Released: 1969 (original); 1999 (remix Songtrack)
Tracks: Yellow Submarine; Hey Bulldog; Eleanor Rigby; Love You To; All Together Now; Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds; Think for Yourself; Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band; With a Little Help From My Friends; Baby You’re a Rich Man; Only a Northern Song; All You Need is Love; When I’m Sixty-Four; Nowhere Man; It’s All Too Much
Best track: either Hey Bulldog or Nowhere Man
Track to skip: none
This is the soundtrack to the Beatles animated movie Yellow Submarine. The original album was issued in early 1969 with 4 previously unreleased songs (Hey Bulldog, All Together Now, Only a Northern Song & It’s All Too Much), 2 that you knew (the title track & All You Need is Love) & 7 tracks of orchestrated music George Martin composed for the film (Pepperland, Sea of Time, Sea of Holes, Sea of Monsters, March of the Meanies, Pepperland Laid Waste & Yellow Submarine in Pepperland). In 1999 the Beatles went back and not only re-released the movie on VHS & DVD, but also reworked the soundtrack. Now it’s the “Yellow Submarine Songtrack” with the difference being more Beatles songs you already knew replacing the George Martin orchestrations. I’m unsure why they didn’t just keep the Martin compositions on here since the CD is only 45 minutes so there’s room. The songs that they added for the Songtrack are all featured in the film, but I think there are a few songs in the film that *aren’t* here. Huh? When you look at this CD in all those ways (only being 45 minutes, not featuring all the music in the movie) it’s a little disappointing. But then again, it IS The Beatles and it highlights songs from their most creative period so it’s not like it’s horrible to own.
The four ‘new’ songs are really just rejects that didn’t fit on any albums. Only a Northern Song was left off of Sgt. Pepper, while both All Together Now & It’s All Too Much were recorded during the sessions for Magical Mystery Tour. I think All Together Now was actually composed for the movie, while Hey Bulldog was a new track that came up while the group was working on Lady Madonna. OK, so, “rejects” isn’t the best word possible to use for these songs, but it does show that maybe the band thought they weren’t good enough for their proper albums. Of these four, Hey Bulldog is clearly the best track. It’s one of the more rocking songs in their catalog and just has a wonderful feel to it. All Together Now is just a silly, almost-throwaway, song. I don’t skip it because it’s just stupidly fun. It’s a kid’s song, that’s for sure. I still like it though. Only a Northern Song is one of George’s (he surprisingly gets 4 songs on here; that’s pretty cool) where he’s sort of protesting being lumped into Paul & John’s publishing company (instead of being on his own, like he would starting in 1968), Northern Songs, Ltd. As a song goes, it’s decent enough. It’s pretty damn psychedelic with lots of crazy sound effects and nonsensical lyrics. It’s a feast for the ears with some interesting stuff going on underneath and on top of the song. It’s All Too Much is a great psychedelic/heavy rocker that shows Harrison in particular had been listening to Hendrix’s feedback experiments. This song rocks and it’s too bad that it’s such an overlooked song in The Beatles catalog. I like these 4 new ones, but really Hey Bulldog and It’s All Too Much are reason enough to buy this.
Then we come to the songs we already know and love, with 2 from Rubber Soul, 3 from Revolver, 4 from Sgt. Pepper & 2 from Magical Mystery Tour. I don’t think these are the best songs from those respective albums, but they fit within the context of the movie and also this album. I think that not only are these songs remastered, but perhaps also a slight remixing on them. I remember reading comments from when this came out from Beatle fans going into serious detail about the differences in these versions and the originals. I personally think the remastering sounds wonderful and makes the songs sound fuller than they already are. Many of the instruments and background sounds are much clearer on this album. Nowhere Man sounds fantastic, particularly in McCartney’s excellent bass line.
So, all in all I do think this is an essential album. I mean, Hey Bulldog and It’s All Too Much are essential for Beatles fans and present two more different things that they did. I’m not sure if I’m going to buy the original issue of the album with George Martin’s songs. I need to go back and watch the movie again and just listen to those. I do wish they were on here though. Even though this version is easier to find, the original is still in print so you can get either or both if you feel like it. If I have to pick between the two, I definitely prefer this because you get all the great songs that you already know in addition to the four unreleased ones. In a way, it’s a compilation of The Beatles’ psychedelic period, even if it does skip the best songs from this era (Strawberry Fields, I am the Walrus, A Day in the Life, etc). It’s a fun album and for me that’s what really counts.
Rating: 91
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