Why Do People Hate Mr. Moonlight by the Beatles?

John's opening scream is one of those magical Beatles moments.

It has nice harmonies, nice Latin percussion, and a killer lead vocal.

In fact, I would say that "Mr. Moonlight" and "Words of Love" are the only great cover tune performances from the Beatles '65/Beatles VI/Beatles for Sale/Help period. The others all sound like they're phoned in.

Enlighten me.

 

I don't hate it all.

 

I don't hate "Mr. Moonlight" but "Leave My Kitten Alone" is by far the stronger track and should have been on the album.

 

Compared to most of the classic songs they chose to cover—well-known hits and ones that ought to have been ("Baby It's You," "Rock'n'Roll Music," "Please Mr Postman," even "Till There Was You"), it sounds hokey, corny, and contrived. That organ sounds cheap, and the Lennon's vocal is, ironically, too strong for the material, which can't support his passion and makes him sound mawkish and melodramatic where he usually sounds utterly sincere. Along with "Devil In Her Heart," it's the weakest song they chose to cover. Additionally, if you've heard their scintillating take on "Leave My Kitten Alone," it's hard not to think what side one of Beatles For Sale might have been had it made the cut.

Now, I think their covers of "Everybody's Trying to be my Baby," "Matchbox," and maybe "Dizzy Miss Lizzy" are weaker than their performance on "Mr Moonlight." However, those are all better songs to begin with, so the net effect is stronger. YMMV.

 

I love it too, but it's not a typical rock n' roll song and it must have seemed out of place on a Beatles album when listeners first heard it.

 

I've never gotten the fascination with the kitten, and while I can understand that some feel its the more quality track I honestly think Moonlight was a better choice because its more distinctive and unique for the album. Kitten just sounds like another fast-paced cover song that wouldn't stand out as much on an album full of that. In terms of completing the album, I think Mr. Moonlight was better.

 

Kitten smokes! John's voice and George's guitar kill me. I'm crazy about it.

 

I don't hate "Mr. Moonlight." Beatles '65 is one of my favorite Beatles albums.

 

I don't ever think I've heard the ORIGINAL version!!!!

 

count me in as a lover of Mr. Moonlight...

 

Mr Moonlight is my favorite of all the covers on BFS....

 

Gotta disagree here. There's nothing like "Kitten" on Beatles for Sale. The originals and most of the covers on that album are laid back, country-and-western tinged affairs. The only thing that comes close is "Kansas City," and that's not really very balls-to-the-wall when you compare it to their take on "Long Tall Sally" or even some of Paul's covers on the BBC set. I'd say "Kitten" is one of the top three or four hardest rock'n'roll songs the Beatles ever recorded before 1968, up there with "Money", LTS, and "Slow Down." It has the searing vocals and the frenetic energy of their best covers. I really wish they'd included it. It stands up against anything that any other "beat group" in England was doing at the time—and that includes the Rolling Stones.

(Beatles-might-have-been-covers: why didn't they put "Some Other Guy" on the Please Please Me LP in lieu of, I don't know, "Chains"?)

 

I think is a bad track!
For sure, I'd have Leave My Kitten Alone in and make it a rockier LP.

 

Never thought of that!!! WOW! That would've been cool!

 

It may be my least favorite Beatles track. The Beatles may have been stretched for material at the time, but there were dozens of better songs they could of recorded.

 

+1

MUCH better than "Moonlight". I'm not nuts about "Little Child" either.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R1CXyJntsZg

 

+2 I love Leave My Kitten ALone as well.

I'm not crazy about Mr. Moonlight because of the super cheesy organ!

 

It's not my fav. song but I don't hate it...

 

I'm glad you brought up this subject. I've often wondered the same thing. Although I would not list it as my favorite Beatle track...or even as my favorite Beatle cover, I've always liked the track. Nice organ...John's vocals are good. It has never been a track that I hit the skip button. I think we need a new "worst Beatle song"...take back Mr. Moonlight.

 

I think Lennon was well aware that he was being melodramatic and went for the gusto here which is why I think it is a perfect cover. The whole point of a cover even if the material is weak is to make it your own and he does that quite admirably.

 

I agree. It should have been put out at th time, too (maybe they could have added it to "Oldies but Goldies" album back in the day.

 

Devil is one of my favorites...go figure...

 

I like the track, but I can see why others don't. It is kind of an oddity, like Besume Mucho would have been if they decided to release that in the 60's.