1962-1966 (1973)

Buy 1962-1966 on CD, or on Vinyl

Listen to 1962-1966 on Apple Music or on Spotify

A retrospective of the early Beatles music, beginning with Please Please Me and running through Revolver. It was impossible to include the many hits from the 1962-1966 era on the two discs with the technology offered in 1973, therefore many tracks regarded as ‘hits’ are not included. Amazingly, just before the release of this and its counterpart, 1967-1970, advanced pirated copies were being sold on TV as the Alpha Omega Series vol. 1-3, and for a time Capitol countered in their advertising as offering “official releases”.

Differences in the US edition

The original vinyl US version of 1962-1966 differs in that the beginning of Help! has the Ken Thorne-penned untitled instrumental often mistakenly referred to as “James Bond Theme” tacked onto the beginning (it was also presented this way on the US Help! Original Motion Picture Soundtrack).

The original UK release also features the stereo “whispering” version of “I Feel Fine” in which, at the beginning of the track, what sounds like a tape being started can be heard followed by some indecipherable muttering. Subsequent releases feature the same stereo mix but trimmed to eliminate these sounds.

Stereo mixes

Tracks issued previously on singles were being released for the first time in the US in true stereo (except for “From Me To You”). Tracks 1-4 of Disc 1 were originally presented in mono. The first four Beatles albums were initially issued on CD only in mono, therefore on the first CD release Tracks 6-10 on Disc 1 were the only stereo mixes of the songs available on disc. The 2010 reissues utilized the 2009 remasters and all songs are now presented in stereo.

1993 and 2010 remasters

The first CD edition of 1962-1966 released in 1993 utilized brand new remasters of all songs on the album – the first remastering of the Beatles catalog since the initial 1987/1988 first edition CDs. The 2010 edition utilized the now-standard 2009 remasters.

An iconic cover photo

The cover photo was taken by photographer Angus McBean and is from the same session that produced the cover photos for Please Please Me and The Beatles No. 1. He recreated the photo in 1969 for the aborted Get Back album, and it was later used for the sister compilation 1967-1970 as well as the back cover to 1962-1966.

Track list

Disc 1, Side A

1. Love Me Do
2. Please Please Me
3. From Me To You
4. She Loves You
5. I Want To Hold Your Hand
6. All My Loving
7. Can’t Buy Me Love

Disc 1, Side B

1. A Hard Day’s Night
2. And I Love Her
3. Eight Days A Week
4. I Feel Fine
5. Ticket To Ride
6. Yesterday

Disc 2, Side A

1. Help!
2. You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away
3. We Can Work It Out
4. Day Tripper
5. Drive My Car
6. Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)

Disc 2, Side B

1. Nowhere Man
2. Michelle
3. In My Life
4. Girl
5. Paperback Writer
6. Eleanor Rigby
7. Yellow Submarine

Release history

• Apple SKBO 3403, released April 2, 1973
• Apple PCSP 717, released April 19, 1973
• Capitol SEBX 11842 (Red Vinyl), released August 1978
• Parlophone PCSPR 717 (Red Vinyl), released September 30, 1979
• Capitol C1-90435, released July 28, 1988
• Apple CDP 7 97036 2 (CD), released September 20, 1993 (UK), October 5, 1993 (US)
• Capitol C1-97036 (Red Vinyl) – February 22, 1994
• Apple RED6266, released October 18, 2010

Back cover