Music Review - The Beatles - Help!

Help! is, of course, another movie soundtrack. For me, this is when the band gets consistently interesting. Incorporating more acoustic guitar as well as, in one song each, a flute, bongos, guiro and a string quartet, the band is obviously stretching in the studio and enjoying the flexability that four tracks can offer.

The songs are also increasingly infused with folk music while still retaining their infectious pop roots. Lyrically the band is also testing the waters, treading on themes not traditionally found in pop music.

Let's start with the title track, shall we? What other pop song from 1965 is an urgent plea for help? This is a full year ahead of Pet Sounds and possibly helped spur the creative "arms race" between Wilson and The Beatles. Lyrics like "Help me if you can, I'm feeling down" were a few decades ahead of Trent Reznor. Pairing desperate lyrics with an upbeat, catchy melody was also a few decades ahead of They Might Be Giants. Lennon had originally written the song in a less peppy format but changed it due to pressure to have an upbeat single. Thanks to YouTube, you can hear a snippet of his original demo. It's interesting but I prefer the version that I've heard all my life. I'm a creature of habit.

"You've Got To Hide Your Love Away" has also been a longtime favorite of mine, partially due to it's 3/4 time signature. "Ticket To Ride" is another song firmly established in the classic Beatles cannon. Ya gotta love that choppy drum beat! Another personal B-list favorite is "I've Just Seen A Face." It's simple and catchy, a brief 2:07 that gets right to the point. Other very strong non-hits are "You Like Me Too Much" with it's prominent piano part and "Tell Me What You See." Even "Act Naturally", the Ringo song, is pretty durned good!

And then there's "Yesterday," one of the most played and covered songs in the history of mankind. Normally if I hear a song too many times I get sick of it but oddly, I can still enjoy this one.

With only two covers, expanding experimentation in the studio, and an album chock full of great-to-amazing songs (aside from the covers) Help! is a very respectable endeavor.

Music Review - The Beatles - Beatles For Sale

I always thought that Beatles For Sale was recorded before Hard Days Night. For one thing it has a similar title as the first two albums. It also has lots of cover songs while Hard Days Night has none. And though this is blasphemy to rabid Beatles fans I'm willing to admit that the originals on this one are a bit on the weak side. Being a guy who just enjoys the music and isn't really into all the geeky trivia bits I never really looked into details on these early albums. Heck, I still have to think a bit to remember if Rubber Soul is before Revolver. But in writing this series I've needed to do a smidgeon of research, that being Wikipedia, the modern day version of cracking open an Encyclopedia Britannica. What I found was the reason for this weakness and apparent backward step: Beatles For Sale began recording about a week after they finished recording Hard Days Night, thus using up all their A-quality originals and forcing the band to return to covers to fill out the album. Plus it's their fourth album in twenty-one months. Sure, they were short albums, about thirty minutes each compared to today when anything under forty-five minutes leaves me feeling ripped off. Add in constant touring and it's safe to say that the boys were tapped out and well in need of a break.

So how about those originals? For starters there's the amazing "Eight Days A Week" with yet another phenomenal walking bass line. "Every Little Thing" is a nice song featuring piano and timpani, a rarity on pop records. "I'm a Loser" is jaunty despite the subject matter, another song that other bands love to cover. I've always had a soft spot for the morose "Follow the Sun" and especially like the vocal harmonies in the chorus. And then there's... well, there's not much. I mean, "No Reply" is pretty good but none of the other originals strike any chords in me.

Music Review - The Beatles - Hard Days Night

With Hard Day's Night things start to get really interesting. The iconic opening chord of the album and title track, long debated as to it's actual structure (but confirmed by George as being a Fadd9 with a high D played by McCartney) announces that something has changed. Some of the change is the absence of any covers, a very good thing in my book. Also leading the charge is George's Rickenbacker twelve string which adds a chimey tone throughout. Often Paul will double his bass line with the piano, expanding the sonic palate in a subtle but satisfying way. The songs are also a bit more sophisticated than the simple jingles found on the first two albums.

And then there's the cowbell on the title track. I need say no more.

There are a number of hits, including "Can't Buy Me Love", "I Should Have Known Better" (which sports Lennon's harmonica) and the suave "And I Love Her" which is totally made my George's Spanish flavored melody line. But even the non-hits exhibit a kind of self-respect, like they know they are strong stuff but only pale next to the sprinkling of timeless classics. No filler. Who can refuse to fall under the spell of the gentle melody of "If I Fell"? Or how about the heart-wrenching two-party vocal harmonies in "Things We Said Today"? Even "Tell Me Why", which sounds like it could have been off the first two albums, has a greater depth thanks to the bands progression in the studio.

NOW it only gets better from here!

Music Review - The Beatles - With The Beatles

I was wrong about things only getting better from here.

With The Beatles was recorded a mere four months after Meet The Beatles and to my ears, they used their best originals on their first album. Eight originals on this one and six covers. Of the eight, the bestest is “All My Loving” which totally slays. I love the walking bass line so much that I actually learned it and am able to play it well enough that it has become one of my few “Guitar Center” songs. You know what I’m talking about… the little riff or song you practice to death so that when you go to Guitar Center and plug in a guitar and lay down some killer bit and everyone thinks you’re amazing and they start offering you product endorsements. I’ve actually never played “All My Loving” in a Guitar Center or any other song. Well, I did awkwardly strum on an acoustic for a few minutes until some kid interrupted by solitude and started jamming away with HIS Guitar Center song so I left.

But anyway… “It Won’t Be Long” is raucous and energetic enough but it lacks a clear hook in the melody. “All I’ve Gotta Do” has a nice vocal harmony part (so nice that J. Geils Band lifted it for their song “Desire” off the Love Stinks album) but otherwise there’s not much to speak of. Well, there’s the covers “Roll Over Beethoven” and “Please Mr. Postman” which are decent but in my book covers don’t count. At least this album sold well for the boys and allowed them to continue making records.

