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87-743: On January 2, 1965, the first Top 40 was compiled, with its first #1 hit " I Feel Fine " by The Beatles . In September 1974, the Stichting Nederlandse Top 40 bought the Top 40 and named it De Nederlandse Top 40 . The Dutch Top 40 is one of the four official charts in the Netherlands, the other three being the B2B Single Top 100 , which is based entirely on pure sales and streaming, the Mega Top 30 from ( NPO 3FM ) which, like

174-519: A Gretsch Tennessean guitar for the first time, in addition to using his twelve-string Rickenbacker 360/12 . Author André Millard describes this period as one in which the recording studio changed its identity from the Beatles' perspective, from a formal workplace into a "workshop" and "laboratory". Recording was completed on 26 October, partway through the band's four-week tour of the UK. On 18 October,

261-415: A fade out . Hertsgaard writes that the surprise provided by the fade-in was heightened for LP listeners due to the track being sequenced at the start of side two. Lennon was later highly dismissive of "Eight Days a Week", referring to it in a 1980 interview as "lousy". The dark theme of the album was balanced by " Every Little Thing ", which Unterberger describes as a "celebration of what a wonderful girl

348-642: A fade-in and incorporating guitar feedback , and supplemented the basic recordings with percussion instruments such as timpani , African hand drums, and chocalho . The album reflects the twin influences of country music and Bob Dylan , whom the Beatles met in New York in August 1964. Partly as a result of the group's hectic schedule, only eight of the tracks are original compositions, with cover versions of songs by artists such as Carl Perkins , Chuck Berry , Buddy Holly and Little Richard being used to complete

435-540: A Loser" and "Rock and Roll Music", along with both sides of the "I Feel Fine" single, for broadcast on a special edition of the TV show Thank Your Lucky Stars . The band also promoted the two records with a BBC Light Programme session, for which they recorded live versions of "I'm a Loser", "Honey Don't", "Everybody's Trying to Be My Baby" and "I'll Follow the Sun", and an appearance on Ready Steady Go! , where Beatles for Sale

522-406: A bit darker, more grown-up, rather than just straight pop." Beatles historian Mark Lewisohn cites the band's dedication to achieving a discordant twanging sound for Harrison's lead guitar part, and Martin's objection to the song opening with this sound, as an example of the Beatles breaking free of their producer's control for the first time. To achieve the desired swelling effect, Lennon knelt on

609-407: A combination of airplay, streaming, and social media trends. The more often a song gets played on the radio, the higher its ranking in the Top 40. To compute year-end chart positions, the weekly #1 positions get 40 points, the #2 positions get 39 points, etc. These weekly scores are then added up and sorted by single to determine the ranking. The Tipparade , a 'bubbling under' chart for the Top 40,

696-423: A girl silhouetted in a window, not answering the telephone". Sequenced as the first track on Beatles for Sale , the song served as an uncharacteristic album opener, given its dramatic and resentful mood. MacDonald attributes effectiveness to the acoustic guitar backing and the treatment given to Martin's piano part, which is rendered as "a darkly reverbed presence" rather than a distinct instrument. The vocals on

783-563: A proto- heavy metal version of the song recorded by the English progressive rock band Yes in 1969. Lennon's " I Don't Want to Spoil the Party " returns to the sombre mood established by the opening three tracks. MacDonald considers the performance to be the album's "most overt exercise in country-and-western", aided by the tight snare sound, Harrison's rockabilly-style guitar solo, and the despondent minor-third harmony part. MacDonald likens

870-485: A recent falling out with Epstein, had been the band's press officer throughout their rise to international stardom. In his text, Taylor focused on what the Beatles phenomenon would mean to people of the future: There's priceless history between these covers. When, in a generation or so, a radioactive , cigar-smoking child, picnicking on Saturn , asks you what the Beatle affair was all about, don't try to explain all about

957-587: A recording effect in popular music. Artists such as the Kinks and the Who had already used feedback live, but Lennon remained proud of the fact that the Beatles were perhaps the first group to deliberately put it on vinyl. "I Feel Fine" is written in 4 time with drummer Ringo Starr 's R&B-influenced beat (based on the "Latin" drumming in Ray Charles's hit "What'd I Say") featured through most of

