The Beatles Christmas Records
Fan club flexi-discs tell The Beatles story
In autumn of 1963, Beatles publicist Tony Barrow was looking for ways to extend the longevity of the band’s sudden success. The British Beatles Fan Club was one useful tool in this strategy. In October, Barrow booked some studio at the beginning of I Want to Hold Your Hand sessions to record a Christmas message.
Amused at the idea that they would be reprising the Queen’s Christmas Message, The Beatles approached the task with enthusiasm.
This throwaway seasonal thank-you would be the first in an extraordinary sequence of flexi-discs. These cheaply produced 45s would remain exclusively available to members of the British fan club.
The first appeared at the height of UK Beatlemania in December 1963 and the final one in 1969, when the band was hanging together by a thread.
The story of the first three Beatles Christmas records is here
Christmas Records: 1966–1969 — a surprise revival
Beatles at Christmas: 1940–1962 Christmas Before They Were Famous
