I have had it up to here waiting for the Beatles catalogue to be remastered

---------------------------------------------------- 8 - Don't Let Me Wait Too Long ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The title of the Beatle's second 1974 entry could have applied to fans themselves. We All Shine On, released earlier in the year, had reminded fans of rock music just what

an album could be, and many were hoping the Beatles would advance yet one step further. What they ended up getting in Don't Let Me Wait Too Long was an album that never

intended to top the energy and somewhat furious at times pace of its predecessor; in fact, in many ways it was a complete polar opposite. The laid back feel of the album may

have been intended to give the Beatles a respite; after all, while there were very progressive bands on the move in 1974, having a more mellow sound in the early seventies

didn't exactly alienate audiences, as band and listener together sometimes seem to have needed a moment to recover from the wild night that had been the late sixties and

early seventies.

The mellow feel of the album was reflected in the album's lead single, the Ringo-sung and George-penned "Photograph" (backed by a relatively popular b-side "Let'Em In") and

also its title track, George's "Don't Let Me Wait Too long." Another fine George tune was lauded for its composition but laughed at for its vocals; "Dark Horse" would come

to be known by fans as "Dark Hoarse" because Geoge developed an unfortunate case of laryngitis before vocal recording had finished. While John seemed to have done just fine

recording the Please Please Me album while sick, George does not seem to have been so lucky. In another bit of bad luck, George had been sued for lifting the melody for his

1971 tune "My Sweet Lord" from "He's So Fine". His track "This Song", one of the more upbeat numbers on this album, sarcastically plays off his being sued. Neither Paul nor

John had an aversion to venturing into country music territory; John to some degree with "I Know (I Know)" & Paul much moreso with his overt Sally G, having actually been

written outside Nashville.

The album does possess some more upbeat and contemporary numbers. Paul's jumpy "Listen To What The Man Said" stood out on the album, and reached release as the second single

of the album. John's frantically rocking closer, "New York City" was not only the most rocking song on the album, it was one of the most rocking the Beatles had ever

released. Responding to rumors that he and Paul had not been getting along, John jokingly wrote "How Do You Sleep", a public roast of Paul via song that some took as even

further evidence the two were not getting along (Paul, for his part, was just glad that fans had accepted he was alive). Following this tune on the album was Paul's epic

acoustic "Little Lamb Dragonfly", partially written in an effort to create an an Abbey Road-style interplay of musical ideas, only on acoustic guitar.

Standing between We All Shine On and Vienna Rock Show in the Beatles catalog, "Don't Let Me Wait Too Long" sometimes gets forgotten, much as Beatles for Sale was between A

Hard Days Night & Help, but like the former, it features many tunes that are still essential to the Beatles canon.

1. Going Down On Love
2. Dark Horse
3. Sally G
4. This Song
5. I Know, I Know
6. Listen To What The Man Said
7. Hear Me Lord
8. Photograph
9. Mamunia
10. Don't Let Me Wait Too Long
11. How Do You Sleep?
12. Little Lamb Dragonfly
13. New York City

---------------------------------------------------- 09 - Vienna Rock Show --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dark & mysterious, yet dancy at the same time, Vienna Rock Show doesn't contain many of the later Beatles' more notable songs, but that doesn't prevent it from being one of their more memorable efforts. Full of songs that fit together like puzzle pieces, Vienna Rock Show manages to be much more than the sum of its parts, much like Abbey Road. Featuring Ringo's John-penned, catchy title song at its bookends, & Paul's famous Venus & Mars/Rock Show medley in the middle, this album is a sheer carnival of sound that has to be heard to be appreciated.

1. Goodnight Vienna
2. Love In Song
3. Only People
4. Dark Sweet Lady
5. My Baby's Request
6. #9 Dream
7. Goodnight Tonight
8. Venus & Mars
9. Rock Show
10. Steel & Glass
11. Sue Me, Sue You Blues
12. Here We Go Again
13. That Is All
14. Goodnight Vienna (reprise)

---------------------------------------------------- 10 - Silly Love Songs ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
When it comes to groups as popular and groundbreaking as the Beatles, one would think that when they are a decade and a half into their careers, they would give little care to what the current popular trends were in music. As 1976's Silly Love Songs shows, not only did the Beatles not have a problem dabbling in the mainstream mix, they completely immersed themselves. Dancy, poppy, punchy, Silly Love Songs was polarizing to Beatles fans who had come to respect their artistic virtues. Whether or not there was any greater purpose to it other than sheer enjoyment, Silly Love Songs made itself one of the best selling Beatles albums of the decade.

