"LOVE ME DO" B/W "P.S. I LOVE YOU"
PARLOPHONE 45-R 4949
RELEASED OCTOBER 5, 1962
EARLIEST POSSIBLE FIRST ISSUE STOCK COPY WITH 'JR' DEMO STAMPER

Fully-Signed "LOVE ME DO" A-SIDE LABEL From The BEATLES' Dawson's Music Shop SIGNING session of October 6, 1962

“Love Me Do” is one of three songs which dateS back the furthest in The Beatles’ performance history. There is evidence that this song was in the repertoire of The Quarry Men In 1959, which then included John, Paul and George. They weren't too keen on performing original songs, but they did include "Love Me Do" at times, along with “One After 909” and an early version of “When I’m Sixty Four".  As the group evolved AS THE BEATLES, throughout the next three years the song was subsequently dropped from their repertoire in favor of cover tunes that they felt a Liverpool or Hamburg audience would want to hear.

"Love Me Do", the Beatles' first single, backed by "P.S. I Love You" was released on THE parlophone LABEL in the United Kingdom on October 5, 1962. the single peaked at No. 17. "love Me Do" was recorded by the Beatles on three different occasions with three different drummers at EMI Studios:

● EMI Artist Test on June 6, 1962 with Pete Best on drums: This version, previously thought to be lost, is available on Anthology 1.
● First proper recording session on September 4, 1962 with ringo starr: In August, pete Best had been replaced with Ringo.
   Producer George Martin did not approve of Best's drumming for studio work. It was the norm at that time to have a specialist
   studio drummer who knew the ways of studio work. The decision to fire Best was not Martin's. The Beatles with ringo Starr
   recorded a version at EMI Studios. They recorded "Love Me Do" in 15 takes.
● Second recording session on September 11, 1962:  A week later, The Beatles returned to the same studio, recording
   "Love Me Do" with session man Andy White on drums. ringo was relegated to playing tambourine. As the tambourine is not
   present on the September 4th recording, this is the easiest way to distinguish between the ringo and andy white recordings.

First issues of the single, released on Parlophone in the UK on October 5, 1962, featured the Ringo Starr version. The Andy White version of the track was included on The Beatles' debut UK album, "Please Please Me".

“Love Me Do", understandably, was a pivotal point in The Beatles career, as well as a milestone that was reached WHICH affected them collectively and individually. George Harrison, for instance, felt the wrath of his father's anger when he was woken by George’s screaming when the song was played late at night on Radio Luxenbourg. Ringo, after being thoroughly disillusioned by the record industry, felt vindicated when the initial pressing of the record in Britain contained the version with him on the drums. and not the Andy White version. For the songs’ composers, it had an even greater impact. paul recalls that the song was evidence to him and John that they had “arrived", and that it gave The Beatles “somewhere to go".

The excitement of having a popular national hit song was a dream come true for the band. To be counted among their musical heroes currently on the radio waves, such as The Everly Brothers, Smokey Robinson, and The Shirelles, was an indescribable experience for them. Brain Epstein would call them with the precise times that the song would be played on the radio so they could stop what they were doing and listen. They would even celebrate every time the song moved up on the British charts. the irresistible harmonica hook, the all-too-familiar harmonies, and with the captivating melody line, the song has become one of the most identifiable trademark recordings in The Beatles catalog.

for only thirty minutes beginning at 4pm on the afternoon of saturday, october 6, 1962 - the day following the release of their debut single - the beatles stepped nervously into a new world, giving them the briefest taste of just how the world had changed for them, and how it would never be the same again. it was a small-scale, relatively inauspicious signing session at dawson's music store at 29 Albert Road in Widnes, Cheshire, a satellite town, 15 miles  southeast of liverpool.

the group was there to sign copies of their new single, released just 24 hours earlier, where Each Beatle signed their name on the single's red and silver label. it was still a year away from million copy advance orders and frenzy at the mere mention of the name "beatles", but it was their first official signing session and notable just for that. this was the first of only four signing sessions for the group (second signing session took place later on this day, at The Music Shop, 134 Widnes Road, Widnes. The third signing occurred on January 24, 1963 at NEMS, Brian Epstein's record store in Liverpool, to coincide with the release of the "Please Please Me" single. A fourth session took place at the Wimbledon Palais, London on 14 December 1963, following their show for the Southern Area Fan Club members).

FAB 4 COLLECTIBLES IS MOST PROUD TO OFFER a sensational EARLY first pressing of The Beatles' DEBUT single, signed at Dawson's, obtained by a local Liverpool fan named robert Edwards, WHO HAD ATTENDED THE SIGNING. All four Beatles have signed their full names beautifully in ballpoint pen on the a-side  "Love Me Do" label. John Lennon has signed at the top of the label directly above the word "Parlophone", adding three X's (kisses) after his name. Paul mcCARTNEY has signed on the bottom of the label near (and partially through) the song title and songwriting credits, also adding three X's. George Harrison has signed above and below the center punch-out spindle hole, DIVIDING his first and last names. Ringo Starr has signed ON the label's right-hand side, directly UPON THE Parlophone "£" LOGO TRADEMARK. ThESE ARE INDEED, classic AND STUNNING early Beatles' signatures.

THIS EXTREMELY EARLY UK PRESSING OF THE BEATLES' DEBUT SINGLE DATES FROM THE FIRST WEEK OF RELEASE, FOR THE STAMPER CODE FOUND ON THIS PARTICULAR SINGLE ARE: 'ZT' / 1 & 'JR'.  THE 'JR' STAMPER CODE IS FOUND ONLY ON DEMONSTRATION (DEMO) COPIES OF THIS SINGLE. IT IS EXTREMELY RARE AND VERY UNUSUAL TO FIND THEM ON A REGULAR STOCK COPY. A 'WT' PURCHASE TAX CODE IS VISIBLE IN THE CENTER OF THE "P.S. I LOVE YOU" LABEL. THE MATRIX NUMBERS ARE 7XCE 17144-1N & 7XCE 17145-1N.  The VINYL ITSELF shows signs of wear and play. the b-side label has two names written on it, "edwards" (the recipient of the signatures who attended the signing) and "wilson". the single IS ACCOMPANIED BY THE green Parlophone 45 sleeve.

due to the fact that the signing session lasted just over thirty minutes, to own a copy of the silver and red label "love me do" single bearing all four signatures of the beatles is very valuable property. The majority of the “Love Me Do” 45’s that were autographed by the band were EXECUTED on THE “P.S. I Love You” B-SIDE LABEL, which is less desirable than to have the A-side signed as this EXAMPLE HAS BEEN.

this small scale, relatively trivial event on church street in widnes at dawson's on october 6, 1962 was a fleeting glimpse of the madness which awaited the beatles.

ACCOMPANIED BY LETTER OF AUTHENTICITY FROM FRANK CAIAZZO. MR. CAIAZZO is considered to be the world's leading authority on Beatles signed and handwritten material. HIS articles have appeared IN SEVERAL books and magazines including "Autograph Collector" and "Beatlology". HE has served as consultant to several major auction houses including Sotheby's New York and London, Christie's, Bonhams, AND TO numerous smaller auction companies and autograph dealers worldwide. MR. CAIAZZO'S LETTER OF AUTHENTICITY HAS BEEN THE GOLD STANDARD IN THE BEATLES AUTOGRAPH COLLECTING COMMUNITY FOR OVER 25 YEARS.