Meet the Beatles!
| Meet The Beatles! | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by The Beatles | ||||
| Released | 20 January 1964 | |||
| Recorded | 11 February – 23 October 1963, EMI Studios, London | |||
| Genre | Rock, rock and roll | |||
| Length | 27:00 | |||
| Language | English | |||
| Label | Capitol | |||
| Producer | George Martin | |||
| The Beatles American chronology | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
Meet The Beatles! is the second Beatles' album released in the United States, issued by Capitol Records on 20 January 1964 in both mono and stereo formats. The first Beatles LP on Capitol, it topped the popular album chart on 15 February 1964 and remained at number one for an impressive eleven weeks before being replaced by The Beatles' Second Album, the first time that an artist replaced itself at the peak album position. The cover featured Robert Freeman's portrait used for the UK With The Beatles release, with a blue tint added to the original stark black-and-white photograph.
Contents |
Background [edit]
After constantly rejecting requests by both Brian Epstein and George Martin to release Beatles records in the United States, in November of 1963 EMI label head Joseph Lockwood sent a deputy to Los Angeles ordering Capitol Records to commence releasing and promoting Beatles product in the United States. Despite the "first album" claim on its cover, ten days prior to its release Vee-Jay Records of Chicago beat Capitol to the punch with the release of The Beatles' American debut album Introducing... The Beatles, which had been delayed for release for various reasons since the previous summer. Perhaps as a result of the Vee-Jay release, Liberty Music Shops advertised in the New York Times of 12 January 1964 that Meet The Beatles! was available for purchase, an ad not authorised by Capitol.[2]
In 2003, Meet The Beatles! was ranked number 59 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.[3] In 2004, the album was released on compact disc in both stereo and mono as part of The Capitol Albums, Volume 1 box set.
Music [edit]
The first three tracks on the album include the December 1963 Capitol single "I Want to Hold Your Hand" along with the record's b-sides both in the United States, "I Saw Her Standing There," and in the United Kingdom with "This Boy" from the original November 1963 release. Neither "I Want to Hold Your Hand" nor "This Boy" had appeared on album at the time in the UK, while "I Saw Her Standing There" had been the lead-off track to the band's debut album. The other nine tracks of Meet The Beatles! are duplicated from its nearest UK counterpart album With the Beatles. The remaining five tracks from With the Beatles would appear on Capitol's next LP release in the States, The Beatles' Second Album.[4] The songs "I Want to Hold Your Hand" and "This Boy" are in a duophonic [fake] stereo, due to the lack of a proper stereo mix that was supposed to be given to Capitol. "I Saw Her Standing There" has a special mono remix done specifically for the American market.
Track listing [edit]
All tracks written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, except where noted.
| Side one | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Lead vocals | Length | |||||||
| 1. | "I Want to Hold Your Hand" | John and Paul | 2:24 | |||||||
| 2. | "I Saw Her Standing There" | Paul | 2:50 | |||||||
| 3. | "This Boy" | John, Paul, and George | 2:11 | |||||||
| 4. | "It Won't Be Long" | John | 2:11 | |||||||
| 5. | "All I've Got to Do" | John | 2:05 | |||||||
| 6. | "All My Loving" | Paul | 2:04 | |||||||
| Side two | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Lead vocals | Length | ||||||
| 1. | "Don't Bother Me" | George Harrison | George | 2:28 | ||||||
| 2. | "Little Child" | John | 1:46 | |||||||
| 3. | "Till There Was You" | Meredith Willson | Paul | 2:12 | ||||||
| 4. | "Hold Me Tight" | Paul | 2:30 | |||||||
| 5. | "I Wanna Be Your Man" | Ringo | 1:59 | |||||||
| 6. | "Not A Second Time" | John | 2:03 | |||||||
Personnel [edit]
- John Lennon — vocals, rhythm guitar, harmonica, organ on "I Wanna Be Your Man"
- Paul McCartney — vocals, bass guitar, piano on "Little Child"
- George Harrison — vocals, lead guitar
- Ringo Starr — vocals, drums, percussion
- George Martin — piano on "Not A Second Time"
| Preceded by The Singing Nun by Soeur Sourire, The Singing Nun |
Billboard Top Popular Albums number-one album 15 February – 1 May 1964 |
Succeeded by The Beatles' Second Album by The Beatles |
Notes [edit]
- ^ Meet the Beatles! at Allmusic
- ^ Spizer 2000, p. 4.
- ^ Rolling Stone 2003.
- ^ Spizer 2000, p. 5.
References [edit]
- "The RS 500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. 18 November 2003. Retrieved 13 November 2009.
- Spizer, Bruce (2000). The Beatles' Story on Capitol Records, Part Two: The Albums. New Orleans, Louisiana: 498 Productions. ISBN 0-9662649-2-4.
External links [edit]
- Bruce Spizer's The Beatles' Story on Capitol Records, Part One: Beatlemania and the Singles website
- Bruce Spizer's The Beatles' Story on Capitol Records, Part Two: The Albums website
- WhatGoesOn.com - Beatles Capitol Albums Vol. 1 now two weeks away article