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1044-512: A reflection of the shortage of original material available to the band, since McCartney acknowledged that the song "wouldn't have been considered good enough" for their previous releases. Martin nevertheless later named it as his favourite song on Beatles for Sale . " Eight Days a Week " marked the first time the Beatles brought a partly formed song into the studio and completed the writing process as they recorded it. Two recording sessions, totalling nearly seven hours, on 6 October were devoted to

1131-481: A row (not counting the EP 4 – by the Beatles ) by one act, also a record at the time. The subsequent singles were " Eight Days a Week ", " Ticket to Ride ", " Help! ", " Yesterday " and " We Can Work It Out ". By 2012, "I Feel Fine" had sold 1.41 million copies in the UK. As of December 2018, it was the 53rd-best-selling single of all time there – one of six Beatles songs included on the top sales rankings published by

1218-525: A series of radio and television engagements and to promote their first feature film, A Hard Day's Night . After performing further concerts in Sweden, they began recording the new album in London in mid August, only to then depart for a month-long tour of North America. While in New York, the Beatles met American folk singer Bob Dylan , who introduced the band members to cannabis . Through Dylan's example,

1305-726: Is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released in November 1964 as the A-side of their eighth single. It was written by John Lennon and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. The recording includes one of the earliest uses of guitar feedback in popular music. The single topped charts in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway and Sweden. In

1392-529: Is based on sales, streaming, airplay, and recommendations from both the general public and the music industry. There is a set of rules, of which some have existed since 1972, that has been maintained up until 2012. Some of these have been criticized as a hindrance. This is a listing of significant achievements and milestones based upon the Dutch Top 40 charts. Source: Source: Source: Source: Source: Source: I Feel Fine " I Feel Fine "

1479-519: Is easily up to standard and will knock out pop fans, rock fans, R&B and Beatles fans …" In a more recent assessment, Q found the album title to hold a "hint of cynicism" in depicting the Beatles as a "product" to be sold. AllMusic editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine said that "the weariness of Beatles for Sale comes as something of a shock" after "the joyous A Hard Day's Night ". He also cited it as "the group's most uneven album" yet added that its best moments find them "moving from Merseybeat to

1566-863: The Beatles for Sale sessions. While highlighting the studio techniques used to achieve the completed recording, MacDonald considers "What You're Doing" to be a possible rival to "I Feel Fine" as the Beatles' "first sound experiment". Several of the album's cover versions had been staples of the Beatles' live shows in Hamburg and at The Cavern Club in Liverpool during the early 1960s. These songs included Chuck Berry 's " Rock and Roll Music ", sung by Lennon, Buddy Holly's " Words of Love ", sung by Lennon and McCartney with Harrison, and two by Carl Perkins: " Everybody's Trying to Be My Baby ", sung by Harrison, and " Honey Don't ", sung by Starr. " Mr. Moonlight ", which

1653-498: The Billboard Hot 100 in a calendar year (1964), an all-time record. In order, these singles were " I Want to Hold Your Hand ", " She Loves You ", " Can't Buy Me Love ", " Love Me Do ", " A Hard Day's Night " and "I Feel Fine". For songwriters Lennon and McCartney, it was the seventh number-one they wrote in the same calendar year, which was another all-time record. The song was the first of six Hot 100 number one chart-toppers in

1740-461: The coda , Lennon's intro riff (or ostinato ) is repeated with a bright sound by George Harrison on electric guitar (a Gretsch Tennessean). The song ends with a fadeout of the G major portion of the opening riff repeated several times. "I Feel Fine" starts with a single, percussive feedback note produced by McCartney plucking the A string on his bass, and Lennon's guitar, which was leaning against McCartney's bass amp, picking up feedback. This

1827-406: The songwriting partnership of Lennon and Paul McCartney was unable to keep up with the demand for new material. To make up for the shortfall in output, the Beatles resorted to including several cover versions on the album. This had been their approach for their first two albums – Please Please Me and With the Beatles – but had been abandoned for A Hard Day's Night . McCartney said of

