From that stunning opening chord, to the back-and-forth lead singing by John and Paul, to those hot bongo licks (by their engineer, Norman Smith), then the groovy sped-up guitar-piano riff in the break, and finally to that incredible closing arpeggio on Harrison's brand-new 12-string Rickenbacker - *THIS* is how you kick off an album and open a movie!!
Randy Bachman of Guess Who and BTO fame has a deconstruction of that opening note while on an Abbey Road studio tour with (I think) George Martin's son.
The “A Hard Day’s Night” opening chord is still being discussed and debated to this day. Attempts to recreate it have led to various degrees of success.
I don’t believe George Martin the producer ever figure out what that cord was but I didn’t know is 2 chords struck together I thought was just one cord that John Lennon’s single chord That George Martin could never figure out but maybe not I could be wrong
I've generally approximated it with a G7sus4. Close, still no cigar. I don't particularly like cigars anyway, just wish I could kick the cigarette habit. 😊😬🙄🚬 🖖😘🎵🎸🎶❤️✨️🕊
You're really going about this in the right way, because that's exactly how we experienced it -- never knowing what they were going to do next and constantly being surprised by their growth musically, lyrically, and personally.
Check out this "music lesson" on the construction of the If I Fell harmonies. Makes on'e appreciation even more so. ua-cam.com/video/VoKjXx0zcXU/v-deo.html
Imagine what it was like to be a young kid that got caught up in Beatlemania in 1963. Now they were your favorite band and you wanted to hear everything they did. 8 years later, and you're a teenager, having been brought on the most incredible musical journey with them. They shaped how you would listen to music for the rest of your life.
Love that you picked up on how special the opening chord of the title track is. It became legendary, with guitarists all over the world trying to figure out what the hell the chord actually was. And the "jangling" sound you picked up on at the end also caught the ear of the Byrds, who by their own admission based their entire early sound on it 🙂
you have to watch the movie "A Hard Day's Night"... you will find that all four Beatles were also naturally gifted comic actors... they were so talented it's ridiculous.... "I Should Have Known Better" is one of Lennon's best vocal performances... his young voice is like the ringing of a bell
Yes, but let's give Paul some credit on HIS voice too, his voice rings like a bell on "And I Love Her" in the movie, it was the ONLY time the audience in the movie theatre (which was mostly pre-teen and teenage girls) was actually quiet during "And I Love Her," everyone was mesmerized looking at him and LISTENING to Paul sing that song, with audible "sighs" going on with a scream here and there. I KNOW, because I was ONE Of them and my friends and I would sit through ALL the showings from the first to the last, each time we went. Back then, they didn't throw you out at the end of the film. Plus there was only about 15 minutes between shows. Also, if you got there late and missed the beginning of the movie, people would just sit and wait until it started again, and then leave at the point where they came in. You can't do that now, So if you MISS the beginning of a film, you are out of luck, OR you have to go back out and pay again to see it from the start.
The Beatles wrote the album (quickly) on demand before filming to accompany various sequences in their upcoming madcap film. Their brilliant producer George Martin also composed new material and arranged some of their songs in instrumental fashion to fill in the gaps, and his adapted score was nominated for an Oscar (as was the film's original screenplay). You need to see how these songs play in the film, as they are very important to the rhythm, style, and plot of the film.
The film was an award-winning combination of documentary style and music. The scene with Ringo reprising the "Little Tramp" of Charlie Chaplin is a classic.
John is doing some really amazing things with his voice in that second one but within that very defined simplistic setting that is totally designed to hook the audience.
Elvis Presley's movie "Love Me Tender" was used to boost his profile in 1956, and I don't think he was the first to do so. In 1964, "Hard Day's Night" was certainly released to take advantage of the meteoric rise in popularity of the Beatles. At the time I just enjoyed the music and looking at the guys. Over the years I've learned to appreciate it more as a pretty good comedic film. My parents, after hearing the lyrics, gave my sister and I a lecture on not allowing boys to buy us gifts lest they expect us to give them "everything". We were pretty young and really didn't quite know what "everything" was. lol. Different times and we were sheltered. But this album is when I really started to get Beatlemania.
Just to note - you mentioned how covers were a sign of a band finding their feet, in 1962 before the Beatles, it was highly unusual for a band or artist to write their own songs at all. This was another thing we take as usual now, but something they really made mainstream, in that era very few artists wrote their own music - let alone an entire album. This was revolutionary in itself.
@David Jones THANK YOU for bringing that up! Most bands and artists recorded songs written by other people, which WAS the norm at the time. EVERYONE doesn't have the talent to write their own songs. Plus a lot of writers, especially if there was two of them, one would strictly write the music/melody and the other would strictly write the lyrics. The Beatles didn't work that way at all.
That first chord has stumped people for years. It seem it is two different related chords on two guitars and then the bass plays a different root note. It's hard to pin down which makes it sonically fascinating :)
Remember that singles and album were two different things back then and many, if not most, of their best songs were released as singles and were not included on any album. You miss a big part of their development and popularity if you skip the singles.
And they best mixes are the mono originals. They didn't do stereo until much later. These later stereo remixes, especially the 2009 ones, don't compare to the originals.
You bring up a very good point about the singles and the albums. You know The Beatles had 27 #1 hits (UK and USA). I've always thought that if more album tunes had also been released as singles, they would have had about 50 #1 hits!
You're doing this right listening in chronological order. Please don't skip any songs on the album. All the songs on this album are great and to understand their evolution you should hear all the songs as recorded. The show that they were master of melody and lyrics. George's playing on a 12-string electric guitar is a huge part of the sound on this album.
1964 was an amazingly busy year for them. In January they had an extended gig in Paris -- where they learned that "I Want to Hold Your Hand" hit #1 in the US. Brief return to UK then to US. Back home, making film, recording, touring, radio and TV, ten second tour of US. Meanwhile writing this entire LP.
In ‘64, when the movie was released, the theater wasn’t cleared out after each movie showing. As a 10-year old boy I paid my dollar when the theater opened and stayed through four consecutive showings. These songs were so infectious I couldn’t get enough. And to see the Beatles beyond a short set of songs on The Ed Sullivan Show or other TV program was extremely exciting. We had the album at home too; the first of their albums we purchased as I recall. A Hard Day’s Night was very influential for me, and I still listen to these songs with great affection.
FINALLY, someone ELSE being brave enough to admit that THEY stayed through multiple showings of HDN!! My girlfriends and I did the very same thing. We were 16 and 17 years old, and we stayed from the first showing all the way through their last showing that night (we were older than you, so we could stay later) We did than just about every time we went to see it during the length of the theatrical run!
I've mentioned this before on other channels, the title comes from something Ringo said after a particularly long day in the studio. As they were exiting the studio he said boy it's been a hard day, night. Because as they opened the door they realized it was nightime.
The movie is considered the best music film of all time. You should read the late Roger Ebert's review. It showed the lads to be beyond witty and likable and etched their unique personalities into the minds and hearts of global audiences. It's been called a stepping stone between the Marx Brothers and Monty Python. Speaking of the Pythons, years later in the 70's, George would put his house up to finance Python's 'Life of Brian.' And John would say that he would rather have been a Python than a Beatle. The fact that the movie was shot in black and white has actually helped to keep it from looking dated. Made it more timeless. And it contains several hyper-stylish music video scenes. By the way, the title 'Hard Days Night' was taken from a so-called Ringo(ism) where he apparently actually said " It''s been a "Hard days --Night." ;-)
Yes that's true about RIngo. They had been working hard all day, in the studio, and when they left, Ringo made that comment, but paused and realized it was dark outside, and added "Night" after pausing after he said "day"
They need an opening song for the movie - John went home and wrote it overnight. They recorded it in three hours working off John's scribbles and notes. As for the impact of the movie: they broke onto America in February, this movie came out in August. People had seen them on (mostly B&W) TV or listened to them thru 2-3" speakers at home or on the radio. Suddenly they were 30' high and louder than you had ever heard them and usually in stereo at the theatre. The opening chord opens the movie and grabbed you and took you on the ride. People were screaming in the theatre as if at a concert. I was 14 at the time and I saw it over 20 times when it first came out. The movie perfectly captures the times, their life in the eye of Beatlemania and cemented their public persona as The Beatles.
