Beatles for Sale (Album) 1964

- The fourth studio album recorded by the band, released in December 1964.
- Many regard this album as the point where the band started putting a bit more effort into their lyrics. Lennon becomes more introspective and McCartney moves towards storytelling.
- The band started working on this album only six days after they finished the A Hard Day's Night album.
- The constant touring and promotional work was starting to wear the band down a bit by this point, hence the inclusion of a couple of covers on this album after having previously made the switch to all-originals for A Hard Day's Night.
- Three of the covers were recorded within 5 takes on a single day.
- McCartney described the songwriting process at the time: management would give them a week before recording to start writing some new material. McCartney would go round to Lennon's house and they'd sit down to write a song each day, usually taking roughly 3 hours.

1. No Reply
- Written by Lennon. Most of his songs on this album would have a similarly downbeat-feel, though this particularly song was actually written during the making of A Hard Day's Night (and was presumably left off that album due to it's less than joyful tone).
- Lennon considered offering it to Tommy Quickly after it was rejected for A Hard Day's Night, but eventually decided to keep it for himself.
- Lennon intended to sing all the parts but his voice was failing at the time, so McCartney took on the higher-melody bit in the bridge section.
- The song doesn't really have a chorus yet was still considered strong enough to open the album.
- Both guitar tracks are acoustic. Lennon recorded some handclaps and McCartney provided the
cowbell.
- Originally written with a waltz-like beat, though this abandoned prior to recording in favour of the bossa nova-styled rhythm.
- Runs for just over two minutes, and took 8 takes to record.

2. I'm a Loser
- Lennon wrote this song mid-flight whilst the band was on tour with Jackie DeShannon in the U.S.
- Having recently met Bob Dylan, Lennon shows the D-man's influence here in his tone and lyrics (most specifically the use of the word 'clown'). The song also shows the growing influence that country music was having on the band (mainly courtesy of Ringo, who was a huge country music fan).
- The lyrics reflect Lennon's insecurities regarding the fan reaction the Beatles were experiencing at the time.
- Was going to be released as a stand-alone single in the UK until Lennon came up with I Feel Fine, which was used instead.
- Lennon plays some harmonica on the recording, as well as providing an acoustic guitar track and the lead vocals. McCartney does some harmony vocals. Ringo added in a tambourine track to go alongside his drums.
- Runs for two and a half minutes, took 8 takes to complete.

3. Baby's in Black
- Another track written by Lennon, though McCartney co-wrote some of the melody.
- The song was written while the band was on tour in Australia and New Zealand, with McCartney most likely responsible for the guitar solo (which was a little beyond Harrison's playing ability at the time).
- The song has 6/8 time (very few Beatles songs have timing along these lines) and is played slower than the usual speed - giving the impression of a waltz.
- It's considered fairly likely that this song is about Astrid Kirchherr, the girlfriend of Stuart Sutcliffe (the band's first bassplayer, who died of a brain hemorrhage in 1962 whilst the band was playing Hamburg).
- Lennon and McCartney sing the bulk of the vocals together, and sang them into the same microphone at the same time for the recording (McCartney's idea). This has since made it hard for anyone else to sing on their own as it's difficult to tell who is doing which harmony.
- Harrison had difficulty mastering the solo during recording, resulting in multiple takes.
- Ringo does some more tambourine work in addition to his drums.
- The band often performed this whilst on tour from 1964 up until they stopped playing live in 1966.
- A live-version of this was released as the B-side to the Anthology-related single Real Love in 1996.
- Runs for just over two minutes and took 14 takes to finish.

4. Rock and Roll Music
- One of six covers used to 'fill out' the album. The band opted to cover mostly rock and R&B standards that they had been playing live for the last few years.
- Originally written and peformed by Chuck Berry.
- Lennon does the lead vocals, pushing the range beyond Berry's more even delivery. The Beatles version is also played in a different key to Berry's.
- The band changed the lyric "If you wanna rock with me" to "If you wanna dance with me".
- Released as a single in some countries (but not the UK or U.S.). Got to #1 in Australia and Norway.
- McCartney, Lennon and George Martin all play the same piano part for the recording.
- After this song was recorded the band decided to start including it in their live set again.
- Runs for two minutes and took only 1 take to complete.

