Please Please Me
Please Please Me | ||||
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The Beatles' studio album | ||||
Publication |
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Label (s) | Parlophone / EMI / Universal Music Group | |||
Format (s) |
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Mersey sound , rock 'n' roll , rock , pop |
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Title (number) |
14th |
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running time |
32 min 45 s |
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occupation |
Other musicians:
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Studio (s) |
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Please Please Me ( English ; "Rejoice me") is the first studio album of the British group The Beatles , which was published on 22 March 1963rd In Germany, the album was released on February 6, 1964 on the Hör zu label with a different cover artwork, initially under the simple title Die Beatles ; Because of one of the two eye-catching advertising slogans printed on the cover, this issue is referred to by collectors as a dance creator . It was the second album in Germany since With the Beatles was released there on November 12, 1963. It was not until 1976 that the album appeared in Germany as Please Please Me. In the USA , modified versions of the album were released, initially on January 10, 1964 on Vee-Jay Records under the title Introducing ... The Beatles , on March 22, 1965 on Capitol Records under the Title The Early Beatles . The UK version of Please Please Me was released on CD in the US on July 21, 1987 .
Emergence
On June 6, 1962, between 7 and 10 p.m., John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Pete Best had an audition at London's Abbey Road Studios , where the group performed in front of parlophone producers George Martin and Ron Richards. The Beatles played the songs Besame Mucho , Love Me Do , PS I Love You and Ask Me Why , the first two songs of which were released on the compilation album Anthology 1 in November 1995 . Norman Smith , the recording engineer, had George Martin brought out of the canteen during the recording of Love Me Do to ask his opinion. Martin explained the conditions of the studio to the group and then asked the Beatles, as they had not said anything so far, whether they were dissatisfied. George Harrison replied that he didn't like Martin's tie. After that, the mood between the Beatles and their future producer was much more relaxed. Musically, George Martin was not yet convinced, but the record deal between the Beatles and Parlophone was signed, backdated to June 4, 1962. For Pete Best it was the last recording with the Beatles. He was replaced by Ringo Starr , who was to record the potential debut single with the Beatles on September 4, 1962. This is how the first version of Love Me Do and the Mitch Murray composition How Do You Do It were recorded.
George Martin eventually settled on Love Me Do , but it was re-recorded on September 11th, this time with studio drummer Andy White . Furthermore, the B-side P.S. I Love You and an early version of Please Please Me included on Anthology 1 , recorded. Ringo Starr only played the tambourine and maracas .
The second single with the songs Please Please Me and Ask Me Why was recorded on November 26, 1962, again with Ringo Starr on drums. The third song was recorded on November 26th, Tip of My Tongue , but George Martin was unsatisfied with the arrangement , so it was not released by the Beatles.
In the meantime, in addition to appearances in the Cavern Club , the Beatles also had their last two engagements in the Star Club in Hamburg, from November 1 to 14 and from December 18 to 31, 1962, as well as radio and television appearances.
George Martin originally had the idea of recording the Beatles' first album live in the Cavern Club in front of a home audience, but discarded it after a tour of the club and decided to carry out the further recordings in the Abbey Road Studios , preferably in a live atmosphere.
The rest of the recordings for the Beatles' debut album took place on February 11, 1963 in a long session from 10 a.m. to 10:45 p.m. This was only possible because one could fall back on a repertoire constantly played by the Beatles when selecting a title , so that longer rehearsals were not necessary. George Martin wanted a quick production because he wanted to release an album as soon as possible after the success of the single Please Please Me , and also because of Parlophone's small budget.
The recordings were made on a BTR two-track tape recorder in Abbey Road Studios and were mixed in mono and stereo . The album was produced by George Martin, who also played the piano on some pieces. As engineers acted Norman Smith and Richard Langham.
George Harrison: “We were electrified all the time. Before anything was even recorded, we played through all of the songs. We played something and George Martin just said, 'Well, what else do you have to offer?' “Paul McCartney suggested the songs Falling in Love Again and Besame Mucho , but these were rejected by George Martin.
