BOOK REVIEW: THE BEATLES: THE BBC ARCHIVES by Kevin Howlett

THE BEATLES: THE BBC ARCHIVES by Kevin Howlett
Random House Australia, $99.95 rrp
1 November 2013
Reviewed by Shane Pinnegar
8/10

A lovingly packaged tome dedicated to the many in-studio radio sessions The Beatles did at The Beeb and packaged in a box to look like a reel of audio tape, The BBC Archives is a lovingly compiled chronological run through those 53 radio shows and includes details of the 88 different songs performed a total of 275 times.

Chock full of photos and interview transcripts that show the Merseyside lads as the cheeky and lovable scamps they were in the beginning, right through to the sombre days of the end of the band – a mere seven years after their first single release.

The BBC Archives also comes with replications of original documents and adds nicely to the veritable library of books about the Fab Four already out there. The only thing missing, in fact, is the actual music, though that is of course available to purchase separately with two double album CD’s of The Beatles At The BBC released.

Category: Book Reviews