The Beatles 1962 – 1966 (2023 Edition)

Back in 1973 when I bought the original edition of the Red Album, I was always irritated by the fact that for the first time in Beatles history the fans were short changed. In the UK we were accustomed to seven tracks per side of new Beatles albums and it was a considerable disappointment to find only six tracks on two of the four sides of the otherwise wonderful "1962-1966" set. It was supposedly a double album but it was so short that in later years it could have been issued on CD as a single disc (and should have been!) The new edition at least corrects that flaw by including tracks which should never have been omitted in the first place and the remixes are superb. Nonetheless, it is horribly flawed by the inexcusable omission of the outstanding track "Rain" (which was the B-side of the Paperback Writer single). "Rain" was a tour de force and no less an authority than Ringo Starr declared that it captured the best drumming of his entire Beatles career. More than any other track apart from "Twist And Shout" (which should never have been absent from the original release), "Rain" is one of the greatest highlights of the pre-Pepper Beatles development and it has been disgracefully overlooked for decades in various Beatles collections and compilation albums. It truly belongs in this set and its absence is unacceptable. Nevertheless, the new edition is certainly a significant improvement on my older edition of the "Red Album". If you're of the generation who cannot automatically fill in the blank in the phrase, "John, Paul, George and ------" I don't know whether or not this album will mean anything to you but for those of us who have been familiar with these seminal recordings for five or six decades, this CD release is almost perfectly satisfying and an absolute joy to hear. I envy those who are about to discover these tracks for the first time in their lives.

I bought this CD compilation to replace my completely worn out original vinyl copy and I am highly delighted. All the tracks have been re-mixed using the latest technology so they sound fresh and crisp. The producer, Giles Martin, has done an excellent job. The track list has been extended from 26 songs on the original release to 38 and now includes compositions by George Harrison and some cover versions that The Beatles did in this period. Many people have their own opinions what should have been included (or not) on this re-issue but to me this is irrelevant. Both the 'Red' (1962-1966) and the 'Blue' (1967-1970) have become iconic Beatles albums and both compilations contain highly enjoyable timeless classics.

Absolutely brilliant music, I’m so glad i bought it 👍👍

This Beatles "Red" 1962-1966 best of album begins with a first disc of tracks that are Merseybeat in style. They are a poppy type of rock, but the melodies/rhythms are timeless, anthemic and thrilling. John Lennon tended to write the louder and faster numbers while Paul McCartney had a propensity to write the quieter, sweeter ballad-type numbers but both were such great songwriters that they could do both styles. The A Hard Day's Night album saw them reach their Merseybeat peak and then 1965's Help! and particularly the Rubber Soul record saw them start to move away from Merseybeat and sow the seeds for their creativity on their later works. Revolver - the last album to be covered on the "Red" collection - has to be their finest ever record as it is ultra-consistent and every song is great. Although there were pleasingly traces of their older music at times, it was a very revolutionary record for the Fab Four - using the "fifth Beatle" (producer George Martin) and the studio as an instrument it sounded very different to their earlier albums and showed the way for their unbelievably even more artistic and successful later records. The maturity of the four young men was shown in writing songs as iconic and reflective as Yesterday, Eleanor Rigby, Nowhere Man and In My Life. In terms of the Giles Martin re-mixing, it honestly is extremely worthwhile and not a cynical waste of money. Deploying AI technology - first used by Peter Jackson in the Get Back film two years ago - to separate the instruments more has not made it sound artificial but instead made these earlier Beatles numbers sound more powerful and with greater sonic detail while there is a greater tenderness/crispness to the acoustic numbers. They are basically even more fit for modern age but at the same time true to the legacy of the original recordings - Giles Martin has done the band and his father proud. In regard to the song selection, it is delightful for there to be additional songs included compared to the original "Red" album. It was always a swiz years ago for particularly the "Red" album to be on two separate CDs when it could have all fitted onto one. Now it is two fairly fuller CDs, and the extra tracks are well chosen and add to the variety of brilliant songs from this period - their top album Revolver is much better represented now while it is pleasing for two classic George Harrison-penned songs to be included and even the covers add to the story. Also, although Yellow Submarine is a silly but fun song the track list is much better now with Tomorrow Never Knows as the final number as that is amongst their absolute best, most influential songs and it led to Sgt. Pepper's. This expanded "Red" collection is much more comprehensive than the single CD "1" album at showing the journey of The Beatles from the scintillating pop of their early period to the more boundary pushing mid-period. Although the "Blue" album tends to outsell this "Red" one they are equally magnificent and there is a real youthful exuberance in their earliest work matched by a further development in their song writing towards their mid-period - while the re-mixing is excellent and vital - that ensures that this is further evidence that the Beatles are the greatest band and artist in the entire history of music.

It's the Beatles, so you know for sure the songs! The thing is you don't know how good they sound!? This mix is just amazing! Sublime! Both, the red and blue, albums sound great!

A great way to start exploring the band, alongside the blue album if you're new to them.

The remastering is great. Love the sound. I would take issue with some of the new tracks that have been added. Why on Earth choose to include the average ‘Roll over Beethoven” and leave off the Beatles definitive version of ‘Money’?

Very happy