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1914-687: The Australian release of the LP featured individual photographs of the Beatles taken at one of the group's Sydney concerts in June 1964. Issued as a single in Australia, "Rock and Roll Music" was a number 1 hit there for four weeks. The song also topped singles charts in Norway and Sweden. On 26 February 1987, Beatles for Sale was officially released on compact disc (catalogue number CDP 7 46438 2), as were

2001-412: The Beatles ate fish and chips while trying to mime to the song. Epstein was adamant that this film could not be used. From then on, the controversial "fish and chips" footage was kept in a 2" videotape box labelled "I Feel Fried". The first promotional film was included in the Beatles' 2015 video compilation 1 , and both films were included in the three-disc versions of the compilation, titled 1+ . In

2088-502: The Beatles had met during 1964. This inner gatefold image anticipated Peter Blake 's revolutionary cover design for the Beatles' 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band . According to music journalist Neil Spencer , the album's title was an apt comment on the band's unprecedented commercial value as entertainers, given the wealth of Beatles-related merchandise introduced over the previous year. The sleeve notes for Beatles for Sale were written by Derek Taylor , who, until

2175-457: The Beatles had rushed back to London from Hull, to record the A-side of their forthcoming single, "I Feel Fine", and three of the album's cover tunes (in a total of five takes). In an interview published the day before this session, Lennon admitted that the need for new original songs was "becoming a hell of a problem". The band participated in several mixing and editing sessions before completing

2262-465: The Beatles introduced an "arty middle-class" sensibility to pop music. The sessions for Beatles for Sale began at EMI Studios on 11 August, one month after the release of A Hard Day's Night . The majority of the recording sessions took place during a three-week period beginning on 29 September, following the band's return from the US tour. Much of the production was done on "days off" from performances in

2349-535: The Beatles' catalogue was standardised for release on CD. Instead, eight of the album's fourteen tracks appeared on Capitol Records ' concurrent release, Beatles '65 , issued in North America only. The sessions for Beatles for Sale also produced a non-album single, " I Feel Fine " backed by " She's a Woman " as the B-side. During the sessions, the band ventured into studio experimentation, such as employing

2436-417: The Beatles, particularly John Lennon , were encouraged to write more introspective lyrics than before. For his part, Dylan said he recognised that the Beatles "were pointing the direction that music had to go", and he soon began writing songs that embraced youth culture and recording with a rock backing. Beatles for Sale was the Beatles' fourth album release in the space of 21 months. Neil Aspinall ,

2523-521: The Dutch Top 40 also includes airplay data. From October 4. 1974 until May 20. 1976, the Top 40 was broadcast by TROS on the pop radio station Hilversum 3 , presented by famous Dutch DJ Ferry Maat . From May 28, 1976 until November 29. 1985 the Top 40 was broadcast by Veronica on Hilversum 3. As of December 1. 1985, after the rename of the station name to Radio 3 , the Top 40 continued to be broadcast by Veronica on Radio 3. In 1981 and 1982, Stichting Nederlandse Top 40 ran several trade fairs in both

2610-488: The Dutch Top 40 on Radio 3 until December 18, 1993. Meanwhile the Dutch Top 40 was also broadcast on the Dutch commercial radiostation Radio 538 since June 1993. The list continued to be broadcast on this radiostation until December 28. 2018, when Radio 538 discontinued the broadcasting of the Dutch Top 40. As from January 4. 2019, the Top 40 is broadcast by the Dutch commercial radiostation Qmusic . For most of its history,

2697-417: The English rock band the Beatles . It was released on 4 December 1964 in the United Kingdom on EMI 's Parlophone label. The album marked a departure from the upbeat tone that had characterised the Beatles' previous work, partly due to the band's exhaustion after a series of tours that had established them as a worldwide phenomenon in 1964. Beatles for Sale was not widely available in the US until 1987, when

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2784-578: The Netherlands and Belgium . In January 1993 Radio 3 decided that the broadcasting of two hit lists (the other one was the Nationale Top 100 ) on one radio station must come to an end and therefore as from February 7. 1993 Radio 3 started to broadcast a new hitlist: the Mega Top 50 and wanted to terminate the broadcasting of the Top 40. Due to a lawsuit of the Stichting Nederlandse Top 40, Veronica had to continue broadcasting

