 The Beatles Of the Complete Apple Trax CDs, this is probably the one I listen to the most – lots of goofiness like John and Paul ruining "Help!" and "Please Please Me" within the same minute-long song, and some great bits with Paul running through material for the band which the band is clearly not interested in (a sweet little throwaway called "Eddie," a long version of "Her Majesty," and a good "Hot As Sun," which later ended up on McCartney). There's lots of "Get Back," not my favorite song, but it's interesting hearing the band tighten it up – at one point you faintly hear Paul discussing the characters in the song ("And then JoJo, because he's a loner, goes to California for grass"). Yeah, great story. Lennon does "Gimme Some Truth," which I didn't know had been written that early (it ended up on John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band). A great alternate "Maggie Mae" with a cool harmony line from Paul. A half-assed "Stand By Me," also from Paul. John and Paul hamming it up on "I've Got a Feeling," parodying Martin Luther King, Jr. by continually shouting "I had a dream – I had a dream this afternoon." John finally gets a bit pissed and shouts "SING, Paul!" John sleepwalks through a couple country songs ("A Fool Like Me," "You Win Again"). Paul does a brief, otherwise forgotten song called "Woman." One of the funnest things about these discs is picturing Ringo, who dutifully drums through whatever incoherent shit John and Paul want. I doubt these tapes would bring back good memories for him, but I smile at the idea of him loyally trudging through no matter how bullshitty it all got.
Review by Bonnie Bronson |