The Beatles: Twist And Shout EP - 1963
EPs. What a sixties phenomenon they were. This was The Beatles' first one. It was released in the UK in July 1963 and contains four tracks that were previously released on the band's debut album Please Please Me. It was rush-released to meet the public's burgeoning appetite for "The Fab Four", no doubt attracting cash-strapped teenagers who couldn't afford the more expensive album. It duly topped the UK EP chart for twenty-one weeks, making it the biggest-selling EP of all time in the UK up to that point, and it became so successful that it registered on the regular NME Singles Chart, peaking at number four. As the sleeve notes explain, the EP was designed to showcase each Beatle track by track - firstly Lennon, then McCartney, followed by Harrison and finally Lennon and McCartney in unison but with a prominent drum contribution from Ringo. The EP's cover photograph, featuring the Beatles jumping in a London bombsite, has been described by The Telegraph ...