My biggest gripe with Please Please Me is that the song selection doesn’t always play to their strengths. With the Beatles is a bit of an improvement in this area. A big part of it is material that fits the personalities of the individual members. Don’t Bother Me, for example, is a great song that complements George’s vocal style and helps further his image as “the quiet one.” The performances and arrangements are also tighter. It’s amazing how far along they came after just a few months. The jump from this to A Hard Day’s Night is incredible.
The song selection is not perfect though. The Roll Over Beethoven cover is really not good, mostly because of the vocal performance. It’s very laid back and lacks the fire of Chuck Berry’s performance. The rhythm section also drags. I don’t think it was a good choice of a song to cover to begin with, but at the very least having Paul sings it would’ve gone a long way.
Ringo once again gets the throwaway track with I Wanna Be Your Man. An even more generic attempt of a song in the style of Boys. To that end, Money is also a retread of Please Please Me material. This time it’s an obvious attempt at recapturing the success of Twist and Shout with Money. It doesn’t work nearly as well and is one of their more forgettable covers.
That being said, the covers selection is much stronger overall. Please Mr Postman is awesome. Great interplay between the vocals. Til There Was You is (according to the liner notes) a follow up to A Taste Of Honey but is so much better. It’s laid back but there’s a lot more drive and Paul gives a stellar performance. I really enjoy the rhythm guitar work and George’s solo too. Their versions of You Really Got a Hold On Me and Devil In Her Heart are also very strong.
Of course the main event is the Lennon/McCartney originals. I’d say they are stronger overall than on the previous album.
It Won’t Be Long is such a great rocker. I love the dynamic between the vocals. The yeahs in the chorus and the call and response harmonies in the verses are Beatles vocal arrangements at their strongest. Hold Me Tight has a similar level of energy and also contains great harmonies as well as a tight groove. All My Loving is a classic for good reason. One of Paul’s finest melodies and performances. It also has a very dense arrangement that seems Phil Spector influenced.
They’re still growing and finding their sound here but it’s a noticeable step up overall. I consider these first two albums as warm ups for A Hard Day’s Night, which is really where The Beatles begin as an albums driven band. With the Beatles is not one I come back to often, but it’s very enjoyable throughout and contains some of my all time favorite Beatles songs.
