Despite the decline in demand for theatre and production art during the 1950s, McBean's creative and striking ideas provided him with work in the emergent record cover business with companies such as EMI, when he was commissioned to create Cliff Richard's first four album sleeves. McBean's later works included being the photographer for the cover of The Beatles' first album "Please Please Me", as well as commissions by a number of other performers. In 1969 he returned with the Beatles to the same location to shoot the cover for their album "Get Back". This later came out as "Let It Be" with a different cover, but McBean's photo was used (together with an outtake from the "Please Please Me" cover shoot) for the cover of the Beatles' 1962–1966 and 1967–1970 compilations in 1973. In his later years he became more selective of the work he undertook, and continued to explore surrealism whilst taking portrait photographs of individuals such as Agatha Christie, Audrey Hepburn, Laurence Olivier and Noël Coward. Both periods of his work (pre and post war) are now eagerly sought by collectors and his work sits in many major collections around the world.