Tis Better To Have Loved And Lost Than To Never Loved At All. Alfred Lord Tennyson –– Part 5

12/31/16

The air is cold, and New Year’s Eve, 2016 is counting down. A countdown just hours away from the beginning of my finest year ever, 2017. Why? I’m glad you asked. To be sure, there is no doubt, all the credit and thanks goes to my best and closest friends.

Okay, enough daydreaming about 2017, it’s time to separate unrequited vs. mutual love songs from the dozen original tracks the Lads of Liverpool shaped onto their fifth LP,released August 6, 1965, Help. A powerhouse of innovative excitement that entered the pop charts at #1 for nine weeks and produced three singles. Its fascination aimed at fans and lovers of music kept the LP beneath the Billboard #20 spot for 37 weeks.       

5^th LP; Help. (Mutual Love /3 vs. One-Sided Love /8)

Track 1 – Help. Not a love song at all, but rather, an authentic life experienced cry for help, 75% written by Lennon, in that John’s insecurities rippled over his self-called ugly weight gain (fat like Elvis stage). Another plight haunting the rock icon was the upsurge sub-par appearance of the pop star’s photographs donning his cursed glasses, which he believed marred his sex appeal and changed him into a homely dork. A ridiculed issue only in his mind but showered him with anxiety. Background Fun Facts: Written August 11, 1965, immediately after learning their second film titled, Eight Arms To Hold You had gotten the boot and replaced with the simple singular syllable, Help! Richard Lester and his scriptwriters had always wanted to name the new movie, Help, but the copyright lawyers had found someone else held registered rights to the sought after heading. Ringo suggested the caption, Eight Arms To Hold You, in connection with the multi-armed sacrificial statue in the film. I always thought Ringo’s quip centered around the arms of the Beatles, on account the statue shoulders ten arms. Desperate for a better title, lawyers questioned if an exclamation point solves a copyright infringement; it would, so it was added. Lennon had been working on an unfinished song for a long spell called, ‘Keep Your Hands Off My Babe,’ and once Paul arrived at the Kenwood Home, they adapted it with fresh lyrics then composed the knockout intro title piece that very day. John previously had all the chords and melody, but Paul added a new countermelody echoing John’s lines. The next morning both played it for Lester and aced its full acceptance.

Track 2 – The Night Before. A one-sided love song by Paul, based on the lyric portrayal the singer wants to be treated like the night before, in that his girl held him so near, and love was in her eyes, but since then, she changed her mind and only tells him goodbye. Background Fun Facts:  Written January 1965 inside Jane Asher’s parents’ home on Wimpole Street, London without any help from John. However, this is the first recording John ditched his rhythm guitar and produced the tune’s driving force with his talent at the dominated sounding keyboard. Recorded February 17, 65 at Abbey Road’s studio two, which took five hours to complete after the second rhythm track passed quality muster. Overdubs included Paul’s lead vocal supported by John and George’s background vocals, then a double-tracked vocal by Paul, and afterward, Ringo overdubbed maracas on the bridge. The guitar solo received a duet performance played together by George and Paul. Each pluck the same notes except one of them slid his hand way up the neck to reach octave duplicates in the higher register. Only the mono mix made it onto the film as well as records, even stereo records. A new true stereo mix surfaced in 1986 when the album’s compact disc made its debut.

Track 3 – You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away. A one-sided love song by John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer stands head in hand and can’t go on if his lover is gone. He loses hope knowing he’ll never win love and doesn’t believe her when she says “love will find a way.” Therefore, he hides his love emotions  behind a mask of heartbroken pride. Background Fun Facts: Written alone inside John’s Kenwood home late December 64 to early January 65. Highly influenced by Bob Dylan’s songwriting strengths connected with his song, I Don’t Believe You, which starts verse one with––“I can’t understand, she let go my hand, and left me here facing a wall.”  According to lifelong friend Pete Shotton, John’s lyrics near the end of the first verse originally sang, “feeling two-foot-tall,” but John goofed and sang “small,” and liked it much better uttering, "let’s leave that in." Also, Pete gets the glory for suggesting John shout the word, “Hey,” before the chorus begins. If you exclude Andy White’s drumming on the lads first single and the many times George Martin spiced up Beatles material with his keyboard flair, we could announce this was the first song John or Paul invited an outside musician to add class to one of their compositions. Johnnie Scott provided the lovely flute melody tagged at the end using his tenor flute, and then his alto flute on an overdub. Mono and stereo mixes differ only from the lead vocal, which is a tad louder and more reverb within the stereo version.

Track 4 – I Need You. A one-sided love song by George, based on the lyric portrayal the singer hears a thing or two that upsets him in that his ladylove reveals she doesn’t want his lovin’ anymore. Background Fun Facts: Written between December 64 to February 65 while touring London and during the production of “Another Beatles Christmas Show.” George had a tuff time spitting out commercial compositions like his band mates, J & P. If the youngest Beatle hit on something promising, he’d record the ditty, forget about it for five weeks, then add to it with a fresh approach. This method usually took a three-month stint till completion. Mr. Harrison submitted two songs to Richard Lester for consideration as a featured scene in the new film. His second song being, ‘You like Me too Much,’ would have been my choice had I any authority above the film director. Recorded on February 15, which concretized a new procedure of recording the rhythm track first and then lay down the vocals using overdubs. The boys last recording session took place last October 26 finishing up ‘Honey Don’t’ and ‘What You’re Doing,' and the refined quality of their newer improved composition arrangements was too good to spoil should someone forget the words or sing off key. Thus, ‘Ticket To Ride’ launched the new policy, followed by ‘Another Girl,’ then ‘I Need You.’ Five takes brought Harrison’s song a fine rhythm track pleasing everyone. 2:30 pm, the next afternoon, George sang his lead vocal then double-tracked his vocal with Paul adding harmony to the phrase, ‘I need you’ and ‘you told me.' Another overdub captured background aahs from J & P.  Thereafter; George recorded his lead guitar part using his volume pedal. The last assigned overdub utilized Ringo’s timing four-count steady beat pounding on a cowbell throughout the bridge.

Track 5 – Another Girl. A one-sided love song by Paul, based on the lyric portrayal the singer informs his old girlfriend that as from today he’s got somebody new. Someone sweeter than all the rest and nobody can do what she does, so he proclaims he’s no fool and won’t take what he don’t want, hence, he has got another girl who will love him till the end. Background Fun Facts: Written between February 4 & February 14, 1965, inside a lovely rented home in Hammamet, a seaside resort in Tunisia, while on vacation. Paul takes over as lead guitarist on this one, erasing all the licks George had performed on tape the day before. Mono and stereo mixes are close except for a tiny volume boost on the stereo rhythm track.

Track 6 – You’re Going To Lose That Girl. A one-sided love song by John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer feels obligated to warn a misguided friend that if he doesn’t start treating his girl right, the singer will step in and make a point of stealing her away by treating her kind and doing her right. Background Fun Facts: Written between January & February 1965 inside John’s Kenwood home. John claims sole composer but Paul remembers a joint effort contributing maybe forty percent. Recorded February 19 with acoustic guitar by John, electric guitar by George, bass guitar by Paul and drums by Ringo. Overdubs included vocals, double tracked vocal by John, lead guitar solo by George using his Fender Strat again, piano by Paul, and bongos by Ringo. No noticeable mix differences between mono and stereo this time.

Track 7 – Ticket To Ride. A one-sided love song by John and Paul, based on the lyric portrayal the singer is unclear why his girl is going away, other than her directly informing that living with him brings her down, and she never can feel free to express herself when he’s around. Background Fun Facts: Written between late December and February 14, 1965. Beginning portions were written together during their last Christmas show rehearsals, then John worked on it while vacationing in Switzerland, and finally, both Paul and John finished out the rough spots after the bass man returned home from Tunisia. Not only did Paul compose and perform the lead guitar solo, he also showed Ringo how to play the tumbled drum beats. The preliminary sign of Paul's takeover control happened their first day back, ready to tape new songs inside the recording studio since 3 and ½ months before. The opening guitar riff comes from George using his Rickenbacker 360-12 string for the last time on any further Beatles songs. Overdubs included John double tracking vocals, Ringo using hand claps then later a tambourine, and George plucking open string A notes on his Fender Strat during the verses. Variances with the mix allow the song to run an extra seven seconds highlighting a few more guitar licks by Paul on the stereo version, plus, the bass guitar received more gain with this stereo mix.    

