THE BEATLES Help! Vinyl Record LP Parlophone 1965 UK Mono 1st Pressing -2/-2 GAP/GTP

The Beatles – Help
(Original Mono 1st Pressing with Black/Yellow Parlophone Label, with "THE GRAMOPHONE CO. LTD." and “Sold in U.K...” Label text.  Housed in Front Laminated Flipback Garrod & Lofthouse Sleeve with outline "mono" on the front, complete with polylined 'Emitex' inner sleeve. MT Tax Code on side 1 label. -2/-2 Matrix)


Format: Vinyl Record - LP Album (33 rpm)
Country: UK
Year: 1965
Label: Parlophone
Catalogue No. PMC 1255

Matrix / Runout (Side A, runout, stamped): XEX 549 - 2 4 GAP
Matrix / Runout (Side B, runout, stamped): XEX 550 - 2 18 GTP

Condition: VG+/VG+ (Sleeve is in clean condition. It has a small split on the opening edge. The vinyl is in clean condition. It has a few surface marks)


Track Listing:
1. Help!
2. The Night Before
3. You've Got To Hide Your Love Away
4. I Need You
5. Another Girl
6. You're Going To Lose That Girl
7. Ticket To Ride
8. Act Naturally
9. You Like Me Too Much
10. Tell Me What You See
11. I've Just Seen Your Face
12. Yesterday
13. Dizzy Miss Lizzy

Released in 1965, Help! stands as the definitive bridge between the high-octane frenzy of early Beatlemania and the sophisticated, studio-bound artistry of the band's later years. While it served as the vibrant soundtrack to their second feature film, the music revealed a band outgrowing its "mop-top" image and hungering for depth.
 

This record is a sonic laboratory where The Beatles began dismantling pop conventions. For the first time, they embraced external instrumentation that would become legendary: the haunting string quartet on "Yesterday," flutes on the Dylanesque "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away," and the heavy, droning guitars of "Ticket to Ride". Lyrically, the upbeat veneer of the title track masked John Lennon’s genuine "cry for help" amid the crushing pressures of fame, marking a shift toward raw, introspective songwriting.

The first Beatles album where George Harrison contributed two original compositions, "I Need You" and "You Like Me Too Much". Songs like "I've Just Seen a Face" and "Act Naturally" introduced country and folk textures that would fully bloom on the subsequent Rubber Soul. It was the first rock album nominated for a Grammy for Album of the Year, signalling the genre's arrival as a serious art form.
By blending world-class hooks with vulnerable storytelling, Help! captured the exact moment four boys from Liverpool became the architects of modern music.