About an hour and a half of recording time in EMI Studio Two proved all the lads needed to bring the song from beginning to near completion. The first of two sessions on June 2nd, 1964, which ran from 2:30 to 5:30 pm, was used to begin recording John's "Any Time At All," but then switched at approximately 4:00 to start work on Paul's "Things We Said Today."
The Beatles instrumentation for the initial tracks consisted of John on acoustic guitar, George on electric rhythm guitar, Paul on bass and lead vocals and Ringo on drums. Take one consisted of a false start, but takes two and three were full run-throughs of the song, take three being the best. Onto this, they performed three overdubs, which consisted of Paul double-tracking his vocals (some in unison and some in harmony), Ringo on tambourine on both bridges of the song, and John playing a simple piano part, also during both bridges.
It appears that the piano overdub was recorded simultaneously with the other overdubs but on a separate track, since session sheets show that they decided to omit the piano from the song. To accomplish this, all they needed to do was keep the volume level down on that track to take the piano out of the mix. However, especially when listening to the stereo mix of the song, you can still hear the piano in the background. According to Mark Lewisohn's book "The Beatles Recording Sessions," this occurs because "the piano had not been fully separated" during recording and "a little of its sound leaked across into the other microphones."
Documentation exists that suggests that The Beatles arrived around 9:30 pm at EMI Studio Two to record unspecified overdubs for "Things We Said Today" on June 3rd, 1964. This was the same day that they earlier auditioned Jimmy Nicol to replace an ailing Ringo Starr for the beginning of their first world tour. If these documents are true, at least one of the overdubs mentioned above were recorded on this day.
George Martin set aside June 4th to do mono mixes of all the recent Beatles recordings but somehow neglected "Things We Said Today." He may have run out of time on that day or he just plain forgot this song. Either way, the mono mix we all are familiar with was made during the next mixing session on June 9th by George Martin and engineers Norman Smith and Ken Scott.
The stereo mix of the song, with the slightly audible John Lennon piano part, was made during the marathon mixing session on June 22nd, 1964. George Martin, Norman Smith and 2nd engineer Geoff Emerick also made a tape copy of this mix at the end of the session, no doubt to send to Capitol Records in the US.
Another recording of the song was made on August 23rd, 1964 during their live concert at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. With the idea of releasing an American live album in time for the Christmas holiday, Capitol vice-president Voyle Gilmore co-produced a recording of the entire show with George Martin and engineer Hugh Davies. The recordings, which were remixed in stereo on August 27th, were too rough for release at that time, but they were eventually cleaned up by George Martin and Geoff Emerick for the successful 1977 album "The Beatles At The Hollywood Bowl." This recording of "Things We Said Today" appeared as the sixth track on side one.
Song Structure and Style
As for song structure, we see here a typical 'verse/ verse/ bridge/ verse' (or aaba) format as quite common for the early Beatles catalog. Evidenced also are the common additions to the formula, such as an introduction, a repeat of the bridge and final verse, and a conclusion. With no solo section required, the structure falls into the 'typical' category. This is not to say that there aren't any "tricks up their sleeve," as The Beatles (with George Martin's input) always liked to throw in some "monkey wrenches" to liven things up.
First of all, a two-measure introduction sets the mood, with Lennon's rhythmic fanfare ("da-da-dum") creating an anticipatory tension in an otherwise relaxed minor key. This goes immediately into the first verse, which features Paul's vocal primarily single-tracked except during the third section of the verse (measures 9 through 12), and the final phrase (measures 15 and 16) where the title of the song is heard. These measures are the only times double-tracked vocals are heard in the first verse.
Most can assume (as many books state) that each verse is a standard 16-measures long, but upon examination, none of the four verses heard in this song are of that length. The first verse actually has an additional measure at the end that plays the role of a segue into another verse. This additional measure repeats Lennon's rhythmic fanfare as a brief reprise of the introduction.
The second verse features Paul's vocal being double-tracked throughout, which shifts from unison to harmony singing in strategic places and apparently whenever the mood would strike Paul at the moment. Besides measures 9 through 12, he decides to harmonize during the final line "things we said today." Also noteworthy is that this verse is only fifteen measures long, the final measure disappearing into the bridge.
This nine-measure bridge 'dirties-up' the otherwise tranquil feel of the song with added tambourine, slightly audible piano and urgent, unison vocal work from McCartney. The resulting tension creates an illusion of uncertainty like storm winds threatening to ruin a relaxing boat trip. This tension dissipates with the realization that "love is here to stay and that's enough to make you mine." With these lyrics, the storm abates and we now return to the calm seas of a sunny day (and another relaxing verse).
This fifteen-measure verse is identical to the previous verse except for new lyrics. This time Paul sings unison vocals throughout, except for the third phrase ("someday when we're dreaming...") where he switches to harmonizing with himself.
This verse transitions into an identical repeat of the turbulent bridge and calm third verse. The repeat of the third verse shows another variation in Paul's vocals where he also adds harmony on the line "we'll go on and on." Another difference in this verse is that the number of measures extends beyond sixteen to infinity as the conclusion fades the song off into the sunset with John's rhythmic fanfare blazing the way.