Track 8 is a cover song.

Track 9 – It’s Only Love.  A mutual love song centered around a man and woman's tipsy relationship by John and Paul, based on the lyric portrayal the singer asks is it right they both fight every night. And yet, just the sight of her makes things bright. So, hasn’t he the right to make up, cause its love he feels. Nevertheless, it’s so hard loving her under those fight and forgive conditions. Background Fun Facts: Written between May and June 1965 inside John’s Kenwood home. Paul contributed about forty percent. The original working in progress title was called, “That’s A Nice Hat.” John hated this song due to its lyrics, pure rubbish; he’d often admitted. Paul shares a snip inside his book, “Many Years From Now,” and I quote, “Sometimes we didn’t fight it if the lyric came out rather bland on some of those filler songs like, ‘It’s Only Love.’ If a lyric was really bad we’d edit it, but we weren’t that fussy about it, because, it’s only a rock ‘n’ roll song. I mean, this is not literature.” Recorded on June 15, after a short rehearsal that allowed George and Ringo time to learn the number. The rhythm track captured John’s lead vocal and also consisted of John and George on acoustic guitars, Paul on bass, and Ringo behind the drum set. Six takes finished the job. Next, George added lead guitar licks played through a warbling sounding Leslie speaker, like his solo on ‘Let It Be.’ Other overdubs included John using his custom Rickenbacker with choppy strums on each verse while Ringo brought in a tambourine only during the chorus. John completed the tune double-tracking his vocals on the chorus and ending. A flub appeared in the mixdown that found John’s double-tracked vocal off pace singing the word ‘only’ during the fourth measure on the first chorus. Engineers muted those few milliseconds’ blooper, but in so doing, also blanked out Ringo’s tambourine. The same problem occurred again at the fade out when engineers hushed the double-tracked slipup; they also lost the tambourine. Years later, the compact discs of 1986 overlooked the gaff, and we hear the previous missing double-track and tambourine untouched.

Track 10 – You Like Me too Much. A mutual love song about a couple barely intact by George, based on the lyric portrayal the singer stands assured his girl will never leave him because she likes him too much and he likes her. However, if the day happens she does leave, he will follow her and bring her back where she belongs because he couldn’t stand losing her, admitting his faults ready to make things right. Background Fun Facts: Written between January & February 1965 and influenced by the very recent romance with Pattie Boyd competing with the carnal knowledge shenanigans the lads dipped into on their U.S. tour from August 19 – September 20, 1964, then again, during their UK tour from October 9 – November 10, 1964. But with all the past forgiven, Pattie married George on January 21^st, 1966, almost eleven months after recording the song during mid-evening February 17, 1965. Eight takes needed to form an approved rhythm track featuring George singing lead and playing his Fender lead guitar, John on a Gibson J-160E acoustic guitar, Ringo on drums, and Paul with George Martin both playing the same Steinway piano, ran through a Leslie speaker, plunking the ivory keys in time together. Overdubs consisted of George double-tracked vocal with some harmony, Paul included a bass guitar arrangement, John added a Hohner electric pianet bit, and Ringo used a tambourine to spice up the bridge and instrument solos. Incidentally, because Capitol issued Beatles VI in June of 1965, this fine Harrison composition tickled the American fans seven-and-a-half weeks before EMI released the prized anticipated Help LP.

Track 11 – Tell Me What You See. A one-sided love song plea by Paul and John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer lays down some reasons why he should win the heart of his lady love to be. All she need do is open her eyes and see the truth of his adoration. Background Fun Facts: Written most likely in mid-February 1965, since the boys had trouble recording it on February 18 committing many mistakes, which provides a likely clue, not enough time to learn it. The whole process for this one song took three-and-a-half hours. The rhythm track comprised each Beatle playing his usual instrument with take four as the winner. Overdubs contained J & P harmonizing together, Paul’s lead vocal, then double-tracked the second and fourth line of each verse. Singing mistakes expose where all the flubs and breakdowns occurred, stretching the duration before finished. Additional overdubs point to Paul playing piano during a short interlude at the bridge’s close, again at the tune’s finale, and on another track, Mr. McCartney overdubbed a guiro; the wooden grooved Latin percussion instrument rubbed with a stick. Last but not least, Ringo supplemented the sound with a pair of claves and later, the ring man kept tempo with a tambourine. Both mono and stereo mixes sound identical, but let me share two interesting facts. #1: Heard on the intro, right about the second upward strum John gives his guitar, you can just make out a soft practice from Paul singing the line, “If you let” just before he delivers the first melody phrase. #2: Years earlier, Paul and George wrote a song together, “In Spite Of All The Danger” and the result turned out to be the only song credited to these two chaps. Well, that song received enormous inspiration from an old Elvis tune called, “Tryin’ To Get To You.” How obvious Paul sought a fix from one of his biggest idol’s lesser known album fillers to help complete this tune..   

Track 12 – I’ve Just Seen a Face. A mutual love song by Paul, based on the lyric portrayal the singer is falling in love with the very girl who keeps calling him to return to her, for she is unable to cope with the hours they are apart. Background Fun Facts: Written between 1957 and 1958, known as Auntie Gin’s Theme, however, revised lyrics developed around May or June 1965 inspired by Jane Asher. First Beatle song ever recorded strictly unplugged, no electric bass, just acoustic guitars accompanied with Ringo’s drums. Paul uses an Epiphone Texan Ft-79 six-string and even supplies the instrumental guitar solo introduction rather than George. Recorded on June 14, 65 after a well-deserved month-long rest, specifically to finish up the Help LP. John played another six-string, and George opted to use a 12-string acoustic concentrating on the bass notes and dished out a middle spot spiffy musical solo while Ringo switched from sticks to brushes tapped against the snare drum skin. They chose take #6 as the best. Overdubs included Paul on lead & harmony vocal, then double-tracked, maracas supplied by Ringo. Paul tried to harmonize the entire third verse but a voted decision was made to wipe it off the mix. Nevertheless, you can still hear bits and pieces in the right channel on the stereo version. I had never heard about this tiny nugget before today, and for the last five years, when I perform this song live, I do include a higher harmony during the last verse using my Vocalist Live 3 enhancer. Although the Help album was released on August 6, 1965, American fans had a four-month waiting period before being introduced to this song, as well as, ‘It’s Only Love,' by getting their hands on the Capitol December issued, Rubber Soul.

Track 13 – Yesterday. A one-sided love song by Paul, based on the lyric portrayal the singer has no clue why his woman walked out on him without a word. He does know he said something wrong and wished he could turn back time because he’s only half the man he used to be without her. Background Fun Facts: Written between January 1964 & June 1965, and after fifty-one years, still holds the record as most recorded song of all time, over 2,500 versions by other artists’.  Recorded on June 14, 1965, following a ninety-minute break from just laying down the tracks and overdubs to the screaming rocker, ‘I’m Down.’ Imagine the versatility and superior resourcefulness Paul and his voice was blessed with, to shift in such drastic directions from tearing apart the vocal cord inside his throat, then return to sing the beautiful ballad so soft and tenderly. Most of us would have saved the roaring ripper for last––like John’s Twist and Shout, put an end to Lennon singing any further that session, a brutal performance sounding as if he gargled with razor blades. Mono and stereo mixes differ in that the string quartet fades out just before the song’s conclusion on the stereo version, but the string section is left unbroken to the very final moment on the mono version. Also, Paul’s double-tracked voice has much more reverb at the bridge compared to the verses on the mono mix. Only Capitol Records released it as a single, backed with ‘Act Naturally’ sung by Ringo. How on earth can EMI explain the greatest composition of the Twentieth Century, written by a Beatle, found its place as an album filler song?        

Track 14 is a cover song.                          

Look what happened at this juncture! Usually, our findings run a close fifty percent per unrequited love songs that can slip unnoticed onto each just released, popular by demand, Beatles albums’. Here, tables have turned, and it looks like heartache has jumped into the driver’s seat––scoring 8 to 3.