WE used to sit in the theatre from the first showing through the last showing at night, watching "A HARD DAY'S NIGHT" I think we might have seen it more than 60 times during the theatrical run, because we DID sit there all day and into the evening, most times! SEEN it much much more than that since then until now, on TV, return theatrical runs, and owning it on DVD.
You know Ringo came up with the title. After filming all day, they came walking out and Ringo said, It's been a Hard Days, looked around and said, Night? He also came up with the title, Tomorrow Never Knows.
Cool song!! Liking your journey. So many different sounds and tunes from this band. They are awesome! I can see why they are thought of as the greatest of all time! Thanks!
The thing is, here's the thing; if you are female, any age, and John tells you he loves you like that, you believe him. The "British-isms" are always cool but Hard Day's Night itself is a Ringoism. So glad you are doing this journey and I'm here for it BUT no more omitting any tracks (still trying to forgive you for not doing all of With the Beatles). Pinkie promise?
Pinkie promise at least or we will have to make him "Cross your heart and hope to die"!! Yikes!! Wonder who came up with that one or how//why kids our age said it. Lol
As you listen more and more, probably eventually falling in love with their voices, especially Lennon's, since you have mentioned that you gravitate towards him more... you'll want to go back and hear a couple tracks you missed. Such as Money from the last album. It's not an original Beatles song, but Lennon's vocal performance on that one is killer and really a must at some point. Really an important vocal performance within the history of rock. Lennon is one of the best screamers in rock, and his scream shines here very early on.
@@bobguitarlearner8007 Oh, and your statement "the Beatles never became a hard rock band..." is not an accurate statement. They invented hard rock in part. Lennon's blood curdling screams are perhaps the most intense in rock. They also had some of the earliest heavy songs. Especially on the White Album.
Uh, I can't believe that you don't know the McCartney is also one of the BEST SCREAMERS in rock and roll AND in the Beatles, Besides John. My goodness. Have you never seen or heard Paul's performances on "Long Tall Sally," "HELTER SKELTER" "OH DARLING" (and then compare THAT with his vocals on "HERE, THERE and EVERYWHERE," or "I WILL," If you didn't know, you would think those songs were sung by a DIFFERENT guy! Paul had the widest RANGE of all the Beatles, and the most vocal versatility of all the Beatles. At the beginning of their first recordings, (until we got used to how they each sounded) PAUL'S was the most difficult vocal to pick out. So both John AND Paul could scream with the best of them. YOu should listen to more of Paul's solo songs to see what I mean, and how diverse his vocals were. For "screamy/Gritty/rough type vocals, listen to "Monkberry Moon Delight," "SOILY," and "BEWARE MY LOVE" (especially for the last two when done LIVE in the "ROCK SHOW" movie which is a film of his concerts during his "WINGS OVER AMERICA" tour in 1976.) to name three. He wasn't always melodic, silky, smooth, gentle, sung in a high register, or falsetto like most people seem to think (and it's always THOSE people that have never listened to ALL Paul's music, that say that). Just as Lennon could also sing in a gentle, smooth way.
@@patticrichton1135 Who's Paul McCartney? Was he in the Beatles too? Haha - of course I know Paul is one the best rock screamers of all time. I absolutely love all his songs and his solo work too. Every song of his. I was just pushing more on Lennon's intense side because I think Syed is gravitating more in that direction. Hopefully as he listens, he'll pick up on Paul's brilliance too. In terms of intensity, John took his scream to another level though - with Mother, Cold Turkey and others.
My mum and dad owned a copy of this album. As a kid, I played it until the needle wouldn't sit in the groove. I couldn't pick a favourite track... they've been ingrained in my head for as long as I can remember. "If I fell", "Things we said today", "I should have known better" - all killer, no filler. In my own musical career, this album has been a constant touchstone, and a goal to aim for and never achieve. It's a great movie, too. One of the best music films ever made. Well worth watching.
As I mentioned before, don’t forget the singles, many of which weren’t on albums. Including She Loves You, I Wanna Hold Your Hand, I Feel Fine, (first use of feedback in a record). Also, the first four albums and the singles were recorded within 12 months, on top of near non-stop touring. Shows the speed of their early development in crazy circumstances.
I Should Have Known Better is probably my favorite early Beatles track (first 3 albums). It's top 3 for sure. His vocal in the middle 8 sections is catchy as hell... "that when I tell you that I love you..."
The movie is excellent too! All their movies are great.. A Hard day's night is considered the best, but I actually have watched Help! and Magical Mystery Tour much more.. at one point I was obsessed with the latter. Watched it every day for at least a week. I've probably seen it 15 times.. I'd say I've seen Help a few times too. A hard days night maybe twice. But it's definitely a classic. And the songwriting on this album is much better than on the earlier onces.
They had to write A Hard Days Night in one day because the title of the movie had changed. When some say that Paul and John were the best writing duo of all time this is one of the examples they use.
Opening chord is a combination of George playing F add 9 with a G on the bottom and top on his Rickenbacker 12 string electric, John playing a D sus4 on his Rickenbacker 325, and Paul playing D note on his Hofner electric bass. It's quite the striking opening chord filled with energy and excitement beautifully teeing up the song.
Just some positive reinforcement here: Glad that you decided to "take it back a bit" at one point after pausing. So many reactors don't do the simple (and hardly time-consuming) thing of just going back 5 or so seconds. If not, you're liable to miss a cool transition, a kick-ass drum fill, or crucial lyric, and WE are liable to go" D'oh! He MISSED it! GAH!" LOL. Good stuff!
The director of the film, Richard Lester, decided he needed one more song, one to open the film. They had just recently come up with the name for the movie, "A Hard Day's Night", and overnight, John wrote the title track according to Lester's specs which were that it needed to be a lively rocker and to last long enough to play over the opening credits. According to film critic Roger Ebert, this was the first time in the history of movies that a title song (one having the same name as the movie) was played over the opening credits of a film. (Note that while James Bond films became famous for doing this, the first two Bond films, which were of the same era as the rise of The Beatles, did not have opening songs that matched the movie title. "Goldfinger", the third Bond film and the first of them to follow this tradition, was released two months after AHDN.)
Did Mr. Ebert forget about these (and many others)? Rock Around the Clock (1956) ua-cam.com/video/mycRexe-V1E/v-deo.html "Blue Hawaii" (1961) ua-cam.com/video/t2TAPuIH470/v-deo.html
@@cazgerald9471 I may have misinterpreted what he wrote. Here is the full context. “In his opening sequence, which shows the Beatles mobbed at a station as they try to board a train, Lester achieves an incredible energy level: We feel the hysteria of the fans and the excitement of the Beatles, intercut with the title song (the first time movie titles had done that), implying that the songs and the adulation were sides of the same coin. Other scenes borrow the same documentary look; a lot feels improvised, although only a few scenes actually were.” The first of the clips you provided is still pictures of the performers with names superimposed while the song is sung. The second is Elvis singing over film clips of Hawaiian scenery. The opening credits you pointed to did not contain scenes that could actually be considered part of the film, which is what I guess Ebert was saying. My bad.
@@dennydowling2169 My film knowledge is too limited to understand what Ebert's trying to say. Is it the first opening sequence with intercuts, or first with intercuts over the title song, or the song itself is an intercut? Regardless, I'm sure he's right that it was the first 8-P
The hair, clothes style and image was the idea of their manager, Brian Epstein. John Lennon later said that's when they sold out. He preferred leather their previous scruffy look of jackets, jeans...boots. Really enjoy your music choices, reactions and the interaction between the music lovers here in comment section. there's not many early Beatle tracks I'd have on my playlist either..i do enjoy watching you track their growth - and changes in other bands like Pink Floyd
Their hair had NOTHING to do with their manager. Their hair was ALREADY in that style, which they got while in Hamburg, because they made close friends with Astrid (Kirchherr, whom Stuart Sutcliffe fell in love with) , Jurgen, and Klaus (Voorman0 whom the Beatles referred to as "Exis" (existentialists) who wore THEIR hair in what would become known as the "Beatle cut" Astrid cut their hair in that style when they had their months long gig in Hamburg. This was before their manager was involved with them. He did change them into suits, for a very good reason. Which Lennon finally accepted and realized it was necessary IF they wanted to secure a recording contract and get on TV, etc. It was the way it was then. You just didn't go on stage wearing any old thing if you wanted to "make it" in the recording business and become rock stars of that time. All groups dressed in matching suits, trousers and shirts, at the time. SO, if John thought they "sold out" it was a GOOD thing they DID, otherwise they would have NEVER made it HUGE, like they did.
