Extracts from the Album A Hard Day's Night

The second EP issued on November 6th, 1964 featured a title nearly identical to the first one, merely inserting the word "album" in place of the word "film," though that simple substitution accurately differentiates the contents of the two discs.  This release contained songs from the non-soundtrack side of the LP A Hard Day's Night, running them in the same order as they had originally appeared on that record.

SIDE ONE

Any Time at All
I'll Cry Instead

SIDE TWO

Things We Said Today
When I Get Home

On the back cover, once again, press officer Tony Barrow used some of his original liner notes from the album A Hard Day's Night, adding only a few new bits of information in reference to the specific contents of this disc.

The program begins with Lennon's tough but tender mid-tempo rocker Any Time at All.  This is followed by the Lennon rockabilly number I'll Cry Instead, which was always mistakenly listed as being part of the soundtrack in the US, yet never was in the UK, correctly so.

Side two opens with McCartney's beautiful and brooding Things We Said Today, which had also served as the B-side of the single A Hard Day's Night.  This, of course, begs the question as to whether or not this song should have been replaced by Lennon's equally beautiful and brooding album-closer I'll Be Back.  But that would have made for an all-Lennon lineup, as the final offering here is Lennon's When I Get Home, a wild recording that threatens go to off the rails both vocally and instrumentally until it comes to a satisfying conclusion.

While fans had been eager to obtain the soundtrack songs on the Extracts from the Film EP, thereby pushing that release to number one on the Record Retailer EP chart, they were decidedly less enthusiastic about this disc, causing it to peak at a disappointing number eight.  This would be the lowest chart performance of any EP issued by the Beatles during their career, which is surprising due to the quality of the material presented here.  Perhaps two releases on the same day forced fans, many of whom could not afford albums in the first place, to make a hard choice, and the well-known soundtrack songs made for a more attractive package. 

Extracts from the Film A Hard Day's Night

Hard on the heels of the EP Long Tall Sally in June of 1964 came the release of the soundtrack album A Hard Day's Night in July.  Parlophone bided its time before issuing any material from that album in the EP format, then took the unprecedented step of releasing two EPs on the very same day, November 6th.  The first of these featured four tracks from side one of the LP (the soundtrack side) in the order as listed on the front cover pictured above.

SIDE ONE

I Should Have Known Better
If I Fell

SIDE TWO

Tell Me Why
And I Love Her

On the back cover, press officer Tony Barrow simply reused some of the liner notes he had written for the album to promote the film, though he did add a few more detailed descriptions of the songs included here.  He refers to these four songs as the "highspot items" from the album, obviously overlooking the two smash singles Can't Buy Me Love and A Hard Day's Night.

Lennon's I Should Have Known Better gets the program off to a joyous, rollicking start.  Most of these soundtrack songs were good enough to be singles (and, with the lone exception of Tell Me Why, all of them were issued on singles in the US) and this number fits into that mold perfectly.  This is followed by the stunning ballad If I Fell, also a Lennon composition.  Apart from John's vocal intro, it is sung as a duet by John and Paul - easily one of the most gorgeous of their entire career.

Side two opens with yet another offering from Lennon, the rousing Tell Me Why which launches the concert sequence at the end of the film.  This number features those trademark three-part harmonies of John, Paul and George which fans had already come to expect as a staple of the group's act.  As on the first side, we are then treated with a ballad, McCartney's beautiful acoustic tune And I Love Her, an example of a second-tier song that went on to become a well-loved standard in its own right, with numerous cover versions by other artists.

This oddly-titled release went to the number one spot on the Record Retailer's EP chart.  The same could not be said, however, of the companion disc also issued on that day.

All My Loving

Robert Freeman's famous shot of the boys from the album With the Beatles also graced the cover of their fourth EP, though in this version their turtleneck sweaters are clearly visible.  Released on February 7th, 1964, this new compilation combined two tracks from the latest LP with their first two B-sides, recordings dating back to 1962.

SIDE ONE

All My Loving
Ask Me Why

SIDE TWO

Money (That's What I Want)
P.S. I Love You

Press officer Tony Barrow's hype on the back cover reached new heights - justifiably so, as the group was in the midst of "conquering" the American market.  And while the older B-sides are still listed as being by McCartney-Lennon, the title song bears the more familiar Lennon-McCartney credit.

That title tune, McCartney's rollicking number All My Loving from With the Beatles, kicked off the disc.  This is one of those great second-tier songs that might have been a single (in fact, it was issued as a single by Capitol of Canada) and it was about to be the very first offering by the group to over 70 million Americans tuning in to the Ed Sullivan Show.  Next up was Ask Me Why, the B-side of the band's second single.  This is a surprisingly mellow composition from the young John Lennon, showing a tender side that he would reveal sparingly throughout his career as a Beatle.

Side two opened with a cover of the Motown rocker Money (That's What I Want) from the latest album.  John's delivery of this vocal is downright ferocious, demonstrating his tremendous range with a simple flip of the record.  The program ends with a jump back to the group's very first B-side P.S. I Love You, a song that shows young Mr. McCartney already able to come up with a fine standard that also could have served as an A-side.

By putting these two B-sides out on this record, twelve of the fourteen tracks from the LP Please Please Me had now been released on EPs.  Conversely, All My Loving and Money would be the only tracks from With the Beatles to be issued in this format.  Regardless of the unusual mix of materiel, All My Loving went to number one on the EP chart.

The next EP in sequence was Long Tall Sally on June 19th.  Since that disc contained previously unreleased tracks, I have already covered it in one of my earliest threads, so you may go back and read it at your leisure if you so desire.

The Beatles (No. 1)

The third British EP from the Beatles was released on November 1st, 1963.  This one returned to the first LP Please Please Me as its source and took the first four tracks from that album, issuing them in the same exact running order.

SIDE ONE

I Saw Her Standing There
Misery

SIDE TWO

Anna (Go to Him)
Chains

Since this is the third EP, the significance of the title (No.1?) remains mystifying.  The front cover used a different shot by Angus McBean taken at the same photo session which had yielded the cover of the group's first LP.  And, as usual, the back cover featured more hype from publicist Tony Barrow.

As with the Twist and Shout EP, fans were treated to lead vocals from three different Beatles, showing off the band's range in a way that the singles simply could not do.  Side one kicked off with the tremendous opening track I Saw Her Standing There by McCartney - the band's first original rocker.  This was followed by Misery, a composition credited primarily to Lennon, though it is sung as a duet by John and Paul. Despite the title, the song is delivered in an upbeat, tongue-in-cheek manner by the boys, who seem to be on the verge of laughter during the fade-out.

Two cover versions make up the second side of the record, the first being Anna (Go to Him).  With backup from Paul and George, John delivers a heartfelt vocal performance of this torch song by one of his personal favorites, Arthur Alexander.  The final number, Chains, is by the famous Brill Building songwriting team of Goffin and King.  George takes the lead vocal on the verses of this tune which had originally been recorded by the American girl group the Cookies.  The refrains feature one of the earliest examples on record of the superb three-part harmony that John, Paul and George had perfected through countless hours of live shows in Liverpool and Hamburg.

This release stopped just short of the top spot on the Record Retailer EP chart, peaking at number two.  Either not enough fans were still looking for material that had now been available for eight months or, perhaps, they were saving their money for the forthcoming second LP With the Beatles, which was due out in a mere three weeks.