US radio WBCN broadcasts the “Get Back” LP

In January 1969, towards the end of the “Get Back” sessions, engineer Glyn Johns began mixing tracks and, on January 30, completed a first version of the “Get Back” LP. He also prepared acetates for The Beatles to review.

Beatles press officer Derek Taylor obtained one of the acetates — or a copy of it — and passed it along to his friend, San Francisco-based DJ Tom Donahue. Donahue, in turn, shared it with DJ Steven Segal, then working at the underground Boston radio station WBCN-FM. It was likely understood by both DJs that the recordings were not intended for broadcast.

From March to May 1969, Glyn Johns resumed more formal work on assembling a “Get Back” album.

On September 12, 1969, John Lennon, along with the Plastic Ono Band, travelled to Canada to perform at the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival. It was rumoured that John gave an acetate or tape copy of the album to Toronto-based journalist Ritchie Yorke. Another version of the story suggests that John handed over the acetate during an interview with Yorke at Apple’s London offices on September 17, shortly after returning from Toronto.

Back in Toronto, Yorke reportedly made a tape copy of the acetate — capturing only the left stereo channel — and sold it to local station CHUM-FM. CHUM then supplied tape dubs to Windsor’s CKLW and Niagara Falls’ CJRN. The three stations began broadcasting the songs. WKBW-AM in Buffalo obtained a copy from a Canadian source and started airing the tracks on September 20.

Upon hearing that “Get Back” tracks were being aired by WKBW-AM, Steven Segal decided to broadcast his copy of the album. He began doing so on this day, September 22.

The January 1969 version of the “Get Back” LP, broadcast by WKBW-AM, led to the release of the first Beatles bootlegs, titled “Kum Back.”

The Early May version of the “Get Back” LP, as aired by WBCN-FM, was also bootlegged — firstly on the release titled “O.P.D.,” which surfaced on the U.S. market in early 1970.

Source: article “Let It Bootleg” by Scott “Belmo” Belmer, in “The Beatles Finally Let It Be,” by Bruce Spizer, 2020

Going further

The Beatles Diary Volume 1: The Beatles Years

With greatly expanded text, this is the most revealing and frank personal 30-year chronicle of the group ever written. Insider Barry Miles covers the Beatles story from childhood to the break-up of the group.

Buy on Amazon