Having lost money on the last film, this time Capitol made sure they had the distribution rights to the Help! soundtrack. The album follows the example set by A Hard Day’s Night—using all of the British side one, with equal time given to interspersed selections from the film score composed by Ken Thorne, elbowing George Martin. In fact, the first thing we hear is an uncredited snippet of the “James Bond Theme” before crashing into the title song. The balance of the instrumental tracks are a matter of personal taste. “From Me To You Fantasy” and “The Bitter End/You Can’t Do That” utilize Beatle melodies for “suspense” effect. “In The Tyrol” features a Wagner overture, immediately bringing to mind one of the film’s skiing sequences when heard in any other context. But this album does mark the first appearance of Indian instruments on a Beatle record, with “The Chase” and “Another Hard Day’s Night”—a particularly clever medley of three songs from the first movie played on sitars and such.
As for the songs themselves, they’re a strong bunch. John dominates here, with the classic title track and the overtly Dylanesque “You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away”. “Ticket To Ride” was already a smash hit single—and justifiably so—and “You’re Going To Lose That Girl” sports more of their trademark call-and-response harmonies. Paul contributes “The Night Before” and “Another Girl”, as well as the lead guitar on both the latter and “Ticket To Ride”. And in case you haven’t sat through the credits of the film, “I Need You” is by George Harrison.
The inner gatefold has lots of pictures and gibberish related to the film, and semaphore experts have confirmed that the figures on the front cover say nothing. Still, the enhanced packaging is a fitting match for the movie itself, which is highly recommended viewing once you’ve seen A Hard Day’s Night and are craving a shot of glorious technicolor. (As some people had such emotional attachment to the movie soundtrack, sitars and all, they likely snapped up its limited release as part of a box set in 2006, and/or the mass-market version as part of the “U.S. Albums” in 2014.)
The Beatles Help! (1965)—3½
UK CD equivalent: Help! (Beatle tracks only)
"And in case you haven’t sat through the credits of the film"
ReplyDeleteThat was good.
That is all.
ENOUGH ABOUT THE FUCKING BEATLES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteFair enough. And what would you like to hear about instead?
ReplyDeletecan you review paul's new album and place it in context to his lexicon of work? that would be nice. i saw the video of dance tonight and liked the song/hated the video.
ReplyDeletethere are 4k holes you need to fill in.
dick
Why don't you try writing about musicians that haven't been written about extensively. A good example would be Dylan or the Stones.
ReplyDeleteAll good suggestions...and already in the works. Thanks for the input.
ReplyDeleteI was promised lots of Bon Jovi reviews. So far, I've been disappointed.
ReplyDeleteP.S. I'm enjoying the Beatles reviews quite a bit.
I'm holding off on the Bon Jovi since I know there are lots of people who would be offended by what I have to say. And after all, I'm all about the love.
ReplyDeletewow ...I always heard it, but it never registered that the intro clip from Help was “James Bond Theme”....learn something everyday..Thanks Ward
ReplyDelete