Double A-side Whatever Get's You Through The Night/Silly Love Songs introduced the Beatles new direction to listeners, and if there was any doubt as to their intention to create a funky, dancy album, that was shattered upon hearing the opening notes on George's "Woman Don't Cry For Me". Other fast-paced Beatles classics contained within this album's running time include Paul's "Coming Up", Ringo's "Wrack My Brain", & John's screeching "What You Got". Also notable were the album's final two tracks, consisting of John's mostly instrumental "Beef Jerkey" (a precursor of things to come) and Paul's contemporary piano ballad "No More Lonely Nights".

1. Woman Don't Cry For Me
2. Whatever Gets You Thru The Night
3. Cooking In The Kitchen Of Love
4. Coming Up
5. What You Got
6. Can't Stop Thinking About You
7. Beware My Love
8. Move Over Ms. L
9. Learning How To Love You
10. Wrack my Brain
11. Silly Love Songs
12. Pure Smokey
13. Beef Jerky
14. No More Lonely Nights

---------------------------------------------------- 14 - Stepping Out -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

For the Redux Beatles, 1980's Stepping Out plainly reflected that all four lad's from Liverpool were approaching their fourth decade. The recurring themes of life are present in many of the songs on this album, such as John's "Borrowed Time" & "Nobody Told Me", along with Paul's haunting acoustic number "Somedays". The boys still have the ability to throw in top caliber pop numbers however, as George's "Got My Mind Set On You" becomes a highly succesful single, backed with Paul's appealing "Tug of War". Aside from the lead single, George contributes several other pleasant numbers, including "Here Comes The Moon" & "Love Comes To Everyone". The Beatles introdution to the eighties comes to a close with the type of classic love song that Paul McCartney seems ordained by God to be able to write, "Your Loving Flame".

1. Stepping Out
2. Tug of War
3. That's What It Takes
4. Borrowed Time
5. Have You Seen My Baby
6. Daytime Nighttime Suffering
7. Here Comes The Moon
8. To You
9. Nobody Told Me
10. Love Comes To Everyone
11. Somedays
12. Dear Yoko
13. Got My Mind Set On You
14. Your Loving Flame

---------------------------------------------------- 16 - Real Love -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

On a December night in New York City, 1980, John Lennon approached his home at the Dakota, his wife Yoko trailing not far behind. He would never make it to his apartment, as a gunman shot him several times. Lennon died shortly thereafter. His death stunned the world, and shattered his bandmates. This album is the tribute album they could have made in the fantasy world I've created, had they stayed together until this point. For the most part, the music speaks for itself, and whether or not this album is "fake" it still brings me to tears at certain points. The description below will describe how the Beatles might have created this tribute album.

Following John's death, the remaining Beatles decided it would not be proper to continue making music as Beatles without their fallen member. They decided to gather what remaining music they could to create one last "new" Beatles album. Lennon had only begun to lay down tracks for a new album (in fact, he was returning from the studio when shot), leaving the remaining Beatles with just three new tracks to complete; Free As A Bird, Real Love, and Grow Old With Me, which was brought to completion not by any other member of the group, but by orchestration from George Martin. A haunting piano demo which John had recorded shortly before he died, "Help Me To Help Myself", was also added to the album. Although its somewhat prophetic visions of not being able to stay aline haunted the remaining members, they felt it was poignant enough to help the public realize just what an unspeakable tragedy had occurred.

The remaining members provided songs which reflected on John's life, loss, message, or just what it had meant to be a Beatle. Paul begins his material with "The Song We Were Singing", which describes how he and John's relationship always oriented itself towards creating music. His "Here Today" is an emotional peak or the album while "Flaming Pie" pays tribute to the story John used to tell for how they got the name "Beatles". George pays tribute to John with his somewhat more upbeat (compared to "here Today") number "All Those Years Ago". In a similar vein, he recounts the insane and irrational popularity of the Beatles at their peak in "When We Was Fab". His mounrful instrumental "Marwa Blues" opens the second half. The album, and the band itself, comes to a close with one of McCartney's best compositions, "Beautiful Night", featuring a tag sung by Ringo.

1. Free As A Bird
2 The Song We Were Singing
3. This Is Love
4. Help Me To Help Myself
5. All Those Years Ago
6. King of Broken Hearts
7. Flaming Pie
8. Marwa Blues
9. Real love
10. Here Today
11. When We Was Fav
12. Little Willow
13. Grow Old Along With Me
14. Beautiful Night

I'll copy the rest when they appear.

I need to work out what to do with these now, but just reading that lot was immense. Big cop-out on 'How Do You Sleep?' though!

I can't help but wonder that there's too many of them, surely then it's just a little better than the solo records on shuffle?

I've never bothered with the solo records besides a couple of Lennon's; intriguing as McCartney's career is, this way is far more interesting to me right now. Besides, you need a hefty counterweight to the official boxes.