2871-504: The Party" can be seen "with hindsight" as an early example of country rock , anticipating the Byrds' work in that style, particularly their 1968 album Sweetheart of the Rodeo . In a February 1970 interview following a recording session with Starr and Harrison, Stephen Stills , then part of the supergroup Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young , said he first began listening to the Beatles around

2958-454: The Party". It instead included " I'll Be Back ", which was one of the songs cut from the US version of A Hard Day's Night , and "I Feel Fine" and "She's a Woman". The six omitted tracks received an LP release in America on Beatles VI in 1965. Beatles '65 was released eleven days after Beatles for Sale and became the fastest-selling album of the year in the United States. The cover of

3045-399: The Top 40 was based on sales figures of record stores. These were collected through telephone surveys. As of 1999, the airplay of a limited number of radio stations was included. Between 2006 and 2014, download figures were added to the mix. They were removed again because supposedly, download sales could be easily manipulated by record companies or artists. As of February 2014, the chart is

3132-505: The UK charts on 12 December, and a week later displaced A Hard Day's Night from the top position. After seven weeks at number 1, Beatles for Sale was displaced by the Rolling Stones ' The Rolling Stones No. 2 but it returned to the top on 27 February 1965 for a week. After being again displaced by The Rolling Stones No. 2 , Beatles for Sale overtook it for a second time on 1 May, remaining there for another three weeks. It

3219-472: The UK charts on 12 December, displacing the Rolling Stones ' " Little Red Rooster ", and remained there for five weeks. In Canada, the song also reached number one. The song topped the US Billboard Hot 100 chart for three weeks in late 1964 and early 1965. Cash Box magazine ranked "I Feel Fine" as the 19th biggest US hit of 1965. It was the sixth single by the Beatles to hit number one on

3306-499: The UK's Official Charts Company . On 23 November 1965, the Beatles filmed two promotional clips for the song for inclusion in Top of the Pops ' round-up of the year's biggest hits. Directed by Joe McGrath , both films feature the band interacting with items of gym equipment. In the first, Harrison sang into a punch-ball while Starr pedalled on an exercise bike . In the second film,

3393-439: The UK, Beatles for Sale was the top-selling album of 1964 and the second-highest seller of 1965. The concurrent Beatles release in the United States, Beatles '65 , included eight songs from Beatles for Sale , omitting the tracks "Kansas City / Hey, Hey, Hey, Hey!", "Eight Days a Week" (a number one hit single in the US in early 1965), "What You're Doing", "Words of Love", "Every Little Thing" and "I Don't Want to Spoil

3480-415: The UK, and much of the songwriting was completed in the studio. George Harrison recalled that the band had become more sophisticated about recording techniques: "Our records were progressing. We'd started out like anyone spending their first time in a studio – nervous and naive and looking for success. By this time we'd had loads of hits and were becoming more relaxed with ourselves, and more comfortable in

3567-481: The UK, it was the fifth-highest-selling single of the 1960s. Lennon wrote the song's guitar riff while the Beatles were in the studio recording " Eight Days a Week " in October 1964, and kept playing it between takes. He later recalled: "I told them I'd write a song specially for the riff. So they said, 'Yes. You go away and do that', knowing that we'd almost finished the album Beatles for Sale . Anyway, going into

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3654-408: The US, where the market had been saturated with Beatles releases over the first seven months of 1964, "making the ensuing gap seem like forever". He recalled that fans remained "glued" to their transistor radios over the ten days between the single's unveiling on radio and its retail release, and that this established a fan ritual for all the band's subsequent records. "I Feel Fine" reached the top of

3741-515: The United Kingdom, the song was released in the LP format on A Collection of Beatles Oldies in 1966, and the stereo version of that album included a true stereo mix, which can also be found on the Past Masters Volume 1 and 1 CDs. There is also another stereo version (virtually identical to the standard true stereo mix) in which the whispered words "'s low enough" can be heard at

