Musicopia: Beatlemania, Part 1

By now you’ve surely noticed that I enjoy a wide variety of music. If I had to pick a favorite musical genre, it would probably be hip-hop, followed by good ol’ rock and roll. My favorite musical act, however, is without question The Beatles.
People often say that you’re a Beatles person or an Elvis person, or, perhaps, a Rolling Stones lover. With all due respect to Elvis and the Stones, there is absolutely no twentieth century musical group or individual more important or influential than The Beatles. Pick a music artist these days and I guarantee that one of their influences is The Beatles (and if they aren’t, then someone directly influenced by them is).
Whether you enjoy their music or not, there is no denying their influence on music in the Western world and beyond, and I dare you to find another group or artist who evolved as drastically as they did over their seven years of recording. They began as a pop-rock group who essentially conformed to the conventions of their predecessors, but before long they were blazing their own trail, experimenting with feedback, sound effects, and unconventional instruments such as the sitar. And, amazingly, their experimentation and growth did nothing to hinder their popularity. If anything, it enhanced it, setting them apart from the wealth of exceptional acts that surfaced in what I consider to be music’s Golden Age, the 60s.
This is why I can’t just stick The Beatles in with the rest of the B’s. My love of their music requires that I give them special attention, for they deserve to be elevated above all. And so I give you a Musicopia special edition: Beatlemania. In Beatlemania I will explore each of the albums within The Beatles canon, consisting of their twelve UK albums, the US version of Magical Mystery Tour, and the Past Masters albums, as well as a smattering of tracks from the Anthology series and the (relatively) newly released Love, which was created for the Cirque du Soleil show of the same name. If you’re a Beatles fan already, then you surely won’t mind being reminded of why you love them. If you’re unfamiliar with their work, then I urge you to take this opportunity to explore it. I doubt you’ll be disappointed.
P.S. Damn you, Yoko!!!!

The Beatles’ first major album was Please Please Me, released in 1963. I used to consider much of their early work to be inferior simply because it was (at the time) fairly standard rock, rather than the barrier dismantling work that they did in their later years. Thankfully I’ve seen the error of my ways, for their early work, while not unconventional, is nonetheless excellent rock and roll, and still has all the Beatles charm that one finds in their later work. The album’s first track, "I Saw Her Standing There", is classic Beatles—up-tempo, cheerful, and about the ladies. Other great tracks, like "Love Me Do" and the title track will surely ring bells with most people. But songs such as "Misery" and "Chains" may be new to the casual fan. And c’mon, without this album’s last track (among my all-time favorites) we wouldn’t have one of my favorite moments in movie history, the fabled Ferris Bueller parade scene.

1963 also saw the release of their second album, With The Beatles. I must admit that I find this to be a weaker album than their first. Of the original songs that they composed for the album, "All My Loving" is easily the best, followed by "Hold Me Tight" and "Don’t Bother Me". But other than “All My Loving” I think the strongest tracks on the album are the covers of Chuck Berry's "Roll Over Beethoven" (which features some great guitar playing by George), and The Marvelette's "Please Mister Postman".

Two albums were released in 1964 as well. The first was A Hard Day’s Night, the soundtrack to their first movie, and the first Beatles album comprised entirely of original material. The album’s title track and "Can’t Buy Me Love" are among The Beatles’ best early work (“Can’t Buy Me Love” being one of my favorite Beatles songs). The rest of the album is solid as well. Even the songs that don’t regularly make it onto my playlists compel me to break into song when I listen to them (to the utter dismay of those around me). Among my favorite tracks on the album are "I Should Have Known Better", "Tell Me Why", and "Any Time At All". Great songs all.

The second album released in ’64 was Beatles For Sale, and (I’m sensing a pattern here) I feel it is weaker when compared to A Hard Day’s Night. But we’re talking about The Beatles here, so “weaker” is a relative term. The album contains another of my favorites, "Eight Days a Week" (I seem to have a lot of favorites, don’t I?). As with most of their early albums, there are a number of cover songs included, such as the Carl Perkins song "Honey Don’t", and another Chuck Berry cover, "Rock & Roll Music", featuring a great example of John’s vocal chops. Other than “Eight Days a Week,” my favorite original works on the album are "What You’re Doing" and "No Reply", which I’m especially fond of (especially the bit from about 1:03 to 1:32).

