from its pre-millennium hibernation, and the opening bars of ‘Sgt. Pepper’ started to ring out, I began to realize that, although I had heard it previously on numerous formats, including the original and remastered CD issues, the sound coming from the revolving black plastic was exactly how it was intended to be heard and the high-density vinyl makes so much difference.
Available at £16.99 for single albums, and £24.99 for two and three album sets, the prices compare favourably with virtually all online and high street stores, and subscribers also get a selection of series-related goodies, including T-shirt, picture frame, mug, and backpack, as the series progresses.
Back in the eighties, I collected the complete ‘partwork’ and LP series ‘History Of Rock’, which I still re-visit regularly, and I am sure I will not be alone in wanting to possess this definitive collection of The Beatles recordings on vinyl.