The Beatles' recording sessions
The recordings made by the Beatles, a rock group from Liverpool, England, from their inception as the Quarrymen in 1957 to their break-up in 1970 and the reunion of their surviving members in the mid-1990s, have huge cultural and historical value. The studio session tapes are kept at Abbey Road Studios, formerly known as "EMI Recording Studios," where the Beatles recorded most of their music. While most have never been officially released, their outtakes and demos are seen by fans as collectables, and some of the recordings have appeared on countless bootlegs. Until 2013, the  only outtakes and demos to be officially released were on "The Beatles Anthology" series and its tie-in singles, and bits of some previously unreleased studio recordings were used in "" video game as ambient noise and to give songs studio-sounding beginnings and endings. In 2013, Apple Records released the album "The Beatles Bootleg Recordings 1963", which includes previously unreleased outtakes and demos from 1963, to stop the recordings from falling into the public domain. Except where noted, all of the following songs are written by Lennon–McCartney and all single and album releases are for the United Kingdom. 1958 . Phillips' Sound Recording Services. In the spring or summer of 1958, The Quarrymen recorded two songs at Phillips' Sound Recording Services in their hometown of Liverpool. It was the group's first recording session, for which they paid 17s 6d (87.5p or £ in ). The recordings were pressed onto a mono 10-inch 78 rpm shellac disc, then the sessions tapes were erased to be reused with new customers. Because of the low quality and age of the recordings, the songs are filled with a hiss but are still listenable. The record was not intended for release but for the  Quarrymen's personal use. In 1981, Lowe sold the record to McCartney for an undisclosed amount. McCartney then had audio engineers attempt to improve the sound quality. Musicians: Production staff: 1960. The Quarrymen Demos. The Quarrymen recorded several low-quality, homemade, mono demo tapes. Those known to still exist are: Although it is known that Lennon wrote "Winston's Walk" and that McCartney wrote "Ask Me Why" and "When I'm Sixty-Four" during this time, no demo tape of those compositions has ever turned up, but one is believed to exist. Early Beatles Homemade Recordings. As they did when  they were the Quarrymen, the Beatles recorded several low-quality, homemade, mono demo tapes. The tapes are the only known recordings featuring their former bass guitarist Stuart Sutcliffe. From the 16 known demos made in early 1960 at McCartney's house, only three have been released. Akustik Studio Recordings. 15 October 1960. In Hamburg, Germany, during the Beatles' first stint there, Lennon, McCartney and Harrison recorded a song as the backing group for Lu Walters, the bassist from Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. The Beatles' drummer, Pete Best, was not present, and Hurricanes drummer Ringo Starr played instead. It was  the first time John, Paul, George and Ringo recorded music together. Sutcliffe was present at the session but did not play. The song was recorded in the small Akustik studio, in a similar arrangement to the Beatles' recordings at Phillips' Sound Recording Services. The song, with a spoken advertisement as the B-side, was pressed onto nine mono 78 rpm acetate discs. After the song was recorded, Walters, Starr, Ty Brian and Johnny Byrne, all in the Hurricanes, recorded "Fever" and "September Song". None of the recordings was ever released. The session tapes were most likely erased and none of  the discs is known to have survived. Musicians: 1961. 1st Tony Sheridan Recordings. 22–24 June 1961. In what is now the Friedrich-Ebert-Halle, in the Friedrich-Ebert-Gymnasium (then known as "" ), during the Beatles' second stint in Hamburg, the group, under the name "the Beat Brothers", recorded several songs with English rock and roller Tony Sheridan for an album called "My Bonnie", produced by Bert Kaempfert. After recording the songs with Sheridan, the Beatles recorded two songs by themselves. Sutcliffe attended the session but did not play. The session tapes have since been destroyed, but some of the songs  have been issued on numerous singles, EPs and albums, both official and unofficial. Information on the recording dates is sketchy, and much of the official documentation was lost in a fire. Sheridan later made more recordings with different backing musicians, resulting in some debate over which songs the Beatles are on. They are generally believed to appear on seven surviving tracks. The various mixes of the recordings have appeared on many compilation albums and other releases. Atlantic Records added extra instruments to two songs for a release in 1964. To complete their contract, The Beatles made more recordings in Hamburg  on 24 May 1962. Musicians: Production staff: 1962. Decca Audition. 1 January 1962. On New Year's Day, the Beatles recorded an audition for Decca Records in London at around 11 am. They likely performed only one take of each song with no overdubbing. The Beatles did not pass the audition, but their manager, Brian Epstein, kept the reel-to-reel tapes to present to other record producers. Epstein arranged for the recordings to be pressed onto monoacetate discs, one of which was later heard by Parlophone producer George Martin, who offered them an audition which would turn out to  be successful. The likely order of the songs was: Musicians: Production staff: 2nd Tony Sheridan Recordings. 24 May 1962. After their previous sessions recording in Hamburg with Tony Sheridan for Bert Kaempfert, the Beatles returned for one final session to complete their contract. Only one song from this day has survived. The Beatles were accompanied by Roy Young, a pianist who had been playing with them at the Star-Club. Sheridan was not at the session, and he overdubbed his vocals on 7 June 1962 without the Beatles present. He re-recorded his vocals for "Sweet Georgia Brown" on 3  January 1964 to contain a reference to the Beatles' fame. Atlantic Records added extra instruments for a release in 1964. Musicians: Production staff: EMI Artist Test. 6 June 1962. After the Decca audition recordings came to the attention of EMI managers through the efforts of the Beatles' manager Brian Epstein, a recording contract was executed between Epstein and EMI's Parlophone record label. EMI would record a minimum of six single "sides" and the agreement would start on 6 June 1962, expiring a year later, but renewable. After the contract was signed, Parlophone record producer George Martin gave the Beatles  an audition at EMI Studios in London, to assess their musical quality and respective vocal talents. The audition, held on 6 June, also acted as their first EMI recording session. They likely performed in Studio 2, the studio in which they would record most of their music. Because none of the recordings was considered worthy of release, the session tapes were destroyed per standard protocol; however, at least two mono recordings have since been discovered. Most documentation from the session has also been destroyed; however, it is known that four songs were recorded in an unknown amount of takes. Ken  Townsend, who would become a regular at the Beatles' recording sessions, was on duty in the technical department that day. Martin was not satisfied with Best's drumming, so Epstein and the other Beatles soon dismissed him from the group. This session was Best's only recording session at EMI before he was replaced by Ringo Starr. A complete tape of this session surfaced after the death of sound engineer Geoff Emerick on 2 October 2018. Apparently Emerick took the tape home even though it was meant to have been destroyed. As of 2020 Emerick's family are involved in  legal proceedings with Universal Music, current owners of the Beatles' back catalogue, as to who legally owns the tape. 6–8 pm Musicians: Production staff: Section::::"Love Me Do" single sessions. 4 September 1962. 90 days after their EMI audition, the Beatles returned to EMI Studios, with their new drummer, Ringo Starr, to record their debut single in Studio 2. Before the session, they rehearsed five songs, including "Please Please Me", in Studio 3 with Ron Richards, between 2.30 and 5.30 pm. They began work on Mitch Murray's "How Do You Do It", which Martin had chosen for them, but they  disliked the song and wanted to release an original composition. They recorded at least two takes of "How Do You Do It" and at least 15 takes of "Love Me Do", then the best take of each song was mono mixed and pressed onto an acetate disc for Martin and Epstein to listen to. The session tapes were later destroyed, as was common practice until 1963. This session's version of "Love Me Do" was released as the Beatles' first single; however, it was later replaced with a version recorded seven days later, and the original was destroyed. When the  original was later released on compilations, it had to be sourced from an original mono 45 rpm single. 7–10 pm Musicians: Production staff: 11 September 1962. Concerned with Ringo's drumming, the producers hired session drummer Andy White for another attempt at recording the Beatles' first single. In Studio 2, they recorded three songs with White drumming, while Ringo was relegated to maracas and tambourine. The best takes of "Love Me Do" and "P.S. I Love You" were mono mixed. An unknown amount of takes of "Please Please Me" were also recorded but none was used. The session tapes were  later destroyed, thus there are no true stereo versions of the songs, although at least one mono recording has been discovered. Although the previous session's version of "Love Me Do" was originally released as the single, following the release of the EP "The Beatles' Hits", it was replaced with the version from this session, and the original was destroyed. "Love Me Do" and "P.S. I Love You" were mixed in "fake stereo" on 25 February 1963 in the control room of Studio 1. Although they were originally released in fake stereo on the stereo version of "Please Please Me , modern remastered stereo releases contain the two songs in mono, as fake stereo has fallen out of style. 10 am – 1 pm Musicians: Production staff: Section::::Please Please Me" single sessions. On 26 November, over a month after the release of the first single, the Beatles returned to Studio 2 to record their second. After the successful recording of "Please Please Me", Martin spoke the now-famous line, "You've just made your first number one." In addition to the two sides of the single, they also performed an unknown number of takes of another original composition, "Tip of My Tongue , but Martin was unhappy with the arrangement. They never recorded it again and, instead, gave it to Tommy Quickly, another artist managed by Epstein. Please Please Me" and "Ask Me Why" were mono mixed at an unknown time on 30 November in Studio 2. An edit and stereo mix of "Please Please Me" and a new mono and a stereo mix of "Ask Me Why" were made on 25 February 1963 in Studio 1, for inclusion on the mono and stereo versions of the "Please Please Me" album. 7–10 pm Musicians: 26 November 1962. Production staff: Production staff: 1963. Section::::"Please  Please Me" album sessions. On 11 February in Studio 2, the Beatles recorded almost the entirety of their debut album, "Please Please Me", between 10 am and 10.45 pm. They also recorded several takes of "Hold Me Tight". Although in 1963, the convention of destroying session tapes after the final mixes were made had mostly ceased, the session's takes of "Hold Me Tight" were destroyed, as the song was left unused until seven months later when they re-recorded it for their next album. On 20 February in Studio 1, Martin recorded overdubs for "Misery" and "Baby It's  You". The album was edited and mixed on 25 February in Studio 1. The song "Seventeen" was later retitled "I Saw Her Standing There". 10 am – 1 pm 11 February 1963. 2.30–6 pm 7.30–10.45 pm Musicians: Production staff: 20 February 1963. 10.30 am – 1 pm Musicians: Production staff: 25 February 1963. 10 am – 1 pm, 2.30–5.45 pm Production staff: Section::::"From Me to You" single sessions. The Beatles recorded their third single on 5 March in Studio 2. They also wanted to record "What Goes On" and "The One After 909" (later retitled "One After 909"). In the end, only the  latter was recorded, but the song remained unused until it was re-recorded during the "Get Back" / "Let It Be" sessions. "What Goes On" was later recorded for "Rubber Soul". On 13 March in Studio 2, Lennon recorded a harmonica overdub for "Thank You Little Girl" (later retitled "Thank You Girl"), the single's B-side, and the song was edited and mixed. The A-side, "From Me to You", was edited and mixed on 14 March in Studio 2. 2.30–5 pm 5 March 1963. 7–10 pm Musicians: Production staff: 10 am – 1 pm Musicians: 13 March 1963. Production staff : 14 March 1963. 10 am – 1 pm Production staff: Section::::"She Loves You" single sessions. The Beatles recorded their fourth single, "She Loves You", on 1 July in Studio 2. The B-side, "Get You in the End", was later retitled "I'll Get You". The number of takes recorded is unknown, as the documentation and session tapes were later destroyed or lost. The songs were edited and mono mixed on 4 July in Studio 2. No stereo mixes were ever made from the master recordings, and later stereo releases of the songs are in fake stereo or are combined with  the recordings made on 13 March 1964 for the German-language version. 2.30–5.30, 7–10 pm Musicians: 1 July 1963. Production staff: 4 July 1963. 10 am – 1 pm Production staff: Section::::"With the Beatles" and "I Want to Hold Your Hand" single sessions. 18 July 1963. Studio 2 7.00–10.45 pm Musicians: Production staff: 30 July 1963. Studio 2 10.00 am – 1.30 pm 5.00–11.00 pm Musicians: Production staff: 21 August 1963. Studio 3 (control room) 10.00 am–1.00 pm, 2.00–5.30 pm Production staff: 11 September 1963. Studio 2 2.30–6.00 pm 7.00–10.15 pm Musicians: Production staff: 12 September 1963. Studio 2 2.30–6.30 pm 7.00–11.30  pm Musicians: Production staff: 30 September 1963. Studio 2 10.00 am – 1.15 pm Musicians: Production staff: 3 October 1963. Studio 2 7.00–10.00 pm Musicians: Production staff: 17 October 1963. Studio 2 2.30–5.30, 7.00–10.00 pm Musicians: Production staff: 21 October 1963. Studio 1 10.00 am – 1.00 pm Production staff: 23 October 1963. Studio 2 10.00 am – 1.00 pm Musicians: Production staff: 29 October 1963. Studio 3 10.00 am – 1.00 pm Production staff: 30 October 1963. Studio 3 2.30–5.30 pm Production staff: 1966. Section::::"Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" sessions. 2 December 1966. Room 53, EMI Studios, London (9.00am-12.00am) 1969. Section::::"Get  Back" album sessions. There are no take numbers since they were not formal studio recording sessions, but rehearsals filmed for "Let It Be". Some of the songs were released on later Beatles or solo records. Songs (arranged by artist): Numerous improvisations were also recorded during these sessions. Section::::"Let It Be" album sessions. "Let It Be" was put together from the "Get Back" sessions, documented above. Most songs do not have formal take numbers. 1970. Section::::"Let It Be" album sessions (cont.). 8 May 1970. "Let It Be" LP release