Rarities (1980 The Beatles Album) - 1980

1980

Rarities is a compilation album released by Capitol Records featuring a selection of songs by The Beatles. The album was inspired by an earlier compilation of the same name which was released as part of The Beatles Collection box set. Most of the tracks on The Beatles Collection album called Rarities were already available on American Beatles LPs. As a result, Capitol assembled an album of Beatles tracks which were considered rare in America. They include tracks not previously issued on a Capitol or Apple LP and alternative versions of several well-known songs which were also not readily available in the U.S. The gatefold of the album cover features the original controversial "butcher" cover photo of the Yesterday...and Today album.

Though the Capitol Rarities album was geared toward the American market, it was also issued in several other countries, including Australia, Canada, France, Japan and New Zealand. The Rarities album has not been released on compact disc, though most of the tracks are now available on other Beatles CDs, especially the Beatles' 2009 mono and stereo box sets.

When the album was released Paul McCartney said it was "quite good".