With the Beatles | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 22 November 1963 | |||
Recorded | 18 July – 23 October 1963 | |||
Studio | EMI, London | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 33:07 | |||
Label | Parlophone | |||
Producer | George Martin | |||
The Beatles chronology | ||||
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Alternative cover | ||||
The Beatles North American chronology | ||||
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The Beatles Canadian chronology | ||||
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With the Beatles is the second studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. It was released in the United Kingdom on 22 November 1963 on Parlophone,eight months after the release of the band's debut album, Please Please Me . Produced by George Martin,the album features eight original compositions (seven by Lennon–McCartney and "Don't Bother Me",George Harrison's first recorded solo composition and his first released on a Beatles album) and six covers (mostly of rock and roll and Motown R&B hits). The sessions also yielded the non-album single,"I Want to Hold Your Hand" backed by "This Boy". The cover photograph was taken by the fashion photographer Robert Freeman and has since been mimicked by several music groups. A different cover was used for the Australian release of the album,which the Beatles were displeased with.
In the United States,the album's tracks were unevenly split over the group's first two albums released on Capitol Records: Meet the Beatles! and The Beatles' Second Album . It was also released in Canada under the name Beatlemania! With the Beatles. The album was ranked number 420 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in 2003,and was included in Robert Dimery's 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (2010). It was also voted number 275 in the third edition of English writer Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums (2000).
In 1963,musical groups were typically required to release more than one LP a year. As such,the Beatles' producer George Martin and manager Brian Epstein planned for the band to release two LPs and four singles every year. [5] Shortly after recording the non-album single "She Loves You" on 1 July 1963, [6] the Beatles returned to London's EMI Studios only four months after the release of Please Please Me . [5] Unlike their debut,the bulk of whose tracks (10 of the 14,excluding previously issued singles) were recorded in one day, [7] With the Beatles was recorded over seven sessions across three months. On 18 July,the group tracked four covers:Smokey Robinson's "You Really Got a Hold on Me",Barrett Strong's "Money (That's What I Want)",the Donays' "Devil in His Heart",albeit retitled "Devil in Her Heart",and Meredith Willson's "Till There Was You",although this recording was deemed unsatisfactory. [5]
The Beatles reconvened at the studio on the morning of 30 July,recording a cover of the Marvelettes' "Please Mr. Postman" and beginning work on the first new Lennon–McCartney song,"It Won't Be Long". [5] Following a break to record a BBC radio session for Saturday Club,they returned in the late-afternoon,recording overdubs on "Money",a remake of "Till There Was You" and a cover of Chuck Berry's "Roll Over Beethoven". The session ended with finishing touches on "It Won't Be Long" and recording Paul McCartney's "All My Loving",which Beatles historian Mark Lewisohn described as "by far his best,most complex piece of songwriting yet." [5] "She Loves You",backed by "I'll Get You",was issued as a single on 23 August and was the group's first single to sell over a million copies in Britain alone. [5]
After a break,the Beatles returned to EMI on 11 September 1963. They attempted John Lennon's "Little Child",drummer Ringo Starr's vocal contribution to the album,"I Wanna Be Your Man",a Lennon–McCartney original that was given to the Rolling Stones,who released it as their second single;both attempts were deemed unsatisfactory. [8] The group started and finished Lennon's compositions "All I've Got to Do" and "Not a Second Time",and began recording Harrison's first solo composition,"Don't Bother Me",which was also left unfinished. [8] The next day,the band remade "Hold Me Tight",which was attempted earlier in the year on 11 February,finished "Little Child" and "Don't Bother Me",but again left "I Wanna Be Your Man" unfinished. On 30 September,Martin added piano and Hammond organ overdubs to "Money" and "I Wanna Be Your Man",respectively,while the band were on holidays. The band returned on 3 October,recording more takes of "I Wanna Be Your Man". [8]