The morning began with the sessions for There's a Place (recordings from 10:45 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.), in which composers John Lennon and Paul McCartney took on the lead vocals together. After ten takes , they were happy with the result and next turned to I Saw Her Standing There (recordings: 11:30 am–1pm). Paul McCartney sang this rocking number, which initially had the working title Seventeen . Nine takes were recorded before this Lennon / McCartney composition was completed.
While the recording technicians took their lunch break (1–2: 30 pm), the Beatles stayed in the studio to perfect a few pieces. After the break, work continued with a cover version of the ballad A Taste of Honey (recordings from 2:30 p.m. to 3:15 p.m.). In this song, sung by Paul McCartney, the double-tracking method was used for the first time in a recording by the Beatles to "double" McCartney's vocals, a total of five takes were recorded.
On the next song Do You Want to Know a Secret (recordings: 3: 15-15: 45 clock) George Harrison had his first appearance as lead singer. Lennon and McCartney had composed the song especially for Harrison. The Beatles made four complete recording takes. Between 3:45 and 5 p.m., the Beatles worked out the songs A Taste of Honey , There's a Place and I Saw Her Standing There , in which they recorded further overdubs.
Misery (recordings: 5–6pm) was next on the program. Lennon and McCartney did the vocals together again. Eleven attempts were made to record. The two composers had originallywrittenthe song for the singer Helen Shapiro , but her manager had turned it down. The piano solo is by George Martin. The recording session was followed by the evening break from 6 p.m. to 7.30 p.m.
The evening session at 7:30 p.m. began with the recording of another composition by Lennon / McCartney - a total of thirteen takes of Hold Me Tight had been recorded by 8:15 p.m. In the final compilation of the album, however, the song was not used; Recordings can no longer be found and were probably deleted. A new recording took place with the recordings for the follow-up album With the Beatles .
The Beatles used familiar cover versions of the following songs , so that none of them required more than four attempts. John Lennon took over the vocals for Arthur Alexander's original Anna (Go to Him) (recordings from 8:15 pm to 8:45 pm). Ringo Starr was given the opportunity to perform as a singer at Boys (recordings: 8:45 pm–9pm). The song came from the American girl group The Shirelles . John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison sang the composition Chains (recordings: 9:00 pm - 9:30 pm) by Gerry Goffin and Carole King .
The penultimate song was Baby It's You (recordings: 9: 30-10pm), originally a single by the Shirelles from 1961. Since Hold Me Tight was not to be used, another song had to be recorded to fill the album.
The conclusion of the marathon session was the song Twist and Shout (recordings: 10:15 pm - 10:30 pm), with which the Isley Brothers had a minor hit in the USA in 1962. Knowing full well that the piece would strain Lennon's voice, George Martin and the Beatles decided to record it. Two versions were recorded, but on the second Lennon could no longer manage to sing because of a cold. Cris Neal, who came into the control room during the recording, thought he remembered John Lennon singing Twist and Shout shirtless.
Each of the musicians received 14 pounds and 10 shillings for the recordings . The total recording cost was £ 400.
In retrospect, John Lennon said of the album: "The record should capture the atmosphere of our live performances and it should have come pretty close to how we sounded to the audience in Hamburg and Liverpool ."
“We sang for twelve hours with almost no break. We had a cold and wondered if this would be noticed on the record. At the end of the day we only wanted to drink gallons of milk. Waiting for the finished LP to come out was really exciting. We were perfectionists. If it had sounded wrong in any way, we would have loved to do it all over again. But we were very satisfied with the result. "
On February 20, 1963 - in the absence of the Beatles - George Martin recorded the piano for Misery and the celesta for Baby It's You . George Martin spent February 25, 1963, also without the Beatles, mixing the recordings in mono and stereo. The songs from the second single Please Please Me and Ask Me Why received a new mono and, for the first time, a stereo mix. For Love Me Do and PS I Love You , only new mono mixes were made that simulate a stereo effect, as the first single was only recorded in mono.
