Beatles 101 - Please Please Me
January 25, 2010 Filed in: The Beatles
This post is in
reference to the Beatles 101 class I’m teaching at
the Sanctuary
in Greensboro,
NC. Please click here
to read the
introductory blog, if you’d like to know more
about the course and why I’m teaching it.
The Please Please Me discussion was fruitful, energetic, and elucidating. The experience of listening to and digging into primary sources (the album, studio notes, videos, etc...) raised a wealth of questions and challenged quite a few of my assumptions about this first Beatles LP.
All of the class enjoyed listening to the album this past week. With the exception of “Twist and Shout,” most of the cover songs weren’t favored over the 8 original Lennon/McCarntey compositions. The consensus appreciated the “opening set” quality of this mostly live-in-the-studio recording.
The overarching question we are addressing in these first four weeks is “Why did Beatlemania happen?” Sure, it hit the US in 1964. But why not in 1963 with this first, incredibly cogent and sellable LP? My theory is that the assassination of John F. Kennedy created a cultural depression that the Beatles lifted.
In probing the history books, it appears that 1963 was a period of British isolationism with England having been denied admission to the European Economic Community. I wonder if the economic barriers to Europe (and the US, by extension) are echoed in tepidly received cultural exports? On the other hand, I guess you have to start somewhere. Maybe the Beatles just needed a few UK #1’s and a few LP’s before being taken seriously by US radio programmers.
The album cover is atypical for the Beatles, most likely because it was before they had any sort of clout. A four-some of non-offensive looking, smiling young men look down from a balcony in Manchester Square. The lettering and font style on the album cover are very similar to the look of other pop groups of the time.
Much can be said about a band by the songs it chooses to cover. Six of the 14 songs on Please Please Me were re-recordings of favorite American R & B songs. With the exception of “Twist & Shout” and maybe “Boys,” the fab-four aren’t improving on existing ideas. While “Chains” offers a great lead vocal performance by George, the original version by The Cookies swings better and feels more vibrant. Still, the cover songs are well recorded; if anything, they come off as “cleaner” than the original versions.
With Please Please Me, the Beatles is very much John’s band. He writes more than half of the basic ideas that end up being Lennon/McCartney songs. He sings lead or co-lead on 7 of the 14 songs. While Paul’s composition, “Love Me Do,” went to #17 on the UK charts, it was John’s “Please Please Me” and “From Me To You” that went to #1 in the UK back-to-back.
Even in the beginning, the Beatles are using sounds outside of their basic mold: drums, bass, guitars, and vocals. Harmonica takes the lead on a handful of tunes. Piano overdubs anchor “Misery.” A celeste sneaks into “Baby It’s You.”
The subject matter of Please Please Me is relationships, love, and young lust. In a round-about way, one could argue that “There’s A Place” foreshadows some of Lennon’s spiritual yearnings that would appear in later recordings. “Do You Want To Know A Secret?” was purportedly inspired by “Wishing Well,” a song that John’s mother used to sing to him when he was a child.
Several of my own assumptions about Please Please Me were completely shattered. First, I had come to regard Please Please Me as the “Beatles album that was made in one day.” In looking at the studio logs (provided in the Beatles Chronicle by Mark Lewisohn), the album was recorded and mixed over a period of five or six days. 10 of the tracks were recorded on February 11, 1963. The two singles “Love Me Do” and “Please Please Me” and their respective b-sides were recorded on different days in 1962. The album had a half-day of overdubs for “Misery” and “Baby It’s You.” And, the mono and stereo mixes were compiled on still a different day.
Secondly, I knew a alternate drummer had played on the album version of “Love Me Do,” but I didn’t know that he also played on “P.S. I Love You.” Session drummer Andy White was hired to perform on this session. A version of “Love Me Do” from the EMI audition contains a drumming performance from Ringo. The easiest way to tell if it’s the version with Ringo on drums is that it doesn’t have a tambourine in the background. The Andy White version features a sad Ringo playing tamb in the wings.
Third, there’s a mythology attached to the mono versions of these Beatles records that is false. The idea that “the Beatles only cared for the mono mixes and those were the ones they attended and had input on” is simply not true for these first albums. Both the mono and stereo mixes for Please Please Me were completed while the fab-four were on tour. No band input was given to either set.
Fourth, for me, I prefer the mono version of Please Please Me over the new stereo re-master. Although my 1987 mono copy isn’t as loud and as crisp, some of the stereo mixes threw me for a jolt. “Please Please Me” has some vocal errors that are a little too clear in the re-master. Also, the juked reverb at the end of the track took me out of the moment. Currently, I’m saving up for the mono box set and I will most likely listen to that remaster of Please Please Me over the stereo one.
Next week, we’ll listen to and discuss the second Beatles album, With The Beatles, as well as the late 1963 singles “She Loves You” and “I Want To Hold Your Hand.”
The Please Please Me discussion was fruitful, energetic, and elucidating. The experience of listening to and digging into primary sources (the album, studio notes, videos, etc...) raised a wealth of questions and challenged quite a few of my assumptions about this first Beatles LP.
