According to authorities in an unnamed deaf-led organization, Johnny Depp and Natalie Portman have used incorrect sign language gestures in Paul McCartney’s latest music video for his recent single “My Valentine” extracted from his Kisses On The Bottom album. Paul recruited the Hollywood stars to portray in sign language the lyrics to the song in a black-and-white promo that he directed himself.

However, deaf devotees have now pointed out two errors made by the actors: Portman signs the word “tampon” instead of “appear” in the second verse while Depp makes the motion for “enemy” while attempting “valentine” at the song’s conclusion.

A representative for The British Deaf Association has nevertheless praised the duo for their efforts.

A spokesperson said, “It’s great that famous people such as Johnny Depp and Natalie Portman are highlighting the use of sign language. Their use of it is more a poetic expression.

“The sign for tampon does seem to come up from both Johnny and Natalie in the pre-edited footage, which causes some confusion, especially as American and British sign languages are different.

“It would have been nice if genuine deaf people had been used. But it’s still great.”

Natalie Portman's improper "sign" language in "My Valentine"

Johnny Depp's incorrect signing of the word "valentine."

The complete video can be viewed below.

Click the image above to play the video.

More Amazon links for any of your favorite Beatles-related music:

1) Kisses on the Bottom – Paul’s latst CD of satandards and a few originals including latest single “My Valentine.”

2) The Beatles, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr.
Visit www.thebeatlesrarity.com for a new Beatles rarity each week, plus lots more!

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Martin Scorsese’s George Harrison: Living In The Material World will finally see a U.S. home video release on May 1, 2012. I’ve posted some details about the film when the U.K. version was released last fall here.

As was expected, the film will be released in three editions: a two-DVD set, a separate Blu-ray version and a big-ticket Deluxe Edition that will include both the DVD, Blu-ray, a 96-page book of photos from the film and the 10-track CD “Early Takes Volume 1″ featuring previously unreleased music from George Harrison that was first available in the UK Deluxe Editon.

Also to follow up on the detailed information on Paul McCartney’s Ram re-issue, posted here, the release date is set for May 22, 2012 and as on previous parts of this series includes CDs, DVDs and vinyl. For details on the way the abundant bonus offerings are packaged, read the linked article.

Here are some Amazon links in case you are interested in ordering/pre-ordering:

Martin Scorsese’s George Harrison: Living In The Material World – all formats accessible at this link (available for pre-order only until May 1, 2012)

Ram Archive Collection – all formats accessible at this link (2012 re-issue versions only available for pre-order only until May 22, 2012)

Visit www.thebeatlesrarity.com for a new Beatles rarity each week, plus lots more!

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Although it’s subject to change at this point, I wanted to give readers and fans a “heads up” on the latest concerning Paul McCartney’s Archive Collection. The next album to get this deluxe treatment will be Ram.

As most of you know Ram was the 1971 follow up to McCartney, Paul’s first solo album. The set is currently scheduled for release on May 22, 2012 and will include a staggering 4 CDs and one DVD, as follows:

CD 1: Remaster of the complete Ram album by Paul and Linda McCartney with Too Many People, 3 Legs, Ram On (version 1), Dear Boy, Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey, Smile Away, Heart Of The Country, Monkberry Moon Delight, Eat At Home, Long Haired Lady, Ram On (version 2), The Back Seat Of My Car (originally released on LP on May 17, 1971 (US)/May 21, 1971 (UK).

CD 2 (Bonus tracks): Another Day (single version from Ram Sessions), Oh Woman Oh Why (single version from Ram Sessions), Little Woman Love (recorded in August 1971), A Love For You (Jon Kelly remix and originally a Ram out-take), Hey Diddle (Dixon Van Winkle remix and originally a Ram out-take), Great Cock And Seagull Race (Dixon Van Winkle mix originally recorded around Dec. 1971 – here a version featured on BROW here), Rode All Night (out-take), Sunshine Sometime (out-take later used on Rupert The Bear animation music)

CD 3: Ram (mono version): Paul made a very limited edition of the Ram album for AM (mono) radio airplay and only distributed to radio stations. The mixes are not simply fold down mixes but actually different. (e.g. “Too Many People” has a longer fade out and the backing vocals are mixed much lower – read more about mono Ram here). The track listing is the same as CD 1.