Paul McCartney's original idea of naming the album Off the Beatle Track was discarded, but was later used by George Martin for one of his albums, which was released on August 3, 1964 and contains exclusively orchestrated Beatles songs.
Before the album was released on March 22, 1963, the Beatles recorded the three Lennon / McCartney compositions From Me to You , Thank You Girl and One After 909 on March 5, 1963 . The three songs were not used for the album; the first two became the third single in the UK, which hit number one in the UK charts for the first time. The 1963 version of One After 909 was only released on November 21, 1995 on the album Anthology 1 .
The album Please Please Me reached the top ten of the British charts on March 27th and number one position on May 8th, 1963, where it remained for another 29 weeks and was then replaced by the second Beatles album With the Beatles .
The album was released in a mono and a stereo version.
The mono version of the album includes other mixes of the songs Please Please Me (different vocals by John Lennon) and Misery (the stereo version is a little shorter).
Other - unused - recorded versions of the songs There's a Place , Do You Want to Know a Secret , A Taste of Honey , I Saw Her Standing There and Misery can be found on the album The Beatles Bootleg Recordings 1963 .
The UK version of Please Please Me was released in the US on July 21, 1987, and in January 1997 the album went platinum in the US for one million units sold.
Cover design
The album cover , taken on March 5, 1963 by photographer Angus McBean , was made in the stairwell of the EMI building in London . In 1969 the motif was repeated with the band members - who had since changed a lot - to serve as the cover for the album Get Back (which - never published itself - later became Let It Be ). However, the photo was used in 1973 as the cover for the 1967-1970 compilation (the so-called Blue Album ) and on the back of the 1962-1966 album (also known as the Red Album ). On the back of the cover is a text by Tony Barrow, the Beatles' press officer.
George Harrison said of the cover: “The photo on the LP cover shows us looking down from the balcony of the EMI office building in Manchester Square. Angus McBean shot it - and I still have the suit I was wearing then. We returned in 1969 and made the same recording for the Red and Blue album , although we had been thinking for a while of making the cover for Let It Be ”
The German cover had a completely different design, for example a different photo was used. On the back, the text by Tony Barrow was not printed either, but a separate text was written, which was supposed to reflect the youth language in 1964. The introductory sentence reads: “Here they are in person: the spirited fans from Liverpool, the original Beatles! The young lions with the smoking guitars. "
Track list
With six tracks, Please Please Me contains a high proportion of cover versions , partly due to the short production time - something that should be repeated during the recordings for the fourth album Beatles for Sale . Please Please Me is the only Beatles album in which the composers were listed in the order 'McCartney / Lennon'. In all subsequent publications of the group the order is ' Lennon / McCartney '.
page 1
No. | song | author | Lead vocals | Length stereo version | Length mono version |
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1 | I saw her standing there | McCartney / Lennon | McCartney | 2:54 | 2:58 |
2 | Misery | McCartney / Lennon | Lennon and McCartney | 1:49 | 1:53 |
3 | Anna (Go to Him) | Arthur Alexander | Lennon | 2:57 | 3:00 |
4th | Chains | Gerry Goffin / Carole King | Harrison | 2:25 | 2:29 |
5 | Boys | Dixon / Farrell | Rigid | 2:26 | 2:29 |
6th | Ask me why | McCartney / Lennon | Lennon | 2:27 | 2:30 |
7th | Please Please Me | McCartney / Lennon | Lennon | 2:01 | 2:06 |
Page 2
No. | song | author | Lead vocals | Length stereo version | Length mono version |
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8th | Love me do | McCartney / Lennon | Lennon and McCartney | 2:22 | 2:24 |
9 | PS I love you | McCartney / Lennon | McCartney | 2:04 | 2:08 |
10 | Baby it's you | David / Bacharach / Williams | Lennon | 2:41 | 2:42 |
11 | Do you want to know a secret | McCartney / Lennon | Harrison | 1:57 | 2:01 |
12 | A taste of honey | Ric Marlow / Bobby Scott | McCartney | 2:03 | 2:06 |
13 | There's a place | McCartney / Lennon | Lennon and McCartney | 1:50 | 1:54 |
14th | Twist and Shout | Medley / Russell | Lennon | 2:37 | 2:36 |
- The lengths of the songs are based on the 2009 CD versions.