Four-track recording was installed at EMI before the 17 October session,when the Beatles recorded their new non-album single,"I Want to Hold Your Hand" / "This Boy",as well as speeches for a Christmas record for the band's fan club. [9] The band finished up "I Wanna Be Your Man" on 23 October before Martin commenced mono and stereo mixing the same day and continuing six days later. Final preparations were made on 30 October,with the album officially completed on 4 November. [9]
Impressed with Robert Freeman's black-and-white pictures of John Coltrane,Epstein invited the photographer to create the cover image. [10] Harrison later said that,whereas the cover of Please Please Me had been "crap",their second LP was "the beginning of us being actively involved in the Beatles' artwork ... the first one where we thought,'Hey,let's get artistic.'" [11] The group asked Freeman to take inspiration from pictures their friend Astrid Kirchherr had taken in Hamburg between 1960 and 1962,featuring the band members in half-shadow and not smiling. [12] To achieve this result,on 22 August 1963,Freeman photographed them in a dark corridor of the Palace Court Hotel in Bournemouth,where the band were playing a summer residency at the local Gaumont Cinema. [13] To fit the square format of the cover,he put Starr in the bottom right corner,"since he was the last to join the group. He was also the shortest". [14] McCartney described the result as "very moody",adding:"people think he must have worked at [it] forever and ever. But it was an hour. He sat down,took a couple of rolls,and he had it." [13]
The original concept was to paint the picture from edge to edge,with no bleeding,title or artist credit –a concept that went against music industry practice and was immediately vetoed by EMI. The first album to carry an edge-to-edge cover was the Rolling Stones' self-titled debut,released five months later. [15] EMI also objected to the fact that the Beatles were not smiling;it was only after George Martin intervened,as head of Parlophone,that the cover portrait was approved. [15] Freeman was paid £75 for his work,which was three times the fee first offered by EMI. [13]
Music critic John Harris finds the cover most reminiscent of the photos Kirchherr took in Hamburg of Lennon,Harrison and Stuart Sutcliffe using the "half-lit technique" and says that,together with songs such as "Roll Over Beethoven" and "Money (That's What I Want)",With the Beatles thereby represents "a canny repackaging of their early '60s incarnation:Hamburg shorn of Prellies and leather,and sold to their public as a mixture of accomplished rock 'n' roll and art-house cool". Harris also sees the LP cover as a "watershed" design that encouraged other acts to eschew "the more cartoonish aspects of pop photography" and continued to exert an influence in the 1970s on covers such as those for Lou Reed's Transformer (1972),Patti Smith's Horses (1975) and various punk rock albums. [15]
EMI Australia did not receive the cover art (there were union restrictions on importing negatives for printing [16] ) and used different shots of the band in a similar style to the black-and-white photograph on other releases. The Beatles were unaware of this until fans showed them the cover during their only Australian tour,and informed the EMI publicity staff that they were not pleased with the substitution. [17]
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [18] |
The A.V. Club | A [19] |
Blender | [20] |
Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [21] |
MusicHound | 3/5 [22] |
Pitchfork | 8.8/10 [23] |
Paste | 87/100 [24] |
Record Collector | [25] |
Rolling Stone | [26] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [27] |
Parlophone issued With the Beatles on 22 November 1963,eight months to the day after Please Please Me,with the catalogue number PMC 1206. [28] The album became the first Beatles album released in North America when it was released in Canada on 25 November 1963 under the augmented title Beatlemania! With the Beatles,with additional text on the album cover,and issued only in mono at the time,catalogue number T 6051 (a stereo Canadian release would come in 1968,catalogue number ST 6051). For the United States release,the original running order of With the Beatles was unevenly split over the group's first two Capitol albums:nine tracks were issued on Meet the Beatles! (the eight original compositions plus "Till There Was You"),while the remaining five songs,all cover versions,were placed on The Beatles' Second Album .
