During this session, the group recorded 14 tunes for Please Please Me (6 covers and 8 originals), as well as a draft of 'Hold Me Tight', which would appear on With the Beatles. John had a cold on this day in 1963, and they saved the song 'Twist and Shout' for the end, in case his blistering vocal attack would shred his throat and halt singing for the rest of the session. You can hear the congestion in his vocals when you listen to it today. The Beatles' success was not won by resting on their laurels. The group got up the next day, and on February 12th, they performed shows in both Yorkshire and in Lancashire. They were in Hull on the 13th, then back in Liverpool for a Valentine's show on the 14th! Please Please Me was released on March 22nd and hit the top of the charts in May, where it remained for 33 weeks until it was replaced by With the Beatles. Here is one of my favorites from the February 11th sessions, 'I Saw Her Standing There'.
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