Love Me Do /
P.S. I Love You

45.72076.1.2 is the much more common 1964 repress. The first pressing being issued as the band was not yet known here in Canada, the original 1963 run was pressed in very small quantities, enough to ship to radio stations as promotion, and a few copies in main shops around the country. The pressing plates were not used to the end of their viable life and were still in good condition, making them available in case of a repressing.

Availability

This second variation (45.72076.1.2) still with no dash and number, was available for a short time in early 1964, until new plates were needed (-2). These no dash 1964 pressings are the next best thing after the true 1963 pressing.

It is unknown how many more copies were made from the original plates in early 1964, but when these original plates were broken or too old, they were readily replaced by a further generation of plates. These later plates featured smaller matrix numbers, as well as a "-2" number after the original matrix number (see 45.72076.1.3).

RCA kept pressing copies and replacing plates (-3, -4 etc.) for a few years, until demand was met. Copies up to -7 can be found (see next entry 45.72076.1.3). In this sense, "no dash copies" are either 1963 or early 1964 copies, while -2,3,4,5,6,7 were pressed sometimes between mid 1964 and mid 1966.

General Information

It took a few other releases before Beatles sales started to increase in Canada, but after Beatlemania truly took off (after the release of She Loves You and the Ed Sullivan Show), Beatles records were starting to be in higher demand, so Capitol of Canada repressed their "back catalogue" with their old plates waiting to be reused (e.g. Love Me Do, Please Please Me and From Me To You). The last two saw some credit changes, so the 1964 repressings are easy to identify with certainty, but Love Me Do is a whole other story, as detailed in 45.72076.1.1.

The labels have not changed, but it is suspected that a second batch of labels was printed, possibly leaving very subtle clues for collectors to differentiate 63 from 64 pressings. The paper texture is different, for one (more spotty/"translucent"). Some collectors also consider the placement of the text vs the swirl to be an identifying marker. The authors of this archive recommend being mindful that the printing process is linked to a tolerance level that can bring small variations within a same batch of printed labels. Therefore, although verified true 63 pressings have been found with "placement X" of the text on the swirl, it does not mean that ALL 63 copies are de facto the same; small variations of text placement might simply be a matter of (re)positioning discrepancies within a same batch, and not necessarily a marker of a different batch.

For more details on this matter, see 45.72076.1.1.

Pressing Information

45.72076.1.2 was cut from the same "no dash" pressing plates as 45.72076.1.1 (prepared directly from a UK 45 sent to the Canadian head office). The matrix numbers are therefore IDENTICAL to 45.72076.1.1:

Side A: 7XCE 17144
Side B: 7XCE 17145

Another important thing to consider: these initial plates were used for a second run when demand was suddenly high for Beatles material. Considering subsequent pressings went all the way to -7 copies between 1964 and 1966, it is fair to assume that these "no dash" plates were used until they were worn out or broke, so there could be up to a few thousand "1964 no dash copies" out there.

As a reference, a stamper was reportedly capable of pressing up to 10 000 discs, but as a few Canadian collectors have highlighted, Canadian operations were a smaller market and had a tendency to pay extra attention to quality control and would often not "abuse" the plates until the end, but would change them earlier to ensure proper pressings. With that in mind, one could assume that up to 5000 copies were probably pressed with these first no dash plates (or less if the plates broke earlier than expected). This would also explain why, while having that utmost rarity aura around it, no dash copies actually surface relatively often. One has to refer to the previous entry to identify markers allowing to differentiate true 63 pressings from these numerous later no dash copies.

It is also possible that some no dash copies even found their way south of the border as well, considering the fact that it was reported Canada exported around 350 000 copies to the USA in 1964. "-2" copies have been verified often in the USA, so it is not irrational to assume that early copies were sent down to the states as well, along with -2, -3 and even -4 copies.

Sleeve

1964 copies (until 1966) were sold in a generic THIN FLAT black Capitol sleeve:

Sales

Sales of original first pressings were insignificant. Only later in 1964 when Beatlmania really took off, did Love Me Do start selling in significant numbers (around 50 000 copies in 1964).

Added to this 50 000 Canadian copies, approximately 350 000 copies were reportedly also exported to the USA in 1964 (source: P. Hemmingsen, The Beatles’ Canadian Discography) (these numbers need to be confirmed since they difficultly align with matrix numbers; see next paragraph), and although they only would have counted as USA sales, they do count in today's collector's market, expanding the pool of existing copies beyond the Canadian sales numbers.

A word on sales numbers and manufacturing quantities

It seems that in many cases, the logical matrix number sequences found or records do not align with reported sales (i.e., reported sales are not always consequent with numbers of manufactured copies, according to matrix information). It is believed that in the 1960s, up to 10 000 copies could be pressed from a single stamper before being worn out and replaced (and some numbers are even more conservative, at around 2000 copies).

Technically, every time a part was replaced, a dash and number were added to the matrix, indicating it was a new generation of parts. In the sense, a record would have an added "dash and number" at every 10 000 copies (if the part was good for that long). So again, following this logic, a -2 would be a record in the 10K-20K copies range, and so on. Similarly, a record sold at 100 000 copies would see masters up to approximately -10.

Reality is always a little different, and below are possible explanations why matrix numbers could be different from expected numbers, and therefore misalign with matrix numbers:

• 1. Records of sales / memory and recollections can be incomplete or skewed
• 2. Stampers broke or wore out earlier than expected
• 3. Older stampers were re-used later

Below is a representation of the different steps required to press a record. Terminology changes from one plant to another, but the gist of it remains valid:
Lacquer > Metal Master(s) (or Father) > Metal Mother(s) > Stamper(s).

The million-dollar question is "which part of the process saw an updated matrix (-2)?": The stamper? (Every 10 000 copies), the Mother (every 100 000 copies if a mother produces 10 stampers), or the lacquer producing multiple mothers? (i.e., even more identical copies).

This would imply two other possible explanations:

• 4. Matrix numbers only changed on lacquers (and therefore on the Father producing multiple mothers)
• 5. A single mother produces many IDENTICAL stampers (without no added -2 number)

These last two seem to be the most plausible explanation, especially when looking at singles with official sales figures that have kept very low matrix numbers (like All My Loving, 45.72144.1.1, for example) - this would account for higher reported numbers without having the high matrix numbers that would reflect the reported quantity of discs pressed. In any case, the estimated numbers presented here do not always align with the records matrix numbers as we understand them and the various factors above need to be considered when exploring the different ranges of sales / pressed copies.

**IMPORTANT NOTE**
In the case of the three exported records (Love Me Do, All My Loving and Twist And Shout), the 350 000 number seems high, where only points 4 and 5 above could explain these numbers. The estimation could also possibly have been an error from a more realistic 35 000 number. Then again, sources for these numbers have usually been very reliable, so this needs to be validated.

For the case of LOVE ME DO, the authors would rather be comfortable with numbers in the range of 50 000 copies for Canada and 20 000-30 000 copies prepared for export to the USA - this would stay within a logical -7 range of copies, as the numbering system is currently understood, i.e., an added dash and number when a part was replaced by a newer one.