Syed. You seem to be enjoying the Beatles as people more than the music. I think you would get a big kick out of the movie “A Hard Day’s Night”. You should watch it. It shows the craziness those guys were going through at the time. You could do a reaction the their first attempt at a movie
The greatest rock song ever recorded. the most iconic opening chord ,the greatest scream by John Lennon the most iconc break or solo by George, The most iconic fade out of an ending of a song
Also, to get a sense of how insanely big Beatlemania was...an estimated 1 million people turned out to see them arrive in Adelaide, not far off the then total population.
The phrase 'A Hard Day's Night' was a Ringo-ism that inspired the song and became the title of the movie as well. 'I Should Have Known Better' is another easily reproduced track that's a ton of fun to play 😅❤🎶✨️🕊
By this time, Beatlemania was in full swing and the Beatles were constantly on the road and around the world touring. To be able to put together an album this amazing and so full of beautiful and groundbreaking music in such a short period of time is a testament to the genius of John Lennon and Paul McCartney. But to that effect, the brilliance and genius of George Martin mixing and producing such an amazing album in such a short time and their manager Brian Epstein keeping everything together and moving is often overlooked. In a sense, they were the fifth and sixth Beatle for all intents and purposes. I think you'll very much enjoy you can't do that, and happy just to dance with you. Amazing album..
Don't think I've ever seen Brian Epstein's name mentioned in any reactions or comments. I haven't thought about him in years. But I think you're right about his roll. Since Get Back film came out, there has been some discussions on how Paul was pushing and trying to motivate the others to keep writing and making songs. Peers and siblings don't usually take well to that because they think he's being bossy. They may have eventually felt that way about Brian. Anyway, sorry for my blah blah blah. My rambling mind just go started.🤔
@@kimberly3131 If it WERE NOT for BRIAN EPSTEIN never giving up on finding a label that would SIGN them, after many many rejections, we would have NEVER had the The Beatles, and THAT is a FACT!! Brian deserves so much more credit than he EVER GOT. After Brian died, they all said the were "lost" as Brian ran everything. They had NO clue what to do then.
I'm so impatient for you to get to the Beatles I love. I have a similar view of the early songs as you, but once you get to Rubber Soul the and Revolver albums...oh, my, that's where my favorite Beatles music takes root and blooms. Everything from then on is next level for me.
Every guitar solo you've heard was played by George Harrison. However, the penultimate track of this album has John Lennon's first ever attempt at a guitar solo. He still plays rhythm, and George still plays his 12 string lead guitar, but John plays a solo that's easy to tell isn't played by George. In a later album, Paul gets his first lead guitar contributions. Multiple!
I am glad that you can appreciate the music I grew up with. The 60's into the 70's was a great time to be teenage & young adult, the music the festivals. If you haven't listened to "Heart Full of Soul" by the Yardbirds yet, please give it a try.
Very nice approach to your journey through the Beatles catalog, Syed. The early Beatles were the biggest musical revolution in the history of popular music. It's impossible for later generations to grasp how f***ing big they were. Name any artist - the Rolling Stones (the second biggest band ever - but a distant second), Led Zeppelin (third biggest band ever), Bruce Springsteen, Michael Jackson, even Elvis Presley - none of them could come close to the fever of Beatlemania that swept the world. You'll hear real growth by the Beatles with each successive album. However, while their earliest songs were amazing for their time, most of them don't hold up so well. The greatest bands have a unique problem - they have such wonderful synergy that they can make a mediocre song sound great - but it's still a mediocre song. The Beatles work on their 5th album (Help!) was a big leap up as they went from a good band with some good songs to a great band with some incredible songs. Then their 7th album (Revolver) through their 12th and final album (Abbey Road) were works of genius. An unprecedented run in just a little over 7 years from start to finish. You'll see...
From just a "good band"??? They were a GREAT BAND from the start and their music THEN surpassed anything that we were listening to in 1962 - 1964, how do you think "Beatlemania" started immediately in the U.S. if they were just a "good" band? It makes them sound like they were mediocre.
@@patticrichton1135 Hi, Patti, thanks for challenging what I wrote, but I believe I'm correct. Let me clarify; when the Beatles redefined "breaking big' in 1964, they were the best rock and roll band the world had ever heard. As you pointed out, that's why they excited the world! However, they weren't truly great yet. During the first phase of their career, they released 4 albums and about a dozen other songs on singles. Almost half of their first phase were cover songs, many of which were mediocre, as were most of John and Paul's earliest songs - but the Beatles were always better than the sum of their parts, so they made even mediocre songs sound great. Sure, they wrote some great early songs - I Saw Her Standing There, Please Please Me, I Want to Hold Your Hand, A Hard Day's Night - to name a few, but rock and roll history already had artists with a handful or two of great songs. What happened next was unprecedented. John and Paul grew TREMENDOUSLY as song writers, and George, Ringo and George Martin helped the band leaders make their creations special. Their 5th album, Help! was better than any album before it, and their 6th album, Rubber Soul was even better. John and Paul blossomed very quickly and by the time Sgt Pepper's came out, people started to say they were both geniuses, like the Beethoven and Bach of modern time - and that didn't sound silly. The Beatles redefined what rock and roll could be, and what it became. A Day in the Life was rock and roll music because the Beatles made it so. What I wrote was mostly for Syed, because thus far on his journey through the Beatles history, I think he's more appreciative than adoring of their music. He's already heard some artists' songs that are better than the Beatles earliest works, but that's in large part because the Beatles were an inspiration for artists that followed, and REDEFINED WHAT GREATNESS WAS. The best that can be said about what great music is that it's still as important to people now as it was when it was new. The Beatles are. Thanks Patti, and I hope you don't feel insulted by what I wrote anymore.
Interesting story about this song. Here it is quoted: "In the 1995 documentary "You Can't Do That! The Making Of A Hard Day's Night," producer Walter Shenson recalls his role in the writing of the title song. "I mentioned to John one night that we needed to have another song, one titled 'A Hard Day's Night.' His reaction was to ask what I was talking about. I explained by asking what kind of a producer would I be to have a film called 'A Hard Day's Night' starring the Beatles, and then not have a Beatles song called 'A Hard Day's Night.' I asked him to please write this new song. The next morning, he and Paul called me into their dressing room - we were still shooting - and they played and sang to me their new song, 'A Hard Day's Night.' Now, think about this: I got a hit song on demand! That's almost impossible. And it was one of their biggest hits ever."
It is strange to see a thoughtful young man enjoying and analyzing The Beatles. I lived them. I was 12-19 years old when The Beatles were writing songs. They took me from teenie bopper romance ❤️, to smoking weed 🚬, to dropping LSD and living in crash pads. The Beatles’ music was the most relevant and treasured thing in my life in those years. I know every word to every song. The Beatles and Pink Floyd created the very finest music to come out of the 1960’s, 1970’s. They were the originals. Everyone else was just emulating them or expanding on their original experimentation.
A Hard Day's Night is a fantastic album. They have most of the album tracks that were in the movie on side one, and then they have a bunch of brand new songs on the second side. This is one of the happiest albums they ever did. The next two albums are more transitional, whether they knew it or not. Some sad songs, and some that are leaning towards the kind of songs Bob Dylan was doing at the time. Then came Rubber Soul and it was a brand new kind of Beatles songs, and they never looked back.
You need to watch the film as you listen to the music. You can then understand the sense of time, history and context; it's so important when you analyse this music!
