'Please Please Me' recreator says album captured Beatles' 'raw energy'

One of the musicians involved in a marathon re-creation of the Beatles' “Please Please Me” album Monday in the UK called the album “the sound of a band capturing their raw energy,” the BBC reported today.

Stereophonics vocalist Kelly Jones, who sang “I Saw Her Standing There,” is one of several musicians who have already joined in on the special project with highlights being broadcast as they happen on BBC Radio 2.

Gabrielle Aplin started it off with an acoustic version of “There's A Place." Joss Stone followed with “A Taste of Honey.” Others involved in “12 Hours to Please Me," are Mick Hucknall, I Am Kloot and Glenn Tilbrook and Chris Difford from Squeeze.

The "Please Please Me" album The "Please Please Me" album

The project also features Tony Crane and Billy Kinsley of the Merseybeats, Sam Hardie of the Dominoes and Dave Lovelady of the Fourmost, who played with the Beatles at the Cavern Club the week they recorded the album, along with Beatles press officer Tony Barrow and recording engineer Richard Langham, who worked with the group in the studio.

A film about the re-creation, “'Please Please Me': Re-making A Classic,” will air on BBC Four at 9 p.m. Feb. 15.

The “Please Please Me” album was a turning point for the Beatles, says author Alex Hendler.

“The release of ‘Please Please Me’ in March 1963 was a seminal moment in the history of British rock music. Its success at home paved the way for the Beatles’ relentless evolution throughout 1963, culminating in their international explosion in 1964,” he wrote.

Hendler is author of “Please Please Me,” an e-book that analyzes the album track-by-track.

You can follow “12 Hours To Please Me” on the BBC Radio 2 website and on Twitter.

(Copyright Steve Marinucci. Please do not reprint in full on other sites without permission. Headlines with links, though, are fine. Posting any of our links to Twitter and Facebook is much appreciated.)

Don't miss a minute of the most informative coverage of Beatles news in all our Beatles columns Beatles Examiner, Paul McCartney Examiner, George Harrison Examiner and Ringo Starr Examiner to keep up with what's really happening with the Beatles.

To subscribe to this column, click the button above. And follow us on Twitter at @stevemarinucci and please use the hashtag #beatlesexaminer. We're also Steve Marinucci on Facebook and at www.ufollow.com or at www.pinterest.com. And don't miss our weekly Beatles news podcast “Things We Said Today” available on iTunes, Podbean.com and Fab4Radio.com on weekends.