This is up there with 'If Hitler had won the war' fiction... in terms of probably best to leave well alone....

^^^ exactly. and, of course, if the dudes hadn't split and gone on to live their weird post-Beatles lives, then those lives wouldn't have 'made' them write the songs contained above.

still, i do find stuff like this bizarrely intriguing....

The thing is, there are so many solo Beatle songs that two or more Beatles played on: most of JL/POB, ATMP, Ringo's records thru 1973 or so...I haven't checked it in detail, but it's likely that the first few tracklistings here have as much Beatle collaboration as the White Album or Abbey Road.

London, 2 September 1965

Paul slowly woke up, slowly left that wonderful dream he’d just had, the one about him and John. His eyes opened to John’s sleeping face, still off somewhere dreaming. Paul could feel John’s warmth, his naked body pressed against his own. Had it really happened? Were he and John really...lovers?

John began to stir, and Paul looked again into his face. He looked so pretty lying there, half-asleep, Paul thought warmly. John opened his eyes, looked myopically at Paul and smiled. “Was it good for you too, luv?”

Paul smiled serenely at John. “Yes, Johnny.”

WHAT HAPPENED NEXT?!!!

hahaha, i'm not telling. all i can say is the internet has totally ruined the WHAT IF scenario for me.

The Hours and the Times took a stab at it.

Sort of.

Threesome with Eppy, obv

feel free to read on though:

http://lovelyrita_1967.tripod.com/slash.html

oh god...

Should be called: "The Love We Make, or, John and Paul Doin' It!"

Too many albums per year imho, and too many lousy songs. "I Don't Want to Be a Soldier" I don't think I've ever made it through an entire listen.

And I say Yoko Ono would have joined the Beatles, so there would be cool Plastic Ono Band stuff on these too. At the very least something like "Remember Love".

Someone pulled this before on a blog, though they stuck to the chronology much more. It's crazy to even fathom (would Elton John still have done backup vox on "Whatever Gets You Thru The Night"?), but I am interested in hearing how it's been "remastered" with the segues and such.

When We Was Fav

Read the typo as "When We Was Flav," imagined the slashfic possibilities.

it's likely that the first few tracklistings here have as much Beatle collaboration as the White Album or Abbey Road.

I think Abbey Road was the only late-period album where everyone played on almost every song, the exceptions being "Because" and "Her Majesty."

I thought Lennon was basically MIA on that one?

i think he's all over it, even the harrison songs. there's a tape of him rehearsing "Something" with George.

iirc, Lennon endeavored to be absent for the "Something" session(s) that produced the final master. But he later praised the song as Harrison's best. I don't think Lennon's on "Here Comes The Sun" or "Maxwell's Silver Hammer," either.

Ah, but according to this,

The original version, at eight minutes, was even longer than "Hey Jude," featuring Lennon on the piano at the end, with a counter-melody in the middle. These were cut out, the piano part going to a Lennon song, "Remember," and the counter-melody finally appearing on The Beatles Anthology 3.

Yeah that's been bootlegged for ages, it's basically a sloppy jam tacked on to the end that doesn't really go anywhere.

Apparently "Something" was demo'd during the "White Album" sessions, and for some reason I want to say it was during the recording of "Piggies" and was done on a harpsichord or organ. I really really want to hear that.

Never liked Something, but I do dig that sloppy jam.

I also never liked "Something", would like some sloppy jam plz.

Sleigh Tracks, after listening to "Silver", I would say you've done a great thing, really help people like me who shy away from the solo stuff (well, not John's) get into it more. I almost like Paul's songs now! Thanks for doing this...

I guess I need to get ahold of these somehow, but I don't have an account there.

Registration looks open. I have no idea how to use it though.

pplains, go to bit torrent and download their program--that's it!

I'm giving it a go, but at 2k/s it's going to be weeks before I hear this thing :(

If you don't mind mp3s I can stick them all in a Dropbox folder for you.

Oh man, I wouldn't expect anyone to go through that trouble, but mp3s would be perfectly fine with me. Don't really have the storage capacity for flac atm anyway.

It's no trouble for me. I'll need email addresses so I can set up a shared folder.

Can I ilxmail you? I'd rather send you my email address that way.

John Via Cheeto at hotmail dot com

Yep that's fine.

hahaha EZ!

may as well post this here

ha, that's cool. i can see why they mixed the solo out, but neat to hear. also cool to hear the moog parts a little higher in the mix.

Ok, folder's created, you should've received invites and the songs are uploading. There's 183 songs in total and it's about 1.5gb. If pplains, Ismael Klata and jon/via/chi can let me know when they've downloaded at their end, that would be good.

i'd be into hearing this too!

send me your email address!