“You know I need somebody” – The Beatles
Yeah you read that right. I told you some of these would make you say DUDE. Welcome back to “Albums I Should Have Listened to Already.” Yes, pop Beatles is getting a second look.
Previous entries:
Naked Raygun | Pure Hell | Big Joanie | The Beatles
HOW I CAME ACROSS THIS ALBUM
Just as with A Hard Day’s Night, it’s maybe easier to explain how I didn’t come across this album. The Beatles records that people talk about are Abbey Road, Sgt. Pepper, White Album, Let It Be. The compliation of number one singles, 1, was a sufficient survey of pop Beatles for a while. Now I’m rectifying that. This will be the last Beatles for a while, though.
TRACK BY TRACK
More pop songs! Get some Help!
Help!
Another bold record opener, everyone yelling HELP. I like this song just fine. Definitely a vocal stim and earworm. I like that I-iii movement in the verse. Always a sucker for that. Put some oohs over it.
The Night Before
Already more interesting than 80% of A Hard Day’s Night. Cool to see how much The Beatles wanted to push themselves even early on. This record comes out in 1965, they’re already the biggest band on two continents. It’d be real easy to rest on laurels. They do not, though, and they move to the weird gradually.
You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away
A song in 6/8! Obviously, British music throughout history is full of this time signature. None of it in A Hard Night’s Day, though, not that I remember.
I Need You
A George song! Contemplative. Like the guitar is gently, uh, well.
Another Girl
This is like a more combative, less self-reflective version of Kevin Devine’s “I Could Be With Anyone.”
You’re Going To Lose That Girl
Who’s titling these tracks? Can we space our proper nouns out a little bit? Important message, though, my dudes—treat your lady right, take her out every once in a while.
Ticket To Ride
One of the best. Yes, a number one single, but it’s not nostalgia making me give this one high praise. That guitar riff, that chorus chord progression. The metaphor of your beloved not just leaving, but possessing the ticket that will take her away. The standout tracks stand out.
Act Naturally
Gotta be honest: it is strange hearing The Beatles play this song. I’m not sure I care for it. How is this your opener for side two. How.
It’s Only Love
Yeah, some cool chords here! This shoulda been the side two opener.
You Like Me Too Much
George gets two songs! Not my favorite of his, but only because the others are so good. I like the guitar/piano solo. Well, I like the idea of it—that particular lick feels a touch out of place in this specific song, to me.
Tell Me What You See
Wasn’t super into this one until the first “tell me what you see” and the little electric piano breakdown the follows! Mid tier song, but more evidence that the Liverpudlians were trying stuff on this record. Sgt. Pepper wasn’t built in a day.
I’ve Just Seen A Face
Like on side one, we have back-to-back tracks with the same proper noun in the title. Hey, this has a cool dual guitar intro.
Yesterday
A classic. Love the lore of Paul singing “scrambled eggs” and whatever until the words came out right. Objectively great song, innovative use of strings, but not my favorite. Really, it’s a great song. But it’s not my personal sadness record, not the way my personal melancholy sings.
Dizzy Miss Lizzy
A cover of a Larry Williams song. Kinda strange not to end the album on “Yesterday.”
WHAT DO I THINK?
It’s good! Better than A Hard Day’s Night, even if no one song is better than “A Hard Day’s Night.” You see them stretching their wings. Trying stuff. Pushing boundaries. They’ve also sharpened their songwriting, like these are simply better songs whether or not they try to innovate. Those are good things for a band to do, especially when you have two continents eating out of the palm of your hand.
This video came across my YouTube algo while I was pulling videos for this blog and last month’s A Hard Day’s Night blog. I only half-watched it because I have less attention span for YouTube than I used to, but I really like the overall point of using weirdness to attract attention to stuff people might otherwise ignore. The Beatles used their power as the best/most popular pop writers in the world to show Baby Boomers it’s okay to get weird. Angine de Poitrine is teaching an increasingly homogenized-by-alogrithms Internet Generation that it’s okay to embrace microtonality. Idk dudes, go out there and get weird.
Sorry you got an email,
Chris