The LP had advance orders of a half million and sold another half million by September 1965,making it the second album to sell a million copies in the United Kingdom,after the soundtrack to the 1958 film South Pacific . [29] With the Beatles remained at the top of the charts for 21 weeks,displacing Please Please Me,so that the Beatles occupied the top spot for 51 consecutive weeks. It even reached number 11 in the "singles charts" (because at the time UK charts counted all records sold,regardless of format). No other group or singer has achieved 51 consecutive weeks at number 1 in the album charts. However,the soundtrack for the South Pacific movie did achieve 70 consecutive weeks at number one in the album charts. [30] Reviewing the album on release for Record Mirror ,Peter Jones hailed With the Beatles as an improvement over Please Please Me,praising the covers and originals,particularly Harrison's "Don't Bother Me". [31]
On 26 February 1987,With the Beatles was officially released on compact disc (in mono only,catalogue number CDP 7 46436 2). Having been available only as an import in the US in the past,the album was also issued domestically in the US on LP and cassette on 21 July 1987. Along with the rest of the Beatles' canon,it was re-released on CD in newly re-mastered stereo and mono versions on 9 September 2009. [32]
The album was ranked number 420 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in 2003, [33] and was included in Robert Dimery's 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die . [34] It was voted number 275 in the third edition of English writer Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums . [35] It was rated the 29th greatest album in the book Paul Gambaccini Presents the Top 100 Albums. This book "canvassed a panel of experts in seven countries" to determine the greatest albums. [36]
All tracks are written by Lennon–McCartney, except where noted
No. | Title | Lead vocals | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "It Won't Be Long" | Lennon | 2:13 |
2. | "All I've Got to Do" | Lennon | 2:02 |
3. | "All My Loving" | McCartney | 2:07 |
4. | "Don't Bother Me" (George Harrison) | Harrison | 2:28 |
5. | "Little Child" | Lennon with McCartney | 1:46 |
6. | "Till There Was You" (Meredith Willson) | McCartney | 2:14 |
7. | "Please Mr. Postman" (Georgia Dobbins, William Garrett, Freddie Gorman, Brian Holland, Robert Bateman) | Lennon | 2:34 |
Total length: | 15:24 |
No. | Title | Lead vocals | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Roll Over Beethoven" (Chuck Berry) | Harrison | 2:45 |
2. | "Hold Me Tight" | McCartney | 2:32 |
3. | "You Really Got a Hold on Me" (Smokey Robinson) | Lennon with Harrison | 3:01 |
4. | "I Wanna Be Your Man" | Starr | 1:59 |
5. | "Devil In Her Heart" (Richard Drapkin) | Harrison | 2:28 |
6. | "Not a Second Time" | Lennon | 2:07 |
7. | "Money (That's What I Want)" (Janie Bradford, Berry Gordy) | Lennon | 2:49 |
Total length: | 17:43 |
According to Mark Lewisohn: [37]
The Beatles
Production
Chart (1963–65) | Peak position |
---|---|
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [38] | 1 |
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista) [39] | 5 |
UK Record Retailer LPs Chart [40] | 1 |
Chart (1987) | Peak position |
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [41] | 25 |
Chart (2009) | Peak position |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [42] | 83 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [43] | 88 |
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista) [44] | 31 |
Italian Albums (FIMI) [45] | 82 |
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE) [46] | 70 |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [47] | 34 |
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [48] | 73 |
Chart (2010) | Peak position |
US Billboard 200 [49] [50] | 179 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Argentina (CAPIF) [51] | Gold | 30,000^ |
Australia (ARIA) [52] | Gold | 35,000^ |
Canada (Music Canada) [53] | Gold | 50,000^ |
Germany (BVMI) [54] | Gold | 250,000^ |
United Kingdom Original release | — | 1,000,000 [55] |
United Kingdom (BPI) [56] 2009 release | Gold | 100,000^ |
United States Original release | — | 1,000,000 [55] |
United States (RIAA) [57] 1987 release | Gold | 500,000^ |
Summaries | ||
Worldwide Original release | — | 5,000,000 [55] |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
† BPI certification awarded only for sales since 1994. [58]
The Beatles were an English rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the development of 1960s counterculture and the recognition of popular music as an art form. Rooted in skiffle, beat and 1950s rock 'n' roll, their sound incorporated elements of classical music and traditional pop in innovative ways. The band also explored music styles ranging from folk and Indian music to psychedelia and hard rock. As pioneers in recording, songwriting and artistic presentation, the Beatles revolutionized many aspects of the music industry and were often publicized as leaders of the era's youth and sociocultural movements.
