Beatles release brand new box set which doesn't include Abbey Road

It has been over four years since the Beatles last released a box set which did not include Abbey Road.

Now, on the cusp of the 50th anniversary of Their Royal Fabness's first visit to the shores of the US of America, Capitol is finally, and for the most recent time, releasing a new box set of the US albums not including Abbey Road.

As real fans know, Capitol improved the sound, presentation and running order of The Beatles' records for release in the United States of A. Some of these correct versions have not been available in a box set that doesn't include Abbey Road for almost eight years.

While the North American market agreed to accept the British versions of Beatles albums from Sgt Pepper onwards, there was still debate as to whether the mono or the stereo version were the correct versions. However, when the Four Fabs left mono behind in 1969, it meant that there was just one, single definitive version of the Abbey Road album, leaving proper fans nothing to argue over.

Beatles histrologer Buck McCaffery author of The Beatles I Knew and presenter of the So You Think You Know Your Beatles? Well, You're Probably Wrong podcast says: "Abbey Road really changed everything for the true fan because it was the same mix, same mastering, same tracklisting and same artwork in every region. We had nothing to compare and nobody to feel superior to. It was a bit of a drag really."

He continued: "The same could be said of Let It Be, but the beauty of that album was that The Beatles themselves had shelved it and they got Phil Spector in to sort through the miles of tape and make it something like a releasable album. So there was lots to argue over: Was it was The Beatles really would have wanted? Was it better than if they had stuck to the no-overdubs principle of the intended Get Back project? It got even better when Let It Be Naked came out, we got to have the arguments all over again with examples. Also, it was recorded before Abbey Road but released after it. So that's all we could ever argue about over Abbey Road - was it really The Beatles' last album?"

The author finally commented: "This box set is such a wasted opportunity. I mean sure, we'll get to argue about whether they should have used the 2009 remastered tracks or the original Capitol mixes, but we're still stuck with a clear answer to what the real version of Abbey Road should sound like. If they'd just make a mono mix or a US master of Abbey Road, then our righteous dissatifaction would finally be complete."

The Beatles US albums box set is released next week.