Re-releases
- On February 26, 1987, the album Please Please Me was first released on CD in Europe (USA: July 21, 1987), exclusively in a mono mix. The mastering was next George Martin from the sound engineer of the Abbey Road Studios monitored Mike Jarrett. The CD comes with an eight-page booklet containing the original cover text by Tony Barrow.
- On September 9, 2009 the album was released remastered in a stereo mix on CD and as part of The Beatles Stereo Box Set . The remastered mono version was released as part of the box The Beatles in Mono , also available since September 9, 2009. The mono and stereo versions of the 2009 re-released CDs were remastered by Paul Hicks, Steve Rooke and Guy Massey. While the cover design of the mono CD was based on the original LP version, the fold-out CD cardboard cover of the stereo version was redesigned by Drew Lorimer. The stereo CD also contains a 20-page booklet that contains photos of the Beatles, the original cover text by Tony Barrow from 1963, information on the album by Kevin Howlett and Mike Heatley and information on the recordings by Allan Rouse and Kevin Howlett contains. The CD contains documentation in QuickTime format, consisting of video clips and modified images from the studio sessions; Accompanied by played music tracks, outtakes or studio conversations from the album.
- The remastered stereo vinyl long-playing record was released in November 2012 with the The Beatles Remastered Vinyl Box Set , the remastered mono-vinyl long-playing record in September 2014 with the box The Beatles In Mono .
- The album was first published in download format on November 16, 2010 on iTunes , and since December 24, 2015, the album has also been available from other providers and streaming services.
Recording dates
The recordings for the album took place exclusively in Abbey Road Studios (Studio 2) under the production direction of George Martin . Sound engineers for the recordings were Norman Smith and Richard Langham.
No. | song | Recording dates | Cast / guest musician |
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1 |
How Do You Do It
( The recorded Mitch Murray composition was not used and did not appear on the album Anthology 1 until November 21, 1995 ) |
4th Sep 1962 |
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2 |
Love Me Do (first version)
( The first version of Love Me Do was released as a single [first pressing], it is on the album Past Masters available ) |
4th Sep 1962 |
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3 |
Love Me Do (second version)
( the second version of Love Me Do was used for the album and for the single as a second pressing ) |
Sep 11 1962 |
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4th | PS I love you | Sep 11 1962 |
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5 | Please Please Me | Nov. 26, 1962 |
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6th | Ask me why | Nov. 26, 1962 |
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7th |
Tip of My Tongue
( The song was not released by the Beatles, instead the Lennon / McCartney composition was left to Tommy Quickly , who released its recording as a single in August 1963 ) |
Nov. 26, 1962 |
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8th | There's a place | Feb 11, 1963 |
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9 | I saw her standing there | Feb 11, 1963 |
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10 | A taste of honey | Feb 11, 1963 |
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11 | Do you want to know a secret | Feb 11, 1963 |
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12 | Misery | Feb 11, 1963 |
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13 |
Hold me tight
( Initial reception during the sessions for the album Please Please Me , the song was during the recording of the album With the Beatles resumed ) |
Feb 11, 1963 |
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14th | Anna (Go to Him) | Feb 11, 1963 |
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15th | Boys | Feb 11, 1963 |
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16 | Chains | Feb 11, 1963 |
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17th | Baby it's you | Feb 11, 1963 |
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18th | Twist and Shout | Feb 11, 1963 |
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More songs:
The recordings took place in Abbey Road Studios (Studio 2) under the production direction of George Martin. The sound engineer for the recordings was Norman Smith.
