When the Beatles met at Twickenham Film Studios on January 2nd, 1969 to begin work on a new project called Get Back, it was viewed by some as an act of desperation. Though their double-album blockbuster The Beatles, informally known as “The White Album,” was greeted with critical acclaim upon its release the previous November, the group found themselves in something of a quandary. They had ceased touring in the fall of 1966 and had devoted themselves exclusively to the technical intricacies of the recording studio environment, a self-indulgence that produced Sgt. Pepper, Magical Mystery Tour, as well as the songs that would appear in the animated feature Yellow Submarine. After their manager Brian Epstein’s death in August of 1967, Paul McCartney had become the driving force behind the group. Tensions during the recording of the White Album had run high, so much so that not only did their engineer, Geoff Emerick bail temporarily, but even ...

The DVD-Audio posse has released their latest release schedule for the new format for the Holiday 2003 selling season. What is absent is the hush-hush DVD-Audio/CD flip disc technology that WEA (Warner Music) is reportedly working on. Even without a CD side, the DVD-Audio format can be played (in stereo or default surround sound mode) on one of over 75 million installed DVD players worldwide not to mention Xbox or Playstation 2 game machines.

This new "Best of" R.E.M. contains 16 classic tracks and two new songs, plus bonus supplementary features including the video for the forthcoming single "Bad Day", a rehearsal for the Bad Day video, discography and a weblink, and mixed in 5.1 Surround Sound by Elliot Scheiner. The DVD-Audio version of In Time: The Best Of R.E.M. 1988-2003 includes Advanced Resolution Multi-Channel Surround Sound, and two audio soundtracks to choose from - Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound and Dolby 2.0 Stereo. The multi-angle format allows you to switch between 4 camera angles at the touch of a button. For fans wishing to get interactive, this DVD-A disc can be played in the DVD drive of your P.C and by scrolling down the interactive menu it's possible to link up with the official R.E.M. website www.remhq.com. This 'Best-Of' album includes songs such as, the upbeat "Stand" from the album Green, released in 1988, the soulful "Nightswimming" and calypso-like "Man On ...

Atlantic Records, Sony Computer Entertainment and Atlantic recording group P.O.D. announced a collaboration to create a combined music CD/PlayStation 2 videogame release. The first one million copies of P.O.D.'s eagerly awaited new album, "PAYABLE ON DEATH," will include a bonus PlayStation 2 DVD containing a custom videogame track from the PlayStation 2 music game title, Amplitude, featuring a newly recorded, non-album P.O.D. track, "Space." Playable only on the PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system, this disc will also feature the 50-minute behind-the-scenes documentary, "Inside P.O.D. Culture," and a special feature on Daniel Martin Diaz, the artist who created the paintings and sketches for the "PAYABLE ON DEATH" package. Due in stores nationwide on November 4, this two-disc package will carry a suggested list price of only $19.98, providing tremendous added value for P.O.D. and PlayStation 2 fans. The album will be stickered with the PlayStation 2 logo.

It has been clear in the audio format war Sony Music has been behind SACD and Warner Brothers (WEA) have been the driving force behind DVD-Audio even since the holy audio war erupted. Universal Music Group (UMG) had at first pledged its support for SACD but now they rest gently right on the middle of the fence having shipped their first batch of DVD-Audio titles. The question is what are the two other majors doing with the new formats? EMI has released about a dozen titles on DVD-Audio to date and have a limited number of new titles coming from artists like Bonnie Raitt (Nick of Time) and more Beach Boys (Surf’s Up) and as many as eight other titles to be released by March 2004. Perhaps more significantly, EMI has partnered with DTS Entertainment, long respected for creating the highest quality DVD-Audio surround mixes and packaging, for a large number of back ...