Eight months. A long span for teenagers to
tolerate with relish anticipation seeking their favorite pop stars latest and
greatest LP. That’s how long the duration kept our entire world in suspense
wondering when record shops might exchange new Beatles goods for money, not
counting the June released single, Paperback Writer/Rain. Inside the UK,
though, a temporary 30-day fix lessened the time lapse agony by Parlophone’s
clever win-win plan in sending Revolvers’ 14 tracks to radio stations during
July. This gesture received tons and tons of
airplay, and in turn, come August 5, Revolver sold like crazy, locked in as the
#1 Album for seven weeks, and remained in the charts an additional twenty-seven
weeks. In America, the album held the #1 spot for six of a total seventy-seven-week
span on the Billboard charts. Not bad for their seventh effort.
7th LP – Revolver. (Mutual Love / 3 vs. One-sided Love / 1)
Track 1: – Taxman. The title says it all. . . In lieu
of seventy percent of this week’s compositions side-step from themes
linked with love, moving into uncharted boundaries throughout numerous topics,
once this series finalizes with “Past Masters Volume Two,” a new series shall
commence revealing Background Fun Facts on material sung about themes unrelated
to love.
Track 2: – Elenore Rigby. Lonely people,
neither mutual or one-sided, but from where do they come?
Track 3: – I’m Only Sleeping. Nothing to do with
love.
Track 4 – Love You To. A mutual love song by
George, based on the lyric portrayal the singer tells his lady to love him
while she can before he is a dead man. Also,
he suggests they make love all day long, and right at the end of the song he
offers to make love to her if she wants
him to. Background Fun Facts: Written Between March and April 1966,
specifically for the sitar, and as a
newlywed hitched to his beautiful new bride, Pattie. David Crosby and Roger MC
Guinn introduced George to a Ravi Shankar demo made at the same studio the Byrds’
used in 1964. George grew mesmerized, later
admitting, “it is the only great music now, and it makes Western
three-or-four-beat type stuff seem somehow dead.” John didn’t participate at
all on this track but admired the new
sound calling it amazing and cool. Recorded on April 11, using the name,
“Granny Smith” as a working title. Before any mics were turned on, or the
four-track tape machine spun a new roll, three-and-a-half hours kept everyone
in conference over how best to assemble this new type of production. A plan using three
takes to build the rhythm track seemed to solve all doubts. Take one recorded
George singing and playing acoustic guitar as Paul provided another vocal.
Another take captured George adding his sitar
section, and last, a group of Asian Society musicians completed the feat,
practically burying the acoustic guitar in the process. Overdubs consisted of
Paul on bass, which his sound ran into the same trouble as the acoustic, plus
Harrison plugged his electric guitar into
the same Fuzzbox used on ‘Think For
Yourself.’ After a day rest from the studio, fresh overdubs had George
double-track his vocal, Ringo worked in a tambourine bit, and Paul added high
harmonies. Both mono and stereo mix
incorporated artificial double-tracking onto the sitar instruments, and the mono version received an extra eight seconds
on the fade out.
Track 5 – Here, There And Everywhere. A mutual
love song by Paul, based on the lyric portray the singer needs his lady love
always near to lead a better life, and they both agree that love never dies.
Background Fun Facts: Written June 1966, with a cup of tea poolside at Lennon’s
Kenwood home waiting for John to arouse from a deep sleep. The melody came
through a profound appreciation over Brian Wilson’s new Pet Sounds
arrangements. By the time the homeowner partner awakened, Paul had the song
pert near completed after a few added lyrics from Mr. Sleepyhead. Later that
week, Paul still sought to replace a line in a verse and inquired ideas from Mal
Evans and Neil Aspinall. Mal suggested, “watching her eyes, hoping I’m always
there,” and the phrase stuck like glue, becoming one of Paul’s favorite
original compositions. Recorded on June 16 needing 9 takes for the rhythm track that had Paul playing chords on an
Epiphone electric guitar, Ringo behind the drums, and George donating an
electric guitar solo on his Blue Fender Strat at the bridge sections. Overdubs
included three-part harmonies recorded twice, George double-tracked his guitar
solo, Paul added bass, and afterward, laid down his lead vocal. The next
evening, Paul double-tracked his lead vocal. Mono and stereo mixes sound quite
the same, except for stereo, each channel received a separate lead vocal from
Paul, the left channel captured the original voice,
and the right channel captured the double-tracked vocal done the second night.