You're so right to single out the opening chord. Books have been written about it. Here's a link to Randy Bachman, the great guitarist of The Guess Who and Bachman Turner Overdrive, talking about breaking down the chord with Giles Martin at Abbey Road. ua-cam.com/video/5b-awuNzko4/v-deo.html&ab_channel=Alterity
So much fun following you on this journey! Until Sgt pepper was released we listened to The Stones as much as The Beatles and it would have been fun if you listened to both in parallel
It's interesting to follow the development without having heard these songs, kind of like how it must have been for Beatlemania people at the time. It's interesting comparing their songwriting here with Dylan's - in 1964 he wrote Chimes of Freedom and Mr Tambourine Man...
Yeah that phrase “it’s a hard days night” that was something Ringo used to say And if you can find the film and watch the movie it’s incredible also all the wacky antics and everything
The band definitely sounds more polished on this one - the melodies are better, the guitar tone is much richer and there's plenty of acoustic guitar layered in. They were to get even 'folkier' on the next one (darker too - with a couple of notable exceptions, HDN is a very upbeat record). Strongly recommend listening to each and every song Syed - I know there are a lot of them and it's tempting to race on to the all-time greats, but they were diverse as hell right from the start and the contrasts on their albums are fascinating when you listen in sequence. And you gotta check out Not a Second Time from With the Beatles one of these days! Keep up the good work friend.
Beatles for Sale was the last album of 64. Help and Rubber Soul were made in 65. Revolver in 66, Sgt. Pepper and Magical Mystery Tour in 67, White Album in 68. Let it Be was recorded in 69 but released in 70. Abby Road was recorded and released in 69.
Watch the film to see how the songs tied in. While other movies used music to promote and highlight artists (Elvis movies used songs a performance/production segments), It's easy to see how the songs in A Hard Day's Night are truly forerunners and blueprints for what would become MTV. Truly groundbreaking.
The Beach Boys were searching for a 'specific' sound, the Beatles released a song (can't remember which one) and it was the sound the Boys had been trying to find, they were gutted!
Sound...HDN...is the 12 string Richenbacker album. First no1 prototype given to George on the first US tour. You hear George's 12 string ringing on every track. The Byrds made a career with it.
The first four Beatles albums have an odd release history. The Parlaphone releases (non-US) were originally mixed in MONO. American releases on Capital chopped them up to yield more albums that mixed in a few different singles cuts. These were originally in MONO also but at some point (70s or later 60s?) were remixed in STEREO. When they were first released on CD starting in 1986, George Martin re-mastered them in MONO ("as they were meant to be"). The version you played here is in STEREO but it is a different mix than American ears are used to. There are a few cases with Lennon's manually doubled vocals where his second voice is singing a phrasing that was inaudible in the old STEREO and MONO mixes (at least the ones here in the US.) A Hard Day's Night may sound pretty tame to modern ears but I imagine this came across to 1964 ears much the way the first Hendrix album hit 1967 ears or the first Led Zeppelin album would hit 1969 ears. Music evolved INCREDIBLY fast from 1963 to 1970.
It’s true. You can listen to any record in that time (1963-70) and tell what year it came out because the music changed so fast. Bands put out at least an album per year, sometimes 2 or 3. Cars were completely redesigned each year. Can you imagine that happening now? It had to be our creative peak.
There were a lot of films that included musical performances by contemporary artists, folks like Louis Armstrong and Lionel Hampton-but they were often something of an interlude, not really part of the story (or if they were in the case of Black artists they were relegated to menial characters). Elvis was really the first pop star to be a film vehicle on his own as a franchise, and to pepper the films with his songs. So it was by no means unprecedented to feature popular music in a film, but to make the whole film center around the artist was maybe a decade old by the time Hard Day’s Night came out? BTW for both films they basically just used their existing material except for the title track, if I’m not mistaken. Now that I think more on it, I believe HD’sN was titled after the existing cut, but they had to write Help for the movie.
the main thing that is different between the way you're experiencing the Beatles and the way I did is that i was surrounded in the context of 60's music. a Beatles album would come out, and it would be completely unique... then, many of the other bands would start churning out things that were similar... knock offs... and a small percentage would get braver, and try to do their own totally unique songs... and some succeeded...but the WHOLE MUSIC SCENE would be elevated by the release of a Beatles album... then the NEXT album would come and the whole cycle would repeat... bands that couldn't keep up disappeared into obscurity, bands that made competitive music would find an audience, and bands that innovated would develop their fan bases, but each Beatles album spawned such a cycle and would elevate the GLOBAL MUSIC SCENE... each album
![Day Tripper [Beatles Reaction] We Can Work It Out, Paperback Writer, Rain (Dev's first time hearing)](/img/n.gif)
From that stunning opening chord, to the back-and-forth lead singing by John and Paul, to those hot bongo licks (by their engineer, Norman Smith), then the groovy sped-up guitar-piano riff in the break, and finally to that incredible closing arpeggio on Harrison's brand-new 12-string Rickenbacker - *THIS* is how you kick off an album and open a movie!!
George Harrison is still the only person keeping Rickenbacker alive. I know so many people who only got it to play The Beatles
Randy Bachman of Guess Who and BTO fame has a deconstruction of that opening note while on an Abbey Road studio tour with (I think) George Martin's son.
You mean "Hurricane" Smith?
@@DawnSuttonfabfour That's right! The man, the myth, the legend...
@@michaelt6218 Loved him. Don't let it de!
Opening chord is legendary
The “A Hard Day’s Night” opening chord is still being discussed and debated to this day. Attempts to recreate it have led to various degrees of success.
It’s two chords together said George.
I don’t believe George Martin the producer ever figure out what that cord was but I didn’t know is 2 chords struck together I thought was just one cord that John Lennon’s single chord
That George Martin could never figure out
but maybe not I could be wrong
I've generally approximated it with a G7sus4. Close, still no cigar. I don't particularly like cigars anyway, just wish I could kick the cigarette habit. 😊😬🙄🚬
🖖😘🎵🎸🎶❤️✨️🕊
That’s what I heard George Martin say in an interview
it was just one cord struck by John Lennon and
Martin never could figure out what it was
You're really going about this in the right way, because that's exactly how we experienced it -- never knowing what they were going to do next and constantly being surprised by their growth musically, lyrically, and personally.
But without seeing the accompanying film ( I know he probably can’t) he loses a lot of the import of those songs.
@@TheDivayenta Oh, I agree -- the film is still wonderful to this day.
@@epicycles700 do you remember when you first went to see it? The excitement! We had to sit thru Beach Blanket Bingo to get to AHDN!😄
in this album you cannot miss "if I fell" - it's probably the one that shows the biggest leap forward in songwriting
Yes! 💯 "If I Fell" is definitely one of Lennon's most beautiful songs. The vocal duet between him and Paul is out of this world.
..The harmony interplay on this song is astonishing! John & Paul showing that vocal symbiotic pairing beautifully.
Yes, gorgeous melody and the intro chord changes are mad
Check out this "music lesson" on the construction of the If I Fell harmonies. Makes on'e appreciation even more so. ua-cam.com/video/VoKjXx0zcXU/v-deo.html
Another on this album: "And I Love Her". Very sophisticated.
Imagine what it was like to be a young kid that got caught up in Beatlemania in 1963. Now they were your favorite band and you wanted to hear everything they did. 8 years later, and you're a teenager, having been brought on the most incredible musical journey with them. They shaped how you would listen to music for the rest of your life.
That was me
Elvis in Jailhouse Rock, music video.
That was my childhood. An incredible gift.
The movie is an absolute DELIGHT. Their charm and wit and charisma is undeniable. Stars.
When John reaches up into that falsetto voice, it makes him sound emotional ...vulnerable even. (at least on this song).
Love that you picked up on how special the opening chord of the title track is. It became legendary, with guitarists all over the world trying to figure out what the hell the chord actually was. And the "jangling" sound you picked up on at the end also caught the ear of the Byrds, who by their own admission based their entire early sound on it 🙂
Yet another band influenced by the Beatles, surprise surprise, they were simply the best by decades.
