and do not necessarily reflect the views of UK Essays.
Liverpool, a city 202 miles northwest of London that holds down the right bank of the River Mersey, is the second largest port in the British Isles.1 Rock ‘n’ roll music made its way to England through the port of Liverpool. Liverpool was the entry point for cotton and other imports, including American records, from the United States.2 As a result, compared to the rest of the people in Britain, the people in Liverpool had a stronger exposure to American music. Another factor that contributed to the Liverpudlians’ familiarity with American music was the presence of RAF Burtonwood, a U.S. military base a few miles northeast of Liverpool. 2 It had the most United States Army Air Forces personnel and facilities in Europe during World War II. At the end of the war, 18,000 servicemen were stationed in this base, which was so large it was known as “little America”, and they brought to England things from home, including their favorite records.2
History
All four Beatles were born into the working class, amid the raining down of German bombs and the wailing of air-sirens during World War II.3 By the time they were teenagers, in the 1950s, things were only starting to settle down – Britain was crippled financially, food rationing continued, and the terrain was still jagged with blast marks and craters.4
In the early 1960s, Great Britain still had vast unemployment and stultifying class disjunction, while America, on the other hand, was devastated by the Kennedy assassination and the realities of the Cold War.5 Britons were just coming to terms with the scandal surrounding Government Defense Minister John Profumo’s extramarital affair,6 which damaged the credibility of the government and eventually led to the resignation of Prime Minister Harold Macmillan.7
The 1960s was a period defined by the Cold War and the relative economic prosperity of capitalism in the west.8 It was an era marked by rock concerts, peace demonstrations, and local pockets of activism and community.9 The Beatles’ early success symbolized a break with the absence of innovation and quality of late 1950s music, and at the same time it was a continuation of the legacy of the 1950s, as the song writing of Chuck Berry and the vocal style of the Everly Brothers, among many other contributing factors, were integral to the formation of the Beatles own stylistic identity.10
Popular culture was not thought to play a role in political controversy or in society at large, but that was until the end of the Second World War. The Cold War suddenly made popular culture controversial. Actor John Wayne was popular mostly because of the political positions with which he was associated. The need to compete with television led the movies to risk controversial subjects, such as anti-Semitism, homosexuality, and juvenile delinquency. Elvis Presley’s introduction of rock ‘n’ roll music to a white, mainstream audience solidified the association between youth and popular music. By the 1960s, the music helped to establish for teenagers a powerful sense of generational identity. The Beatles attracted a college-age audience to rock ‘n’ roll, and so their vast popularity contributed to this new perception.11
It was in this period that the youth of the day began to identify with the victims of social injustice. The Hippie culture made these well-to-do young people feel that they could relate to the minority and the poor subpopulations. They pleaded with predominant institutions, the so-called “establishment”, to reverse their indifference and offer relief, but they realized that the “establishment” would not heed their moral call and that they had to take it upon themselves to organize as a political movement.12
This period had burning issues that mobilized enormous segments of society. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. magnificently translated the Civil Rights movement, primarily a minority issue, into a universal eliciting of consciousness regarding equal rights for all. The Vietnam War funneled the moral outrage of the youthful secularists into a consciousness that is said to have persisted into the present day. 12
Bob Dylan, the central figure in the emergence of rock ‘n’ roll’s cultural importance, had established himself as the leading young folk music performer and as a writer of powerful topical songs.9 He helped politicize a vast segment of rock culture including the Beatles, inspiring the group to accept its popularity as an opportunity to define and speak to a vital youth constituency. The Beatles’ music, and rock music in general, became a medium for addressing the issues and events that affected that generation.13
Society
As a result of the Baby Boom and the tremendous expansion in opportunities for higher education initiated after World War II, more individuals belonged to the intellectual community or were affected by it. The Baby Boomers were also raised with increasing permissiveness by parents. Children were encouraged not only to think on their own, but to think about a wide range of heretofore suppressed thoughts. It was in the 60s that the formerly stable institutions of Western society—the church, the family, and the local community—began to break down, and as the youth of the day, in increasing numbers, began to explore widely divergent socio-cultural milieus, they came into conflict with conditions of society far less comfortable than their own. They began to identify with the victims of social injustice and pleaded with what appeared to be massive and callous institutions to reverse their indifference and offer relief. The Hippie culture was a result of this – they were able to think of themselves as outlaws, which made them feel that they could relate to the minority.12
There appears to be a connection between the cultural revolution of the sixties and the Beatles’ music.14 Beat music, which is exemplified by the music of the Beatles, became popular in the 1960s, and at the same time, youth propagated more egalitarian and informal ways of communication as the new standard for social interaction.15 The communication code of the peer group is characterized by an open and almost permanent negotiation of feelings and opinions.16 The Beatles’ songs could articulate the vocabulary of the rising youth culture so well. The Beatles’ songs evoked a sense of awakening, as they were articulating and promoting the open and reciprocal idiom of the peer group as a model for civil conversation, giving a full voice to youth culture.14
Politics and Economy
Britain, in the 1950s, was recuperating from the aftermath of the war. The cost-of-living index continued to rise rapidly, causing strikes among market workers and employees. Acute coal shortage brought about actual importation from the United States. But employment remained high, because industries began a rapid expansion. The supply of consumer goods also continued to increase, reversing the policy on rationing. The general picture of the economy was brightening.17 The 1960s was witness to the Cold War and the relative economic prosperity of capitalism in the west.8 The United States economy’s longest peacetime expansion took place from 1961 to 1969.18 The period also saw the Civil Rights movement, the call for equal rights for all, and the Vietnam War, among other issues, which mobilized a huge segment of society into civil disobedience.12 Rock music, which held the youth together,11 was one of the mediums in which they addressed these issues.13
Artworld Relations
Rock ‘n’ roll is a music form that revolutionized in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s through a mixing together of various popular musical genres of the time. It is rooted mainly on rhythm and blues, country, folk, gospel, and jazz. The style quickly spread to the rest of the world and developed further, leading eventually to modern rock music. At around the same time that rock and roll hit Britain in early 1956, a similar form of music came along which is popularly known as skiffle. It was really a fusion of American Jazz, blues and folk music. It also had been surfacing in various semblances for quite a few years.19 From its inception in the early fifties, it had offered teenagers, at that time, a new way of taking in music. With its unmistakably mutinous undertones, rock provides a musical score for the twilight universe that is adolescence. It was commonly looked down by older music listeners but for the youth of that period, it seemed like a personalized declaration of independence.20 A thumbnail chronology of 1950s rock days is a thumbnail chronology of a war between young and old.20 Before a bunch of American records reached UK and stirred the Brits, the firepower started when Bill Haley’s Rock Around the Clock reached number one both in the US and UK, and Chuck Berry’s Maybellene began to scream on the radios.20
By the late 1950s, rock raced across the pop charts which entertained a lot of teenagers. However, the success of the form by this time is counteracted by most adults and the music industry itself that still looks at rock disdainfully. The new sound is fighting a generational, musical, social, personal war with society.21 While somewhat disturbing society’s walls, rock ‘n’ roll is imploding in the hearts of some teenagers in an English seaport called Liverpool,21 including the young Beatles members, John, George, Paul and Ringo.
