The Beatles have an announcement, which really hasn't been a secret.
The 50th anniversary of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band will be marked with various Anniversary Edition packages on May 26th.
The landmark 1967 album has been remixed by George Martin's son Giles in stereo and 5.1 surround audio and expanded with 34 previously unreleased outtakes from the studio sessions.
In the introduction for this new collection, Paul McCartney writes, "It’s crazy to think that 50 years later we are looking back on this project with such fondness and a little bit of amazement at how four guys, a great producer and his engineers could make such a lasting piece of art.”
And Ringo Starr adds, "Sgt. Pepper seemed to capture the mood of that year, and it also allowed a lot of other people to kick off from there and to really go for it.”
The reissue includes:
- A previously unreleased instrumental take of “Penny Lane”
- Two previously unreleased complete takes of “Strawberry Fields Forever”
- Direct transfers of the album’s original mono mix and the “Strawberry Fields Forever” and “Penny Lane” singles
- Previously unreleased mono mixes of “She’s Leaving Home,” “A Day in the Life” and “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds” (a mix thought to have been erased from a tape in 1967, but discovered during archive research for the anniversary edition)
- Promotional films for “Strawberry Fields Forever,” “Penny Lane” and “A Day in the Life” plus The Making of Sgt. Pepper, a restored, previously unreleased documentary film (broadcast in 1992).
But before the release on May 26th comes a limited edition seven-inch vinyl single of “Strawberry Fields Forever” and “Penny Lane” on April 22nd - Record Store Day.