{ "id": "epvfrm23mh", "slug": "help", "title": "Help!", "updated": "2026-10-25", "topic_path": [ { "id": "culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture" }, { "id": "culture.music", "label": "Music", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.music" }, { "id": "culture.music.works", "label": "Musical works and recordings", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.music.works" }, { "id": "culture.music.works.recordings", "label": "Albums and recorded releases", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.music.works.recordings" }, { "id": "culture.music.works.recordings.studio_albums", "label": "Studio albums", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.music.works.recordings.studio_albums" }, { "id": "culture.music.works.recordings.studio_albums.indie-and-alternative-albums", "label": "Indie and alternative albums", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.music.works.recordings.studio_albums.indie-and-alternative-albums" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.weu.t1946.culture.music.works.recordings.studio_albums.indie-and-alternative-albums", "label": "Western Europe · 1946 to 2000: Indie and alternative albums", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t1946.culture.music.works.recordings.studio_albums.indie-and-alternative-albums", "path": [ { "id": "geo.weu", "label": "Western Europe", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t1946", "label": "Western Europe · 1946 to 2000", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t1946" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t1946.culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t1946.culture" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t1946.culture.music", "label": "Music", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t1946.culture.music" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t1946.culture.music.works", "label": "Musical works and recordings", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t1946.culture.music.works" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t1946.culture.music.works.recordings", "label": "Albums and recorded releases", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t1946.culture.music.works.recordings" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t1946.culture.music.works.recordings.studio_albums", "label": "Studio albums", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t1946.culture.music.works.recordings.studio_albums" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t1946.culture.music.works.recordings.studio_albums.indie-and-alternative-albums", "label": "Indie and alternative albums", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t1946.culture.music.works.recordings.studio_albums.indie-and-alternative-albums" } ] } ], "excerpt": "Help! is the Beatles' fifth UK album and soundtrack to their second film, released 6 August 1965 on Parlophone (PMC 1255/PCS 3071), featuring the title track, Ticket to Ride, and Yesterday.", "snippet": "Help! is the Beatles' fifth UK album and soundtrack to their second film, released 6 August 1965 on Parlophone (PMC 1255/PCS 3071), featuring the title track, Ticket to Ride, and Yesterday.", "node": "culture.music.works.recordings.studio_albums.indie-and-alternative-albums", "markdown": "# Help!\n\n**Help!** is the fifth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles and the soundtrack to their second feature film of the same name, released on 6 August 1965 by [Parlophone](https://www.edgepedia.org/parlophone) in the United Kingdom as PMC 1255 (mono) and PCS 3071 (stereo)[1](https://www.beatlesbible.com/1965/08/06/uk-lp-help/). It appeared eight months after *[Beatles for Sale](https://www.edgepedia.org/beatles-for-sale)* and pairs the songs from the film on side one with other new recordings, including two covers, on side two[2](https://www.thebeatles.com/help-0). The album contains several of the band's most enduring songs, including the title track, \"Ticket to Ride\", \"You've Got to Hide Your Love Away\", and \"Yesterday\"[3](https://www.beatlesbible.com/albums/help/).\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Release | 6 August 1965, Parlophone PMC 1255 (mono) / PCS 3071 (stereo); the Beatles' fifth UK album[1](https://www.beatlesbible.com/1965/08/06/uk-lp-help/) |\n| Purpose | Soundtrack to the Beatles' second feature film, with seven film songs on side one and seven other recordings on side two[2](https://www.thebeatles.com/help-0) |\n| Working title | \"Eight Arms To Hold You\", announced to the press in mid-March 1965; the final title was chosen after John Lennon presented his song \"Help!