A COLLECTION of extremely rare Beatles memorabilia, including an unseen, myth-busting image of Paul McCartney proving he attended the Sgt Pepper album shoot, has come into The Chippenham Auction Rooms.
Among this collection of memorabilia is the album art for an album compiled of unreleased songs by The Beatles, which will be going up for auction tomorrow for the first time ever.
The album, which compiles previously unreleased tracks, was due to be released in November 1984, eight years after The Beatles had ended their contract with EMI Records.
It was set to be named ‘Sessions’ and would include songs such as ‘Leave My Kitten Alone’ – but the album never saw the light of day.
The estates of John Lennon and George Harrison objected to the release due to timing clashes, even though the album had already been finalised, along with artwork and press release information.
Now this unheard relic of an album has made its way to Wiltshire in the form of a press packet, where it will be going under the hammer on Friday, 18 August in Chippenham.
“This is one of the coolest fab four related items that I have had the pleasure of cataloguing,” said Martin Hughes, music specialist at Wessex Auction Rooms.
“Beatles fans from around the world will be queuing up to bid on this on Friday. We think it could easily make £5,000 to £10,000 on the day,” he added.
Other items in the collection include internal EMI Records memorandum, press releases from the unreleased album, mock up sleeve artwork, and a number of previously unseen photos and transparencies.
One of the most precious treasures from this collection, besides the album itself, is an outtake from the Sgt Pepper album shoot, proving that Paul McCartney was there.
Previous rumours had suggested that Paul McCartney never attended the shoot because the album only showed him from behind, but this one-of-a-kind image showing the side of his face proves that fans have been wrong all these years.
The item is available to view on the Wessex Auction Rooms website, and live bidding will begin on Friday both online and in the room at Wessex Auction Rooms in Chippenham.
It is expected that the hammer will fall around 5pm.
“We have over 1000 music lots being sold across Thursday and Friday, and I think this one will be Top Of The Pops,” Mr Hughes added.
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