The first flourishes of rock n’ roll in the form of Bill Haley and His Comets aligned music with rebellious youth. Particular rock and roll idols following after started the ball rolling for the Beatles. This is topped by none other than Elvis Presley who’s dubbed as the guy who lit the Beatles’ fuse.22 The rock artists who had a major impact on the Beatles ranged from FatsDomino, Eddie Cochran, Carl Perkins, Gene Vincent, Buddy Holly, little Richard, to Chuck Berry. The list goes on. To the Beatles, Elvis may have represented the music style that they wanted, but he wasn’t quite the complete package. He sang brilliantly and looked fantastic. He had great songs but he didn’t actually write them. However, there were other artists coming onto the scene who also wrote their own material, and this kind of self-sufficiency really appealed to the young Lennon and McCartney.23
At the top of it was Chuck Berry. He was one of the few black performers whom white teenage audience consciously listened to during the 1950s, and he did largely entertained them on the strength of charismatic stage character, his distinctive, rocking, and widely imitated guitar licks, and his ingenious songs. One aspect of Chuck Berry’s tremendous influence that should be highlighted, is the way he introduced a more sophisticated and disciplined form of lyricism to rock music. Thus inspiring the likes of Lennon and McCartney to compose their own songs.23
All these musical influences were quickly spread to a mainstream audience of young people during the 1950s and 60s. Before TV took over as a multi-purpose medium for spreading this, radio was king. That well-known Beatle sense of humor came about partly because of the radio comedians they listened to as kids. At the same time, it was also via the airwaves that they first heard the strains of rock and roll. At their time, TV sets were a definite luxury, but one commodity that could probably be inside all of their homes was the radio.24 During the mid-50s the only British channels that people could tune into were those of the government-controlled British Broadcasting Corporation. The BBC basically transmitted what the adults wanted to hear, easy listening, all the way from Vera Lynn to Frankie Laine. Rock ‘n’ roll music was no way to be broadcasted then. Radio helped to shape the Beatles’ musical tastes and their sense of humor.25
Sample/Analysis
Love Me Do
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Magical Mystery Tour, Track 11 (Parlophone CDP7 48062-2)
Yellow Submarine, Track 6 (Parlophone CDP7 46445-2)
Yellow Submarine Songtrack, Track 12 (EMI 5 21481-2)
Released: 7 July 1967 A Single / Baby You’re A Rich Man
Recorded: 14 June 1967, Olympic Sound Studios; 19 June 1967, Abbey Road 3; 23-25 June 1967, Abbey Road 1; the song was aired on the Eurovision program “Our World” on 25.06.1967
Length: 2:57
Key: G Major
Meter: 4/4 (with occasional 3/4)
Form: Intro | Verse | Verse | Verse | Refrain | Verse (guitar solo) | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Refrain | Outro (fade-out)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon: vocals, harmonica
Paul McCartney: vocals, bass
George Harrison: acoustic rhythm guitar
Ringo Starr: drums, tambourine
The form is quite simple perhaps because Paul started composing this when he was very young, probably around 15 or 16. In line with this is the simple plaintive melody and rhythm of the song. The group has started out with simple rhythms, unsophisticated and straightforward lyrics, and themes that are very appealing to the teen audience. The very striking and remarkable feature in the song is the harmonica which John played quite well. The harmonica also added that certain x-factor to the tune and to the song in general. The lyrics were just repeated all throughout the song, which makes it quite short. The vocal aspect of the song appears to be apt for the theme of the song.
The lyrics of the song is a simple dedication of a devoted lover to his loved one. The song is not as soft and mellow as Yesterday, but not as hard as Helter Skelter. Compared to the other hits of the Beatles after the release of Love Me Do, this song in particular carried a big significance to the band members because it just signaled that they are now in the recording industry, which they only used to dream of.
I Saw Her Standing There
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Magical Mystery Tour, Track 11 (Parlophone CDP7 48062-2)
Yellow Submarine, Track 6 (Parlophone CDP7 46445-2)
Yellow Submarine Songtrack, Track 12 (EMI 5 21481-2)
Released: 7 July 1967 A Single / Baby You’re A Rich Man
Recorded:
Length: 2:57
Key: G Major
Meter: 4/4 (with occasional 3/4)
Form: Intro | Verse | Verse | Verse | Refrain | Verse (guitar solo) | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Refrain | Outro (fade-out)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon:lead vocals, harpsichord, banjo
Paul McCartney: bass
George Harrison: violin, lead guitar
Ringo Starr: drums, snare drum roll
I Saw Her Standing There is one of the boys’ first fast, hard rockers. The arrangement of this song is filled with techniques and touches unique to the group that defined the early sound of the Beatles. The song narrates a simple boy-meets-girl story in the first person to which the pulsating music lends a definitely hot connotation, in spite of the lack of any explicit passion in the lyrics. They also used a type of wordplay that also became a Beatles trademark. In terms of its form, the song has a comparatively long running time of 2:52 which consists of a 2 bridge model with 2 verses intervening, one of which is for guitar solo. The fast pace of the song enhance a general feeling of urgency. Also, the tune covers a broad range and consists of an entirely interesting mix of step-wise motion with dramatic long-jumps. Each of the members contributed to the over-all excitement in the arrangement of this song. This includes Paul’s boogie-woogie bass lines, which outline the chords, Ringo’s elaborately syncopated drum fills that appear in the space between sections, the backing work on rhythm and lead guitars that works in fine synergy with the bass and drum parts. Furthermore, the tight vocal harmonies of Paul and John feature a type of counterpoint that seems bracingly different from what was to be heard from their contemporaries. Lastly, the handclaps and the screaming used for background punctuation are unessential yet nevertheless characteristic.
The song evokes such a pleasurably exuberant mood and an absence of romantic/emotional complications. It’s more of a ‘hip ditty bop noise’, as Richard Price puts it, reminding us in perpetuity of the ‘nowness and coolness of being 17 and hip’, as well as falling for the first time in what a teenage thinks just might be ‘real’ love. Although there’s an eventually bitter and disappointing side to this experience, the song emphasizes that the sweeter part of it is worth taking with someone for the rest of his life. Just like any of their early period songs, this song contains no profundity in its lyrics. It just implies the usual situation that a teenager faces in terms of love and the opposite sex. It appears to be somewhat a way of expressing a teen feeling about love and the common view of the youth about it at the time. Here, it seemed that the Beatles try to make an impression that they are like the other youngster as to how they view that certain aspect of the teen world.
