With The Beatles (Album): Introduction
Here we highlight the 1963 album “With The Beatles,” in brief. This was The Beatles’ second LP, but it has some amazing songs. In fact, click the button further down to hear clips from all the tracks and see for yourself. However, first, let’s look at more information about this album.
In Detail
- Release Date: November 22, 1963
- Recorded: July 18 and October 23, 1963
- Album Duration: 33:07
- Record Label: Parlophone
- Studio: EMI Studios, London
- Genre: Rock and roll, rock, pop & Merseybeat
- Producer: George Martin (arrangement and mixing also)
- Engineer: Norman Smith (some mixing)
Performers And Instruments
- John Lennon: vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, harmonica, tambourine, and also some handclaps
- Paul McCartney: vocals, bass, piano, woodblock, as well as some handclaps
- George Harrison: vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, and also some handclaps
- Ringo Starr: vocals, drums, bongos, maracas, as well as some handclaps
- George Martin: piano, also the Hammond organ
With The Beatles Album: The Tracks
Side One
Tracks
01) It Won’t Be Long
02) All I’ve Got To Do
03) All My Loving
04) Don’t Bother Me
05) Little Child
06) Till There Was You
07) Please Mister Postman
Lead Vocal
01) Lennon
02) Lennon
03) McCartney
04) Harrison
05) Lennon with McCartney
06) McCartney
07) Lennon
Side Two
Tracks
01) Roll Over Beethoven
02) Hold Me Tight
03) You Really Got A Hold On Me
04) I Wanna Be Your Man
05) Devil In Her Heart
06) Not A Second Time
07) Money (That’s What I Want)
Lead Vocals
01) Harrison
02) McCartney
03) Lennon with Harrison
04) Starr
05) Harrison
06) Lennon
07) Lennon
With The Beatles: Album Cover
Indeed, by now, The Beatles were big with a capital B. So, their album cover art was going to have to match. However, rather than seeing the smiling faces that we did on their first LP, “Please Please Me,” this iconic image shows The Beatles with a straight face. The photo was taken by Robert Freeman in August 1963 while at their hotel in Bournemouth.
In the words of Robert Freeman, “They had to fit in the square format of the cover, so rather than have them all in a line, I put Ringo in the bottom right corner, since he was the last to join the group. He was also the shortest.”
Of course, the “With The Beatles” album cover art is genius in its simplicity. Obviously shot in half shade, it shows The Beatles in a different light, pardon the pun.
Although EMI didn’t so much like the idea of a black-and-white photo, they did concede in the end. This is because they had the persuasion of George Martin and Brian Epstein who knew better.
Indeed, the faces of the Fab Four show just how serious both the band and producers were about their image. Furthermore, now we have an album with great songs and a piece of artwork that we could treasure.
EMI Studios did win one concession, though, because originally George Martin wanted the LP to have a nameless cover. Indeed, the studios decided that The Beatles were not yet famous enough to do this!
Recording
The Beatles recorded this album between July 18th and October 23rd, 1963. Their earlier “Please Please Me” album was a rush job to get that album out. However, they recorded this “With The Beatles” album over 7 sessions from July 18 to October 23, 1963. Of course, having a little extra time in the recording studios gave them that extra edge to concentrate a little more on the sound.
Although stereo recordings were available at the time, mono was still the preferred option for releases in 1963. Also, even though they were just using two-track recording equipment, their creativity and experience allowed them to expand on their previous sounds.
The Sounds
Although they didn’t release any singles from the album, it did have some great songs. For example, we have “All My Loving” and “It Won’t Be Long,” which may have been successes on their own.
Then there are “Roll Over Beethoven” and “Money (That’s What I Want),” which give the LP a touch of rock and roll. All in all, the “With The Beatles” album had a fine blend of cover versions and original work. Now, the band was really taking off and barely had a day off during the whole of 1963.
The Canadians released the album with “Beatlemania” also on the cover! However, the Americans had to wait until 1987 again for it to arrive in its original form. This is because in the early 1960s, American albums differed slightly from the original British ones. The Americans still got hold of all the songs in some way, though.
Meanwhile, in Australia, EMI never got hold of the cover art and substituted it with other images. The Beatles noticed this when they were on tour, and reports suggest that nobody was happy with that situation.
With The Beatles: Chart Success
This second Beatles album sold many copies in advance, and it went straight into the charts at number one. This “With The Beatles” album actually replaced their “Please Please Me” LP at the top of the charts, of course. In fact, it stayed there for 21 of the 51 weeks that the album spent in the top 20.
Just to point out that in 1963, the singles charts included all musical releases in whatever format. As such, this album reached number 11 on that chart too! Obviously, the album continued to sell, and by September 1965, its sales had gone through the one million barrier. This was the first time that British artists had achieved this.
Have Your Say
As well as making a comment below, you may also join in on the debate about this album in The Beatles Forum. Our massive Fab Four Forum has something for everyone, so pop over today.
Take A Listen
After you listen to the song snippets, please leave your comments below.
