George Harrison, John Lennon, Paul McCartney circa 1960 (Keystone/Getty Images)Today marks the 60th anniversary of a famous recording session by the Beatles predecessor group The Quarrymen, marking the first time that John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison recorded together.
On July 12, 1958, the band, which also featured drummer Colin Hanton and pianist John “Duff” Lowe, entered a studio called Phillips Sound Recording Service in Liverpool, England, and laid down a cover of Buddy Holly‘s “That’ll Be the Day” and a McCartney original called “In Spite of All the Danger,” which Paul credited Harrison with co-writing.
The tracks were pressed on a 10-inch, 78-rpm aluminum and acetate disc, which was passed around between the group’s members and wound up in the possession of Lowe, until McCartney bought the historic recording from his old band mate in 1981.
“I ended up buying it back for a very inflated price,” Paul recalled in the Beatles Anthology documentary. “I have since had some replicas made. I don’t want to play the shellac because it would wear out, as demos in those days would. But it’s great to have.”
“That’ll Be the Day” and “In Spite of All the Danger” were finally released in 1995 as part of The Beatles’ Anthology 1 compilation.
The 60th anniversary of the recording will be commemorated during the 2018 International BeatleWeek Festival, running from August 22 to August 28 in Liverpool. A special compilation marking the milestone, called The Percy Phillips Studio Collection, featuring the Quarrymen tunes and various other tracks recorded at the studio from 1955 to 1969, will be released as two-CD and two-LP vinyl sets on August 26, and an album-release party will be held the Adelphi Hotel in Liverpool.
In addition, a mock-up of the original studio will be on display at the hotel.
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