On Air – Live at the BBC Volume 2
| On Air – Live at the BBC Volume 2 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Live album / compilation album by The Beatles | ||||
| Released | 11 November 2013 | |||
| Recorded | 1963 – 1966, London | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 130:34 | |||
| Label | Apple, Capitol, UMe | |||
| Producer | Jeff Jones, Mike Heatley, Kevin Howlett | |||
| The Beatles chronology | ||||
| ||||
On Air – Live at the BBC Volume 2 is a 2013 live/compilation album featuring 40 previously unreleased tracks from the Beatles' 1963–1964 BBC Radio broadcasts (accompanied by 23 interview tracks from the associated broadcasts). It was released on 11 November 2013, along with a remastered and repackaged Live at the BBC Volume 1, which was originally released in 1994. The album is available as a two-CD set and a three-LP set. An exclusive limited edition lithographic print is also available from the Beatles online store.[1]
Content
Most of the songs performed on the album are taken from the Beatles' first four LPs Please Please Me, With the Beatles, A Hard Day's Night, and Beatles for Sale. Many of the other songs performed are the band's covers of early rock and roll classics by American artists such as Little Richard, Chuck Berry, and Buddy Holly, many of which were never recorded in a studio or released on a Beatles album. "I'm Talking About You" and "Beautiful Dreamer" were the two songs on the album that had never been on a previous Beatles release,[2] leaving only "Dream Baby (How Long Must I Dream)" and "A Picture of You," both low fidelity recordings with Pete Best from 1962, as the only songs from the Beatles' BBC performances that have never been issued in any version.[3]
There are several witty and irreverent moments among the 23 speech tracks of in-studio conversation and banter. "A Hard Job Writing Them", for example, includes the moment where Ringo describes the trouble he had writing songs for A Hard Day's Night and Paul launches the ship "Top Gear" in an unusual voice.
Reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Aggregate scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 82/100[4] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [5] |
| The Daily Mail | [6] |
| MOJO | [7] |
| Rolling Stone | [8] |
The album received very positive reviews upon release. The Daily Mail reviewer Adrian Thrills gave this compilation a rating of 5 stars. He points to the version of Chuck Berry’s "I’m Talking About You" as being a highlight as it "reiterates John Lennon’s credentials as a rock ’n’ roller". Thrills also stated, "Other highlights include a fresh take on Arthur Alexander’s 'Anna', a heartfelt 'Please Mr Postman' and a countrified stroll through the Carl Perkins hit 'Lend Me Your Comb'."[6]
Another reviewer, Damian Fanelli from Guitar World, stated the album is "an exceedingly satisfying release, yet another example of how talented, charming and generally 'different' the Beatles were. In terms of George Harrison's guitar playing, we get to hear the good (his whammy-bar-laced guitar solo on 'Till There Was You'), the not so good (his solo on 'Lucille') and the intriguing (His better-than-the-EMI-version solo on 'I Saw Her Standing There' inspires a few 'What ifs?')."[9]
Mojo music writer Jon Savage reviewed the album, giving it four stars, and stated, "There are several surprises: a tough version of Chuck Berry’s 'I’m Talking About You', an early 'Words of Love', covers of 'Lend Me Your Comb' and 'Beautiful Dreamer'."[7]
Track listing
Speech tracks are in italics.
| Disc one[1] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Lead vocals | Length |
| 1. | "And Here We Are Again" | – | – | 0:15 |
| 2. | "Words of Love" | Buddy Holly | John Lennon, Paul McCartney | 1:56 |
| 3. | "How About It, Gorgeous?" | – | – | 0:27 |
| 4. | "Do You Want to Know a Secret" | Lennon–McCartney | George Harrison | 1:48 |
| 5. | "Lucille" | Little Richard, Albert Collins | McCartney | 2:29 |
| 6. | "Hey, Paul..." | – | – | 0:21 |
| 7. | "Anna (Go to Him)" | Arthur Alexander | Lennon | 2:50 |
| 8. | "Hello!" | – | – | 0:19 |
| 9. | "Please Please Me" | Lennon–McCartney | Lennon | 1:56 |
