"Help!" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that served as the title song for the 1965 film and the band's accompanying soundtrack album. It was released as a single in July 1965, and was number one for three weeks in the United States and the United Kingdom. Credited to Lennon–McCartney, "Help!" was written by John Lennon with some assistance from Paul McCartney. During an interview with Playboy in 1980, Lennon recounted: "The whole Beatles thing was just beyond comprehension. I was subconsciously crying out for help".
The song was ranked at number 29 on Rolling Stones 500 Greatest Songs of All Time in 2004 and 2010, and then was re-ranked at number 447 in the 2021 list. In 2008, the 1965 Capitol Records recording of "Help!" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
Composition
The documentary series The Beatles Anthology revealed that Lennon wrote the lyrics of the song to express his stress after the Beatles' quick rise to success. "I was fat and depressed and I was crying out for 'Help, Lennon told Playboy. Writer Ian MacDonald describes the song as the first crack in the protective shell Lennon had built around his emotions during the Beatles' rise to fame, and an important milestone in his songwriting style.<!-- Yes I'm sure Ian MacD wrote this, but we need a citation, and his book listed below-->
In the 1970 Rolling Stone "Lennon Remembers" interviews, Lennon said that the song was one of his favourites among the Beatles songs he wrote. In these interviews, Lennon said he felt that "Help!" and "Strawberry Fields Forever" were his most honest, genuine Beatles songs and not just songs "written to order". According to Lennon's cousin and boyhood friend Stanley Parkes, "Help!" was written after Lennon "came in from the studio one night. 'God,' he said, 'they've changed the title of the film: it's going to be called 'Help!' now. So I've had to write a new song with the title called 'Help!'."
According to McCartney, he was called in "to complete it", providing the "countermelody" arrangement, on 4 April 1965 at Lennon's house in Weybridge.
Recording
The Beatles recorded "Help!" in 12 takes on 13 April 1965 using four-track equipment. The first nine takes concentrated on the instrumental backing. The descending lead guitar riff that precedes each verse proved to be difficult, so by take 4 it was decided to postpone it for an overdub. To guide the later overdub by George Harrison, Lennon thumped the beat on his acoustic guitar body, which can be heard in the final stereo mix. Lead and backing vocals were recorded twice onto take 9, along with a tambourine. A reduction mix was applied to the two vocal tracks, taking three attempts (takes 10 to 12), freeing up a track for the lead guitar overdub. This was the group's first use of two 4-track machines for "bouncing".
The vocals were re-recorded for the film during a session on 24 May 1965 at CTS Studios, a facility specializing in post-synchronisation. In addition to attempting a better vocal performance, the session might have been done to eliminate the tambourine (which had been on the same track as the vocals) since no tambourine appeared in the film sequence. With the new vocals, a mono mix was created at CTS Studios which was used for the film soundtrack. Mixes for record releases were prepared on 18 June. For the mono version, George Martin decided to use a mix of the opening chorus of take 12 edited to the remainder of the CTS film mix. Because all instruments were combined on a single track for the CTS session, it could not be used for a stereo mix, so the stereo mix was made from take 12.
This film version of the song was only heard on the original VHS releases of the movie, later replaced by the stereo mixes. A true release was never issued. New mixes were created for releases of the Help! CD (1987), the Love album (2006), and the Help! DVD (2007).
Releases
right|thumb|Advertisement for "Help!"
"Help!" went to number 1 on both the UK and US singles charts in late summer 1965. It was the fourth of six number 1 singles in a row on the American charts: "I Feel Fine", "Eight Days a Week", "Ticket to Ride", "Help!", "Yesterday" and "We Can Work It Out". At the following year's Ivor Novello Awards, "Help!" was named as the second best-selling single of 1965, behind "We Can Work It Out". "Help!" was nominated in four categories at the 1966 Grammy Awards but failed to win in any of them.
The song appears on the Help! LP, the US Help! soundtrack, 1962–1966, the Imagine: John Lennon soundtrack, 1, Love, and The Capitol Albums, Volume 2. The mono version (with different vocals and no tambourine) was included on the Beatles' US Rarities LP and in The Beatles in Mono collection. The American soundtrack album included a James Bond-type introduction to the song, followed by a caesura just before the opening lyric. No such introduction appeared on the British soundtrack album, nor was it included in the released single in either country.
Although Lennon was proud of "Help!" and the honesty it conveyed, he expressed regret that the Beatles had recorded it at such a fast tempo in the interests of giving the track more commercial appeal. Upon the single release, Record World correctly predicted that it would go to No. 1.
Promotional films
thumb|right|Picture taken during the filming of the second promotional film
The Beatles filmed the title performance for the movie Help! on 22 April 1965. The same footage (without the darts and credits seen in the film sequence) was used as a clip to promote the release of the single. It was shown starting in July 1965 on programmes such as Top of the Pops and Thank Your Lucky Stars. They made another promotional clip of "Help!" on 23 November 1965 for inclusion in the year-end recap special of Top of the Pops. Directed by Joseph McGrath, the black-and-white clip shows the group miming to the song while sitting astride a workbench. Starr holds an umbrella overhead throughout the song, which becomes useful as fake snow falls during the final verse. The November 1965 promo was included in the Beatles' 2015 video compilation 1.
Live performances
The Beatles performed "Help!" live on the 1 August 1965 broadcast of Blackpool Night Out, which was included in the Anthology 2 album and shown during The Beatles Anthology documentary. On 14 August, the group recorded a live performance of "Help!" and five other songs for The Ed Sullivan Show, broadcast the following month; the show is available on the DVD The 4 Complete Ed Sullivan Shows Starring The Beatles.
