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All Things Must Beat. Share Anything Beatles!!

#1,021
55 years ago today on March 25, 1966 at a photo session at Bob Whitaker's studio in London, The Beatles posed in white coats using sides of meat with mutilated and butchered dolls for the cover of their next American album, 'Yesterday and Today'. After advance copies were sent to disc jockeys and record reviewers, negative reaction to the cover photo was so strong Capitol recalled 750,000 copies from distributors to replace the cover. The total cost to Capitol to replace the cover and promotional materials was $250,000, wiping out their initial profit. Some of the original copies had the new album photo glued over the first photo and were distributed. This album cover was later referred to as "The Butcher Cover" and original copies that have not been altered are highly collectible.

beatles-butcher-cover-and-paste-overjpg-b01fa0e2c1aecdf9.jpg
 
#1,022
Richland123 said:
55 years ago today on March 25, 1966 at a photo session at Bob Whitaker's studio in London, The Beatles posed in white coats using sides of meat with mutilated and butchered dolls for the cover of their next American album, 'Yesterday and Today'. After advance copies were sent to disc jockeys and record reviewers, negative reaction to the cover photo was so strong Capitol recalled 750,000 copies from distributors to replace the cover. The total cost to Capitol to replace the cover and promotional materials was $250,000, wiping out their initial profit. Some of the original copies had the new album photo glued over the first photo and were distributed. This album cover was later referred to as "The Butcher Cover" and original copies that have not been altered are highly collectible.

beatles-butcher-cover-and-paste-overjpg-b01fa0e2c1aecdf9.jpg
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I didn't believe my younger sister when she asked me if either of my 'Yesterday & Today' albums had the butchered babies under the steamer trunk picture. She had sworn off The Beatles, and even given me her albums & 45s!, and was into Black Sabbath and the "heavier" bands by the time we heard about this. No, neither of my copies seem to have the controversial cover underneath.

I couldn't, for the life of me, reconcile a reason for that cover. And, after seeing it, with them all smiling, I understood it even less! It makes some sense to me as a protest against Capitol Records' cutting up their UK albums, their "babies"?, and piecing the together into the US versions. But it's also said to be a protest against the Vietnam War! Either way, the smiles seem to me to be out of place for protesting. But I'm sure more somber faces would have been just that much more controversial.

What do you think?
.
 
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#1,023
G-Dog said:
I didn't believe my younger sister when she asked me if either of my 'Yesterday & Today' albums had the butchered babies under the steamer trunk picture. She had sworn off The Beatles, and even given me her albums & 45s!, and was into Black Sabbath and the "heavier" bands by the time we heard about this. No, neither of my copies seem to have the controversial cover underneath.

I couldn't, for the life of me, reconcile a reason for that cover. And, after seeing it, with them all smiling, I understood it even less! It makes some sense to me as a protest against Capitol Records' cutting up their UK albums, their "babies"?, and piecing the together into the US versions. But it's also said to be a protest against the Vietnam War! Either way, the smiles seem to me to be out of place for protesting. But I'm sure more somber faces would have been just that much more controversial.

What do you think?
.
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They were handled and posed by photographers. It was just another day in the life. Capitol was owned by EMI, they originally wouldn’t release Beatle records, and yet they called the shots. Butchering UK Beatle albums happened everywhere though, it wasn’t just in the US.
 
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#1,024
In the sessions for "With A Girl Like You" and nearly all the other Rutles recordings, Neil Innes used his friends Ollie Halsall and John Halsey of the amazing jazz-rock band Patto. Halsall recorded almost all of the guitar and bass parts and Halsey the drum parts. Halsall also sang the Dirk McQuickly parts that Eric Idle lip-synced. Halsey, of course, played Barrington (Barry) Wom of the Rutles and sang his own parts.
 
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#1,026
beans-on-toast said:
They were handled and posed by photographers. It was just another day in the life. Capitol was owned by EMI, they originally wouldn’t release Beatle records, and yet they called the shots. Butchering UK Beatle albums happened everywhere though, it wasn’t just in the US.
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The US albums confuse the crap out of me. :laugh:

Where else did it happen?

[The US covers for the early AC/DC albums (High Voltage, Dirty Deeds, Let There Be Rock) as well.
I don’t think any of them are as good as the originals.]
 
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#1,028
Guitalia said:
In the sessions for "With A Girl Like You" and nearly all the other Rutles recordings, Neil Innes used his friends Ollie Halsall and John Halsey of the amazing jazz-rock band Patto. Halsall recorded almost all of the guitar and bass parts and Halsey the drum parts. Halsall also sang the Dirk McQuickly parts that Eric Idle lip-synced. Halsey, of course, played Barrington (Barry) Wom of the Rutles and sang his own parts.
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Ollie Halsall was the true "Fifth Rutle"

And Neil Innes wa sa very talented musician as well.
They assembled a great band.
 
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#1,030
RedVee said:
The US albums confuse the crap out of me. :laugh:

Where else did it happen? ... ...
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Just as the UK albums confuse me! Whatever the dubious reasons Capitol Records used to justify mangling the UK albums, that is what I grew up with, oblivious to any other configurations at the time. So, whenever I hear the end of one song I usually begin playing the next Capitol album selection in my mind!

I've since been vaguely aware of some differences for the last few decades, but managed to stay aloof from them. But, the past few years The Beatles Channel on SiriusXM radio has gently pointed out many of these differences, especially by their Bristish guest DJs, such the genteel Peter Asher. I thought I knew a lotta Beatles trivia, but I seem to learn something new there every day!
.
 
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#1,031
RedVee said:
The US albums confuse the crap out of me. :laugh:

Where else did it happen?

[The US covers for the early AC/DC albums (High Voltage, Dirty Deeds, Let There Be Rock) as well.
I don’t think any of them are as good as the originals.]
Click to expand...

Every album is marketed to the local buying public. Japan is notorious for special issues. Even in North America, the early Canadian issues issued by Capitol Canada were not the same as the US ones.

It was common to sell UK imports at a higher price right beside the regular albums. Then there were differences in vinyl pressing weight. Stereo vs mono releases.
 
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#1,032
Being a little younger, I started out listening to the red and blue albums after they came out in '73. So for a long time, I always expected the next track from *those* records!

I remember when I first listened to the Let It Be album all the way through. I was very happy to discover the version of the title track with a proper guitar solo rather than the one on the blue album where it's absolutely buried.
 
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#1,036
G-Dog said:
Just as the UK albums confuse me! Whatever the dubious reasons Capitol Records used to justify mangling the UK albums, that is what I grew up with, oblivious to any other configurations at the time. So, whenever I hear the end of one song I usually begin playing the next Capitol album selection in my mind!

I've since been vaguely aware of some differences for the last few decades, but managed to stay aloof from them. But, the past few years The Beatles Channel on SiriusXM radio has gently pointed out many of these differences, especially by their Bristish guest DJs, such the genteel Peter Asher. I thought I knew a lotta Beatles trivia, but I seem to learn something new there every day!
.
Click to expand...
Did Capitol manage to squeeze an extra album out via their changes?

I think I read something along those lines once.
 
#1,039
Happy 33rd Birthday to the Traveling Wilburys!

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They had played together in the past and had worked on each other's solo projects. So, on April 3, 1988, Bob Dylan, Jeff Lynne, Tom Petty, George Harrison, and Roy Orbison got together in Malibu to record an all-star single called "Handle With Care."

The session went so well that the group, calling itself the Traveling Wilburys, decided to record an album together. They ended up recording a second album.
 
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