# The Beatles on K-Tel Records **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [December 1, 2020, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936 "2020-12-01T17:01:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Fiddle\_Peghead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddle_peghead/32/3506_2.png) [@Fiddle\_Peghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiddle_Peghead)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2020, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936/1 "2020-12-01T17:01:46Z")
Am I crazy, or was a Beatles song or two released on K-Tel Records (or a similar label that would put out albums with hits of the somewhat recent past), sometime in the early to mid 1970s? I think I remember a TV commercial with McCartney shown singing “We Can Work It Out”, and being impressed by the bridge, among other things. Also, I distinctly remember seeing John Fogerty, in tight black leather pants, singing a CCR song, the name of which I do not recall. Did this happen? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2020, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936/2 "2020-12-01T18:25:46Z")
> **[The Beatles - Live In Hamburg '62](https://www.discogs.com/release/2283358-The-Beatles-Live-In-Hamburg-62)** > > View credits, reviews, tracks and shop for the 1986 CD release of "Live In Hamburg '62" on Discogs. > **[Various - K-Tel's British Greats](https://www.discogs.com/release/1309262-Various-K-Tels-British-Greats)** > > View credits, reviews, tracks and shop for the 1975 Vinyl release of "K-Tel's British Greats" on Discogs. > **[Various - K-Tel's Story Of Pop](https://www.discogs.com/master/1250195-Various-K-Tels-Story-Of-Pop)** > > Explore songs, recommendations, and other album details for K-Tel's Story Of Pop by Various. Compare different versions and buy them all on Discogs. > **[Various - K-Tel's Pop Greats](https://www.discogs.com/master/1063825-Various-K-Tels-Pop-Greats)** > > Explore songs, recommendations, and other album details for K-Tel's Pop Greats by Various. Compare different versions and buy them all on Discogs. Looks like they had some old, old tracks and reused them a lot. ---
**Author:** ![I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/i_love_me_vol.i/32/521_2.png) [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Love_Me_Vol.I)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2020, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936/3 "2020-12-01T18:33:27Z")
> [@Fiddle\_Peghead](#): > > I think I remember a TV commercial with McCartney shown singing “We Can Work It Out”, and being impressed by the bridge, among other things. This is weird of me but: In a 30 second commercial for an album with songs from multiple artists how likely is it that a quick snippet of “We Can Work it Out” would include the bridge? So I vote you are not crazy but, you may be misremembering things. ETA: re: **Telemark** ’s post: Yeah… that Tony Sheridan “My Bonnie” thing was always a different licensing deal. So you see it popping up here and there. ---
**Author:** ![Fiddle\_Peghead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddle_peghead/32/3506_2.png) [@Fiddle\_Peghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiddle_Peghead)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2020, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936/4 "2020-12-01T19:02:15Z")
There’s no reason it had to be just a 30 second commercial, for starters. And it’s not just that it was any old bridge, it is very distinctive, with that dramatic time signature change to a kind of waltz time. But I certainly take your point, I very well might be misremembering, hence my thread. Just as vivid in my mind was Fogerty. You can see him in tight leather pants on the inner part of the Chronicle album. I got into CCR in 1982 or so, and would not have seen this image until then, and sure as hell not know he was a tight leather, half Jim Morrison “lizard king” type. 🙂 Shit, I just found this. I’m pretty sure I’ve looked online for this, but it could have been twenty years ago. This is almost surely what I saw back then. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/7JBxD1OYKmY/hqdefault.jpg "K-tel Records "The Best Of Creedance Clearwater Revival" commercial - 1977") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JBxD1OYKmY) ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2020, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936/5 "2020-12-01T20:16:30Z")
Are you thinking of [“The Beatles: Alpha Omega”](https://aboutthebeatles.com/beatles-alpha-omega)? Summary: in the early 1970s, a shady New Jersey company took advantage of loose enforcement of piracy violations to temporarily sell pirated Beatles recordings by mail order. I remember the TV ads, which used an English-accented voiceover. I had no idea of the legal issues until recently. I always wondered if their success influenced (Apple?) to release the two authorized double albums a few years later (“The Beatles: 1962-1966” and “The Beatles: 1966-1970”, aka “The Blue Album” and “The Red Album”). ---
**Author:** ![Fiddle\_Peghead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddle_peghead/32/3506_2.png) [@Fiddle\_Peghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiddle_Peghead)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2020, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936/6 "2020-12-01T20:45:04Z")
> [@F.U.Shakespeare](#): > > Are you thinking of [“The Beatles: Alpha Omega”](https://aboutthebeatles.com/beatles-alpha-omega) Thanks, very interesting indeed, and something like this is what I have suspected. Your link says this company advertised on TV. I’d need to see that commercial. But in my very possibly faulty memory, there were a number of bands, and not just Beatles songs. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2020, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936/7 "2020-12-01T20:49:08Z")
