The Beatles – Please Please Me

It’s true that the early Beatles sound better in mono, but I didn’t have a couple hundred dollars to blow on one LP, so I got the stereo pressing. As long as you’re listening to it through a legitimate stereo system it sounds fine. Track 7, side 1, “Please Please Me” is the only song that sounds a little off in stereo: the vocals are a little drowned out.

Esta edición es de las peores que he escuchado, el sonido Stereo llega a ser fastidioso, nos instrumentos se escuchan todos enclaustrados y resaltan mucho las voces.

Incredible pressing. It’s DEAD quiet. Why can’t they make everything like these. Blows my mind. I don’t have mono to compare, but it’s a damn good sounding record

Happy with this for now,prefer a German stereo
Edit..Pure direct is better nice bass and stereo not to distracting,would love a mono press,any good cheap analogue ones any body recommend?

Listening to this right now. I recently purchased it now as I only have the new MONO release of this album and of course the cds. That being said. I think this sounds really really good. The bass is way better than the cd edtions...pounding and clear which really suprised me. One this I will say is that the highs are a little subdued. I understand that they painstakingly removed all the ssss's throughout the new vinyl releases..good and bad iMO. Yes these get bad raps because they are cut from hi res "24/44.1" masters..but they are hi res masters not like the digital files of the past. Also its really up to the dude cutting the masters that make or break a record. So ...want to hear The Beatles in "hi res"....this is the only place...so I give it a thumbs up. Also I understood originally that these were cut from the 24/192 files...apparently in an interview with Michael Fremer it was stated they were from 24/44.1 files...who knows why...but again see above.

This doesn't sound bad to my ears. I picked it up somewhat hesitantly, but I'm pleasantly surprised by the sound. I have no comparison. I imagine this music hits harder in mono. I'll enjoy this pressing thoroughly for now.

What so few people realize today, that when one looks back on the Beatles, it’s important to that in 1963, the Beatles Please Please Me was as innovative and ground shaking as were The Sex Pistols, Nirvana, or any of a number of bands who changed the face of the musical landscape. Yet with today’s ears it all sounds so unremarkable, perhaps because it’s been there for six or more generations now.

Nothing the Beatles did was off handed, nor was any of it an after thought or predestined, each member of this gifted group discovered themselves as individuals within the larger context of the band. The Beatles were one of the first musical units, four guys who grew and developed in, with, and in the shadows of each other, to the point where the Beatles were not the Beatles without each member and what each individual brought to the table. The Beatles were not common, nor were they pedestrian, they were gifted and visionary. Please Please Me, as I said, was revolutionary, even the title was sexual in its nature, with the disguised nature of the song allowing it to blossom and fill the AM airways with a raw insightful high energy. All this was made even more amazing when one considers their hooks, their interdependence, their emotional nuances, vocals that were immediate, where all was balanced by great harmonies and songwriting.

Please Please Me wasn’t some simple abstract dance album with intentions of getting the girls up and going, the record was entirely too clever to be lopped in with that sort of sound. What the Beatles presented was a sound that that was instant, clean and bright, a sound that featured each instrument and each voice, not to mention Ringo’s drumming, which was so magical that one can say to any drummer, “Play that in Ringo,” and they will. Often times the chords were purposely dissonant, where vocals had snarls and attitude, and yes, oft times there were the emotionally deprived (as if having been done with a knowing sly smile) cheeky deliveries that were purposely done, almost in the spirit of acting.

Paul actually launches “I Saw Her Standing There,” counting “1, 2, 3, 4!” encrypting the album with a nearly supernatural hue of colour and textures. The album was recorded and put to bed in a mere twelve hours, twelve hours that I would dearly loved to have witnessed, twelve hours of tight syncopated and pitch perfect harmonies … yet with a slightly ruff and ready stance of rhythmic grooves. Yes, it’s difficult to get people, even Beatle fans to listen to this album today, and that’s a real shame. Others will say things like, “The Beatles are so deeply embedded into our culture that it’s hard to imagine missing out on anything important by choosing not to experience them fully.” To which I would make the observation that the Beatles are so much a part of the lexicon of our culture that people think they know the Beatles, yet have never actually spent the half hour it takes to spin this record. This is borne out with the notion that most people never listened, understanding that “Boys,” where the lyrics vary not from the infamous Shirelles’ original, totally unconcerned with the homosexual overtones they were creating, because they were in love with the music alone, all while the number’s been injected with Ringo’s best ever vocals. Then there’s the killer “Twist & Shout,” which is spot on, bring an entirely new image to the song. Of course “A Taste Of Honey” is a bit laughable, but within that laugh-ability is a classic charm backed by an inspired double-time section, one that goes unnoticed until it’s pointed out. People have implied that “Chains” is a tad flat, though with those flatter characteristics, the boys are free to channel high-end exuberance.

So here I sit, wagging my finger, pleading that Please Please Me should not fall into relative obscurity, because there is so much to be ired here. Consider “There’s A Place,” where McCartney and Lennon reach for the skies in an invigorating style, or “Do You Want To Know A Secret” that showcases Harrison’s vocals, all brightened by a descending guitar riff in the center that is literally an ah-ha moment. And last, ‘less I go on too long, “Ask Me Why,” is entirely overlooked, though is nearly disarmingly pretty and elegant with the presentation of both the melodies and the harmonies … and these are only a few of the gems found within these grooves.

Listening to music is not science, there’s no test at the end of the album, it’s just that as I’ve suggested, some records need to be revisited in order to hear what you thought your knew, or to hear what you thought you heard.

Review by Jenell Kesler