Beatles' songs unearthed A secret stash of previously unheard songs by the Beatles may have been discovered inside an old suitcase at an Aussie flea market, reports have claimed. The suitcase – not yet examined by experts – is believed to contain a treasure trove of material related to the band, including tapes containing brand new material. The Times newspaper in London reported that the case may once have belonged to one of the band's closest associates. The battered suitcase was bought earlier this year by British holidaymaker Fraser Claughton in Lara, near Melbourne, for just $50. Mr Claughton was simply looking for a cheap suitcase to carry his possessions but snapped up the case when he saw it contained a jumble of around 400 photographs, concert programmes and sealed tapes marked "Abbey Road" – the Beatles' favoured recording studio. "It was like finding the end of the rainbow in Australia," he was quoted as saying. Experts told the Times that it was believed the case contained the long-lost archive of Mal Evans, who worked as a sometime sound recordist and additional musician for the Beatles, and died in 1976. Rumours of his collection, which he compiled for a planned but never completed memoir, have circulated among Beatles collectors for years. Among tapes inside the case were alternative versions of well-known songs such as We Can Work It Out as well as some new material, a pop memorabilia consultant for auctioneers Christie's told the Times. "It certainly does tie in with Mal Evans. He had access to the Beatles making music when there was no one else around," Peter Doggett said. "There has been much debate as to what happened to his memorabilia. It is possible that this is it, or part of it." One four-and-a-half hour recording on reel-to-reel tape in the suitcase includes Beatles Paul McCartney and John Lennon talking as they experiment with previously unknown versions of songs, the paper added. The archive could be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars if sold, Doggett said. Agence France-Presse
This is kind of like finding a Rembrandt behind the framed painting of dogs playing pool you bought at a garage sale for $5.
