Back in April, news broke about the discovery of a Beatles concert recording from 1963. It's believed to be the earliest known recording of a Beatles live performance, and it's now in the British Library’s Sound Archive.
The recording was captured at the Stowe boarding school in Buckinghamshire, England back on April 4th, 1963. It was recorded by 15-year old student John Bloomfield, who still had possession the tape. It includes full length songs and spoken word segments from the band to the audience.
Songs performed included several from their debut album, Please Please Me, which had been released two weeks earlier on March 22nd, 1963.
Beatles historian Mark Lewisohn says, “The opportunity that this tape presents, which is completely out of the blue, is fantastic because we hear them just on the cusp of the breakthrough into complete world fame. And at that point, all audience recordings become blanketed in screams.”
He adds, “So here is an opportunity to hear them in the UK, in an environment where they could be heard and where the tape actually does capture them properly, at a time when they can have banter with the audience as well.”
The recording joins other items of Beatles memorabilia which include a rare copy of their first single, "Love Me Do"; John Lennon's handwritten lyrics to "Strawberry Fields Forever," "She Said She Said" and "In My Life"; numerous interviews with the band; and the Beatles’ official biographer Hunter Davies’ archive, which was acquired by the Library in October last year, and includes handwritten song lyrics and sketches by Paul McCartney of John and George Harrison.
[Source: Classic Hits Today]