Beatles for Sale Listening Notes by Maxwell Philbrook
Beatles for Sale was released in 1964 in the midst of heavy touring and recording. Perhaps the most noticeable factor of this album that separates it
from previously released albums is the extreme fame the Beatles were experiencing during this time. Critics of the album have pointed to the way the
guys were influenced by the exhaustion and wear of being such a hot commodity for the first time in their careers. Just compare the album cover for
Beatles for Sale to their previous releases, and you'll get an idea of their tiredness: no smiles, no goofy poses, just blank stares with heavy
expressions.
The album was recorded directly after A Hard Day's Night had been recorded, and right after a tour of Australia and New Zealand. There were no singles
released from this album, but after it came out, the band released "I Feel Fine/She's a Woman" to appease their rabid fan base. The album contains
eight original tunes, as well as six covers. This is the last album that the Beatles would rely so heavily on covers, and the fact that they did so
speaks to their hectic schedule and lack of proper time to develop original material. For the most part, you.re going to hear classic Beatles Pop/Rock
tunes, but you'll also hear some Country/Western influenced songs. Beatles for Sale is one of the last albums that can be described as wholly "early"
Beatles.
The album opens with "No Reply," a song that early-Beatles' fans will enjoy. The vocals enter with no musical introduction, and John's pleading, simple
vocals do a good job getting the feeling of the song across to listeners. The guys are joined by producer George Martin on piano to add some depth to
the track. The lovelorn subject matter is common to this era Beatles' music, but this song takes a bit different take on the theme.
"I'm a Loser" gives fans a taste of the Country/Western style that infiltrates many Beatles' songs from early in their career. John was influenced by
Bob Dylan at this point, so listen closely and see if you can hear some Dylan-esque nuances, especially the harmonica. Ringo breaks out the tambourine
on this track, to add some pep to the chorus.
The Beatles had so many ways to express the feelings that accompany lost love. "Baby in Black" shows the dark feelings that come when love runs out.
The vocal duet between John and Paul adds to the somber, confused feeling in this song. The twangy guitars add to the feeling of not knowing quite what
your place in the world is.
"Rock and Roll Music" is a nice transition from the previous set of love songs. Originally written and popularized by Chuck Berry, the Beatles stay
true to the form and style of the song. However, many Rock 'n Roll critics claim that John's vocals on this track surpass Berry's monotone, stationary
rendition. "Rock and Roll Music" was a staple in the Beatles' live shows during this period, and because of the stress and exhaustion of constant
touring, this was a relatively easy song to record and get on the album.
The most interesting aspect of "I'll Follow the Sun" has got to be the simple acoustic picking of John and Paul, fused effortlessly with George's lead
slide-guitar work. The simple lyrical style and Ringo's bongo playing in lieu of a standard drum set give this song a very unique tone, one that would
be revisited in later songs.
"Mr Moonlight" was written by Roy Lee Johnson, a Rock 'n Roll songwriter, and was popular for bands to cover in the 60s. Right as the song begins, the
listener is greeted by a howling, in your face lyric sung by John. He continues the lead vocals throughout the song, and is backed by Paul. Listen for
the wavering notes of the Hammond organ played by Paul throughout this song. The percussion on "Mr Moonlight" is also somewhat different for the group.
Ringo plays the bongos once again, but this time George picks up a traditional African drum to add some bottom end to the track.
The Beatles next perform a mashup of two popular rock songs. "Kansas City/ Hey, Hey, Hey" medley, as they called it, was two separate songs, which they
transitioned between seamlessly and released as one track on Beatles for Sale. Little Richard did the same thing in 1955, and John, being a huge Little
Richard fan, decided to cover Richard's cover of two covers. "Kansas City" was written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller and had been covered by many
groups before the Beatles. It's a pretty straightforward rock song, but much is added to it when Little Richard's song "Hey, Hey, Hey" is included on
the tail end. Listen for when the songs change over, and try and decide why the guys decided to release it as one track, instead of breaking it up in
to two.
"Eight Days a Week" is one of the most popular Beatles. songs from this album. The most innovative aspect of the song is the lead-in of building
guitars that break into a happy-go-lucky love song, complete with hand claps and confusing malapropisms for lyrics.
The final six tracks of Beatles for Sale include three covers and three original tunes. The covers are "Words of Love" written by Buddy Holly, "Honey
Don't" and "Everybody's Trying to be my Baby" both written by Carl Perkins. "Words" is the only song in the Beatles' catalogue written by Holly, who
was one of Paul's largest influences. Since then, Paul has acquired the rights to all of Holly's songs. The unique percussion you can hear in the
background is Ringo keeping time on a packing case. Perkins wrote the final two covers on the album. "Honey Don't" features Ringo on lead vocals, and
the twisted guitar intro leads in nicely to the rest of the song. "Everybody's" is heavily influenced by the Country-Western style that finds its way
into many songs on this album.
Three more original songs comprise the last section of the album. "Every Little Thing," "I don't want to Spoil the Party," and "What you're doing" all
have the classic Beatles sound, structure, and tone, but each track has that little extra thing that made the Beatles music survive with such
longevity. "Every Little Thing" has the Country-Western styling, and Ringo adds his best timpani work to give the track some serious bottom end. "Spoil
the Party" gets back to the Beatles' basics, but listen for the square-dance style rhythms and dance-hall style lyrics. "What You're Doing" opens with
a really unique but simple drum beat, and then shifts into standard Beatles fare. Even though this is an original, the Beatles give shoutouts to
contemporary artists like the Ronettes, via their instrumentation.