\"[4](https://www.thebeatles.com/help-2) • [5](https://aboutthebeatles.com/help-lp) |\n| Title track single | Released in the US on 19 July 1965 and in the UK on 23 July 1965, two weeks ahead of the album[6](https://www.beatlesbible.com/songs/help/) |\n| Cover artwork | The Beatles pose in semaphore signals that spell NUJV rather than HELP[7](https://dmbeatles.com/disk.php?covers=5) |\n| US edition | Capitol version released 13 August 1965 with seven Beatles songs and Ken Thorne's film instrumentals[8](https://www.the-paulmccartney-project.com/album/help-stereo-2/) • [9](https://superdeluxeedition.com/news/first-pictures-the-beatles-the-us-albums-box-set-help/) |\n| Later mixes | The 1987 CD used a 1986 remix by George Martin; the 2009 remaster reused that remix, while the original 1965 mix survived on the mono release[5](https://aboutthebeatles.com/help-lp) |\n\n## Title and background\n\nThe film and its soundtrack were announced to the press in mid-March 1965 under the working title \"Eight Arms To Hold You\"[4](https://www.thebeatles.com/help-2). The title was settled only after Lennon presented his song \"Help!\"[5](https://aboutthebeatles.com/help-lp). As with \"A Hard Day's Night\" before it, once the title was agreed, Lennon rose to the challenge of composing the song[10](https://www.beatlesbible.com/1965/04/13/recording-help/).\n\nLennon later described the song as more personal than it appeared. \"I didn't realise it at the time – I just wrote the song because I was commissioned to write it for the movie – but later I knew, really I was crying out for help,\" he said in *The Beatles Anthology*, adding that he got very emotional singing the lyrics[11](https://www.thebeatles.com/4th-april-1965-sunday-john-and-paul-compose-help). He also said he did not like the finished recording much, feeling \"we did it too fast trying to be commercial\"[6](https://www.beatlesbible.com/songs/help/).\n\n## Recording\n\nSessions for the album ran at EMI Studios ([Abbey Road](https://www.edgepedia.org/abbey-road)) between February and June 1965[12](https://www.classicrockreview.com/2015/08/1965-beatles-help/). The title track was recorded on the evening of Tuesday 13 April 1965, in a session from 7 to 11.15 pm in Studio Two[10](https://www.beatlesbible.com/1965/04/13/recording-help/). On the final take, [Ringo Starr](https://www.edgepedia.org/ringo-starr) overdubbed a tambourine and [George Harrison](https://www.edgepedia.org/george-harrison) added the descending, Chet Atkins-style guitar notes that close each chorus[6](https://www.beatlesbible.com/songs/help/).\n\nThe album also marks a step in the band's studio method: it was on this album that the Beatles first committed in a big way to recording backing tracks first and laying down vocals and other finishing touches as successive overdubs[13](https://awpnoteson.info/notes/h.html).\n\nSeveral songs recorded during the period did not reach the film or the album, including \"If You've Got Trouble\", \"That Means a Lot\", \"Yes It Is\", and an early version of \"Wait\", which was re-recorded for *Rubber Soul* later in the year[12](https://www.classicrockreview.com/2015/08/1965-beatles-help/).\n\n## The songs\n\nLennon's key contributions included \"Ticket to Ride\", which became the Beatles' first single of 1965, and \"You've Got to Hide Your Love Away\", a mostly acoustic recording with introspective lyrics inspired by [Bob Dylan](https://www.edgepedia.org/bob-dylan)[3](https://www.beatlesbible.com/albums/help/). Lennon credited Dylan's example with changing his approach: hearing his work gave him \"a sort of professional songwriter's attitude to writing pop songs\"[3](https://www.beatlesbible.com/albums/help/).\n\n**\"Yesterday\"** began with [Paul McCartney](https://www.edgepedia.org/paul-mccartney) singing and playing acoustic guitar alone; he and producer [George Martin](https://www.edgepedia.org/george-martin) then decided to add a string quartet[14](https://www.the-paulmccartney-project.com/album/help/). Martin recalled McCartney first playing the song to him under the working title \"Scrambled Egg\", before the lyric was finished[2](https://www.thebeatles.com/help-0). The song went on to become one of the most covered songs in popular music[15](https://www.beatleswiki.com/wiki/index.php/Help%21_%28album%29).\n\nGeorge Harrison contributed one song to each side of the album[2](https://www.thebeatles.com/help-0). The soundtrack also included the earlier single \"Ticket to Ride\" alongside five new songs: \"The Night Before\", \"You've Got to Hide Your Love Away\", \"I Need You\", \"Another Girl\", and \"You're Going to Lose That Girl\"[16](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/BOOKSHELF-ARH/Radio-Programming/Radio-Programming/Billboard-Book-of-Number-One-Hits-1988--221117.pdf).