Oh, hey, did you all catch the common thread that links both movies, A Hard Day’s Night film in cahoots with the Help film? No? Well, in both pictures, who is the main star with the most scenes? Who struggles under the most conflicts? Who doesn’t receive a featured song to spotlight his charming ways with the ladies by singing a solo? Right, Ringo.

Next week, part 6 uncovers the dynamic and spellbound music that triggered Brian Wilson to compose, Pet Sounds. That’s correct, Rubber Soul comes to you in seven days with all its glory. Please post any comments you wish, and I’ll do my best to reply accordingly. Thanks, friends.    

Tis Better To Have Loved And Lost Than To Never Loved At All. Alfred Lord Tennyson –– Part 4

Hello,

Hope you all had a fabulous seven days wrapped around the hustle of Christmas Cheer. Here we are into week four covering our journey amid unrequited love songs written by our Liverpool heroes. The featured LP of now––Beatles For Sale, released December 4, 1964. Join me as I walk you through eight original tunes that helped close out the most exceptional year favoring extraordinary, brilliant music, which gladly caused America’s surrender to the royal, remarkable British invasion, albeit we in the States had instead received the compromised Beatles’ 65 LP. Still, a win, win situation in its purest form for both continents, as well as the rest who heard magic and embraced the band lead by John Lennon.

4th LP: Beatles For Sale. (Mutual Love / 1  vs One-Sided Love / 7)

Track 1 – No Reply. A one-sided love song by John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer knows his girl is avoiding him and his phone calls while she hangs out holding hands with another man. Background Fun Facts: Written in Tahiti, May 1964 while on vacation after filming their first movie. Mr. Lennon erected the song using inspiration from the early rock and roll hit called, ‘Silhouettes’ by the Rays. John lacked confidence in the number and offered it to Brian Epstein as a gift to the manager’s other client, Tommy Quickly rather than keep it as a Beatles legacy. This downfall in Lennon’s conception of value in his own material lasted right up to the end of his days when he almost relinquished the beautiful song, Woman,’ from Double Fantasy to Ringo. Thankfully record producer Jack Douglas put a deliberate freeze on the notion and insisted John sing it on the new 1980 upcoming Lennon & Ono album. In June, Paul wrote a middle bridge for this piece, but the attempts to record it proved unworthy. Resurrected a few months later with a few changes and suggestions, such as George Martin playing piano live alongside J & P during the September 30^th studio session, the finished version of ‘No Reply’ showed great promise and received thought to become the next Beatle single. The mono mix chosen for release includes somebody adding a cough right after the word “window” on the first verse. Luckily the cough matches the downbeat and is hardly noticed, especially for a chance single. However, ‘I Feel Fine,’ recorded in October, far pleased and surpassed all hurdles toward winning the prize as the next single.

Track 2 – I’m A Loser. A one-sided love song by John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer lost someone near to him, she was a girl in a million, and now that she is gone, his tears fall like rain from the sky. He’s a loser. Background Fun Facts: Written in July 1964 with a lot of influence from Bob Dylan and a tiny bit of “tears in your beer” country music. With song titles filling the Country Charts like Sorrow On The Rocks, Long Gone Lonesome Blues, I Don’t Love You Anymore, and Before I Get Over You, John’s title, I’m A Loser seemed suitable, although. It was a bold move for the most popular musical artists at the time. The song took one hour to perfect on tape, take 8 being best and then overdubs for vocals, Ringo on tambourine and a guitar solo from George. John’s harmonica rolled out live with the other three mates playing on the rhythm track. A few slight differences surface between mono mix and stereo mix, such as, George’s guitar solo and Ringo’s tambourine play louder on stereo, but the ending fade out is shorter compared to the mono fade out. By the way, after this song, Lennon retired his sweet harmonica for a couple of years, unless you count the brief scene in Help while Ringo plays second hand to a tiger.

Track 3 – Baby’s In Black. A one-sided love song by John and Paul, based on the lyric portrayal how desperate a love-struck man thinks only of the object of his affection, which sadly turns out to be a young widow who constantly wears black and ponders of nothing but her darling diseased husband. Background Fun Facts: Written July 1964 inside John’s Kenwood home and the last song J & P wrote nose to nose, as Lennon called it, right from scratch. Hereafter, the two only co-wrote if one needed assistance to finish a bridge or verse. The boys wanted to write a bluesy song much different from their standard 4/4 tempo I love you, or he loves her songs. So, Paul recalled how in the early days of 1961, they each enjoyed playing a tune called, “If You Got To Make A Fool Of Someone” by James Ray, a catchy number that combines R & B with a waltz. Freddy and the Dreamers scored high on the charts with it just before their bigger hit, ‘I’m Telling You Now.’ The duo Liverpool composers fancied the idea of writing a waltz and chose it as the first song upon arrival at the recording studio for another album and proudly added it to their August concert tour in America. Rumors flew back and forth that the lyrics spun from the tragedy dealt against Astrid Kirchherr when the love of her life, Stu Sutcliffe, died suddenly and John tried to pursue a romance, but the poor girl was still in heavy mourning. George had a difficult time with his new volume pedal, being intrigued with the way Colin Manley used it to give a new sound for his Liverpool formed British group, The Remo Four, and very much wanted to include this new sound onto the fresh waltz style gem. However, poor George couldn’t time it correctly, so John kneeled down directly in front of George and adjusted the volume knobs while Mr. Harrison plucked the strings. An interesting side note, George hired the Remo Four in 1967 as his backup band to help with his first solo album, the soundtrack for the movie, Wonderwall.

Track 4 is a cover song.

Track 5 – I’ll Follow The Sun. A one-sided love song by Paul, based on the lyric portrayal sunshine and roses overrules the singer’s heart even if love tries to stand in the way, yet dark, threatening clouds hold the smoking gun to kill the stormy relationship. Background Fun Facts: Written in 1958 inside Paul’s front room parlor, right after a menacing bout with the flu. The song gained opportunity since more material needed to fill a new album. The boy's grueling schedule of tours diminished their efforts to write songs. Half a dozen cover songs well-grounded and polished from many a night’s work in Hamburg saved the Christmas buying power, but the fellows preferred giving the fans originals. Of the all the 14 newest selections, this song held steady as George Martin’s favorite number on Beatles For Sale. The middle bridge received a lyric’s makeover, possibly with help from John, on the day they produced the recording, and George Martin wrote the harmony part for the revised bridge and taught John how to sing it. Mr. Starr’s drumming sounded too aggressive on the playback, so Paul suggested to set up a microphone between Ringo’s knees and told his mate to slap his leg covered trousers in sync to the beat. The guitar solo originally fell into the hands of John. However, George complained he was supposed to be the lead guitarist and took control of the solo as an overdub. At the mixing controls, the stereo version collected two to three times more reverb than the mono mix. Side note: If you enjoy recording your own compositions and the idea of hand claps appeal to your arrangement, just take a seat, slap your hands with open fingers against your legs covered with blue-jeans, and place the mic close between your knees. Instant group synchronization on one take. 

Tracks 6 & 7 are cover songs.

Track 8 – Eight Days A Week. A one-sided love song plea by Paul with a little help from John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer hopes the girl of his dreams needs his love as much as he needs her love. Background Fun Facts: Written between August 15 - 18, 1964, and although Lennon christened it a lousy song, George Martin tagged it as the next single following its October recording session. A much too hasty decision in that the amazing guitar work on ‘I Feel Fine’ pushed ‘Eight Days A Week’ under the carpet. Nevertheless, Capitol Records caught on to the wide appeal ‘Eight Days A Week' would generate and released their own single backed with ‘I Don’t Want To Spoil The Party’, and London watched the overseas single keep the Billboard #1 spot until ‘Ticket to Ride’ replaced the top position. Funny how our musical tastes can differ to the extreme­––I always loved ‘Eight Days A Week,' unlike John, and never appreciated ‘Baby’s In Black’ also unlike John.

Tracks 9 & 10 are cover songs.

