If you’re an American babyboomer, you grew up with The Beatles. In junior high I went to sock hops where The Beatles music was first played – the first time I danced with a girl was to the Beatles. Later in high school I joined a rock and roll band and we played a lot of Beatles tunes – until the Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band album came out and there was no way anyone was going to be playing their music again. I listened to those early albums until I absorbed them. I knew every word and I knew how the next song started as the last song ended. I didn’t know until years later that I was listening to “American” Beatles albums.
It turns out that we in America got albums with different covers, different arrangements, different song lineups – all thanks to Capital Records who owned the distribution rights to The Beatles in America. British and European albums were different. Near the end of their career The Beatles created their own record company Apple Records which is now called Apple Corps. When the invention of CD’s came along Apple released the albums with a British take. I first noticed something was wrong when I went to build up my CD collection getting all The Beatles albums in CD format – I have all the vinyl albums.
At the time, it was not easy finding all the albums on CD. I eventually had them all but one – Yesterday and Today. But beyond not being able to find that last album – there was something else wrong. I couldn’t put my finger on what it was, but something was different. One of my favorite Beatles album was Rubber Soul – I sang a lot of those songs in that band so I knew that album well. At first I figured it was the CD factor – all songs on one side. You don’t have to flip the album to hear side two. But, after a certain amount of frustration in finding Yesterday and Today I resorted to making a special order. It’s was then that I learned what was up. I was told that the songs from Yesterday and Today were placed on the CD versions of Rubber Soul, Revolver and Help.
What?
Then it sank in – that’s what’s wrong with those albums – the order of the songs was all wrong. Then it got even worse. Apple not only did away with Yesterday and Today – apparently an American only album, but they had messed up Rubber Soul, Revolver and the Help album – the soundtrack of The Beatles’ movie Help.
It was a real mess – songs from Yesterday and Today and even Rubber Soul were all over the place – except where they were supposed to be.
I could not get my head around this. Why did they do this? Perhaps they were trying to save the consumer some money by doing away with one of the albums, but with Apple Corps track record of making alternative Beatle albums to sell – I don’t think that was the case. Saving us money – right.
As much as I tried to adjust to this new line up of songs and the lack of a whole Beatles album – I couldn’t – that line up of songs was imprinted in my brain. For my own sanity – every once in a while I had to drag out the old vinyl records and play these albums the way I was used to hearing them. Years later, I came across a turntable that had a USB hook up for a computer and I was able to “remaster” my own CDs. Finally, I could listen to a CD in my car and hear The Beatles the way I loved them. I further learned that there were lots of differences between “American” releases of Beatles songs and albums and those released in Britain or in other parts of the world. It was like the history we were taught in school – more American marketing than reality.
9/9/09
On 9/9/09 the video game Rock Band released its newest game – The Beatles. At the same time Apple Corps was going to be re-releasing all The Beatles albums again – remastered to what they would sound like if you were in the recording studio. I was fooled by the word “all”. Our son was dying to have the new game and I was interested in what these remastered albums would be like – so on 9/9/09 – we were in the store. I soon learned nothing had changed – Yesterday and Today does not exist.
I know for most people, they’re thinking – what’s the big deal. Get over it. But, I’m sure there are others like me in feeling a little bit of my past has been taken away.
The Truth as Americans Knew it.
The Beatles album Yesterday and Today was released after Rubber Soul and before Revolver. There was a controversy about the album cover. The first cover image was banned – it showed the four Beatles as butchers with blood, toy baby parts and meat.
The songs on Side One were:
Drive My Car
I’m Only Sleeping
Nowhere Man
Dr. Robert
Yesterday
Act Naturally
Side Two
And Your Bird Can Sing
If I Needed Someone
We Can Work It Out
What Goes On?
Day Tripper
That was a heck of an album.
When Rubber Soul was made into a CD, Drive My Car, Nowhere Man, What Goes On?, and If I Needed Someone were added to its line up. Revolver gotI’m Only Sleeping, And Your Bird Can Sing, and Dr. Robert.
The songs Yesterday, Act Naturally, We Can Work It Out and Day Tripperwere sent to other albums. Yesterday, We Can Work It Out and Day Tripper were also offered on a CD which included single hits called the Red Album 1962-66. These same songs can be found on The Beatles #1 hits CD.
Two other victims of this rearranging of album line ups was the songs I’ve Just Seen A Face and It’s Only Love – they were removed from Rubber Soul to make room for the songs from Yesterday and Today. They ended up on the album Help with Act Naturally (from Yesterday and Today) and the songs from the movie soundtrack of The Beatles’ movie Help.
What a mess – just to get rid of one album.
I myself am tired of people rewriting history. What would you think if the wizards at Apple Corps decided that after all this time they liked Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds to follow Sgt. Pepper’s Only Hearts Club Bandinstead of With A Little Help From My Friends? What’s the difference?
Well, one thing is for sure, Rock Band The Beatles will introduce a whole new generation of young folks to The Beatles of old and a lot of old folks like me will be singing old songs they grew up with along side their children and grandchildren. But, I keep reminding my son, Rock Band is a great video game, but it is not like being in a real rock band – playing a real guitar, singing in front of an audience who has paid money to hear you play. That’s a totally different thing altogether. It’s really great and doing Beatles songs is really special.
Linda (my better half) and I got mostly 100-98% scores – on the easy setting – singing all 45 songs – in one night. Our son Andrew did just as well on guitar and bass. Hey, maybe we’ll be the next Partridge Family – not!