The opening chord may be one of the most analyzed chords in history. Volumes have been written trying to figure out what's being played there.
you have to watch the movie "A Hard Day's Night"... you will find that all four Beatles were also naturally gifted comic actors... they were so talented it's ridiculous.... "I Should Have Known Better" is one of Lennon's best vocal performances... his young voice is like the ringing of a bell
Yes, but let's give Paul some credit on HIS voice too, his voice rings like a bell on "And I Love Her" in the movie, it was the ONLY time the audience in the movie theatre (which was mostly pre-teen and teenage girls) was actually quiet during "And I Love Her," everyone was mesmerized looking at him and LISTENING to Paul sing that song, with audible "sighs" going on with a scream here and there. I KNOW, because I was ONE Of them and my friends and I would sit through ALL the showings from the first to the last, each time we went. Back then, they didn't throw you out at the end of the film. Plus there was only about 15 minutes between shows. Also, if you got there late and missed the beginning of the movie, people would just sit and wait until it started again, and then leave at the point where they came in. You can't do that now, So if you MISS the beginning of a film, you are out of luck, OR you have to go back out and pay again to see it from the start.
Three years between that opening chord and the last chord of a day in the life.
Two iconic chords.
Three years apart
What a journey between them.
Cool connection.
That really puts into perspective how insane their growth and creativity was.
The Beatles gave the world several generations of music in 8 short years. Nothing compares anywhere in music history.
The Beatles wrote the album (quickly) on demand before filming to accompany various sequences in their upcoming madcap film. Their brilliant producer George Martin also composed new material and arranged some of their songs in instrumental fashion to fill in the gaps, and his adapted score was nominated for an Oscar (as was the film's original screenplay). You need to see how these songs play in the film, as they are very important to the rhythm, style, and plot of the film.
I was 11 years old when the movie came out. I still bounce on my seat with glee when I watch the title song come on.
The film was an award-winning combination of documentary style and music. The scene with Ringo reprising the "Little Tramp" of Charlie Chaplin is a classic.
John is doing some really amazing things with his voice in that second one but within that very defined simplistic setting that is totally designed to hook the audience.
I think the phrase “ it’s been a hard days night” is another Ringoism
Elvis Presley's movie "Love Me Tender" was used to boost his profile in 1956, and I don't think he was the first to do so. In 1964, "Hard Day's Night" was certainly released to take advantage of the meteoric rise in popularity of the Beatles. At the time I just enjoyed the music and looking at the guys. Over the years I've learned to appreciate it more as a pretty good comedic film. My parents, after hearing the lyrics, gave my sister and I a lecture on not allowing boys to buy us gifts lest they expect us to give them "everything". We were pretty young and really didn't quite know what "everything" was. lol. Different times and we were sheltered. But this album is when I really started to get Beatlemania.
Can't take it THAT seriously, i mean the song is about a marriage no random man there
@@beatlemaniacwaltdisneyfan4753 I was trying to say MY PARENTS were alarmed that their young daughters were at risk of being led down the garden path.
Just to note - you mentioned how covers were a sign of a band finding their feet, in 1962 before the Beatles, it was highly unusual for a band or artist to write their own songs at all. This was another thing we take as usual now, but something they really made mainstream, in that era very few artists wrote their own music - let alone an entire album. This was revolutionary in itself.
@David Jones THANK YOU for bringing that up! Most bands and artists recorded songs written by other people, which WAS the norm at the time. EVERYONE doesn't have the talent to write their own songs. Plus a lot of writers, especially if there was two of them, one would strictly write the music/melody and the other would strictly write the lyrics. The Beatles didn't work that way at all.
That first chord has stumped people for years. It seem it is two different related chords on two guitars and then the bass plays a different root note. It's hard to pin down which makes it sonically fascinating :)
You could think of it as an Fmaj6 or Dmin7 plus maybe another dissonant note. It was played on two guitars, bass and piano, I believe.
The bass is playing a straight D note. Guitar is playing an Fmaj7 and I think the piano is playing the same
@@netzahuacoyotl I have never heard a piano mentioned but it might be in there. It would have to be an overdub though so I am not 100% convinced
@@Panch21 its an fadd9 on a 12 string with a D on bass.
@@Panch21 Fmaj7 and fret the top E on the third fret.
Please do the whole album! It's one of the best of their career! All the songs are bangers!
The ending guitar on Hard Day's Night started an entire genre all by itself. "Jangle Rock" with the very bright jangly Rickenbacker 12-string sound.
Remember that singles and album were two different things back then and many, if not most, of their best songs were released as singles and were not included on any album. You miss a big part of their development and popularity if you skip the singles.
And they best mixes are the mono originals. They didn't do stereo until much later. These later stereo remixes, especially the 2009 ones, don't compare to the originals.
You bring up a very good point about the singles and the albums. You know The Beatles had 27 #1 hits (UK and USA). I've always thought that if more album tunes had also been released as singles, they would have had about 50 #1 hits!
The music goes beautifully with the film and a lot of it is performed “ live”. The visuals to the songs are EVERYTHING.
You're doing this right listening in chronological order. Please don't skip any songs on the album. All the songs on this album are great and to understand their evolution you should hear all the songs as recorded. The show that they were master of melody and lyrics. George's playing on a 12-string electric guitar is a huge part of the sound on this album.
1964 was an amazingly busy year for them. In January they had an extended gig in Paris -- where they learned that "I Want to Hold Your Hand" hit #1 in the US. Brief return to UK then to US. Back home, making film, recording, touring, radio and TV, ten second tour of US.
Meanwhile writing this entire LP.
In ‘64, when the movie was released, the theater wasn’t cleared out after each movie showing. As a 10-year old boy I paid my dollar when the theater opened and stayed through four consecutive showings. These songs were so infectious I couldn’t get enough. And to see the Beatles beyond a short set of songs on The Ed Sullivan Show or other TV program was extremely exciting. We had the album at home too; the first of their albums we purchased as I recall. A Hard Day’s Night was very influential for me, and I still listen to these songs with great affection.
FINALLY, someone ELSE being brave enough to admit that THEY stayed through multiple showings of HDN!! My girlfriends and I did the very same thing. We were 16 and 17 years old, and we stayed from the first showing all the way through their last showing that night (we were older than you, so we could stay later) We did than just about every time we went to see it during the length of the theatrical run!
I've mentioned this before on other channels, the title comes from something Ringo said after a particularly long day in the studio. As they were exiting the studio he said boy it's been a hard day, night. Because as they opened the door they realized it was nightime.
Definitely. One of Ringo’s malaprops. An unintentional yet brilliant contribution to the band.
The movie is considered the best music film of all time. You should read the late Roger Ebert's review. It showed the lads to be beyond witty and likable and etched their unique personalities into the minds and hearts of global audiences. It's been called a stepping stone between the Marx Brothers and Monty Python. Speaking of the Pythons, years later in the 70's, George would put his house up to finance Python's 'Life of Brian.' And John would say that he would rather have been a Python than a Beatle. The fact that the movie was shot in black and white has actually helped to keep it from looking dated. Made it more timeless. And it contains several hyper-stylish music video scenes. By the way, the title 'Hard Days Night' was taken from a so-called Ringo(ism) where he apparently actually said " It''s been a "Hard days --Night." ;-)
Yes that's true about RIngo. They had been working hard all day, in the studio, and when they left, Ringo made that comment, but paused and realized it was dark outside, and added "Night" after pausing after he said "day"
Their voices were just perfect here. One of my favorites from them.
One thing I can guarantee to you Syed, is that the more you listen to the Beatles, the more you will appreciate and revere them.
and they more you might really WANT to put their earlier music on your play list. That music just cheers me up and makes me feel SO GOOD!!
They need an opening song for the movie - John went home and wrote it overnight. They recorded it in three hours working off John's scribbles and notes. As for the impact of the movie: they broke onto America in February, this movie came out in August. People had seen them on (mostly B&W) TV or listened to them thru 2-3" speakers at home or on the radio. Suddenly they were 30' high and louder than you had ever heard them and usually in stereo at the theatre. The opening chord opens the movie and grabbed you and took you on the ride. People were screaming in the theatre as if at a concert. I was 14 at the time and I saw it over 20 times when it first came out. The movie perfectly captures the times, their life in the eye of Beatlemania and cemented their public persona as The Beatles.
