The Singles Collection 1962–1970
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''The Singles Collection 1962–1970'' is a series of reissued singles by the English rock band
the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
. It was released in Britain on 5 March 1976 by
EMI EMI Group Limited (formerly EMI Group plc until 2007; originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At t ...
, following the expiration of the Beatles' contract with the company in January, and close to six years after the band's break-up. The collection comprises all 22 of the Beatles' UK singles, which were originally issued between October 1962 and March 1970 on either the
Parlophone Parlophone Records Limited (also known as Parlophone Records and Parlophone) is a record label founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch of the label was founded on 8 August 1923 as the Parloph ...
or
Apple An apple is a round, edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus'' spp.). Fruit trees of the orchard or domestic apple (''Malus domestica''), the most widely grown in the genus, are agriculture, cultivated worldwide. The tree originated ...
record labels, together with a new single pairing " Yesterday" with "
I Should Have Known Better "I Should Have Known Better" is a song by English rock band the Beatles composed by John Lennon (credited to Lennon–McCartney) and originally issued on '' A Hard Day's Night'', their soundtrack for the film of the same name released on 10 Ju ...
".


History

According to EMI, the series was a re-promotion rather than a reissue campaign, since all the Beatles' singles had remained in print and were widely available. The project resulted from the success of the 1973 double-album sets ''
1962–1966 ''1962–1966'', also known as the Red Album, is a compilation album of songs by the English rock band the Beatles, spanning the years indicated in the title. Released with its counterpart ''1967–1970'' (the "Blue Album") in 1973, the double ...
'' and ''
1967–1970 ''1967–1970'', also known as the Blue Album, is a compilation album of songs by the English rock band the Beatles, spanning the years indicated in the title. A double LP, it was released with ''1962–1966'' (the "Red Album") in April 1973. ...
'', which the former Beatles had endorsed, and which contained all of their British single
A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of vinyl records and cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a single usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or ...
s and double A-side tracks. Each of the discs in the 1976 collection was packaged in a green and black sleeve, on one side of which was a photo of the group from a period roughly contemporaneous with the single. The records were available in a matching ''Singles Collection 1962–1970'' box to customers who bought all 23 of the discs. The re-packaging campaign was a commercial success, with 1 million singles sold in the first month. The response coincided with media speculation regarding rival bids from two US promoters for the Beatles to reunite for a satellite concert broadcast. Reflecting this resurgence of interest,
BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...
produced the program ''The Beatles Again'', which highlighted the group's continued influence on pop music; in a feature article in ''
Reveille "Reveille" ( , ), called in French "Le Réveil" is a bugle call, trumpet call, drum, fife-and-drum or pipes call most often associated with the military; it is chiefly used to wake military personnel at sunrise. The name comes from (or ), the ...
'', an EMI spokesman described the campaign as an "amazing" success, with teenagers as young as thirteen becoming fans of the Beatles. The re-packaged singles all charted on the UK Singles Chart, and "Yesterday" peaked at number 8. During one week in April 1976, the band had an unprecedented 23 entries in the UK top 100 positions. The following month, ''
Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...
'' magazine commented on this chart dominance: "Has a new successor to the Beatles finally been found? Not at all – it is the Beatles themselves." Later that year,
Ringo Starr Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the group, us ...
described the singles as "the finest pieces of plastic around that no one has done anything beyond yet", and wished for "a band that gets up there and wipes us out". Although EMI and its North American counterpart,
Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...
, were no longer obliged to consult the artists,
John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...
approved of the re-packaged singles. This tacit approval contrasted sharply with the former Beatles' reaction to the 1976 themed compilation album '' Rock 'n' Roll Music'', which Capitol assembled without consulting EMI. The series was first re-packaged for international release in December 1982 as ''The Beatles Singles Collection''. Issued as a box set by EMI's World Records division, this collection also included three Beatles singles that had been released after March 1976: " Back in the U.S.S.R.", "
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' (often referred to simply as ''Sgt. Pepper'') is the eighth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Released on 26May 1967, ''Sgt. Pepper'' is regarded by musicologists as an early concept ...
"/"
With a Little Help from My Friends "With a Little Help from My Friends" is a song recorded by English rock band the Beatles for their 1967 album '' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band''. It was written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon, and is sung by drummer Ringo Starr (a ...
" and "
The Beatles' Movie Medley "The Beatles' Movie Medley" is a compilation of snippets from various Beatles songs. The single peaked at No. 12 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and No. 10 on the British charts in 1982. The songs were chosen from the Beatles' films, '' A Hard Day ...
".


Box-set contents

Catalogue numbers and release dates per Harry Castleman and Walter J. Podrazik's ''All Together Now'',
Nicholas Schaffner Nicholas Schaffner (January 28, 1953 – August 28, 1991) was an American non-fiction author, journalist, and singer-songwriter. Biography Schaffner was born in Manhattan to John V. Schaffner (1913–1983), a literary agent whose clients includ ...
's ''The Beatles Forever'', and Keith Badman's ''The Beatles Diary Volume 2''.


''The Singles Collection'' (2019)

On 22 November 2019, Apple released a box set titled ''The Singles Collection'', consisting of vinyl reissues of the original Beatles singles. The set includes the same 22 UK singles excluding "Yesterday", instead being replaced with a custom double A-side of "
Free as a Bird "Free as a Bird" is a single released in December 1995 by English rock band the Beatles. The song was originally written and recorded in 1977 as a home demo by John Lennon. In 1995, 25 years after their break-up and 15 years after Lennon' ...
" and " Real Love". Since picture sleeves were not commonplace in the UK during the 1960s, the records were presented in sleeve designs that had been used in other countries around the world. The box set includes a 40-page booklet containing photos and Kevin Howlett's essays on the music.


See also

* Outline of the Beatles * The Beatles timeline


References


Sources

* * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Singles Collection 1962-1970, The 1976 compilation albums 1982 compilation albums The Beatles compilation albums Albums recorded at Apple Studios Albums recorded at Olympic Sound Studios Albums recorded at Trident Studios