Auteur archieven: Jeppe Kleijngeld

New Beatles Compilations: The Yellow Album & The Green Album

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

‘I passed a record store that had a window display showing two ‘new’ Beatles albums – one with a red cover, the other a blue cover. On the red album were the four Beatles in their young mop-top days, and on the blue album, in exactly the same pose, were the bearded hippy Beatles that my mother had warned me about. Needless to say, I blew my double aircraft money on those two double albums and got back on the train with what, I came to learn later, were the most wonderful songs I’ve ever heard, tucked under my arm.’
– Peter Jackson in introduction ‘Get Back: The Book’

Now this article is a bit overtaken by time. Its purpose was to create alternative versions of the Beatles’ famous Red and Blue Albums: the ultimate compilations of their work. My feeling was that although they were great albums, many of my favorite songs were missing. My thesis was that I could create two albums that were just as good using the apparent B-songs only. And of course I was correct; the output of the Beatles is so brilliant that you can never capture this with just two albums.

The idea was good, but then last year, simultaneously with the release of Now and Then, Apple Corps also released new versions of these two albums featuring many songs I have included on these alternative compilations. I decided to publish the track listings anyway. These ‘albums’ can be found on Spotify as playlists.

The Yellow Album (1962 – 1965)

What Beatles fans might notice is that unlike the Red Album, this compilation only goes to 1965 and excludes ‘Revolver’. I figured this would be a better split for two reasons:
– 1962 till 1965 covers the Beatlemania years with ‘Rubber Soul’ (1965) being the transition albums between Beatlemania and the studio years.
– It gave me the chance to open both compilations with a 1, 2, 3, 4 countdown. The one from ‘Please Please Me’ sounds pretty ‘live’ and the ‘Revolver’ one sounds more studio-like.

I am happy with the track listing of the Yellow Album. Yes, the well known A-sides are missing, but look at the sheer quality of the tracks it does have: I Saw Her Standing There, I Should Have Known Better, If I Fell, You Can’t Do That, I’m A Loser, I’ve Just Seen A Face, If I Needed Someone, I’m Down… In any other band, these would be their absolute best songs.

Track Listing

1. I Saw Her Standing There
2. Do You Want To Know a Secret
3. I’ll Get You
4. This Boy
5. Hold Me Tight
6. Little Child
7. It Won’t Be Long
8. I Should Have Known Better
9. If I Fell
10. I’m Happy Just To Dance With You
11. When I Get Home
12. You Can’t Do That
13. I’ll Follow The Sun
14. No Reply
15. I’m A Loser
16. What You’re Doing
17. The Night Before
18. Tell Me What You See
19. I’ve Just Seen A Face
20. You Won’t See Me
21. Run For Your Life
22. What Goes On
23. Wait
24. If I Needed Someone
25. I Call Your Name
26. I’m Down

The Green Album (1966 – 1970)

The green album, I think, is an even more amazing compilation. It might even beat the Blue Album in my humble opinion. Compare for example the output from ‘Sgt. Peppers’ on the two compilations. Yes, A Day In The Life on the Blue Album is most likely John’s masterpiece, but the album doesn’t include Fixing a Hole, She’s Leaving Home and Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite!, three of my all time favorite Beatles songs.

Other absolute classics that are included: Here, There And Everywhere, And Your Bird Can Sing, Tomorrow Never Knows, Dear Prudence, Happiness Is A Warm Gun, Blackbird, Because, Golden Slumbers… I mean, it’s kind of ridiculous really…

Track Listing

1. Taxman
2. Here, There And Everywhere
3. And Your Bird Can Sing
4. For No One
5. Tomorrow Never Knows
6. Getting Better
7. Fixing A Hole
8. She’s Leaving Home
9. Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite!
10. Your Mother Should Know
11. Baby, You’re A Rich Man
12. Dear Prudence
13. Happiness Is A Warm Gun
14. Martha My Dear
15. Blackbird
16. Birthday
17. Sexy Sadie
18. Julia
19. Two Of Us
20. One After 909
21. Dig A Pony
22. I Me Mine
23. Maxwell’s Silver Hammer
24. Oh! Darling
25. Because
26. Golden Slumbers
27. Carry That Weight
28. The End

Read also: The White Album Compressed

The original ‘Let It Be’ documentary now on Disney Plus

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

‘I think the Beatles are crackin’, I said. You can’t beat ‘em, I said, they’re all out on their own. They’ve got a style of their own. And they… Well, it’s my opinion, I think they look — they’re a lovely crowd. They’ve got good, good quality, they sing well, and, well what else shall I say but they’re real good people.’
– Man on the street during the rooftop concert.