Track 6 – Yellow Submarine. Again, this tune
misses the theme as a love song.
Track 7 – She Said She Said. Another piece off
target on love.
Track 8 – Good Day Sunshine. A mutual love
song by Paul, based on the lyric portrayal the singer happily chants, “I love her, and she’s
loving me,” and he is so proud to know she is his girl. Background Fun
Facts: Written between May and June 1966, however, the heart of the song took one
day, composed at John’s home on a sunny day. John threw in a line or two, but that’s about all. Influenced by the
Loving Spoonful’s tune, Daydream, helped create Paul’s melody and lyrics.
Recorded June, 8 and improperly titled, ‘A Good Day’s Sunshine’ scribbled on
the tape box by one of the engineers. Three takes finally turned up a keeper
rhythm track, and they could have bypassed the last two. Take one consisting of
Paul on piano, Ringo on drums, and George playing his 65 Burns Nu-Sonic Bass Guitar.
Overdubs included George Martin playing the piano solo in the middle; Paul added his lead vocal while on
another track, John and George added harmony vocals. The next day, Ringo added
a new full set drum track to supplement Mr. Star’s contribution yesterday.
John, Paul, and George taped extra
harmonies, Paul threw in another piano part, all four lads stood around an
opened mic for on tempo handclaps, and Ringo completed the set with a
tambourine bit.
Track 9 – And Your Bird Can Sing. Meaningless
fake wisdom and off target. Let’s move on.
Track 10 – For No One. A one-sided love song
by Paul, based on the lyric portrayal the singer comes to the realization his
woman no longer needs him, he stays home,
but she goes out, telling him she once knew someone yet now he’s gone and all
he has is a reminder their love should have lasted years. Background Fun Facts:
Written in March 1966 while on a skiing vacation with Jane Asher in Klosters,
Switzerland. The famous couple took brief residency in a chalet not far from town, and of all places, Paul wrote what was called at the time, “Why Did It Die,”
inside the rental home’s bathroom. He liked the acoustics. Although John
provided zero assistance, he confessed in a 1972 interview this song and also
“Here, There and Everywhere were two of his favorite songs thought up by Paul.
Recording began on May 9 using just half of the Beatles, Paul on piano and
Ringo on drums sticking mostly to taps on the hi-hat. After the tenth try, they
reached a keeper rhythm track then added the following overdubs––Paul’s bass, a
Clavichord brought from George Martin’s home, played by Paul, and tambourine
from Ringo. About a week later, Paul recorded his lead vocal. The tune
purposely had an empty middle leaving room for an instrumental solo. Paul had
always liked the sounds from a French Horn and counseled with Martin which
steps were needed to attain one. Martin knew the best of them, and in three days, Alan Civil from the
BBC Symphony Orchestra showed up and received a hand written sheet of music from Martin
as to which notes be played. As a
thank you for his service, he received fifty pounds and name credit recognition
on the album’s back cover side. The entire 14 tracks on Revolver never established
an opportunity for widespread appeal on a Beatles live stage performance, however, Paul revived the song on
his 2004 tour dates and the French Horn solo surfaced through the hands of Paul
Wickens playing the synthesizer.
Track 11 – Doctor Robert. Again, misses the theme
point on love.
Track 12 – I Want To Tell You. About
inabilities to express thoughts in words. Moving
on.
Track 13 – Got To Get You Into My Life. A
Mutual love song by Paul, based on the lyric portrayal the singer upon first
glance tells his new love interest he needs her every single day of his life
and she doesn’t push him away or toy with his abrupt openness, she simply
accepts his open arms and says we’ll be together every day. WRONG! The object
of Paul’s affection is not a woman; it’s
marijuana. Let’s move on.
Track 14 – Tomorrow Never Knows. Off target, about LSD trips instead of love.
In closing, this album truly remains as one of
the finest ever recorded, a top favorite for both George and Ringo, but for our
purposes centered around the subject of love, it sadly wavered into almost
everything except affection for the opposite sex, but so what. I love this
album regardless.
Next week unleashes,
even more, examples how the Beatles pushed the envelope and opened a
whole new concept, classic rock. Join me
as I unravel unrequited love songs inside the eighth album packaging of Sgt.
Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.
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