With just 50 days left until the world-wide release of the Beatles Remastered song catalog and Beatles Rock Band video game, more and more information is being released detailing just what kind of product fans can buy on September 9, 2009 also known as 9/9/09 Beatles Day.
First let's start with the Beatles Rock Band game. There has been a lot of speculation, rumor, and honest discussion about the validity of a Beatles Rock Band game as many older Beatles fans believe it will cheapen the band's image. Others voiced concerns that the Beatles music wouldn't translate well to the Rock Band format and that the game may be too easy to satisfy the younger generation's appetite which has been feeding on rythym guitar games for years now.
In short, there were a lot of question marks regarding just what Beatles Rock Band would look like. A few months ago the game's specially designed Beatles instruments were released to the public and they included: two stand-alone guitars (Lennon's Rickenbacker 325 & Harrison's Gretsch Duo Jet), McCartney's Hofner bass, and a replica of Ringo Starr's Ludwig drum kit. Almost everyone who has had the chance to see and touch these instruments is raving about their look, especially the drum kit.
Weeks passed as we were left staring at the instruments still wondering what the possibilities could be with the game itself. Then came the E3 convention in Los Angeles where it was rumored that Harmonix (the designers of Beatles Rock Band) would be marketing a prototype of the game among the hundreds of other new games at the world's largest video game expo.
After keeping everyone in the dark for quite some time, Harmonix decided to pull out all the stops to deliver and showcase Beatles Rock Band for the very first time. They came prepared offering the public a grand look at the game on the expo's main stage, where Sir Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Olivia Harrison, and Yoko Ono showed up to the delight of fans everywhere.
They followed the surprise appearances with a demo of the game as six people stood on stage with the instruments and microphones singing and playing away to the Beatles 1965 hit "Day Tripper." After the main performance the expo was treated to a closer look at the game as Harmonix designers began explaining how it would be played. They even went so far as to built a small replica of Abbey Road, the EMI studio in London where the Beatles recorded so many of their songs.
As if that wasn't enough, the partnering companies involved in the game (Harmonix, Apple Corps, MTV, Sony/ATV, Electronic Arts, and EMI) released two videos to accompany the E3 demos. The first is a nearly four minute long extended trailer showing a video of the game while the second is an artistic theatrical trailer which serves as a psuedo-commercial for the game. Both can be viewed on the Beatles website or on YouTube and it is highly recommended you watch both, especially the theatrical trailer which is fantastic.
Before these events I have to admit as a Beatles enthusiast I was looking forward to the remastered albums more than this game. Since then, I have become elated at what Rock Band has brought to the table. Let's look at what they have to offer:
First, the game will be a celebration of the Beatles and will progress through their entire career spanning seven-plus years of music including four locations in the beginning, evolving to dreamscapes in their middle to late period, and ending with a recreation of their rooftop concert above their Apple offices in 1969. The game will feautre 45 songs with the beginning location being the Cavern Club (corresponding to 1963 songs), the Ed Sullivan Show ('64), Shea Stadium ('65), and the Budokan Theater in Japan ('66).
From there Harmonix has developed "dreamscapes" which will begin showing the band playing each song in the studio yet the screen will morph into whatever the particular song may be about. For example, the band will begin playing "Octopus's Garden" at their Abbey Road stuido but you will suddenly find yourself underwater as the Beatles play through the song surrounded by the ocean depths. This is clearly going to be a major part of the game as Harmonix has showcased other dreamscapes that are psychadelic and highly creative.
For all intents and purposes Beatles Rock Band will be very similar in it's gameplay to all previous Rock Band games. However, Harmonix decided to include vocal harmonies which will undoubtedly add a new dimension never before seen to any Rock Band game.
That is why the premium bundle package selling for $250 will include the drums, bass, a microphone with stand, as well as the game itself. Beatles Rock Band will be able to support up to two more microphones in order to imitate the classic three-part harmonies that were so much a part of the band's sound.