All my Loving
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Magical Mystery Tour, Track 11 (Parlophone CDP7 48062-2)
Yellow Submarine, Track 6 (Parlophone CDP7 46445-2)
Yellow Submarine Songtrack, Track 12 (EMI 5 21481-2)
Released: 7 July 1967 A Single / Baby You’re A Rich Man
Recorded: 14 June 1967, Olympic Sound Studios; 19 June 1967, Abbey Road 3; 23-25 June 1967, Abbey Road 1; the song was aired on the Eurovision program “Our World” on 25.06.1967
Length: 2:57
Key: G Major
Meter: 4/4 (with occasional 3/4)
Form: Intro | Verse | Verse | Verse | Refrain | Verse (guitar solo) | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Refrain | Outro (fade-out)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon: backing vocals, rhythm guitar
Paul McCartney: vocals, bass
George Harrison: backing vocals, lead guitar
Ringo Starr: drums
The song is one of the several Beatles songs with somehow superficial lyrics about love and affection. The melody is quite lively though it’s not as upbeat as IWant to Hold Your Hand and I Saw Her Standing There. There were also some stopgaps in between the stanzas in the song. Evidently, it is one of those songs that characterized the early songwriting and music composition of the Beatles.
I Want to Hold Your Hand
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Magical Mystery Tour, Track 11 (Parlophone CDP7 48062-2)
Yellow Submarine, Track 6 (Parlophone CDP7 46445-2)
Yellow Submarine Songtrack, Track 12 (EMI 5 21481-2)
Released: 7 July 1967 A Single / Baby You’re A Rich Man
Recorded: 14 June 1967, Olympic Sound Studios; 19 June 1967, Abbey Road 3; 23-25 June 1967, Abbey Road 1; the song was aired on the Eurovision program “Our World” on 25.06.1967
Length: 2:57
Key: G Major
Meter: 4/4 (with occasional 3/4)
Form: Intro | Verse | Verse | Verse | Refrain | Verse (guitar solo) | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Refrain | Outro (fade-out)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon:lead vocals, harpsichord, banjo
Paul McCartney: bass
George Harrison: violin, lead guitar
Ringo Starr: drums, snare drum roll
The song is deceptively straightforward and regular in design. It starts with a falling melody. Also, it sounds closer to conservative pop than rebelliously hard rock. It has the non-intuitive two-part vocal harmony, falsetto screaming, an occasionally novel chord progression, abrupt rhythm even some elided phrasing and the overdubbed handclaps. The original song has no real “lead” singer or even a clearly defined melody, as Lennon and McCartney sing in harmony with each other. They sing in duet virtually the whole way through. Paul plays quite a bit of double-stops in the bass part, Ringo throws in some of his structurally significant drum fills in between the second and third phrase of each verse, and most subtle of all, George contributes a number of lead guitar fills.
It was the youth who discovered the Beatles, and while young people can be easily manipulated through hype and image, in the case of the Beatles it was the music that drew them in. This song is undeniably one of the Beatles all-time hits and in several ways represents the compositional height of what could be called their Very Early period. In context of November 1963, I Want to Hold Your Hand was the best they could do, a kind of summing up of all they had done to-date. It also has a seemingly puppy-love simplicity that does hold up remarkably well like a classic. I Want to Hold Your Hand was not subject to numerous cover versions like other Beatles songs such as Yesterday or Something. Nonetheless, it was one of their greatest hits. Their early songs mostly consist of simple and uncomplicated meanings behind the lyrics that were tailored for the young audience.
A Hard Day’s Night
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Magical Mystery Tour, Track 11 (Parlophone CDP7 48062-2)
Yellow Submarine, Track 6 (Parlophone CDP7 46445-2)
Yellow Submarine Songtrack, Track 12 (EMI 5 21481-2)
Released: 7 July 1967 A Single / Baby You’re A Rich Man
Recorded: 14 June 1967, Olympic Sound Studios; 19 June 1967, Abbey Road 3; 23-25 June 1967, Abbey Road 1; the song was aired on the Eurovision program “Our World” on 25.06.1967
Length: 2:57
Key: G Major
Meter: 4/4 (with occasional 3/4)
Form: Intro | Verse | Verse | Verse | Refrain | Verse (guitar solo) | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Refrain | Outro (fade-out)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon:lead vocals, harpsichord, banjo
Paul McCartney: bass
George Harrison: violin, lead guitar
Ringo Starr: drums, snare drum roll
The song has a long form, with two bridges and an instrumental break. It has a deep similarity with typical “blues” melodic structures which creates a combined style between traditional blues elements and those more recognizable as the Beatles’ own trademarks. A Hard Day’s Night is a particularly forward-looking song since it has numerous innovations in the area of harmony and arrangement. It has a generally energetic bustle that appears on its surface. On a subtle level, the very casualness of the discordance between the tunes and chords adds a characterizingly “slang” flavor to the song’s over all music vocabulary. John takes most of the verse as solo and Paul with the bridge. In the chorus, Paul handles the high harmony and John the low harmony. The opening chord has its great effect because of the sudden, crisp attack of the song. The pause that follows the opening chord is an example of how suspense and a sense of rising expectations is created by a change of pace. The effect has a surprise factor that works well at the beginning of the film or album. The song is parallel in itself since it ends off inexplicably on practically the same chord with which the song began. This also provides some unity to the song generally. Furthermore, it closes with a fade-out which was new to the Beatles at that time since the prior songs had closed with a final chord such as She Loves You and I Want to Hold Your Hand.
The lyrics are far from profound. Basically, the song speaks about one’s undying devotion to his loved one and how he works hard so she can buy the things she fancies. The singer sings about his tiredness when he comes home from work. But when he sees the things that his lover does, these perk him up. The song was sung on an exuberant mood along with fast paced beats in it. It also incorporated new techniques that the Beatles have not yet done in their earlier songs like Harrison’s arpeggio-playing during the fade-out. The simple lyrics cater to a larger audience of young people. This is due to the theme of the song which is about love that gets it across to a lot of young listeners. Furthermore, there is but a few meanings to this song which is usually the characteristic of their early period songs. Perhaps, because their main goal by then is to gain popularity through entertaining a larger portion of music listeners, the kids.
Help!