3828-581: The United States, "I Feel Fine" was released on the Capitol album Beatles '65 . The mono version of the LP featured an exclusive mix of "I Feel Fine" with added reverb and a shorter fade as created by Beatles producer George Martin, which was also released as a single on Capitol. The stereo version presented a duophonic (mock stereo) mix of the song featuring a layer of reverb added by executive Dave Dexter Jr. Both versions were released on CD in 2004 as part of The Capitol Albums, Volume 1 box set. In

3915-413: The album as "joyous, inventive and exciting", despite the Beatles' fatigue, and a "transitional" work that showed the group developing their studio craft. "I'm a Loser" served as a precursor to the 1965 folk-rock explosion, which was led by the Byrds and defined by a combination of Dylanesque lyrics and Beatles-style harmonies. According to The Encyclopedia of Country Music , "I Don't Want to Spoil

4002-434: The album as a "country excursion", while MacDonald describes it as being "dominated by the [country-and-western] idiom". The impetus for this new direction came partly from the band's exposure to US country radio stations while on tour; in addition, it was a genre that Ringo Starr had long championed. Lennon's " I'm a Loser " was the first Beatles song to directly reflect Dylan's influence. Author Jonathan Gould highlights

4089-557: The album contains some poor cover versions yet "I'm a Loser" and "What You're Doing" indicate that the band were continuing to progress. He added: "The harmonies of 'Baby's in Black,' the hair-raising 'I still loooove her' climax of 'I Don't Want to Spoil the Party,' the eager hand claps in 'Eight Days a Week' – it all makes 'Mr. Moonlight' easy to forgive." In his review for BBC Music , David Quantick highlights Lennon's "brilliant, throat-ripping version" of "Rock and Roll Music" and describes

4176-428: The album. The original songs introduced darker musical moods and more introspective lyrics, with John Lennon adopting an autobiographical perspective in " I'm a Loser " and " No Reply ". Furthermore, the majority of the songs did not feature themes of love, with only three out of the fourteen tracks mentioning love in a positive light. Beatles for Sale received favourable reviews in the UK musical press, where it held

4263-479: The balance. Hertsgaard says that the irony evident in Harrison's delivery of "Everybody's Trying to Be My Baby" "allows the Beatles to close the album with a not-so-veiled comment on the oddities of living inside Beatlemania". The downbeat mood of Beatles for Sale was reflected in the album cover, which shows the unsmiling, weary-looking Beatles in an autumn scene in London's Hyde Park . The cover photograph

4350-441: The band's first three albums. The following month, Beatles for Sale re-entered the UK albums charts, peaking at number 45. Having been available previously only as an import in the US, the album was also issued on LP and cassette there on 21 July 1987. Even though Beatles for Sale was recorded on four-track tape, the first CD version was available only in mono. The album was digitally remastered and issued on CD in stereo for

4437-438: The band's first use of timpani , African hand drums and chocalho . According to MacDonald, the Beatles adopted a "less-is-more" approach in their arrangements; he cites " No Reply " as an example of the group beginning to "master the studio", whereby doubling basic parts and the use of reverb lent the performance "depth and space". As he had done since With the Beatles , Harrison continued to vary his guitar sounds, favouring

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4524-401: The band's road manager, later reflected: "No band today would come off a long US tour at the end of September, go into the studio and start a new album, still writing songs, and then go on a UK tour, finish the album in five weeks, still touring, and have the album out in time for Christmas. But that's what the Beatles did at the end of 1964. A lot of it was down to naiveté, thinking that this was

4611-515: The beginning of the track. This "whispering version" appeared on the UK release of 1962–1966 and has been rereleased occasionally. A radio show outtake in mono is included on the On Air – Live at the BBC Volume 2 compilation released in 2013. Shipments figures based on certification alone. Beatles for Sale Beatles for Sale is the fourth studio album by

4698-465: The combination on Beatles for Sale : "Basically it was our stage show, with some new [original] songs." The album features eight Lennon–McCartney compositions. In addition, the pair wrote both sides of the non-album single, " I Feel Fine " backed with " She's a Woman ", which accompanied the LP's release. At this stage in their partnership, Lennon and McCartney rarely wrote together as before, but each would often contribute key parts to songs for which

