Fab Four poised for chart invasion

SOME 45 years after the first wave of Beatlemania, retailers are preparing for the biggest chart invasion ever seen by the Fab Four from today.

Not only are the album charts expected to be swamped with 14 revamped albums by the band by this weekend, but the group are also expected to top the video game charts with the newly-developed Beatles Rock Band.

The new thrust is due to the release of remastered copies of their studio recordings – refined with months of painstaking work – to be released today on what is being dubbed Beatles Day.

Bookies are already predicting that John, Paul, George and Ringo will top the album charts once again with Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band favourite to be the biggest seller, according to bookmaker William Hill. The next most fancied is Revolver, then Abbey Road.

Online retailer Amazon.co.uk said a box set version of the band’s stereo albums – priced at £170 (€190) – is topping its bestseller list on pre-orders alone. It is thought to be the most expensive item ever to head the chart.

Each of the band’s original albums plus the soundtrack to Yellow Submarine, the Magical Mystery Tour EP and the Past Masters collection of singles which were not included on albums have all been reworked and repackaged.

The sets are being issued in two versions – as well as the stereo mixes of each album, which are being sold boxed or individually, and a collector’s box of the band’s recordings in mono.

Experts have polished the sound and enhanced the quality of the original recordings which have been processed digitally.

It is the first time the releases have been tweaked since they were first issued on CD in 1987.

The remasters are designed to appeal to not only those who want to upgrade their collections, but also potential younger fans whose interest has been sparked by classics from their parents’ – or grandparents’ – albums, or from bands who have name-dropped their influence.

And to keep up with changing technological tastes, the band’s company Apple Corps has moved into the computer games market for the first time with the release of Beatles Rock Band.