Album Summary: Please Please Me

We've reached the end of the first album, so it's time for an album summary!

Please Please Me was a neat album. It showcased The Beatles' early style and I enjoyed listening to it. I liked some songs more than others, of course; "Anna (Go to Him)" was probably my favorite, but "Do You Want to Know a Secret" had that nostalgic charm for me, and "Boys" was so fun and subtly subversive I couldn't help but enjoy it. I also liked the research aspect; looking up the history (or at least what I like to call the Wikipedia version of events) not only helped me understand the song's music and lyrics, but also gave me a tiny glimpse into the guys' heads at the time. I'm sure it would be well worth the $65.99 to purchase the Beatles anthology, but for a free version, it's not half bad.

That's about it for the summary... tomorrow I'll begin listening to With the Beatles so I'll catch you then!

Twist and Shout

I think everyone's heard "Twist and Shout". It's a staple at almost every wedding I've ever been to, and it never fails to remind me of elderly relatives getting their jam on. 

The history of this song, specifically of The Beatles' version (it was originally done by the Top Notes and then covered by The Isley Brothers), is pretty fascinating. It was recorded, along with 11 other songs from Please Please Me, in a 10-hour marathon in the studio. George Martin (the band's producer) "knew Lennon's voice would suffer from the performance, so he left it until last, with only 15 minutes of scheduled recording time remaining." John was also violently ill with a cold that day (apparently they couldn't reschedule the session) and he was downing milk and inhaling cough drops just to keep his voice going a little bit longer. According to Wikipedia, "his coughing is audible on the album, as is the cold's effect on his voice. Even so, he produced a memorable vocal performance: a raucous, dynamic rocker. He later said his voice was not the same for a long time afterward, and that 'every time [he] swallowed, it felt like sandpaper'. A second take was attempted, but Lennon had nothing left and it was abandoned. George Martin said, 'I did try a second take ... but John's voice had gone.'" I read that and thought, wow. That's true devotion. I myself happen to be sporting a sore throat this week, and I probably wouldn't try to record most of an album in a single day with it. That's the difference between me and John Lennon (one of many).

As far as the song itself is concerned, if you manage to shake off its reputation as a boring wedding song that all the aunties dance to, it's actually fun and catchy. After all, Ferris Bueller made it cool on his day off (and apparently although the movie "uses the Beatles version... Paul McCartney was upset that horns were arranged over the track"). I think we should all take a moment to appreciate it as a work of vocal achievement. 

Well, I've finally made it to the end of Please Please Me. I'll be posting an album summary shortly. :)

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Heard It Tally: 2

Songs Completed: 14

There's A Place

Today's tune was an interesting experience for me. When I started listening to it, at first the harmonica kind of put me off. Then, I paused the song to answer a question, and the second half of the song sounded great to me. The two halves contained equal amounts of harmonica; I honestly couldn't tell you what it was that changed my mind. I am pretty fond of the harmonies achieved during the line, "Don't you know that it's so?"

The Wikipedia page for "There's a Place" says that "the title was inspired by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim's "Somewhere" from West Side Story, which contained the line: 'somewhere there's a place for us'. McCartney owned the album of the soundtrack at the time of writing 'There's a Place' and acknowledges its influence." It's always interesting for me to learn about inspirations for songs, books, poems, plays, artwork, etc. It shows us just how big and important a role inspiration can play in creating art.

Another interesting tidbit about the subject matter: "The 'place' in question was 'the mind', making its subject matter slightly more cerebral than Britain's kissing and cuddling songs and America's surf music from that period. Lennon is quoted as saying: ''There's a Place' was my attempt at a sort of Motown, black thing.' It says the usual Lennon things: 'In my mind there's no sorrow...' It's all in your mind.'" This is another fascinating source of inspiration, but it also brings up the uncomfortable fact that The Beatles often did covers of songs that were originally by Black artists, and that their versions were generally more successful. I hesitate to choose between either saying The Beatles were benefiting from racism, or saying they were simply more talented. The truth is most likely a mix between the two, not just one or the other--picking one answer to satisfy such a complicated question would be simplistic*. (It's our job to face these awkward little facts--ignoring or glossing over them to avoid conflict is dishonest, but going on and on about them is tedious, so I'll try to find a good balance). 