Please Please Me is the debut studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Produced by George Martin, it was released in the UK on EMI's Parlophone label on 22 March 1963. The album is 14 songs in length, and contains a mixture of cover songs and original material written by the partnership of band members John Lennon and Paul McCartney.
A Hard Day's Night is the third studio album by the English rock band the Beatles, released on 10 July 1964 by Parlophone, with side one containing songs from the soundtrack to their film of the same name. The American version of the album was released two weeks earlier, on 26 June 1964 by United Artists Records, with a different track listing that included selections from George Martin's film score. In contrast to the Beatles' first two albums, all 13 tracks on A Hard Day's Night were written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, showcasing the development of their songwriting partnership.
Beatles for Sale is the fourth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. It was released on 4 December 1964 in the United Kingdom on EMI's Parlophone label. The album marked a departure from the upbeat tone that had characterised the Beatles' previous work, partly due to the band's exhaustion after a series of tours that had established them as a worldwide phenomenon in 1964. Beatles for Sale was not widely available in the US until 1987, when the Beatles' catalogue was standardised for release on CD. Instead, eight of the album's fourteen tracks appeared on Capitol Records' concurrent release, Beatles '65, issued in North America only.
Help! is the fifth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles and the soundtrack to their film of the same name. It was released on 6 August 1965 by Parlophone. Seven of the fourteen songs, including the singles "Help!" and "Ticket to Ride", appeared in the film and take up the first side of the vinyl album. The second side includes "Yesterday", the most-covered song ever written. The album was met with favourable critical reviews and topped the Australian, German, British and American charts.
The Beatles, also referred to colloquially as the White Album, is the ninth studio album and only double album by the English rock band the Beatles, released on 22 November 1968. Featuring a plain white sleeve, the cover contains no graphics or text other than the band's name embossed. This was intended as a direct contrast to the vivid cover artwork of the band's previous LP, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967). The Beatles is recognised for its fragmentary style and diverse range of genres, including folk, country rock, British blues, ska, music hall, proto-metal and the avant-garde. It has since been viewed by some critics as a postmodern work, as well as one of the greatest albums of all time. The album was the band's first LP release on their then-recently founded Apple Records after previous albums were released on Parlophone in the United Kingdom and Capitol Records in the United States.
Sir George Henry Martin was an English record producer, arranger, composer, conductor, and musician. He was commonly referred to as the "fifth Beatle" because of his extensive involvement in each of the Beatles' original albums. Martin's formal musical expertise and interest in novel recording practices facilitated the group's rudimentary musical education and desire for new musical sounds to record. Most of their orchestral and string arrangements were written by Martin, and he played piano or keyboards on a number of their records. Their collaborations resulted in popular, highly acclaimed records with innovative sounds, such as the 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band—the first rock album to win a Grammy Award for Album of the Year.
Let It Be is the twelfth and final studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. It was released on 8 May 1970, nearly a month after the official announcement of the group's public break-up, in tandem with the documentary of the same name. Concerned about recent friction within the band, Paul McCartney had conceived the project as an attempt to reinvigorate the group by returning to simpler rock 'n' roll configurations. Its rehearsals started at Twickenham Film Studios on 2 January 1969 as part of a planned television documentary showcasing the Beatles' return to live performance.
"I Want to Hold Your Hand" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Recorded on 17 October 1963 and released on 29 November 1963 in the United Kingdom, it was the first Beatles record to be made using four-track recording equipment.
Abbey Road is the eleventh studio album by the English rock band the Beatles, released on 26 September 1969, by Apple Records. It is the last album the group recorded, although Let It Be (1970) was the last album completed before the band's break-up in April 1970. It was mostly recorded in April, July, and August 1969, and topped the record charts in both the United States and the United Kingdom. A double A-side single from the album, "Something" / "Come Together", was released in October, which also topped the charts in the US.
"From Me to You" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released in April 1963 as their third single. It was written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. The song was the Beatles' first number 1 hit on what became the official UK singles chart but the second, after "Please Please Me", on most of the other singles charts published in the UK at the time. "From Me to You" failed to make an impact in the United States at the time of its initial release. Instead, a 1963 cover version released by Del Shannon resulted in the song's becoming the first Lennon–McCartney track to enter the US pop charts. The Beatles' original was re-released in the US in January 1964 as the B-side to "Please Please Me", and reached number 41.