Sorry, but I have to point out the song was written by John AND Paul over night. ua-cam.com/video/0MIAzJqZkX8/v-deo.html
Wrong, June-July, and reached number 1 worldwide on August 1st
@@beatlemaniacwaltdisneyfan4753 The movie was released in the US in August.
@@beatlemaniacwaltdisneyfan4753 watch the video for proof. John AND Paul wrote the song. That is when they wrote it - not when it was released.
WE used to sit in the theatre from the first showing through the last showing at night, watching "A HARD DAY'S NIGHT" I think we might have seen it more than 60 times during the theatrical run, because we DID sit there all day and into the evening, most times! SEEN it much much more than that since then until now, on TV, return theatrical runs, and owning it on DVD.
You know Ringo came up with the title. After filming all day, they came walking out and Ringo said, It's been a Hard Days, looked around and said, Night? He also came up with the title, Tomorrow Never Knows.
This is the start (like you said either the opening cord), of pure pop! Not a bad song on the album, and definitely an uplift projection from here!
Cool song!! Liking your journey. So many different sounds and tunes from this band. They are awesome! I can see why they are thought of as the greatest of all time! Thanks!
The thing is, here's the thing; if you are female, any age, and John tells you he loves you like that, you believe him.
The "British-isms" are always cool but Hard Day's Night itself is a Ringoism.
So glad you are doing this journey and I'm here for it BUT no more omitting any tracks (still trying to forgive you for not doing all of With the Beatles). Pinkie promise?
Again, you need to hear all the songs to get the full effect of their impact.
Pinkie promise at least or we will have to make him "Cross your heart and hope to die"!! Yikes!! Wonder who came up with that one or how//why kids our age said it. Lol
@@kimberly3131 Haha I got it from my daughter
I grew up with the Beatles starting in 1963 and I still listen to them daily.
So do I!!!
A Hard Day's Night is one of my favourite Beatles albums, definitely the best one before they made Rubber Soul.
As you listen more and more, probably eventually falling in love with their voices, especially Lennon's, since you have mentioned that you gravitate towards him more... you'll want to go back and hear a couple tracks you missed. Such as Money from the last album. It's not an original Beatles song, but Lennon's vocal performance on that one is killer and really a must at some point. Really an important vocal performance within the history of rock. Lennon is one of the best screamers in rock, and his scream shines here very early on.
Couldn't agree more on all fronts
@@bobguitarlearner8007 I have faith in Syed
@@bobguitarlearner8007 Oh, and your statement "the Beatles never became a hard rock band..." is not an accurate statement. They invented hard rock in part. Lennon's blood curdling screams are perhaps the most intense in rock. They also had some of the earliest heavy songs. Especially on the White Album.
Uh, I can't believe that you don't know the McCartney is also one of the BEST SCREAMERS in rock and roll AND in the Beatles, Besides John. My goodness. Have you never seen or heard Paul's performances on "Long Tall Sally," "HELTER SKELTER" "OH DARLING" (and then compare THAT with his vocals on "HERE, THERE and EVERYWHERE," or "I WILL," If you didn't know, you would think those songs were sung by a DIFFERENT guy! Paul had the widest RANGE of all the Beatles, and the most vocal versatility of all the Beatles. At the beginning of their first recordings, (until we got used to how they each sounded) PAUL'S was the most difficult vocal to pick out. So both John AND Paul could scream with the best of them. YOu should listen to more of Paul's solo songs to see what I mean, and how diverse his vocals were. For "screamy/Gritty/rough type vocals, listen to "Monkberry Moon Delight," "SOILY," and "BEWARE MY LOVE" (especially for the last two when done LIVE in the "ROCK SHOW" movie which is a film of his concerts during his "WINGS OVER AMERICA" tour in 1976.) to name three. He wasn't always melodic, silky, smooth, gentle, sung in a high register, or falsetto like most people seem to think (and it's always THOSE people that have never listened to ALL Paul's music, that say that). Just as Lennon could also sing in a gentle, smooth way.
@@patticrichton1135 Who's Paul McCartney? Was he in the Beatles too? Haha - of course I know Paul is one the best rock screamers of all time. I absolutely love all his songs and his solo work too. Every song of his. I was just pushing more on Lennon's intense side because I think Syed is gravitating more in that direction. Hopefully as he listens, he'll pick up on Paul's brilliance too. In terms of intensity, John took his scream to another level though - with Mother, Cold Turkey and others.
Gotta listen to When I Get Home. John's best early rocker.
My mum and dad owned a copy of this album. As a kid, I played it until the needle wouldn't sit in the groove. I couldn't pick a favourite track... they've been ingrained in my head for as long as I can remember. "If I fell", "Things we said today", "I should have known better" - all killer, no filler. In my own musical career, this album has been a constant touchstone, and a goal to aim for and never achieve. It's a great movie, too. One of the best music films ever made. Well worth watching.
Recently watched the movie after many years. Such a great goofy ride. Love their humor and heart. One of the best music documentaries ever.
Thanks!
Yes this was the start of them coming into their own and they were everywhere at this point .Love it and them
As I mentioned before, don’t forget the singles, many of which weren’t on albums. Including She Loves You, I Wanna Hold Your Hand, I Feel Fine, (first use of feedback in a record). Also, the first four albums and the singles were recorded within 12 months, on top of near non-stop touring. Shows the speed of their early development in crazy circumstances.
I Should Have Known Better is probably my favorite early Beatles track (first 3 albums). It's top 3 for sure. His vocal in the middle 8 sections is catchy as hell... "that when I tell you that I love you..."
Keep going...in order. Its the evolution in every way that is so impressive. 🍺✌️
The movie is excellent too! All their movies are great.. A Hard day's night is considered the best, but I actually have watched Help! and Magical Mystery Tour much more.. at one point I was obsessed with the latter. Watched it every day for at least a week. I've probably seen it 15 times.. I'd say I've seen Help a few times too. A hard days night maybe twice. But it's definitely a classic. And the songwriting on this album is much better than on the earlier onces.
They had to write A Hard Days Night in one day because the title of the movie had changed. When some say that Paul and John were the best writing duo of all time this is one of the examples they use.
Opening chord is a combination of George playing F add 9 with a G on the bottom and top on his Rickenbacker 12 string electric, John playing a D sus4 on his Rickenbacker 325, and Paul playing D note on his Hofner electric bass. It's quite the striking opening chord filled with energy and excitement beautifully teeing up the song.
Some artists scream vocals to distortion. Lennon's vocals is controled screaming!
Just some positive reinforcement here: Glad that you decided to "take it back a bit" at one point after pausing. So many reactors don't do the simple (and hardly time-consuming) thing of just going back 5 or so seconds. If not, you're liable to miss a cool transition, a kick-ass drum fill, or crucial lyric, and WE are liable to go" D'oh! He MISSED it! GAH!" LOL. Good stuff!
The director of the film, Richard Lester, decided he needed one more song, one to open the film. They had just recently come up with the name for the movie, "A Hard Day's Night", and overnight, John wrote the title track according to Lester's specs which were that it needed to be a lively rocker and to last long enough to play over the opening credits. According to film critic Roger Ebert, this was the first time in the history of movies that a title song (one having the same name as the movie) was played over the opening credits of a film. (Note that while James Bond films became famous for doing this, the first two Bond films, which were of the same era as the rise of The Beatles, did not have opening songs that matched the movie title. "Goldfinger", the third Bond film and the first of them to follow this tradition, was released two months after AHDN.)
The song was written by John AND Paul. It wasn't wasn't written according to Lester's specs. ua-cam.com/video/0MIAzJqZkX8/v-deo.html
Did Mr. Ebert forget about these (and many others)?
Rock Around the Clock (1956)
ua-cam.com/video/mycRexe-V1E/v-deo.html
"Blue Hawaii" (1961)
ua-cam.com/video/t2TAPuIH470/v-deo.html
@@cazgerald9471 I may have misinterpreted what he wrote. Here is the full context.
