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January 19, 2007

Apples May Be Ripe For Beatles Deal

At this month's Macworld conference, Steve Jobs got tongues wagging when he scrolled past Beatles tunes on his demo iPhone, and now the rumor mill has it that, by Valentines Day, you'll be able to get your fix of DRM-dosed Fab Four tunes. The Toronto Sun reports:

The worldwide Beatles grapevine is buzzing over the distinct possibility that the long-awaited remastering of the Fab Four's United Kingdom CD back catalogue will finally see the light of day -- by June.

As per usual, Apple/EMI is presently mum, but sources with knowledge of the project say that two scenarios are possible for the release of the minimum 11 UK albums.

What's more, the long, heated court feud between the Beatles' Apple Corp. and Apple Computers over naming rights might finally have been resolved. The belief is that Beatles songs at long last will be available for downloading from Apple Computers' iTunes, as soon as next month.

And tech site Electronista even offers a date:
The deal would see music label Apple Corps. launch its initial venture into online music on Valentine's Day, timing the release to help promote the recent Beatles and Cirque du Soleil collaboration album Love.
A deal timed for Valentine's Day means that Paul can finally buy his sweet Heather that alimony she's always wanted. Just maybe one of the most bitter feuds in recent corporate history is over? As AppleInsider says:
While the notion of the two Apples settling their grievances has seemed implausible in the wake of Apple Corps' embarassing legal defeat at the hands of its Californian rival, reports since the completion of the lawsuit point to a sudden willingness on the part of the Apple Corps to sign an agreement.
Come on Apples ... let's bury the hatchet like the Beatles and the Stones.

Posted at 10:11 AM




12 Comments

Of course, the first digital release of a Beatles album is the 2006 travesty "Love," probably one of the worst marketing ploys since "Let it Be...Naked". We didn't wait this long just to get a mediocre Beatles "mash-up" album.

Posted by: Devin at 01/19/07 11:15 AM  | Reply
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"you'll be able to get your fix of DRM-dosed Fab Four tunes"

Um... no thank you.

It's just as easy to get the un-DRM-dosed version from my own cd collection.

Posted by: tubes at 01/19/07 11:30 AM  | Reply
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"It's just as easy to get the un-DRM-dosed version from my own cd collection."

I was just gonna say the same thing. I already own all these albums anyway.

Posted by: Patrick at 01/19/07 11:54 AM  | Reply
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Devin, 'Love' was worth the purchase price for the rework of 'Octupus's Garden' alone.

Posted by: Sean at 01/19/07 12:09 PM  | Reply
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yeah i think "love" is great. i dont see the point in being so negative about it. if you dig the songs originally its just a cool fresh way to look at them. its creative. i like it a lot. also glad to hear them in a nice re-mastered way. but this news might put "love" on the backburner for me in that way come next month

Posted by: ben at 01/19/07 12:57 PM  | Reply
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I agree, Love is great... But as for the topic above? What is the big deal about buying the songs off itunes? Do Beatles fans not have an "Import" button on their iTunes? Or do they only have the Vinyl?! This whole controversy is just to drum up publicity.

Posted by: Deano at 01/19/07 1:09 PM  | Reply
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The excitement, I think, is at the possibility of having the entire Beatles back catalogue remastered when it is made available on iTunes. Those albums are in desperate need of it, so I hope it's true.

Posted by: fearlessweaver at 01/19/07 1:29 PM  | Reply
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What's the point of a remastered catalogue if it's only offered in a mediocre bitrate?

Posted by: Shawn at 01/19/07 1:37 PM  | Reply
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Nice Retribution Gospel Choir reference.

Posted by: Mark at 01/19/07 3:13 PM  | Reply
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Cuz you won't have to turn the volume up and down when it's on shuffle! WHOO-HOOO!!!!!

Alright, its not that exciting...

Posted by: nick at 01/19/07 3:14 PM  | Reply
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"What's the point of a remastered catalogue if it's only offered in a mediocre bitrate?"

Word.

iTunes is crap, mp3 downloads are crap, mp3s in general are crap, the music industry is turning to crap because of them (although I do support indie labels having a better chance against the majors, it'll just make them as greedy and desperate and ruin everything).

Posted by: Andrew at 01/19/07 6:30 PM  | Reply
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The 'Love' album is good for its curiosity factor alone, but Strawberry Fields Forever reworked had me sold.

Posted by: Blu at 01/20/07 2:47 PM  | Reply
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