5. I'll Follow the Sun
- Written by McCartney.
- A downbeat ballad, McCartney apparently wrote this when he was 16. Owing to the band's more rock-orientated reputation he didn't feel comfortable reworking it for the band until their 4th album (when they were desperate for material).
- There is a recorded version of this song from the band's earliest days (1960), featuring Stuart Sutcliffe on bass. The original version is a bit more skiffle-ish and has a different bridge.
- Lennon and McCartney both provide acoustic guitar tracks, McCartney does the lead vocals while Lennon harmonises with him.
- Ringo slaps his knees for some added percussion.
- McCartney still performs this song live, and has done so as recently as 2007.
- Run time: 1 minute and 45 seconds. Took 8 takes.

6. Mr. Moonlight
- A blue standard written in the early 60s. The earliest recorded version turned up in 1962 as a B-side to a minor single by Piano Red.
- The band started performing this during their Hamburg days.
- Lennon does the main vocals.
- The Beatles version is probably the most well-known version.
- Many Beatles fans allegedly consider this to be the worst song the band ever recorded. I'd like to refer such people to some of the Beatles tracks Ringo sung between 1965 and 1968...
- Features an organ solo. I think McCartney might have played this.
- Harrison was originally to have played a slide-guitar solo but this was abandoned during recording in favour of the aforementioned organ solo.
- Harrison provides some percussion on an African drum, and Ringo's percussive sounds were played on a guitar case.
- Runs for two and a half minutes and took 8 takes.

7. Kansas City / Hey Hey Hey Hey
- This is the last track on Side 1.
- Kansas City is a blues track originally recorded by Little Willie Littlefield in 1952. Hey Hey Hey Hey is a 1958 Little Richard track that was originally released as the B-Side to Good Golly Miss Molly.
- Little Richard often performed these two songs together as a live medley, which is why they feature as a medley here (and were played by the band live as such).
- McCartney does the lead vocals for both songs, with Lennon and Harrison providing backup.
- McCartney really went for it with the vocals as he was aware that the recording levels had been set rather low.
- Harrison plays an african drum on the recording in addition to his lead guitar duties. George Martin provides the piano track.
- Runs for only two and a half minutes, and took 1 take to lay down.
- A second take was attempted but the band ended up going with the first version.

8. Eight Days a Week
- Opening track to side 2 of the album.
- Written by McCartney and Lennon as a possible title track for a 2nd Beatles movie (the idea being that the movie could be called Eight Arms to Hold You... no doubt a reference to the band's four members. The movie ended up being called Help! instead).
- Like A Hard Day's Night, the title 'Eight Days a Week' is another Ringo-ism.
- Along with No Reply, Baby's in Black and I'm a Loser, it was a possible candidate for a UK-release single. I Feel Fine presumably took the place of all these possible singles.
- It was however released as a single in the U.S. anyway (with I Don't Want to Spoil the Party as the B-side), where it reached #1.
- Lennon sings the lead vocals, though McCartney wrote the bulk of the song.
- Harrison plays multiple guitar tracks.
- The band never performed this song live, and didn't think very highly of it.
- Outtakes of the recording reveal the level of experimentation the band was heading towards... there are 6 alternative versions that showcase very different arrangements. Eventually, for the released version, an intro was dubbed onto the final take from an alternate version.
- The first known recorded song (ever!) to feature a fade-in. To this day, very few pop songs feature such a thing.
- Runs for two minutes and 45 seconds, and took 15 takes to complete.

