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.