4785-403: The drums on "I Feel Fine" were inspired by Ray Charles 's 1959 single " What'd I Say ". At the time of the song's recording, the Beatles, having mastered the studio basics, had begun to explore new sources of inspiration in noises previously eliminated as mistakes (such as electronic goofs, twisted tapes, and talkback). "I Feel Fine" marks one of the earliest examples of the use of feedback as

4872-411: The effect to "I'm a Loser", in that Lennon's confessional tone is again couched in "a protective shell of pastiche". The lyrics of " What You're Doing " concern McCartney's relationship with Jane Asher and demonstrate an aggrieved tone that was uncharacteristic of his writing. Author Simon Philo identifies the song's combination of musical arrangement, "sonic texture" and lyrics as an early example of

4959-456: The first time on 9 September 2009. The album received favourable reviews in the UK musical press. Writing in the NME , Derek Johnson said that it was "worth every penny asked", adding: "It's rip-roaring, infectious stuff, with the accent on beat throughout." Chris Welch of Melody Maker found the music "honest" and inventive, and predicted: " Beatles For Sale is going to sell, sell, sell. It

5046-447: The first use of a fade-in on a pop song, at the start of " Eight Days a Week ", and the first time that guitar feedback had been incorporated in a pop recording, on "I Feel Fine". The band introduced new instrumentation into their basic sound, as a way to illustrate the more nuanced style adopted by Lennon in his lyric writing. This was especially evident in the range of percussion instruments, which, mainly played by Starr, included

5133-422: The girls and make money' …" According to author Peter Doggett , this period coincided with Lennon and McCartney being feted by London society, from which the pair found inspiration among a network of non-mainstream writers, poets, comedians, film-makers and other arts-related individuals. Doggett says that their social milieu in 1964 represented "new territory for pop" and a challenge to British class delineation as

5220-405: The guy has". McCartney said of the song: "'Every Little Thing', like most of the stuff I did, was my attempt at the next single ... but it became an album filler rather than the great almighty single. It didn't have quite what was required." Musicologist Walter Everett says the chorus's incorporation of "leaden" parallel fifth harmonies, supported by Starr's timpani, was the inspiration for

5307-477: The influence of blues and country-derived rockabilly on the album's original compositions and in the inclusion of songs by Carl Perkins and Buddy Holly . He also comments that Dylan's acoustic folk sound was a style that the Beatles tended to identify as country music. McCartney later said that Beatles for Sale inaugurated a more mature phase for the band, whereby: "We got more and more free to get into ourselves. Our student selves rather than 'we must please

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5394-410: The influence of cannabis on McCartney, who said the drug made him start "really thinking for the first time". The recording features a syncopated drum pattern and a jangly Rickenbacker guitar riff , as well as an instrumental coda that McCartney introduces by playing high up on the neck of his Höfner bass. A satisfactory arrangement proved elusive until the band remade the track on the final day of

5481-516: The listener as a "friend", Dylan does the same on " Blowin' in the Wind ". He also said its intention was to "openly subvert the simple true love themes of their earlier work". In Riley's view, "I'm a Loser" inaugurates a theme in Lennon's writing, in which his songs serve as "personal responses to fame". As the third track on the album, " Baby's in Black " conveys the same sad and resentful outlook of

5568-420: The long hair and the screams! Just play them a few tracks from this album and he'll probably understand. The kids of AD 2000 will draw from the music much the same sense of well being and warmth as we do today. Beatles for Sale was released in the United Kingdom on EMI's Parlophone label on 4 December 1964. On 14 November, four days after completing their UK tour, the Beatles filmed mimed performances of "I'm

5655-463: The number one spot for 11 of the 46 weeks that it spent in the top 20. The album was similarly successful in Australia, where the band's cover of Berry's " Rock and Roll Music " also topped the singles chart. One of the songs omitted from the US version of the album, " Eight Days a Week ", became the Beatles' seventh number one in the US when issued as a single there in February 1965. In 2000, the album

5742-458: The other was the primary author. Nevertheless, Lennon's level of contribution to Beatles for Sale outweighed McCartney's, a situation that, as on A Hard Day's Night , author Ian MacDonald attributes to McCartney's commitment being temporarily sidetracked by his relationship with English actress Jane Asher . At the time, Lennon said of the album: "You could call our new one a Beatles country and western LP." Music critic Tim Riley views