"Help!" was included in the set list for The Beatles' 1965 US tour. The 15 August performance at Shea Stadium was seen in the 1966 documentary The Beatles at Shea Stadium, although the audio for the song was re-recorded prior to release. The group's 29 August performance at the Hollywood Bowl was chosen for the 1977 album The Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl. The final live concert performances of "Help!" took place on The Beatles' 1965 UK tour in December.
Personnel
According to Ian MacDonald:
- John Lennon – double-tracked vocals, twelve-string acoustic rhythm guitar
- Paul McCartney – backing vocals, bass guitar
- George Harrison – backing vocals, lead guitar
- Ringo Starr – drums, tambourine
Charts
Weekly charts
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|+1965 weekly chart performance for "Help!"
!Chart (1965)
!Peak<br>position
|-
! scope="row"|Australia (Kent Music Report)
| 1
|-
|-
|-
|-
|-
!scope="row"|Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)
|2
|-
!scope="row"|Hong Kong
| style="text-align:center;"|1
|-
|-
!scope="row"|Italy (Musica e dischi)
|3
|-
|-
|-
! scope="row"| New Zealand (Lever Hit Parade)
| 1
|-
|-
! scope="row"|South Africa (Springbok Radio)
| 1
|-
!scope="row"|Spain (Promusicae)
|1
|-
!scope="row"|Sweden (Kvällstoppen)
| style="text-align:center;"|1
|-
!scope="row"|Sweden (Tio i Topp)
| style="text-align:center;"|2
|-
|-
|-
! scope="row"|US Cash Box Top 100
|style="text-align:center;" |1
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|+1976 weekly chart performance for "Help!"
!Chart (1976)
!Peak<br>position
|-
|-
|}
The song reached number one in several other countries in 1965 according to charts listed in Billboard's "Hits of the World" feature at the time: Australia, Hong Kong, New Zealand, and Sweden.
Year-end charts
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|+1965 year-end chart performance for "Help!"
!Chart (1965)
!Position
|-
! scope="row"|South Africa
| 8
|-
! scope="row"|US Billboard Hot 100
| 7
|-
! scope="row"|US Cash Box
| 11
|}
Certifications and sales
Bananarama version
British girl group Bananarama covered the song with comedians French & Saunders and Kathy Burke, who were credited as Lananeeneenoonoo, which is a spoof of the Bananarama name. The song was released in February 1989 as the Red Nose Day single to raise money for Comic Relief. It was then included on the 1989 re-release of Bananarama's Greatest Hits Collection album. The single peaked at number three on the UK Singles Chart and was a Top-10 hit in several countries.
French said she and Saunders were fans of Bananarama, and researched the sketch by watching interviews and talking to sources close to the band.
The single was then released in February for the second Red Nose Day. Two-thirds of money from the sales of the single went to relief work in Africa, with the other third going to fight homelessness and drug and alcohol abuse in the UK and Ireland.
- "Help!" – 2:58
- "Help" (Straight Version) – 2:22
7-inch: London / 886 492-7 / SOOP 1111 (Europe & Japan)
- "Help!" (Straight version) – 2:22
- "Help!" (Comedy version) – 2:58
12-inch: London / LONX 222 (UK)
- Karen Hewitt, Yoyo – engineering
- Pete Hammond – mixing
- Chris McDonnell, Gordon Dennis, Jason Barron, Pete Day, Steve Davies – assistant mixing
- Terry O'Neill – photography
Charts
Weekly charts
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
|+Weekly chart performance for "Help!" by Bananarama & Lananeeneenoonoo
!Chart (1989)
!Peak<br />position
|-
|-
|-
!scope="row"|Denmark (IFPI)
|5
|-
!scope="row"|Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)
|9
|-
!scope="row"|European Airplay Top 50 (Music & Media)
|6
|-
!scope="row"|Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)
| 3
|-
!scope="row"|Luxembourg (Radio Luxembourg)
|align="center"|2
|-
|-
|-
|-
|-
!scope="row"|Portugal (AFP)
|3
|-
!scope="row"|Quebec (ADISQ)
|align="center"|42
|-
!scope="row"|Spain (AFYVE)
|82
|-
!scope="row"|Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)
|26
|-
!scope="row"|UK Singles (OCC)
|35
|-
!scope="row"|West Germany (Media Control)
|53
|}
Certifications
Other cover versions
- Deep Purple recorded a version of the song on their debut album Shades of Deep Purple.
- John Farnham released a much-slower tempo, piano-based ballad version of the song in 1980. His version peaked at No. 8 on the Australian Kent Music Report singles chart.
- Tina Turner recorded a version of Farnham's arrangement of the song. This was recorded prior to, and then included on, her 1984 album Private Dancer. Her version was a top forty hit in several countries, including Belgium, the Netherlands, and the UK.
- The Carpenters recorded the song on their album Close To You, accidentally leaving off the exclamation point. After this, McCartney invited the Carpenters to socialise with him one evening at Strawberry Studios while he was recording the album McGear with his brother Mike. Lennon approved of the cover version, telling Karen, "I think you've got a fabulous voice."
- The Damned's studio take of the song first appeared as the B-side of their 1976 debut single "New Rose". The song is also a mainstay of the band's live shows, being performed in double-time with frenetic vocal delivery from Dave Vanian.