Help!
The Beatles appeared in their first feature film, A Hard Day's Night, during 1964. Reviews were near universal in their acclaim and elevated the band's prestige as artists. Work began on a second picture for 1965 release with Richard Lester directing again. Walter Shenson produced the project while Marc Behm and Charles Wood wrote the script instead of Alun Owen. The working title Eight Arms to Hold You came from Ringo Starr's "Ringoisms". This name stuck until early April long enough to appear on the US Ticket to Ride single. John Lennon and Paul McCartney presumed it would be too difficult to write a compelling song with that title. Help! was chosen instead. Most of the songwriting for Help! was done at Kenwood, Lennon's house in Weybridge. McCartney also wrote some songs like Yesterday and I've Just Seen a Face at his girlfriend Jane Asher's family home, 57 Wimpole Street in London.
All recording sessions took place in Studio Two of EMI Recording Studios now known as Abbey Road Studios. The first set of sessions began on the 15th of February with Ticket to Ride and continued through the 20th. Several songs recorded during these initial sessions were not included on the Help! album. Lennon's Yes It Is was relegated to the B-side of the Ticket to Ride single. A cover of Larry Williams' Bad Boy was put on the North American album Beatles VI. Mark Lewisohn writes that the 14th of June 1965 saw a remarkable day's work showcasing McCartney's musical abilities in varying styles. They recorded his songs I've Just Seen a Face, I'm Down, and Yesterday. Yesterday began with just McCartney singing and playing acoustic guitar but he and producer George Martin decided to add a string quartet. Martin later described it as when he started to leave his hallmark on their music. Lewisohn identifies multiple new recording practices used on Help!. One involved adding numerous overdubs to rhythm tracks without considering them as comprising new takes. Martin also began placing the guitar parts on different tracks than the bass and drums. This accomplished a more satisfying stereo image according to Walter Everett. Half of the songs feature instruments the Beatles had never used before including electric piano flutes and a volume tone pedal.
At this time the Beatles were heavily influenced by Bob Dylan especially Lennon who later referred to it as his Dylan period. Mark Hertsgaard writes that while Dylan's influence was evident on Beatles for Sale Help! is where it became fully realized. Additionally Help! is the first Beatles album on which drugs made a significant impact. Dylan in 1964 had introduced them to cannabis which they smoked habitually while filming Help!. They first encountered LSD in spring 1965. According to Alexis Petridis drugs motivated the Beatles on Help! to take their songwriting to new emotional depths such as on You've Got to Hide Your Love Away and Ticket to Ride. Lennon specified You've Got to Hide Your Love Away as exemplifying his Dylan period. A connection has been suggested between the lyric and Beatles manager Brian Epstein's homosexuality which he kept private due to British law at the time. The song I Need You was George Harrison's first songwriting contribution since Don't Bother Me in 1963. He wrote it for his girlfriend Pattie Boyd whom he met while filming A Hard Day's Night. Its unusual guitar sound was achieved using a volume tone pedal the first time a guitar pedal was used on a Beatles song.
The North American version includes the songs in the film plus selections from the film's orchestral score composed and conducted by Ken Thorne. This contains one of the first uses of the Indian sitar on a rock pop album and its very first use on a Beatles record. Ticket to Ride is the only song on the American release in Duophonic stereo reprocessed from the mono mix. All of the non-film tracks from side two of the Parlophone album were spread out through three American albums. Three were already issued on the previously released Beatles VI: You Like Me Too Much Tell Me What You See and Dizzy Miss Lizzy. I've Just Seen A Face and It's Only Love were placed on the Capitol Rubber Soul with its follow-up album Yesterday and Today receiving the remaining two tracks: Yesterday and Act Naturally. The American version of Help! reached the number one spot on the Billboard Top LPs chart for nine weeks starting on the 11th of September 1965. On the UK Parlophone release the letters formed by the Beatles appear to be NUJV while the slightly re-arranged US release on Capitol Records appeared to indicate the letters NVUJ. The Capitol LP was issued in a deluxe gatefold sleeve with several photos from the film and was priced $1 more than standard Capitol releases at the time.
Help! was another worldwide critical success for the Beatles. Derek Johnson of the NME said that the LP maintains the Beatles' usual high standards and was a gay infectious romp which doesn't let up in pace or sparkle from start to finish. Richard Freed of The New York Times likened the band's songs to works from the European art music tradition. Adding to what he described as the Beatles' impact on serious music Freed cited musicologists and composers such as Leonard Bernstein and Abram Chasins as admirers of the group's work. Along with several nominations for Yesterday Help! was nominated in the category of Album of the Year at the 1966 Grammys Awards. The nomination marked the first time that a rock band had been recognised in this category. In his review of the Beatles' 1987 CD releases for Rolling Stone magazine Steve Pond remarked on the unstoppable momentum evident in the band's pre-Rubber Soul albums. Writing in 2004 edition of The Rolling Stone Album Guide Rob Sheffield says that the US version of Help! was utterly ruined through the replacement of the Beatles songs with the soundtrack music. Mark Kemp of Paste considers it to be the equal of A Hard Day's Night and cites Help!, Ticket to Ride and Act Naturally as highlights. In 2000 Help! was voted 119th in the third edition of Colin Larkin's book All Time Top 1000 Albums. In 2020 it was ranked 266th on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
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Common questions
When was the Help! album by the Beatles released?
The North American version of Help! reached number one on the Billboard Top LPs chart for nine weeks starting on the 11th of September 1965. The UK Parlophone release occurred around this same period in 1965.
Where did John Lennon and Paul McCartney write most songs for the Help! album?
Most songwriting for Help! took place at Kenwood, which was John Lennon's house located in Weybridge. Paul McCartney also wrote some tracks including Yesterday and I've Just Seen a Face at his girlfriend Jane Asher's family home at 57 Wimpole Street in London.
What recording studio was used to record the Help! album by the Beatles?
All recording sessions for Help! happened in Studio Two of EMI Recording Studios now known as Abbey Road Studios. The first set of sessions began on the 15th of February and continued through the 20th.
How many weeks did the Help! album stay at number one on the charts?
The American version of Help! reached the number one spot on the Billboard Top LPs chart for nine weeks starting on the 11th of September 1965. This commercial success contributed to its status as another worldwide critical hit for the band.
Which year did the Help! album receive an Album of the Year Grammy nomination?
Help! received nominations in the category of Album of the Year at the 1966 Grammys Awards. This nomination marked the first time that a rock band had been recognized in this specific category.