Instead of approving the album as it was presented to him, Martin reworked the already mixed tapes for every song, reversing the left and right channels and slightly narrowing the stereo on the tracks "Twist and Shout", "I Saw Her Standing There", "I Wanna Be Your Man", "Boys", "Roll Over Beethoven", "Drive My Car" and "I'm Down".

Some of the song editing is not clean: for instance, the beginning of the crossfade of "Dear Prudence" can be heard during the fade of "Back in the U.S.S.R.", as originally issued on the White Album.

[4] In both the United States and Britain, Rock 'n' Roll Music was accompanied by a single compiled from songs on the album.

Symbols of the 1950s were used on the inside of the album's gatefold sleeve, including a jukebox, an outdoor movie screen with a picture of Marilyn Monroe, an ice cream, a 1957 Chevrolet, a cheeseburger, and a glass of Coca-Cola.

John Lennon was also critical of the artwork and wrote an angry letter to Capitol Records complaining it "looks like a Monkees reject" and suggested the cover instead use famous photos of the Beatles by Astrid Kirchherr or Jürgen Vollmer, both of whom had photographed the band during their Hamburg days.

Interest in the band was undoubtedly boosted by Paul McCartney's "Wings over America" tour, which criss-crossed the United States and Canada shortly after Rock 'n' Roll Music was released.