The Beatles

COMPLETE CHRISTMAS COLLECTION 1963-1969

(Yellow Dog/bootleg)

One of the few albums that always makes it into my CD player this time of year is this bootleg compilation of the seven Christmas singles the Beatles made specially for members of their fan club. Although there's nothing of major artistic value here -- just some goofy songs and jokes -- it's a treasure for Beatlemaniacs, not least because of the way it mirrors the band's development. In 1963, they're just four lads standing around a microphone, wishing the faithful fans all the best; by 1965, the humor has become more topical, the voices smothered at the end in ominous reverb. "Everywhere It's Christmas" (1966) and "Christmas Time Is Here Again" (1967) are the creative peaks, with biting TV and radio parodies. Then the fragmentation begins. For the last two years each Beatle recorded his own bit separately and they were edited together. Self-indulgence and Yoko Ono are much in evidence. Oh well, it's just a quick jump back to the happier days of '67.

-- Mac Randall

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