This book delves into the aural splendor of the Beatles’ discography, breaking down each song and taking a close look at how the group’s music sounds through headphones rather than external speakers. Mistakes, studio chatter, secret meanings and other audio esoterica are all identified and discussed. Thousands of books have been written about the Beatles’ music, but this is the first to look at their discography through the prism of headphones, which yield a unique, artistic listening experience. The author argues that the Beatles should be heard through headphones to appreciate the real depth of their musical creativity and to fully understand the timeless songs that remain influential to this day.

Ted Montgomery’s writing has appeared in numerous newspapers, magazines and websites. He lives in Brighton, Michigan.

Ted Montgomery

Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 204
Bibliographic Info: bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2022
pISBN: 978-1-4766-8229-7
eISBN: 978-1-4766-4468-4
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments ix
Preface to the Second Edition 1
Preface 3

Part One: The Band
Terms and Equipment 9
The CD Catalogue 9
A Short History 10
Lennon–McCartney 14
The Recording Process 17
Sir George Martin 20
The Beatles as Musicians 23
The Beatles as Singers 25
1:27 28

Part Two: The Albums
Introduction to the Albums 29
The Stereo Albums 31
Please Please Me 31
With the Beatles 36
A Hard Day’s Night 42
Beatles for Sale 47
Help! 52
Rubber Soul 57
Revolver 63
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band 69
Magical Mystery Tour 74
The Beatles (The White Album) 80
Yellow Submarine 90
Yellow Submarine Soundtrack (2009 Remix) 93
Abbey Road 96
Let It Be 103
Let It Be … Naked 107
Past Masters Volumes One and Two 110
The Beatles Anthology 117
Love 120
The Mono Albums 128
Please Please Me 129
With the Beatles 131
A Hard Day’s Night 132
Beatles for Sale 134
Help! 136
Rubber Soul 138
Revolver 141
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band 143
Magical Mystery Tour 146
The Beatles (The White Album) 148
Past Masters Volumes One and Two 152

Part Three: The Remixed Albums
Introduction to the Remix Albums 157
The Beatles Christmas Album 159
Live at the Hollywood Bowl 160
1+ 161
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band 165
The Beatles (The White Album) 171
Abbey Road 180

Afterword: “And in the end” 186
Bibliography 191
Index 193

• “Montgomery’s book gets downright microscopic…Montgomery’s swift, no-frills writing keeps the book moving”—Pyschobabble
• “Montgomery offers a complete and comprehensive review of all of the Beatles songs ever recorded, as heard through headphones”—ProtoView