Consider that the sessions for Beggar's Banquet ran from March 17th through July 26th 1968, but the album wasn't released until December 6th. For the 1960s, and for the Stones at the time, that is an awfully long time between completion of the record and its release. Anyone know why the record took almost half a year to come out after it was done?

TSMR's sessions finished on October 23rd 1967 and the record came out on December 8th.

BTB's sessions on December 30th 1966 and it came out January 20th 1967.

Aftermath's sessions finished March 9th, 1966 and the record came out on April 15th 1966.

For the Christmas shopping season?

Or Possible the "unwritten no competition clause" with the Beatles?
The White album did come out just 2 weeks earlier though...and Yellow Submarine quickly followed in Jan 69 so maybe not that...

It was because of the cover. Decca wouldnt release it, the Stones insisted on the toilet wall cover being used and after a few months of stalemate, eventually the Stones relented.

Jagger's argument was based along the lines that they'd released a Tom Jones album a couple of years earlier called 'A-Tom-Ic Jones' which featured an image of an atom bomb exploding which he insisted was in poorer taste.



It was another nail in the coffin for the band's relationship with the label and one which probably hastened them setting up one of their own.  They did get their revenge with the 'Cocksucker Blues' contractual obligation episode two years later

Beatles LP release date conflict?