In 2022, Peter Jackson told the full story of the ‘Get Back’ sessions by the Beatles in 1969 and the eight hour film was met with positive critical appraisal. The original documentary ‘Let It Be’ by Michael Lindsay-Hogg was released at an unfortunate time in May 1970 when the Beatles had just broken up. Therefore the reception was pretty negative at the time.

It is time for a re-appraisal. For the first time in 50 years, the documentary can be seen again at Disney Plus. It is preceded by a conversation between Peter Jackson and Michael Lindsay-Hogg about this amazing project. Jackson notes that although the ‘Get Back’ sessions came to be known as the end of the Beatles, it was probably their most productive period. Not only did they write and compose all these terrific ‘Let It Be’ tracks, but also many of the songs that would end up on ‘Abbey Road’ later that year.

This was originally supposed to be a concert film with some of the studio stuff being more like a sort of introduction. But when the idea of a concert was dropped, Lindsay-Hogg didn’t quite know what to do with the footage. What he eventually did with it, is actually great. ‘Let It Be’ consists for the most part of the Beatles just jamming and trying to find the right approach for all these new songs they’re cooking up.

In the first part in the Twickenham Studio’s, there is some palpable tension within the group with Paul taking charge and correcting the others at times. There is also that famous exchange between Paul in George in which George tells him he’ll play whatever he wants him to play. The bit where George leaves the band is left out. When they move to the studio of Apple Corps and old friend Billy Preston joins the sessions, the atmosphere noticeably improves.

So while the ingredients of the eventual split are there, there is quite a bit of laughing and fooling around. That was how their creative process worked. Jackson’s ‘Get Back’ gives us more context and dialogue while ‘Let It Be’ is all about the music. And watching these guys playing passionately together is a real joy. It is great to see the songs we know so well emerging here.

When this was filmed, the boys hadn’t performed live in years, and they were noticeably unsure about how to pick it up again. They’re adrift as a band. But then the famous rooftop concert happens and they clearly find some footing again. They start out with the fantastic song Get Back, and then you realize that their original plan actually worked. At that point, the Beatles really were back!

THE OTHER FOUR BEATLES MOVIES

A Hard Day’s Night (1964)

The first Beatles movie is a documentary of sorts, shot in razor sharp black and white images, that follows the band in slightly fictionalized form as they travel by train to a studio to do a television performance. Sixty years after its release, it is still a delight to see. There is hardly any story, but it doesn’t matter because we get to spend time with the boys who are funny, charming and extremely musically gifted. The Lennon dominated soundtrack is absolutely fantastic. The film’s extensive use of handheld cameras and sped-up footage gives it a very energetic feel. It’s as if the camera crew had trouble keeping up with the boys, which is in fact the way it was. Director Richard Lester later admitted to using amphetamine during the shoot to get him through it. The mostly improvised shoot really captures the madness of the Beatlemania days and cemented the band members status as rock and roll legends.

Help! (1965)

The higher budgeted follow-up to A Hard Day’s Night revolves around an Eastern cult group who are looking for a sacrificial ring that is worn by none other than Ringo! (he got his stage name originally because of his love for rings). After several attempts to steal it back in London fail, Ringo becomes a target to be sacrificed to their god Kaili, so the boys flee to the Austrian Alps and later The Bahama’s. The comedy act by the Beatles was inspired by Duck Soup by The Marx brothers and the BBC Radio Comedy Programme ‘The Goon Show’ that they listened to in their teen years. The boys appear to be more distanced than in the preceding feature though. According to John that is because they were constantly stoned at the time of filming. Help! didn’t receive the same favorable reviews as their first film, but it is now credited with pioneering the music video.