McCartney was quite proud of the chord pattern he used for the song. "It has interesting chords," he states. Referring to the second half of the verse, he continues "It goes C, F, which is all normal, then the normal thing might be to go to F minor, but to go to the B flat was quite good. It was a sophisticated little tune." This unexpected B-flat chord creates a measure of uncertainty as to where the song will be leading next, but we comfortably land back into the home key in order to resolve the verse nicely.
Another Beatles trick in "Things We Said Today" is their shifting from minor to major keys, especially notable in the switch from A minor to A major for an interesting transition into the bridge. Also notable is the melody line predominantly made up of off-beats, which is most noticeable in the bridge. The Beatles continued to display this characteristic in later years, such as in "Tell Me What You See" and "If I Needed Someone."
The lyrics of the song depict the singer affirming his love for his girl even though they are separated for long periods of time. The singer is comforted by her assurance that she will love him "till the end of time" and that she'll be "thinking of" him while they are apart. The optimistic lyrics are somewhat melancholy and disquieting with the minor-chord framework of the song as a backdrop. Since this song was an ambiguous reference to Paul and Jane Asher's life at the time, the saddened feel of the song could be viewed in retrospect as a pre-indication of their eventual breakup. His admission that they "may be blind" admits a little uncertainty about how grounded their relationship was, especially with Paul's admitted philandering during The Beatle years.
Paul's vocals are the main focus of the song, delivering his own harmonies in strategic places through double-tracking (George supplied these harmonies when the song was performed live). McCartney had more of a knack for matching the original vocal recording when double-tracking, especially noticeable during times when he may have inadvertently paused on the original track. Lennon was not as instinctively wise when double-tracking, as evidenced in "Tell Me Why," "When I Get Home" and at the end of "Not A Second Time."
Paul's bass work, while simple and rhythmic during the verses, becomes more pronounced and intense during the bridges, which is appropriate for the turbulent mood for this section of the song.
The musical focus of the song is on Lennon's acoustic guitar work, especially his rhythmic fanfare in the introduction, in-between the first two verses and the conclusion. While the rest of John's playing is rudimentary throughout, this fanfare becomes the identifying feature of the song.
George Harrison's electric guitar accents, while necessary in the song, are used more for flavoring than for structure. Ringo's drum work resembles a metronome and remains constant and unchangeable throughout the entire song with the exception of his sizzling hi-hat and accentuated beat during the bridges. His tambourine playing during these bridges creates the appropriate dirty atmosphere, which is also reprised with simple accents on the two-beat of each measure during the conclusion.
Next Song, When I Get Home.
June 2nd, 1964 announced the final recording date utilized in introducing songs for the British "A Hard Day's Night" album. This day saw three brand new Lennon/McCartney songs debut, the first two ("Any Time At All" and "Things We Said Today") being worked on in the afternoon session between 2:30 and 5:30 pm. The evening session, which ran from 7 to 10 pm, saw The Beatles start and finish "When I Get Home" before returning for another stab at "Any Time At All." As usual, this session took place in EMI Studio Two in London.
It took eleven takes to get the basic rhythm track down, which consisted of a full band arrangement (two guitars, bass and drums) with John's ballsy vocals. Take eleven was then used for overdubs, which consisted of Lennon double-tracking his vocals during the bridge and final measures of the song, Paul and George's harmonies during the refrains and Paul on piano. The song was deemed complete and suitable for release by approximately 9 pm.
On June 4th, George Martin and engineers Norman Smith and Richard Langham created the first mono mix of the song in EMI Studio Two, although it was never used.
All of the released mixes of the song were done on June 22nd by George Martin, Norman Smith and 2nd engineer Geoff Emerick in the control room of EMI Studio One. Two mono mixes were made, the first one for release in Britain and the second for America. There are subtle differences between the two.
The US mono mix is the only one where you can fully detect the piano overdub, which is especially noticeable in the bridge. The UK mono mix, on the other hand, has louder cymbal crashes during the "whoa-ah" of the refrains. Care was taken in both mixes on the bridge during the line "till I walk out that door," because Lennon's double-tracked vocals were very disorienting when heard together. The mono mixes chose the vocal track John sang on the original take during the words "till I walk."
The stereo mix, also created on this day, shows that John's overdubbed vocal (not the original take) was used on that line. This was obviously the better choice because he actually hits the note properly this time around, where during the original take he didn't quite reach the note. On this mix, more words are included as single-tracked, which comprise "love her more, till I walk." This may be the only case in the early Beatles mixes where the stereo mix is superior to the mono.
Song Structure and Style
This compelling and interesting structure deviates from the norm in many ways, but still stays mostly within a six-chord range. One somewhat unusual component in the song's pattern is the use of a refrain, which begins the song. The entire pattern consists of 'refrain/ verse/ refrain/ verse/ refrain/ bridge/ verse/ refrain' (or ababacba).
We start out with a startling refrain that gives the illusion that we are entering into a song already in progress. The first thing we hear is jarring three-part harmony with Lennon belting out the lead on the wordless expression "whoah-I" in typical Beatles-like falsetto. Although the straining notes get to where they should be, we can't help but sense the awkwardness of the wavering measure-and-a-half final note. Further disorienting the listener, the home key doesn't actually reveal itself until the verse begins.