CD 4: Percy “Thrills” Thrillington: Percy “Thrills” Thrillington is an alias Paul McCartney used to put together this orchestral arrangement of all songs on the Ram LP. Orchestra arranged and conducted by Richard Hewson. Track listing is the same as CD 1 except there is no “Ram On (version 2)”. These are instrumental orchestrated versions of all tracks. Although recorded in 1971, the original Thrillington album was not released until 1977.

DVD: Video features include Ramming, Heart Of The Country, 3 Legs, Hey Diddle, Eat At Home On Tour, a selection of “Now Hear This” jingles (these are radio promo spots for Ram).

As before, there will likely be scaled down versions of the complete set offered at a reduced price as well as a vinyl edition. As earlier McCartney Archive Collection sets (Band On The Run, McCartney & McCartney II), these will be issued by Concord Music Group/Hear Music. The entire Archive Collection with a long list of additional McCartney albums is now planned to be released by 2016 (Venus & Mars is supposedly next).

Amazon.com is already taking pre-orders for the set here.

Visit www.thebeatlesrarity.com for a new Beatles rarity each week, plus lots more!

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If you have been looking for a new video release of The Beatles animated classic Yellow Submarine, then here is some good news. An announcement by Apple for a re-release of the original movie on both Blu-Ray and DVD is rumored to be in the works for sometime today (Tuesday, Mar. 20, 2012). Earlier DVD copies of film had been taken out of circulation a few years ago ahead of the, now aborted, Disney 3-D re-make version that was initially announced on this site here. The U.S. release date is currently planned for May 29, 2012. The film was originally premeired at the box office in July 1968 and is an animated account of The Beatles and their mission to save the music-loving paradise under the sea known as Pepperland from the Blue Meanies.

Yellow Submarine (Blu-Ray edition, 2012)

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Ringo Starr has just announced the performers in his 13th All Starr Band and the North American Tour Dates for this summer’s round of shows. Continuing with Ringo this year will be Richard Page (Mr. Mister), Todd Rundgren, Mark Rivera and Gregg Bissonette. There are also two new additions to the line up: keyboardist Gregg Rolie (Journey, Santana, The Storm, Abraxas Pool founding member) and guitarist Steve Lukather (Toto).

Ringo Starr & The 13th All Starr Band, 2012

Ringo’s latest album Ringo 2012 was just released back on January 31st and includes help from Joe Walsh, Benmont Tench, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Edgar Winter and Bruce Sugar among others and is a very upbeat and enjoyable listen. I personally would love to hear Ringo do his Buddy Holly cover (“Think It Over”) which appears on this album, live on the tour. To read more about Ringo 2012 or purchase your own copy through Amazon, click the link below:

1) Ringo 2012 [Amazon.com Exclusive CD+DVD Version]

2) The Beatles, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr.

Visit www.thebeatlesrarity.com for a new Beatles rarity each week, plus lots more!

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At 10pm EST on February 9, 2012 Paul McCartney will perform live to the world selections from his new album Kisses On The Bottom. The performance will take place at Capitol Studios in Hollywood, California and be streamed free of charge exclusively on Itunes. This will be the first time any of the selections from this new release will be shared with the public in a live setting. Kisses On The Bottom was released only yesterday and is an interesting collection of standards Paul grew up listening to with his family. In fact, he learned many of them from his father playing them on the family piano. There are also two new McCartney compositions – “My Valentine” and “Only Our Hearts” (which feature guest appearances from both Eric Clapton and Stevie Wonder). Both the album and streaming event will have Paul backed by Diana Krall and her band. Diana is a star in her own right with three Grammy Awards, eight Juno Awards, nine gold albums, three platinum albums, and seven multi-platinum albums. The deluxe version of the Kisses On The Bottom CD comes packaged with a download card of the this performance, that can be redeemed after the event. The standard CD contains 14 tracks but no download card. I should also point out that there are two versions of the deluxe CD. The first contains the standard CD plus the download and the second (available exclusively at Target stores in the U.S.) contains a 16-track CD that adds the two bonus tracks “My One And Only Love” and “Baby’s Request” (a new version of the Wing’s track from the 1979 album Back To The Egg). The complete track listing and additional info:

