The Beatles: Yellow Submarine EP

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Maidenpriest, Sep 27, 2009.

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  1. Maidenpriest

    Maidenpriest Setting the controls for the heart of the sun :) Thread Starter

    Location:
    Europe
    Hello All,

    Lets talk about the aborted 1968 Yellow Submarine EP, according to Lewison's Complete Beatles Recording Sessions p164 - Friday 17th January, 1969:

    For there remains in the EMI library a master tape for a seven-inch mono EP (recently released on Mono Masters), to run at 331/2 rpm (LP Speed), compiled and banded on 13th March 1969 by Abbey Road employee Edward Gadsby-Toni, with the following line up:

    Side A

    1. Only A Northern Song
    2. Hey Bulldog
    3. Across The Universe

    Side B

    1. All Together Now
    2. Its All Too Much

    What I want to know is:

    A, Has the Ep artwork ever surfaced, and if so do we have a picture or even any idea what it was?

    B, Is the 'Across The Universe' version on Mono Masters the same one to be used on this Ep, because on Mono Masters it comes after the 'Get Back' single on the track listing this makes me wonder whether it was a later version, perhaps the bird noises were not intended for the Ep?
     
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  2. brainwashed

    brainwashed Forum Hall Of Fame

    Location:
    Boston, MA
    The record never made it to cutting stage, no artwork or anything was done because the Beatles nixed the idea. I suppose the LP should have been released as an EP from the get go... a nice bone to George Martin giving him an entire side of instrumentals, huh? The bird effects were added sometime after the original February 1968 session and before or during the Get Back sessions in January 1969. It's possible that George Martin added the effects in early January 1969 back at EMI whilst the Beatles were at Twickenham because an acetate played during the first few weeks of the session include the effects. Ron
     
  3. Maidenpriest

    Maidenpriest Setting the controls for the heart of the sun :) Thread Starter

    Location:
    Europe

    :cheers:
     
  4. slaveofone

    slaveofone New Member

    Location:
    The Valley
    The true mono version of Only A Northern Song rocked my world when I first heard it a couple days ago!!!! I seriously thought I was tripping out listening to it. Never paid the song much mind before because it never sounded anything like that on my 87 CD. :realmad:
     
  5. John Carsell

    John Carsell Forum Resident

    Location:
    Northwest Illinois
    The EP format in the UK wasn't selling that well in the UK by 1969, perhaps that's one of the reasons it wasn't issued and since it wasn't compiled and banded until nearly mid March, the LP had already been out for 2 months and the movie premiered the previous July. They simply waited too long.
     
  6. BIG ED

    BIG ED Forum Resident

    Yeah forty yrs!
     
  7. rdnzl

    rdnzl Forum Resident

    Location:
    Frankfurt, Germany
    Would have been a nice EP for sure, but I think it would have been also kind of strange to release an EP as some sort of soundtrack to a movie without including the title song :confused: (regardless of that being already available on an old album and a single). I guess I just like the "Yellow Submarine" album as it is and "Across The Universe" fits better on "Let It Be" (just because I'm used to it of course).
     
  8. sathvyre

    sathvyre formerly known as ABBAmaniac

    Location:
    Europe
    Look here:

    http://www.45cat.com/record/gep8968

    Cool idea by fans to create a possible cover for the abandoned E.P. - but very bad that they pressed inofficial records for sale...
     
  9. mihu

    mihu Forum Resident

    Location:
    South West Germany
    I think it should be released as a 10" record at 45 rpm, woundn't it sound better that way?

    I always wonder why they wanted to do it on 7"/33rpm.

    Was 10" not an option back then?
     
  10. Calico

    Calico Senior Member

    Location:
    Belgium
    That front cover recently appeared in Bruce Spizer's recent book on Parlophone.
    The back cover and label artwork are new to me.


    And yet... Apple released another EP in the summer of 1969 : the "Walls Ice Cream" promotional single featuring 4 songs from the Apple catalogue, including the then otherwise unreleased Iveys track "Storm In A Teacup", that would remain confined to that elusive EP for many years.

    http://www.jpgr.co.uk/col_ct1.html

    Interestingly, that variation of the Apple logo on the cover was only ever used for that "Wall's" EP in the UK, but was widely used in Japan.
     
  11. sathvyre

    sathvyre formerly known as ABBAmaniac

    Location:
    Europe
    So that frontcover should have been the real cover for the E.P. ??? I never heard about a final cover artwork...very interesting....
    As I don't own the book, are there some details written about the cover ???
     
  12. slane

    slane Forum Resident

    Location:
    Merrie England
    I have seen speculation that the 1969 date might actually be wrong, and should read 1968. That would make a lot more sense, but whether this is so remains unknown. By March 1968, Hey Bulldog had just been recorded (as had Across The Universe). This would put the EP before the album.
    The bird effects on ATU seem to have been a part of the track from early on. I believe the Mono Masters version to be correct.

    I have seen pictures of Apple acetates that do include the title song. I don't know if it is legit or not, I'll try and find them. (Of course, if it was a real Apple acetate, that might contradict the above theory of a March 1968 compilation date).

