A single containing live versions of two Beatles songs, ‘Birthday’ and ‘Good Day Sunshine’, was released prior to Tripping The Live Fantastic. The single was issued on 8 October 1990 in the UK, the day before John Lennon’s birthday, and peaked at number 29. In the US it was released on 16 October, and failed to chart.
Tripping The Live Fantastic followed a month later, and reached number 17 in the UK and 26 in the US. A 12″ square booklet accompanied the three-disc LP version, whereas the double CD set came with two booklets.
An abridged edition, titled Tripping The Live Fantastic – Highlights!, was also issued on 26 November 1990 in the UK, and on 20 November in the US. It contained one song, ‘All My Trials’, not on the longer album. The song was also McCartney’s Christmas 1990 single.
The CD edition of Highlights! featured ‘Got To Get You Into My Life’, ‘Birthday’, ‘We Got Married’, ‘The Long And Winding Road’, ‘Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’, ‘Can’t Buy Me Love’, ‘All My Trials’, ‘Things We Said Today’, ‘Eleanor Rigby’, ‘My Brave Face’, ‘Back In The USSR’, ‘I Saw Her Standing There’, ‘Coming Up’, ‘Let It Be’, ‘Hey Jude’, ‘Get Back’, ‘Golden Slumbers’, ‘Carry That Weight’, and ‘The End’.
The LP edition of Highlights!, meanwhile, omitted ‘Got To Get You Into My Life’, ‘We Got Married’, ‘Things We Said Today’, ‘Back In The USSR’, ‘Golden Slumbers’, ‘Carry That Weight’, and ‘The End’. The album failed to chart in the UK, and peaked at 141 in the US. Oddly, it was certified platinum in the US, whereas the full-length release failed to even go gold.
A film of the world tour, directed by Richard Lester and Aubrey Powell, was also made. Get Back, was not released until 25 October 1991, and received a limited cinema run prior to a full release on VHS video.