1. I’m Gonna Sit Down And Write Myself A Letter
2. Home (When Shadows Fall)
3. It’s Only A Paper Moon
4. More I Cannot Wish You
5. The Glory Of Love
6. We Three (My Echo, My Shadow and Me)
7. Ac-cent-tchu-ate The Positive
8. My Valentine
9. Always
10. My Very Good Friend The Milkman
11. Bye Bye Blackbird
12. Get Yourself Another Fool
13. The Inch Worm
14. Only Our Hearts
15. Baby’s Request (on some deluxe editions)
16. My One And Only Love (on some deluxe editions)

Paul McCartney – all lead vocals, acoustic guitar on tracks 12 & 13
Diana Krall band – all tracks
Stevie Wonder – harmonica on track 14
Eric Clapton – guitar on tracks 8 & 12
London Symphony Orchestra – tracks 2, 8, 9, 11 & 12
Tracks 8, 14 & 15 written by Paul McCartney

Cover art for Kisses On The Bottom, 2012

Amazon links related to this post:

1) Kisses on the Bottom (Deluxe) – Deluxe edition w/download card described above (but no bonus tracks – for bonus tracks version order from paulmccartney.com or buy from Target stores).

2) Amazon links for any of your favorite Beatles-related music: The Beatles, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr.

Visit www.thebeatlesrarity.com for a new Beatles rarity each week, plus lots more!

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Back on December 7th (2011), TheBeatlesRarity.com reported on Paul McCartney’s upcoming St. Valentine’s holiday release. At the time, the title of the CD was to be My Valentine after one of only two McCartney-penned tracks on the disc. The latest, however, is that the CD will be titled Kisses On The Bottom.

A few weeks back, Paul spoke with French radio station RTL, and described the new record as “old-fashioned.” He said: “This will sound like the years between 1920-1940, the time when my father was 20. These are songs I heard – my family, my uncles, everybody sang. And there will be pieces I wrote, but in this style.”

In addition to enlisting the help of producer Tommy LiPuma, Paul recruits backing vocals from Diana Krall and even welcomes a guest appearance by Stevie Wonder. The disc marks the first time Paul has recorded without playing bass, guitar or piano.

Paul explains: “I always thought artists like Fred Astaire were very cool. Writers like Harold Arlen, Cole Porter, all of those guys – I just thought the songs were magical. And then, as I got to be a songwriter I thought it’s beautiful, the way they made those songs.”

Determined to approach the record in a new and unique manner, Paul requested the help of LiPuma and Krall and her band – who delivered ultra-high quality musicianship and were completely in tune with Paul’s restraint and feel for the music.

Paul says: “It was very spontaneous, kind of organic, which then reminded me of the way we’d work with the Beatles. We’d bring a song in, kick it around, when we found a way to do it we’d say ‘OK, let’s do a take now’ and by the time everyone kind of had an idea of what they were doing, we’d learned the song. So that’s what we did, we did the take live in the studio.”

The album was recorded at the legendary Capitol Studios in Los Angeles, New York and London throughout 2011.

As a special New Year’s treat, here is a preview track. “My Valentine” was recorded live in the studio and features some great guitar work by Eric Clapton and piano by Stevie Wonder.

Happy New Year!

Paul McCartney

Here is a link to order/pre-order the CD through Amazon.com:

Kisses on the Bottom – Paul’s 2012 “Kisses On The Bottom” CD (released Feb. 7, 2012).

Visit www.thebeatlesrarity.com for a new Beatles rarity each week, plus lots more!