Track 11 – Every Little Thing. A mutual love song by Paul & John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer knows his girl loves him and he will love her forever, for he knows love will never die since every little thing she does, she does for him. Background Fun Facts: Written in Atlantic City, New Jersey between August 30 & September 1, 1964, influenced by Jane Asher waiting across the Atlantic for her Paul to return. George and John switch roles on this tune in the event John wanted to try his new custom made 1964 Rickenbacker 325 – electric 12-string, so George supplied the rhythm strums on a Gibson J-160E acoustic 6-string. In the out-takes, John included some nice guitar fills between his & Paul’s unison vocal phrases that sound quite different from the 1963 Rickenbacker 360-12-string belonging to George. Unfortunately, editing scraped the added guitar licks as they became crowded. . . Less is more. The next day, John added a new overdub lead guitar part, but his intro notes kept missing, so someone tapped a four count and whistled the melody to help John follow along. Supposedly this whistle can be detected on the stereo mix, although, I can’t hear it and I have both mono and stereo copies. Track 11 is the only time John used his specially designed 12-string. The darn thing wouldn’t stay in tune, so he returned it. Another overdub by Paul’s bass, ushered in the first time two bass parts played together appears on a Beatle’s recording. And finally, ‘Every Little Thing’ became one of Harrison’s preferred choice as a fine song.

Track 12 – I Don’t Want To Spoil The Party. A one-sided love song 80% written by John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer is depressed and wonders what went wrong in that his girl ditched him at a party. Even a few drinks can’t chase away the blues; there’s no fun without the one he loves. Background Fun Facts: Written in a hotel room during the second tour in America between mid-August to mid-September, 1964. Believe it or not, this song had bloomed specifically for Ringo pending he lost out on a featured vocal from last summer’s A Hard Day’s Night LP. Aware their drummer had a fondness for country and western music, J & P set themselves to dish out exactly that type of ditty. As lyrics progressed, many lines grew much too personal for John and discussions resulted in him taking the lead vocals, whereas, on the last day of recordings, Ringo tried his luck with a Carl Perkins hit called, ‘Honey Don’t.’ Not surprised, the ring man did a fine job with his rendition. However, John’s song, ‘I Don’t Want To Spoil The Party’ ran into numerous break-downs until take number 19 deemed a winner. Still, a noticeable flub pans across the speakers on the last verse in that John sings “If” before the line, “I think I’ll take a walk and look for her.” Due to his higher range vocal joined right in while the other fellows recorded the rhythm track, it was impossible to correct the blooper without erasing the steady flow of instrumentation. Later, while adding his lower harmony overdub, John still couldn’t fix the mistake since the added slipup word jump-started the correct phrasing delivery. When it comes to mono and stereo mixes, the only difference points to a volume boost to George’s lead guitar sound on the stereo version.

Track 13 – What You’re Doing, A one-sided love song composed equally by Paul and John, based on the lyric portrayal the tearful crying singer feels blue and lonely running all around waiting and wondering if she’ll stop lying then accept his true promise of love and affection. Background Fun Facts: Written in New Jersey’s Atlantic City between August 30 & September 1, 1964. America’s rock-n-roll girl groups fascinated both J & P, and for this tune, Paul insisted Ringo pound out a drum intro in the same style the Ronettes backup band starts off ‘Be My Baby,’ which climbed to #2 on the Billboard Charts in 1963. Not bad for a debut all-female musical act. After two days and 12 takes, this song’s evolution was a mess and rightly marked as unusable. Almost a month later, the recording deadline of October 26 saw it’s sunset darken the sky and a last possible effort to add a fresher refined arrangement onto ‘What You’re Doing’ uncoiled from 7:30 to 9:00 pm. Takes 13 through 19 spun reel to reel on the tape machines, with 19 being best. A major first occurred during their year-end session­––the bass guitar tested its limits and pushed the needle into the red from constant complaints the bottom sound was never loud enough. Volume limits ran the gamut from here on out. Two overdubs were all it took to finish the chore, a piano piece by Paul fattened up the bridge, and double-tracking his voice brought the musician’s labor to a close. Mono and stereo mixes performed the next day by Martin and his two engineers, Mr. Smith and Mr. Scott calculated both to a close match, except the drums and rhythm tracks received a bit more volume on the mono version.            

Track 14 is a cover song.                                  

Well, as Frank Barone would say on ”Everybody Loves Raymond,” Holly Crap! Only one song rides the romantic pathway toward marital bliss. Could it be the lads’ participation with American call girls blind-sided our favorite composers to sing about how unrequited affairs will potentially guarantee heartache?

Next week, part 5 whirls us through a razzle-dazzle adventure with the Beatles second movie soundtrack, Help. In the meantime, please post your comments and or corrections freely, I appreciate your feedback.

Tis Better To Have Loved And Lost Than To Never Loved At All. Alfred Lord Tennyson –– Part 3

Today I have a real treat for you. No cover songs, in fact, for the first and last time, the Beatles had the approval to produce an LP entirely filled with Lennon/McCartney compositions. Yes, it’s a new week, and that signals the next album. A Hard Day’s Night, released July 10, 1964, the same day as my favorite Dodger Ron Fairly’s birthday, and the day before my birthday. The official soundtrack plus an incredible assortment of fresh songs made available at the record shops almost eight months since With The Beatles rolled out of E.M.I.’s packaging department. Okay, are you ready to divvy up today’s list as to which are mutual love vs. one-sided love? Then read on!

3^rd LP: A Hard Day’s Night. (Mutual Love / 7 vs One-Sided Love / 6)

Track 1 –  A Hard Day’s Night. A mutual love song by John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer knows even after a long hard day on the job when most men would be exhausted, ready for sleep, he will feel just great once home by finding the things his lover does for him. He no longer minds working all day, since now he has money to buy her gifts, and it’s so worth it, because, in return, she gives him everything. Therefore, he no longer moans about his shift, aware she’ll hold him tight quite soon, making life wonderful. Background Fun Facts: Written on the evening of April 13, 1964, after learning the title of the boy’s first film. The producer, Walter Shenson, insisted the movie needs a song to match the motion picture heading. Remember, Elvis used the same strategy–– like in 1961, Blue Hawaii. 1962, Follow That Dream. 1964, Kissin’ Cousins, Viva Las Vegas, and Roustabout. See what I mean, and the earlier films starring Elvis also received matching songs beginning with his first, ‘Love Me Tender,’ a huge hit on the music charts. The next morning, John played the made to order composition for Shenson and presto, it won the Grammy that year. ‘A Hard Day’s Night,' soared to #1 just as ‘Can’t Buy Me Love’ had done prior to the film’s premiere. Believe it or not, part of the original lyrics that finished off the first verse went as so, ”But when I get home to you, I find my tiredness is through, and I feel alright.” A few days later, a last-minute recording schedule brought the musicians into the studio to lay down the all-important final song. Dick Lester, the film director, had a mission of his own and insisted something blockbuster was required to open the film. Although Lester’s presence inside the control room wasn’t appreciated, there can be no denying he caused a major leap into stardom for the boys. A good example is the lad’s initial challenges for the right blast-off chord. Lester argued the sound didn’t pack enough punch and it kept getting rejected. “More cinematic!” shouted the director. George Martin tweaked a couple of odd suggestions this unwelcomed filmmaker proposed, and Wala, the most tremendous, iconic, and brilliant sound emerged, able to send chills down your spine. Another vital component Lester demanded, was the ending must include a fade-out so as to segue-way into the motion picture's first scene. Imagine how much this song could have lost had not the pushy visitor stand firm, barking orders.

Track 2 – I Should Have Known Better. A mutual love song by John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer knows when he tells his girl he loves her and asks her to be his one and only, she tells him she loves him too. Background Fun Facts: Written in Paris between January 15 and February 4, 1964, hidden away at the George V Hotel. A request for a piano brought into their suite helped our songwriters with the task of composing new songs for their first giant screen film production. Any downtime inside the hotel, Bob Dylan’s Freewheelin album filled the room, a gift to Paul by a French DJ after a radio spot interview. The album inspired John to include the harmonica in his new song. John’s hat seen in the film also copied Dylan. This particular song started the one-note melody line craze for John, as heard in the verses. One-note melody lines also surfaced within verses of ‘Help’ and the bridge on ‘Girl.’ Did you know that John couldn’t really play the harmonic without taking a breath on all four measures during the introduction? When listening to the unedited recording, the harmonica stops on the fourth measure in dire straights to a much-needed inhale of air. George Martin simply grafted a repeat of the third measure onto the fourth, and no one was the wiser unless a customer purchased the stereo version of which engineers forgot to correct. A blooper that lasted until 1982 when the graft was added to the album titled Reel Music, however, those engineers spliced measure two instead of measure three to fill in the gap. True fans can hear a slight difference.

