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ALBUM REVIEW

THE BEATLES

With The Beatles

Released - November 22, 1963, in the UK,  on Parlophone Records. Produced by George Martin.

John Lennon - Lead Vocals, Vocal Harmony, Backing Vocals, Rhythm  and Acoustic Guitars, Harmonica, Hand Claps, Tambourine on "Don't Bother Me"
Paul McCartney - Lead Vocals, Vocal Harmony, Backing Vocals, Bass Guitar, Hand Claps, Piano on "Little Child", Claves on "Don't Bother Me"
George Harrison - Lead Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Hand Claps, Backing Vocals, Vocal Harmony, Lead Vocals on "Chains" and "Do You Want to Know a Secret"
Ringo Starr - Drums, Tambourine, Maracas, Bongos on "Till There Was You" and "Don't Bother Me", Hand Claps, Lead Vocals on "I Wanna Be Your Man"

Additional musicians:

George Martin – Organ on "I Wanna Be Your Man", Piano on "You Really Got a Hold on Me", "Not a Second Time" and "Money"

All songs written by Lennon & McCartney except where noted below.

REVIEW

This is The Beatles second release and it's even better than their first! Unlike their debut album, Please Please Me, released earlier in the same year, and not counting the previously issued singles on there, the rest of that one was recorded in one day (on February 11, 1963). But  they took their time on this second effort, as With The Beatles was recorded over a three month period, from July thru October. Also on this one, and for reasons I can't answer, none of its 14 tracks were ever issued as singles in the UK. 

With The Beatles starts off with the wonderful rock-pop number " It Won't Be Long", with John Lennon on lead vocals But this one is a classic example of where Paul McCartney and George Harrison's vocal harmonies fit in perfectly and help prove the fact that no other Rock group could sing vocal harmonies better than they.

"All I've Got to Do" follows and is another ten, along with pretty much the same singing arrangement and outcome to the song. Then "All My Loving" is next and is yet another one of the top songs found on here, this time with McCartney singing the lead.

There are 8 more songs on With The Beatles that I also rate a ten, so yes. that leaves all but 3 tunes on the entire album that I don't! One of those top rated songs is sung by George Harrison, the great cover of "Devil in Her Heart".

Lennon-McCartney wrote 7 of the 14 songs on here (Harrison wrote one other) and all but two of them I rate a ten. The best cover song on the LP is the closing track, which is sung by Lennon, "Money", and just like Lennon closed out the first LP with a wild and full of power vocal on that album (with "Twist and Shout"), the same deal applies here on this one. Nobody could make a screaming vocal sound so damn good, other than Lennon, and that's what we hear on this number to finish out the album, and leaving all Beatle fans worldwide just begging for more from where these first two LPs and their great songs came from!

- Keno 2017

To listen to some soundclips from With The Beatles or to purchase it, click on this link: With The Beatles

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