Customer Reviews

The Beatles: Day-by-Day, Song-by-Song, Record-by-Record

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The website is terrific, but the book version is a real disappointment. As an entry point into the Beatles it's a decent first purchase, containing as it does a chronology, a discography, and a song-by-song breakdown, but the same money would be far better spent on Revolution In The Head and used copies of Lewisohn's Chronicle and Recording Sessions.

There's a lot here, but little that's new, no fresh insight, quite a few errors and a lot of gaping holes. For instance, most of the song summaries trot out the usual background info, yet for some there's not even that. Several entries just list the number of takes. There are four lines on Carnival Of Light. Not a word about the origin or recording of Old Brown Shoe.

So, if you're picking up the book knowing little about the major songs, then you're decently-served here. But if you already know about Penny Lane (and it's an area informally named after a street, Craig, not just a street), then you'll be disappointed by what this offers on the likes of Junk or If You've Got Troubles.

And that's the biggest disappointment about this book: that it spurns the opportunity to go where predecessors like Stannard's The Long And Winding Road couldn't, by giving equal weight to the previously unreleased songs on Anthology. Most of those get just a brief para acknowledging their belated release.

Last and least, the writing style, which could have used the guidance of an experienced editor. For instance, exclamation marks are used with abandon! Which makes for a very trying read! And the text is littered with profanity. There's nothing wrong with that, per se, but here it seems pointless and immature. Go ahead and use "f---ing" if the context demands it, but when you just mean "very", or "really", then "very" or "really" will probably do. Think Teddy Boy is bad? Then don't just say "it's s--t!" tell us what's s--t about it, whether it made it to any version of Get Back, and what McCartney ended up doing with it.

So is it a bad book? No. It's a two-star that would make a three-star if better written, a four-star if truly complete, and a five-star, must-have if only it would offer something new.

I can see a lot of people loving this book, and a lot of other people... not. I think some may be put off by the author's writing style - which is quite loose. It also contains some strong language - be warned.

The text is rather "conversational". But the stronger language in use has a bonus - in that the author delves quite deeply into areas such as their drug use, that other books just touch upon. The break-up is brutally well-done, for example. It is quite clear from the text that The Beatles were not getting along at this point in their careers - and this is no epilogue to deliver a happy ending.

But if you are looking for a book that your children can read, then maybe this book is not for you.

Their love life, drug habits and earthy quotes (especially some of Johns diatribes) do tend to make you blush.

I certainly wouldn't let my 10-year-old child read this book.

The first part of the book - the history section - is very stong, very detailed and very complete. But as the previous reviewer states, the song section leaves out some of their later BBC session and Anthology releases, together with any bootleg recordings, which I do believe are contained on the accompanying website.

But every song that they released during their 8-year career is present and correct. (Maybe we will one day get an updated version - like 'A Hard Day's Write' perhaps?) But even so, the book still contains every song from their studio albums, singles, EPs and B-sides - which is more than enough for most fans. After all, these are the songs that you actually listen too day in and day out.

The length of the commentary does vary, depending on the fame of the song, and whether there is actually anything to say. Lennon and McCartney have, of course, admitted to knocking out songs in a rapid fashion during the early part of their career, and I don't expect that there is very much to tell about their genesis.

So whilst ALL commentaries contain session details, some just have an accompanying paragraph. A quick perusal of the website will show you exactly what I mean in this regard.

Most songs are given half-page to a page, increasing to 3 pages for the very famous songs. Hey Jude, Strawberry Fields Forever, A Day In The Life, Love Me Do and Revolution, for example, all have 2 or 3 pages devoted to each.

I found that the essays are generally more detailed than the ones contained in 'A Hard Days Write', whilst lacking the social commentary of 'Revolution In The Head'.

But the social commentary is mainly contained in the history section, of course.

To sum up, this is a large book with a definite writing style of its own. And you may be put off the stronger language. Or you may find the conversational style a breathe of fresh air - in an area too often filled with dreary tomes.

But hooray, I say, for a book with a bit of life. Just don't give it to your children!

if you are a frequent visitor to the website, then you will probably be interested to know what is included in the book and what has been left out of it, because it is not an exact copy of everything that he says on the internet.

The DAY-BY-DAY history section includes every year from 1956 to 1970. the website does include most of this, but the entire years of 1958, 1963 (the height of beatlemania), 1967 (the summer of love when the beatles released Sgt. Peppers) and 1970 (the painful year when the beatles split) are missing on the website - they are only available in the book.

i am happy to see that the useful lists of singles and albums released by other artists every month during that period are retained in the book.

the SONG-BY-SONG section includes every official song that the beatles released during their career (that is - every song released on their 13 albums, all of their singles and EPS, and including b-sides) . a lot of these songs are missing from the website. for example, some of their most major songs of their entire career: From me to you, i want to hold your hand, lucy in the sky with diamonds, nowhere man, please please me, something, strawberry fields forever, tomorrow never knows, twist and shout and youve got to hide your love away are only available in the book. but as a counterweight, the unreleased bootlegs are not here.

the RECORD-BY_RECORD section also includes the birtish and USA disocographies of EPS, which is not available on the website.

