Parlophone/Capitol Records/UMeLondon’s Sunday Times recently reported that The Beatles are planning to release a deluxe reissue of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band in honor of the influential album’s 50th anniversary, and now comes word that Ringo Starr has heard the updated record and thinks it sounds great.
The news comes from Keith Allison, a longtime friend of Starr’s and former member of Paul Revere and the Raiders, who reports in a Facebook post that he listened to the remastered album with Ringo a couple of months ago.
Allison reveals that he was visiting with Starr when a package came from producer Giles Martin containing the album. According to Keith, Ringo told him he hadn’t listened to Sgt. Pepper’s in decades, so the two musicians proceeded to play the record on a high-def system Starr owned.
“So what did Ringo think? He thought it was great!” writes Allison. “Why? Because it originally was recorded on a 4-track with a lot of overdubs, which buried the drums. Now, the drums have been lifted and come through as they should. He was pleased.”
Allison also notes that the Sgt. Pepper’s reissue “was remastered at EMI Studios where it was originally recorded,” and that only Ringo and Paul McCartney had been sent copies of the updated album.
Although no official announcement has been made yet, The Sunday Times reported that the Sgt. Pepper’s reissue will now include the non-album singles “Penny Lane” and “Strawberry Fields Forever,” and will hit stores on June 1, the exact 50th anniversary of the record’s original release.
Meanwhile, an enigmatic teaser video featuring a snippet of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band‘s title track has been posted on The Beatles’ official website and YouTube channel.
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