Best and Worst: The Beatles

[CrimsonFox]

For no reason (other than I've been Beatley lately) I'm going to plow through
every Beatles album and slice them down the middle with songs that win and songs that don't.

Judgements are based on my own personal feelings not any other BS or accolades.

Further Best and Worst will occur when I feel like it (perhaps)

[CrimsonFox]

First up:

https://d2s36jztkuk7aw.cloudfront.net/sites/default/files/tile/image/PleasePleaseMe_1.jpg

[CrimsonFox]

The Songs

Side one
No. Title Lead vocals Length
1. "I Saw Her Standing There" Paul McCartney 2:55
2. "Misery" John Lennon with McCartney 1:49
3. "Anna (Go to Him)" (Arthur Alexander (originally recorded by Arthur Alexander)) Lennon 2:55
4. "Chains" (Gerry Goffin, Carole King (originally recorded by The Cookies)) George Harrison 2:23
5. "Boys" (Luther Dixon, Wes Farrell (originally recorded by The Shirelles)) Ringo Starr 2:24
6. "Ask Me Why" Lennon 2:24
7. "Please Please Me" Lennon with McCartney 1:59
Total length: 16:49
Side two
No. Title Lead vocals Length
1. "Love Me Do" McCartney with Lennon 2:21
2. "P.S. I Love You" McCartney 2:04
3. "Baby It's You" (Mack David, Barney Williams, Burt Bacharach (originally recorded by The Shirelles)) Lennon 2:40
4. "Do You Want to Know a Secret" Harrison 1:56
5. "A Taste of Honey" (Bobby Scott, Ric Marlow (based on Lenny Welch's vocal version)) McCartney 2:03
6. "There's a Place" Lennon and McCartney 1:51
7. "Twist and Shout" (Phil Medley, Bert Russell (originally recorded by The Top Notes))

[CrimsonFox]

That's how they appear on the album....time to listen, then rank and divide.

The Updated List

BEST
1. Boys
2. Please Please Me
3. A Taste of Honey
4.
5.
6.
7.

WORST
1. Misery
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

[CrimsonFox]

Please Please Me:

- McCartney's harmony REALLY make this song for me...And John's casual and flippant tough guy delivery of "Come on!" sometimes morphing into "Cyome on!"

Still like this one. It grooves.

edit-
Hearing it again after hearing the others below, it earns the 2nd spot on the BEST list.

[CrimsonFox]

I Saw Her Standing There - A mover from Mcartney. Kinda cheesey. The handclaps esp. It's fast and great tho. The harmonies of mcc and lennon are cool tho. That's the magic moment. And the middle eight.

George's guitar solo is really good. Really echoes the 50s.

The song itself gets tired tho. I like the falsetto of Myeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee and the harmony there.

I didn't think I really liked this song much. But there are still some magic elements in it.

[CrimsonFox]

Misery

I don't remember this song at ALL. Dunno if I've ever heard it. That piano lick is pretty dreadful. Why isn't George playing that on guitar?

The harmony is boring. This song sucks.
Early favorite to the sucky list.

I don't need any more listens of this one

Definitely on the WORST list

[CrimsonFox]

Anna -

ANother crooner from John. There's more of a nice slow groove to this one. Again it's one I don't remember. The george guitar licks are kinda cool. The background "Ahhhhhs and Ooooos" sound so strained that it's obvious they were bored and tired with them. They probably did it in one take. I don't really like it much but it's in the lower-middle.

[CrimsonFox]

Chains -

better than the previous two. I vaguely remember this one from the cartoon they did. Some really cool rhythm in the beginning and oddness.

Kinda like it?

[CrimsonFox]

Boys

Now we're talking! Ringo ROCKS on this song Always liked it!
LOVED the gender spin on it!

Hey Hey!
so cool

SCREAM IT RINGO!

WHEN I TALK ABOUT BOYS!

ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

love this one

also noteworthy is Ringo's shouts of "Alright George!"....something he does a bunch later on.

It's funny that I like this song better than all the previous John songs.

That chorus is killer!

Definitely earns a spot on the BEST list!

[CrimsonFox]

Ask Me Why

There is actually some good John singing in this...

but the lyrics are uninspired with forced rhymes everywhere.

Not a lot of interesting music going on here.

Kinda peeters out.

[CrimsonFox]

So far after listening to the first side we have 2 songs earning a spot on the BEST list and 1 earning a spot on the Worst list.

The rest are fumbling about in mediocrity right now

[CrimsonFox]

Side 2!!!!!!!

Love Me Do

-such a basic rhythm, such a forced rhyme....but seariously Paul is fierce on this lyric. And John's Harmonica playing is just killer...which is not something I typically play.

That rhythm is so funny.

But I like this one.