Magical Mystery Tour (1967)

It has the reputation of being their worst film. Magical Mystery Tour is not really a film though, but a 55 minute television special. And it’s not that different from their preceding two screen efforts: It features the Beatles doing comedy (some jokes corny and some pretty funny) and performing songs from a terrific original soundtrack. Storywise, there isn’t much there. It’s about a busload of weird characters taking a journey through the English countryside. What’s most enjoyable about it are the psychedelic clips for great songs, including Magical Mystery Tour (obviously), The Fool on the Hill (a beauty), Flying (their only instrumental track), I Am the Walrus ( a highlight), Blue Jay Way (George’s misty thing) and Your Mother Should Know (Paul’s lovely granny music). It’s a bit of an unscripted mess with lots of silliness, but the same can be said of the Richard Lester films. And it does feature John serving a woman spaghetti with a shovel, so that is worth the price of admission.

Yellow Submarine (1968)

80.000 leagues beneath the sea is a happy place called Pepperland. Then the music-hating Blue Meanies arrive and freeze everybody and hide all instruments. Only Fred escapes in a yellow submarine which he takes straight to Liverpool to retrieve the four heroes known as the Beatles. This is the start of a series of psychedelic adventures as the crew pass through the Sea of Time, the Sea of Monsters, the Sea of Holes, Nowhere Land and eventually Pepperland. The Beatles did this film to complete the three picture deal they signed with United Artists. The voices are provided by actors and the Beatles only appear in a cameo appearance at the end. Like everything they touched, it became a pioneering work of pop art. Before Yellow Submarine, animation was considered a children’s medium, and this feature led to the art form being taken more seriously. Visually, it’s a stunning piece of work, and as opposed to their preceding films, it is well written with a truckload of references to Beatles lyrics. John Lennon said he thought this was the best Beatles film. I think he was right.

The 20 Greatest Ultra Villains in Movies

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

20. Bill the Butcher

Played by: Daniel Day-Lewis
Film(s): Gangs of New York (2002)
Line: ‘Ears and noses will be the trophies of the day. But no hand shall touch him.’

Nothing goes too far for William ‘Bill the Butcher’ Cutting in his personal mission to oppress the new immigrants whom Bill sees as mere cockroaches. His name is very appropriate: whenever he joins the street fights, he slaughters enemies by the dozens using his vast set of knives and stabbing weapons. He shows a softer side around Amsterdam, who he sees as the son he never had, but in the end, Bill is a bad man. Played to perfection by Daniel Day Lewis.

19. Mr. Joshua

Played by: Gary Busey
Film(s): Lethal Weapon (1987)
Line: ‘See, Martin, we have a problem. Since we have Murtaugh, we don’t really need you. But I believe in being thorough.’

The ultra blond Mr. Joshua is pretty much a badass. He shows his macho behavior in his intro-scene by letting his employer hold a lighter under his arm for a pretty long time. Riggs and Murtaugh have a lot of trouble with this ex-commando. In his mission to smuggle heroin into the United States, he lets nothing or nobody get in his way. He scores extra points for his pretty good fighting skills.

18. The Terminator

Played by: Arnold Schwarzenegger
Film(s): The Terminator (1984)
Line: ‘Your clothes – give them to me, now.’

Schwarzenegger is perfectly cast as a killing machine. The Terminator is one scary motherfucker. ‘Sarah Connor? Yes. Boom!!!’ He is efficient and unstoppable. The perfect invention really. James Cameron (director) and Stan Winston (special effects) have really outdone themselves. The highlight? There are many, but Schwarzenegger barging in the police station killing everybody is pretty damn exciting.

17. Amon Goeth

Played by: Ralph Fiennes
Film(s): Schindler’s List (1993)
Line: ‘Ah, an educated Jew… like Karl Marx himself. Unterscharfuehrer! Shoot her.’

Can a psycho Nazi killer still be charismatic? Leave it to Ralph Fiennes to pull it off. Even though Goeth commits horrible acts and certainly deserves to die for it, he can be touching in a strange and remote way. A truly remarkable bad guy, right up until his ‘Heil Hitler’ sent off.

