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Worldwide, the British rock band the Beatles released 12 studio albums (17 in the US), 5 live albums, 51 compilation albums, 36 extended plays (EPs), and 17 box sets. In their native United Kingdom, during their active existence as a band, they released 12 studio albums (including 1 double album), 1 compilation album, and 13 EPs (including 1 double EP). The early albums released from 1962 to March 1968 were originally on Parlophone, and their albums from August 1968 to 1970 were on their subsidiary label Apple. Their output also includes vault items, remixed mash-ups and anniversary box-sets.
| The Beatles albums discography | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| Studio albums | 12 (UK), 17 (US) |
| EPs | 36 |
| Live albums | 5 |
| Compilation albums | 51 |
| Mash-ups | 2 |
| Box sets | 17 |
The Beatles are the biggest selling band of all time, selling over 500 million records.[1] With the first CD releases of their albums in 1987 and 1988, the Beatles' core catalogue was harmonised worldwide to encompass their 12 original UK studio albums, the 1967 US Magical Mystery Tour album and the newly assembled Past Masters: Volumes One and Two compilation albums consisting of all the studio recordings released during 1962 to 1970 that are not present on the UK studio albums or Magical Mystery Tour (mainly non-album singles, B-sides and EP tracks). When the core catalogue was reissued in remastered editions in 2009, the two volumes of Past Masters were combined into one double album. Since then, other past releases have been reissued in digital formats and on vinyl. The catalogue is currently distributed by Universal Music Enterprises' Calderstone Productions. This core catalogue contains all 217 tracks[a] intended for commercial release, either as album tracks, EP tracks, or singles, that were put out by the Beatles from 1962 to 1970.[2][3]
The Beatles' international discography is more complicated due to different versions of their albums sometimes being released in other countries, particularly during their early years on Capitol Records in North America. Prior to 1967, it was common practice for British releases to be reconfigured for the American market. The first seven British Beatles albums were converted into ten LPs for the American market, adding material from singles and the UK EPs; the band were unhappy with these reconfigurations. With the exception of Magical Mystery Tour, studio releases from Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band in 1967 forward were uniform in both the UK and the US. The band's first eight albums were released on Parlophone. From 1968, in both the UK and the US, starting with the single "Hey Jude" and the album The Beatles (better known as "the White Album"), new releases appeared on the Beatles' own Apple record label, although Parlophone and Capitol catalogue numbers continued to be used for contractual reasons.
The Beatles' discography was originally released on the vinyl format, with full-length long plays (LPs), shorter EPs and singles. Over the years, the collection has also been released on cassette, 8-track, compact disc (CD), on a USB flash drive in MP3 and 24-bit FLAC format, and on digital media streaming services. The Beatles' UK discography was first released on CD in 1987 and 1988. Between 1962 and 1968, the Beatles released their songs in both mono and stereo versions.[4] The band's catalogue was remastered in both mono and stereo in 2009.[5][6]
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Original UK studio albums
| Title | Album details[A] | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Sales | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [8][9] |
AUS [10] |
CAN [11] |
FRA [12] |
GER [13] |
NOR [14] |
US [15][16] | ||||
| Please Please Me |
|
1 | — | — | 5 | 5 | — | 155 | ||
| With the Beatles[B] | 1 | — | — | 5 | 1 | — | 179 | |||
| A Hard Day's Night |
|
1 | 1 | — | — | 1 | — | — | ||
| Beatles for Sale |
|
1 | 1 | — | — | 1 | — | — |
| |
| Help! |
|
1 | 1 | — | 5 | 1 | — | — | ||
| Rubber Soul |
|
1 | 1 | — | 5 | 1 | — | — | ||
| Revolver |
|
1 | 1 | — | 5 | 1 | 14 | — | ||
| Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band |
|
1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| |
| The Beatles ("The White Album") |
|
1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Yellow Submarine[C] |
|
3 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 2 | ||
| Abbey Road |
|
1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| |
| Let It Be |
|
1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 1 | ||
| "—" denotes that the recording did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||||
Notes
- Release dates are per The Complete Beatles Chronicle by Mark Lewisohn,[7] unless otherwise noted.
