George Martin Said The Beatles’ ‘Please Please Me’ Was a ‘Dirge’ at 1st
TL;DR:
- Producer George Martin felt The Beatles’ “Please Please Me” needed to be changed in a major way.
- Martin discussed what he thought of the Fab Four during their early days.
- “Please Please Me” was a hit once in the United States and twice in the United Kingdom.
The Beatles‘ “Please Please Me” was originally much more indebted to Roy Orbison’s songs. The Beatles’ producer, George Martin, didn’t like that version of the tune. Despite this, he had a positive view of Orbison.
George Martin decided The Beatles’ ‘Please Please Me’ should be twice the speed
During a 1999 interview with Westword, Martin discussed the origin of “Please Please Me.” “The first time they really connected with me was when they came up with the speeded-up version of ‘Please Please Me,'” he said. “In its original form, it was a dirge worthy of Roy Orbison, and I told them to double the speed, which seemed to work. P.S.: I like Roy Orbison.”
“One of the great things that happened with The Beatles in the early days was the incredible speed with which they learned how to write good songs,” he opined. “The pressure was on them when they knew that I didn’t think much of their early stuff and was going to use other material. This spurred them to do their homework and really get to grips with what people wanted. After that, they never disappointed me, and I was continually surprised that they gave me such good material; it was fresh every time.”
The Beatles eventually released a slower, early version of the tune
Some songs can work as ballads and as up-tempo numbers. “Please Please Me” is not one of them. The tune is lightly suggestive, so making a dirge would be the wrong move.
There’s a version of “Please Please Me” on Anthology 1 that’s considerably slower than the single version of the track. It’s still not quite a dirge, but it’s a lot less appealing than the final recording of “Please Please Me.” Orbison’s influence on the track is apparent, but it’s not worthy of his best work.
How ‘Please Please Me’ performed in the United States and the United Kingdom
“Please Please Me” was a hit in the United States. There, it reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, staying on the chart for 13 weeks. The tune appeared on the album of the same title. Please Please Me reached No. 155 on the Billboard 200 and stayed on the chart for one weeks.
The Official Charts Company reports “Please Please Me” peaked at No. 2 in the United Kingdom, staying on the chart for 18 weeks. The tune recharted at No. 29 and stayed on the chart for four weeks. Meanwhile, Please Please Me hit No. 1 and spent a total of 70 weeks. In 1987, Please Please Me reached No. 32 and lasted on the chart for another six weeks.
“Please Please Me” is a great song and Martin was glad the Fab Four changed it.