| 10. | "Misery" | Lennon–McCartney | Lennon, McCartney | 1:50 |
| 11. | "I'm Talking About You" | Berry | Lennon | 1:52 |
| 12. | "A Real Treat" | – | – | 0:37 |
| 13. | "Boys" | Luther Dixon, Wes Farrell | Ringo Starr | 2:29 |
| 14. | "Absolutely Fab" | – | – | 0:27 |
| 15. | "Chains" | Gerry Goffin, Carole King | Harrison | 2:15 |
| 16. | "Ask Me Why" | Lennon–McCartney | Lennon | 1:54 |
| 17. | "Till There Was You" | Meredith Willson | McCartney | 2:16 |
| 18. | "Lend Me Your Comb" | Kay Twomey, Fred Wise, Ben Weisman | Lennon, McCartney | 1:46 |
| 19. | "Lower 5E" | – | – | 0:23 |
| 20. | "Hippy Hippy Shake" | Chan Romero | McCartney | 1:46 |
| 21. | "Roll Over Beethoven" | Berry | Harrison | 2:22 |
| 22. | "There's a Place" | Lennon–McCartney | Lennon | 1:49 |
| 23. | "Bumper Bundle" | – | – | 0:49 |
| 24. | "P.S. I Love You" | Lennon–McCartney | McCartney | 1:59 |
| 25. | "Please Mister Postman" | Georgia Dobbins, William Garrett, Freddie Gorman, Brian Holland, Robert Bateman | Lennon | 2:17 |
| 26. | "Beautiful Dreamer" | Stephen Foster, Gerry Goffin, Jack Keller | McCartney | 1:46 |
| 27. | "Devil in Her Heart" | Richard Drapkin | Harrison | 2:22 |
| 28. | "The 49 Weeks" | – | – | 0:17 |
| 29. | "Sure to Fall (In Love with You)" | Carl Perkins, Bill Cantrell, Quinton Claunch | McCartney | 2:21 |
| 30. | "Never Mind, Eh?" | – | – | 0:34 |
| 31. | "Twist and Shout" | Phil Medley, Bert Berns | Lennon | 2:25 |
| 32. | "Bye, Bye" | – | – | 0:24 |
| 33. | "John – Pop Profile (Bonus interview track)" | – | – | 8:22 |
| 34. | "George – Pop Profile (Bonus interview track)" | – | – | 8:06 |
| Disc two[1] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Lead vocals | Length |
| 1. | "I Saw Her Standing There" | Lennon–McCartney | McCartney | 2:36 |
| 2. | "Glad All Over" | Aaron Schroeder, Sid Tepper, Roy Bennett | Harrison | 1:53 |
| 3. | "Lift Lid Again" | – | – | 0:37 |
| 4. | "I'll Get You" | Lennon–McCartney | Lennon, McCartney | 2:02 |
| 5. | "She Loves You" | Lennon–McCartney | Lennon, McCartney | 2:15 |
| 6. | "Memphis, Tennessee" | Berry | Lennon | 2:15 |
| 7. | "Happy Birthday Dear Saturday Club" | Mildred J. Hill, Patty Hill, arr. Lennon, McCartney, Harrison, Starr | Lennon, McCartney, Harrison, Starr | 0:33 |
| 8. | "Now Hush, Hush" | – | – | 0:25 |
| 9. | "From Me to You" | Lennon–McCartney | Lennon, McCartney | 1:51 |
| 10. | "Money (That's What I Want)" | Janie Bradford, Berry Gordy | Lennon | 2:43 |
| 11. | "I Want to Hold Your Hand" | Lennon–McCartney | Lennon, McCartney | 2:23 |
| 12. | "Brian Bathtubes" | – | – | 0:59 |
| 13. | "This Boy" | Lennon–McCartney | Lennon, McCartney, Harrison | 2:16 |
| 14. | "If I Wasn't in America" | – | – | 0:45 |
| 15. | "I Got a Woman" | Ray Charles, Renald Richard | Lennon | 2:36 |
| 16. | "Long Tall Sally" | Enotris Johnson, Robert Blackwell, Little Richard | McCartney | 1:58 |
| 17. | "If I Fell" | Lennon–McCartney | Lennon, McCartney | 2:09 |
| 18. | "A Hard Job Writing Them" | – | – | 1:20 |
| 19. | "And I Love Her" | Lennon–McCartney | McCartney | 2:20 |
| 20. | "Oh, Can't We? Yes We Can" | – | – | 0:20 |
| 21. | "You Can't Do That" | Lennon–McCartney | Lennon | 2:32 |
| 22. | "Honey Don't" | Perkins | Starr | 2:24 |
| 23. | "I'll Follow the Sun" | Lennon–McCartney | Lennon, McCartney | 1:51 |
| 24. | "Green with Black Shutters" | – | – | 0:59 |
| 25. | "Kansas City/Hey-Hey-Hey-Hey!" | Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, Little Richard | McCartney | 2:43 |
| 26. | "That's What We're Here For" | – | – | 0:24 |
| 27. | "I Feel Fine (Studio outtake sequence)" | Lennon–McCartney | Lennon | 3:29 |
| 28. | "Paul – Pop Profile (Bonus interview track)" | – | – | 7:50 |
| 29. | "Ringo – Pop Profile (Bonus interview track)" | – | – | 8:04 |
Personnel
- John Lennon – vocals, rhythm guitar, harmonica
- Paul McCartney – vocals, bass guitar, guitar
- George Harrison – vocals, lead guitar
- Ringo Starr – vocals, drums, percussion
Sources Programes: Disc 1:
- Track 1 - Pop Go The Beatles, 23 July `1963 (10 July 1963)
- Track 2 - Pop Go The Beatles, 20 August 1963 (16 July 1963)
- Tracks 3,4,17,25 - Pop Go The Beatles, 30 July 1963 (10 July 1963)
