The deluxe reissue of The Beatles‘ classic 1966 album Revolver was released Friday, October 28, in multiple configurations.
Revolver originally was released in August 1966 and spent multiple weeks at #1 in both the U.S. and the U.K. The album captured the Fab Four moving into the psychedelic era with an adventurous and experimental collection of tunes that explored various musical genres.
Producer Giles Martin, who oversaw the reissue and helped create a new mix of the album, explains to ABC Audio, “[The Beatles] ripped up the rulebook with Revolver … They had [songs like] ‘Eleanor Rigby,’ ‘Tomorrow Never Knows,’ ‘And Your Bird Can Sing,’ ‘Taxman.’ It’s like Revolver is an album of about seven different bands, but all good ones.”
Besides the new mix, the deluxe package also includes the original mono mix of the album; 31 tracks of session outtakes and demos; a four-song EP featuring the non-album tracks “Paperback Writer” and “Rain”; and a 100-page hardbound book.
Giles says some of the interesting bonus tracks include alternate versions of “Got to Get You into My Life” and “Rain,” and an early demo of “Yellow Submarine” featuring John Lennon on vocals.
One alternate version of “Got to Get You into My Life” features fuzz guitar and lacks the song’s trademark horns. A “Rain” outtake features the song at the speed it was actually recorded — the version that was originally released was slowed down.
There are also multiple tracks that show how “Yellow Submarine” developed from a melancholy tune sung by Lennon to the upbeat sing-along featuring Ringo Starr on lead vocals.
“[I]t’s development to how it is now is really surprising, and it’s worth listening to,” says Giles.
For full details including complete track lists of the various versions of the reissue, visit TheBeatles.com.
Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
