YELLOW SUBMARINE

It difficult to compile a successful soundtrack when your film is considered a flop, but the Beatles actually managed to make everyone see that it could be done with Magical Mystery Tour. This time when they had the odds on their side and Yellow Submarine turned out to be a successful film production the soundtrack release became an unexpected disappointment.

To be honest, Magical Mystery Tour wasn't all that exciting without the addition of side two bonus material featuring separately issued classics like Strawberry Fields Forever, Penny Lane and All You Need Is Love. This time there was not much of a need to add bonus material to the album since the movie featured more than enough songs to fill an LP, which was also confirmed by the 1999 reissue of the soundtrack. For some odd reason this strategy was overruled in favor of adding 4 previously unreleased songs, mainly from the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band sessions, the previously released title track and All You Need Is Love. Side two of the LP is dedicated completely to George Martin's movie score with no input from the Beatles and even though there isn't anything wrong with these compositions they tend to pass by completely unnoticed.

I have been trying to read up on the reasons behind this poorly compiled soundtrack but haven't really found much information on this whole issue. Maybe the label/band wanted to make the public think that this was a completely new studio album? In which case I it becomes difficult to understand why two previously released track made it on the album. I can understand the reasons behind inclusion of the title track but why add All You Need Is Love when it was already released as a separate single and a part of Magical Mystery Tour?

This release feels more like a b-side album and that's probably what it, meaning that its not of much use to anyone but the fans. Now that we also have the Yellow Submarine Songtrack, this original version of the LP can't even really be considered of importance to the Beatles fans but rather to those of George Martin!

***** star songs: Yellow Submarine (2:42) All You Need Is Love (3:52)

**** star songs: Only A Northern Song (3:27) Hey Bulldog (3:14) All Together Now (2:13)

*** star songs: Pepperland (2:23) Sea Of Time (3:00) Sea Of Holes (2:20) Sea Of Monsters (3:39) March Of The Meanies (2:22) Pepperland Laid To Waste (2:15) Yellow Submarine In Pepperland (2:10)

** star songs: It's All Too Much (6:28)