\n\n## The film\n\n*Help!*, released on 29 July 1965, is a comedy adventure directed by [Richard Lester](https://www.edgepedia.org/richard-lester) in which the band attempts to escape an evil cult after one of Ringo Starr's rings, with locations including the Bahamas and the Austrian mountains[17](https://www.thebeatles.com/help). The cast included [Leo McKern](https://www.edgepedia.org/leo-mckern), Eleanor Bron, Victor Spinetti, and [Roy Kinnear](https://www.edgepedia.org/roy-kinnear), and the film has been regarded as a parody of contemporary Bond films[17](https://www.thebeatles.com/help). It has also been credited as a forerunner to rock musicals and pop videos[17](https://www.thebeatles.com/help).\n\nContemporary reception was mixed. TIME's critic found the acting questionable but admired the \"highly professional, carefully calculated camera work and cutting\" that had replaced the spontaneity of *A Hard Day's Night*[18](https://time.com/3965234/beatles-help-movie-review/).\n\n## Release and chart performance\n\nThe album entered the UK Official Albums Chart with a first chart date of 14 August 1965[19](https://www.officialcharts.com/albums/the-beatles-help-0/). In the United States, the song \"Help!\" reached number one; on 4 September 1965 it became the Beatles' ninth American chart-topper in roughly a year and a half, a figure without precedent in the industry at that point[20](https://los40.com/2025/09/04/sesenta-anos-de-un-grito-disfrazado-de-exito-cuando-help-de-the-beatles-llego-al-n1-en-ee-uu/). The album was nominated for the 1965 Grammy Awards for Album of the Year and Best Original Score, Motion Picture or TV Show[5](https://aboutthebeatles.com/help-lp). In Australia it was released on 30 September 1965, the last in a sequence of three albums mastered locally from British-supplied tapes[21](https://www.beatlesaustralia.com/lp-help.html).\n\n## The US edition\n\nThe American Help! was released by Capitol on 13 August 1965[8](https://www.the-paulmccartney-project.com/album/help-stereo-2/). It was a gatefold LP containing roughly half the songs of the UK album, with the seven Beatles tracks sitting alongside instrumental music from the film[9](https://superdeluxeedition.com/news/first-pictures-the-beatles-the-us-albums-box-set-help/). On the US soundtrack, the title track was preceded by a spy-theme spoof by composer Ken Thorne, often referred to as \"The James Bond Theme\" although it is not the Bond theme itself[22](https://aboutthebeatles.com/help-original-motion-picture-soundtrack). The album was reissued on CD in 2006 in *The Capitol Albums, Vol. 2* and again in 2014 in *The U.S. Albums* box set[22](https://aboutthebeatles.com/help-original-motion-picture-soundtrack).\n\n## Mixes and reissues\n\nThe album's mixes have a layered history. The 1987 CD release was remixed in 1986 by George Martin, who called the original mixes \"very woolly, and not at all what I thought should be a good issue\"[5](https://aboutthebeatles.com/help-lp). The 2009 remaster also used the 1986 remix, while the original 1965 mix was issued on the mono version of Help![5](https://aboutthebeatles.com/help-lp). The mono and stereo versions of the title track differ noticeably: the mono uses a CTS mix with the originally recorded introduction, while the stereo has re-recorded vocals from a June 1965 session[23](https://www.the-paulmccartney-project.com/song/help/).\n\nIn 2026, Warner Music announced a 6 November reissue of three George Martin orchestral albums, including his 1965 instrumental album *Help!* of Beatles covers, remastered at Abbey Road under the supervision of Martin's son Giles to mark what would have been George Martin's 100th birthday[24](https://www.roughtrade.com/en-us/product/george-martin-and-his-orchestra/help-5).\n\n## Assessment\n\nCommentators have often treated Help! as a hinge between the Beatles' early pop era and their later studio work. The album revealed \"a marked progression in the Beatles' fortitude as songwriters\" and served as a bridge from the earlier, more chart-focused version of the band to the group that would make *Rubber Soul* and *[Revolver](https://www.edgepedia.org/revolver-beatles-album)*[25](https://www.musicradar.com/artists/its-one-of-the-earliest-heavy-metal-records-made-pauls-contribution-was-the-way-ringo-played-the-drums-did-the-beatles-really-pioneer-hard-rock-as-early-as-1965-john-lennon-certainly-thought-so). Its title track is now understood as Lennon's anguished admission of depression beneath a fast rock 'n' roll surface[25](https://www.musicradar.com/artists/its-one-of-the-earliest-heavy-metal-records-made-pauls-contribution-was-the-way-ringo-played-the-drums-did-the-beatles-really-pioneer-hard-rock-as-early-as-1965-john-lennon-certainly-thought-so), and the album retains some of the weariness of *Beatles for Sale* while pointing toward the more personal songwriting that followed[26](https://www.dmbeatles.com/disk.php?disk=5).