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I wanted to thank everyone who participated in this year’s holiday contest here at The Beatles Rarity. It was “stepped up” a bit from last year and quite frankly, I wasn’t sure if it was going to be a success or not, but, thanks to you, and all of our sponsors, it worked out great! As promised, here is a list of our prize winners and what they won:

1) Chip Morris won a new copy of the deluxe edition of Paul McCartney’s Chaos And Creation In The Backyard CD. It comes with a bonus DVD that contains additional music and footage from the recording sessions.

2) Curtis Honeycutt won a $20 gift certificate from Band-Tees.com. Band-Tees is a great place to pick up tee shirts and other items such as stickers, keychains, guitar picks and more with images and logos of your favorite bands, including The Beatles! This gift was furnished, of course, compliments of Band-Tees and you can find their Beatle-items online here.

3) Cara Schneider won a collector’s item edition of Jude Southerland Kessler’s John Lennon biopic Shoulda Been There. It is the first book ever (of a 9 book series) to tell the Lennon saga with carefully researched footnotes and detailed, informational endnotes, while using a fiction format to keep the reader turning the page. Researched for over 20 years with 7 trips to Liverpool and countless interviews with John Lennon’s friends, early band members, first manager, and club d.j.’s, Shoulda Been There traces Lennon’s life from 1940 to December 1961 (when The Beatles signed with Brian Epstein). This book is the very last copy of the second edition. This gift was furnished by Jude herself and her website, for more info, is at ontherockbooks.com. Hear what Jude has to say about her books in my interview with her here.

4) Anna Beetchenow won a new copy of The Beatles One CD. It’s a nice collection of 27 number one hits by The Beatles and an informative booklet with lots of original cover art images from the singles issued worldwide.

5) Elliott Marx won a copy of the Beatles photo book Unseen Archives. It is one of the best Beatles photo albums I’ve ever seen. It covers that period from 1963 through the breakup, and then up to George Harrison’s death in 2001. Some of the pictures are familiar, others aren’t. It’s a wonderful journey to start at the beginning and see the Beatles’ milestones and how they change. 384 pages. Barnes & Noble edition.

6) Stacia Marlett won a copy of Judith Kristen’s exciting paperback A Date With A Beatle which gives us a charming look back at the glory days of Beatlemania, as seen through the eyes of a loyal and devoted fan. You’ll feel as if you’re right there with Judy: at her first sighting of The Beatles at Kennedy Airport, witnessing their first press conference, sneaking into The Plaza Hotel, drooling over their first appearance on Ed Sullivan, her wild trip to The Beatles First American Concert in Washington, D.C., and the crazy antics she pulled off, all in loving effort to meet her idol, George Harrison – and she actually made it happen! A Date with a Beatle is a hilarious, fast-paced, totally entertaining story of the magic that was created by four lovely lads from Liverpool and the dreams that can come true when tenacity and heart are headed in the same direction. This prize is furnished compliments of the author herself and the book is available from her website at adatewithabeatle.com. Hear what Judith has to say about her book in my interview with her here.

7) Matt Ferrell won a collector’s item edition of Jude Southerland Kessler’s John Lennon biopic Shivering Inside. It is the second book ever (of a 9 book series) to tell the Lennon saga with carefully researched footnotes and detailed, informational endnotes, while using a fiction format to keep the reader turning the page. It picks up where Should Been There left off in Dec. 1961, and goes through April 1963 (the birth of Julian Lennon). This book is the very last copy of the second edition. This gift was furnished by Jude herself and her website, for more info, is at ontherockbooks.com. Hear what Jude has to say about her books in my interview with her here.

8) Austin Heape is the winner of a new copy of the 2011 CD release Ocean’s Kingdom from Paul McCartney. This is an orchestral piece commissioned by the New York City Ballet. The recording was conducted by John Wilson, produced by John Fraser and performed by The London Classical Orchestra. Ocean’s Kingdom is the first time Paul has written an original orchestral score or any kind of music for dance, and is the result of a collaboration between himself and Peter Martins, the Ballet Master in Chief of the New York City Ballet. This prize is furnished compliments of Fab4Radio.