16. Judge Doom

Played by: Christopher Lloyd
Film(s): Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
Line: ‘Soon, where Toon Town once stood will be a string of gas stations, inexpensive motels, restaurants that serve rapidly prepared food.’

Christopher Lloyd who nailed the ultimately sympathetic ‘Doc’ in Back to the Future, plays a really scary dude here. Judge Doom is one malicious bastard and the type of villain we could use more of: wacky, evil-lookin’ and carrying a dark secret. Brilliant character in a brilliant movie.

15. Anton Chigurh

Played by: Javier Bardem
Film(s): No Country for Old Men (2007)
Line: ‘What’s the most you have ever lost in a coin toss?’

Chigurh is one weird psycho killer for sure. Armed with an oxygen tank and a shotgun he makes life very difficult for the people in the wasteland of the Texas-Nevada borderlands His entrance in No Country for Old Men alone is enough to earn him this position. Add to that his terrible haircut, his deep voice and his seemingly random killing spree and you got an A-grade villain that’s just hard to forget.

14. Freddy Krueger

Played by: Robert Englund
Film(s): A Nightmare on Elm Street series (1984-2003)
Line: ‘I’m your boyfriend now, Nancy.’

The child murdering Freddy literally gives his victims nightmares. Both his burned face and his evil mind tricks can make everybody crap their pants. Freddy is without a doubt the greatest supernatural killer to ever appear on the white screen.

13. Annie Wilkes

Played by: Kathy Bates
Film(s): Misery (1990)
Line: ‘You! You dirty bird! How could you?’

Pour Paul Sheldon. Being captured by his greatest fan is a nightmare beyond imagination. He is constantly walking on eggshells as the slightest provocation will set off Annie Wilkes big time. It’s hard to say what kind of disorder she actually ‘suffers’ from, but there is no doubt that she is completely batshit.

12. Skeletor

Played by: Frank Langella
Film(s): Masters of the Universe (1987)
Line: ‘I am Skeletor.’

Masters of the Universe is no masterpiece, but Frank Langella really elevates the movie with his highly enjoyable appearance. His portrayal of Skeletor, who was already a favorite villain in cartoons, became a most memorable bad guy. His looks are spot on, and he rules his underlings with an iron fist. It’s a total shame that He-Man kicks him into a dark, deep shaft at the end of the movie.

11. Saruman

Played by: Christopher Lee
Film(s): The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001 / 2002 / 2003)
Line: ‘Hunt them down! Do not stop until they are found. You do not know pain, you do not know fear. You’ll taste men-flesh!’

While Sauron may be the real bad guy in The Lord of the Rings, Saruman makes a far greater impression. His voice is perhaps his greatest asset. The way he utters spells and commands is just the ultimate in evil cool. Christopher Lee, almost 80 when he played this, is remarkable in the role that he was born to play. When it comes to evil old wizards surrounded by Orcs, Saruman is the man.

10. Agent Smith

Played by: Hugo Weaving
Film(s): The Matrix (1999) / The Matrix Reloaded (2003) / The Matrix Revolutions (2003)
Line: ‘I will enjoy watching you die…Mr. Anderson.’

Who ever thought a software application could be this menacing? Smith may be funny with his monotone voice and robotic locomotion, but he can be vicious as well. It’s really hard to relax with this guy around, and he is always around. When you think he’s finally gone, he returns with clone abilities. Smith is an unstoppable force of destruction and can ultimately be only stopped by himself. Now that’s pretty bad.

9. Clarence Boddicker

Played by: Kurtwood Smith
Film(s): RoboCop (1987)
Line: ‘Can you fly Bobby?’

It’s not exactly his looks that make Clarence Boddicker ultra villain material. It is his ruthless and merciless attitude. He first shows his vileness, when he kicks one of his wounded cronies out of a moving truck. Soon after, he displays a real sadistic streak when he brutally murders Murphy. Although he’s a street level boss, he meets personally with Dick Jones, Vice President at OCP (Omni Consumer Products) showing he is also an intelligent and competent gang leader.

8. T-1000

Played by: Robert Patrick
Film(s): Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
Line: ‘Thank you for your cooperation.’

Robert Patrick as the liquid metal T-1000 is an example of perfect casting. This unstoppable and constantly morphing killing machine is pretty scary at times. The fact that he is wearing a police uniform makes this even worse. Rather than ‘protect and serve’, he fanatically chases John Connor around while killing everybody that gets in his way. Glad to have Schwarzenegger around, the only one with a remote chance to stop it. Now that’s pretty telling.

7. Bill

Played by: David Carradine
Film(s): Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003) / Kill Bill: Vol. 2 (2004)
Line: ‘Do you find me sadistic?’

Bill is a murderous bastard, but he can be honorable as well. When the Bride arrives to take revenge on Bill for shooting her in the head, he grants her one night with her daughter, who she had presumed to be dead. Make no mistake though, in the duel that follows he would have killed her without mercy if it hadn’t been for her special skills. A classic villain who gets extra points for his great knowledge of martial arts and pop culture.

6. Major Arnold Toht

Played by: Ronald Lacey
Film(s): Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
Line: ‘You Americans, you’re all the same. Always overdressing for the wrong occasions.’

The boring communists in The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull showed again what great villains Nazi’s can be. Major Toht is an absolute favorite. A very unpleasant appearance and an equally disturbing voice can make someone cringe. It’s a true relief when his face starts melting towards the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark.

5. Emperor Palpatine

Played by: Ian McDiarmid
Film(s): Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983)
Line: ‘Welcome young Skywalker. I’m looking forward to completing your training. In time, you will call me…master!’

While the Ewoks made Return of the Jedi just a little too child friendly, Ian McDiarmid restored the balance with his dark portrayal of the Emperor. Allegedly, serial killer Jeffrey Damner was a huge fan of Palpatine. This figures, because Palpatine is a true incarnation of evil. Every line he utters comes out as pure poison. He is often underestimated because of his fragile old appearance, but make no mistake! When Palpatine starts using his dark side force techniques there is nobody who can stop him. Well there’s always one.

4. Hans Gruber

Played by: Alan Rickman
Film(s): Die Hard (1988)
Line: ‘Nice suit. John Phillips, London. I have two myself. Rumor has it Arafat buys his there.’

Another German villain to make the list. It is just hard to ignore their bad guy potential. Hans Gruber is the perfect baddie against Bruce Willis’ hero John McClane. He is both ruthless and smart, but certainly not without a sense of humor and style. You gotta hand it to this guy. Up till now, the Die Hard creators haven’t yet found a suitable replacement for him as the villains in the four sequels all made far less of an impression.

3. Frank

Played by: Henry Fonda
Film(s): Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)
Line: ‘I could crush you like a wormy apple.’

Not a businessman but ‘just a man’. If that is true, humanity is truly fucked. Look at Frank’s sins: killing a young boy in his first appearance, raping Jill McBain and off course the thing he did to royally piss off Harmonica. Nobody figured the sympathetic Henry Fonda could play a bad guy this well. He proved them dead wrong. Frank is one of the most accomplished villains ever, and Fonda should have won an Oscar for the part.

2. Dr. Hannibal Lecter

Played by: Anthony Hopkins
Film(s): The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
Line: ‘I’m having an old friend for dinner.’

Anthony Hopkins delivers a wicked and Oscar-winning performance as Dr. Hannibal Lecter. Charming, extremely intelligent, psychically strong: Lecter has it all. One of the few baddies in this list who actually survives the films he is in, Lecter stands above the regular laws of good and evil. He just does what he does. His character has been exploited a little too much in modern cinema and literature, but his turn in The Silence of the Lambs remains one of the most chilling and spellbinding performances ever in cinema history.

1. Darth Vader

Played by: David Prowse, James Earl Jones (voice)
Film(s): Star Wars Trilogy (1977 / 1980 / 1883)
Line: ‘If you only knew the power of the dark side.’

Its villains have always been the best thing about Star Wars, but Darth Vader is the baddest motherfucker of them all. It is hard to say which is cooler; his voice (and breathing), his name or his appearance. His introduction in A New Hope alone makes him the best movie villain ever. But he also has a fair share in fighting skills, force power and strategy. Just a fantastic character altogether.