No. | song | Recording dates | occupation | Sound carrier (European first release) |
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1 | From me to you | March 5, 1963 |
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Single A-side |
2 | Thank you girl | March 5, 1963 |
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Single B side |
3 | One after 909 | March 5, 1963 |
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Anthology 1 |
Chart positions of the album
album | Release Date | Best placement in the charts | Label catalog no. | |||||||
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Type | title | GB | US | DE | GB | US | DE | GB | US | DE |
Studio album | Please Please Me in Germany as: The Beatles (The central dance team of the world-famous four from Liverpool) |
22 Mar 1963 | - | Feb 6, 1964 | 1 | nv | 5 | Parlophone PMC 1202 (mono) PCS 3042 (stereo) |
- | LISTEN TO Elektrola HZE 117 (Mono) SHZE 117 (Stereo) |
Studio album CD first release |
Please Please Me | Feb. 26, 1987 | July 21, 1987 | Feb 1987 | 32 | - | - | Parlophone CDP 7 46435 2 |
Capitol CDP 7 46435 2 |
EMI CDP 7 46435 2 |
Studio album remastered CD re-release |
Please Please Me | Sep 9 2009 | Sep 9 2009 | Sep 9 2009 | 38 | 155 | - | Apple / EMI 3824162 |
Apple / Capitol 3824162 |
Apple / EMI 3824162 |
Deviating publications
- In Germany, the album was released on February 6, 1964 on the Hör zu label with a different cover artwork, initially under the simple title Die Beatles . For British and US American soldiers stationed in Germany, the LP was produced in February 1964 with the same cover as the British edition (catalog number: Odeon ZTOX 5550).
- In France , the album was released under the title No 1 with its own cover design in January 1964 in mono.
- In Italy , the album was released under the title The Beatles with the cover design of the album With the Beatles in November 1963 in mono.
- In Uruguay and other South American countries, the album was released under the title Por Favor, Yo with a different cover design.
- In Venezuela , the album Please Please Me was distributed under the title Surfin Con Los Beatles En Accion .
- In Japan , the album Please Please Me was released in May 1966 with its own cover design in stereo. The record was also pressed on red vinyl.
- In Canada , the album was released under the title Twist and Shout with its own cover design in February 1964 in Mono by Capitol Records . The songs I Saw Her Standing There and Misery are missing , but the album was supplemented with the songs She Loves You and From Me to You .
- In Argentina , the single Please Please Me / Love Me Do was released from the album Por Favor, Yo , and the Beatles' artist name was changed to Los Grillos on this single .
Outcouplings
Singles
single | Release Date | Best placement in the charts | Label catalog no. | ||||||
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A side / B side | GB | US | DE | GB | US | DE | GB | US | DE |
Love Me Do / PS I Love You | Oct 5, 1962 | Apr 27, 1964 | - | 17th | 1 /10 | nv | Parlophone R4949 | Tollie 9008 | - |
Please Please Me / Ask Me Why | Jan. 11, 1963 | Feb. 2, 1963 | - | 2 | - / - | nv | Parlophone R4983 | Vee Jay VJ 498 | - |
Love Me Do / Please Please Me | - | - | 4th Mar 1963 | nv | nv | - / 20 | - | - | Odeon O 22 396 |
Twist and Shout / Boys | - | - | 16 Sep 1963 | nv | nv | 10 / - | - | - | Odeon O 22 581 |
Misery / Ask Me Why | - | - | Jan. 28, 1964 | nv | nv | 37 / - | - | - | Odeon O 22 663 |
Do You Want to Know a Secret / Little Child | - | - | Apr 8, 1964 | nv | nv | 34 / - | - | - | Odeon O 22 710 |
Extended Plays (EPs)
EP | Release Date | Best placement in the charts | Label catalog no. | |||||||
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title | Songs A-Side / B-Side | GB | US | DE | GB | US | DE | GB | US | DE |
The Beatles | Twist and shout; A Taste of Honey / Do You Want to Know a Secret; There's a place | - | - | May 1963 | nv | nv | - | - | - | Odeon 41560 |
Twist and Shout | Twist and shout; A Taste of Honey / Do You Want to Know a Secret; There's a place | July 12, 1963 | - | - | 4th | nv | nv | Parlophone GEP8882 |
- | - |
The Beatles' hits | From Me to You; Thank You Girl / Please Please Me; Love me do | 6 Sep 1963 | - | Sep 20 1963 | 17th | nv | - | Parlophone GEP8880 |
- | Odeon 41598 |
The Beatles (No. 1) | I Saw Her Standing There; Misery / Anna (Go to Him); Chains | Nov 1, 1963 | - | - | 24 | nv | nv | Parlophone GEP8883 |
- | - |
literature
- The Beatles: The Beatles Anthology . ISBN 3-550-07132-9 .
