A survey of the significant body of recorded works by the Beatles that were not released includes discussions on an array of live concert performances, home demo recordings, studio outtakes, and more, in a chronologically arranged volume that includes coverage of unreleased video footage. Original.

A history of The Beatles' musical contribution to other artists' recordings.

Given the phenomenal fame and commercial success that the Beatles knew for the entire course of their familiar career, their music per se has received surprisingly little detailed attention. Not all of their cultural influence can be traced to long hair and flashy clothing; the Beatles had numerous fresh ideas about melody, harmony, counterpoint, rhythm, form, colors, and textures. Or consider how much new ground was broken by their lyrics alone--both the themes and imagery of the Beatles' poetry are key parts of what made (and still makes) this group so important, so popular, and so imitated. This book is a comprehensive chronological study of every aspect of the Fab Four's musical life--including full examinations of composition, performance practice, recording, and historical context--during their transcendent late period (1966-1970). Rich, authoritative interpretations are interwoven through a documentary study of many thousands of audio, print, and other sources.

"This book is a comprehensive history and reference book on The Beatles' direct musical contributions to other artists' records, recordings, and performances. It is not a price guide, nor a discography, nor an exposé of their personal lives, nor a critique of their work. It is a wealth of rock and roll history of The Beatles, and their friends and fellow musicians."--Foreword

This volume is a comprehensive, chronologically-ordered study of every aspect of the musical life of the Beatles - composition, performance, recording and reception histories - from the group's beginnings in 1956 through to 1965.

An answered prayer for Beatles fans and collectors, the first ­volume of a unique work that exhaustively chronicles all known and ­available Beatles recordings! Have you ever watched a Beatles film clip and wondered: • Where was that filmed? • Is any more of that footage available? Have you ever heard a Beatles interview and asked: • When was that taped? • Where’s the best place to find the complete recording? Way Beyond Compare has the answers to these and thousands of similar questions. It’s the key to unlocking the secrets behind every known Beatles recording in circulation through 1965, telling you where to find them, what makes them unique, and how they fit within the context of the Beatles’ amazing musical and cultural journey. Author John C. Winn has spent twenty years (twice as long as the Beatles were together!) ­sifting through, scrutinizing, organizing, and analyzing hundreds of hours of audio and video recordings—and putting them into a digestible chronological framework for Way Beyond Compare and its companion volume, That Magic Feeling: The Beatles’ Recorded Legacy, Volume Two, 1966–1970. “It takes a rare and special kind of mind to sift through it all, to research and enquire, catalogue and chronicle, assess and contrast, identify and label, and to fit all the myriad pieces into the vast jigsaw puzzle that is the Beatles’ career. John C. Winn is that person, and he’s done it with a rare skill and intelligence.” —Mark Lewisohn

From Revolver to Let It Be, That Magic Feeling: The Beatles Recorded Legacy, Volume Two, 1966—1970, continues the chronicle of the group’s spectacular career from its creative zenith to its irrevocable split As the Beatles moved into the mid and late 1960s, their collective and individual musical talent and innovations evolved at an unparalleled pace. Like its companion volume, Way Beyond Compare: The Beatles’ Recorded Legacy, Volume One, 1957—1965, this unique work thoroughly chronicles all known and available Beatles recordings during this period of incredible creative growth. Have you ever watched a Beatles film clip and wondered: • Where was that filmed? • Is any more of that footage available? Have you ever heard a Beatles interview and asked: • When was that taped? • Where’s the best place to find the complete recording? That Magic Feeling answers these and thousands of similar questions. With more than 500 entries, it includes recording sessions, concerts, newsreel footage, press clips, TV and film performances, home movies, radio interviews, documentaries, studio outtakes, home demos, and alternative mixes–all of which are given complete coverage for the first time. Author John C. Winn has spent two decades poring over, scrutinizing, organizing, and analyzing hundreds of hours of audio and video recordings and compiling them into a digestible chronological framework, creating the ultimate reference guide to the Beatles’ legendary musical and cultural evolution.