The Beatles Please Please Me album appreciation thread

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Beatles Fan 1999, Dec 1, 2016.

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  1. Hamhead

    Hamhead The Bear From Delaware

    You got that right, it's too bad the rest of the Beatles LP's didn't sound this good.
     
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  2. Muzyck

    Muzyck Pardon my scruffy hospitality

    Location:
    Long Island
    Worth noting that the real go to version is not the first version of this pressing with the SHZE-117A-1X , SHZE-117B-1 matrices. The later cut that came out as early as 1966 with SHZE-117 -A2 , SHZE-117- B-2 matrices is the one to look for. The same cut was used for later German pressings that used the usual "Please Please Me" title and cover artwork. I have a copy of that one with SHZE-117 -A2 / 04219-A-2 , SHZE-117- B-2 / 04219-B-2matrices. Same cut.
     
  3. SixOClockBoos

    SixOClockBoos The Man On The Flaming Pie

    One of my favorites. The album that started it all and it should get more credit than it does. It should be up there with Abbey Road and Sgt. Pepper. Here are my favorite tracks in order.

    14. P.S. I Love You
    13. Love Me Do
    12. A Taste Of Honey
    11. I Saw Her Standing There
    10. Twist & Shout
    9. Boys
    8. Chains
    7. Anna (Go To Him)
    6. Misery
    5. Please Please Me
    4. There's A Place
    3. Do You Want To Know A Secret
    2. Baby It's You
    1. Ask Me Why (favorite Beatles song in general)
     
  4. Yovra

    Yovra Collector of Beatles Threads

    With The Beatles is the logical 'next step'; a fuller sound, the boys daring to tackle more soulful vocals (You Really Got A Hold On Me) and maturing skills (All My Loving). Hidden highlight (for me); Paul's backing vocals on Money!
     
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  5. Hey Vinyl Man

    Hey Vinyl Man Another bloody Yank down under...

    Fantastic debut, sounding dated now only because they changed the world so fundamentally afterward. Almost all Beatles albums have one song I don't like at all, though (Abbey Road is the only one that doesn't), and this one's is "Baby It's You". They just don't do the original justice. (They reportedly also had "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" in their live set around this time...how I wish they had recorded that instead!)
     
  6. PaulKTF

    PaulKTF Senior Member

    Location:
    USA
    The entire album has a sense of raw spontaneity to it- the opposite of the later, carefully crafted albums (like Pepper or Abbey Road).
     
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  7. driverdrummer

    driverdrummer Forum Resident

    Location:
    Irmo, SC
    My favorite Beatles album. I have so many good memories playing this album. It's perfect from start to finish. I own the original cd, the 2009 mono remaster, and the 2014 mono vinyl.
     
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  8. ohnothimagen

    ohnothimagen "Live music is better!"

    Location:
    Canada
    Well, not the whole album -the four 'single' tracks were done earlier (but I'm sure you know that), but even still three quarters of the album in a day is damned impressive by anybody's standards.
    That it is- I get a boot out of Paul's "Hey!" at the end: "Hey, we made it all the way through the song without John losing his voice!":laugh:
     
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  9. 68Mustang

    68Mustang Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    I love 'Anna'. Great vocal by John...
     
  10. PaulKTF

    PaulKTF Senior Member

    Location:
    USA
  11. Rich C

    Rich C Forum Resident

    Location:
    Northbrook, IL
    First, thanks for your suggestion. I went ahead and found me one of these with the matrices you pointed out and look forward to receiving it.

    But I am a little confused when you say the same cut was used with the usual title and artwork. Could you be specific on these "later German pressings"? Are they also on the Horzu label? All the Horzu items I saw on Discogs were with the cover you provided here.

    If possible, could you tell us the the years, or catalog numbers to look for on issues of PPM with usual artwork from Germany that have this cut?

    Fascinating discussion here.
     
  12. Blue Cactus

    Blue Cactus Forum Resident

    Location:
    Illinois
    Minus the four previouly recorded tracks. Still very impressive.
     