Music Review - The Beatles - Please Please Me

Hey kids! It's time for yet another series!

Last fall I picked up a copy of Beatles Rockband for the Wii for a mere thirty bucks. While I have no interest in "playing" a plastic guitar I've long thought that the plastic drums could be used as a kind of first step in learning proper drums, helping to develop muscle memory and whatnot. So every now and then I head down to the basement and set things up for twenty minutes of faux-drum mania. Fun stuff!

I hearing these songs again, songs that are meshed with my personal history, I thought it might be enjoyable to listen to all of their albums again.

So here goes...

Please Please Me

I've never been a fan of their pre-Revolver albums. While I generally like the originals on these early works there are far too many covers for my tastes. But that's how they did things back then. Consider that for their first album they weren't THE BEATLES (gasp, squeal, prostrate yourself) but were rather just some young band that showed promise and some success with their audience. Sir George Martin, who was not yet a Sir, took a fancy to them and brought them into the studio to see if this live success could be captured on vinyl.

Please Please Me was recorded in a single day and was essentially a live recording of their set with very few overdubs. There are seven covers and seven originals. Of these seven originals four are all-out home runs! "I Saw Her Standing There" kicks off the album with loads of energy. The prominent bass line is admittedly 100% stolen from the Chuck Berry song "Talkin' 'Bout You" but they make it their own. For some reason the well written "Do You Want To Know A Secret" seems to be a bit more mature in form than the other originals but I can't put my finger on why. The title track is a superb song with fantastic vocal harmonies and lots of variety in the little musical turnarounds between the verses that keep the song from being overly simple. “Love Me Do” is another song to be adorned with Lennon’s gritty harmonica plus a basic but fun to play bass line holding everything together. There’s a definite charm in this song in that the vocals and the harmonica, while musically pleasing, are not shined to a high gloss of perfection. For some reason people love “Twist and Shout” but I find it boring and repetitive. Unless it’s played at a wedding and I’ve loosed up a bit.

I’m tempted to say that the album is better than I remember it but that’s only because of these four very strong songs. I will say that it’s a very good first album and that things only get better from here.

Penguin Point Review - Hot Dog

I'm experimenting with a lovely picture of the Penguin Point hot dog before I stuffed it into my gaping maw.
According to their calendar el Hot Dog was on special on Monday for a buck. I got everything on it that I could have without paying extra, which means onions, ketchup, mustard and relish. It took way too long after ordering to get the doggie, like four minutes or more. It's just a stinkin' hot dog! But it came in the paper holder that could probably double as a coffee filter, if times are hard, and a foil wrapper. There was nothing fancy about the bun. Just a bun. It wasn't even steamed or warmed which definitely detracted from the experience. The hotdog itself was on the skinny side but was nice seasoned instead of those pale greenish dogs you often get at restaurants.
Overall, well worth a buck but next time please do something about the bun!

New Series - Penguin Point!

For those not in the secret club, Penguin Point is a local chain based in Warsaw, Indiana, about an hour north-west of Fort Wayne. Growing up I would often beg to visit the Penguin Point when we visited grandparents in Wabash, about an hour south-west. How long to get those glasses? About an hour. I see a trend.
There used to be two locations in Fort Wayne but now there is just one, oddly surviving for decades on a semi-rural corner, flanked by a Dairy Queen and a Mexican restaurant. For me Penguin Point used to be a destination eatery in that I would have to drive way out of my way to patronize the establishment but now I drive by there twice a day most days of the week, each time resisting its siren call of fried chicken, tenderloin sandwiches, burgers, chili dogs, and crinkle cut fries. They pretty much have a little bit of everything, even ham and beans with cornbread which is a nice alternative to chili. Plus you can pull up outside and they’ll bring it to your car, though I haven’t attempted such a feat in the sub-zero temperatures we've been having.
I checked out their official web site and calculated that I could have one of everything on their menu for about eighty bucks. Eighty bucks over a year or two isn't much, especially since I now get their coupons at the new abode and they have daily specials. So I reckon I'll try everything off their menu and write about it. I'd take pictures but you don't want to see me eat. I could take pictures of their food but it's the same as everyone else. It looks amazing on the menu but once unwrap the sammich it looks yummy but not like the perfection previously postulated.
The other issue is that I'm not much of a foodie. I eat food and either it's yummy, yucky, or somewhere in between. There shant be any nuances with these stunted taste buds!
So far I've made three visits to this outpost of food stuffs.

Big Wally
How could I resist a Big Wally, especially with a coupon? If you've had a Big Mac then you've had a Big Wally. The secret sauce could be different but it was song mind of mayo-derived glob. Service was friendly.

Tenderloin
Oh how I loves me a tenderloin sandwich! Two for five bucks but oddly not very filling as I was hungry later in the afternoon. They were nice and crunchy with a meaty center, just like they should be. Some kind of goop was on top, either mayo or tartar sauce or hair cream, but it was minimal in amount and covered over with an ample portion of vegetation. Possibly shredded iceberg lettuce but it was big and chunky and had a crunchy texture so it could have been flavorless cabbage. And don't forget the slice of cheese. And the obligatory bun.

Vanilla Milk Shake
This thing was so thick that even an hour later I had to scoop it out with the straw. I'm sure the ten degree weather had something to do with that. Good flavor, good texture. I'm not sure if its a chemical shake like McDonalds has but I wouldn't be surprised if it's real either. After all, their Ham N Beans only had ingredients you can find in your kitchen, or your mothers kitchen if she's into beans. Hey, Penguin People, why not list the ingredients on your web site?