How does it compare to the artist's other releases
Good
Value for Money
Advantages:
It's the Beatles, previously unavailable on CDs, no bad tracks
Disadvantages:
none
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
Collecting every song The Beatles ever commercially released is quite a daunting task, for during their seven years as recording artists, the group managed to release thirteen albums and an impressive collection of singles. The British versions of the albums usually did not contain the singles, as the group did not want to make fans buy an album full of singles they already owned. In the U.S., however, Capitol cut many tracks off of the albums and added whatever they wished, thus some Beatles singles were available on the U.S. versions of the albums. But unless you wanted to hunt down old vinyl versions of songs, you would never have all the Beatles songs. And even if you did find all the U.S. albums, you would still be missing some singles and B-sides of the singles.
Fortunately, in 1988, this problem was fixed with the release of "Past Masters Volume One" and "Past Masters Volume Two." Each volume is a collection of the Beatles songs that were previously unavailable on CD, comprising A and B sides, EP tracks, alternate versions of songs, and even some German language tracks. Volume One covers the years 1962 to 1965, and Volume Two starts at late 1965 and continues to 1970. This review is of Volume One.
Early singles "Love Me Do" and "From Me To You" appear here. On both tracks, Paul and John share lead vocals. John also uses the harmonica on both songs, although "Love Me Do" has more of a blues feel to it.
"Thank You Girl" was the B side of "From Me To You," and, like that song, was never available on an album (in the U.K. at least). The harmonica makes another appearance on this song, making me wonder why it was used so infrequently on the group's later works. John sings lead on this song, with Paul providing nice harmony vocals.
"She Loves You" was the Beatles' fourth single and remains one of their most widely-known songs today. This song made "yeah yeah yeah" a catchphrase, and became a number one hit in both the U.S. and the U.K. This is just a fun little song, with energetic drumming from Ringo, a cool guitar lick from George, and the infectious "yeah yeah yeah" chorus.
"I’ll Get You" was the B side of "She Loves You" and was recorded on the same day as that hit (July 1, 1963). John brings out the harmonica yet again, but this time, it is there mainly for rhythm. Ringo pounds away at the drums, and George's and Paul's guitars give the music a full feel. This song was written by John, whose songs were often relegated to the B side of Paul's compositions, but this is a catchy tune featuring some nice harmonies.
I really hope there is no one out there who hasn't heard "I Want To Hold Your Hand." This is the one that set Beatlemania in motion in America. The music and vocals are perfect, with George doing some great work on his electric guitar. The handclaps are a nice touch, too. This was one of the small number of Lennon-McCartney tunes that was written by both Paul and John, and of course they share lead vocal duties. Oh, and incidentally, this is the first stereo track on "Past Masters Volume One"; the five preceding tracks are all mono.
"This Boy" was the B side of "I Want To Hold Your Hand" and was recorded on the same day - October 17, 1963. The three-part harmonies by John, Paul and George were rarely better, and John's emotional solo during the bridge is breathtaking. The guitars on this song are outstanding, and Ringo... well, I guess he was there too.
"Komm, Gib Mir Deine Hand" is a German version of "I Want To Hold Your Hand." This was recorded in Paris, France, in January 1964, along with another German track, "Sie Liebt Dich," a.k.a. "She Loves You". These are nice to have, but I don't listen to them often.
"Long Tall Sally" was originally a hit for Little Richard (who cowrote it), but the Beatles later did an amazing version of it in only one take! Paul's lead vocals on this one are some of his best, and the piano is a real highlight of the song. This is just a straight-up rock 'n' roll song that is, in my opinion, better than the original.
"I Call Your Name" was written principally by John for the group Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas. Unfortunately, the Dakotas' performance of it was nothing spectacular, and it was issued as a B side (of "Bad To Me," which was also written by Lennon and McCartney), so the Beatles decided to show them how it was done. This song was issued on the "Long Tall Sally" EP.
"Slow Down" is a cover of a Larry Williams song, the first of two on this CD. John handles the lead vocals here and does a marvelous job. This uptempo song also features some great guitar work along with Beatles producer George Martin on piano. "Slow Down" was recorded on June 1, 1964, and was also released on the "Long Tall Sally" EP.
"Matchbox" is another cover, this time of a number by Carl Perkins, one of the Beatles' idols. Ringo finally gets his chance to sing lead here, and personalizes the song with lines like "If you don't want Ringo's peaches honey, please don’t mess around my tree." The song has kind of a country feel to it, and was the first of quite a few Perkins works the Beatles would record. Again, this song features George Martin on piano, was recorded on June 1, 1964, and was released on "Long Tall Sally."
"I Feel Fine" begins with some guitar feedback, and this is said to be the first time feedback showed up in a recording (it had been used in concerts but never on a record). John's lead vocal, Paul and George's harmony vocals, George's guitar solo, and Ringo's drumming all work perfectly and are a part of what helped make this song number one in the U.S. and the U.K.
"She’s A Woman" was the B side of "I Feel Fine" and was written primarily by Paul. I love the choppy guitar riff on this one, and the piano and George's guitar solo are other highlights. Paul's vocals sound great, and for a time, I liked this song better than it's A side.
"Bad Boy" is the second (and last) Larry Williams cover on this disc, and it is just a great rock 'n' roll song. John's lead vocal is perfect, and the song, about a kid who just wants to listen to his rock 'n' roll music, has an appropriately hard rocking feel to it.
"Yes It Is" is another of the Beatles' three-part harmony songs and was the B side of "Ticket To Ride." The melody for this song is beautiful, and George really makes the most of the wah-wah pedal on his guitar. John's solo vocal during the bridge is the highlight for me, and I love the way he spits out the line "It’s my pride."
"I’m Down" is the last song on the CD and a great way to end things. This is an upbeat rocker written by Paul in the tradition of Little Richard songs. Paul screams the lead vocals, with John and George backing him up. George's guitar solo and John's work on the electric organ are amazing, and this is one of my favorites of the Beatles' rock songs. It was originally released as the B side of the "Help!" single.
Because "Past Masters Volume One" is basically a collection of singles, most of the songs on here have a pop feel to them. This is not a bad thing at all (I mean, it IS the Beatles), but if you are looking for songs with more meaning, this is not the CD for you. That being said, there is not one bad track on here, and even the B sides are fantastic. This also comes with a nice booklet containing information about all the songs. Like all Beatles CDs, highly recommended.