[CrimsonFox]

PS I Love You

An odd song....

you..you...you......always liked that part

Such a weird croony Paul song. The type to get girls hanging about the radio wetting their pants.

funny I thought I liked this one more.

The title is the coolest part of this song actually.

and The youyouyou.

Like this one... Side two is shaping up to knock a lot of side 1 off.
Very nice ending paul

[CrimsonFox]

Baby It's You

shalalalalalaa

got enough 50s cliches in this song?
how about a wopbopalobop...it's missing one of those

Some intersting styling I guess. Guitar is servicable.

I can't wait to get to the more interesting beatles song really.

[CrimsonFox]

Do You Want to KNow A Secret


How shit the best beginning of every song so far. What a chord!

Oh man solid singing and melody. GREAT Paul singing. THis was the era that somettimes it was hard to tell who was singing Paul or JOhn. Maybe Paul is doing a john impresonation.

oh wait...just looked it up! It's GEORGE singing! Heh!

So that's what early George sounds like...

That chord alone really does wonders for this song but I love George's singing on this.

[CrimsonFox]

A Taste of HOney

A somber song in a minor key? Holy shit yes!

That opening chord is unbelievable
So solid on the harmonies....the middle eight is unexpected and great

todo tado

oh man that strumming on the chords

So good
Paul's singing does melt me here.

The lyrics are just great.

I think I used to think this song was on Beatles For Sale. It's similar in style and tightness.

Oh man this earns a spot on the BEST list instantly!

[CrimsonFox]

okay only two songs left on this album....let's see how we are fairing...

BEST
1. Boys
2. Please Please Me
3. A Taste of Honey
4.
5.
6.
7.

WORST
1. Misery
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.


Only 4 spots left on the best list...who will earn them...We can probably eliminate a song or two right now...

I Saw Her Standing There
Anna
Chains
Ask Me Why
Love Me Do
PS I Love You
Baby It's You
Do You Want To Know A Secret

[CrimsonFox]

The next addition to the Worst List is....

Ask Me Why

Totally uninspired, flat...trying too hard and not enough at once.

[CrimsonFox]

BEST
1. Boys
2. Please Please Me
3. A Taste of Honey
4.
5.
6.
7.

WORST
1. Misery
2. Ask Me Why
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

[CrimsonFox]

The NEXT song on the WORST list is...

Anna

Just slow and plodding. There's no life in this song. It's not even them. The George lick is not enough to sustain this.

[CrimsonFox]

BEST
1. Boys
2. Please Please Me
3. A Taste of Honey
4.
5.
6.
7.

WORST
1. Misery
2. Ask Me Why
3. Anna
4.
5.
6.
7.

I Saw Her Standing There
Chains
Love Me Do
PS I Love You
Baby It's You
Do You Want To Know A Secret

[CrimsonFox]

I have decided there is another song that gets a spot on the BEST list...

Here it is....


Do You Want To Know A Secret?

Really good. This is one of the better crooning songs on the album with the added bonus that it MOVES. It has a groove.

[CrimsonFox]

BEST
1. Boys
2. Please Please Me
3. A Taste of Honey
4. Do You Want To Know A Secret?
5.
6.
7.

WORST
1. Misery
2. Ask Me Why
3. Anna
4.
5.
6.
7.

I Saw Her Standing There
Chains
Love Me Do
PS I Love You
Baby It's You

[CrimsonFox]

3 Spots left!

Time for a new song

There's a place

- Starts just like Please Please Me

It's interesting. Fast...The weird ahahahaha. It's freaky heh

okay harmony

Goes into some weird keys

There's a song here.
Somewhere

[CrimsonFox]

Twist and Shout

Highly overrated is how I've always felt about it.

The harmonies have always been great here...

Paul's oooooooooo definitely a factor

nice guitar part
like ringo's playing.

and of course the famous if not infamous ahhhhhh ahhhhhhh ahhhhhhh ahhhhhhhhhhhh ahhhhhhhhhh
definitely has something

[CrimsonFox]

I Saw Her Standing There
Chains
Love Me Do
PS I Love You
Baby It's You
There's a Place
Twist and SHout

3 of these will make the best list

[CrimsonFox]

The next song on the Worst List...

Baby It's You

Just too much 60sgroup cliche. It's just not them...

[CrimsonFox]

BEST
1. Boys
2. Please Please Me
3. A Taste of Honey
4. Do You Want To Know A Secret?
5.
6.
7.

WORST
1. Misery
2. Ask Me Why
3. Anna
4. Baby It's You
5.
6.
7.

I Saw Her Standing There
Chains
Love Me Do
PS I Love You
There's a Place
Twist and SHout

[CrimsonFox]

I've leave that there for now and relisten to these...

[thesloppy]

I appreciate this. Also, Boys is theee absolute worst!

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