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Magical Mystery Tour, Track 11 (Parlophone CDP7 48062-2)
Yellow Submarine, Track 6 (Parlophone CDP7 46445-2)
Yellow Submarine Songtrack, Track 12 (EMI 5 21481-2)
Released: 7 July 1967 A Single / Baby You’re A Rich Man
Recorded: 14 June 1967, Olympic Sound Studios; 19 June 1967, Abbey Road 3; 23-25 June 1967, Abbey Road 1; the song was aired on the Eurovision program “Our World” on 25.06.1967
Length: 2:57
Key: G Major
Meter: 4/4 (with occasional 3/4)
Form: Intro | Verse | Verse | Verse | Refrain | Verse (guitar solo) | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Refrain | Outro (fade-out)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon:lead vocals, harpsichord, banjo
Paul McCartney: bass
George Harrison: violin, lead guitar
Ringo Starr: drums, snare drum roll
The song Help! has a two-part lead vocals and a speeded-up tempo. The final take in the recording session was the best, and onto this Ringo Starr overdubbed a tambourine, and George Harrison added the series of descending Chet Atkins-style guitar notes which close each chorus. One can listen to a couple of complicated, fast riffs in the song which added more pulse to the overall rhythm. The melody, somewhat, counteracted the message of the song of being depressed and disheartened. It was noticeably composed to satisfy their commercial instincts at this time. The lyrics, on the other hand, is somehow repetitive that makes the song a bit short compared to their prior songs. The vocals were solid enough to agree with the harmony of the instruments most notably the tambourine playing at the background. It still definitely has some blues elements incorporated in the song which is most common to the Beatles’ songs.
The song’s lyrics seem straightforward and superficial. The lyric that emerged was not simply a boy talking to a girl, but more of a patient to a psychotherapist or just someone seeking help from somebody else or from a mind-altering substance. The song was a marked departure from the boy-girl relationships that they have been talking about in their early songs. On the other hand, the song had commercial appeal, with its fast tempo and lively instrumentation. Here, the group is starting to develop emotional depth and weight in composing their songs.
Yesterday
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Magical Mystery Tour, Track 11 (Parlophone CDP7 48062-2)
Yellow Submarine, Track 6 (Parlophone CDP7 46445-2)
Yellow Submarine Songtrack, Track 12 (EMI 5 21481-2)
Released: 7 July 1967 A Single / Baby You’re A Rich Man
Recorded: 14 June 1967, Olympic Sound Studios; 19 June 1967, Abbey Road 3; 23-25 June 1967, Abbey Road 1; the song was aired on the Eurovision program “Our World” on 25.06.1967
Length: 2:57
Key: G Major
Meter: 4/4 (with occasional 3/4)
Form: Intro | Verse | Verse | Verse | Refrain | Verse (guitar solo) | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Refrain | Outro (fade-out)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon:lead vocals, harpsichord, banjo
Paul McCartney: bass
George Harrison: violin, lead guitar
Ringo Starr: drums, snare drum roll
Yesterday has a unique arrangement, an attractive tune, even some asymmetrical phrasing and a couple of off-beat chord progressions. It has a tempo that is uncharacteristically slow. The instrumental backing consists entirely of an acoustic guitar and a string quartet (two violins, a viola and a cello) with the two elements mixed. The track is sung solo by Paul virtually all the way through with a particular exception for a short patch of double tracking to highlight the high notes at the end of the first bridge. As with Paul’s other hymns, the bass line of this song is played with special emphasis whether through the hard-picked notes on the low-strings of the guitar or supported by the cello. The string arrangement supplements the song’s air of sadness, notably the moaning of the cello melody and its blue seventh that connects the two halves of the bridge as well as the descending line by the viola that shifts the chorus back unto the verses. There is an ironic tension between the content of what is played by the quartet and the restrained, spare nature of the medium in which it is played, adding an engaging level of depth to the performance. This is quite different from the fast paced, upbeat songs of the Beatles prior to this one especially because of its soothing, light melodic structure.
Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Rubber Soul, Track 2 (Parlophone CDP7 46440-2)
Released: 3 December 1965
Recorded: 12, 21 October 1965, Abbey Road 2
Length: 2:05
Key: E Major
Meter: 3/4 (6/8)
Form: Verse (instrumental intro) | Verse | Bridge | Verse | Verse (instrumental solo) | Bridge
| Verse | Outro (with complete ending)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon: double tracked lead vocal, 6 & 12 string acoustic rhythm guitars
Paul McCartney: harmony vocal and bass
George Harrison: doubletracked sitar
Ringo Starr: finger cymbals, tambourine, maracas
Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) is a rhythmic acoustic ballad featuring signature Beatle harmonies in the middle eight. “Norwegian wood” refers to the cheap pinewood that often finished the interiors of working class British flats. The lyrics speak of an encounter between the singer and an unnamed girl. They drink wine and talk. The speaker may have been hoping to sleep with the girl, declaring “it’s time for bed”. But the girl leaves him to crawl off to “sleep in the bath” alone. Later, the singer finds that the girl has left him for another love, so the singer lights a fire and burns the girl’s house as an act of revenge. Lighting a fire may also be interpreted as smoking a cigarette or smoking some weed. The instrumental backing is acoustic in style approach.
The intro is sixteen measures long. The presentation of the hook phrase consists of the solo acoustic guitar followed by the entrance of the sitar (which then carries the melody) and bass guitar. All the verses follow the pattern set up in the intro. The bridge is also sixteen measures long, and the slowness of the harmonic rhythm helps maintain the measured mood established earlier The outro provides one repeat of the hook.
Norwegian Wood(This Bird Has Flown) is the first pop record ever released to feature a sitar (Newman 93). In direct contrast to earlier Beatles songs such as Love Me Do and I Want to Hold Your Hand, Norwegian Wood(This Bird Has Flown)provides a darker outlook towards romantic relationships. The exotic instrumentation and oblique lyrics are indications of the expanding musical vocabulary and experimental approach that the Beatles were rapidly adopting.
Yellow Submarine
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Revolver, Track 6 (Parlophone CDP7 46441-2)
Yellow Submarine, Track 1 (Parlophone CDP7 46445-2)
Yellow Submarine Songtrack, Track 1 (EMI 5 21481-2)
Released: 5 August 1966 (Double-A Single / Eleanor Rigby and LP Revolver)
Recorded: 26 May 1966, Abbey Road 3; 1 June 1966, Abbey Road 2
Length: 2:38
Key: G Major
Meter: 4/4
Form: Verse | Verse | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Verse (instrumental) | Verse | Refrain
Instrumentation:
John Lennon: acoustic guitar, blowing bubbles
Paul McCartney: bass, acoustic guitar
George Harrison: tambourine
Ringo Starr: lead vocals, drums
Others: brass band instruments
The verse is composed of eight measures, and so is the refrain. The outro features the refrain repeated into the fade-out. The song was meant to be a children’s song, and talks about a story of a man’s travels in a submarine.