In related news, on my way to work this morning I heard a radio station that was playing all Beatles music all morning. My first instinct was to change the channel so I didn't spoil the fun for myself (or ruin my Heard It Tally), but I decided to ration myself to one song. It was worth it. :)

* I'd like to define this term, since people so rarely use it correctly. It has a derogatory connotation; many people use it to mean fundamentally simple when it actually means, basically, that something is too simple.

simplistic: characterized by extreme simplism; oversimplified: a simplistic notion of good and bad.

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Heard It Tally: 1

Songs Completed: 13

A Taste of Honey

"A Taste of Honey" is today's song... but I'll let Wikipedia give you the rundown of the song's history (and I'll leave some of the links intact in case you're curious to learn more about any names):

"'A Taste of Honey' is a pop standard written by Bobby Scott and Ric Marlow. It was originally an instrumental track (or recurring theme) written for the 1960 Broadway version of the 1958 British play A Taste of Honey (which was also made into the film of the same name in 1961). Both the original and a cover by Herb Alpert in 1965 earned the song Grammy Awards. A vocal version of the song, first recorded by Lenny Welch, became popular when it was recorded by The Beatles in 1963."

[One interesting factoid--which you already know if you clicked the link--is that "pop standard" music denotes a type of music that either predates rock and roll, or that came out concurrently with rock and roll but originated earlier. Learn something new everyday!]

I have to tell you, this song reminded me of nothing so much as "The House of the Rising Sun". The guitar parts and the melodies are so similar. I'm kind of fond of Rising Sun, despite it being kind of terrible, so once I realized what was so familiar about "A Taste of Honey" and gave it another listen, I actually started to like it. (I'm utterly failing to remember the other song the guitar parts remind me of; maybe it'll come to me later.)

Anyways, hope you enjoyed today's song! See you tomorrow.

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Heard It Tally: 1

Songs Completed: 12

Do You Want to Know a Secret

I've actually heard this one! Yay me. My dad used to casually sing the chorus now and then (and sometimes I would get it stuck in my head) but I never knew specifically that it was a Beatles song. 

According to McCartney, the song was written to give George a chance to sing on their first record; he sang both this one and "Chains". Lennon said in 1980 "that he gave 'Do You Want to Know a Secret' to Harrison to sing because 'it only had three notes and he wasn't the best singer in the world,' but added 'he has improved a lot since then.'" A little condescending, but it's probably true. :P John, who was the principle author of the piece (though it was credited to both him and Paul), found inspiration from "I'm Wishing" in Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs which his mother Julia used to sing to him as a young lad. In the movie, Snow White, standing by a well talking to some doves (let's face it, homegirl is wack), asks them if they want to know a secret and if they'd promise not to tell (they're doves. Who're they gonna tell, the rabbits? Wack, I tell you).

Personally, I really love this song. It reminds me of my dad singing, making up funny new lyrics to well-known songs, and just generally being a big goofball throughout my childhood. Not only is it a trigger for nostalgia, but it's simply a cute, catchy song. :)

P.S. Anyone else bothered by those creepy drawings of the guys in that photo? o_O 

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Heard It Tally: 1

Songs Completed: 11

Baby It's You

"Baby It's You" was a popular early 1960s song. It was written by Luthor Dixon and Burt Bacharach, and was covered by not only The Beatles, but also The Shirelles and Smith (whose version reached the song's highest point of popularity and was included in Tarantino's 2007 movie Death Proof).

What a romantic song. He loves her, defends her honor against detractors even though he knows deep down she's a big fat cheater, and declares he can't live without her. I'll admit when I heard the line, "You should hear what they say about you, 'cheat, cheat'", I was a little amused. Just the way they chanted "cheat, cheat" in the background was funny, not the poor sap singing the song. :P I did love the sha-la-la-ing, though; it reminded me of "Kiss the Girl" from The Little Mermaid. 

A friend gave me a pretty good idea--he suggested I should keep track of which Beatles songs I've already heard as I go. So, I'll be adding a count at the bottom of each post (the "Heard It Tally") to provide a running tally of just how many of their songs I've actually heard. It'll probably be embarrassing (I'm guessing my friend is wrong, and that my estimate of a 85% ignorance rate is not, in fact, too high) but it will be interesting to find out the real number at the end. :) I'll also take it a step further and maintain a count of how many songs I've listened to so far. 

Catch you tomorrow.