Meet the Beatles! is a studio album by the English rock band the Beatles, released as their second album in the United States. It was the group's first American album to be issued by Capitol Records, on 20 January 1964 in both mono and stereo formats. It topped the popular album chart on 15 February 1964 and remained at number one for eleven weeks before being replaced by The Beatles' Second Album. The cover featured Robert Freeman's iconic portrait of the Beatles used in the United Kingdom for With the Beatles, with a blue tint added to the original stark black-and-white photograph.
The Beatles' Second Album is the second Capitol Records album by the English rock band the Beatles, and their third album released in the United States including Introducing... The Beatles, which was issued three months earlier by Vee-Jay Records. Following its release in April 1964, The Beatles' Second Album replaced Meet the Beatles! at number 1 on the Billboard Top LPs chart in the US. The album was compiled mostly from leftover tracks from the UK album With the Beatles and the forthcoming UK Long Tall Sally EP, which are predominantly rock and roll and R&B covers, and rounded out with several Lennon-McCartney-penned non-album b-sides and the hit single "She Loves You". Among critics, it is considered the band's purest rock and roll album and praised for its soulful takes on both contemporary black music hits and original material.
Rock 'n' Roll Music is a compilation album by the English rock band the Beatles containing previously released tracks. It was issued on 7 June 1976 in the United States, on Capitol Records, and on 11 June on Parlophone in the United Kingdom. A double album, the 28-track compilation includes 15 Lennon–McCartney songs, one George Harrison composition ("Taxman"), and a dozen cover versions of songs written by significant rock and roll composers of the 1950s, including Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Carl Perkins and Larry Williams. Not counting the 1971 Spanish compilation album, Por Siempre Beatles, Rock 'n' Roll Music was the first Beatles album to include "I'm Down", which had previously only been available as the B-side of the "Help!" single.
"Love Me Do" is the debut single by the English rock band the Beatles, backed by "P.S. I Love You". When the single was originally released in the United Kingdom on 5 October 1962, it peaked at number 17. It was released in the United States in 1964 and topped the nation's song chart. Re-released in 1982 as part of EMI's Beatles 20th anniversary, it re-entered the UK charts and peaked at number 4. "Love Me Do" also topped the charts in Australia and New Zealand.
"Come Together" is a song by the British rock band the Beatles, written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. The song is the opening track on the band's 1969 album Abbey Road. It was also a double A-side single in the United Kingdom with "Something", reaching No. 4 in the UK charts.
"Please Please Me" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles. It was their second single in the United Kingdom, and their first in the United States. It is also the title track of their first LP, which was recorded to capitalise on the success of the single. It is a John Lennon composition, although its ultimate form was significantly influenced by producer George Martin.
"Don't Bother Me" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1963 UK album With the Beatles. It was the first song written by George Harrison, the group's lead guitarist, to appear on one of their albums. A midtempo rock and roll song, it was originally released in the United States on the 1964 album Meet the Beatles!
"I Saw Her Standing There" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon. It is the opening track on the band's 1963 debut UK album Please Please Me and their debut US album Introducing... The Beatles.
Yellow Submarine is the tenth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles, released in January 1969. It is the soundtrack to the animated film of the same name, which premiered in London in July 1968. The album contains six songs by the Beatles, including four new songs and the previously released "Yellow Submarine" and "All You Need Is Love". The remainder of the album is a re-recording of selections from the film's orchestral soundtrack by the band's producer, George Martin.
With the Beatles…demonstrated the 'uniform traits' of the Mersey Beat style
the first truly convincing British rock and roll album, With The Beatles
…the bold R&B of With the Beatles
By the end of 1964 the tally was 980,000, with the million reached in 1965. This was an all-time high for a British album ... Capitol's release in the U.S.A. was even more astonishin. This sold 750,000 in its first week of release, soon passing the million mark. By mid-February 1964 it had sold 1,600,000, by early March 2,800,000 and 3,650,000 by mid-March with an estimated five million by December 1966.