- Track 5 - Pop Go The Beatles, 17 September 1963 (3 September 1963)
- Tracks 6,8,12,13,14,15,23,24 - Pop Go The Beatles, 25 June 1963 (17 June 1963)
- Track 7 - Pop Go The Beatles, 27 August 1963 (1 August 1963)
- Track 9 - Pop Go The Beatles, 13 August 1963 (16 July 1963)
- Track 10 - Here We Go, 12 March 1963 (6 March 1963)
- Track 11 - Saturday Club, 16 March 1963 [Transmitted Live]
- Tracks 16,27,28,29,30,32 - Pop Go The Beatles, 24 September 1963 (3 September 1963)
- Track 18 - Pop Go The Beatles, 16 July 1963 (2 July 1963)
- Tracks 19,20 - Pop Go The Beatles, 10 September 1963 (3 September 1963)
- Tracks 21,22 - Pop Go The Beatles, 3 September 1963 (1 August 1963)
- Track 26 - Saturday Club, 26 January 1963 (22 January 1963)
- Track 31 - Pop Go The Beatles, 6 August 1963 (16 July 1963)
- Tracks 33,34 - BBC Transcription Service, 30 November 1965
Disc 2
- Tracks 1,4,5,6,7 - Saturday Club, 5 October 1963 (7 September 1963)
- Tracks 2,3 - Saturday Club, 24 August 1963 (30 July 1963)
- Tracks 8,9 - Easy Beat, 20 October 1963 (16 October 1963)
- Tracks 10,11 - From Us To You, 26 December 1963 (18 December 1963)
- Tracks 12,13 - Saturday Club, 21 December 1963 (17 December 1963)
- Track 14 - Saturday Club, 15 February 1964 (7 January 1964)
- Track 15 - Saturday Club, 4 April 1964 (31 March 1964)
- Tracks 16,17,18,19,21 - Top Gear, 16 July 1964 (14 July 1964)
- Track 20 - From Us To You, 30 March 1964 (28 February 1964)
- Tracks 22,23,26 - Top Gear, 26 November 1964 (17 November 1964)
- Track 24 - Top Of The Pops BBC Transcription Service, May or June 1965
- Track 25 - Saturday Club, 26 December 1964 (25 November 1964)
- Track 27 - Top Gear (17 November 1964)
- Tracks 28,29 - BBC Transcription Service, 2 May 1966
Charts
| Charts (2013) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA)[10] | 28 |
| Top Canadian Albums (Billboard) | 7 |
| Greek Albums (IFPI)[11] | 11 |
| Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[12] | 16 |
| UK Albums (OCC)[13] | 12 |
| US Billboard 200 | 7 |
| US Billboard Rock Albums | 1 |
Year-end charts
| Chart (2014) | Position |
|---|---|
| US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[14] | 56 |
References
- 1 2 3 "The Beatles On Air Live At The BBC Volume 2". The Beatles Store. 2013. Retrieved 13 September 2013.
- ↑ "'ON AIR - LIVE AT THE BBC VOL2' to be released" (Press release). TheBeatles.com. 12 September 2013. Retrieved 8 June 2015.
- ↑ The remaining songs which were performed by the Beatles on the BBC but not released on either Live at the BBC or On Air are "Besame Mucho," "I Call Your Name," "I Should Have Known Better," "I'm Happy Just to Dance with You" and "The Night Before".
- ↑ "On Air – Live at the BBC Volume 2 - The Beatles". Metacritic.
- ↑ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "On Air: Live at the BBC, Vol. 2". AllMusic. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
- 1 2 Thrills, Adrian (8 November 2013). "Live on air: Beatles at the Beeb is a rough and ready gem". Daily Mail. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
- 1 2 Savage, Jon (11 November 2013). "The Beatles - On Air – Live At The BBC Volume 2". Mojo. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
- ↑ Fricke, David (12 November 2013). "The Beatles 'On Air - Live at the BBC Volume 2'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 16 November 2013.
- ↑ Fanelli, Damian (10 November 2013). "Album Review: The Beatles, 'On Air — Live At the BBC Volume 2'". Guitar World. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
- ↑ "Australiancharts.com – The Beatles – On Air - Live At The BBC Volume 2". Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 November 2013.
- ↑ "Official Cyta-IFPI Charts – Top-75 Albums Sales Chart (Week: 48/2013)" (in Greek). IFPI Greece. Archived from the original on 9 December 2013. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
- ↑ "Spanishcharts.com – The Beatles – On Air - Live At The BBC Volume 2". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 November 2013.
- ↑ "The Beatles | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart Retrieved 21 November 2013.
- ↑ "Top Rock Albums: 2014 Year-End Charts". Billboard.