Terry Crain, author of the
popular Beatles memorabilia
books, NEMS and the Business of Selling
Beatles Merchandise in the U.S. 1964-1966 and Copyrighting
The Beatles: 1962-1966, has announced he will be releasing a “wild
and wacky” new entry in the Beatles book world in August 2026 titled Beatles Novelty Songs (1964-1966).
"Songwriters wrote nearly 500 Beatles novelty
songs during those years,” says Crain. “Every subject, every situation, every
holiday, every heartfelt longing, and every social issue seemed to be covered
by these wonderful songs. Even though they weren't dotting the charts, their
power was unquestionable.”
This new book from Crain, a
retired administrator from John Logan College in Southern Illinois, is a graphically rich, 650-page, five-pound tome
chronicling each song with added information about who recorded them, who the
musicians were, and many other fun facts. As someone who has extensively
researched Beatles memorabilia, the novelty record genre is a particularly
interesting one to Crain.
“You’d think Beatles novelty records from that time
would naturally be in the rock and roll musical style,” he says, “And some
were, but not all.” Crain has uncovered Beatles novelty records recorded in the
style of American folk, British folk, foxtrot, jive, samba, bluegrass,
doo-wop, country, big band, jazz,
orchestral, spoken-word, polka, surf and ska. “The roots and branches of the
Beatles' novelty songs family tree are truly amazing,” he explained. “It's a
festive and fun confetti of great novelty songs!”
Beatles Novelty Songs is slated to be released in August of 2026. You can learn more about Terry Crain’s work, including his previous
books, here: https://www.fabgear.company