"get back" tapes

[instant karla]

9 July 2006
EXCLUSIVE: HARRISON TAPE TRIAL
EXCLUSIVE
By Justin Penrose, Crime Correspondent
GEORGE Harrison's widow Olivia is being called as a witness in a trial over priceless Beatles tapes stolen from a studio.

The legendary Get Back recordings, which were filmed and recorded at Abbey Road Studios in 1968, were taken in the 1970s.

They were part of a haul of original Beatles recordings and memorabilia, which included a passport belonging to George, seized in a raid in Amsterdam in 2003.

Nigel Oliver, 55, of Slough, Berks, and Colin Dillon, 39, of Crowthorne, Berks, have been charged with theft and handling stolen goods and are due to appear at Southwark Crown Court, London, tomorrow.

The 500 tapes known as the Get Back Sessions were made as the Beatles recorded the Let it Be album.

Bitter arguments between them can be heard - including a furious row ending with George storming out of the studio in protest at Paul's interference. Police say there is enough material to fill 17 CDs.

Poor-quality bootleg versions of the originals have surfaced in Britain, Europe and the US over the last three decades.

[AMBOISVERT]

Interesting. None of the stuff was done at Abbey Road though. What on earth could poor Olivia have to say about it all?

Tony

[instant karla]

What on earth could poor Olivia have to say about it all? Tony

good question.

are these the same tapes george accused mark lewisohn of stealing? it seems that's the only connection olivia would have to the tapes.

[instant karla]

Britain


The Times July 11, 2006

Lost Beatles tapes 'were being sold for £250,000'
By Devika Bhat

A MAN was caught in an undercover sting selling stolen Beatles memorabilia, including some of the band’s last recordings, a court was told yesterday.
Nigel Oliver, 55, of Slough, allegedly tried to sell 504 tapes recorded during the making of the band’s final album, Let it Be, for £250,000.

Southwark Crown Court was told how Mr Oliver acted as the “middleman” in the sale but was arrested after a sting operation in which officers posed as collectors. He was also found with George Harrison’s passport, the court was told.

Mr Oliver, who was not at court and has been found unfit to plead, is charged with handling stolen goods.

The sting was set up by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry in order to recover the tapes. The undercover officers, known as “Sammy” and “Billy”, contacted Mr Oliver, who had advertised the memorabilia in the classified section of a local newspaper. Documents were found in Mr Oliver’s home giving instructions for the sale of the tapes from two men in Amsterdam, the court was told.

The documents stated:

“Sammy and Oliver to remain in UK, Billy to go to Holland where the tapes will be handed over. Billy to hand over £100,000 in return for the tapes and then return to the UK with them. Oliver to receive £150,000.”

Police arrested Mr Oliver in a forest near Windsor Park, Slough, on January 10, 2003, while he was waiting for his payment, the court was told. Police allegedly found a key to a suitcase containing Harrison’s passport in Mr Oliver’s flat. The passport was originally stolen in the 1980s by Douglas Mourn while he was soundproofing the musician’s recording studio. Mr Oliver allegedly bought the passport and a document signed by John Lennon from Mourn in 1998, for £750.

Harrison’s widow, Olivia, told the court in a statement: “When George and the others were preparing The Beatles: Anthology in 1994 and 1995 we were looking through his memorabilia. I had kept four of his passports for him but there was one missing . . . George was always aware of the value of such items and he knew that he had not thrown the passport away.

“It was brought to our attention in early 2001 that one of the items was being offered for sale in a local paper.

“Our caretaker made discreet inquiries on our behalf and found out the details of the person who was selling the passport. Our solicitors wrote to Nigel Oliver . . . but no reply was ever received from Mr Oliver, as far as we knew.”

The case continues.

[beatlelover45223]

RIGHT, and I am the richest woman on Earth(NOT), what a cop out, he needs psychiatric supervision, bet life gets back to more normal now that Nigel isn't facing 4 years in jail.

[gooroo]

another article (http://suicidegirls.com/news/music/17235/)

[.Psychedelic.Stars.]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-2271325,00.html

[instant karla]

July 18, 2006 (1:23 PM EDT)
*
Let It Be . . . Guilty

By K.C. Jones, TechWeb Technology News
Prosecutors won a guilty verdict in the case against a man accused of trying to sell stolen Beatles' tapes from the band's last recording sessions.

A jury found Colin Dillon, 39, guilty of trying to sell the tapes from the making of Let It Be. He received a four-month prison sentence, with a two-year suspension. Nigel Oliver, 55, also charged after a piracy sting, was deemed unfit to stand trial and sentenced to two years of mental health supervision.

"We are delighted to have finally brought this long running saga to a conclusion," London Police Detective Kieron Sharp, said through a statement released Monday. "It is a story that has captured the imagination of the public The recovery of the tapes and other artifacts was a direct result of the skills deployed by all of the investigators whilst using complex legal covert methods of investigation," he said.

The tapes, called the "Get Back" sessions, disappeared nearly 40 years ago, after the band recorded its final release. The tapes circulated throughout Europe and the United States on pirated copies, according to the IFPI.

The music industry groups IFPI and BPI led investigations into fight internationally piracy. The investigation culminated in police raids in Holland and the United Kingdom in 2003. During the raids, police seized more than 500 original reel-to-reel Beatles' tapes.

Police arrested Nigel Oliver, who had worked at the Twickenham Studios, where the band recorded the sessions. Authorities said Oliver had tried to sell the tape spools and George Harrison's passport to undercover officers.

Michael Ellis, head of European investigations for the IFPI, said through a prepared statement that the unprecedented investigations into the whereabouts of the recordings presented the IFPI with great demands and challenges.

"Today's verdict shows that piracy, which annually costs the worldwide music industry billions of pounds is taken seriously and will always be investigated thoroughly," he said.

[joenamherst]

From hindustantimes.com;
Neil Aspinall said during the trial that 'these tapes may be released as early as 2007'.