The Beatles Albums – The Beatles Anthology 2

Released by Apple Records in March of 1996, the Beatles Anthology 2 is the second instalment of the three-volume The Beatles albums, Anthology collection, linked to The Beatles Anthology TV documentary first aired in November of 1995. as three feature-length episodes in the U. S. and six edited installments in the U. K.   

Packaged in a collage of magical Beatles moments and presented on two CDs, these 45 tracks (40 different compositions) span the years 1965 to 1969–with the exception of “Real Love,” one of two Lennon demos recorded at his Dakota apartment in 1979.  In addition to Lennon-McCartney compositions, Beatles Anthology 2 includes John’s take on Chuck Berry’s classic “Rock and Roll Music,” George’s rendition of the Carl Perkins Rock-a-Billy standard “Everybody’s Trying to Be My Baby” (recorded live at Shea Stadium in August of 1965), as well as the Harrison-penned, “Taxman,” “Within You and Without You,” and “Only a Northern Song.”  (No Ringo songs are included.)   

While providing a rare behind-the-scenes look into the Beatles music-making process via a selection of outtakes, rarities, and alternative versions (from the 1965 Help! sessions to Abbey Road sessions between May of 1967 and April of 1969), to many diehard Beatles fans, it is the new Beatles song, “Real Love” that is the real gem of Beatles Anthology 2 (the Lennon composition to which the other Beatles added their parts 15 years after his tragic death).   

Beatles Fans will no doubt also appreciate the three previously unreleased compositions on Disc One, the instrumental “12-Bar Original” (only the second Beatles instrumental officially released, after “Flying”), and “If You’ve Got Trouble” and “That Means a Lot” (recorded for Help! but then shelved–although bootlegs have been circulating for decades), as well as pre-Rubber Soul versions of “Norwegian Wood” and “I’m Looking Through You.”  Likewise, John’s demo version of “Strawberry Fields Forever” (recorded at “Kenwood,” his Weybridge estate) and stripped-down version of “A Day in the Life” (recorded at Abbey Road Studios) presented on Disc Two, give listeners an idea of the musical transformation these songs had undergone before inclusion on Magical Mystery Tour and Sgt. Peppers, respectively.   

Although Beatles Anthology 2 is a wonderful addition to any Beatles music library, it should not be considered a general listening collection.  While minor-masterpieces like “You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away” and “Eleanor Rigby” are literally sweet music to the ears, casual listeners may find the multiple- and unfamiliar versions of other songs a bit disconcerting—if not confusing.   

Fans who take comfort in the refined quality of Beatles songs as they first poured from their radios or home stereos may find these cuts strangely lacking—particularly in that some are essentially early “rough drafts.”  As for the song-to-song continuity Beatles fan have come to expect from major Beatles releases, this collection is understandably disjointed and effectively crude in nature, and perhaps best appreciated for what it is: insight into the music Beatlemaniacs have come to know and love–but hardly a fair introduction to Beatles music for the Beatles-curious.  (Quite simply, this may not be the collection for those who don’t like to know what goes into their soup–only how it tastes in the end!)