George Harrison vinyl collection box set announced

Universal Music have announced the release of The Vinyl Collection, a box set of George Harrison’s 13 solo albums.

The collection will be released on 24 February 2017. In addition to the albums, which are spread across 16 LPs, it will also contain two reissued 12″ picture disc singles of ‘When We Was Fab’ and ‘Got My Mind Set On You’.

• Wonderwall Music (1968) – 1 LP
• Electronic Sound (1969) – 1 LP
• All Things Must Pass (1970) – 3 LP limited edition
• Living In The Material World (1973) – 1 LP
• Dark Horse (1974) – 1 LP
• Extra Texture (1975) – 1 LP
• Thirty Three & ⅓ (1976) – 1LP
• George Harrison (1979) – 1 LP
• Somewhere In England (1981) – 1 LP
• Gone Troppo (1982) – 1 LP
• Cloud Nine (1987) – 1 LP
• Live In Japan (1992) – 2 LP
• Brainwashed (2002) – 1 LP
• ‘When We Was Fab’ – 12” picture disc single
• ‘Got My Mind Set On You’ – 12” picture disc single

Also announced from turntable manufacturer Pro-Ject is the George Harrison Essential III turntable. Limited to 2,500 units, this features artwork based on a 2014 lithograph designed for the Harrisons by Shepard Fairey.

24 February also sees a new edition of Harrison’s 1980 autobiography I Me Mine, which has been expanded with new photographs and reproductions of handwritten lyric sheets to encompass his entire solo career.

Here’s the official press release:

The Harrison family is proud to announce the release of George Harrison – The Vinyl Collection (UMe) box set featuring all of George Harrison’s solo studio albums in one collection for the first time.

The vinyl box set includes all twelve of George’s studio albums with exact replicas of the original release track listing and artwork. Also included in the box set are George’s classic live album Live In Japan (2LP), and two 12″ single picture discs of ‘When We Was Fab’ and ‘Got My Mind Set On You’. All the discs are 180-gram heavyweight vinyl and are housed in a high-quality two-piece rigid slipcase box. The original analogue master tapes were used for the new re-masters and were cut at the legendary Capitol studios to ensure exceptional audio quality throughout. The individual albums from the collection will also be available separately, with All Things Must Pass as a limited edition title.

George Harrison’s I Me Mine was originally published by the specialist book publisher, Genesis Publications in 1980. It became the first of many collaborations between George and Genesis founder, Brian Roylance. In conversation with his friend and former Beatles press officer Derek Taylor, and in a first-person commentary that accompanies his songs, Harrison’s own words recount everything from his upbringing in Liverpool, to early Beatlemania, his spirituality and philosophy. This new extended version of the book now spans the complete length of Harrison’s career in music, told in his words and through 141 songs with hand written lyric sheets faithfully reproduced in full color. Now stretching to 632 pages it features lyrics to more than 50 songs not previously included, as well as new photographs, many unpublished until now.

Also available, the perfect companion for the vinyl set is the George Harrison Essential III turntable. This elegant piece is manufactured and designed by Pro-Ject Audio Systems, one of the world’s leading suppliers of record players. The artwork was designed by Studio Number One based on an exclusive 2014 art-print lithograph designed for the Harrisons by Shepard Fairey. This turntable is limited to 2500 worldwide.