Beatles - Please Please Me
The first steps on the road to Please Please Me were taken on June 6, 1962, when the Beatles, already successful in their native Liverpool, auditioned for EMI Records producer George Martin at Abbey Road studios in London. Martin was sufficiently impressed to have them back September 11, when they recorded their debut single, "Love Me Do," with session drummer Andy White standing in for Ringo. "Love Me Do" and their second single, "Please Please Me," did well enough for Martin to greenlight the recording of a full album. It took a mere nine hours on February 11, 1963, on a two-track tape machine, at a cost of £400.
Released on March 22, it hit the U.K. No. 1 spot on May 11, establishing the Beatles as a force to be reckoned with.
Paul McCartney: This album was one of the main ambitions in our lives. We felt it would be a showcase for the group, and it was tremendously important that it sounded bang on the button.... It was break or bust for us. We did "Twist And Shout" last, because if we'd done it first, we couldn't have done any of the others. John's voice would have gone.
Several album cover designs were discussed until producer George Martin hired Angus McBean, a distinguished British photographer, to do the job. The sleeve cover shows the Beatles looking over the entrance stairwell of EMI's Manchester Square Building in London.
Song writing credits went to McCartney-Lennon. Subsequent Parlophone releases changed this to Lennon-McCartney.
The album spent 70 weeks on the UK charts and was No. 1 for 30 weeks before being replaced by With the Beatles.
1963
Side 1
1. I Saw Her Standing There
2. Misery
3. [Anna (Go To Him)]
4. [Chains]
5. [Boys]
6. Ask Me Why
7. Please Please Me
Side 2
1. Love Me Do
2. P. S. I Love You
3. [Baby, It's You]
4. Do You Want To
Know a Secret
5. [A Taste of Honey]
6. There's a Place
7. [Twist and Shout]