McCartney Times

A court battle is allegedly set to begin on Tuesday over an old demo recording by The Beatles after it was discovered in Emerick’s home following his death in 2018

• Said to be worth $5 million, the jam session reportedly sees The Beatles perform at Abbey Road for the first time and was recorded before Ringo Starr joined
• The recording was deemed to not be of good enough quality for the group and so Emerick was told by EMI he should destroy it, but he kept it instead
• Universal Music Group, who took over EMI in 2012, are now going to court with Emerick’s family over who the tape belongs to, with the latter citing Finders Law  
• Songs recorded on the demo include Love Me Do, which featured on the group’s debut album Please Please Me in 1963, and a source said it was ‘an amazing find’
• Emerick played an influential role on the group during the 1960s, and worked as recording engineer on albums like Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band

By Roxy Simons For Mailonline

A court battle is allegedly set to begin on Tuesday over an old demo recording by The Beatles after it was discovered in late sound engineer Geoff Emerick’s home.

Said to be worth $5 million, the video of the jam session reportedly sees The Beatles perform at Abbey Road for the first time and was recorded before Ringo Starr joined the group as a drummer, it as reported on Saturday.

According to The Sun, the recording was deemed to not be of good enough quality for the group and so Emerick was told by EMI he should destroy it, but he is said to have instead kept it in a safe in his Los Angeles home, in its original box.

What a find! An old recording of The Beatles demo in Abbey Road worth $5 million is ‘at centre of legal battle between Universal and Geoff Emerick’s family’, it was reported on Saturday

Emerick, who worked as recording engineer with the Beatles for many years on albums like Revolver and Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, died aged 72 in October 2018.

The publication claimed that Universal Music Group, who took over EMI in 2012, are now in a legal battle with Emerick’s family over who the tape belongs to, with the former reportedly arguing they are entitled to the recording under Finders Law.

Universal, meanwhile, allegedly claim the law does not count in this case as Emerick was told he should destroy the recording by EMI.

Circumstances: Emerick (pictured in 1963 with Ringo) kept the recording despite being told to destroy it by EMI as it was deemed to not be of good enough quality for the band to use

Songs recorded on the demo are believed to include Love Me Do, which featured on the group’s debut album Please Please Me in 1963.

A source speaking to The Sun claimed: ‘It’s an amazing find. It’s been estimated at £5 million but could be worth much more.’

‘Despite wanting it destroyed, Universal all these years later want it back. They know how huge this find is.’

MailOnline have contacted Universal Music Group for comment.

Ringo joined the group in August 1962 after he was asked by John Lennon to replace then current member Pete Best as the band’s drummer.

Emerick, meanwhile, played an influential role on the group during the late 1960s period regarded by many as the apex of the Beatles’ work.

At the time, the Beatles were breaking new ground in popular music and they had stopped touring to focus all their attention on the studio, where Emerick excelled.

Source: The Beatles’ old Abbey Road jam session worth $5 million is ‘at the heart of legal battle’ | Daily Mail Online