The eight-measure refrain that opens the song is also unique in that it begins in a major key and ends in a minor. In fact, The Beatles utilized this trick quite often throughout the entire British "A Hard Day's Night" album (note "And I Love Her" and "I'll Be Back" as examples).
On top of it all, the repeated accent on the 'four-and' beat in the refrain, without any emphasis on the one-beat, can also leave the listener a little confused. Not that The Beatles hadn't also used this before, the most prominent example being the introduction to "I Want To Hold Your Hand." That disorienting beginning didn't hurt its popularity one bit, so "When I Get Home" should definitely not be faulted for containing a similarly ambiguous opening.
The three-part harmony appears only during the refrains of the song and continues until the final phrase of the refrain, the song's title, which is always sung by John alone. After this, The Beatles segue nicely into the home key of the verse with a jangly guitar passage coupled with an appropriate drum fill from Ringo.
The first verse, sung solo and single-tracked by Lennon, is also eight measures long and works to establish the storyline. John sings more comfortably in this slightly lower range which works well as a contrast to the forceful delivery we hear next in the repeated refrain.
After another structurally identical verse and refrain, we come upon the ten-measure bridge, which is the only section of the song that is not symmetrical. Another unique characteristic of this bridge is that it uses the home key of C as its anchor and resolves itself at the end instead of being a natural segue into another verse. Although The Beatles have done this before (such as in "Please Please Me"), their usual use of the bridge thrusts you back naturally into another verse (such as in "You Can't Do That" or "From Me To You"). In this case, the last measure of the bridge is added to make a comfortable passage back to another verse, which mimics the same function at the end of the refrain.
Interestingly, the jangly guitar passage from the end of the refrain is also heard at the end of the bridge, but Ringo fails to accompany it with his drum fill. We can forgive him for the error since he was in the hospital the next day with tonsillitis, and was no doubt in much pain on this day. We'll give him a break!
After one final structurally identical verse we move into the final refrain, but this time the refrain is eleven measures long and acts as the song's conclusion. The latter half of the refrain is repeated, which stabilizes the song in the home key of C. Also noteworthy is that this is the only refrain that has John double-tracking his vocals on the title of the song.
As for musicianship, Lennon steals the show as he does for most of the "A Hard Day's Night" album. His powerhouse 'bluesy' vocals convincingly depict that he means everything he sings about. While his vocal double-tracking leaves something to be desired, he uses it sparingly and to great effect, although flaws are still evident, such as during the lines "walk out that door again" in the bridge and "when I get home, yeah" in the final refrain. The influence of one of John's favorite singers, Arthur Alexander, is also heard in the lines "I'll love her moe, till I walk out that doe."
Since no guitar solo is heard in the song, both Harrison and Lennon's role in "When I Get Home" is that of rhythm guitarist. The "clanky" dual-Rickenbacker guitar sound is prominently displayed throughout without the sign of even a guitar flourish.
Paul's bass work is primarily on the beat without too much fuss but very appropriate to the R&B feel of the song. What we can hear of his piano work is proficient but, obviously, wasn't deemed appropriate to the song since it was kept so low in the mix as to be almost nonexistent. His vocals are spotless as usual, the shakiness of the harmonies more due to John's high reach than anything else.
Ringo gets a chance to display his chops a little bit more here than in many other tracks on the album. His accents in the refrains and the fills to bridge the gaps between the sections of the song stand out nicely.
It should be mentioned that, although Lennon referred to this track in an interview as "a four-in-the-bar cowbell song," there is not one hit on any cowbell throughout. No doubt, he was confusing this song with three other similar sounding tracks recorded this year, namely "You Can't Do That," "A Hard Day's Night" and "I Call Your Name," which all have cowbell played four-in-the-bar. If only the legendary producer Bruce Dickenson worked with The Beatles back then, we surely would have been enjoying "more cowbell" in this song too, baby. :-)
Lyrically, Lennon appears simply to be wanting to escape the business pressures of the group to return home to Cynthia. Since the song most likely was written during a vacation he was having with Cynthia, it may have been an attempt by John to pacify and console her due to him being away all the time. Apparently by this time, John had already 'loved her till the cows came home.'
John's clever use of phrases like "out my way," "let me through" and "if you please" work well to add a measure of "cool" to the lyrics while presenting an immediacy to his intentions. His use of the word "trivialities" reveals John's literary nature, a word such as this being quite unusual in a pop song at the time. However, the similarity between this song and "A Hard Day's Night" is quite apparent ("when I get home to you..." and "when I'm home, everything seems to be right") but the delivery demonstrates an intensity not felt in the previous song.
One confusing line, "I'll love her more, till I walk out that door again," may cause some enthusiasts to think he's referring to his philandering ways continuing when he leaves Cynthia again. Although this line has never been explained, we can easily assume that he was emphasizing the "make-up-sex" they'll have when he finally gets there. Not articulated very well, but it's close enough for rock'n'roll.
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