Only hours ago a new trailer was released showing 8 more songs accompanied with their respective locations and dreamscapes. The Beatles website has also posted a hanful of other songs that will be available to play. As of today, there are twenty-five songs that we know will be in the game: "I Saw Her Standing There", "I Want to Hold Your Hand", "I Feel Fine", "Day Tripper", "Taxman", I Am the Walrus", "Octopus's Garden", "Back in the USSR", "Here Comes the Sun", "Get Back", as well as, "Twist & Shout", "Can't Buy Me Love", Eight Day's a Week", "Paperback Writer", "Yellow Submarine", Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band", "Within You Without You/Tomorrow Never Knows", "Revolution", "I Wanna Be Your Man", "Do You Want to Know A Secret", "And Your Bird Can Sing", "With a Little Help From My Friends", Birthday", "Dig a Pony", and "I've Got a Feeling".
To add to the fun, it has been confirmed that there will be downloadable content for the game as well. Upon its release on 9/9/09 you will be allowed to download "All You Need is Love" as a special one song package with all proceeds going to charity. Also, it has been confirmed that the entire Abbey Road album will be available for download sometime after the game's release. Harmonix and Apple Corps have denied that more songs or albums will be made available for download but they have left the door open to the possibility that there may be futher content in the future.
The release of the trailers have convinced me that this game is going to be very big. It will no doubt give thousands of people (particularly younger people) the opportunity to see just how unique, diverse, and rock worthy the Beatles were as a band. Not only that, but many others will be amazed at how much fun the game will be. I am expecting this game to be a huge seller well into the Christmas season as the good news will spread about how neat the game is and, consequently, just how cool the Beatles are!
Switching gears, there will also be CD Remasters available on 9/9/09 to compliment the release of Beatles Rock Band in what is shaping up to be one of the biggest release date media events in recent memory. There will be a Stereo box set and Mono box set for sale, as well as individual CD's of the stereo versions for those less incline to buy the Beatles catalog.
The Stereo box set will contain 14 CD's including all of the official British album releases by the Beatles: Please Please Me, With the Beatles, A Hard Day's Night, Beatles for Sale, Help!, Rubber Soul, Revolver, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, The Beatles (White Album), Abbey Road, and Let it Be. Also included will be the Yellow Submarine and Magical Mystery Tour soundtracks (both considered to be part of the Beatles official canon) as well as a Past Masters CD bringing together all of the band's singles which were not part of any album.
Also part of the Stereo box set will be a mini-documentary DVD with a running time of 45 minutes taking a look at each Beatles album. The mini-documentaries will be encoded into each CD album in the stereo box set and will also be available in the individual CD's sold in stores, but for a limited time only.
To complete the Stereo package each album will come in a three-sided digi-pack packaged with a 12" tower with magnet to store the CD's. Also included will be new linear notes and never before seen photographs. Currently Amazon has this box set selling for $200.00.
The Mono box set will be slightly different in that it will only contain 11 CD's and no documentary DVD. Because the albums Abbey Road, Let it Be, and Yellow Submarine were recorded in stereo only, they will not be included in this box set. However, the mono box set is offering original stereo versions of the albums Help! and Rubber Soul which have never been released before.
Still, with less music the Mono box set has its own perks. Each album will be designed as a mini-replica in CD form of the original vinyl LP's released by the Beatles. This will include all original art work, album sleeves, gatefolds, and pull outs that came with the vinyl's forty years ago.
As of right now the Mono box set is limited to 10,000 copies but there is a fierce debate as to whether this is correct or not. Will this figure pertain to the United States only? Is the figure just to show that the first 10,000 will be numbered copies and thus more valuable to collectors? There still has been no answer to this dilemma. What is known is that the Mono box set is on sale at Amazon for $239.00.
So far there have been roughly thirty snippets of the stereo remasters available to listen to online. From what I can tell the improvements in sound quality are discernable. Although some were dismayed that the song catalog would not be re-mixed or put into 5.1 Dolby surround sound, the new remasters seem to give an extra punch and clarity that has been lacking to the Beatles sound for decades.
The preview of the Revolver mini-documentary shows that these will be nothing to write home about. Made up neat artistic design and pictures, the videos' discussions appear to be taken directly from the Anthology series in 1994. It's not so much a big deal as each documentary will only be about three minutes long anyway.
Overall, 9/9/09 is shaping up to be a tremendous celebration of the Beatles, their music, their popularity, and their legacy. In just under two months we will see just how much selling power the group holds nearly half a century after their peak.
First let's start with the Beatles Rock Band game. There has been a lot of speculation, rumor, and honest discussion about the validity of a Beatles Rock Band game as many older Beatles fans believe it will cheapen the band's image. Others voiced concerns that the Beatles music wouldn't translate well to the Rock Band format and that the game may be too easy to satisfy the younger generation's appetite which has been feeding on rythym guitar games for years now.
In short, there were a lot of question marks regarding just what Beatles Rock Band would look like. A few months ago the game's specially designed Beatles instruments were released to the public and they included: two stand-alone guitars (Lennon's Rickenbacker 325 & Harrison's Gretsch Duo Jet), McCartney's Hofner bass, and a replica of Ringo Starr's Ludwig drum kit. Almost everyone who has had the chance to see and touch these instruments is raving about their look, especially the drum kit.
Weeks passed as we were left staring at the instruments still wondering what the possibilities could be with the game itself. Then came the E3 convention in Los Angeles where it was rumored that Harmonix (the designers of Beatles Rock Band) would be marketing a prototype of the game among the hundreds of other new games at the world's largest video game expo.
After keeping everyone in the dark for quite some time, Harmonix decided to pull out all the stops to deliver and showcase Beatles Rock Band for the very first time. They came prepared offering the public a grand look at the game on the expo's main stage, where Sir Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Olivia Harrison, and Yoko Ono showed up to the delight of fans everywhere.
They followed the surprise appearances with a demo of the game as six people stood on stage with the instruments and microphones singing and playing away to the Beatles 1965 hit "Day Tripper." After the main performance the expo was treated to a closer look at the game as Harmonix designers began explaining how it would be played. They even went so far as to built a small replica of Abbey Road, the EMI studio in London where the Beatles recorded so many of their songs.
As if that wasn't enough, the partnering companies involved in the game (Harmonix, Apple Corps, MTV, Sony/ATV, Electronic Arts, and EMI) released two videos to accompany the E3 demos. The first is a nearly four minute long extended trailer showing a video of the game while the second is an artistic theatrical trailer which serves as a psuedo-commercial for the game. Both can be viewed on the Beatles website or on YouTube and it is highly recommended you watch both, especially the theatrical trailer which is fantastic.
Before these events I have to admit as a Beatles enthusiast I was looking forward to the remastered albums more than this game. Since then, I have become elated at what Rock Band has brought to the table. Let's look at what they have to offer:
First, the game will be a celebration of the Beatles and will progress through their entire career spanning seven-plus years of music including four locations in the beginning, evolving to dreamscapes in their middle to late period, and ending with a recreation of their rooftop concert above their Apple offices in 1969. The game will feautre 45 songs with the beginning location being the Cavern Club (corresponding to 1963 songs), the Ed Sullivan Show ('64), Shea Stadium ('65), and the Budokan Theater in Japan ('66).
From there Harmonix has developed "dreamscapes" which will begin showing the band playing each song in the studio yet the screen will morph into whatever the particular song may be about. For example, the band will begin playing "Octopus's Garden" at their Abbey Road stuido but you will suddenly find yourself underwater as the Beatles play through the song surrounded by the ocean depths. This is clearly going to be a major part of the game as Harmonix has showcased other dreamscapes that are psychadelic and highly creative.
For all intents and purposes Beatles Rock Band will be very similar in it's gameplay to all previous Rock Band games. However, Harmonix decided to include vocal harmonies which will undoubtedly add a new dimension never before seen to any Rock Band game.
That is why the premium bundle package selling for $250 will include the drums, bass, a microphone with stand, as well as the game itself. Beatles Rock Band will be able to support up to two more microphones in order to imitate the classic three-part harmonies that were so much a part of the band's sound.
Only hours ago a new trailer was released showing 8 more songs accompanied with their respective locations and dreamscapes. The Beatles website has also posted a hanful of other songs that will be available to play. As of today, there are twenty-five songs that we know will be in the game: "I Saw Her Standing There", "I Want to Hold Your Hand", "I Feel Fine", "Day Tripper", "Taxman", I Am the Walrus", "Octopus's Garden", "Back in the USSR", "Here Comes the Sun", "Get Back", as well as, "Twist & Shout", "Can't Buy Me Love", Eight Day's a Week", "Paperback Writer", "Yellow Submarine", Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band", "Within You Without You/Tomorrow Never Knows", "Revolution", "I Wanna Be Your Man", "Do You Want to Know A Secret", "And Your Bird Can Sing", "With a Little Help From My Friends", Birthday", "Dig a Pony", and "I've Got a Feeling".
To add to the fun, it has been confirmed that there will be downloadable content for the game as well. Upon its release on 9/9/09 you will be allowed to download "All You Need is Love" as a special one song package with all proceeds going to charity. Also, it has been confirmed that the entire Abbey Road album will be available for download sometime after the game's release. Harmonix and Apple Corps have denied that more songs or albums will be made available for download but they have left the door open to the possibility that there may be futher content in the future.
The release of the trailers have convinced me that this game is going to be very big. It will no doubt give thousands of people (particularly younger people) the opportunity to see just how unique, diverse, and rock worthy the Beatles were as a band. Not only that, but many others will be amazed at how much fun the game will be. I am expecting this game to be a huge seller well into the Christmas season as the good news will spread about how neat the game is and, consequently, just how cool the Beatles are!
Switching gears, there will also be CD Remasters available on 9/9/09 to compliment the release of Beatles Rock Band in what is shaping up to be one of the biggest release date media events in recent memory. There will be a Stereo box set and Mono box set for sale, as well as individual CD's of the stereo versions for those less incline to buy the Beatles catalog.
The Stereo box set will contain 14 CD's including all of the official British album releases by the Beatles: Please Please Me, With the Beatles, A Hard Day's Night, Beatles for Sale, Help!, Rubber Soul, Revolver, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, The Beatles (White Album), Abbey Road, and Let it Be. Also included will be the Yellow Submarine and Magical Mystery Tour soundtracks (both considered to be part of the Beatles official canon) as well as a Past Masters CD bringing together all of the band's singles which were not part of any album.
Also part of the Stereo box set will be a mini-documentary DVD with a running time of 45 minutes taking a look at each Beatles album. The mini-documentaries will be encoded into each CD album in the stereo box set and will also be available in the individual CD's sold in stores, but for a limited time only.
To complete the Stereo package each album will come in a three-sided digi-pack packaged with a 12" tower with magnet to store the CD's. Also included will be new linear notes and never before seen photographs. Currently Amazon has this box set selling for $200.00.
The Mono box set will be slightly different in that it will only contain 11 CD's and no documentary DVD. Because the albums Abbey Road, Let it Be, and Yellow Submarine were recorded in stereo only, they will not be included in this box set. However, the mono box set is offering original stereo versions of the albums Help! and Rubber Soul which have never been released before.
Still, with less music the Mono box set has its own perks. Each album will be designed as a mini-replica in CD form of the original vinyl LP's released by the Beatles. This will include all original art work, album sleeves, gatefolds, and pull outs that came with the vinyl's forty years ago.
As of right now the Mono box set is limited to 10,000 copies but there is a fierce debate as to whether this is correct or not. Will this figure pertain to the United States only? Is the figure just to show that the first 10,000 will be numbered copies and thus more valuable to collectors? There still has been no answer to this dilemma. What is known is that the Mono box set is on sale at Amazon for $239.00.
So far there have been roughly thirty snippets of the stereo remasters available to listen to online. From what I can tell the improvements in sound quality are discernable. Although some were dismayed that the song catalog would not be re-mixed or put into 5.1 Dolby surround sound, the new remasters seem to give an extra punch and clarity that has been lacking to the Beatles sound for decades.
The preview of the Revolver mini-documentary shows that these will be nothing to write home about. Made up neat artistic design and pictures, the videos' discussions appear to be taken directly from the Anthology series in 1994. It's not so much a big deal as each documentary will only be about three minutes long anyway.
Overall, 9/9/09 is shaping up to be a tremendous celebration of the Beatles, their music, their popularity, and their legacy. In just under two months we will see just how much selling power the group holds nearly half a century after their peak.
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