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Heard It Tally: 0

Songs Completed: 10

P.S. I Love You

Besides being one of my favorite movies, I also think this song is great. It was released as the B-side of "Love Me Do" and featured Andy White on drums. The Beatles' producer George Martin had brought White in to replace former drummer Pete Best, not realizing Best had already been replaced by our pal Ringo. This game of literal musical chairs happened pretty often in the early days, before Starr's membership in the band had really solidified, and he was often demoted to playing tamborine or, in this case, maracas.

Paul was the author of this song; he said that it was "a theme song based on a letter... It was pretty much mine. I don't think John had much of a hand in it. There are certain themes that are easier than others to hang a song on, and a letter is one of them... It's not based in reality, nor did I write it to my girlfriend from Hamburg, which some people think." [my emphasis] That's a really interesting point--choosing a good theme seems to be a vital aspect of songwriting and an important fact that The Beatles didn't ignore when creating their own music.

Like I said at the beginning, I really enjoyed this song. It reminds me of a happier version of the idea behind "Please Mr. Postman"--the same idea Paul mentioned, writing (and/or sending) a letter. (A song we'll talk about later, "All My Loving", will in turn remind me of this one, I'm sure.)

And, in support of Ringo... I loved the maracas.

Love Me Do

Today's song was kind of a big deal for the boys. It was a long time in the making, and it turned out to be a very important step on their road to success. "Love Me Do" was The Beatles' first single, and when it was released in the U.S. in 1964, it topped the charts. I'll share some quotes:

Ringo: "The first record, 'Love Me Do', for me that was more important than anything else. That first piece of plastic. You can't believe how great that was. It was so wonderful. We were on a record!"

Paul: "In Hamburg we clicked... At the Cavern we clicked... but if you want to know when we knew we'd arrived, it was getting in the charts with 'Love Me Do'. That was the one. It gave us somewhere to go."

John: "Paul wrote the main structure of this when he was sixteen, or even earlier. I think I had something to do with the middle." (This one makes me LOL.)

It's interesting to note that it's not Ringo playing drums on this one; Andy White (you guessed it, yet another fifth Beatle... that's three so far by my count) replaced Ringo for one version. Wikipedia tells us that "an easy way to distinguish between the two versions of the song is that if there is a tambourine, then it is White playing drums."

The history behind this one is actually pretty fascinating. Lennon played a stolen harmonica he'd lifted from a music shop in The Netherlands. The guys were really excited to record this song because it was their own original material (then, as today, it was more common for an artist to perform a song written by professional songwriters), and this song was later covered by both The Chipmonks and David Bowie (a rather dubious honor in the case of the former). For me, it was pretty alright. I liked the harmonica bits; the lyrics are simple and make this stand out as one of the only songs I've heard which rhymes on every line (creating an eminently catchy tune). I think my favorite part about this particular experience was learning that the harmonica was hot. :P

See you guys tomorrow!

Please Please Me

We've reached the final song on the first half of the first Beatles album, the titular "Please Please Me". It was their second single released in the UK, and their first in the U.S., from this album. According to a trustworthy source, although Lennon wrote and sang the song, it was heavily influenced by George Martin (another "fifth Beatle"... seriously, there are like ten of these guys floating around), who produced all but one of the Beatles' albums. There seems to be a lot of contention over this song, for example whether or not a slower- or higher-tempo version exists hidden away somewhere, or if, when, where, and how quickly this song reached number one on various charts; etc. I don't really care to repeat it. If you're curious, Google can tell you all (and probably more than) you want to know.

My verdict: I liked this song (but just as a friend). John's growly "c'mon" was a neat little addition, and the music was just plain fun. It somehow reminded me of the music from The Fox and the Hound (I don't really know why, besides maybe the fact both involve harmonicas). The lyrics talk about a somewhat unsatisfactory girlfriend who doesn't try hard enough to please her man. Since I have no evidence to either confirm or deny this charge, I'll have to "be Swiss", as my friend says, and remain neutral. All we know for sure is that the guy's unhappy, claiming he puts forth a great deal more effort to maintain the relationship than does his female counterpart. Perhaps he makes sure the toilet is clean and the fridge is full of food, while she just lounges around on the couch all day doing whatever people did in the early Sixties, so long before reality TV. Perhaps author Tim Riley is correct in labeling this song "first real oral sex pop song". Who can say, really?