I could swear there was an SNL commercial parody in the mid-80s along the lines of “Great Songs You Remember Half the Lyrics From,” but I can’t find it on [Wikipedia’s list](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Saturday_Night_Live_commercial_parodies). ---
**Author:** ![Fiddle\_Peghead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddle_peghead/32/3506_2.png) [@Fiddle\_Peghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiddle_Peghead)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2020, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936/8 "2020-12-01T21:32:39Z")
Okay. Not sure what it has to do with the topic, but judging from my luck and the rapidly advancing possibility I dreamed the whole thing up, if there wasn’t such a parody, I could probably still convince myself of its existence! 🤣 ---
**Author:** ![journeyman\_southpaw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5e9695/32.png) [@journeyman\_southpaw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/journeyman_southpaw)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2020, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936/9 "2020-12-01T22:07:18Z")
> [@KneadToKnow](#): > > I could swear there was an SNL commercial parody in the mid-80s along the lines of “Great Songs You Remember Half the Lyrics From,” but I can’t find it on [Wikipedia’s list](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Saturday_Night_Live_commercial_parodies). You’re probably thinking of this: > **[SNL Transcripts: Dolly Parton: 04/15/89: Ten Beatles Classics You Kind Of...](https://snltranscripts.jt.org/88/88qbeatles.phtml)** > >  Saturday Night Live Transcripts  Season 14: Episode 16 ---
**Author:** ![Fiddle\_Peghead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddle_peghead/32/3506_2.png) [@Fiddle\_Peghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiddle_Peghead)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2020, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936/10 "2020-12-01T23:56:42Z")
> [@journeyman\_southpaw](#): > > You’re probably thinking of this: Okay, I think I may get it now. _Beatles_ songs you may remember the words to, not just any old songs. ---
**Author:** ![Fiddle\_Peghead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddle_peghead/32/3506_2.png) [@Fiddle\_Peghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiddle_Peghead)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2020, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936/11 "2020-12-02T00:04:15Z")
Found it. > **[10 Beatles Classics You Kind Of Know The Words To - video Dailymotion](https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x34clvl)** > > Watch 10 Beatles Classics You Kind Of Know The Words To - jeremeey on Dailymotion ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2020, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936/12 "2020-12-02T00:33:31Z")
_“Very strange!”_ ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2020, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936/13 "2020-12-02T18:37:34Z")
> [@journeyman\_southpaw](#): > > You’re probably thinking of this: That was exactly what I was thinking about. Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![drmark7](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ba8739/32.png) [@drmark7](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drmark7)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2020, 6:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936/14 "2020-12-04T06:47:58Z")
> [@Fiddle\_Peghead](#): > > was a Beatles song or two released on K-Tel Records (or a similar label "was a Beatles song or two released on K-Tel Records (or a similar label " Without a doubt! THE BEATLES- “Nowhere Man” was included (The lead track!) on the c.1971 RONCO (“AS Seen On TV”) compilation album, “Do It Now.” ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2020, 7:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936/15 "2020-12-04T07:06:53Z")
It was called “Beatles Songs You Sort Of Know The Words To.” I can’t find it on line. Some of us at work joked about “R.E.M. Songs You Sort Of Know The Words To” but that it would actually be more like this, and specifically the one with all the question marks. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/T0epZ9tjYdA/hqdefault.jpg "Best of Buh Wheat") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0epZ9tjYdA) ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2020, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936/16 "2020-12-04T07:13:26Z")
Teaches me to scroll through a whole thread without checking it out! This is it! It’s just not on You Tube. ---
**Author:** ![Fiddle\_Peghead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddle_peghead/32/3506_2.png) [@Fiddle\_Peghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiddle_Peghead)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2020, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936/17 "2020-12-04T15:52:39Z")
> [@drmark7](#): > > Without a doubt! THE BEATLES- “Nowhere Man” was included (The lead track!) on the c.1971 RONCO (“AS Seen On TV”) compilation album, “Do It Now.” > **[Ronco Records – THE GROOVES MAN](https://groovesman.wordpress.com/tag/ronco-records/)** > > Posts about Ronco Records written by the grooves man Do you know if there was a TV commercial? Probably, since it was RONCO, but I can’t find it. If so, I suppose I could be misremembering as suggested, and saw a clip of “Nowhere Man” instead. The instrumentation is similar and it was released in December 1965, as was “We Can Work It Out”. And the vibe is similar… ---
**Author:** ![drmark7](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ba8739/32.png) [@drmark7](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drmark7)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2020, 7:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-on-k-tel-records/926936/18 "2020-12-05T07:05:41Z")
Can’t say if there was a TV commercial… but the album exists… I have it right here… And “Nowhere Man” is the lead track. MH