[September 10, 2009] Beatles mania Tweet Sep 10, 2009 (Inland Valley Daily Bulletin - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- The Beatles were back in a big way on Wednesday. Area fans of the legendary group have been waiting to get their hands on the new "Beatles Rock Band" video game and a remastered release of their discography. Record store managers and retailers were expecting a surge in sales after a huge marketing push and buzz about the products. So far, critical reception to the new Beatles products have been positive, with hardcore fans raving over the pristine new sound of the remastered records, and video-game reviewers applauding the entertainment value of the game and its ability to attract both older and newer gamers to the classic music. Claremont-based Rhino Records on Wednesday had a full display of Beatles products -- including the new CDs, DVDs and board games -- near the door. Managers at the Claremont store said copies of a boxed CD collection of the Beatles recordings on mono-sound and a copy of the new White Album CD, were sold out by Wednesday morning. Rhino employees said the store continues to receive numerous calls from customers inquiring about the new releases. There are waiting lists for the mono-sound boxed set, a rare collectors item. The boxed set retails for $299.99 and the individual CDs for $12.99 each. "We're definitely going to see some increase in sales," said Aaron Kenyon, a floor manager at the record store. "We've got some Beatles fans saying it's a lot better than the older ones. The sound is a lot clearer than the older CD releases." Among those fans is Rhino employee Nathan Wilson, who snatched up copies of the individual CDs as well as the boxed set as soon as they were released. "Mastering CD (sound) has grown so much, and fans have been clamoring for more modern processes to transfer Beatles music to the digital format, and it's been a long time coming," he said. "A lot of Beatles fans are happy about that." Meanwhile, retailers such as Target, Wal-Mart and Best Buy started selling "The Beatles: Rock Band" video game. Its price is about $250 and it can be hooked up to the major game consoles. In the game, players can play reproductions of the Beatles instruments or sing their best three-part harmonies to the band's songs and digital avatars of the four bandmates, John, Paul, George and Ringo. Wilson said he wasn't a gamer but he thought Beatles music coming out through the new medium of video games will be a way for a new generation of fans to meet the Beatles. "It seems pretty cool, and I guess it's going to interest people who are not interested in the Beatles and excite people who like them even more," he said. "I think gamers will get a kick out of it." [email protected], (909) 483-9356 To see more of the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.dailybulletin.com/. Copyright (c) 2009, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, Calif. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]