Tomorrow Never Knows
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Revolver, Track 14 (Parlophone CDP7 46441-2)
Yellow Submarine, Track 1 (Parlophone CDP7 46445-2)
Yellow Submarine Songtrack, Track 1 (EMI 5 21481-2)
Released: 5 August 1966 (LP Revolver)
Recorded: 6, 7 April 1966, Abbey Road 3; 22 April 1966, Abbey Road 2
Length: 2:57
Key: C Major
Meter: 4/4
Form: Intro | Verse | Verse | Verse | Instrumental | Verse | Verse | Verse | Verse | Outro (fade-out)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon: lead vocals, rhythm guitar, tape loops
Paul McCartney: Bass, tape loops
George Harrison: Sitar, lead guitar
Ringo Starr: drums
George Martin: Hammond organ, piano
The layered intro is six measures long, built out of two measures each of a fading-in, pulsating tamboura drone on the pitch, a hard-rock rhythm track, and a “seagull” tape loop.
The verse is a straightforward eight measures long and is repeated over and over, seven times (exclusive of the intro, outro, and solo sections). The instrumental break fills sixteen measures. The outro is an extension of the final verse with five iterations of last phrase. A number of musical elements emerge, most notably, a piano.
The title never appears in the song’s lyrics, but was instead taken from Ringo Starr’s collection of malapropisms. Lennon was embarrassed about the spiritual theme of the lyrics in the song and so he decided to give the song a throwaway title. The piece was originally titled “Mark I”.
The song was closely adapted from the book The Psychedelic Experience by Timothy Leary, Richard Alpert, and Ralph Metzner. This books quotes from, the Tibetan Book of the Dead. The understanding from the book was that the “ego death” experienced under the influence of LSD and other psychedelic drugs is essentially similar to the dying process and requires similar guidance.
Tomorrow Never Knows was recorded in a very experimental manner. The song contains the first example of a vocal being put through a Leslie speaker cabinet to obtain a vibrato effect (which was normally used as a loudspeaker for a Hammond organ) and the use of an automatic double-tracking system to double the vocal image.
The song’s harmonic structure is derived from Indian music, and is based upon a C drone. The “chord” over the drone is generally C major, with some changes to B flat major.
The track, which is an early example of psychedelic rock music, includes highly compressed drums with reverse cymbals, reverse guitar, processed vocals, looped tape effects, a sitar and a tambur (a long-necked fretted lute) drone.
This song represented a complete change of direction for the Beatles in terms of their songwriting, their instrumentation and recording techniques.
Strawberry Fields Forever
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Magical Mystery Tour, Track 8 (Parlophone CDP7 48062-2)
Released: 17 February 1967 (Double-A Single / Penny Lane)
Recorded: 24, 28, 29 November, 8, 9, 15, 21, 22 December 1966, Abbey Road 2
Length: 4:10
Key: B Flat
Meter: 4/4 (with occasional 6/8)
Form: Intro | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Outro (with double fade-out)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon:lead vocals, acoustic guitar
Paul McCartney: bass, mellotron, piano, bongos, timpani
George Harrison: guitar, swordmandel, bongos, timpani
Ringo Starr: drums, backwards cymbals
Mal Evans: tambourine
Tony Fisher, Greg Bowen, Derek Watkins, Stanley Roderick: trumpets
John Hall, Derek Simpson, Norman Jones: cellos
The song talks about a place where “nothing is real.” The first part of the song features mellotron, guitar, and drums. The second part shifts to an orchestra-like texture which sounds like a larger ensemble. The outro features the swordmandel and mellotron, followed by something that sounds like a pulsating doppler effect panning across the stereo picture, followed by more mellotron, followed by the alleged “cranberry sauce” remark.
When I’m 64
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, Track 9 (Parlophone CDP7 46442-2)
Yellow Submarine Songtrack, Track 13 (EMI 5 21481-2)
Released: 1 June 1967 (LP Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
Recorded: 6 December 1966, Abbey Road 2; 8 December 1966 Abbey Road 1; 20, 21 December 1966, Abbey Road 2
Length: 2:37
Key: D Flat Major
Meter: 4/4
Form: Intro | Verse | Bridge | Verse | Bridge | Verse | Outro (with complete ending)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon: rhythm guitar
Paul McCartney: lead vocals, bass guitar
George Harrison: lead guitar
Ringo Starr: drums
James W. Buck, Neil Sanders, Tony Randall, John Burden: French horns
The singer sings about his plans of growing old together with his lover. French horns are featured prominently in the song, which is unusual in rock ‘n’ roll. Like the other songs in the Sgt. Pepper’s album, the song features elaborate arrangements and extensive use of studio effects. The album incorporates their pop/RnB/rock ‘n’ roll beginnings with their new song arrangements and recording techniques.
A Day in the Life
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, Track 13 (Parlophone CDP7 46442-2)
Released: 1 June 1967 (LP Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
Recorded: 19, 20 January, 3 February 1967, Abbey Road 2; 10 February 1967, Abbey Road 1; 22 February 1967, Abbey Road 2
Length: 5:05
Key: G Major / e minor -> E Major
Meter: 2/4
Form: Intro | Verse | Verse | Verse | Bridge | Middle vocal section | Middle instrumental section | Verse | Bridge | Outro (with complete ending)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon: double tracked lead vocals (all the verses), acoustic guitar, maracas, piano (final E chord)
Paul McCartney: piano, lead vocals (middle eight), bass guitar
George Harrison: maracas
Ringo Starr: drums, congas and piano (final E chord)
George Martin: harmonium (final E chord)
Mal Evans: alarm clock, counting, piano (final E chord)
George Martin, Paul McCartney and John Lennon: orchestration, conduction
The verses of the song are in G-major/E-minor and the bridge is in E-major. A 4/4 meter is used throughout. The song has an instrumental beginning, followed by three verses, an orchestral crescendo, a middle section, an orchestral bridge, the final verse, a second orchestral crescendo, and a final piano chord.
Each verse follows the same basic layout, but each has a different way of ending. The third verse leads to the bridge, 24 measures long. An alarm clock rings, beginning McCartney’s middle section. The final verse leads to the second crescendo. After the orchestra hits its highest note, there is a measure of silence, which leads to the final E-major piano chord.