9. Words of Love
- Originally written and performed by Buddy Holly in 1958.
- The band performed this live throughout 1961 and 1962. Lennon and Harrison would harmonise the vocals when they played it live.
- The Beatles performed many Buddy Holly songs live in their early days but this is the only cover of his that they ever recorded in the studio.
- Lennon and McCartney do the vocals for the recorded version. The song is very close to Holly's version.
- Ringo plays two instruments on this track - drums, and percussion achieved by paying on a packing case (to try and emulate a similar sound on another Buddy Holly track, Every Day).
- This is the last song recorded for the Beatles for Sale album, and was purely chosen to make up the numbers.
- The original mono mix of this track runs for 9 seconds longer than the stereo mix.
- Runs for just over two minutes and took 3 takes to finish.

10. Honey Don't
- Another cover, this was originally a rockabilly track written and performed by Charles Perkins. He initially released as the B-side for his 1956 single, Blue Suede Shoes.
- The band used to perform this in their live set for their Hamburg days, with Lennon providing the lead vocals.
- Ringo actually asked Perkins himself if the band could record this song for the album. Perkins was chuffed and immediately gave them permission.
- Ringo sings the vocals for the recorded version. It features an early Ringo trademark - before each of the two solos he calls out to George (Harrison). It's kind of funny, and it's allegedly something he took great pleasure in doing. The first time he says, "Rock on George, one time for me!" and the second time it's "Rock on George for Ringo one time!" despite the fact that it happens twice in the song.
- All four Beatles covered this song again at some point in their solo careers.
- Runs for almost three minutes and took 5 takes.

11. Every Little Thing
- McCartney wrote this in the hope of having it released as a stand-alone single after A Hard Day's Night. It wasn't to be, and was held over for inclusion on Beatles for Sale instead.
- The lead vocals are sung by Lennon. It's one of the rare occasions where Lennon sings a song primarily written by McCartney. McCartney does some harmony vocals.
- The lyrics are about McCartney's then-girlfriend, Jane Asher.
- It took several takes to record this as the band (McCartney in particular) kept goofing off.
- Features a timpani drum (that big epic sounding drum in the chorus), played by Ringo.
- It's possible that the guitar solo is played by Lennon (the style is more Lennonesque than Harrisonish), though it's almost definitely played on Harrison's actual guitar.
- George Martin plays the piano on the recording.
- Runs for two minutes, took 9 takes to finish.

12. I Don't Want to Spoil the Party
- Written by Lennon, this is another step towards country music territory for the band.
- Was left off the U.S. version of the Beatles for Sale album as it was thought to be too depressing.
- Featured as the B-side on the Eight Days a Week single.
- Lennon sings the lead vocals, with some harmonising from McCartney.
- More Lennon lyrics about insecurity and frustration.
- Ringo adds in a tambourine track to go with his drums.
- Runs for two and a half minutes and took a whopping 19 takes to complete.

13. What You're Doing
- Written by McCartney.
- One of the few Beatles songs to start with a drum intro, this was influenced by the song Be My Baby by the Ronettes.
- There's no real chorus, it's all verses and bridges.
- George Martin plays the piano.
- Features some odd rhyming patterns (McCartney rhymes two-syllable words with pairs of one-syllable words and lets them run over into the next part of the phrase).
- The lyrics almost certainly concern Jane Asher.
- Some earlier takes featured a slightly different version of the song, with McCartney and Lenon both singing lead and the lead guitar a full octave higher.
- The song's innovative style (achieved mostly in the studio) is an early precursor to the band's Rubber Soul - Revolver period.
- Runs for two and a half minutes, and took 19 takes to finish. The reason it took so long to finish is due to McCartney's insistence at getting the song's level of perfection exactly to where it was in his head.

14. Everybody's Trying to be My Baby
- Last track of the album.
- Originally a Carl Perkins adaptation of an older song by Rex Griffin. Songwriting credit for this track is still in dispute to this day.
- Harrison does the vocals. Poor old George, put at the end of the album!
- The band often played this in their live set at the time.
- The false ending on the recording is something they used to do with the song live in their Hamburg days.
- Harrison later performed the song with Perkins himself in 1986.
- George Martin plays the piano track.
- Runs for nearly two and a half minutes, took only 1 take.