5829-418: The project on 4 November. " No Reply " is about a young man who is unable to contact his apparently unfaithful girlfriend, although he knows she is home. Beatles music publisher Dick James was pleased with the song, saying Lennon had provided "a complete story". Reviewer David Rowley said that its lyrics "read like a picture story from a girl's comic" and evoked a picture "of walking down a street and seeing

5916-411: The song are "massively haloed in echo", contributing to a mid-section providing "among the most exciting thirty seconds" of all the Beatles' recordings. Music critic Richie Unterberger singles out " I'm a Loser " as "one of the very first Beatles compositions with lyrics addressing more serious points than young love". Rowley considered it to be an "obvious copy of Bob Dylan", as when Lennon refers to

6003-428: The song except for the bridge , which has a more conventional backbeat . After a brief note of heavy feedback (see below), the intro begins with a distinctive arpeggiated riff which starts in D major before quickly progressing to C major and then G major , at which point the vocals begin in G. The melody, unusually, uses a major third and a minor seventh, and has been classified as Mixolydian mode . Just before

6090-439: The song, during which Lennon and McCartney experimented with various techniques before settling on a final structure and arrangement. Each of the first six takes featured a strikingly different approach to the beginning and end sections of the song; the eventual chiming guitar-based introduction was recorded during a different session and edited in later. The song's opening fade-in served as a counterpoint to pop songs that close with

6177-660: The sophisticated pop/rock they developed in mid-career". Tom Ewing of Pitchfork said, "Lennon's anger and the band's rediscovery of rock 'n' roll mean For Sale' s reputation as the group's meanest album is deserved". Neil McCormick of The Daily Telegraph commented that "if this is a low point, they still sound fantastic", adding that "the Beatlemania pop songs are of a high standard, even if they are becoming slightly generic." Writing in The Rolling Stone Album Guide , Rob Sheffield said that

6264-618: The studio floor and altered the volume control on Harrison's Gretsch as he played. " I'll Follow the Sun " was a reworking of an old song. McCartney recalled in a 1988 interview: "I wrote that in my front parlour in Forthlin Road. I was about 16 ... We had this R&B image in Liverpool , a rock and roll/R&B/hardish image with the leather. So I think songs like 'I'll Follow the Sun', ballads like that, got pushed back to later." Author Mark Hertsgaard cites its inclusion as

6351-438: The studio one morning, I said to Ringo , 'I've written this song but it's lousy'. But we tried it, complete with riff, and it sounded like an A-side, so we decided to release it just like that." Both Lennon and George Harrison said that the riff was influenced by a riff in " Watch Your Step ", a 1961 song written and performed by Bobby Parker and covered by the Beatles in concerts during 1961 and 1962. Paul McCartney said

6438-438: The studio …" The band continued to develop their sound through the use of four-track recording , which EMI had introduced in 1963. They were also allowed greater freedom to experiment by the record company and by George Martin, who was gradually relinquishing his position of authority over the Beatles, as their label boss, throughout 1964, and was increasingly open to their non-standard musical ideas. The sessions resulted in

6525-422: The time of Beatles for Sale , adding: "that's still where I'm at, incidentally, and so is everybody else – and maybe at that time they were at their biggest and most isolated, and thus at their closest." Beatles for Sale was ranked the 71st-best album in the 1987 edition of Paul Gambaccini 's book Critic's Choice , based on submissions from an international panel of 81 critics and broadcasters. In 2000, it

6612-401: The two preceding songs. Unterberger views it as "a love lament for a grieving girl that was perhaps more morose than any previous Beatles song". It was the first song recorded for the album and features a two-part harmony sung by Lennon and McCartney. McCartney recalled: "'Baby's in Black' we did because we liked waltz -time ... And I think also John and I wanted to do something bluesy ,

6699-411: The way things were done. If the record company needs another album, you go and make one." Noting the subdued and melancholy tone of much of the album, producer George Martin recalled: "They were rather war weary during Beatles for Sale . One must remember that they'd been battered like mad throughout 1964, and much of 1963. Success is a wonderful thing but it is very, very tiring." Although prolific,