All You Need is Love
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Magical Mystery Tour, Track 11 (Parlophone CDP7 48062-2)
Yellow Submarine, Track 6 (Parlophone CDP7 46445-2)
Yellow Submarine Songtrack, Track 12 (EMI 5 21481-2)
Released: 7 July 1967 A Single / Baby You’re A Rich Man
Recorded: 14 June 1967, Olympic Sound Studios; 19 June 1967, Abbey Road 3; 23-25 June 1967, Abbey Road 1; the song was aired on the Eurovision program “Our World” on 25.06.1967
Length: 3:47
Key: G Major
Meter: 4/4 (with occasional 3/4)
Form: Intro | Verse | Verse | Verse | Refrain | Verse (guitar solo) | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Refrain | Outro (fade-out)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon:lead vocals, harpsichord, banjo
Paul McCartney: bass
George Harrison: violin, lead guitar
Ringo Starr: drums, snare drum roll
Sidney Sax (leader), Patrick Halling, Eric Bowie, Jack Holmes: violins
Rex Morris, Don Honeywill: tenor saxophones
Evan Watkins, Harry Spain: trombones
Jack Emblow: Accordion
Stanley Woods, David Mason: trumpets
Stanley Woods: Flügelhorn
Manfred Mann, Mike Vickers: director for BBC broadcast
The song was first performed by the Beatles on Our World, the first live global television link. The program was broadcast via satellite on June 25, 1967. The BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) had commissioned the Beatles to write a song for the UK’s contribution to the program. They were asked to come up with a song containing a simple message to be understood by all nationalities. For the broadcast, the Beatles were (except for Ringo) seated on stools and were accompanied by a small studio orchestra.
Because of the worldwide broadcast, the song was given an international feel. It opens with the French national anthem, and it includes snatches of other pieces during the long fade-out. Among these is 2-part Invention #8 in F by Johann Sebastian Bach, Greensleeves (played by the strings), Glenn Miller’s In the Mood (played on a saxophone), She Loves You (although it is still unknown whether Lennon or McCartney ad libbed this), and Jeremiah Clarke’s Prince of Denmark’s March. Lennon can also be heard scatting what sounds like Yesterday.
The structure of the song is complex. The main body (the verse) is in the unusual and infrequently used 7/4 time signature with two measures of 7/4, one of 8/4, then back to 7/4 with the intro background vocals repeatedly singing “Love, love, love”. By contrast, the chorus is simple: “All you need is love”, in 4/4 time repeated against the horn response but, each chorus has only seven measures as opposed to the usual eight, and the seventh is 6/4, then back to the verse in 7/4.
Hey Jude
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Magical Mystery Tour, Track 11 (Parlophone CDP7 48062-2)
Yellow Submarine, Track 6 (Parlophone CDP7 46445-2)
Yellow Submarine Songtrack, Track 12 (EMI 5 21481-2)
Released: 7 July 1967 A Single / Baby You’re A Rich Man
Recorded: 14 June 1967, Olympic Sound Studios; 19 June 1967, Abbey Road 3; 23-25 June 1967, Abbey Road 1; the song was aired on the Eurovision program “Our World” on 25.06.1967
Length: 2:57
Key: G Major
Meter: 4/4 (with occasional 3/4)
Form: Intro | Verse | Verse | Verse | Refrain | Verse (guitar solo) | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Refrain | Outro (fade-out)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon:lead vocals, harpsichord, banjo
Paul McCartney: bass
George Harrison: violin, lead guitar
Ringo Starr: drums, snare drum roll
As John Lennon broke up with his first wife, Cynthia, Paul paid a visit to Cynthia and his son to console them. While at the car, he had an idea running in his mind, “Hey Jules, take a sad song and make it better.” He expressed his sympathy in the form of the song, Hey Jude, which would become the longest single to reign in the number one position in music charts in the USA. John’s son is nicknamed Jules, but Paul changed it to Jude because it sounds better. Paul wrote this song to comfort the then only five year old-Julian.
Hey Jude has lovely melody that is both touching and inspirational. The roughly four-minute “na na na na” evoked an unforgettable anthem-like fadeout. The creative use of only one instrument in the beginning, with Paul’s piano and ending with the accumulating magnificence of the orchestra is especially powerful.
Revolution
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Magical Mystery Tour, Track 11 (Parlophone CDP7 48062-2)
Yellow Submarine, Track 6 (Parlophone CDP7 46445-2)
Yellow Submarine Songtrack, Track 12 (EMI 5 21481-2)
Released: 7 July 1967 A Single / Baby You’re A Rich Man
Recorded: 14 June 1967, Olympic Sound Studios; 19 June 1967, Abbey Road 3; 23-25 June 1967, Abbey Road 1; the song was aired on the Eurovision program “Our World” on 25.06.1967
Length: 2:57
Key: G Major
Meter: 4/4 (with occasional 3/4)
Form: Intro | Verse | Verse | Verse | Refrain | Verse (guitar solo) | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Refrain | Outro (fade-out)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon:lead vocals, harpsichord, banjo
Paul McCartney: bass
George Harrison: violin, lead guitar
Ringo Starr: drums, snare drum roll
This song had two other versions: the slow, Revolution 1, and the fast, loud, ten-minute long Revolution 9. There can be different reasons for John Lennon writing this song. One is to assert his side on the war that is happening on Vietnam then. He had been especially active in addressing political issues in the latter part of his career but this song can also mean not a physical, but a mental revolution – that of the mind. He pertains to the radicals during the 1960s who advocate for the overthrow of the US government.
This song was made during the later period of their career, and it can be observed that they are experimenting with new and different musical ideas, in contrast to their straightforward boy-loves-girl, boy-loses-girl theme in the beginning. John Lennon even recorded while lying on his back so as to give his vocals a different sound. There was also a dirty guitar sound that people who bought a copy tried to return it, thinking it was defective. It was actually due to plugging the guitars directly into the audio board.
Something
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Magical Mystery Tour, Track 11 (Parlophone CDP7 48062-2)
Yellow Submarine, Track 6 (Parlophone CDP7 46445-2)
Yellow Submarine Songtrack, Track 12 (EMI 5 21481-2)
Released: 7 July 1967 A Single / Baby You’re A Rich Man
Recorded: 14 June 1967, Olympic Sound Studios; 19 June 1967, Abbey Road 3; 23-25 June 1967, Abbey Road 1; the song was aired on the Eurovision program “Our World” on 25.06.1967
Length: 2:57
Key: G Major
Meter: 4/4 (with occasional 3/4)
Form: Intro | Verse | Verse | Verse | Refrain | Verse (guitar solo) | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Refrain | Outro (fade-out)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon:lead vocals, harpsichord, banjo
Paul McCartney: bass
George Harrison: violin, lead guitar
Ringo Starr: drums, snare drum roll
The song Something was actually written by Harrison while they were working on the White Album. Something may be inspired by Pattie Boyd, George Harrison’s first wife. It is a heart-warming romantic song, but the couple was actually having a bad time when it was written. Because of George’s excessive obsession with meditation since the Beatles’ trip to the Maharishi in India, George and Pattie had a divorce.