“In his opening sequence, which shows the Beatles mobbed at a station as they try to board a train, Lester achieves an incredible energy level: We feel the hysteria of the fans and the excitement of the Beatles, intercut with the title song (the first time movie titles had done that), implying that the songs and the adulation were sides of the same coin. Other scenes borrow the same documentary look; a lot feels improvised, although only a few scenes actually were.”
The first of the clips you provided is still pictures of the performers with names superimposed while the song is sung. The second is Elvis singing over film clips of Hawaiian scenery.
The opening credits you pointed to did not contain scenes that could actually be considered part of the film, which is what I guess Ebert was saying. My bad.
@@dennydowling2169 My film knowledge is too limited to understand what Ebert's trying to say. Is it the first opening sequence with intercuts, or first with intercuts over the title song, or the song itself is an intercut? Regardless, I'm sure he's right that it was the first 8-P
The hair, clothes style and image was the idea of their manager, Brian Epstein.
John Lennon later said that's when they sold out.
He preferred leather their previous scruffy look of jackets, jeans...boots.
Really enjoy your music choices, reactions and the interaction between the music lovers here in comment section.
there's not many early Beatle tracks I'd have on my playlist either..i do enjoy watching you track their growth - and changes in other bands like Pink Floyd
Their hair had NOTHING to do with their manager. Their hair was ALREADY in that style, which they got while in Hamburg, because they made close friends with Astrid (Kirchherr, whom Stuart Sutcliffe fell in love with) , Jurgen, and Klaus (Voorman0 whom the Beatles referred to as "Exis" (existentialists) who wore THEIR hair in what would become known as the "Beatle cut" Astrid cut their hair in that style when they had their months long gig in Hamburg. This was before their manager was involved with them. He did change them into suits, for a very good reason. Which Lennon finally accepted and realized it was necessary IF they wanted to secure a recording contract and get on TV, etc. It was the way it was then. You just didn't go on stage wearing any old thing if you wanted to "make it" in the recording business and become rock stars of that time. All groups dressed in matching suits, trousers and shirts, at the time. SO, if John thought they "sold out" it was a GOOD thing they DID, otherwise they would have NEVER made it HUGE, like they did.
Hard Days Night is such a fun and funny movie. I absolutely love it
Syed. You seem to be enjoying the Beatles as people more than the music. I think you would get a big kick out of the movie “A Hard Day’s Night”. You should watch it. It shows the craziness those guys were going through at the time. You could do a reaction the their first attempt at a movie
And the guys' irreverent cheekiness, and humor!
The greatest rock song ever recorded. the most iconic opening chord ,the greatest scream by John Lennon the most iconc break or solo by George, The most iconic fade out of an ending of a song
Also, to get a sense of how insanely big Beatlemania was...an estimated 1 million people turned out to see them arrive in Adelaide, not far off the then total population.
The phrase 'A Hard Day's Night' was a Ringo-ism that inspired the song and became the title of the movie as well.
'I Should Have Known Better' is another easily reproduced track that's a ton of fun to play 😅❤🎶✨️🕊
This opening chord is one of
the most iconic chords in pop music history (G extended 6th).
By this time, Beatlemania was in full swing and the Beatles were constantly on the road and around the world touring. To be able to put together an album this amazing and so full of beautiful and groundbreaking music in such a short period of time is a testament to the genius of John Lennon and Paul McCartney. But to that effect, the brilliance and genius of George Martin mixing and producing such an amazing album in such a short time and their manager Brian Epstein keeping everything together and moving is often overlooked. In a sense, they were the fifth and sixth Beatle for all intents and purposes. I think you'll very much enjoy you can't do that, and happy just to dance with you. Amazing album..
Don't think I've ever seen Brian Epstein's name mentioned in any reactions or comments. I haven't thought about him in years. But I think you're right about his roll. Since Get Back film came out, there has been some discussions on how Paul was pushing and trying to motivate the others to keep writing and making songs. Peers and siblings don't usually take well to that because they think he's being bossy. They may have eventually felt that way about Brian. Anyway, sorry for my blah blah blah. My rambling mind just go started.🤔
@@kimberly3131 If it WERE NOT for BRIAN EPSTEIN never giving up on finding a label that would SIGN them, after many many rejections, we would have NEVER had the The Beatles, and THAT is a FACT!! Brian deserves so much more credit than he EVER GOT. After Brian died, they all said the were "lost" as Brian ran everything. They had NO clue what to do then.
Before you finish reacting to this LP you must react to two great love songs - "And I Love Her" and "If I Fell"!
I'm so impatient for you to get to the Beatles I love. I have a similar view of the early songs as you, but once you get to Rubber Soul the and Revolver albums...oh, my, that's where my favorite Beatles music takes root and blooms. Everything from then on is next level for me.
I’m already looking forward to If I Fell, the next track by The Beatles❤
Every guitar solo you've heard was played by George Harrison. However, the penultimate track of this album has John Lennon's first ever attempt at a guitar solo. He still plays rhythm, and George still plays his 12 string lead guitar, but John plays a solo that's easy to tell isn't played by George. In a later album, Paul gets his first lead guitar contributions. Multiple!
There are a bunch of YT videos all about the opening chord in A Hard Days Night. It is considered by many the most famous opening chord in rock music.
I am glad that you can appreciate the music I grew up with. The 60's into the 70's was a great time to be teenage & young adult, the music the festivals. If you haven't listened to "Heart Full of Soul" by the Yardbirds yet, please give it a try.
Very nice approach to your journey through the Beatles catalog, Syed.
The early Beatles were the biggest musical revolution in the history of popular music. It's impossible for later generations to grasp how f***ing big they were. Name any artist - the Rolling Stones (the second biggest band ever - but a distant second), Led Zeppelin (third biggest band ever), Bruce Springsteen, Michael Jackson, even Elvis Presley - none of them could come close to the fever of Beatlemania that swept the world.
You'll hear real growth by the Beatles with each successive album. However, while their earliest songs were amazing for their time, most of them don't hold up so well. The greatest bands have a unique problem - they have such wonderful synergy that they can make a mediocre song sound great - but it's still a mediocre song.
The Beatles work on their 5th album (Help!) was a big leap up as they went from a good band with some good songs to a great band with some incredible songs. Then their 7th album (Revolver) through their 12th and final album (Abbey Road) were works of genius. An unprecedented run in just a little over 7 years from start to finish.
You'll see...
7 and a half years, but You are so on point mate
@@beatlemaniacwaltdisneyfan4753 I realized that later, but thanks.
From just a "good band"??? They were a GREAT BAND from the start and their music THEN surpassed anything that we were listening to in 1962 - 1964, how do you think "Beatlemania" started immediately in the U.S. if they were just a "good" band? It makes them sound like they were mediocre.
@@patticrichton1135 Hi, Patti, thanks for challenging what I wrote, but I believe I'm correct. Let me clarify; when the Beatles redefined "breaking big' in 1964, they were the best rock and roll band the world had ever heard. As you pointed out, that's why they excited the world! However, they weren't truly great yet.
During the first phase of their career, they released 4 albums and about a dozen other songs on singles. Almost half of their first phase were cover songs, many of which were mediocre, as were most of John and Paul's earliest songs - but the Beatles were always better than the sum of their parts, so they made even mediocre songs sound great.
Sure, they wrote some great early songs - I Saw Her Standing There, Please Please Me, I Want to Hold Your Hand, A Hard Day's Night - to name a few, but rock and roll history already had artists with a handful or two of great songs.
What happened next was unprecedented. John and Paul grew TREMENDOUSLY as song writers, and George, Ringo and George Martin helped the band leaders make their creations special. Their 5th album, Help! was better than any album before it, and their 6th album, Rubber Soul was even better.
John and Paul blossomed very quickly and by the time Sgt Pepper's came out, people started to say they were both geniuses, like the Beethoven and Bach of modern time - and that didn't sound silly. The Beatles redefined what rock and roll could be, and what it became. A Day in the Life was rock and roll music because the Beatles made it so.
