Spins: The Beatles • 1964 US Albums in Mono 8xLP Box Settings
The Beatles
1964 US Albums in Mono 8xLP box
(Apple/Universal)
The 2023 holiday season saw the release of the Beatles’ Red and Blue compilation albums, along with the band’s final single, “Now and Then.” This year’s deluxe offering returns to the Fab Four’s initial British Invasion to chronicle the music that swept America in 1964. The hype sticker on the slipcase box paraphrases Paul Revere, declaring, “The Beatles are coming!” Capitol Records infamously rearranged the band’s early UK albums to release more albums in the United States, sparking debates that continue among Beatles enthusiasts today. The results were a smashing success and helped push Beatlemania to its peak.
Of the five albums released in 1964, four of them shot to number one on the charts: January’s Meet the Beatles!, April’s The Beatles’ Second Album, June’s A Hard Day’s Night soundtrack, and just in time for the Christmas rush, December’s Beatles ’65. The July release of Something New had to compete with still-brisk sales of A Hard Day’s Night in July and notched a mere #2 on the album chart. These LPs contain essential tracks from the Beatles’ mop-top era. Meet the Beatles includes #1 single “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” “I Saw Her Standing There,” and “All My Loving.” The success of the first two of these singles on radio proved Capitol US’ song-shuffling to be somewhat savvy, as the original Lennon-McCartney songs had replaced cover tracks present on the UK release With the Beatles. The Beatles held the top five spots on the Billboard Hot 100 in early April. The record still stands.
The Beatles’ Second Album includes chart-topper “She Loves You,” John Lennon’s envious “You Can’t Do That,” and gathered leftovers from With the Beatles. A Hard Day’s Night boasted a pair of #1 singles in the effervescent title track (boasting pop music’s most famous opening guitar chord) and Paul McCartney’s rollicking “Can’t Buy Me Love.” Beatles ’ 65 plundered the UK release Beatles for Sale and added Lennon’s “I Feel Fine” with George Harrison’s catchy arpeggiated guitar riff, which gave the band a final run to the top of the charts for the year. Totaled, the band racked up 17 Top 40 chart hits and six #1 singles for the year – not to mention a hit movie and game-changing appearances on the Ed Sullivan Show.
The Beatles’ Story is a double album that tells the band’s origin story in words and music, prepared as a stopgap release when the band and producer George Martin nixed a Christmas release of Live at the Hollywood Bowl over quality concerns. The album includes quips from the band members, Martin, and hysterical fans. The program includes song fragments and schmaltzy orchestral versions of Beatles songs, including “Can’t Buy Me Love.” John Babcock and KFWB Hollywood DJ Roger Christian narrate the story with the air of bemused outsiders, chronicling Beatlemania as a movement “which would affect the musical history of the world.”
Capitol delivered The Early Beatles in March ’65, collecting material released earlier by Vee-Jay Records. Crucial fare includes the Fabs’ debut single “Love Me Do,” their bristling cover of the Isley Brothers’ “Twist and Shout,” the harmonica-laden “Please Please Me,” and McCartney’s cha-cha “P.S. I Love You” (with drums by Andy White and maracas by Beatles newcomer Ringo Starr).
The individual albums have been newly cut to audiophile vinyl from original monophonic master tapes. The lacquers were cut in Nashville by noted engineer Kevin Reeves with close reference to pristine first-generation pressings. The mono mixes are full-bodied and vibrant, worthy of material that long ago exceeded its original corporate intention as disposable pop music for kids. Each LP includes a four-page insert with an insightful new essay by Beatles historian Bruce Spizer. All albums except The Beatles’ Story will be available separately from the box. Collected, the 1964 US Albums in Mono is a time capsule offering a look into what our grandparents and people who heard the music first were obsessed with 60 years ago.
– Jeff Elbel
Rating: 7 out of 10
