joelcrowservo
Oct 03, 2003, 11:25 PM
The long awaited return of the one and only Beatles Bootleg Reviews! And how I ever missed this one, I dunno...
"Help! Original Mix, Alternates and Outtakes"- Masterfraction, 1998
http://faab.pro.tok2.com/mmm/masterfraction/mfcd0123.jpg
Track Listing:
DISC ONE
ORIGINAL MONO & STEREO MIX
ORIGINAL UK MONAURAL MIX:
1. Help! 2'22''
2. The Night Before 2'36''
3. You've Got To Hide Your Love Away 2'13''
4. I Need You 2'31''
5. Another Girl 2'09''
6. You're Going To Lose That Girl 2'22''
7. Ticket To Ride 3'09''
8. Act Naturally 2'33''
9. It's Ony Love 2'00''
10. You Like Me Too Much 2'38''
11. Tell Me What You See 2'40''
12. I've Just Seen A Face 2'08''
13. Yesterday 2'08''
14. Dizzy Miss Lizzy 2'57''
ORIGINAL UK STEREO ANALOG MIX:
15. Help! 2'21''
16. The Night Before 2'33''
17. You've Got To Hide Your Love Away 2'09''
18. I Need You 2'29''
19. Another Girl 2'07''
20. You're Going To Lose That Girl 2'18''
21. Ticket To Ride 3'10''
22. Act Naturally 2'30''
23. It's Ony Love 1'56''
24. You Like Me Too Much 2'37''
25. Tell Me What You See 2'38''
26. I've Just Seen A Face 2'05''
27. Yesterday 2'06''
28. Dizzy Miss Lizzy 2'57''
DISC TWO -ALTERNATES AND OUTTAKES
ALTERNATE VERSIONS AND MIXES:
1. Help! (Capitol Stereo Version) 2'37''
2. Ticket To Ride (Capitol Stereo Version) 3'07''
3. Yes It Is (Capitol Stereo Version) 2'43''
4. Help! (Original Film Version) 2'21''
5. Ticket To Ride (Original Film Version) 3'11''
OUTTAKE SESSIONS:
6. Ticket To Ride (Take 2 No Fade Out) 3'14''
7. Yes It Is (Take 1) 2'57''
8. Yes It Is (Take 2) 1'23''
9. Yes It Is (Take 3) 0'14''
10. Yes It Is (Take 4) 0'20''
11. Yes It Is (Take 5) 0'30''
12. Yes It Is (Take 6) 0'14''
13. Yes It Is (Take 7) 1'13''
14. Yes It Is (Take 8) 0'20''
15. Yes It Is (Take 9) 2'43''
16. Yes It Is (Take 10) 0'16''
17. Yes It Is (Take 14) 2'51''
18. Help! (Take 1) 0'25''
19. Help! (Take 2) 0'38''
20. Help! (Take 3) 1'00''
21. Help! (Take 4) 1'19''
22. Help! (Take 5) 2'49''
23. Help! (Take 6) 0'32''
24. Help! (Take 7) 2'31''
25. Help! (Take 8) 0'27''
26. Help! (Take 9) 2'23''
27. Help! (Take 10) 2'26''
28. Help! (Take 11) 0'19''
29. Help! (Take 12) 2'27''
30. Help! (Take 13) 2'20''
ACETATES:
31. Help! 2'24''
32. The Night Before 2'39''
33. I Need You 2'40''
34. Ticket To Ride 3'13''
35. You Like Me Too Much 2'46''
36. Yes It Is 2'55''
37. You've Got To Hide Your Love Away 2'18''
38. Another Girl 2'12''
39. You're Going To Lose That Girl 2'27''
******************************************
Now..."Help!" is one of those Beatle LPs you dont hear about often. However, it is a fine album in and of itself, and a neccessary platform to "Rubber Soul". This was pretty much the end of throwaways and simple love songs, for better or worse. No one song exemplifies that like "Help!". But hey, who cares, youre here for the boots, so onward we go..
The mono mix of the LP is, as usual, more punchy than the stereo. And small differences abound here, the biggest being the title track itself, with the well known differences between the 45 version (mono) and the 'LP version' (stereo).No light is shed on what the deal is with the seperate vocals on the session takes either, so..
Again, as I say, the other differences are minor, like a brief burst of a count in here and there, chatter at the end of "Another Girl", very trivial stuff. But I'd lay odds you keep returing to this disc for the warm sound of the mono LP mix.
The second disc opens with whats always called 'the James Bond theme'. Damn, havent they HEARD the Bond theme? Its nothing like that!! Sorry, pet peeve of mine. I dont think this version has ever made it onto 'official' CD.Then theres Capitols 'bass boosted' Ticket To Ride, as well as their stereo mix of Yes It Is. You know this Capitol stuff sounded great when I was 15..what happened? images/icons/wink.gif We also get the original film print version of Help, with a totally different intro than released on ANY record. That muddies up the waters of 'wheres the different vocal come from?'.
