Five Birthday & Christmas Present Ideas for Beatles Fans

On September 9, 2009 The Beatles long awaited remastered box sets were finally released which gave Beatles fans something to obsess over and it also greatly added to the possibilities for really great Christmas & birthday gift ideas for lovers of the Fab Four.

The new Beatles version of the Rock Band video game was also released on that day making for a total of three new awesome gift ideas. This list will include those three along with two additional ideas (just in case the fan in your family already has those three!)

(#1)The Beatles In Stereo Box Set

This is probably the most obvious choice because it includes every song the Beatles released during their magical career from 1962 through 1970. But not only is this box set very "complete" in the way it covers The Beatles whole career, it also sounds fantastic. It's shocking how much better it sounds than the old CDs that most fans owned before it came out.

There are sounds in their songs that I'm only now hearing for the first time because of these new remastered CDs. The clarity is impressive. But what's really great is that they didn't gain this new clarity at the expense of the warm analog "warmth" of the old recordings. In fact, these new CDs sound substantially more "warm" and more "analog" than the old ones because they were captured from the original tapes in higher defintion.

(#2) The Beatles In Mono Box Set

It's not as "complete" as the stereo box set but it is probably an even greater revelation because most of these mono mixes have never been heard before on CD and some of them have actually never been released in any format before (not even vinyl LP!)

This box set does not include Yellow Submarine, Let It Be, or Abbey Road because those final three albums were only mixed in stereo.

These original mono mixes are how many purists believe these songs were "meant to be heard." And they have a good point! Those mono mixes were the ones that the band themselves worked on. The stereo mixes were merely an afterthought in comparison.

Another thing that may make this box set a great gift is it's "collectible" status. There may be only limited quantities of these mono box sets made and if that's the case it's value should actually go up over the years (if kept in good condition.)

(#3) The Beatles Rock Band

This is the best video game ever in my opinion, of course I say that as a huge Beatlemaniac myself! I do think this game is great for anyone that loves music really. You don't have to be a gamer to get into it. Plus this game is also a really great way to improve your singing and your drumming skills!

(#4) The Capitol Album Box Sets

In 1964 and 1965 sliced up and rearranged versions of The Beatles albums were sold in the United States rather than their UK originals (the ones sold on CD now.)

I have mixed feelings about these albums. On the one hand I think they're really awful because it's an example of a record company screwing their artists over (the band did not approve of these sliced up versions of their albums) but on the other hand I think they are interesting from the perspective of these albums were how Americans of the early 60s were introduced to the band.

I think these could be great gifts for either the true "collector" or for an older American fan who wants to relive the music as they originally heard it!

(#5) The Beatles Anthology DVD Set

A 10 hour documentary on the greatest band of all time! This is a fantastic gift for any fan who doesn't already own it. It's also great for those that own it on VHS but finally need to update to DVD! The DVD version also includes a bonus disc with an extra hour worth of material.