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Supposedly a test pic taken before The Beatles arrived.

Amazing.

This will be from the session the weekend before the final shoot, when Iain MacMillan was doing test photography. We can tell this by the below, taken same day - the car on the right is the same. This was taken on the Sunday before the Beatles shoot, so 3 August 1969 (colorised by myself):

i agree....that Volvo(?) is in the same place, the scooter has moved on though

I think it's funny that almost any fake Abbey Road 'alternate photo' always looks distorted or blurred at head spots where Ringo and John were or the Volkswagon looks out of place or forced in angle. .

This is a picture of the earlier session. Note that the Volkswagen Beetle is absent here.

I don't think that last photo is from the same time as the others. The VW was there from the first test shot to final photo - this must have been taken later, surely?

The front cover shot is credited to Iain Macmillan, although whose handiwork added the superimposed 'Beatles' bodies and shadows is unknown to me.
The bodies and attire of New York City's do resemble those of the Beatles, however, they are of a better resolution than those on Abbey Road. So Macmillan may have taken the a shot of the empty crosswalk, knowing it would be in demand one day. Considering the number of parody photos that have been taken at the location, it seems like the task could prove extremely dangerous. I can imagine that Americans never look to the right before stepping into the path of Grove's End Road commuters as they transition onto Abbey Road...and through the crosswalk. Have there been any safety precautions implemented for such reasons? Any help is appreciated.
KC

The Soulful Road cover photo was taken at the same time, like you say, a shot of the empty crossing. I took a detailed look at the vehicles to establish that - they match but not exactly, to the other photos. The shadows on the road are longer than on the cover of Abbey Road, however, so with the sun to the west (left of image), it was later in the day.

This was confirmed in the book which came with the Abbey Road Super Deluxe box set.

Mr Bump wrote: ↑Mon May 08, 2023 4:43 pm I don't think that last photo is from the same time as the others. The VW was there from the first test shot to final photo - this must have been taken later, surely?

The picture is in the Abbey Road 50th Anniversary Book. No date given. The weather seems more rainy than on SAugust 8, so it is probably another day- earlier or later?