The PopCulteer
November 8, 2024

Since this entry in The 2024 PopCult Gift Guide is pulling double duty as this week’s PopCulteer, it’s going to be a longish one, with several entries.

Every year I always tell you about the latest cool gift ideas for fans of the Fab Four, themselves, The Beatles.

This year is no different, as we have gift suggestions featuring the group and the individual members, at a variety of price points.

We’ll start off with the big-money gift…

The Beatles: 1964 U.S. Albums In Mono
$300 from many online music retailers and the official Beatles Site

This boxed set spotlights seven albums released in America Between January 1964 & March 1965. Each is a new pressing on 180-gram Vinyl LPs Cut from the Original Mono Masters.

Originally compiled for U.S. release between January 1964 and March 1965 by Capitol Records and United Artists, and out of print on vinyl since 1995 (or ealier), these seven mono vinyl discs are available now for preorder (they’ll ship by November 22)  in a new eight-LP box set titled The Beatles: 1964 U.S. Albums In Mono, with six of the titles also available individually.  The box set collects the seven albums, and all except The Beatles’ Story will also be available individually.

1964 was the year that the U.S. first fell head-over-heels for The Beatles, with an unprecedented run of albums and singles topping the charts and selling millions. Not simply replicas of the 1963 & 1964 albums released by Parlophone in the U.K. and rest of world, Capitol Records & United Artists compiled these albums for U.S. release between 1964-1965. Now, to be honest, Bealtes purists absolutely hated that these albums existed for years.  In 1987 the original UK versions were released in the US for the first time, and it wasn’t until a huge wave of nostalgia combined with new enthusiasm for vinyl by collectors that they decided to make these available in this form again.  Since The Beatles hit America in 1964, this is a big anniversary year.

So to celebrate this momentous year, the seven US albums are collected for a new 8-LP vinyl boxset. Meet The Beatles!; The Beatles’ Second Album; A Hard Day’s Night (Soundtrack); Something New; The Beatles’ Story (2-LP set exclusive to the boxset); Beatles ’65; and The Early Beatles feature faithfully replicated artwork and new 4-panel inserts with essays by historian/author Bruce Spizer. New lacquers were cut by Kevin Reeves at East Iris Studios with reference to the original pressings to ensure they are faithful to the original release, while also enabling more musical information to be heard than was possible before. 180g vinyl.

It’s pricey, but a great gift for the Beatles completist on your holiday shopping list.

Living In The Material World 50th Anniversary Super Deluxe
by George Harrison
$144 to $174 from select online retailers

Okay, this one is limited to 5000 sets worldwide, and is sold out from the official George Harrison website and Amazon, but it can still be pre-ordered from Barnes & Noble and several other online retailers.   There are less deluxe versions that are also available if you want to have a killer gift for the George fan on your shopping list.

Living in the Material World, George Harrison’s highly praised 2nd solo album of original music recently marked its 50th anniversary. With lyrics underscoring his enduring exploration of spiritual themes, the album resonated deeply with audiences. Just 5 weeks after its May 1973 release, both the LP and its single “Give Me Love (Give Me Peace On Earth)” held the top spots simultaneously on the US album and single charts.

Lovingly overseen by Dhani & Olivia Harrison, it has now been completely remixed from the original tapes by GRAMMY-winning engineer Paul Hicks. The new mix elevates the album, delivering a sound that’s brighter, richer and more dynamic than ever before. If you’re lucky enough to score the Super Deluxe Boxset, it features the album and bonus outtakes on 2 LPs and 2 CDs. Blu-ray disc with videos and session takes, 7″ vinyl single for “Sunshine Life For Me (Sail Away Raymond).” The deluxe boxed set is housed in rigid slipcase, with 60-page hardcover book featuring new liner notes and photos and a 12-page booklet of recording notes.

Mind Games (The Ultimate Collection) [Deluxe 6 CD/2 Blu-ray]
JOHN LENNON – MIND GAMES – THE ULTIMATE MIXES
$167, cheaper at Amazon

Released last summer, this is a Limited Edition 10-inch square Box Set including 6 CDs, 2 HD Audio Blu-Rays, a 136-page hardback book; a reproduction of the original 1973 triptych marketing poster; postcard sized reproductions of 1973 advert artworks and an individually numbered Citizen of Nutopia ID Card.

Mind Games was considered by many fans of John Lennon to be one of his weaker efforts. It was a hit when originally released, but it was plagued with an iffy mix and the songs were overlooked as a result. This new mix is a revelation, making it sound like a whole new album.  Songs that I couldn’t be bothered to remember the titles of, like “Out The Blue” have become some of my favorite solo Beatles tracks. Any fan of John Lennon’s music, even if they didn’t previously care for this album, will love this boxed set.