Original US studio albums
| Title | Album details[A] | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Sales | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [8][9] |
AUS [10] |
CAN [11] |
FRA [12] |
GER [13] |
NOR [14] |
US [15][16] |
US Cash Box | ||||
| Introducing... The Beatles | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 2 |
|
||
| Meet the Beatles! |
|
— | — | 1 | — | 68 | — | 1 | 1 | ||
| The Beatles' Second Album |
|
— | — | 1 | — | 50 | — | 1 | 1 | ||
| A Hard Day's Night |
|
— | — | 1 | 5 | — | — | 1 | 1 | ||
| Something New |
|
— | — | 2 | — | 38 | — | 2 | 2 | ||
| Beatles '65 |
|
— | — | 1 | 80 | 9 | — | 1 | 1 | ||
| Beatles VI |
|
— | — | 1 | — | 15 | — | 1 | 1 | ||
| Help! | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | |||
| Rubber Soul |
|
— | — | 1 | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | ||
| Yesterday and Today |
|
— | — | 1 | — | 13 | — | 1 | 1 | ||
| Revolver |
|
— | — | 1 | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | ||
| Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band |
|
1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| |
| Magical Mystery Tour |
|
31 | 48 | — | 2 | 8 | 13 | 1 | 1 | ||
| The Beatles ("The White Album") |
|
1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Yellow Submarine[F] |
|
3 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | ||
| Abbey Road |
|
1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| |
| Let It Be |
|
1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| "—" denotes that the recording did not chart or was not released in that territory. | |||||||||||
Notes
- Release dates are per The Complete Beatles Chronicle by Mark Lewisohn,[28] unless otherwise noted.
- Lewisohn indicates the album may have also been released on 22 July 1963.[28]
- Magical Mystery Tour as an album was created by Capitol for US release; it originally peaked at number 31 in the United Kingdom as an import of the United States issue. Parlophone instead issued a double EP. Parlophone eventually issued the album in the UK on 19 November 1976. It did not chart in Australia until October 1974.
Standardised studio albums
Since the first release of their music on CD during 1987–1988, the Beatles' studio albums have been standardised worldwide to the following albums:[31][32]
- Please Please Me (original UK album)
- With the Beatles (original UK album)
- A Hard Day's Night (original UK album)
- Beatles for Sale (original UK album)
- Help! (original UK album)
- Rubber Soul (original UK album)
- Revolver (original UK album)
- Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (original UK and US album)
- Magical Mystery Tour (original US album)
- The Beatles ("The White Album") (original UK and US album)
- Yellow Submarine (original UK and US album)
- Abbey Road (original UK and US album)
- Let It Be (original UK and US album)
- Past Masters (see Compilation albums; compiles all studio recordings the Beatles commercially released during 1962–1970 that do not appear on the thirteen previously listed albums)
Live albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Sales | Certifications | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [8] |
AUS [10] |
AUT [33] |
CAN [34] |
GER [13] |
NLD [35] |
NOR [14] |
NZ [36] |
SWE [37] |
US [15][16] | |||||
| Live! at the Star-Club in Hamburg, Germany; 1962 (UK and German title) / First Live Recordings (US title) | — | 24 | 12 | — | 21 | — | 16 | — | — | 111 |
|
|||
| The Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl[A] |
|
1 | 8 | 3 | — | 10 | — | 4 | 18 | 17 | 2 | |||
| Live at the BBC |
|
1 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 10 | 2 | — | 4 | 4 | 3 | |||
| On Air – Live at the BBC Volume 2 |
|
12 | 28 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 9 | 31 | 36 | 7 | |||
| Get Back – The Rooftop Performance |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "—" denotes that the recording did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||||
Notes
- The Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl was re-released on 9 September 2016 as Live at the Hollywood Bowl for the Ron Howard documentary Eight Days a Week – The Touring Years.