Take 2 of Ticket To Ride is of course basically the released version, it simply shuts down after so many 'my baby dont care's.
Take after take ensues of Yes It Is then. You'll hear Johns phrasing change shape sevreal times before he hits on the final version. Frankly, I prefer how it was on earlier takes. Theres also the "Anthology" take, but complete. Well.. not SO complete, since at about the time the Anthology version fades totally into the released take, John breaks a string. This prompts John to announce, somewhat incredulously, "String broke!".
"Help!" is fun to listen to anyway, and the long road to the final version is great to hear. Though some reports say George did not come up with that great shimmering, descending guitar part until the last takes, this is not true, as its there from the start, but put away about midway thru so George can concentrate on those guitar 'stabs' thru the track. Whats more interesting about these unmixed takes is how prominant Johns acoustic guitar is, and how subdued Ringo plays until the last few takes. Finally they hit on the best backing track and begin the additions and mixdowns. For some reason, theres a 'take 13' on here. What is this, since there was no take 13? (As far as we know anyway).Again, this tells students of the song very little. Where did the alternate intro heard on original film prints come from? And the '45' vocal? Its hard to say,but if anyone has any ideas...
As with "A Hard Days Night", EMI supplied film makers with 'best mono mix' acetates to be used during movie production. No surprises here, exept for a totally different guitar solo during "Youre Gonna Lose That Girl", as well as a count in that is NOT whats heard in the movie! The sound quality is not great on these, as old acetates don't usually hold up well, so scratches galore!
SUMMARY/RATING: 4 STARS- The "Help!" album is wonderful anyway, I mean, look at that versatile track listing! But its worth it, for one, to have the mono LP mix and stereo (NOT the remixed CD version) on one disc. As far as the sessions and Capitol mixes go...I know Silent Sea has a slightly more complete collection, "Songs For Eleanor", but its not THAT much more complete. I'd have had the B-side "I'm Down" on here for one. But look, its fun to listen to, and one you'll return to again and again. Give Masterfraction extra points for being one of the very few bootleggers not to include "Anthology" mixes on their boot!
************************************
OK...onto your comments and questions. I've REALLY missed doing these! But, no WinMX, you see!
Anyway, join us next time folks for all the Ravellers biggest hits on: Beatles Bootleg Reviews!
"Help! Original Mix, Alternates and Outtakes"- Masterfraction, 1998
http://faab.pro.tok2.com/mmm/masterfraction/mfcd0123.jpg
Track Listing:
DISC ONE
ORIGINAL MONO & STEREO MIX
ORIGINAL UK MONAURAL MIX:
1. Help! 2'22''
2. The Night Before 2'36''
3. You've Got To Hide Your Love Away 2'13''
4. I Need You 2'31''
5. Another Girl 2'09''
6. You're Going To Lose That Girl 2'22''
7. Ticket To Ride 3'09''
8. Act Naturally 2'33''
9. It's Ony Love 2'00''
10. You Like Me Too Much 2'38''
11. Tell Me What You See 2'40''
12. I've Just Seen A Face 2'08''
13. Yesterday 2'08''
14. Dizzy Miss Lizzy 2'57''
ORIGINAL UK STEREO ANALOG MIX:
15. Help! 2'21''
16. The Night Before 2'33''
17. You've Got To Hide Your Love Away 2'09''
18. I Need You 2'29''
19. Another Girl 2'07''
20. You're Going To Lose That Girl 2'18''
21. Ticket To Ride 3'10''
22. Act Naturally 2'30''
23. It's Ony Love 1'56''
24. You Like Me Too Much 2'37''
25. Tell Me What You See 2'38''
26. I've Just Seen A Face 2'05''
27. Yesterday 2'06''
28. Dizzy Miss Lizzy 2'57''
DISC TWO -ALTERNATES AND OUTTAKES
ALTERNATE VERSIONS AND MIXES:
1. Help! (Capitol Stereo Version) 2'37''
2. Ticket To Ride (Capitol Stereo Version) 3'07''
3. Yes It Is (Capitol Stereo Version) 2'43''
4. Help! (Original Film Version) 2'21''
5. Ticket To Ride (Original Film Version) 3'11''
OUTTAKE SESSIONS:
6. Ticket To Ride (Take 2 No Fade Out) 3'14''
7. Yes It Is (Take 1) 2'57''
8. Yes It Is (Take 2) 1'23''
9. Yes It Is (Take 3) 0'14''
10. Yes It Is (Take 4) 0'20''
11. Yes It Is (Take 5) 0'30''
12. Yes It Is (Take 6) 0'14''
13. Yes It Is (Take 7) 1'13''
14. Yes It Is (Take 8) 0'20''
15. Yes It Is (Take 9) 2'43''
16. Yes It Is (Take 10) 0'16''
17. Yes It Is (Take 14) 2'51''
18. Help! (Take 1) 0'25''
19. Help! (Take 2) 0'38''
20. Help! (Take 3) 1'00''
21. Help! (Take 4) 1'19''
22. Help! (Take 5) 2'49''
23. Help! (Take 6) 0'32''
24. Help! (Take 7) 2'31''
25. Help! (Take 8) 0'27''
26. Help! (Take 9) 2'23''