theb ook is weighty and their is a LOT to read. (500 pages +) and it is quite rock 'n roll. and by that i mean, it is not straight. as some readers have noted below, yes, he swears. and he inlcudes quotes from the band in which they swear. he also includes fruity quotes (especially from messier john lennon) about their -- how can i put this nicely -- girlfreinds and groupies, and drug usage. the beatles pulled no punches when they described some of their experiences in hamburg, and neither does he. the year 1964 is a good eye-opener. not only do they meet bob dylan and get introduced to 'mary jane', for example, (which is a most detailed passage in the book . i enjoyed their recollections of the band members and bob dylans friends who participated. they descibe the rolling of the famous joints in a most descriptive manner!) they also desribe the american tours, and everything that 'involved' in a most eye-opening way.

i frequently blushed at the some of the tales contained therein (and let me say, that i am no prude) but i also laughed double as much. most of all, i came away from this book wishing that i had lived the life of a beatle.

If I could get one minor quibble out of the way first of all - this book could do with a detailed index. There is so much information contained in it that it is sometimes hard to pin something down.

But that is a minor aside - the book is generally excellent. It is all of the other Beatles books rolled into one. I especially like the "juicy stories" included that we all want to read, but are frequently missed out. I have read about the "Hooker incident" in many books before, for example - chiefly in Larry Kane's excellent 'Ticket To Ride' - but rarely is it included in a mainstream book, which is a shame, because it is part of what makes the band so interesting. Their tours were legendary for their excess, so why miss all that out? Well, this book doesn't. It is all in there.

It is also very good on the last remaining years that they had together as a band. You can see the break-up coming from 1968 onwards - and all through his chapters on 1969 and 1970.

You may think that all of this lessens the 'aura' that surrounds the Beatles -- it doesn't. A well-rounded book like this just shows how interesting they actually were, both as a band and as human beings.

The Beatles are so much more than their music. Read this book and find out why.

A vital addition to your Beatles library - to rank alongside The Beatles Anthology and Mark Lewishon's books. This contains detailed information on every single/album they ever made - both English and American releases, with hard-to-find facts and figures like the number of weeks it spent on the chart for every chart (not just Billboard and Record Retailer), and the story of how each record came about.

The best section by far, though, is the Song by Song section. This tells you the story behind every song they ever made, with the Beatles opinions, alongside George Martin's memories - and anyone else who might have been involved. It really is very thorough, with full session details, and other information like the recording date and musicians.

The third section is equally thorough, telling you the history of the Beatles from start to finish. It uses a day-by-day diary format, and is very entertaining to boot. The writers style is funny and enlightening in equal measure, and greatly adds to the reading pleasure. It is rare for a Beatles book to make me laugh, but this one managed it.

The stand-out section is the Hamburg years - which goes into detail about the prodigious amount of drink and drugs (and girlfriends!) that the Beatles went through on their quest for stardom. Other sections that warrant a mention are the final years, in which the Beatles arguments are laid bare, and their early career years - when you really get a sense of their ensuing excitement and eventual breakthrough.

All of this would be enough, but there is also a useful section at the back of the book that tables their touring dates, world records, and other things like country-specific discographies in an easy-to-read format - something that the Beatles' Anthology book is sorely missing.

This book is one of the most useful biographies i have had the pleasure to read. The new "Beatles Bible" anyone?

I am not a fanatic, but I have read numerous books on the Beatles and I found that I actually enjoyed this book as much as or more than just about any other one (on the Beatles) that I've read, excluding The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions by Mark Lewisohn. The book featured a number of quotes from the Beatles themselves or those around them (or just those who had something pertinent to say about them) that I'd never read before. Exceptionally comprehensive and yet easy and fun to read. My main complaints would be a rather large number of typos and an occasional somewhat amateurish writing style, though I enjoyed the author's enthusiasm for his subject. Highly recommended for any serious Beatles fan, though I'm beginning to think we've had more than enough books written on this band. How about some better material on the Beach Boys, Neil Young, Sex Pistols, The Who, etc?

On their website they promise 'a lot more in our book', but in fact it is a lot less. A 'no buy', go to their site and get a lot more information for free!

I've seen this person's writings on the website and can't see the point of his language.What's used orally makes you cringe when you see it in print.No other books of this kind go this way and many have produced books like this so what's the point of another? Its just another opinionated exercise rather than a proper factual one like the Lewisohn books and which ends up being boring and too much Rock Critic for my money
One star only because I can't give it any less

If, like me, you browse the internet for stories about The Beatles then will surely know about the website that this book comes from already: www.beatles-discography.com.

It has been around for years and is massive.

This book is a book version of that site. So if you want to see what this book is like then just visit the website and see for yourself.

The words for virtually all of it are there for you to read for free.

i bought this book after reading the website, and it deserves 5 stars, but i have dropped it to 4 in protest that half of the material that used to be on the website seems to have disappeared.

important information like the diary for the whole of the year 1970 that used to be on the site, is now seemingly only available in theisbook.

so it is 5 star material, but i am giving it a 4 for the web-man removing some of my favourite stuff. ha!