Vancouver Collector Returns Rare 1962 Beatles Demo to Paul McCartney and Ends Up Having Lunch With Him
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A Rare Discovery
In March, Rob Frith made a surprising find when he realized that a reel-to-reel tape in his possession labeled “Beatles demo” was exactly that. It turned out to be a high-quality copy of the Beatles’ legendary 1962 demonstration recording for Decca Records.
Word of his discovery spread quickly, even leading to a feature in The New York Times. Not long after, a lawyer for Paul McCartney reached out to Frith, setting in motion a meeting that most Beatles fans could only dream about.
Meeting Paul McCartney
On September 18, Frith traveled to Los Angeles, where he personally returned the tape to McCartney without asking for payment. The meeting lasted around 40 minutes, during which Frith, the owner of Vancouver’s Neptoon Records, was struck by McCartney’s warmth.
“We hung out with him for like, 40 minutes,” Frith said. “He’s an absolute sweetheart of a guy. If you’re a Beatles fan and you thought he was a really cool person, he was even nicer than you could imagine, just such a down-to-earth, nice, sweet guy.”
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A Family Experience
Frith didn’t attend alone. He brought his wife Vicki and sons Ben and Robert to the warehouse where McCartney and his band were rehearsing for an upcoming tour. The casual nature of the visit made it even more memorable.
“He asked if we were leaving that night or tomorrow,” recalled Frith, 70. “We said, ‘No, we’re actually here till Sunday.’ And he says, ‘Oh, do you want to come to our rehearsal tomorrow?’”
Lunch With the Band
McCartney went even further, inviting the family to share a meal. “So we end up having lunch with the band, and had a private show of their rehearsal, like they were onstage,” Frith said. “It was a huge warehouse stage.”
The generosity impressed Frith, but McCartney was just as touched by Frith’s decision to return the tape freely. “He kept saying what a wonderful thing that we did,” Frith explained. “You don’t really see this anymore, someone that’s willing to just give something up and not try to monetize it.”
A Special Connection
For Frith, the chance to spend time with McCartney was reward enough. “I told Paul, ‘You changed my life as far as music. Basically, that’s why I have a record store, because of the influence from you guys.’”
Although photos were not allowed, McCartney’s team promised to share images taken during the visit. McCartney even signed a historic photo from the Beatles’ 1964 Empire Stadium show in Vancouver. It read: “To Rob, thanks! Paul McCartney.”
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The Story Behind the Tape
Frith had purchased the demo years earlier, assuming it was a simple bootleg. But when he brought it to Larry Hennessey’s home studio in March, he discovered it was an authentic Beatles recording with outstanding sound quality.
Research revealed it was a copy of the original Decca master, once kept by Jack Herschorn of Can-Base Studio in Vancouver. Though there were plans to press it as a bootleg LP, the idea was abandoned. Herschorn later left the tape behind when moving to California, and eventually it ended up with Frith—who would return it to one of its original creators.