Another year, another movie. Their second movie, Help!, was released in 1965, and the soundtrack is once again solid as a rock. There are only two cover songs on this album, with the best easily being Ringo’s rendition of "Act Naturally". Love that song (and Ringo’s gotta get the spotlight every now and then!). But I’ve gotta tell ya, this album kicks some serious ass. The title track is one of their greatest songs, certainly among their early work. I can’t begin to describe the über-awesomeness of the song. But it doesn’t stop there! With tracks like "You’re Going to Lose That Girl", "Ticket To Ride" (with a wonderfully silly video; lo siento para los subtitulados en español), "It’s Only Love", and one of Paul’s most famous and beloved songs, "Yesterday", this is surely their best album thus far.

The Beatles’ sixth album, Rubber Soul, is where they started off into territory heretofore unknown to rock bands. Remember that roommate I had back in college (mentioned in the last installment of Musicopia)? Well, this is his favorite Beatles album (or it was back then), and understandably so. This album, also released in ‘65, represents a sea change in the work of The Beatles, both musically ("Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)" features George’s first use of the sitar in a recording, and "In My Life" features a piano solo that sounds very much like a harpsichord) and lyrically (as John’s philosophical and self-deprecating lyrics in "Nowhere Man" demonstrate). This album is so good I want to post every song, but through a superhuman demonstration of willpower I’m going to mention only three more songs: "You Won’t See Me" (because I like Paul’s voice and the ooooo la-la-la’s), "Girl" (a favorite which I’m embarrassed to say had escaped my notice until I watched Across the Universe), and "I’m Looking Through You" (just because).

If Rubber Soul was the beginning of their trip into the wild musical unknown, then Revolver sees them setting up shop there with the intent of staying for the long haul. While consistently overplayed, "Yellow Submarine" is probably the most sonically complex Beatles song yet (with the possible exception of "Tomorrow Never Knows"), with a wealth of sound effects and vocal silliness that sets it apart from the rest of their work thus far. "Love You To" is classic George, prominently featuring the sitar and other Indian instruments. Their sound continues to fill out on this album (released in 1966), with brass instruments prominently featured on "Got To Get You Into My Life", and some great piano playing by George Martin (“the fifth Beatle”) on "Good Day Sunshine". The album also contains the most depressing song in the universe, "Eleanor Rigby", so there’s that. But seriously, this is probably in my top three favorite Beatles albums, and I left a bumload of good songs out, so go get it. Get it now!

The Beatles’ next album, 1967’s Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, is where it all began for me. I was visiting my mom at work and one of her co-workers had the album on cassette. I can’t remember whether he was listening to it and I asked to borrow it, or if the guy just knew it would blow my mind and offered it to me, but blow my young teenage mind it did. I’d heard "Lucy In the Sky With Diamonds" before, of course, but the album in its entirety was unlike anything I’d ever experienced before. I listened to it. Again. And again. And again. Thus began my Beatlemania.
Paring the album down to a handful of songs is like asking me to club a truckload of doe-eyed baby seals, but do it I must. The title track must get mention due to both its greatness and the way in which it sets the tone for the rest of the album. I must also mention "Fixing a Hole" because I overlooked its greatness for too long, and because I love the harpsichord. "Being For the Benefit of Mr. Kite!" also deserves mention simply for its sheer zany awesomeness. In my book, any song mentioning a waltzing horse is a good one. "When I’m Sixty-Four" is one of my favorites on the album. It’s sweetly sentimental, and I love the clarinets. As odd as it may sound, "Lovely Rita" may be my favorite song on the album. This is Paul at his whimsical best. I love the fact that he asks Rita out, then lets her pay the tab for dinner. For some reason that just cracks me up.
As with Revolver, there are so many great songs on this album that I was unable to mention them all. I urge you to get the album. I don’t care what you do in order to procure a copy. Rape. Pillage. Plunder. Do whatever it takes (ok, maybe not rape); just get this album! If you don’t enjoy it, then I’m sorry, I’m going to find you and jam an ice pick in your ears. Not enough to kill you, mind you; just enough to irrevocably deafen you. If you don’t like the album then aural pleasure is obviously beyond you and your ears are wasted on you anyway.

That's all for now, cats and kittens. Part 2 will be out as soon as I manage to finish it, which might be as late as next week, since I tend to get distracted and listen to some of the songs multiple times, thus ensuring that this takes much longer than it needs to. But The Beatles are worth the wait.