- Mark Lewisohn: The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions: The Official Story of the Abbey Road Years . ISBN 0-600-61207-4 .
- Mark Lewisohn: The Complete Beatles Chronicle . ISBN 0-600-61001-2 .
- Neville Stannard: The Long & Winding Road . ISBN 0-907080-96-0 .
- Ian MacDonald: Revolution in the Head . ISBN 978-0-09-952679-7 .
- Christoph Maus: The Beatles Worldwide . ISBN 978-3-9809137-1-3 .
- Christoph Maus: The Beatles Worldwide II . ISBN 3-9809137-2-4 .
Web links
- Information on Please Please Me (UK)
- Information on Please Please Me (official site)
- Background information on the individual pieces (English)
- Lyrics and record covers in LyricWiki
- Information about the recording session of Please Please Me
Individual evidence
- ↑ Roland Butza: Show like never before. (PDF) 50 years of HÖR ZU long-playing record (sample pages). Self-published , 2012, p. 114 , archived from the original on March 23, 2016 ; accessed on October 4, 2017 : "The Beatles albums on HöR zU"
- ↑ Roland Butza: Show like never before. (PDF) 50 years of HÖR ZU long-playing record (sample pages). Self-published , 2012, p. 120 , archived from the original on March 23, 2016 ; Retrieved on October 4, 2017 : "It is still Please Plecse Me [OCR-sic]"
- ↑ Roland Butza: Show like never before. (PDF) 50 years of HÖR ZU long-playing record (sample pages). Self-published , 2012, p. 118 , archived from the original on March 23, 2016 ; accessed on October 4, 2017 : "Only in 1976 will [...]"
- ↑ a b The Beatles: The Beatles Anthology . ISBN 3-550-07132-9 , p. 92.
- ^ Moers / Meier: The Beatles - History and Chronology. Hamburg 2000, p. 136.
- ^ The Beatles: The Beatles Anthology . ISBN 3-550-07132-9 , p. 93
- ↑ Origin and use of the first recordings (Love Me Do)
- ↑ Origin and use of the first recordings (PS I Love You)
- ↑ Differences in the mixes of Please Please Me
- ↑ Differences in Mixtures from Misery
- ↑ Platinum award
- ↑ British cover of the album Please Please Me ( Memento from February 11, 2017 in the Internet Archive )
- ^ The Beatles: The Beatles Anthology . ISBN 3-550-07132-9 , p. 93
- ^ German cover of the album Die Zentrale Tanzschaffe of the world famous four from Liverpool
- ↑ Cover text of the album "The central dance team of the world-famous four from Liverpool"
- ↑ Download the Beatles songs
- ↑ Streaming the Beatles songs
- ↑ German version Please Please Me
- ↑ German version for British and US soldiers stationed in Germany - Please Please Me
- ↑ French version - Les Beatles No 1
- ^ Italian version - The Beatles
- ↑ Uruguay Version - The Beatles
- ↑ Venezuela Version - The Beatles
- ↑ Japanese album version: Please Please Me
- ↑ Canadian version of Twist and Shout
- ↑ Argentine single Please Please Me / Love Me Do - the Beatles' artist name: Los Grillos