263. The Beatles, "Hard Day's Night"

 


Remember when we talked about Help around a week ago and I talked about how bitter and dark it is about relationships?  Everyone's breaking up and no one trusts each other?  This album (which predated Help by about a year) is from when the relationship was still good.  The songs are mostly about how much the singer is in love and loves her and she loves him and so forth.  (The exceptions, of course, are John Lennon songs.)  So in the very first song (at least on the UK version), the title track, we hear:

You know I work all day to get you money to buy you things
And it's worth it just to hear you say you're going to give me everything
So why on earth should I moan, cos when I get you alone
You know I feel OK
When I'm home everything seems to be right
When I'm home feeling you holding me tight, tight, yeah

Aww, that's sweet.  It also occurs to me that this is kind of a transactional relationship!  He gives her money to buy things, and she gives him "everything," which is probably not code for a warm mug of tea and a spirited game of Scrabble.  

A few songs later:

Before this dance is through
I think I'll love you too
I'm so happy when you dance with me
I don't want to kiss or hold your hand
If it's funny try and understand
There is really nothing else I'd rather do
Cos I'm happy just to dance with you

Gross.  This is the beta male Beatles, just happy for a dance.  Even holding hands is too much to ask for these wimpy virgins.  Meanwhile the Chad Rolling Stones are in the parking lot doing god knows what.

Leave it to John, as I said, to be the tough guy, on one of the album's best songs, "You Can't Do That," punctuated by George Harrison's chiming 12-string

I got something to say that might cause you pain
If I catch you talking to that boy again
I'm gonna let you down
And leave you flat
Because I told you before, oh

What a great song.  I love George's intro riff - which he apparently just came up with in the studio - the way it drops into the minor on the chorus, suggesting introspection and doubt, just the whole thing's a gem.

There are a bunch of other Beatles classics on this album that you already know, like "And I Love Her" and "Can't Buy Me Love," songs that are so entwined in the culture they're the titles of movies and shit.  The Beatles!

Does this album deserve to be in the Top 500? Yes.  We've been over this, all the Beatles albums do, because they're the Beatles.  

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