While Pattie Boyd may be the addressee of the passionate ballad, doubly because of George’s obsession with Indian philosophy, Something may also be addressed to the Hindu god, Krishna. But Krishna was a male deity, so George changed all masculine pronouns into feminine so he would not be mistaken of being a poof, or an effeminate man.
I Want You
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Magical Mystery Tour, Track 11 (Parlophone CDP7 48062-2)
Yellow Submarine, Track 6 (Parlophone CDP7 46445-2)
Yellow Submarine Songtrack, Track 12 (EMI 5 21481-2)
Released: 7 July 1967 A Single / Baby You’re A Rich Man
Recorded: 14 June 1967, Olympic Sound Studios; 19 June 1967, Abbey Road 3; 23-25 June 1967, Abbey Road 1; the song was aired on the Eurovision program “Our World” on 25.06.1967
Length: 2:57
Key: G Major
Meter: 4/4 (with occasional 3/4)
Form: Intro | Verse | Verse | Verse | Refrain | Verse (guitar solo) | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Refrain | Outro (fade-out)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon:lead vocals, harpsichord, banjo
Paul McCartney: bass
George Harrison: violin, lead guitar
Ringo Starr: drums, snare drum roll
Sidney Sax (leader), Patrick Halling, Eric Bowie, Jack Holmes: violins
Rex Morris, Don Honeywill: tenor saxophones
Evan Watkins, Harry Spain: trombones
Jack Emblow: Accordion
Stanley Woods, David Mason: trumpets
Stanley Woods: Flügelhorn
Manfred Mann, Mike Vickers: director for BBC broadcast
During the later period of the Beatles’ profession, they experimented with new song ideas, inserted other instruments such as the sitar, and orchestrated other different sounds, not necessarily coming from musical instruments. What was unique about them is that they were not afraid to try something new, and the results were always good. I Want You is John Lennon’s experimentation with heavy rock. The song had few lyrics and repeating chords.
With the lines “I want you so bad it’s driving me mad” I Want You is a depiction of John Lennon’s obsession with Yoko Ono. The song also includes a roughly three-minute orchestra arrangement of repetitive guitar chords. This highly captivating solo may be what the woman being addressed to is, because the solo starts only after the lyric “She’s so”. At seven minutes and forty seven seconds, I Want You is the Beatles’ second longest song after Revolution 9. The guitar solo abruptly ends implying that it plays on forever – that John Lennon’s “want” for Yoko Ono goes on forever and the only way to stop it is to cut the song.
This is also one of the band’s first use of the synthesizer, as invented by Dr. Robert Moog. It was played with the juxtaposition of a white noise generator to produce a wind-like noise accruing until the sudden cut.
Across the Universe
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Magical Mystery Tour, Track 11 (Parlophone CDP7 48062-2)
Yellow Submarine, Track 6 (Parlophone CDP7 46445-2)
Yellow Submarine Songtrack, Track 12 (EMI 5 21481-2)
Released: 7 July 1967 A Single / Baby You’re A Rich Man
Recorded: 14 June 1967, Olympic Sound Studios; 19 June 1967, Abbey Road 3; 23-25 June 1967, Abbey Road 1; the song was aired on the Eurovision program “Our World” on 25.06.1967
Length: 2:57
Key: G Major
Meter: 4/4 (with occasional 3/4)
Form: Intro | Verse | Verse | Verse | Refrain | Verse (guitar solo) | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Refrain | Outro (fade-out)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon:lead vocals, harpsichord, banjo
Paul McCartney: bass
George Harrison: violin, lead guitar
Ringo Starr: drums, snare drum roll
Sidney Sax (leader), Patrick Halling, Eric Bowie, Jack Holmes: violins
Rex Morris, Don Honeywill: tenor saxophones
Evan Watkins, Harry Spain: trombones
Jack Emblow: Accordion
Stanley Woods, David Mason: trumpets
Stanley Woods: Flügelhorn
Manfred Mann, Mike Vickers: director for BBC broadcast
Across the Universe was written by John Lennon due to a conflict between him and his first wife, Cynthia one night in bed. He went up and wrote down this song until the tension eased. The outcome was a philosophical and calm song. The captivating line, “Jai Guru Deva Om” was an influence of the Beatles’ interest in Indian teachings. It is in Sanskrit, and doesn’t have a vivid meaning though; it may be “I give thanks to Guru Dev”, because Jai means gratitude or salutations, Guru means teacher or spiritual leader, Dev means god or heavenly one, while Om is a sacred syllable in Hindu and Buddhist prayers, and is believed to be a form of mantra in meditations, depicting creation and natural vibration throughout the universe. While the line “words are flowing out like endless rain into a paper cup” came from Cynthia who described John’s words as such.
Across the Universe had many versions, among the most popular are those of the Let It Be and Let It Be . . . Naked albums versions. The difference between the two is the elaborate, and to the point lavish orchestrations added by Phil Spector with his highly distinctive “wall of sound” production methods. (BRS 200) John Lennon and George Harrison liked what Spector did with this song, but not so with Paul McCartney. The Let It Be . . . Naked album, features the same songs only naked or devoid of Spector’s wall of sound.
This song was recorded early on from February 4 to 8, 1968 but has not been readily released. The Beatles donated the song to the charity album of the World Wildlife Fund, which released the song only in December 12, 1969. And so bird noises were added to create a nature feel. The charity album was called Nothing’s Gonna Change Our World, a small alteration to the chorus, “nothing’s gonna change my world”.
Let It Be
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Magical Mystery Tour, Track 11 (Parlophone CDP7 48062-2)
Yellow Submarine, Track 6 (Parlophone CDP7 46445-2)
Yellow Submarine Songtrack, Track 12 (EMI 5 21481-2)
Released: 7 July 1967 A Single / Baby You’re A Rich Man
Recorded: 14 June 1967, Olympic Sound Studios; 19 June 1967, Abbey Road 3; 23-25 June 1967, Abbey Road 1; the song was aired on the Eurovision program “Our World” on 25.06.1967
Length: 2:57
Key: G Major
Meter: 4/4 (with occasional 3/4)
Form: Intro | Verse | Verse | Verse | Refrain | Verse (guitar solo) | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Refrain | Outro (fade-out)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon:lead vocals, harpsichord, banjo
Paul McCartney: bass
George Harrison: violin, lead guitar
Ringo Starr: drums, snare drum roll
Paul McCartney wrote this song after having a dream about his mother, named Mary. His mother was advising him to “let it be”, concerning the impending breakup of the band. His mother died of breast cancer when he was only fourteen.