Track 3 – If I Fell. A one-sided love song by John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer needs assurance that if he gives his heart to a new girl, she will love him more than his current girlfriend or wife.  He wants to dodge fresh heartache pain knowing how sad it will be if their new love dies in vain. Background Fun Facts: Written between January 15 and February 4, 1964, during the concert series at the Olympia Theater in Paris, France. According to John, this was his first attempt at what he called a “ballad proper,” and the first ever Beatles song touching on the taboo subject of a love triangle, (And that she will cry when she learns we are two), taken from verse three. A clever harmony unfolds after the solo introduction that blends beautifully by John dropping lower notes rather than follows Paul’s melody using a standard third synchronization. J & P insisted on recording their vocals together into the same microphone for a much tighter connection. Some excited consumers buying stereo copies have noticed Paul’s voice cracks on the last note within the second bridge on the word, “vain” ––a fix recording engineers only attended to on the mono editing process.   

Track 4 – I’m Happy Just To Dance With You. A mutual love for dancing song by John & Paul, based on the lyric portrayal the singer confesses there is really nothing else he’d rather do than to dance with his partner. Dancing with her is all he needs, and before the dance is through, he believes he will love her too. Background Fun Facts: Written between January 15 and February 4, 1964, inside their Paris George V hotel room. The song was given to George Harrison as a way to feature his spot in the film. Undeveloped Harrison was working on a new composition titled, ‘You Know What To Do,’ but lacked commercial appeal, hence, J & P to the rescue. A hard lesson to learn for the youngest Beatle who made sure he had a marketable tune for the second film.  Track 4 was the last movie soundtrack song recorded before high-tech cameras began shooting on March 2, 1964. The boys were called in special on March 1^st to get it done, and it was a Sunday, a most uncommon work day in the studio up till then. Just Like the tune ‘Can’t buy Me Love,’ Lennon gave ‘I’m Happy Just To Dance With You’ an introduction phase spoiler of the bridge before the first verse.

Track 5 – And I Love Her. A mutual love song by Paul, aided by John on the middle bridge section, based on the lyric portrayal the singer gives her all his love and she gives him everything tenderly, including kisses. The singer also boasts, “A love like ours could never die.” Background Fun Facts: Written between February 22  and February 24 1964_, directly after the very successful concert tour of America. Paul originally composed it on his own in the basement music room of Jane Asher’s parents posh 8-bedroom home on Wimple Street, but when time came to record it, George Martin felt it much too repetitive and needed something of a change in the middle. Lennon shouted across the soundproof room into Paul’s microphone, “Okay, let’s have a tea break.” J & P worked on it at the piano and within thirty minutes, wrote a beautiful middle part using just four bars––genius. McCartney referred to it as his first ballad that actually impressed himself, and John equally impressed considered it Paul’s first ‘Yesterday.' So much was John enthralled, he borrowed the phrase, “gives me everything,” and used it in the rushed requirement for an essential song titled, ‘A Hard Day’s Night.’ Did you know, George played all those stunning guitar runs and rising key change instrumental solo on his prized Rickenbacker 12-string during the preliminary few days of taping? Midway through the sessions, Ringo switched from drums to bongos, and this helped to prompt George to switch from his 12-string electric to his Jose Ramirez acoustic guitar with nylon strings––again, genius must run in the all for one mates.

Track 6 – Tell Me Why. A one-sided love song by John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer complains as to why his lover lied to him and left him all alone after giving her everything he had. (There’s that same phrase “gave everything” again.) Background Fun Facts: Written in America during their first U.S. tour, mid-February 1964. Someone informed John the movie needed another upbeat song and because each Beatle received a transistor radio, the fellows got an enormous earful of the American pop stars’ music. Many of the African America girl groups influenced John to knock off in a single afternoon, ‘Tell Me Why’ installing those old rock and roll, often used set of chords progression of C –Am – F – and G and integrated a power-punch 3-part-harmony. I’m sure you can guess which famous singer motivated all three musicians to sing falsetto near the last few bars on the bridge. Once more, to comply with the quick demand for the film’s title song, John borrowed the word “moan” from Track 6. (All I do is hang my head and MOAN – So why on earth should I MOAN, cause when I get you alone, you know I feel okay. 

Track 7 – Can’t Buy Me Love. A mutual love song by Paul, based on the lyric portrayal the singer desires a companion who is more interested in love over material things. Background Fun Facts: Written between January 15 and February 4 1964 and one of just three tunes recorded outside of London, to cash in quick on the financial wave ‘I Want to Hold Your Hand’ brought to Capitol Records, who almost released Roll Over Beethoven as the follow-up single had it not been for the swift wit of George Martin to rent a studio and bang out Paul’s new hit rocker. The day after its release in the States, the single sold over a million copies and debuted at #27 on the pop charts. A week later, rose to #1. By the way, the other two songs recorded in Paris were the German versions of ‘She Loves You’ and ‘I Want to Hold Your Hand’ as a way to say Thank-you to Deutschland. A mysterious unknown drummer added overdubs to the stereo mix on March 10, 1964, and clearly differs from the mono version. Impossible this drummer could be Ringo, he was busy on the set filming scenes for director Richard Lester. The unknown drummer turned out to be engineer Norman Smith, who played just a few bars on the high-hat cymbals to correct a ripple crease after the original tape had spooled incorrectly. A new precedent had also emerged during the recording of this song; Paul insisted all guitar solos be pre-defined and well-rehearsed before tape machines rolled. No more adlib differences for George as in live shows. And finally, John has declared numerous times it’s his favorite song in the film.

Track 8 – Any Time At All. A one-sided love song by John, based on the singer repeatedly offers his devotion toward a particular love interest, yet receives neither positive nor negative female responses from his constant inquiry. A weak robbery from John’s ‘All I’ve Got To Do’ song on track 2 from the last album. Compare both sets of lyrics for yourself. Background Fun Facts: Written in Tahiti vacationing with George and Pattie during May 1964, however, brought to the studio unfinished. After seven attempts to record the song, the fellows knew something was amiss, so, within a ninety-minute rehash, Paul completely changed the instrumentation solo switching to the piano and that fixed the issue. Two mono mixes unfolded for the song, one used in the States and the other released in England. Paul’s piano received a louder presence in his home country compared to America. This tune was the last played by Ringo before entering the hospital due to tonsillitis. He was miserable throughout the entire recording session with a severe sore throat.

Track 9 – I’ll Cry Instead. A one-sided love song by John, based on the singer is livid since losing the only girl he had, and if it were up to him, he’d try to make her sad somehow, but he can’t so he’ll cry instead. Background Fun Facts: Written April 1964 specifically for the run amok field scene in A Hard Day’s Night. Unfortunately, Lester didn’t like it. The lyrics didn’t play well with the chap’s zany romp and reused ‘Can’t Buy Me Love,’ which had been set aside for the police squad chase scene. John’s wife, Cynthia defined the song as a cry for help by her husband. She explains, “It reflects the frustration he felt at the time. He was the idol of millions, but the freedom and fun of the early days had gone.”  You can bet there is no denying John felt cheated ‘I’ll Cry Instead’ got the boot, but at least his song made a hit as a single in America three weeks before the movie premiered. An oddity to note––the mono version has four verses, while the stereo mix uses only three verses. Weird! Another mix-up––even though the film director scraped this title, the song still showed up on the United Artist Soundtrack LP.

Track 10 – Things We Said Today. A mutual love song by Paul, based on the lyric portrayal the deep in love lucky singer asserts his girl promises to be his until the end of time. Background Fun Facts: Written with acoustic guitar in May 1964, inside the cabin below deck of the rented yacht, Happy Days cruising the Virgin Islands with Ringo and Maureen. Composed by inspiration through the tight relationship with Jane Asher, who also was aboard ship. The bond between these two often resulted in long periods of separation due to both professions, a rudiment force to the spot-on lines, “You say you will love me if I have to go.”  And “Someday when I’m lonely wishing you weren’t so far away.” John included a simple overdubbed piano part on both bridges of the song but removed during the final mono mix. However, the stereo mix version left a tint of piano caught on the open mics used during Paul’s double tracking vocal and Ringo’s tambourine.