Congratulations to all of our winners!

For those of you who tried but didn’t make it through, what can I say? Thank you for participating and better luck next year when we do it again!

In closing I’d like to thank Simon at Band-Tees, “Beatle Ed” at Fab 4 Radio, Jude Southerland Kessler and Judith Kristen for their wonderful books and (last, but by no means least) Heather, for making this website work the way it is supposed to.

Visit www.thebeatlesrarity.com for a new Beatles rarity each week, plus lots more!

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If you happen to be out shopping the Black Friday deals today, you may be interested in a limited edition Beatles box set that includes 4 vinyl singles, all with the original (U.S.) picture sleeves. The box also contains a 21″ x 21″ poster and an adapter for playing singles on your turntable (see photo below). Each set is exclusively numbered and the music on the singles is all taken from the recent 2009 remastered versions. The discs include the following:

1) “Ticket To Ride” c/w “Yes It Is”
2) “Yellow Submarine c/w “Eleanor Rigby”
3) “Hey Jude” c/w “Revolution”
4) “Something” c/w “Come Together”

It’s a great selection of re-issues as you get to hear a lead vocal from each Beatle at least once. If you want one, you better hurry though because supplies are limited.

The Beatles Black Friday/Record Store Day Exclusive Singles 4-pack, 2011

The Beatles Black Friday/Record Store Day Exclusive Singles 4-pack, 2011 (back)

Here are some Amazon links to read more on, or purchase, other Beatles-related music:

The Beatles, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr.

Visit www.thebeatlesrarity.com for a new Beatles rarity each week, plus lots more!

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It’s hard to believe that it has already been nearly two years since Ringo Starr’s last album, Y Not, hit the stores, but it has, and now he has another coming up that is due to be available at your favorite music retailers on January 30, 2012.

The album has the simplistic title Ringo 2012 and is expected to be the product of what Ringo told us in various press coverage since last April about preferring to make his music autobiographical in nature as opposed to publishing an autobiographical book, as he has been approached about doing several times. The album will be available on CD, vinyl and via direct download. Like, Y Not it will be distributed through Hip-O Records. I’ve included a link below if you would like to pre-order your copy through Amazon.

The album was produced by Ringo, and recorded in Los Angeles. It was mixed in England by Ringo and Bruce Sugar. Of the 9 tracks, two are covers, “Think It Over,” and “Rock Island Line”. Two others are new versions of his own songs, “Wings” and “Step Lightly.”

The track listing:
1. Anthem (Richard Starkey/Glen Ballard)
2. Wings (Richard Starkey/Vince Poncia)
3. Think It Over (Buddy Holly/Norman Perry)
4. Samba (Richard Starkey/Van Dyke Parks)
5. Rock Island Line (Arrangement by Richard Starkey)
6. Step Lightly (Richard Starkey)
7. Wonderful (Richard Starkey/Gary Nicholson)
8. In Liverpool (Richard Starkey/Dave Stewart)
9. Slow Down (Richard Starkey/Joe Walsh)

Joining Ringo in the studio for Ringo 2012 were musicians (in alphabetical order): Michael Bradford, Ann Marie Calhoun, Matt Cartsonis, Steve Dudas, Charlie Haden, Amy Keys, Kelly Moneymaker, Richard Page, Van Dyke Parks, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Dave Stewart, Bruce Sugar, Benmont Tench, Joe Walsh , Don Was, Edgar Winter.

Ringo Starr

Here are some Amazon links to read more on, or purchase, music related to this post:

1) Ringo 2012 – Ringo’s new album, pre-order only until Jan. 24, 2012

2) Y Not – Ringo’s last studio CD, released in January 2010, containing the hit “The Other Side Of Liverpool”.

3) The Beatles, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr.

Visit www.thebeatlesrarity.com for a new Beatles rarity each week, plus lots more!

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