That's all for this song. See you tomorrow!

Ask Me Why

Today's song is a sweet and sugary little number, sung by our friend John and released as the B-side of "Please Please Me". I enjoyed the harmonies and the guitar riffs in this one; the opening guitar phrase was borrowed from one of Lennon's musical influences, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles. The lyrics are cute--they're typical of a classic, early 60s love song.

I'm actually kind of hard-pressed for something to say about this one, not because I didn't like it, but rather because there just doesn't seem to be anything terribly remarkable about it besides its obvious suitability for playing during a wedding reception. There are more than enough phenomenal Beatles songs to make up for it, and over time I'll encounter them all. I'm sure somewhere out there is a person (or several) who would be very offended at my careless treatment of their all-time, hands-down favorite Beatles song, but I can't please everyone all the time. If you love "Ask Me Why" and think I've committed song-abuse in judging it a mediocre number, go blog about it. ;)

That's about it for this one. I'm looking forward to tomorrow's post, an excitement I experience every time I complete another song. It's only the first week but I have a feeling time is going to fly by. Hopefully I'll find new and interesting things to say about the music--I don't intend this to be one of those boring and self-centric blogs filled with misinformation and pretension. (Proof I'm not pretentious: I had to look up how to spell "pretension".)

Boys

After listening to "Boys", before I even began doing research, I knew there was something funny about this song. Wikipedia confirmed my suspicion: it's a cover of a song by The Shirelles (a girl band!), making the song therefore a "girl" song. A quote from Paul sort of clarifies the boys' mindset when singing it in spite of that fact. "Any one of us could hold the audience. Ringo would do 'Boys', which was a fan favourite with the crowd. And it was great — though if you think about it, here's us doing a song and it was really a girls' song. 'I talk about boys now!' Or it was a gay song. But we never even listened. It's just a great song. I think that's one of the things about youth — you just don't give a shit. I love the innocence of those days."[wiki] 

So, as I was listening, I realized you could spin it both ways. Either it was a song about guys kissing guys, or it was a song about guys kissing girls. Both interpretations allow for some serious appreciation of boy-smooches, and both versions are okay by me. :)

An interesting fact I learned was that The Beatles recorded this song during a die-hard power session in the studio... they recorded 10 of the 14 songs on Please Please Me all in one day. That's some pretty intense dedication right there, no doubt partially motivated by the expense of studio time. This song was also popular when they performed it as The Quarrymen. (During that time Pete Best--the fifth Beatle--was their drummer. He was replaced by Ringo after two years with John, Paul, and George.) 

I had actually never heard a Beatles song specifically knowing I was listening to Ringo's voice before, so it was an interesting experience for me (all I see by way of info about any song before I hear it is the title and which Beatle sang it). He has the kind of voice that's really fascinating, but somehow difficult to remember in your head afterwards. Maybe it's just because Paul and John sing more of their songs, but even now, right after listening to "Boys", I can't for the life of me "hear" Ringo's voice in my head. I'm sure that it'll happen after hearing more songs, though. At some point, likely towards the end of this adventure, I'll probably start thinking in their voices. :P I am, however, starting to understand why Ringo's my sister's favorite.

Chains

"Chains", a cover The Beatles did of a song originally by Carole King and Gerry Goffin, was the first of two songs on Please Please Me to feature the lead vocals of George Harrison. So we have the debut of George, who seems like no one's favorite Beatle (even my 15-year-old sister likes Ringo the best). I suppose whichever Beatle you like most says a lot about your character; one could probably make a chart featuring four basic personality types and match them with each Beatle (someone no doubt already has). I take it back, though--I know there are plenty of George fans out there. They're simply a bit more quiet, unlike the others. :P

Today's song made me chuckle a little. He says to another woman that he just can't bring himself to cheat on his lover, because she's got (figurative) chains on him. I can't tell which of the possibilities are more likely: one, that he's truly sorry that he can't forgo his own moral code and have an affair, or two, that he's trying to let the other woman down easily, complimenting her charm and attractiveness while stating firmly that he just can't--he's too in love with his own ladyperson. 

