One starry night, after a few drinks on a front porch somewhere, my buddy Jacob asks, “If you could see a show by any band, past or present, in any location in the world, what would it be?” Jacob asks great questions, and people who ask good questions deserve good answers. Many quiet moments passed while I pondered. Crickets chirped. Hoot owls hooted.

“I’d go with The Grateful Dead at the Sea of Galilee,” Jacob offers.

I thought a little longer. “The Beatles. Liverpool.”

I’ve been a huge Beatles nut ever since my dad introduced me to The White Album when I was 10 or so.  So when I noticed the remastered set at Waterloo a few months back, I was floored. And I still am. Here’s why: No other band of mention is (was) as overdue for a digital remastering of works than The Beatles. Their music is arguably the most important body of work in rock history, and yet remastered sets from other bands have filled the shelves at record stores for years.

The Beatles original catalogue was originally released on CD in 1987, but technological advances since that time have dated the previous releases. Now, after 22 years, the engineers at EMI’s Abbey Road Studios in London have spared no expense in digitally remastering the original analog recordings.

The remastered boxset features all of the original Beatles albums, plus ‘Magical Mystery Tour’ and ‘Past Masters Vol. I and II.’  That’s 14 albums on 16 discs. In addition, each of the albums comes with a QuickTime mini-documentary offering unique insight into the recording process and culture of the legendary rockers.

If you’re a Beatles fan, this boxset belongs at the top of your ‘to buy’ list.