What I wrote was mostly for Syed, because thus far on his journey through the Beatles history, I think he's more appreciative than adoring of their music. He's already heard some artists' songs that are better than the Beatles earliest works, but that's in large part because the Beatles were an inspiration for artists that followed, and REDEFINED WHAT GREATNESS WAS.
The best that can be said about what great music is that it's still as important to people now as it was when it was new. The Beatles are.
Thanks Patti, and I hope you don't feel insulted by what I wrote anymore.
Interesting story about this song. Here it is quoted: "In the 1995 documentary "You Can't Do That! The Making Of A Hard Day's Night," producer Walter Shenson recalls his role in the writing of the title song. "I mentioned to John one night that we needed to have another song, one titled 'A Hard Day's Night.' His reaction was to ask what I was talking about. I explained by asking what kind of a producer would I be to have a film called 'A Hard Day's Night' starring the Beatles, and then not have a Beatles song called 'A Hard Day's Night.' I asked him to please write this new song. The next morning, he and Paul called me into their dressing room - we were still shooting - and they played and sang to me their new song, 'A Hard Day's Night.' Now, think about this: I got a hit song on demand! That's almost impossible. And it was one of their biggest hits ever."
It is strange to see a thoughtful young man enjoying and analyzing The Beatles. I lived them. I was 12-19 years old when The Beatles were writing songs. They took me from teenie bopper romance ❤️, to smoking weed 🚬, to dropping LSD and living in crash pads. The Beatles’ music was the most relevant and treasured thing in my life in those years. I know every word to every song. The Beatles and Pink Floyd created the very finest music to come out of the 1960’s, 1970’s. They were the originals. Everyone else was just emulating them or expanding on their original experimentation.
That note is one of the most famous in music history so look it up how it was.made. You’ll be amazed!!
A Hard Day's Night is a fantastic album. They have most of the album tracks that were in the movie on side one, and then they have a bunch of brand new songs on the second side. This is one of the happiest albums they ever did. The next two albums are more transitional, whether they knew it or not. Some sad songs, and some that are leaning towards the kind of songs Bob Dylan was doing at the time. Then came Rubber Soul and it was a brand new kind of Beatles songs, and they never looked back.
You need to watch the film as you listen to the music. You can then understand the sense of time, history and context; it's so important when you analyse this music!
You're so right to single out the opening chord. Books have been written about it. Here's a link to Randy Bachman, the great guitarist of The Guess Who and Bachman Turner Overdrive, talking about breaking down the chord with Giles Martin at Abbey Road. ua-cam.com/video/5b-awuNzko4/v-deo.html&ab_channel=Alterity
Thanks for the link -- that's so cool!
I hope you continue ur journey through each of their albums😁
So much fun following you on this journey! Until Sgt pepper was released we listened to The Stones as much as The Beatles and it would have been fun if you listened to both in parallel
The opening chord of AHDN was George Martin’s idea to open the MOVIE! Also, it wasn’t a John-lead compo - that one was a combo.
It's fun watching your face light up as you are getting it. Keep on
It's interesting to follow the development without having heard these songs, kind of like how it must have been for Beatlemania people at the time. It's interesting comparing their songwriting here with Dylan's - in 1964 he wrote Chimes of Freedom and Mr Tambourine Man...
I'm 10 years old sitting the movie theatre watching A hard Days Night and the girls are screaming so loud!!
You got it. I appreciate your channel very much.
Yeah that phrase
“it’s a hard days night”
that was something Ringo used to say
And if you can find the film and watch the movie it’s incredible also all the wacky antics and everything
I second the movie. You’ll like it it’s good.
The band definitely sounds more polished on this one - the melodies are better, the guitar tone is much richer and there's plenty of acoustic guitar layered in. They were to get even 'folkier' on the next one (darker too - with a couple of notable exceptions, HDN is a very upbeat record).
Strongly recommend listening to each and every song Syed - I know there are a lot of them and it's tempting to race on to the all-time greats, but they were diverse as hell right from the start and the contrasts on their albums are fascinating when you listen in sequence. And you gotta check out Not a Second Time from With the Beatles one of these days! Keep up the good work friend.
A Hard Days Night was their final album of 1964 and shows the change to the style of 1965.
Beatles for Sale was the last album of 64. Help and Rubber Soul were made in 65. Revolver in 66, Sgt. Pepper and Magical Mystery Tour in 67, White Album in 68. Let it Be was recorded in 69 but released in 70. Abby Road was recorded and released in 69.
Watch the film to see how the songs tied in. While other movies used music to promote and highlight artists (Elvis movies used songs a performance/production segments), It's easy to see how the songs in A Hard Day's Night are truly forerunners and blueprints for what would become MTV. Truly groundbreaking.
Things really started cooking when The Beatles got to Rubber Soul, then they went into the stratosphere.
That opening chord and the guitar solo were George with his first 12 string guitar.
Elvis, Sinatra, broke ground taking musical careers, into movies, then the Beatles..each in their own way!❤
Growth is most notable starting with Help! album, but especially with the follow-ups to it.
Signature Beatles ending: triple line "feel alright / feel alright / feel alright."
The Beach Boys were searching for a 'specific' sound, the Beatles released a song (can't remember which one) and it was the sound the Boys had been trying to find, they were gutted!
Sound...HDN...is the 12 string Richenbacker album.
First no1 prototype given to George on the first US tour.
You hear George's 12 string ringing on every track.
The Byrds made a career with it.
The first four Beatles albums have an odd release history. The Parlaphone releases (non-US) were originally mixed in MONO. American releases on Capital chopped them up to yield more albums that mixed in a few different singles cuts. These were originally in MONO also but at some point (70s or later 60s?) were remixed in STEREO. When they were first released on CD starting in 1986, George Martin re-mastered them in MONO ("as they were meant to be"). The version you played here is in STEREO but it is a different mix than American ears are used to. There are a few cases with Lennon's manually doubled vocals where his second voice is singing a phrasing that was inaudible in the old STEREO and MONO mixes (at least the ones here in the US.) A Hard Day's Night may sound pretty tame to modern ears but I imagine this came across to 1964 ears much the way the first Hendrix album hit 1967 ears or the first Led Zeppelin album would hit 1969 ears. Music evolved INCREDIBLY fast from 1963 to 1970.
It’s true. You can listen to any record in that time (1963-70) and tell what year it came out because the music changed so fast. Bands put out at least an album per year, sometimes 2 or 3. Cars were completely redesigned each year. Can you imagine that happening now? It had to be our creative peak.
Gaining confidence in their own ability. 👍🏼
Reporter asking Ringo : " Are you a Mod or a Rocker?"
Ringo : " I'm a mocker...
Thats why I love em.
There were a lot of films that included musical performances by contemporary artists, folks like Louis Armstrong and Lionel Hampton-but they were often something of an interlude, not really part of the story (or if they were in the case of Black artists they were relegated to menial characters). Elvis was really the first pop star to be a film vehicle on his own as a franchise, and to pepper the films with his songs. So it was by no means unprecedented to feature popular music in a film, but to make the whole film center around the artist was maybe a decade old by the time Hard Day’s Night came out? BTW for both films they basically just used their existing material except for the title track, if I’m not mistaken. Now that I think more on it, I believe HD’sN was titled after the existing cut, but they had to write Help for the movie.
They have both said if they sang lead it wa primarily written by the lead songer
Ringo came up with the phrase "A Hard Days Night".
the main thing that is different between the way you're experiencing the Beatles and the way I did is that i was surrounded in the context of 60's music. a Beatles album would come out, and it would be completely unique... then, many of the other bands would start churning out things that were similar... knock offs... and a small percentage would get braver, and try to do their own totally unique songs... and some succeeded...but the WHOLE MUSIC SCENE would be elevated by the release of a Beatles album... then the NEXT album would come and the whole cycle would repeat... bands that couldn't keep up disappeared into obscurity, bands that made competitive music would find an audience, and bands that innovated would develop their fan bases, but each Beatles album spawned such a cycle and would elevate the GLOBAL MUSIC SCENE... each album
The best band. Thanks.