It was often thought that this song has a biblical reference, due to the similarity of his mother’s name to Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus. Because of this, John Lennon hated this song, and was disapproving of it being placed on the side A of a single.
The Long and Winding Road
Writer/s: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin
CD: Magical Mystery Tour, Track 11 (Parlophone CDP7 48062-2)
Yellow Submarine, Track 6 (Parlophone CDP7 46445-2)
Yellow Submarine Songtrack, Track 12 (EMI 5 21481-2)
Released: 7 July 1967 A Single / Baby You’re A Rich Man
Recorded: 14 June 1967, Olympic Sound Studios; 19 June 1967, Abbey Road 3; 23-25 June 1967, Abbey Road 1; the song was aired on the Eurovision program “Our World” on 25.06.1967
Length: 2:57
Key: G Major
Meter: 4/4 (with occasional 3/4)
Form: Intro | Verse | Verse | Verse | Refrain | Verse (guitar solo) | Refrain | Verse | Refrain | Refrain | Outro (fade-out)
Instrumentation:
John Lennon:lead vocals, harpsichord, banjo
Paul McCartney: bass
George Harrison: violin, lead guitar
Ringo Starr: drums, snare drum roll
Sidney Sax (leader), Patrick Halling, Eric Bowie, Jack Holmes: violins
Rex Morris, Don Honeywill: tenor saxophones
Evan Watkins, Harry Spain: trombones
Jack Emblow: Accordion
Stanley Woods, David Mason: trumpets
Stanley Woods: Flügelhorn
Manfred Mann, Mike Vickers: director for BBC broadcast
The Long and Winding Road was written by Paul McCartney based on the tensions building up within the band. Its message was that they should still stay together as a group, “don’t leave me waiting here/lead me to your door”. This song was also overly edited and changed by Phil Spector with elaborate string and choir layers that it overshadowed the simple yet touching charm of the song. Paul McCartney did not go to the sessions where Spector transformed his song into something else. He only heard it when it was released, and Paul McCartney was aggravated by the way it was totally different to what he had in mind. He made it clear to Phil Spector that he hated what has been done to his song. This only furthered the turmoil within the band as George Harrison and John Lennon were both on the side of Spector.
Synthesis
The Beatles’ records are commonly periodized in the following way: the early period, 1962 to 1965, from the album Please Please Me to the album Help!; the middle period, 1965 to 1967, from the album Rubber Soul to the EP Magical Mystery Tour; and the late period, 1968 to 1970, from The Beatles (White Album) to the album Let It Be. (Heinonen & Eerola, 2000)
The songs from the early period th+at were analyzed in this study were: Love Me Do,
I Saw Her Standing There, All my Loving, I Want to Hold Your Hand, A Hard Day’s Night, Help!, and Yesterday. The songs Norwegian Wood, Yellow Submarine, Tomorrow Never Knows, Strawberry Fields Forever, When I’m 64, A Day in the Life, and All You Need is Love were from the middle period, also known as the experimental period. The songs from the late period include Hey Jude, Revolution, Something, I Want You, Across the Universe, Let It Be, and The Long and Winding Road.
The rhythm of the Beatles’ music was rather simple, with a fixed accent on the backbeat.14 There is a sense of freshness in their songs. The intensity and the thickness of sound was achieved not only by pumping up the volume and revamping the beat, but also by some kind of harshness coming from other musical elements.14 The Beatles imported some unusual notes and chord combinations into their melodies. Their early songs show how they varied on widely differing cadences until they reached the point where these chord progressions became totally unrecognizable.16 These songs offer a series of other harmonic tricks, such as backings, enharmonic replacements of whole chords and tone traps.16 They also made use of such innovations in their later songs, this time using new instruments such as the sitar and the tamboura.
The main theme of the Beatles’ songs is romance, although their lyrics do show some innovations (Campbell & Murphy qtd. in Tillekens, 2000). For instance, the male voices address their girls in a more egalitarian way as “friends.” Their lyrics encompass the whole range of emotions (Whissell qtd. in Tillekens, 2000). They initially wrote about romantic relationships, but later their lyrics became more serious and they came to explore the darker side of romance, the drug experience, and political issues.
Early in their career, the Beatles wrote mostly about romantic relationships, and their music was very much influenced by 50s rock ‘n’ roll, pop, and RnB, although they introduced new harmonic styles and unusual chord progressions. Among the characteristic stylistic features of early period of the Beatles’ recording career include cover songs, ornament, basic line-up, three-part singing, harmonica, “woo” and “yeah” screams, and romantic lyrics.(Eerola, 2000) As time went by, they eventually wrote about a wider range of topics, adapted more complex instrumentation, and adapted from a wider range of musical styles. The characteristic stylistic features of the experimental period include changing meter, the presence of the flattened VII chord (bVII), tone repetition, having a descending bassline, static harmony, the use of classical and Indian instruments, sound effects, and political, nostalgic and psychedelic lyrics (Eerola, 2000). The music from the late period forms an extension of ideas from both of the previous periods. They went full circle by moving on from their seriousness to the more lightweight music of their final albums (Dickstein 209).
Conclusion
Individual Commentary
Michelle Batislaong:
The Beatles have always been a remarkable element of the whole music industry. It seems like the whole puzzle wouldn’t be complete without them. They have a myriad of contributions as musical artists, or much better, legendary musical intellects. Analyzing their personal and professional musical history, one can see the transitions they have undergone throughout the period, from their early style of pulsating music to a more mature type of hits even after the group’s split-up. Their music really showcased how talented and versatile they are as seen from the range of musical genres they embarked upon. As famous music icons, they have been subject to a lot of feats and heavy controversies. But no matter how many ups and downs they have encountered, their music still lives on. And this is clearly seen by the radio plays of their songs and the crowd of fans that is still increasing up to this day. The Beatles has always been and will always be in the hearts and minds of their fans from decades ago and in this present generation.
Blaise Bautista:
Dysanne Allister Cuaresma:
The Beatles’ music reflect the physical, cultural, political, and economical environment of the 1950s and 1960s, especially the 1960s.
They were very much influenced by 1950s rock ‘n’ roll, which made its way to Britain through the port of Liverpool. They drew a lot of influences from 1950s artists but brought their own innovations, importing some unusual notes, chord combinations, and harmonies into their melodies. Their music demonstrated a break from 1950s music and at the same time, a continuation of it. Their music reflects the youth movement of the 1960s, addressing the issues and events that affected that generation. The Beatles’ songs also reflect
