The Beatles – Something New

Only 11 Beatles tracks (not even the bare minimum of 12, as Capitol wanted to milk Beatlemania as much as possible, let alone the UK's 14 tracks) containing some of the weaker songs from A Hard Day's Night, "Slow Down" and "Matchbox" which aren't even Beatles songs and in my opinion are some of the weaker covers by the band, and then finally, as the cherry on top of the shit sundae, is that one of the tracks is the GERMAN version of "I Want to Hold Your Hand"... Out of all of the Capitol releases this might be the worst one for me.

Say what you will about Something New or the Beatles in general, and I’m gonna point to the songs “Things We Said Today” and “I’m Happy Just To Dance With You,” as two of the most delicious yet haunting numbers the boys ever laid down.

This time out, instead of the twelve hours required for With The Beatles, the band would spend six days in the studio back in October of 1963, an unheard of about of time in those days. This time wasn’t wasted, the sonics of this record were yet again different and refined, another step forward, just out of reach of Rubber Soul, yet the underlying structures that made Rubber Soul so remarkable, were all infused here, making Something New one of the most enduring and essential Beatles’ albums.

All things being equal, there are two main differences between the Capitol and the British produced records, Capitol was injecting more reverb into the mix than their UK counterparts, giving the record a more warm and rich feel, regardless of it being mono or stereo, and in this particular case I believe that at the time, sonically Capitol made the correct decision, though with the stereo that occupies my listening space, I’ll take the UK version any day of the week. Capitol also, when only a mono recording was available, which revolved mainly around the use of singles, created what came to be known as ‘duophonic mixes’ for the stereo LP's. The process involved splitting the mono signal into two channels, boosting the bass on one channel and the treble on the other, then introducing a slight delay between the channels while adding reverb. All of this fooled the ear into hearing a recording as stereo, though in actuality it was not, it was merely a double mono mix, and if you’ve never heard this mix, you sincerely should, because it’s entirely romantic, blossoming at the center with a warmth that mono mixes didn’t have, yet was more centered and fuller than the stereo mixes.

All of the songs are vibrant in their way, coming off as fresh, energizing and heartfelt … not to mention, stylish, smooth, impeccable and simply down right cool, a collection that hangs together well. Is this a definitive album? That’s a difficult question to answer, as middle steps are often not seen or taken for granted. Yet when one considers the greater and more forethought given to their emotional depth, they stepped into their own with a seriousness that heretofore may have been amiss. Nevertheless, whichever version you settle on, from my vantage point, this is a definitive album in many respects, one that certainly deserves more praise than it’s gotten.

*** The Fun Facts: The album art is taken from their appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show on the 9th of February 1964.

Something New was confusing for many listeners mainly for the sheer number of releases that were issued, all of which were different, all of which influenced listeners differently, all at a time when the effects a bit of plastic had on use was amazing. This was the only early Beatles’ album to contain all of its track in true-stereo. Oddly, the mono release contains alternative versions of “Any Time At All” where there’s a different mix at the instrumental bridge, also on the mono mix, the third verse from “I’ll Cry Instead” is missing, there’s an entirely different vocal age on “When I Get Home” on the mono mix, along with the double tracked vocals on both “And I Love Her” and “If I Fell” are missing.

Review by Jenell Kesler

I have a copy where the etching and labels are exactly like this release (https://discogs.versitio.com/The-Beatles-Something-New/release/10421080) except my copy does have "a subsidiary..." Thoughts?

This album is an American recut of A Hard Day's Night, not Unofficial of Miscelanneous, it should appears as a "variation" of A Hard Day's Night

A fine album, but I find myself wishing that this American release did not exist, and that the USA would have been treated to fourteen excellent tunes from the UK release of 'A Hard Day's Night'.