Compilation albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Certifications | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [9] |
AUS [10] |
AUT [33] |
CAN [42] |
FRA [12] |
GER [13] |
NOR [14] |
NZ [36] |
SWE [37] |
US [15][16] | ||||
| The Beatles with Tony Sheridan and Their Guests (with Tony Sheridan and the Titans) |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 68 | ||
| Jolly What! (with Frank Ifield) |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 103 | ||
| The Beatles' First ! (with Tony Sheridan) |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| The Beatles Beat |
|
— | — | — | — | — | 6 | — | — | — | — | ||
| Ain't She Sweet (with Tony Sheridan and the Swallows) |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| The Beatles vs the Four Seasons[A] (with the Four Seasons) |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 142 | ||
| The Beatles' Story |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 7 |
| |
| The Early Beatles |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 43 | ||
| The Beatles |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| The Beatles' Greatest |
|
— | — | — | — | — | 38 | — | — | — | |||
| The Beatles in Italy |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| Les Beatles dans leurs 14 plus grands succès |
|
— | — | — | — | 80 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| Los Beatles |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| Greatest Hits Volume 1 |
|
— | 11 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| A Collection of Beatles Oldies |
|
7 | 7 | — | — | 5 | — | 12 | — | — | — | ||
| Greatest Hits Volume 2 |
|
— | 9 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| The Beatles' First (with Tony Sheridan) |
|
— | — | — | — | 7 | — | — | — | — | — |
| |
| Very Together (Canadian title) / In the Beginning (Circa 1960) (US title) (with Tony Sheridan) |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 117 | ||
| Hey Jude |
|
— | 1 | — | 2 | 11 | — | — | — | — | 2 | ||
| From Then to You (UK title) / The Beatles' Christmas Album (US title) |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| Por Siempre Beatles |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| The Essential Beatles |
|
— | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1962–1966 ("The Red Album") |
|
3 | 9 | 1 | 38 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 22 | 3 | ||
| 1967–1970 ("The Blue Album") |
|
2 | 8 | 1 | 42 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 23 | 1 | ||
| Rock 'n' Roll Music |
|
11 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 10 | 8 | 2 | 18 | 2 | ||
| Love Songs |
|
7 | 59 | — | 18 | 11 | — | 20 | 3 | — | 24 | ||
| Rarities |
|
71 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| |
| 20 Golden Hits |
|
— | — | 7 | — | — | 4 | — | — | — | — | ||
| Rarities |
|
— | 27 | — | 26 | — | — | — | 43 | — | 21 | ||
| The Beatles Ballads |
|
17 | 1 | — | 69 | — | — | — | 2 | — | — | ||
| Rock 'n' Roll Music, Volume One |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| Rock 'n' Roll Music, Volume Two |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| The Beatles 1967–1970 |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| The Beatles |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| Reel Music |
|
56 | 26 | — | 19 | — | — | — | — | — | 19 | ||
| 20 Greatest Hits |
|
10 | 52 | — | 50 | — | — | — | 4 | — | 50 | ||
| The Number Ones | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| The Early Tapes of the Beatles (with Tony Sheridan) |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| Past Masters, Volume One[B] |
|
49 | 79 | — | — | 21 | — | — | — | — | 149 | ||
| Past Masters, Volume Two[B] |
|
46 | 75 | — | — | 15 | — | — | — | — | 121 | ||
| Anthology 1 |
|
2 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 | ||
| Anthology 2 |
|
1 | 2 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | ||
| Anthology 3[C] |
|
4 | 3 | 15 | 3 | 9 | 9 | 13 | 10 | 5 | 1 | ||
| Yellow Submarine Songtrack |
|
8 | — | 8 | 12 | 31 | 11 | 1 | — | 22 | 15 | ||
| 1 |
|
1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Beatles Bop – Hamburg Days (with Tony Sheridan) |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| Let It Be... Naked |
|
7 | 11 | 8 | 8 | 14 | 13 | 6 | 23 | 2 | 5 | ||
| Past Masters (both volumes combined as one double album) |
|
31 | 34 | 40 | — | — | 61 | — | 33 | 36 | 154 | ||
| Tomorrow Never Knows |
|
44 | 34 | 34 | 15 | — | — | 22 | 37 | — | 24 | ||
| I Saw Her Standing There |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| The Beatles Bootleg Recordings 1963 |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 172 | ||
| Mono Masters[D] |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "—" denotes that the recording did not chart or was not released in that territory. | |||||||||||||
Notes
- The Beatles vs the Four Seasons was a repackaging of Introducing... The Beatles and Golden Hits of the Four Seasons.
Mash-up albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Certifications | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [9][53] |
AUS [10] |
AUT [33] |
CAN [42] |
FRA [12] |
GER [13] |
NOR [14] |
NZ [36] |
SWE [37] |
US [15][16] | |||
| Liverpool Sound Collage (with Paul McCartney, Super Furry Animals and Youth) |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Love |
|
3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 4 | |
| "—" denotes that the recording did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||
Box sets
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Certifications | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [9] |
AUS [10] |
AUT [33] |
CAN [42][55] |
FRA [12] |
GER [13] |
NOR [14] |
NZ [36] |
SWE [37] |
US [15][16] | |||
| The Beatles Collection[A] |
|
— | 33 | — | — | — | — | — | 11 | — | — |
|
| The Beatles Box |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
|
| The Beatles EP Collection[B] |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| The Beatles: The Collection[A] |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| The Beatles Mono Collection[A] |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| The Beatles Box Set[A] |
|
— | 82 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
|
| The Capitol Albums, Volume 1 |
|
— | — | — | — | — | 80 | — | — | — | 35 |
|
| The Capitol Albums, Volume 2[A] |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 46 |
|
| The Beatles in Mono[C] |
|
57 | — | — | 47 | — | 3 | — | — | 15 | 40 | |
| The Beatles (The Original Studio Recordings)[A] |
|
24 | 23 | 58 | 4 | — | — | 3 | 22 | 15 | 15 | |
| 1962–1966 / 1967–1970 |
|
59 | — | — | — | — | 29 | 38 | 35 | — | — |
|
| Anthology Box Set[A] |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Live at the BBC: The Collection |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
|
| The U.S. Albums[A] |
|
— | — | — | — | — | 29 | — | — | — | 48 | |
| The Japan Box |
|
— | — | — | — | — | 83 | — | — | — | — | |
| The Christmas Records |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| The Singles Collection Box |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| The Beatles: 1964 Albums in Mono |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "—" denotes that the recording did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||
Notes
- The Beatles EP Collection is a 15-disc box set comprising the 13 original EPs released by Parlophone in the UK – including mono and stereo editions of the Magical Mystery Tour EP – and a new disc entitled The Beatles EP, which contains stereo mixes of the tracks "The Inner Light", "Baby, You're a Rich Man", "She's a Woman" and "This Boy".
