Beatles – Album tracks and B-Sides Vol. 2
This is the 1967-70 mix of Beatles b-sides and album tracks (and in one case a demo). The running order is roughly in the order in which the songs were recorded. While in the first mix that was not much of a problem — the Beatles would often release songs within a couple of weeks of recording them — it is a bit of a problem with tracks that came out after Sgt. Pepper’s. Most glaringly, here tracks from Let It Be, released in 1970, precede those from Abbey Road, which was recorded after but released before the final album. Likewise, tracks from Yellow Submarine (released in 1969) precede those from the White Album (released in 1968).
A final anomaly, and useful piece of trivia: the final track, Harrison’s gorgeous I Me Mine, is on Let It Be but appears in this mix last. That is because it was the last song the Beatles ever recorded. What happened is this: during the filming of the Let It Be documentary, the Beatles are seen playing around with the song, but they never actually recorded it. When the film did include the I Me Mine sequence, George, Paul and Ringo hurried to the studios in early January 1970, and recorded it for inclusion on the soundtrack. By then John had already left the band, albeit unofficially. Paul’s announcement of the split on 10 April 1970 merely formalised the end of the Beatles.
The rules my able assistantand I set precluded the inclusion of songs that featured on the Blue Album. Here we find two exceptions: the original version of Across The Universe, recorded for a World Wildlife Fund charity album and featuring the backing vocals of two female fans who had been loitering outside the studio; and Don’t Let Me Down, represented here in its demo form, with much ad libbing, from the Let It Be…Naked album. Actually, the inclusion of Revolution #1 is a third exception. On the Blue Album we have the hard rock version (in which Lennon no longer prevaricates about destruction — you can count him out); this version is the slower, bouncier incarnation. Besides that, the White Album (actually titled The Beatles) was a rich mine for album tracks. A good case could be made for re-sequencing the double album, cutting out all the rubbish and avoiding such disasters as Revolution #9 rendering side 4 unlistenable (point of fact, Any Minor Dude digs Revolution #9).
TRACKLISTING:
1. Getting Better
2. She’s Leaving Home
3. Being For The Benefit Of Mr Kite!
4. Baby You’re A Rich Man
5. All Together Now
6. Across The Universe (original version)
7. Hey Bulldog
8. Revolution #1
9. Everybody’s Got Something To Hide Except Me And My Monkey
10. Sexy Sadie
11. Dear Prudence
12. Cry Baby Cry
13. Helter Skelter
14. Happiness Is A Warm Gun
15. Long, Long, Long
16. I’m So Tired
17. Don’t Let Me Down
18. Two Of Us
19. I’ve Got A Feeling
20. Dig A Pony
21. Because
22. Oh! Darling
23. Golden Slumbers
24. Carry That Weight
25. The End
26. I Me Mine
Thank you very much – I agree with all the comments on your ‘Green’ collection, which I’ve been enjoying greatly. I was watching Paul McCartney at Glastonbury 3 yrs ago and halfway through Hey Jude found myself thinking “how many more times do I have to hear this song?” It’s great to hear all of these old favourites again without digging out the old vinyl…
Ah, now we’re into the good stuff. This is their creative peak, and most of these songs stand up well against the classics.
A delightful collection — enjoyed the first immensely.One of my favorite last Beatles songs is Ronnie Spector’s Tandoori Chicken. Every Beatle is said to play on the record, though none of them were in the studio at the same time.
Well done, G. “I’m So Tired” is probably my favorite Beatles song, and “Happiness” and “Sexy Sadie” would also be up there.