    Apparently, they had planned to issue the MMT double EP as a single 7"/33rpm disc originally. Loss of fidelity and volume was the reason they didn't, according to Lewisohn. Luckily the songs fitted nicely on the 4 sides of 2 EPs. The YS material doesn't work out timewise to do the same thing (even though the overall length is the same). Maybe a larger vinyl format for the YS EP would have made it look too similar to the album?

    Anyway, I like both of these 1967-8 "Extended" EPs, they make a nice pair.
     
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  13. sathvyre

    sathvyre formerly known as ABBAmaniac

    Location:
    Europe
    Is this real or a fake ??? As I know, there are no acetates of the full E.P.:

    [​IMG]
     
  14. slane

    slane Forum Resident

    Location:
    Merrie England
    Not sure if any of the acetates are legit. How about this one? (with the addition of AYNIL on Side 2)

    Couldn't find the one that had YS as Side One, Track 1 (making 4 songs on that side)
     

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  15. sathvyre

    sathvyre formerly known as ABBAmaniac

    Location:
    Europe
    Seem to be all custom-made fakes I think...
     
  16. slane

    slane Forum Resident

    Location:
    Merrie England
    I agree, seems to be a lot of different ones around. If NO real Apple acetates exist, then the March 1968 theory could be possible. A summer 1968 release date WOULD make sense, tying it in with the UK film release. The film came out later in the US, maybe this is why the release of the YS songs was delayed? Seems strange to consider releasing the EP after the album...
     
  17. sathvyre

    sathvyre formerly known as ABBAmaniac

    Location:
    Europe
    It will always be a mystery...many books have the March 13, 1969 story written...but why to release a MONO E.P. in 1969, when the WHITE ALBUM was the last MONO production they did in 1968 ??? So the 1968 speculation is much more plausible to me...
     
  18. slane

    slane Forum Resident

    Location:
    Merrie England
    Well actually, the 'Get Back' single in April 1969 was mono in the UK (stereo in the US). But yeah, a March 1968 date seems to make sense for compiling the EP, but we just don't know.

    The only other mono track released after the GB single was 'You Know My Name' on the B-side of 'Let It Be' in 1970. Just a quick thought here - I know everything on YKMN comes from the middle, so it is technically mono. But was it mixed to mono tape or stereo tape? ie. Is it a true mono mix, or is it a stereo mix with everything centered? I know it's splitting hairs, but surely they weren't mixing down to mono tape by November 1969 (when it was mixed)? (PS. I am aware that it has been made true mono on the remasters, earlier issues have some slight variation in channels though)
     
  19. sathvyre

    sathvyre formerly known as ABBAmaniac

    Location:
    Europe
    YOU KNOW MY NAME was recorded in 1967 (as I know), so maybe no real stereo mix was possible and they decided to do a mono mix, caused by the limited tracks (maybe 4 ???) of the original multitrack tapes ???
    On the ANTHOLOGY 2 compilation, a strange STEREO mix is available...the instruments are completely MONO in the mix (panned to the center), but the voices, additional clappings and other effects are stereo...
    And...sorry...but why should an engineer create a MONO mix with all tracks centered onto STEREO tape ??? If they really had decided to do a STEREO mix in 1969, they would have added some effects, placed in STEREO I think...the original single version is a real MONO mix and I think it was recorded on a MONO tape...
     
  20. Arnold Grove

    Arnold Grove Senior Member

    Location:
    NYC
    But also remember that all of the vocals by John and Paul were added to the backing track of You Know My Name in April 1969. Arnie
     
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  21. sathvyre

    sathvyre formerly known as ABBAmaniac

    Location:
    Europe
    This may be the reason that the instrumental track is available in true MONO only and the voices were overdubbed - so the strange STEREO mix, available on ANTHOLOGY 2, was the only way to make it STEREO in any way....
     
  22. slane

    slane Forum Resident

    Location:
    Merrie England
    Yes, I'm aware of all of what you have said. John Lennon (who liked mono sound) was there when the track was mixed. As you say, the reason for the mono sound probably had something to do with how it was recorded (all the music was on one track). What I'm asking is: Was the 'mono' mix recorded to mono or stereo tape? Everything else AFAIK would have been mixed to stereo tape by Nov.69.
    I can mix recordings into mono in 2012 (sometimes I do), but it would actually be 'centered stereo', not 'full track mono', because I would be recording the mix on a stereo machine. A subtle difference. Just speculating...

    PS. 'Bip Bop' on Paul's WildLife album is 'mono', but it must have been mixed to a stereo tape machine like the rest of the album, surely? Anyway, it's not really important.
     
  23. sathvyre

    sathvyre formerly known as ABBAmaniac

    Location:
    Europe
    I know the difference about a recording on a real MONO machine or a STEREO tape...the difference is really audible...as I work on old tapes often and have to transfer MONO recordings from stereo tapes...
    Best way to check it would be to listen with headphones to the original LET IT BE 7"...
     
  24. slane

    slane Forum Resident

    Location:
    Merrie England
    Like I say, on the CD singles box, there are some subtle differences in channels, particularly where the edit is between the first section and the 'Slaggers' section. That's what made me wonder about it.
     
  25. sathvyre

    sathvyre formerly known as ABBAmaniac

    Location:
    Europe
    I never heard the CD singles box. What is the exact catalogue number / label ???
    Maybe they used a stereo tape machine for the transfer to compile the single masters for the release ???
     
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