All the Songs: The Story Behind Every Beatles Release

In this lively and fully-illustrated work, two music historians break down every album and every song ever released by the Beatles, from "Please Please Me" (U.S. 1963) to "The Long and Winding Road" (U.S. 1970).

All the Songs delves deep into the history and origins of the Beatles and their music. This first-of-its-kind book draws upon decades of research, as music historians Margotin and Guesdon recount the circumstances that led to the composition of every song, the recording process, and the instruments used.

Here, we learn that one of John Lennon's favorite guitars was a 1958 Rickenbacker 325 Capri, which he bought for 100 in 1960 in Hamburg, Germany. We also learn that "Love Me Do," recorded in Abbey Road Studios in September 1962, took 18 takes to get right, even though it was one of the first songs John and Paul ever wrote together. The authors also reveal that when the Beatles performed "I Want to Hold Your Hand" on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1964, John's microphone wasn't turned on, so viewers only heard Paul singing.

There are hundreds of photographs throughout the book, including rare black-and-white publicity stills, images of the Beatles' instruments, and engaging shots of the musicians at work in the recording studio.

All the Songs is the must-have book for the any true Beatles fan.

Author: Jean-Michel Guesdon,Philippe Margotin
Publisher: Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers
Published: 10/22/2013
Pages: 672
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 5.81lbs
Size: 10.87h x 8.66w x 2.24d
ISBN: 9781579129521


Award: Independent Publisher Book Awards - Gold Medal Winner


Review Citation(s):
Library Journal 09/01/2013 pg. 112
Kirkus Reviews 09/01/2013
Entertainment Weekly 11/15/2013 pg. 83
People Weekly 12/23/2013 pg. 60
Booklist 01/01/2014 pg. 70
Choice 03/01/2014

About the Author
Jean-Michel Guesdon is a musician, composer, and sound engineer. Together with Philippe Margotin, he has written All the Songs books about the Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, and Pink Floyd.

In addition to writing multiple titles in the All the Songs series, Philippe Margotin has written several other books on music, including biographies of U2 and Radiohead.

Scott Freiman combines his career as a composer, producer, and educator with an in-depth knowledge of the Beatles, and the result is "Deconstructing the Beatles", which is a series of multimedia presentations about the composition and production techniques of the Fab Four. Freiman presents his lectures to sold-out audiences throughout North America and at colleges and universities. He lives in Irvington, New York.