All of the class enjoyed listening to the album this past week. With the exception of “Twist and Shout,” most of the cover songs weren’t favored over the 8 original Lennon/McCarntey compositions. The consensus appreciated the “opening set” quality of this mostly live-in-the-studio recording.
The overarching question we are addressing in these first four weeks is “Why did Beatlemania happen?” Sure, it hit the US in 1964. But why not in 1963 with this first, incredibly cogent and sellable LP? My theory is that the assassination of John F. Kennedy created a cultural depression that the Beatles lifted.
In probing the history books, it appears that 1963 was a period of British isolationism with England having been denied admission to the European Economic Community. I wonder if the economic barriers to Europe (and the US, by extension) are echoed in tepidly received cultural exports? On the other hand, I guess you have to start somewhere. Maybe the Beatles just needed a few UK #1’s and a few LP’s before being taken seriously by US radio programmers.
The album cover is atypical for the Beatles, most likely because it was before they had any sort of clout. A four-some of non-offensive looking, smiling young men look down from a balcony in Manchester Square. The lettering and font style on the album cover are very similar to the look of other pop groups of the time.
Much can be said about a band by the songs it chooses to cover. Six of the 14 songs on Please Please Me were re-recordings of favorite American R & B songs. With the exception of “Twist & Shout” and maybe “Boys,” the fab-four aren’t improving on existing ideas. While “Chains” offers a great lead vocal performance by George, the original version by The Cookies swings better and feels more vibrant. Still, the cover songs are well recorded; if anything, they come off as “cleaner” than the original versions.
With Please Please Me, the Beatles is very much John’s band. He writes more than half of the basic ideas that end up being Lennon/McCartney songs. He sings lead or co-lead on 7 of the 14 songs. While Paul’s composition, “Love Me Do,” went to #17 on the UK charts, it was John’s “Please Please Me” and “From Me To You” that went to #1 in the UK back-to-back.
Even in the beginning, the Beatles are using sounds outside of their basic mold: drums, bass, guitars, and vocals. Harmonica takes the lead on a handful of tunes. Piano overdubs anchor “Misery.” A celeste sneaks into “Baby It’s You.”
The subject matter of Please Please Me is relationships, love, and young lust. In a round-about way, one could argue that “There’s A Place” foreshadows some of Lennon’s spiritual yearnings that would appear in later recordings. “Do You Want To Know A Secret?” was purportedly inspired by “Wishing Well,” a song that John’s mother used to sing to him when he was a child.
Several of my own assumptions about Please Please Me were completely shattered. First, I had come to regard Please Please Me as the “Beatles album that was made in one day.” In looking at the studio logs (provided in the Beatles Chronicle by Mark Lewisohn), the album was recorded and mixed over a period of five or six days. 10 of the tracks were recorded on February 11, 1963. The two singles “Love Me Do” and “Please Please Me” and their respective b-sides were recorded on different days in 1962. The album had a half-day of overdubs for “Misery” and “Baby It’s You.” And, the mono and stereo mixes were compiled on still a different day.
Secondly, I knew a alternate drummer had played on the album version of “Love Me Do,” but I didn’t know that he also played on “P.S. I Love You.” Session drummer Andy White was hired to perform on this session. A version of “Love Me Do” from the EMI audition contains a drumming performance from Ringo. The easiest way to tell if it’s the version with Ringo on drums is that it doesn’t have a tambourine in the background. The Andy White version features a sad Ringo playing tamb in the wings.
Third, there’s a mythology attached to the mono versions of these Beatles records that is false. The idea that “the Beatles only cared for the mono mixes and those were the ones they attended and had input on” is simply not true for these first albums. Both the mono and stereo mixes for Please Please Me were completed while the fab-four were on tour. No band input was given to either set.
Fourth, for me, I prefer the mono version of Please Please Me over the new stereo re-master. Although my 1987 mono copy isn’t as loud and as crisp, some of the stereo mixes threw me for a jolt. “Please Please Me” has some vocal errors that are a little too clear in the re-master. Also, the juked reverb at the end of the track took me out of the moment. Currently, I’m saving up for the mono box set and I will most likely listen to that remaster of Please Please Me over the stereo one.
Next week, we’ll listen to and discuss the second Beatles album, With The Beatles, as well as the late 1963 singles “She Loves You” and “I Want To Hold Your Hand.”
|
Beatles 101
January 18, 2010 Filed in: The Beatles
I like to try different
things. Back in college, I wanted to graduate with
honors in history. I also didn’t want to spend a year
in the library researching a topic in which I had
little interest. I voiced my curiosity to a few
professors and I embarked on what became an honors
thesis on the Beatles.
What attracted me the most to this incredibly important and omni-relevant band of musicians was how popular they became in a relatively short amount of time. Beatlemania, as it would be called, exploded upon the United States in February of 1964 like nothing before it (and, like nothing since either).