Since George sang the lead in this song, if I had to make a judgment, I'd go with the latter. At this point I don't know much about him but he didn't seem like he was the cheating type. (Maybe if someone reads this and knows more about it than I do, they can elaborate in the comments. :) ) It's still a pretty remarkable idea to stick in a song, considering people have been cheating on their significant others since time immemorial (and actually, George's wife Pattie Boyd cheated on him with--and later married--Eric Clapton, one of my favorite artists. Luckily the two of men remained friends and called themselves "husbands-in-law", which says a lot about George as a person).

That's about it for this one... I'll see you guys tomorrow!

Anna (Go to Him)

I'll say right now that I loved this song... both versions of it. I did my research (aka lazy wiki-ing) and learned that the Beatles' version was actually a cover of the original, by Arthur Alexander (and it wasn't the only song of his that The Beatles performed). The Beatles' Anna was much more popular and this brings up some feelings of a possible injustice done to Alexander's beautiful, soulful voice--there are reasons the white singers' version was more successful than the black singer's, maybe the time period and a little bit of racism, maybe because The Beatles were a smash hit followed by thousands of screaming, rabid fans (spiritual ancestors of the Twihards and Bieliebers, perhaps), I can't really say for sure. I can say that Alexander's version hit #10 in the R&B charts (and #68 in the pop charts) so it wasn't a complete injustice. 

Back to the topic, though, I listened to the Beatles version first, then started listening to Alexander's. I honestly can't tell you which version I enjoy more. However, I'll limit myself to the Beatles' version (since that's the whole point). After a somewhat lackluster first two days, the moment this song began, I knew I'd found a good one. The opening notes made me want to bolt into the other room, grab the electric guitar, and learn how to play it immediately. Lennon's voice was also perfect; he relays the pain of the message with his voice without making it obvious or distorting it. The wavery "Anna" in the background was probably my favorite aspect of this song--it kind of foreshadows the groovy stuff they start doing with their music later on. The line, "Anna, just one more thing girl / You give back your ring to me and I will set you free / Go with him" just kills me--such self-sacrificing nobility. It's tempting to quote that sickening cliché (you know the one) but the cynic in me revolts at the idea so I'll instead leave you with a quote from Chuck Palahniuk, author of Fight Club: "Your heart is my piñata."

Misery

Today's song is "Misery". I gave it a listen (or two--it's a short song) and I have to say, for a song about someone who's supposed to be miserable, it's terrifically upbeat. The Wikipedia article for "Misery" says it was the first Beatles song to be covered by another artist (Kenny Lynch, 1963) and that it was actually written for British artist Helen Shapiro (who never sang it).

A quote from Wikipedia: "According to Lennon, 'It was kind of a John song more than a Paul song, but it was written together.' McCartney was to say: 'I don't think either one of us dominated on that one, it was just a hacking job.'" Paul seemed less than pleased about the result of their efforts, and I have to agree. Not my most favorite song ever, but still not unpleasant to listen to. Another song about young love, this time lamenting a broken heart.

One really interesting thing I picked up on by reading just the Wikipedia article for the song was that the whole Lennon/McCartney thing seems to have been "a thing" since day one. I obviously know about their relationship-slash-competition bromance but I guess I'd always imagined the early Beatles to be bouncing, besuited Brits cheerfully singing their songs and working together harmoniously all the time. They may have had way less tension and disagreement early on than they did later, but creating music with another person can be a very stressful goal to achieve.

I Saw Her Standing There

"I Saw Her Standing There", according to my friendly neighborhood Wikipedia (which will definitely be my go-to guide for Beatles info), was released in 1963 as the B-side of "I Want to Hold Your Hand" on their debut album, entitled Please Please Me (originally almost called Off the Beatle Track). It never reached higher than #14 on the Billboard charts, but in 2004 Rolling Stone included it in its list of "500 Greatest Songs of All Time". Not bad, for a B-side.

My impression of the song: It's bouncy, it's catchy, it's about young-love-at-first-sight, what's not to like? It definitely fits in with the early 1960's Beatles style, which was more Beach Boys than Pink Floyd. I laughed at the opening lines, which include the now-infamous phrase "you know what I mean". They certainly came from a more innocent time (though they didn't remain there). :P I enjoyed the idea of their automatic fidelity after only catching a glimpse of each other across a crowded party--it recalls Romeo and Juliet, minus the tragedy, and it's cute and sweet.

Overall I like this song--not my favorite (plus there are a couple hundred more songs to go... it's too early in the game to be choosing favorites!), but in general a pretty sweet song and one that would be totally appropriate at a wedding. :)