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A huge part of what set The Beatles apart from other bands early 1960s was that they were not only performers, they were songwriters too. In fact, 8 of the 14 songs on their debut 1963 album, Please Please Me were written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon. Below I’ll take a closer look at those eight Lennon/McCartney originals.

“I Saw Her Standing There” – This was the first song on The Beatles first LP. This song was written and sung by Paul but John did help McCartney out with the lyrics by replacing the line “never been a beauty queen” with “you know what I mean.” It’s “one, two, three, four” intro was later referenced with the intro of “Taxman” (same words, with a very different feeling.)

“Misery” – The final original song recorded for Please Please Me, but it was the second one on the album’s tracklisting. It was originally written by Lennon/McCartney to be sang by Helen Shapiro but it was turned down.

“Ask Me Why” – This John Lennon original was first released as the b-side to the “Please Please Me” single which was The Beatles first big hit in England.

“Please Please Me” – Their debut album’s namesake is also thought to be the best song on the album by most music critics. This was the song that really made The Beatles huge stars in in the UK. Over a year later “I Want to Hold Your Hand” would do the same thing in the USA.

“Love Me Do” – This was the band’s very first single and because of that it’s certainly very historically important. That said, I think “Love Me Do” is among their worst originals and I think it gets far more attention than it deserves.

“P.S. I Love You” – This is the b-side to “Love Me Do.” In some ways I prefer it, but that’s probably mostly because I have not heard it as many times.

“Do You Want To Know A Secret?” – Certainly this song is way too “cute” but that doesn’t stop it from being extremely memorable.

“There’s A Place” – This song has the most mature lyrics on their debut album. It is an early indication that The Beatles wouldn’t always sing about how much they loved some young woman.

The Beatles Stereo Box Set and The Beatles Mono Box Set both include the Please Please Me album.