My finding, through spending that year in the library and by what seemed to be an unending listening to Beatles songs, was that the Beatles re-presented our culture back to us in a time when it was greatly needed. The Beatles were a cultural pat-on-the-back after a tumultuous end of 1963 (when the most popular president in US history was mysteriously shot while appearing in a Dallas, TX parade).
After 1964, the Beatles continued to make music. Their 1967 masterpiece Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band is often considered the most critically acclaimed album of all time (although personally, I think Rubber Soul in mono is one of the coolest records, ever). The Beatles, commonly known as “The White Album,” while a clumsy foreshadowing of four solo careers, has a wit and charm that no double album could ever parallel—how could it!?. Abbey Road’s side-two montage as well as Let It Be (the greatest album that was almost never heard) are equally striking.
Today, with the recent re-release/re-mastering of the entire Beatles catalog (in both stereo and mono) the Beatles are still as significant as ever.
A few months ago, I was asked to share my knowledge of the Beatles with the Sanctuary, a center for creativity and spirituality located in Greensboro, NC. Over the past month, I have been preparing for the course, gathering my old resources, purchasing a copy of the new stereo box set, viewing the Anthology series, and listening. As iconic as John, Paul, George, and Ringo will always be, there’s something about the “old-friend” quality of Beatles music that makes it always welcome for me.
The class met for its first gathering last Thursday evening, January 14th. What a great experience!
The 12-week course aims at developing an appreciation for the Beatles and their music. Being that there are also 12 albums (I recognize that there are those who will disagree with how I quantify this), we all felt that it would be compelling to study one album each week.
The first class was an introduction and overview of the course. Here, I gave an outline of where we’re going, as well as some jumping off points for what to listen for and look for with each album. Also, I highlighted some general discussion arcs that seem germane for album groupings (i.e. “Beatlemania” for the first four albums, “building up to Sgt. Pepper” for the second four albums, and “nonsense and individuality” in the final four albums).
The five themes we will address with each album are 1) personal response, 2) historical context, 3) album cover & ethnography, 4) the Lennon/McCartney relationship, and 5) sound. Each album is so different and I can’t wait to discuss each one with care, depth, and interest. We have an eager and attentive bunch for this course so there’s no doubt it will be at least fun if not fantastic.
I’m enjoying this project. After all, the best way to learn something is to teach it.
What attracted me the most to this incredibly important and omni-relevant band of musicians was how popular they became in a relatively short amount of time. Beatlemania, as it would be called, exploded upon the United States in February of 1964 like nothing before it (and, like nothing since either).
My finding, through spending that year in the library and by what seemed to be an unending listening to Beatles songs, was that the Beatles re-presented our culture back to us in a time when it was greatly needed. The Beatles were a cultural pat-on-the-back after a tumultuous end of 1963 (when the most popular president in US history was mysteriously shot while appearing in a Dallas, TX parade).
After 1964, the Beatles continued to make music. Their 1967 masterpiece Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band is often considered the most critically acclaimed album of all time (although personally, I think Rubber Soul in mono is one of the coolest records, ever). The Beatles, commonly known as “The White Album,” while a clumsy foreshadowing of four solo careers, has a wit and charm that no double album could ever parallel—how could it!?. Abbey Road’s side-two montage as well as Let It Be (the greatest album that was almost never heard) are equally striking.
Today, with the recent re-release/re-mastering of the entire Beatles catalog (in both stereo and mono) the Beatles are still as significant as ever.
A few months ago, I was asked to share my knowledge of the Beatles with the Sanctuary, a center for creativity and spirituality located in Greensboro, NC. Over the past month, I have been preparing for the course, gathering my old resources, purchasing a copy of the new stereo box set, viewing the Anthology series, and listening. As iconic as John, Paul, George, and Ringo will always be, there’s something about the “old-friend” quality of Beatles music that makes it always welcome for me.
The class met for its first gathering last Thursday evening, January 14th. What a great experience!
The 12-week course aims at developing an appreciation for the Beatles and their music. Being that there are also 12 albums (I recognize that there are those who will disagree with how I quantify this), we all felt that it would be compelling to study one album each week.
The first class was an introduction and overview of the course. Here, I gave an outline of where we’re going, as well as some jumping off points for what to listen for and look for with each album. Also, I highlighted some general discussion arcs that seem germane for album groupings (i.e. “Beatlemania” for the first four albums, “building up to Sgt. Pepper” for the second four albums, and “nonsense and individuality” in the final four albums).
The five themes we will address with each album are 1) personal response, 2) historical context, 3) album cover & ethnography, 4) the Lennon/McCartney relationship, and 5) sound. Each album is so different and I can’t wait to discuss each one with care, depth, and interest. We have an eager and attentive bunch for this course so there’s no doubt it will be at least fun if not fantastic.
I’m enjoying this project. After all, the best way to learn something is to teach it.
Voyage of the Malamander - Podcast Pt. 2
January 17, 2010 Filed in: Podcast
The second podcast for Voyage of the
Malamander has been posted.
If you’d like to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, click here.
Individual selections from the podcast can be heard in the widget below.
If you’d like to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, click here.
Individual selections from the podcast can be heard in the widget below.