  13. PaulKTF

    PaulKTF Senior Member

    Location:
    USA
    I kind of forgot that four of the songs were already recorded. :hide:
     
  14. Muzyck

    Muzyck Pardon my scruffy hospitality

    Location:
    Long Island
    Looks like Germany used the Please Please Me artwork starting around 1973 on Apple labels.

    https://www.discogs.com/The-Beatles-Please-Please-Me/release/7391845

    Discogs also lists a 1979 issue with the same matrices.
     
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  15. Rich C

    Rich C Forum Resident

    Location:
    Northbrook, IL
    Thanks, Buddy.

    I ran across that one last night, but the Apple label scared me off. I will have to keep my eyes out for these at shows, etc.

    Great info.
     
  16. teag

    teag Forum Resident

    Location:
    Colorado
    Interesting. I have a SHZE-117-A2, B2 Horzu that I bought in Boston in the early 80's (probably '82) that does not have the usual PPM cover. It has the black and white cover with the George black eye picture. I wonder when they dropped this cover and went to the usual one? Maybe the LP I bought in '82 was pressed many years earlier.

    It does sound great but I wish it was mono!
     
  17. Blue Cactus

    Blue Cactus Forum Resident

    Location:
    Illinois
    For $25 or less, you can get an excellent factory fresh mono LP pressed in Germany by Optimal.

    Have the best of both worlds.
     
  18. Muzyck

    Muzyck Pardon my scruffy hospitality

    Location:
    Long Island
    I purchased my first "black and white" cover pressing somewhere around 1980 in a department store that was going out of business. It was a "new" LP, but was pressed somewhere between 1969 and 1973 I would guess with a black and red HorZu label. I have a pressing done somewhere between 1966 and 1969 with the same cover, but laminated. That one has a red, white & black label. The later cover was not laminated.

    The earlier pressing is in the top link...

    http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/listening-to-on-vinyl-part-297.624628/page-16#post-15446129

    http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/listening-to-on-vinyl-part-293.580063/page-182#post-14981884
     
  19. teag

    teag Forum Resident

    Location:
    Colorado
    Yes, I have the mono box and this LP sounds pretty good. But as we all know they couldn't use the original master tape for this one album. Something about the tape being too old so they made a copy and used it for the remastered mono. The Horzu stereo did use the master (we think) and I wonder how good they could have done the mono with the original master!
     
  20. teag

    teag Forum Resident

    Location:
    Colorado
    Thanks. The one I bought in '82 is the red and black label, identical the one in your 2nd link above.
     
  21. Rich C

    Rich C Forum Resident

    Location:
    Northbrook, IL
    It may have sounded better had they been able to use the tape.

    Having said that, I think PPM may just be the best sounding disc in that set. Does anyone else agree?
     
    William Smart likes this.
  22. joepepitone

    joepepitone Forum Resident

    Location:
    USA
    My apologies if this is already known by the many Beatle experts here, but a couple of month ago Andrew Loog Oldham told an interesting story about the record on his radio show. The Beatles go into the studio with 8 Lennon-McCartney songs to record. After they were done, they still had studio time booked and no real plan on how to fill it. George suggested they perform songs from their live set and so they did. I love that record.
     
  23. PaulKTF

    PaulKTF Senior Member

    Location:
    USA
    Well, I'm glad George made that suggestion! :)
     
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  24. stereoguy

    stereoguy Its Gotta Be True Stereo!

    Location:
    NYC

    >>>>>Have to disagree with you on that one. The one that never should have been on PPM was "A Taste Of Honey". They SHOULD have put "Soldier of Love" on it in its place. My Gosh, how great that would have been.
     
  25. SixOClockBoos

    SixOClockBoos The Man On The Flaming Pie

    I really love "Soldier of Love", but I honestly think just having one recorded version surviving on the BBC album is what makes the song that more interesting. I do wish to hear a second recording of it though, but that just makes the song so unique to their catalog. I do agree "A Taste Of Honey" should have got the boot, but if they were going to replace the song with a Paul vocal to compensate Paul, they should have covered "Hey! Baby" which Paul sang lead and John doing the harmonica part. was fading from their live set by that point. Imagine it, another harmonica track of an old favorite? It would have their best cover song on the album in my opinion because I love the song's harmonica riff and having that and the Beatles record it for an album. Mindblowing!
    :bigeek:
     
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