Track 11 – When I Get Home. A mutual love song by John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer can’t wait to return home to be with his lover and love her till the cows come home. He even bets he will love her more till he walks through that door again. Background Fun Facts: Written in Tahiti on vacation during May 1964 with George and Pattie. Recorded on the 2^nd of June, 1964 and the final song to meet the deadline for inclusion with their third LP. Again, two mono mixes took different paths, one for England’s Hard Day’s Night album, and one for America’s Something New album. The U.S. mix showcases a bit higher volume to the piano overdubs by Paul, especially on the bridge, and the UK mix produced louder cymbal crashes. Unfortunately, both mono mixes incorporated John’s vocal from his original take, and he doesn’t quite reach the bridge note the minute he sang, “when I walk,” but on the stereo mix, John stays right on key and hit the note proper, obviously taken from an alternate take. Lennon’s influence to write such a song came from Marvin Gaye’s, Can I Get A Witness, and Wilson Pickett’s early records, to which the Beatle labeled this song as “a four-in-the-bar cowbell song.” The only problem with his notation stems from the fact no cowbell appears in the studio performance. The percussion instrument instead saw invitations on ‘You Can’t Do That,' I Call Your Name,' and of course, ‘A Hard Day’s Night.' Perhaps John got confused.

Track 12 – You Can’t Do That. A one-sided love song by John, based on the singer's troubling, over the top issues with trust between him and his love interest, plus an explosive jealous streak that can destroy their marriage just by her talking with another man. That’s not love; that’s captivity. Background Fun Facts: Written in Miami Beach, February 1964 specifically for the boy’s first film. An interesting but subtle change among verse 1 and verse 2 displays the melody line on 1 has quarter notes, yet the melody line on 2 has eighth notes.  A documentary dedicated to the making of A Hard Day’s Night feature film proves the song finally made it onto the big screen during the live concert scene near the end of the picture. Rolling cameras captured all the composition’s action, and youngsters brought into the large decorative indoor arena heard the tune played while screaming their guts out, but alas, ‘You Can’t Do That’ couldn’t avoid the cutting room floor and got sliced from the movie. Director Lester didn’t like it and dismissed it on the grounds the film’s running minutes had climbed higher than United Artist wanted. Upon returning from America, the lads were excited to unfold this song in the studio and did so on George Harrison’s 21^st birthday, February 25. The minute the rhythm track had received a thumbs up, overdubs took shape with Paul playing the cowbell, and Ringo helped fattened the percussion section with more bongos. The very next morning George Martin and his engineers diligently fine-tuned a perfect mono mix of ‘You Can’t Do That’ and Can’t Buy Me Love’ then rushed them off to Capitol Records in Hollywood, California, for the newest, high in demand single. This herald the first time a Beatles’ 45 rpm single found itself in the hands of American teens and pre-teens before the fan-base followers in Great Britain. Almost two weeks later, Martin experimented with a stereo mix of all the show tunes, but never felt satisfied. He also added and recorded his own piano arrangement to the mix on May 22^nd, but according to rumors, even the Beatles never heard the outcome, and his idea fell into oblivion. On June 22^nd, Martin oversaw an accepted stereo mix of the entire album. By the way, John plays the guitar solo in the middle, and George used his brand new 12-string to start the song off with a hard driving beat and overshadowed all the instruments on its unrivaled sluggish finale.

Track 13 – I’ll Be Back. A one-sided love song by John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer has suffered a broken heart, separates but still loves her madly and believes she misses him just as much. Therefore, tries to reconcile only to find she will break his heart again, nevertheless, he’ll be back a third time, a fourth, etc., etc. at the mercy of her affection. Background Fun Facts: Written in Tahiti, May 1964 and highly influenced by the same chords from 1961's #1 hit song ‘Runaway,’ by Del Shannon, which the Beatles covered in their live shows during 61 and 62. In 1963, Shannon appeared on the same evening program with the Beatles at the Royal Albert Hall when the 5,272-seat concert venue presented a special titled, “Swinging Sound 63”. Shortly afterward, the celebrity offered to release a Lennon/McCartney composition in America. The result was, ‘From Me To You,’ topping at #77 on the Billboard singles hit parade­––the first song by J & P to make the top 100 in America. YouTube makes it possible to experience the sound-a-like arrangement rendition. Attempts were made to record the song in waltz time. However, John complained the effort was just too hard to sing using a 6/8 tempo and reverted to the original 4/4-time signature. Check out ‘Anthology 1’ to witness the debacle. Youngest Beatle George lucked out on the three-part harmony, having to deal with just one single note a la McCartney style like Paul sang his verses on, ‘Please Please Me.’ Two mono mixes came from the control board by Martin, one for Britain, the other America. America’s version is a tad slower and received noticeable more reverb.

The winner goes to mutual love by one count, as close as a 50-50 tie can be. And that completes our full run through for a mighty awesome album many consider timeless. Face it, people. Beatles music, as a whole, surely fits into the timeless category. Next week, watch for Part 4, where I’ll dissect as best I can, the LP, Beatles For Sale. And as always, your comments and corrections are most welcomed. 

Tis Better To Have Loved And Lost Than To Never Loved At All. Alfred Lord Tennyson –– Part 2

Here we go again, a new week and the next album. With The Beatles, released November 22, 1963, included eight more original tunes made available at the record shops exactly eight months since Please Please Me rolled out of E.M.I.’s packaging department. Okay, are you ready to divvy up today’s list as to which are mutual love vs. one-sided love? Then read on!

2^nd LP: With The Beatles. (Mutual Love / 4 vs One-Sided Love / 4)

Track 1 –  It Won’t Be Long. A mutual love song by John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer sits at home alone while everyone else is out having fun (he refuses to cheat on her), but even though he misses her to the extreme, and cries day and night out of loneliness, he is so excited his girl is coming home, and when she does, he will belong to her. Background Fun Facts: John had hoped to write another single, so, he borrowed ideas from two previous hit makers that exploded their studio performance to #1 on both counts. First, he repeated the double meaning taken from his song, ‘Please Please Me,' and wrote, "It won’t BE LONG till I BELONG to you." Second, he resurrected all those YEAH YEAH YEAHS from ‘She Loves You.'

Track 2 – All I’ve Got To Do. A mutual love song by John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer and his girl assures each other that whenever one wants the other, they only need to call and both will come right away. Background Fun Facts: Written in 1961, trying to sound like Smokey Robinson of the Miracles, who influenced young Lennon not only with his voice but his songwriting style as well. A fun side note––when John tried laying down the vocal for ‘Woman’ in 1980, Yoko interrupted through the intercom stating John sounded like a Beatle. John replied, “Actually, I’m supposed to be Smokey Robinson, my dear because the Beatles always supposed they were Smokey Robinson.”

Track 3 – All My Loving. A mutual love song by Paul, based on the lyric portrayal the singer promises to be true while he is away, even assures he’ll write to her every day sending all his love in each letter. Background Fun Facts: John was known to praise this song as one of Paul’s first big hits, and although Mr. Lennon had not helped with the tune, he knew he had increased music fans appeal by his fabulous triplet strumming. The piece never made it as a single in the UK or the United States, but get this, Capitol Records did release it as a single in Canada, and it reached #1 on the hit parade. A vast amount of the Canadian singles found an importation tunnel into the U.S. that demand for it pushed the 45 rpm disc to #45 on the Billboard top 100. Hey, you’ll never guess, but the B-side plays my all-time favorite Beatles song, ‘This Boy.' What a nice surprise. All My Loving follows the pattern as a letter style song, modeled after, P.S. I Love You. This combination of singing a love-letter makes excellent sense in that the Beatles were busy with live bookings to promote their new album, Please Please Me. All those out of town concerts easily conjured up ideas to turn a love-letter into a song.