\n\n## References\n\n1. [6 August 1965: UK album release: Help!, The Beatles Bible](https://www.beatlesbible.com/1965/08/06/uk-lp-help/)\n2. [Help! | The Beatles, thebeatles.com](https://www.thebeatles.com/help-0)\n3. [Help! (album) – facts, recording info and more!, The Beatles Bible](https://www.beatlesbible.com/albums/help/)\n4. [Help! | The Beatles (song page), thebeatles.com](https://www.thebeatles.com/help-2)\n5. [Help! (1965) – About The Beatles](https://aboutthebeatles.com/help-lp)\n6. [Help! (song) – facts, recording info and more!, The Beatles Bible](https://www.beatlesbible.com/songs/help/)\n7. [Help! – discography covers, dmbeatles.com](https://dmbeatles.com/disk.php?covers=5)\n8. [Help! (US – Stereo) • Official album by The Beatles, The Paul McCartney Project](https://www.the-paulmccartney-project.com/album/help-stereo-2/)\n9. [FIRST PICTURES / The Beatles / The US Albums box set: Help!, SuperDeluxeEdition](https://superdeluxeedition.com/news/first-pictures-the-beatles-the-us-albums-box-set-help/)\n10. [13 April 1965: Recording: Help!, The Beatles Bible](https://www.beatlesbible.com/1965/04/13/recording-help/)\n11. [4th April, 1965 – John and Paul compose 'Help!', thebeatles.com](https://www.thebeatles.com/4th-april-1965-sunday-john-and-paul-compose-help)\n12. [Help! by The Beatles – Classic Rock Review](https://www.classicrockreview.com/2015/08/1965-beatles-help/)\n13. [Notes on… series, entry for \"Help!\", awpnoteson.info](https://awpnoteson.info/notes/h.html)\n14. [Help! (UK – Mono) • LP by The Beatles, The Paul McCartney Project](https://www.the-paulmccartney-project.com/album/help/)\n15. [Help! (album), Beatles Wiki](https://www.beatleswiki.com/wiki/index.php/Help%21_%28album%29)\n16. [Help! — THE BEATLES, Billboard Book of Number One Hits (1988), via WorldRadioHistory](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/BOOKSHELF-ARH/Radio-Programming/Radio-Programming/Billboard-Book-of-Number-One-Hits-1988--221117.pdf)\n17. [Help! (film) | The Beatles, thebeatles.com](https://www.thebeatles.com/help)\n18. [What TIME Got Really Wrong About the Beatles Movie Help!, TIME](https://time.com/3965234/beatles-help-movie-review/)\n19. [HELP! – THE BEATLES, Official Charts Company](https://www.officialcharts.com/albums/the-beatles-help-0/)\n20. [Sesenta años de un grito disfrazado de éxito: cuando 'Help!' de The Beatles llegó al Nº1 en EE UU, Los40](https://los40.com/2025/09/04/sesenta-anos-de-un-grito-disfrazado-de-exito-cuando-help-de-the-beatles-llego-al-n1-en-ee-uu/)\n21. [Help! – Australian LP, beatlesaustralia.com](https://www.beatlesaustralia.com/lp-help.html)\n22. [Help! Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (United States, 1965), About The Beatles](https://aboutthebeatles.com/help-original-motion-picture-soundtrack)\n23. [Help! (song), The Paul McCartney Project](https://www.the-paulmccartney-project.com/song/help/)\n24. [George Martin and His Orchestra – Help!, Rough Trade](https://www.roughtrade.com/en-us/product/george-martin-and-his-orchestra/help-5)\n25. [Did the Beatles really pioneer hard rock as early as 1965?, MusicRadar](https://www.musicradar.com/artists/its-one-of-the-earliest-heavy-metal-records-made-pauls-contribution-was-the-way-ringo-played-the-drums-did-the-beatles-really-pioneer-hard-rock-as-early-as-1965-john-lennon-certainly-thought-so)\n26. [Help! – The Beatles, dmbeatles.com](https://www.dmbeatles.com/disk.php?disk=5)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musical works and recordings › Albums and recorded releases › Studio albums › Indie and alternative albums*\n\n*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/help", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/help.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"Help!\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/help. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[Help!](https://www.edgepedia.org/help)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/help](https://www.edgepedia.org/help). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"Help!\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/help. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "Help! is the Beatles' fifth UK album and soundtrack to their second film, released 6 August 1965 on Parlophone, featuring the title track, Ticket to Ride, and Yesterday." }