- The Beatles in Mono contains the exclusive album Mono Masters.
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| Title | EP details | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [9] |
AUS [10] |
US [15][16] | ||
| My Bonnie (with Tony Sheridan) |
|
— | — | — |
| Twist and Shout |
|
1 | 5 | — |
| The Beatles' Hits |
|
1 | 52 | — |
| The Beatles (No. 1) |
|
2 | 79 | — |
| All My Loving |
|
1 | 1 | — |
| Souvenir of Their Visit to America |
|
— | — | — |
| Four by the Beatles |
|
— | — | 92 |
| Requests |
|
— | 1 | — |
| Long Tall Sally |
|
1 | — | — |
| The Beatles Again! |
|
— | — | — |
| A Hard Day's Night No. 1 |
|
— | — | — |
| The Beatles No. 2 |
|
— | — | — |
| Extracts from the Film A Hard Day's Night |
|
1 | — | — |
| Extracts from the Album A Hard Day's Night |
|
8 | — | — |
| 4 by the Beatles |
|
— | — | 68 |
| Beatles for Sale |
|
1 | — | — |
| Beatles for Sale No. 2 |
|
5 | — | — |
| The Beatles' Million Sellers |
|
1 | — | — |
| Yesterday |
|
1 | — | — |
| Nowhere Man |
|
4 | — | — |
| Magical Mystery Tour |
|
2 | 3 | — |
| Spooky Songs |
|
— | — | — |
| The Beatles for Kids – Morning, Afternoon & Night |
|
— | — | — |
| Got to Get You Into My Life |
|
— | — | — |
| Meditation Mix |
|
— | — | — |
| Study Songs Vol. 1 |
|
— | — | — |
| Study Songs Vol. 2 |
|
— | — | — |
| At Home with the Beatles |
|
— | — | — |
| Getting Better All the Time |
|
— | — | — |
| We Can Work It Out |
|
— | — | — |
| New Year's Workout |
|
— | — | — |
| The Beatles for Kids – Colours |
|
— | — | — |
| All About the Girl |
|
— | — | — |
| The Beatles (Love Me Do) |
|
— | — | — |
| The Beatles for Kids – Animals |
|
— | — | — |
| The Beatles – Inspirations |
|
— | — | — |
| "—" denotes that the recording did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||
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The Beatles released seven consecutive Christmas records on flexi disc for members of their UK and US fan clubs, from 1963 to 1969, ranging in length between 3:58 and 7:48. These short collections had a mix of spoken and musical messages for their official fan clubs.
- The Beatles singles discography
- The Beatles videography
- Outline of the Beatles
- The Beatles timeline
- Apple Records discography, the albums and singles of the Beatles' record label, many of which had involvement by members of the Beatles
- The Beatles bootleg recordings
- The Beatles' recording sessions
- List of songs recorded by the Beatles
- The Beatles Tapes from the David Wigg Interviews, a collection of interviews with the band
- The musicologist Alan W. Pollack identifies 219 tracks for his Notes on... series, counting 212 tracks along with six additional tracks that he did not separately identify because they were merely alternate versions of other songs (such as variations between the single version and the album version of the same track). Pollack also includes the song fragment "Can You Take Me Back", found in the transition between "Cry Baby Cry" and "Revolution 9" on the White Album, which is often not counted by other catalogs of Beatles songs. Other notable catalogs of Beatles songs, such as Ian MacDonald's Revolution in the Head, differ from this list as well.
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