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Authenticity is Everything
Beatles Autographed A Hard Day's Night UK Pressing | Seeking Verification For All Four Lads
Hello fellow Beatles enthusiasts,
I hope this message finds you well. My name is Drew, and this is my first post. I am reaching out to this community in the hopes of gathering information and assistance regarding a unique piece of Beatles memorabilia that has been in my possession for quite some time.
In 1988, I acquired an original UK pressing of The Beatles' "A Hard Day's Night" at either Sotheby's or Christie's. Unfortunately, over the years, the letter(s) of authenticity have been misplaced, making it challenging to verify the signatures on the album. The album is signed by all four Beatles, and the signatures appear to be done with the same pen.
Surprisingly, both Sotheby's and Christie's have been unhelpful in locating the original purchase order, catalog number, or any additional information that could aid in the authentication process.
Adding an intriguing twist to the story, the album was gifted to me by none other than Whoopi Goldberg, a family friend at the time. Notably, John Lennon wrote a personalized message on the album cover: "To Andrew from The Beatles." This inscription is quite prominent, and the original recipient's name appears in the top right.
I am now seeking the expertise of this community to help me verify the authenticity of these signatures and potentially explore avenues for selling this remarkable piece of music history. Any advice, insights, or connections to reputable authentication services would be greatly appreciated.
Description
- Signed clearly by all four members of the Beatles above (John) and beneath their portraits
- One of only 8-10 known to exist, according to Autograph Magazine's census
- Good condition, with wear to the edges and some toning
A Hard Day's Night, released on July 10, 1964, was the Beatles' third studio album. Accompanying the band's film of the same name, it went straight to Number One in the UK charts and stayed there for 21 weeks, spending a total of 38 weeks in the Top 20.
According to Autograph Magazine's census, there are just 125 known UK-release album covers signed by all four members of the Beatles.
Signed copies of Please Please Me and With The Beatles account for approximately 95 of the 125 known examples. That takes the total down to just 30.
There are only 5 known examples of Meet the Beatles, with one example selling for $115,000 in 2006.
As for signed copies of A Hard Day's Night, only 8-10 are known to exist. This is one of them. I've located a another signed copy that sold £35,000.
If you have any knowledge or experience in this area, please share your thoughts.
Thank you in advance for your time and assistance!
Best regards,
Drew
Tags: AuthenticBeatlesSignatures, AutographedBeatles, BeatlesAutographs, BeatlesCollectibles, ClassicRockAutographs, FabFourSignature, RareBeatlesSignatures, RareRockCollectibles
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by BallroomDays67 on
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This was signed on behalf of The Beatles by their road manager Neil Aspinall. He would sign for them when they weren’t available. Sorry for the bad news. That said, his secretarial signatures are considered collectible, especially on an LP.
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Permalink Reply by Andrew Gold on
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Thanks for the info and bad news, Folks. I was falsely under the impression that for the past 30 years the signatures were real.
I appreciate your time and help. I will say this for Neil: He could really emulate a wide variety of writing styles! Any idea on how much a set of Aspinall signatures would be worth on an LP? More importantly, and for my own edification, what defining characteristics mark these as Aspinall signatures vs The Lads?
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Permalink Reply by Bruce Juice on
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The long "G" in George is one of the easiest ways to spot an Aspinall.
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I would value the LP at around $1K.
There’s also the unconnected “R” in Ringo and distinctive top of the “G.” The “J” in John and “M” in McCartney also stick out as being from Neil.
Sometimes one or more Beatles would sign and Neil would finish the set. Here’s a set of artwork signed by Paul, George and Ringo, with Neil signing for John. JSA authenticated all four signatures!
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Interesting to see that the item lost value over the years. It was sold at auction for $1000. SMH.
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Permalink Reply by Bertrand on
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Maybe a little less. As a matter of fact, I recently bouhgt a LP cover signed by Neil from Perry Cox and I paid it around 350$.
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Permalink Reply by Adam Halloran on
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I am a little confused on the above story. Was this aquired by you from Sotheby/Christies as said above or gifted by Whoopie Goldberg?
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Hey Adam.
It was specifically purchased by Whoopi for me through either Sotheby or Christies in Summer 1988.
It was presented as a gift by Whoopi to me at her (then) beach house in Malibu. She was living there with my Dad and I would often visit. They met on Clara's Heart.
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Permalink Reply by Jim McFiver on
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Andrew: you may take these comments regarding Neal signatures to the bank. It is indeed Neal who scribbled these, with nothing more than thoughtfulness as his only mission. It's a shame Whoopi was snookered but she probably felt comfortable purchasing the LP via those auction houses.
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The way I look at it is she tried to do something nice for me; she knew I loved The Beatles. At least it is still an item that has a direct line to the inner circle. I appreciate everyone who took the time to comment.
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Permalink Reply by fab432 on
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Andrew, This reminds me of a signed Please Please Me Lp that I bought at auction in the mid 1980’s . I was very proud of my signed Lp and was taking it to a Beatle Fan Celebration in Toronto in the 1990’s as Frank Caiazzo was going to be there doing assessments. Well long story short Frank was very diplomatic and let me down very gently which I have always appreciated. I still have the Lp and think what could have been.
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