Limited edition 180-gram, audiophile vinyl LP pressing of this album from the Fab Four comes housed in replicated artwork. Another mega-hit album from The Beatles was 1965's "Help!" Bolstered by its own movie, this album is best known for its classic title track, "The Night Before," "Ticket to Ride," "Yesterday" and a great Buck Owen's cover: "Act Naturally." Relive Beatlemania at its best on this remastered reissue on superior sound quality 180-gram vinyl. The album peaked at #1 on the Billboard 200 chart in 1965. This vinyl pressing contains the 2009 digital remaster of the album, making it sound more vibrant and electrifying than ever before.
Considering that Help! functions as the Beatles' fifth album and as the soundtrack to their second film -- while filming, they continued to release non-LP singles on a regular basis -- it's not entirely surprising that it still has some of the weariness of Beatles for Sale. Again, they pad the album with covers, but the Bakersfield bounce of "Act Naturally" adds new flavor (along with an ideal showcase for Ringo's amiable vocals) and "Dizzy Miss Lizzy" gives John an opportunity to flex his rock & roll muscle. George is writing again and if his two contributions don't touch Lennon and McCartney's originals, they hold their own against much of their British pop peers. Since Lennon wrote a third more songs than McCartney, it's easy to forgive a pair of minor numbers ("It's Only Love," "Tell Me What You See"), especially since they're overshadowed by four great songs. His Dylan infatuation holds strong, particularly on the plaintive "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away" and the title track, where the brash arrangement disguises Lennon's desperation. Driven by an indelible 12-string guitar, "Ticket to Ride" is another masterpiece and "You're Going to Lose That Girl" is the kind of song McCartney effortlessly tosses off -- which he does with the jaunty "The Night Before" and "Another Girl," two very fine tunes that simply update his melodic signature. He did much better with "I've Just Seen a Face," an irresistible folk-rock gem, and "Yesterday," a simple, beautiful ballad whose arrangement -- an acoustic guitar supported by a string quartet -- and composition suggested much more sophisticated and adventurous musical territory, which the group immediately began exploring with Rubber Soul. [A 14-track LP was released in 2012.] ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi
