#96 – It Won’t Be Long with Ken Womack (author, “Living the Beatles Legend, The Untold Story of Mal Evans”)

Riding high on the success of a chart topping debut album and #1 singles, the Beatles were searching for what the next big hit would be. While “It Won’t Be Long” didn’t turn out to be that hit, it did provide a brilliantly urgent shot with which to start their sophomore album. It absolutely fires out of the speakers, grabbing the listener immediately with a passionate lead vocal from John that volleys back and forth “yeah!” “yeah!” “yeah!”s with Paul and George. A great guitar hook, tight syncopation from John and Ringo showing that this band has chops and an ear for crafting winners even on mere album tracks. It’s a great way to start the second album, showing that there’s definitely more in the tank from this young upstart band.

We’re thrilled to welcome back author and Beatles scholar Ken Womack! He’s ready to rank, and ready to talk about his fantastic new book, “Living The Beatles Legend: The Untold Story of Mal Evans,” a book that finally shines the light on the boys’ longtime assistant and confidante. We talk about amazing journey to rescue Big Mal’s archives, the Red and Blue remixes, the storm of touring, and much more! ⁠Grab a copy of the book here,⁠ and get ready for the follow up next year!

What do you think about “It Won’t Be Long” at #96? Too high? Too low? Or just right? Let us know in the comments on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠! Be sure to check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.rankingthebeatles.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and grab a Rank Your Own Beatles poster, a shirt, a jumper, whatever you like! And if you’re digging what we do, don’t forget to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Buy Us A Coffee⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠!

Reviews

Judge Timbers

Ranking the songs of the Beatles? What could possibly go wrong? But somehow this podcast gets it just right thanks to the wit and charm of the co-hosts and their guests. The listener quickly discovers the rankings are used not to incite heated arguments but rather as a starting point to spark a positive deep dive into every Beatle song. Put simply, Ranking The Beatles is a welcome addition to the Beatle podcast universe.

spazaru

Required listening if you like The Beatles at all. Great guests every week and Jonathan and Julia are fun and genuinely funny (even the tired Mike Love jokes). I listen every Tuesday morning as soon as I wake up. One week around Christmas they took the week off so I just slept the whole week until there was a new episode. It was worth the wait.

finfan64

Nice to see a truly excellent new Beatles podcast. This one is hosted by a very appealing young couple, who along with their well selected guests, have a winning combination of professional musical knowledge and the enthusiasm of fans. It’s an interesting format that by definition promises to only get better as it goes along. If they can make the “Only a Northern Song” episode good then they’re unstoppable

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