Track 4 – Don’t Bother Me. A one-sided love song by George, based on the lyric portrayal since she’s been gone, the singer won’t ever be the same if he doesn’t get her back. He can’t believe the only girl for him has left him on his own. Background Fun Facts: Written during the summer of 1963 while George was bedridden with illness in a Bournemouth hotel. He didn’t want to be bothered by anyone, just rest, hence, out came the song. The founder of the Liverpool music paper, Mersey Beat, Bill Harry offers another take how the song developed. Mr. Harry, the newspaper man, used to pester George every time he saw him, to see if George had written a new song yet. The inquiries got so monotonous, the young Beatle’s constant reply was, ‘Don’t Bother Me, you’ll hear plenty when it happens.”

Track 5 – Little Child. A one-sided love song by John & Paul, based on the lyric portrayal the singer’s eye catches a newcomer at the nightclub and invites her to dance, and to take a chance with him immediately after confessing he’s so sad and lonely. The singer also makes a deal they will have some fun if she’ll go steady, and not date anyone else. Background Fun Facts: Written early September 1963 for Ringo. In mid to late July, the lads returned to Abbey Road ready to record new material for the next LP. Two months had slipped by, and Paul realized they hadn’t come up with a piece to spotlight Ringo. Two hours later, J & P returned with ‘Little Child,' however, Ringo couldn’t bring himself to get into the groove, and on top of that, refused to sing the line, “I’m so sad and lonely.” He told his writing mates to give him a good rocker, something like the tune, ‘Boys.' A short time later, on September 10^th, J & P accepted the call to attend a Rolling Stone’s band rehersal and how they needed a commercial hit song. Our amazing composers wrote ‘I Wanna Be Your Man’ right then and there. The next day, they all felt Ringo would do well on the song written for the Stones, so with all the instruments plugged in and all the microphones switched on, John sung the lead to Little Child after Ringo tried to belt out the fresh one-day old song sung by Mick Jagger. The drummer's vocals weren’t added to the mix until October 3^rd, taking the time necessary to learn his part.

Ever notice the difference between the titles ‘I Wanna Be Your Man’ & ‘I Want To Hold Your Hand? And yet, “Both” are sung using the word (Wanna).

Tracks 6, 7, and 8 are cover songs.

Track 9 – Hold Me Tight. A mutual love song by Paul, with some aid by John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer wants to hear his girl say he’s her only one, never to be the lonely one, and to let him go on loving her, making love to only her. Background Fun Facts: Written around mid-September 1962 directly after recording their first single, ‘Love Me Do.’ McCartney wanted to write another single, and after listening to one of his favorite female groups, the Shirelles, felt inspired to write something to match the gals style. He also received a major influence from the great Carl Perkins, and the Beatles included many of Perkins tunes into their early gigs. One such song is called, ‘Sure to Fall,' with the lyrics, “so hold me tight, let tonight be the night.” An absolute, unmistakable copy from the mop-top’s American idol. But, alas, this tune failed to make the grade and wedged in as #9 to help fill the new album. Did you know the song was recorded in the key of E but ended up in the key of F? This occurred by speeding up the tape machine, a little trick George Martin used to tighten up the performance. Had it been a better song and given the go ahead as a single, it most likely would have been banned from the airwaves by its inclusion of the phrase, “making love.” Thus, it snuck passed the censors due to less frequent spins on the radio.

Track 10 is a cover song.

Track 11 – I Wanna Be Your Man is a one-sided love song by John and Paul, based on the entire lyric portrayal, the singer seeks the affection from a female, by filling her with promises, never letting up once to hear what she has to say about it. Background Fun Facts: Written in September 1963. John came up with the title from a Newspaper headline, but Paul put it to music. George Martin provided his magic fingers upon the Hammond Organ, not John, as the album’s liner notes incorrectly give the credit to Lennon.

Track 12 is a cover song.

Track 13 – Not A Second Time. A one-sided love song by John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer received, in a sense, a dear John letter, possibly unwritten, and instead, spoken straight pass the lips he used to kiss. However, she changes and comes back to restore the break-up, but he declares the facts she hurt him before, so no, not a second time will her broken promises hurt him. Background Facts: Written the first week of September 1963, highly influenced by Smokey’s song, ‘You’ve Really Got A Hold On Me.'  Once again, John injects a playful double meaning word by singing, “And now you’ve changed your MIND, I see no reason to change MINE.” Rumors state that Paul and George did not contribute to this recording hinged on the fact only one guitar makes its presence heard and all the bass notes came courtesy from George Martin on the piano. Each verse is only seven bars rather than the customary eight, and a huge rarity, the instrumental section follows the bridge playing the bridge, instead of copying a verse, such as, ‘And I Love Her.' At the end of the song, Lennon’s double tracking stray during the fade, and the mistake resulted sounding too brilliant to fix.

Track 14 is a cover song.

Well, the percentages rose from last week’s tally. Exactly 50% of the lad’s new album showcase unrequited love songs. Oh, the sorrow one feels when your true love loves another. 


 

 

Tis Better To Have Loved And Lost Than To Never Loved At All. Alfred Lord Tennyson

Roughly twenty-one years ago, while interviewed for the Anthology Special, Paul had mentioned how proud he was that the Beatles sang mostly about love, peace, and understanding. Hardly any one of them says, ‘Go on kids, tell them all to sod off’ or ‘Leave your parents.’

Looking back on many of those tunes, I truly considered 95% of their originals as love songs. I also truly considered 98% of my own originals as love songs. But this week I realized my conclusion fell short. Oh, sure, John and Paul wrote a ton of love songs, George, too, compiled a decent amount, however, several falls into a category called, Unrequited Love Songs. My inventive style of songwriting probably scores a total of 90% within the Unrequited Love genre. Okay, by now you might be asking yourself, ‘What is Unrequited Love?’ In a nutshell, it means––unreciprocated love, or a simpler definition, one-sided love. We’ve all been there, and it hurts immensely. A pain so harsh it’s worse than death, in my opinion. I’m a strong believer of the Apostle Paul when he wrote to the Philippians, ‘To die is gain.’ And also in 2 Corinthians, he says, ‘We are confident and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.’ I cling to these verses on account the love of my life adores and cherishes me as her best friend rather than lover. Ughh.

To be, or not to be in love––that is the question. Whether tis noble in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows when love turns sour from familiarity or to take arms against the heartache agony in how damaging a one-sided love destroys content, and more than not, collapses all hope. Today begins a series all about Loss Love Songs vs. Unified Love Songs. For the next 15 weeks, come take a trip down memory lane, as I, to the best of my ability, unravel each track Lennon and McCartney composed on the UK long playing albums recorded by our brilliant Beatles, to portray which grouping best describes the included tunes. As a bonus, I’ll also offer a little background if abled.

1^st  LP release: PLEASE PLEASE ME.  (Mutual Love / 5 vs. One-Sided / 3 )

Track 1 – I Saw Her Standing There. A unified love song by Paul, based on the lyric portrayal he could tell that before too long, he’d fall in love, and, she wouldn’t dance with another while holding him tight all through the night. Background Fun Facts: Original Title, Seventeen. Written between late October and early November 1962 using acoustic guitars together with John. Paul already had the melody, the chords, and the first line. . . “She was just seventeen, never been a beauty queen.” John laughed at the ridiculous rhyming words, and Paul demanded his partner come up with something better. John took it to thought and under a minute came up with, “you know what I mean.” As the song progressed, Paul copied the bass line Chuck Berry’s bass player used on the song, ‘I’m Talking About You,’ and it fit like a glove. Have a listen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUnUANMQ6tg

Recorded on February 11, 1963, take one had all four musicians performing their stage act, no overdubs, no double-tracking, just raw and live vocals while playing their instruments. The result seemed flawless, yet, George Martin wanted another hoping for better. Take two – eight had various mishaps with missed lyrics or instrumentation flubs. Out of frustration, Paul started take nine with his famous four-count, and that delivered the winning track, After lunch, the lads added handclaps to take nine as the only overdub. When all came to a close, George Martin decided he preferred take one as best. So, after all that extra work, Producer George had the fellows handclap near a hot mic one more time. Then, on February 25, the four-count from take 9 was edited onto take 1’s intro. If interested, click here for takes 6,7,8, and finally 9, which almost earned the final spot on the album. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9o0onN1M7Hw

Track 2 –Misery. A one-sided love song by John, based on the lyric portrayal he lost her for sure
and what a drag they wouldn’t see each other anymore. Unfortunately, all the singer has is memories of every little thing they’d done and how obvious she will always be his one true love. Everybody around him easily detects that without her he will live in misery. Background Fun Facts: Written in January 1963. Allan Clarke and Graham Nash of the Hollies offered a few suggested lines learning John and Paul got stuck and couldn’t finish the tune to their liking. This song developed as a consideration piece for Helen Shapiro before they were to sideline her promotional top billing 14-day tour in February. The day they met, she had no idea about any song titled Misery. Norrie Paramor, executive recording manager for EMI’s Columbia label, turned it down without letting Helen hear it. She was only sixteen and had reached the top ten UK charts since 1961 with two #1 singles after her first single climbed to #3. In 1962 her single, “Tell Me What He Said” reached #2 and she won higher fame after Englanders’ voted her Britain’s Top Female Singer.

