Die-hard Beatlemaniacs and even the Fab Four's most casual fans should rejoice: The Beatles have gotten the band back together -- so to speak -- with the release of the original Beatles catalog, which has been digitally re-mastered for the first time, along with the widely anticipated “The Beatles: Rock Band” video game.

The collection comprises all 12 Beatles albums in stereo, with track listings and artwork as originally released in the UK, and "Magical Mystery Tour," which became part of The Beatles’ core catalog when the CDs were first released in 1987. In addition, the collections "Past Masters Vol. I and II" are now combined as one title, for a total of 14 titles over 16 discs. This will mark the first time that the first four Beatles albums will be available in stereo in their entirety on compact disc. These 14 albums, along with a DVD collection of the documentaries, are available for purchase together in a stereo boxed set. ( ... )

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Within each CD’s new packaging, booklets include detailed historical notes along with informative recording notes. With the exception of the "Past Masters" set, newly produced mini-documentaries on the making of each album, directed by Bob Smeaton, are included as QuickTime files on each album. The documentaries contain archival footage, rare photographs and never-before-heard studio chat from The Beatles, offering a unique and very personal insight into the studio atmosphere.

A second boxed set has been created with the collector in mind. "The Beatles in Mono" gathers together, in one place, all of the Beatles recordings that were mixed for a mono release. It will contain 10 of the albums with their original mono mixes, plus two further discs of mono masters (covering similar ground to the stereo tracks on "Past Masters"). As an added bonus, the mono "Help!" and "Rubber Soul" discs also include the original 1965 stereo mixes, which have not been previously released on CD. These albums will be packaged in mini-vinyl CD replicas of the original sleeves with all original inserts and label designs retained.


"The Beatles: Rock Band" is the music video game produced by MTV Games and Harmonix, allows players to sing and play along with the band's songs using simulated guitars, drums and a microphone. It is the third major console release in the Rock Band music video game series and, like other games in the series, it allows players to simulate the playing of rock music by using controllers shaped like musical instruments. The game consists of 45 songs by The Beatles spanning their career, along with virtual depictions of the band members performing the songs. Future downloadable content for the game will feature additional songs and full albums from The Beatles, such as the entirety of "Abbey Road."

The game was developed with the blessing and critical input of Apple Corps, including former Beatles members Sir Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr. George Harrison's son Dhani championed the game's creation and helped to bridge discussion between Harmonix and Apple Corps, while Giles Martin, son of The Beatles' music producer George Martin, was able to assure high-fidelity audio from songs recorded on older mediums to integrate properly with Rock Band's gameplay. "The Beatles: Rock Band" features virtual representations of the popular quartet and their ten-year career as a band. Gameplay mechanics differ slightly from previous Rock Band games, namely the addition of a three-part vocal harmony system.



To celebrate The Beatles' release of their new Rock Band game and digitally remastered CDs, we've posted the video for "Free as a Bird." The song was released in 1995, as part of the promotion for "The Beatles Anthology" documentary and the band's "Anthology 1" compilation album. The previously unreleased song had been written by John Lennon in 1977. When Paul McCartney asked Yoko Ono for any unreleased material by Lennon, "Free as a Bird" was chosen as being the song all three remaining Beatles could be involved in, as they could finish the arrangement and write extra lyrics. The song went on to win the 1997 Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal, and was The Beatles' 34th Top 10 single in America.

The music video for "Free as a Bird" was directed by Joe Pytka and depicts, from the point of view of a bird in flight viewing The Beatles during different stages of their career with many references to band's songs, such as "Strawberry Fields Forever," "Penny Lane", "Paperback Writer", "A Day in the Life", "Eleanor Rigby," "Helter Skelter" and much more. So play The Beatles' version of "Where's Waldo" and see many songs you can spot in the video.