According to,  a promotional copy of an early Beatles 7" single has sold at auction for $35,000.

The 1964 single, on the Vee Jay label, is considered to be the rarest U.S. Beatles record. The songs on the 45 are 'Ask Me Why' b/w 'Anna' and only five of these records were ever produced. The record was only ever made as a promo for radio and was never a commercial release.

The band were signed to Vee Jay before moving to Capitol. Once Beatlemania broke, three US labels, Swan, Tollie and Vee Jay, all of whom had issued at least one Beatles record, sought to capitalize on the mania.

Rare Beatles discs are always the subject of high bidding, with a rare version of the Beatles Vee Jay album recently selling for  around $15,000.

In addition, a rare Beatles Cavern Club poster recently sold at an auction for $42,000, and a Paul McCartney signed bass the musician donated recently netted 40,000 pounds for the Nordoff Robbins organization.

The Beatles are back in the spotlight thanks to Paul McCartney's Olympic appearance and the new 'Tomorrow Never Knows' iTunes compilation that just hit stores. Billboard reports that the set is expected to sell between 10,000 and 15,000 copies this week.