VOICES OUT OF NOWHERE: A Look At Cancelled Beatles Releases
Several Beatles releases both during and after their recording career have been planned but cancelled at the last minute. Here are a look at those releases.
Yellow Submarine EP
After receiving mixed response to the album upon its release, the Beatles considered releasing Yellow Submarine as a five-track mono EP, without the film score but including the then-unreleased “Across The Universe” as a bonus track. The EP was mastered but never issued, and the songs were later released in 2009 on Mono Masters in the box set The Beatles In Mono. The sleeve above is a mockup presented in the Bruce Spizer book The Beatles On Apple Records.
Side A
Side B
Get Back
It is believed that Glyn Johns prepared at least four separate versions of Get Back, the precursor to the eventual Let It Be, and that at some point a second disc of oldies covers and jams was planned. The first compilation is known as the bootleg Kum Back. The last known version contains the following track list:
Side A
- One After 909
- Rocker (instrumental)
- Save The Last Dance
- Don’t Let Me Down
- Dig A Pony
- I’ve Got A Feeling
- Get Back
- Let It Be
Side B
- For You Blue
- Two Of Us
- Maggie Mae
- Dig It
- The Long And Winding Road
- I Me Mine
- Across The Universe
- Get Back (Reprise)
At least two acetates of this version are known to exist, although the acetates themselves have not been used as a source on any bootlegs to date.
The cover photo was taken by photographer Angus McBean, specifically recreating his photo used on their debut album Please Please Me. It was later used for the 1973 compilations 1962-1966 and 1967-1970.
Girl b/w You’re Going To Lose That Girl single
The “Girl” single was planned for release alongside the 1977 compilation Love Songs, as Capitol 4506. Picture sleeves for the single were printed and a very limited number were pressed but the single was cancelled in October, 1977. Bootleggers obtained the stampers created by Capitol and pressed copies on yellow vinyl but without the gripper ridges found on the official pressings..
Side A
Side B
Leave My Kitten Alone single
Planned for release with the Sessions album, the “Leave My Kitten Alone” single was planned and even given a catalog number (Capitol B-5439) but was ultimately scrapped (along with the LP) after the Beatles rejected the concept. “Leave My Kitten Alone” stems from the 1964 Beatles For Sale sessions and was considered for use as a single then, but was rejected as the Beatles had a policy of only releasing their own compositions for singles. “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da” is an alternate take, different from the version on The Beatles. The cover photo was taken by photographer Angus McBean.
Side A
Side B
- Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da (alternate take)
Sessions
Sessions was a compilation album created by EMI for release in 1985 after nearly 20 years of development, featuring complete songs recorded but unreleased by the Beatles over the course of their recording career, albeit in edited form (heavily edited in many cases). The Beatles were not aware of or part of the development of the album, and once they found out about it and objected the release was cancelled. Their eventual involvement gave way to the multimedia Anthology project, and all 13 tracks created for the Sessions LP were used there.
- Come And Get It
- Leave My Kitten Alone
- Not Guilty – Heavily edited outtake from The Beatles
- I’m Looking Through You – alternate version with hand claps
- What’s The New Mary Jane – Heavily remixed outtake from The Beatles
- How Do You Do It?
- Bésame Mucho – Recorded during the Beatles’ first EMI session.
- One After 909 – Early version recorded March 5, 1963
- If You’ve Got Trouble – Help! outtake, with verses edited into a different order than they were originally recorded.
- That Means A Lot – Help! outtake.
- While My Guitar Gently Weeps – Take 1, with artificially looped ending.
- Mailman, Bring Me No More Blues – Heavily edited outtake recorded during the Get Back/Let It Be sessions
- Christmas Time (Is Here Again) – Edited from the 1967 fan club Christmas single