The six CDs include The Ultimate Mixes, Elemental Mixes, Elements Mixes, Evolution Documentary, Out-takes and Raw Studio Mixes. Two Audio Blu-Rays include High Definition 24-192 Stereo, 24-192 5.1 Surround, and Dolby Atmos versions of all of the above, plus the 2024 Remastered “Mind Games” music video and a “You Are Here” (additional out-take) tape boxes music video.

This boxed set was produced by Sean Ono Lennon, mixed and Engineered by Triple GRAMMY-Award winner Paul Hicks, Sam Gannon and Rob Stevens.

Included is a 136-page glossy, hardback coffee-table book about the writing and recording of the album – in the words of John & Yoko – taken from hundreds of hours of archive interviews; also featuring brand-new interviews with all the musicians and engineers, exclusive never-before-seen photographs by Bob Gruen and unseen photos, lyrics, letters, original tape boxes and memorabilia from the John Lennon & Yoko Ono Lennon Archives.

It may seem a bit pricey, but it’s worth every penny, and at least the $ 1,350 Ultra limited edition set is sold out.

One Hand Clapping
by Paul Mccartney’s Wings
$25 to $38 at most music retailers (depending on format)

One Hand Clapping is a batch of songs recorded by Paul McCartney and Wings for a BBC special in 1974. It’s been heavily bootlegged over the years, but this year they finally released a legit version of the soundtrack.

50 years after their initial recording, the sessions for Wings One Hand Clapping have been released for the very first time. Available on Vinyl and CD, both are newly mixed with 12 tracks that didn’t appear in the original film, including reworked extracts of Beatles classics. The package includes original artwork, plus a TV sales brochure created for the film.

The tracklist is largely made up of songs from Wings’ Band On The Run album, but there are loads of other hit singles, many featuring unique TV studio arrangements, and one song, “Soily,” that never had a proper studio recording aside from its appearance in this special, and now the album.

This is a great snapshot of Paul McCartney and Wings at the time that they were possibly the most popular band on Earth.  Highly recommended for the Paul fan on your holiday shopping list.

Crooked Boy [EP] 
Ringo Starr
$12 to $23, depending on format

I’m still gobsmacked by how great it was seeing Ringo perform live in Charleston about thirteen months ago, and even more impressive than his live show is that he’s still releasing new music on a regular basis.  His full-length Country album, recorded in collaboration with T Bone Burnett won’t be released until January, but earlier this year he put out a great EP.

Written and produced by Songwriter’s Hall Of Famer Linda Perry, Crooked Boy features four brand-new tracks from Ringo Starr with his trademark vocals and legendary drumming. Crooked Boy includes 4 songs all written and produced by Perry – “February Sky,” “Gonna Need Someone,” “Adeline,” and “Crooked Boy.” After previously collaborating on two songs that appeared on earlier Ringo EPs (“Coming Undone” on Change the World and “Everyone and Everything” on EP3), Linda approached Ringo and asked if she could produce an entire EP.

The result is yet another new collection of songs by the “Funny Beatle.”  Available from most music retailers and perfect for the Ringo fan on your shopping list.

The Beatles A Hard Day’s Night & More (Beatles Album Series)
by Bruce Spizer
498 Productions, LLC
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 979-8986319087
$39.99

This is the latest entry in Spizer’s comprehensive survey of books about The Beatles’s albums, and it’s great for the detail-oriented Beatles fan on your holiday shopping list.

The Beatles A Hard Day’s Night & More covers the Beatles first film and its related soundtrack albums from the British, American and Canadian perspectives. As the title implies, there is much more. The book also covers the records released from the Beatles 1961 Hamburg recordings, as well as the other singles and albums released from February through October of 1964.

The book also contains chapters on the EMI recording sessions for the singles and albums, and the album covers. And, like the other books in the Beatles Album Series, the book contains chapters on the news, music and films of the era to place the Beatles debut film and its related records in their proper context. And, of course, fan recollections of seeing the film, A Hard Day’s Night, and listening to its music. The Beatles A Hard Day’s Night & More, together with its companion book, last year’s The Beatles Please Please Me to With The Beatles, provide the full story of the records and events that fueled and maintained the first phase of Beatlemania. It is a 9″ x 9″ hardcover book to match the other books in Bruce Spizer’ s Beatles Album Series. The book is 272 pages long and contains 315 color and 15 original B&W images.

You should be able to order if from any bookseller, using the ISNB code above.

And that multi-item entry in The 2024 PopCult Gift Guide is our PopCulteer this week. The Gift Guide is taking the weekends off this year, but after our second entry later today, it will return with two more entries on Monday.  Meanwhile, check PopCult every day for fresh content.