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![THE BEATLES introducing the beatles, SR 1062 [Vinyl] Unknown](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81DbKxO4VrL._AC_UL165_SR165,165_.jpg)
Does your copy of INTRODUCING THE BEATLES have a STEREOPHONIC banner across the top of the front cover? If so, chances are 98.4 to 1 you have a knock-off of the original 1964 VEE JAY album. Does it have a black label with silver print and/or do the words THE BEATLES appear below the record's spindle hole? Yup, you've got a bootleg. Listen to your stereo "Introducing" with headphones. Is it in mono? Alas, it's a pirate copy.
There's various non-VEE JAY versions out there, from the 1960s and beyond. Mine has a black label, a playlist that includes "Love Me Do" and "P.S. I Love You" (which means it's a dub of the pre-Ed Sullivan show LP), and SR 1062 on the front cover but VJLP 1062 on the back. The front looks good (includes George's faint shadow on the right) and the sound is OK. If you can find a similar used copy for a ten spot or so, hey go for it.
Even with the genuine VEE JAY article there's so many variations. Take Version #1, as an example. This one has "Love Me Do" and "P.S. I Love You" on it and was briefly available in January of '64. A court order instigated by CAPITOL Records halted the LP's production after only 80,000 copies were shipped (that includes 2,000 in stereo, or 1.6%) because of their rights to the two songs. The earliest have photos of 25 VEE JAY albums on the back instead of a playlist. This one's selling for the price of a small house. Then there's the version that's all-white on the back-- another mega bucks LP if you can find it. Finally, the one with the playlist, which is most of that version's run, is still incredibly valuable.
Realizing that the Beatles were a goldmine in the making, VEE JAY overcame CAPITOL's legal objection by substituting "Ask Me Why" and "Please Please Me" for the two previously mentioned tracks. Although their "Love Me Do" version hadn't sold very well, this second edition, released practically hours after the Sullivan broadcast, quickly moved 1.3 million copies (41,000 in stereo, or 3.2%), and sat at #2 on Billboard's 200 chart (behind MEET THE BEATLES) for nine straight weeks. Bona fide stereo copies of Version #2 are also valuable. (I have the LP in mono.) BTW, there are two dozen VEE JAY variations of this album.
Completists and investors will undoubtedly want to own any and all versions of INTRODUCING THE BEATLES as well as various pressings of its CAPITOL equivalent, THE EARLY BEATLES. Non-investment-minded vinylphiles (like me) just might settle for one original VEE JAY, one boot version and one CAPITOL of no particular vintage. At nearly 50 years of age, any of these (in good condition) are still a delight to set a needle on. Enjoy!
First version playlist:
SIDE ONE
[2:53] I Saw Her Standing There
[1:48] Misery
[2:57] Anna
[2:21] Chains
[2:25] Boys
[2:17] Love Me Do
SIDE TWO
[2:03] P.S. I Love You
[2:38] Baby It's You
[1:56] Do You Want to Know A Secret?
[2:03] A Taste of Honey
[1:50] There's a Place
[2:34] Twist and Shout
TOTAL TIME: 27:45
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