27. Help! (Take 10) 2'26''
28. Help! (Take 11) 0'19''
29. Help! (Take 12) 2'27''
30. Help! (Take 13) 2'20''
ACETATES:
31. Help! 2'24''
32. The Night Before 2'39''
33. I Need You 2'40''
34. Ticket To Ride 3'13''
35. You Like Me Too Much 2'46''
36. Yes It Is 2'55''
37. You've Got To Hide Your Love Away 2'18''
38. Another Girl 2'12''
39. You're Going To Lose That Girl 2'27''
******************************************
Now..."Help!" is one of those Beatle LPs you dont hear about often. However, it is a fine album in and of itself, and a neccessary platform to "Rubber Soul". This was pretty much the end of throwaways and simple love songs, for better or worse. No one song exemplifies that like "Help!". But hey, who cares, youre here for the boots, so onward we go..
The mono mix of the LP is, as usual, more punchy than the stereo. And small differences abound here, the biggest being the title track itself, with the well known differences between the 45 version (mono) and the 'LP version' (stereo).No light is shed on what the deal is with the seperate vocals on the session takes either, so..
Again, as I say, the other differences are minor, like a brief burst of a count in here and there, chatter at the end of "Another Girl", very trivial stuff. But I'd lay odds you keep returing to this disc for the warm sound of the mono LP mix.
The second disc opens with whats always called 'the James Bond theme'. Damn, havent they HEARD the Bond theme? Its nothing like that!! Sorry, pet peeve of mine. I dont think this version has ever made it onto 'official' CD.Then theres Capitols 'bass boosted' Ticket To Ride, as well as their stereo mix of Yes It Is. You know this Capitol stuff sounded great when I was 15..what happened? images/icons/wink.gif We also get the original film print version of Help, with a totally different intro than released on ANY record. That muddies up the waters of 'wheres the different vocal come from?'.
Take 2 of Ticket To Ride is of course basically the released version, it simply shuts down after so many 'my baby dont care's.
Take after take ensues of Yes It Is then. You'll hear Johns phrasing change shape sevreal times before he hits on the final version. Frankly, I prefer how it was on earlier takes. Theres also the "Anthology" take, but complete. Well.. not SO complete, since at about the time the Anthology version fades totally into the released take, John breaks a string. This prompts John to announce, somewhat incredulously, "String broke!".
"Help!" is fun to listen to anyway, and the long road to the final version is great to hear. Though some reports say George did not come up with that great shimmering, descending guitar part until the last takes, this is not true, as its there from the start, but put away about midway thru so George can concentrate on those guitar 'stabs' thru the track. Whats more interesting about these unmixed takes is how prominant Johns acoustic guitar is, and how subdued Ringo plays until the last few takes. Finally they hit on the best backing track and begin the additions and mixdowns. For some reason, theres a 'take 13' on here. What is this, since there was no take 13? (As far as we know anyway).Again, this tells students of the song very little. Where did the alternate intro heard on original film prints come from? And the '45' vocal? Its hard to say,but if anyone has any ideas...
As with "A Hard Days Night", EMI supplied film makers with 'best mono mix' acetates to be used during movie production. No surprises here, exept for a totally different guitar solo during "Youre Gonna Lose That Girl", as well as a count in that is NOT whats heard in the movie! The sound quality is not great on these, as old acetates don't usually hold up well, so scratches galore!
SUMMARY/RATING: 4 STARS- The "Help!" album is wonderful anyway, I mean, look at that versatile track listing! But its worth it, for one, to have the mono LP mix and stereo (NOT the remixed CD version) on one disc. As far as the sessions and Capitol mixes go...I know Silent Sea has a slightly more complete collection, "Songs For Eleanor", but its not THAT much more complete. I'd have had the B-side "I'm Down" on here for one. But look, its fun to listen to, and one you'll return to again and again. Give Masterfraction extra points for being one of the very few bootleggers not to include "Anthology" mixes on their boot!
************************************
OK...onto your comments and questions. I've REALLY missed doing these! But, no WinMX, you see!
Anyway, join us next time folks for all the Ravellers biggest hits on: Beatles Bootleg Reviews!