6786-496: Was originally recorded by Dr. Feelgood and the Interns , was Lennon's "beloved obscurity", according to Erlewine, and the subject of a remake towards the end of the Beatles for Sale sessions. A cover of Little Willie John 's " Leave My Kitten Alone " was taped on 14 August, during the same session as the discarded version of "Mr. Moonlight", but was omitted from the album. A medley of " Kansas City " and " Hey, Hey, Hey, Hey "

6873-448: Was rendered in minuscule type compared with standard LP artwork of the time. Beatles for Sale was presented in a gatefold sleeve – a rare design feature for a contemporary pop LP and the first of the Beatles' UK releases to be packaged in this way. Part of the inner gatefold spread showed the band members in front of a photo montage of celebrities, including film stars Victor Mature , Jayne Mansfield and Ian Carmichael , all of whom

6960-424: Was represented by mimed performances of "Baby's in Black" and "Kansas City / Hey, Hey, Hey, Hey". The group included "I'm a Loser", "Everybody's Trying to Be My Baby", "Baby's in Black", "Honey Don't" and "Rock and Roll Music" in the set list for their Another Beatles' Christmas Show presentation, held at London's Hammersmith Odeon from 24 December until 16 January 1965. The album began its 46-week run on

7047-661: Was sequenced as the final song on side one of the LP. In McCartney's description, his performance on the track required "a great deal of nerve to just jump up and scream like an idiot"; his efforts were egged on by Lennon, who "would go, 'Come on! You can sing it better than that, man! Come on, come on! Really throw it!'" The medley was inspired by Little Richard , who similarly combined Leiber and Stoller 's "Kansas City" with his own composition, "Hey, Hey, Hey, Hey!" Riley considers that, although McCartney's presence on Beatles for Sale appears relatively slight next to Lennon's, his performance of "Kansas City" goes some way to readdressing

7134-402: Was taken by Robert Freeman , who recalled that the concept was briefly discussed with Brian Epstein and the Beatles beforehand, namely that he produce a colour image of the group shot at "an outside location towards sunset". Music journalist Lois Wilson describes the result as "the very antithesis of the early-'60s pop star". The cover carried no band logo or artist credit, and the album title

7221-418: Was the first use of feedback on a rock record. According to McCartney, "John had a semi-acoustic Gibson guitar. It had a pickup on it so it could be amplified ... We were just about to walk away to listen to a take when John leaned his guitar against the amp. I can still see him doing it … it went, 'Nnnnnnwahhhhh!' And we went, 'What's that? Voodoo!' 'No, it's feedback.' 'Wow, it's a great sound!' George Martin

7308-481: Was then displaced by The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan , which was superseded a week later by Bringing It All Back Home , Dylan's first "electric" album. From the start of 1965 until mid-May, Beatles for Sale remained in the top three chart positions. Eight of the album's tracks were later issued on two four-song EPs: Beatles for Sale and Beatles for Sale No. 2 , released in April and June 1965, respectively. In

7395-408: Was there so we said, 'Can we have that on the record?' 'Well, I suppose we could, we could edit it on the front.' It was a found object , an accident caused by leaning the guitar against the amp." Although it sounded very much like an electric guitar , Lennon actually played the riff on an acoustic-electric guitar (a Gibson model J-160E ), employing the guitar's onboard pickup . Later, Lennon

7482-467: Was very proud of this sonic experimentation. In one of his last interviews, he said: "I defy anybody to find a record – unless it's some old blues record in 1922 – that uses feedback that way." Backed by " She's a Woman ", "I Feel Fine" was issued as a single A-side on 23 November 1964 in the United States, with the UK release following on 27 November. Public demand for the single was unprecedented, according to author Nicholas Schaffner , particularly in

7569-580: Was voted number 204 in the third edition of Colin Larkin 's book All Time Top 1000 Albums . When Beatles for Sale was being recorded, Beatlemania was at its peak. In early 1964, the Beatles had made waves with their television appearances in the US, sparking unprecedented demand for their records there. Over June and July, the band played concerts in Denmark, the Netherlands and Hong Kong, toured Australia and New Zealand, and then returned to Britain for

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