Misery took place inside the recording studio on February 11, during the ten song in one day marathon for the lads prime timing rush to capitalize on their hit single. Take after take, attempts to get it right failed until the eleventh run-through, but decided take nine sounded best. On February 20, George Martin  added a piano over Harrison’s guitar lick at the bridge since younger George lost the right tempo from time to time.  

Tracks 3, 4, and 5 are cover songs.

Track 6 – Ask Me Why. A unified love song by John, based on the lyric portrayal he loves her cause she tells him things he wants to know, and his happiness, knowing she is his, makes him cry, but not from sadness do his tears shed. The true reason stems from the fact she is the only love he ever had. A love so powerful, he can’t believe it's happened, and can’t conceive of any more misery. Background Fun Facts: Written in 1962, at least seven months before the song, Misery. Notice the mix and match of words John uses with Track 2. On Misery, he never used to cry, but ever since losing his girl, the world seems to treat him badly––hence, sobbing appears at the drop of a hat. Whereas on Ask Me Why, the happiness his lover brings, also brings on tears, granted tears of joy. Another direct match forms in that both songs reveal that both girls the singer speak’s of are his only love. And finally, the even stronger match in that, the earlier of the two songs shows their love promises an impossibility of feeling miserable. Whereas, the later song leaves the singer in nothing but misery.

Track 7 – Please Please Me, released three months after their first top twenty chart buster, is a
one-sided love song by John, based on the lyric portrayal he knows his girlfriend never tries to please him like he pleases her. He doesn’t want to complain, but it’s so hard to reason with her, and because she won’t change, there is always rain in his heart, which makes him blue. Background Fun Facts: Written between June 7 and 8, 1962 after George Martin expressed to give him something better for an A-side single. Without any help from Paul, John wanted to write a song like, Only the Lonely, by Roy Orbison, so, inside his bedroom on Menlove Avenue, John conjured up a very dramatic and much slower version as we know it, even sounding like Orbison. George Martin, after hearing the slower tempo, made mighty strong suggestions to the piece now known as their first #1. Thank you, Mr. Martin. Recorded on November 26, 1962 live. Lennon added his harmonica as the only overdub and the whole process required eighteen takes. But in the end, Martin predicted the boys did in fact create their first #1 hit, and the convinced producer never again suggested the Beatles record a cover song for their following singles. Enjoy taking a step back in history about this phenomenon straight from the words of our heroes by clicking here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MnuNvzyfI4

Track 8 – Love Me Do: An unreciprocated love song by Paul, penned at the age of sixteen, based

on the lyrical portrayal all three verses plead, ‘So please, love me do.’ Also, lyrics within the bridge, written by John, uncover the potential of loving someone new. Background Fun Facts: Written around 1958 inside Paul’s parlor room on Frothlin Road and inspired by his then girlfriend Iris Caldwell, sister of Rory Storm. Rumors foretold this title spun from the Elvis Presley film, Love Me Tender released in 1957, and the beat duplicated Buddy Holly’s; Maybe Baby hit single released in 1958.

Brian had sent news to Hamburg about an audition for EMI and requested the lads work on new material clear up to their final show May 31, 1962. Part of the rework modernized McCartney’s Love Me Do arrangement. The key changed from A to G, easier strumming slowed the tempo some, and because of Bruce Channel’s newly #1 pop song, Hey Baby, John added harmonica, with hopes of being the first British Band incorporating the blues sound to their music.

First Recorded on June 6, 1962. When the song carried melody through the studio speakers, George Martin couldn’t fathom John singing the title without the word “do.” You see, after the long drawn out plea of vocalizing, PLEASE, John sang only two words––“love me,” and skipped the word, “do,” to blow out the notes on his harmonica. That hideous plan drove Martin crazy and immediately switched the lead to Paul right then and there inside the sound room. You can hear an unsettled very nervous Paul slip out the three words just after the first pause when the music abruptly stops on the Anthology 1 CD, track 22. Pete Best played the drums for this session.

Second time recorded on September 4, Martin had no idea Ringo joined the band, but to be safe, the producer hired session drummer Andy White for a third session rerecording the song on September 11, and Mr. Starr, feeling rejected, was demoted to playing tambourine. Eighteen takes finally captured a decent recording. However, version number two graced the A-side on the single released October 5, 1962, and Ringo couldn’t have been happier. Once the public fan base received notice, the single began climbing the charts in just two days and peaked at #17. Click here for a listen to version two: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrkrOHn46qk

It should be noted version three with Andy White on drums appears on the Beatles debut LP. The added tambourine is a dead giveaway.

Track 9 – P.S. I Love You:  A unified love song by Paul, based on the lyric portrayal he sends all his love to her while away, and to treasure his promise until they’re together, staying in love forever, whether apart or beside one another. Background Fun Facts: Written in Hamburg, 1961. This track became the B-side for the lads for single backing Love Me Do. To show just how fanatic we American Beatle fans are, this song became a Capitol Records single and reached the top ten Billboard Charts three years after released in London. By the way, I always thought George Martin invented the trick of using the bridge of a song as the introduction (Can’t Buy Me Love), however, hear is the proof Paul started the unique gimmick.

Track 10 is a cover song

Track 11 – Do You Want To Know A Secret: A unified love song by John, based on the lyric portrayal the singer is deep in love and shall whisper a secret that nobody else can know––the very words his lover longs to hear, he’s in love with her. Background Fun Facts: Written August 1962 just after marriage vows between John and Cynthia took place. Brian Epstein had major concerns what a wedding ring would do to the growing female fan base and insisted the matrimony remain a secret. Secrets and promises not to tell reminded John of his mother, Julia, in that she used to sing the Snow White Wishing Well song to little John as a toddler. Both musical lyrics reveal identical phrases. John made a homemade demo of this song just with an acoustic guitar inside his bathroom. How does one know the demo came from the bathroom? A toilet flushes at the end of the song.

Track 12 is a cover song.

Track 13 – There’s A Place: A unified love song by John, based on the lyric portrayal he has a place in his mind he can always go to whenever he feels low and blue.  Once there, he thinks of her and the things she does and says, like, she loves only him and that alone is proof there are no sad tomorrows or mindful sorrows. Background Fun Facts: Written late January or early February 1963. With the huge success ‘Love Me Do’ excelled the band to popularity, both composers believed ‘There’s A Place’ would soar their careers not just to the next level, but above the top ten on the record charts, so when time came to return to the recording studio, this song received priority as the first tune for the new album. However, after ten takes, the excitement of the arrangement dithered to calling it a filler song. John claimed he tried to write a Motown type song and this is what bloomed. Years before, Paul had purchased a soundtrack copy of the 1957 musical, West Side Story, and hunting for ideas, was inspired by the beautiful score found on ‘Somewhere’, by means of those lyrics begin with, ‘There’s a place. A couple years later, Twist and Shout became a single in America, and yes,  the prioritized There's A Place' made it on the B-side, pushing the boys into the top of the charts, just liked they thought it would.  

Track 14 is a cover song.

There you have it, almost half original compositions follow the trait as unrequited love songs. 

Next week we will uncover what we can on the lads’ songwriting category throughout the hit album, With The Beatles. Your comments and corrections are welcomed.