The Beatles, Beatles For Sale, 1964
Label: Parlophone
Producer: George Martin
Album number four from the Fab Four arrived at the peak of the Beatlemania phenomenon that erupted following their arrival State-side earlier in the year and the massive success of A Hard Day’s Night, which made them stars on the screen as well as the stage. In the midst of a relentless touring schedule that found the band criss-crossing the globe and a Christmas release deadline quickly approaching for their next album, Beatles For Sale was born in a rather rushed manner. Consequently, the record found the Beatles reverting back to a greater mix of cover material after increasing the self-written quotient on Day’s. Nevertheless, the self-penned contributions still present here continued to document the growing maturation in the Lennon-McCartney camp.
While their bread and butter still consisted of a heavy dose of delightful slices of pop, those continuing shades of artistic evolution begin the album on a deeper, darker, and more introspective note. Opening track “No Reply” was a frank account with John Lennon taking his lover to task for the lies she has laid at his feet. The inflection of Lennon’s voice at precisely the right notes and moments are deliciously crackling (“If I were you!”, “That’s a lie!”, “I nearly died!”) while the quiet guitar strumming further suggested a threatening tinge of vengeance. “I’m A Loser” is likewise cuttingly somber but with a bit more of the classic Beatles jangle. It continued to explore Lennon’s journey into the darker corners of his emotional psyche, hinting at the mild Dylan influences that would reveal themselves completely later on. Nevertheless, there is still a self-deprecating grin in the delivery, perfectly complimented by George Harrison’s superb picking and Lennon’s increased use of harmonica riffs. Rounding out this initial trifecta of a darker shade is “Baby’s In Black”, a sad portrait of a woman down on luck and love and how her despair depresses the narrator. It’s loaded with classic Lennon-McCartney harmonies while Harrison and Ringo Starr reliably provide the instrumental anchor.
Turning the page after concluding the darkest three-song entry in the Beatles’ catalog thus far is a return to faithfully covering rock & roll classics. Lennon takes the lead on Chuck Berry’s “Rock and Roll Music” as the band sinks their teeth back into the reckless spirit and abandon of their Cavern Club days, while a delightful mash-up of Little Richard’s “Kansas City/Hey-Hey-Hey!” harkens back to the exuberant joy of the Please Please Me album. These moments effortlessly continue their undefeated streak in the realm of covering rock classics. Next up, Buddy Holly gets his turn in the spotlight as John and Paul deliver a spot-on impersonation of The Crickets on “Words of Love”, while Harrison provides an appropriately chirping guitar sound and Starr strums on a packing case of all things to capture an homage to “Everyday” in the background. Ringo himself takes his turn at the mic on Carl Perkins’ “Honey Don’t”, an enjoyable trip back to the glory days of rockabilly that proves to be the perfect spotlight for Starr’s charming and entertaining personality. The same could be said for Harrison’s own Perkins tribute with “Everybody’s Trying to Be My Baby”, which further updates the frenetic rockabilly sound with a 60’s pop zeal and Harrison’s gloriously ringing guitars. Meanwhile, a cover of Roy Lee Johnson’s “Mr. Moonlight” brings another slight stylistic detour with Lennon’s throaty soul rendering one of his most unique vocals to date, while an organ solo replaces the typical guitar fills.
Leading the way as the ensemble switches gears back to original material is the album’s smash, the not-so-precocious “Eight Days A Week”. An inescapable ear-worm, “Eight Days” was pretty standard pop radio fare for the most part, but nevertheless incorporated a few fun production tricks to keep things interesting, particularly with the faded intro that begins the tune. Lennon may have panned the song later, but he sure sounds euphoric singing it here. And who could blame him? It’s mindless Beatles bliss, pure and simple. Flipping the coin entirely is “I Don’t Want to Spoil the Party” which takes on a more country & western influence with a downbeat setting that finds this party-goer drowning in her broken heart. A quarter-century later it would realize it’s full country identity when it became Rosanne Cash’s final No. 1 country hit in 1989. It undeniably contains one of the best melodies and choruses to be found on the album. But perhaps the most endearing and hypnotic melodic concoction of the album belongs to Paul McCartney’s more understated gem, “I’ll Follow the Sun”, a charming and also folksy detour into steadfast romance. It would mark another step toward the more reflective tones to permeate the band’s identity down the road.
While it’s true that Beatles For Sale is probably the least memorable album when citing the band’s iconic catalog, it’s mostly a relative comparison thanks to the remarkable achievements that would reveal themselves in the latter half of their run. While there is surely filler littered throughout, Sale showed that the formulas that worked on the group’s first two albums still worked here. It just so happened that A Hard Day’s Night proved they were capable of much more, a path that would reemerge in the New Year. Ultimately, For Sale remains a delightful album, if not a particularly pivotal one.
Track Listing:
- “No Reply” (John Lennon and Paul McCartney)
- “I’m A Loser” (Lennon and McCartney)
- “Baby’s in Black” (Lennon and McCartney)
- “Rock and Roll Music (Chuck Berry)
- “I’ll Follow the Sun” (Lennon and McCartney)
- “Mr. Moonlight” (Roy Lee Johnson)
- “Kansas City/Hey-Hey-Hey-Hey!” (Jerry Lieber, Mike Stoller, Richard Penniman)
- “Eight Days a Week” (Lennon and McCartney) *Single Release 1964
- “Words of Love” (Buddy Holly)
- “Every Little Thing” (Lennon and McCartney)
- “I Don’t Want to Spoil the Party” (Lennon and McCartney) *B-Side Release 1964
- “What You’re Doing” (Lennon and McCartney)
- “Everybody’s Trying to Be My Baby” (Carl Perkins)
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