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In this thread I rank my favorite Beatles songs: 204-1. (12 Viewers)

Please Please Me 35 202 131 147
With the Beatles 12 194 140 149
A Hard Day’s Night 23 161 82 72
Beatles for Sale 56 185 137 149
Help! 4 157 72 64
Revolver 5 159 58 48
Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band 6 165 92 89
Magical Mystery Tour 44 197 143 160
The Beatles (aka White Album) 10 204 114 120
Yellow Submarine 31 171 114 127
Singles, etc. 9 198 98 99


Remaining: 1 each from Rubber Soul, Abbey Road, Let it Be

Can anyone catch Revolver? :popcorn:

 
rockaction said:
You know, I try to never think about what anybody looks like but am always surprised regardless. It's a weird sort of dynamic. Maybe the psychology of it is good for a thread. 
Click to expand...
Makes sense. I’ve never pictured what you look like but it’s hard not to associate you with incredible feminine beauty. 

 
Ilov80s said:
Man of Constant Sorrow said:
Well, in reference to what I think you look like. 🤔

😛
Click to expand...
Haha do it but in codes Beatles lyrics 
Click to expand...


Here come old eight-eees

He just rollin' up parsley 

He got joo joo eyeballs

He be real a-woker

He sit down when he pee

Got to be a toker

He just burn what he please

He wear no pretense

He just hook'to football

He make doobie linger 

He shout krista-krista! 

I say I know you, you know me

One thing I can tell bout you

You pass it for free

Toke together, right now

Pass to me

He badass action

He got Detroit zoot suit

He got oh-no sideburn

He one special slacker

He got meat down below his knee

Hands you all his eclair 

You can peal his dainties

Toke together, right now

Pass the green

He over-roaster

He got coffee brewing

He make muddy water

He needs better filter

He say one and one and one is three

Got to be a teach'in

'Cause he's brill-y-ant-lee

Toke together right now

Pass for free

Toke together, yeah

Toke together, yeah

Toke together, yeah

Toke together, yeah

Toke together, yeah

Toke together, yeah

Toke together, yeah

Toke together, yeah

Toke together, yeah

 
3.  Abbey Road medley (Abbey Road, 1969)

Beatles version:  see separate links below

First, because I promised, and what I need in my life is more ranking, that I would indicate my favorite segments within this song as well, here we go:

  1. She Came In Through The Bathroom Window
  2. Polythene Pam
  3. The End
  4. Golden Slumbers
  5. You Never Give Me Your Money
  6. Carry That Weight
  7. Sun King
  8. Mean Mr. Mustard
This is just phenomenal and probably doesn’t get to be #1 or #2 just because there’s so much to it, including some parts I like significantly less than others.  At its peaks, though, it’s my favorite song; as I already mentioned in a prior write-up (that no one read), the last 23 seconds of “Polythene Pam” leading into the first 47 seconds of “She Came In Through The Bathroom Window” is one of my three favorite Beatles song, along with the bridge in “Something” and the drum fills in “Strawberry Fields Forever.”

Paul described the idea of the “montage” of songs as they referred to it:  ““We did it this way because John and I had a number of songs, which were great as they were, but we'd finished them.  It often happens that you write the first verse of a song and then you've said it all, and can't be bothered to write a second verse, repeating or giving a variation.  So, I said to John, 'Have you got any bits and pieces, which we can make into one long track?'  And he had, and we made a piece that makes sense all the way through.”

While it might have been a desire to use up some loose ends, Paul also had a vision of this melding into an “operatic structure,” or perhaps it could be called “symphonic” instead.  It certainly has that feel to me, successfully combining disparate parts in a flowing fashion, displaying a dozen or more musical styles within the context of one integrated piece.  I think we can call it A BEATLES SHOWCASE!

Mr. krista on the medley as a whole:  “Better than the sum of its parts.  Guided by Voices records remind me of this.  This mixture of disparate styles thrown in there.  In a good Guided by Voices record I usually hate 30% of it but somehow together it seems so complete ”

It’s going to be easier, though not in any way freaking easy, to break this down piece by piece.

You Never Give Me Your Money

Beatles version:  Spotify  YouTube

This was written by Paul as a rare protest song from him, against the new manager that he had not wanted to bring on:  “This was my lambasting Allen Klein’s attitude to us:  no money, just funny paper, all promises and it never works out.” Like John’s “Happiness Is A Warm Gun,” it’s a mashing together of three different parts. It’s a medley within The Medley!  I love this one; it’s like a “Best of Paul,” with so many different parts and segues and styles thrown in.  His vocal work is fantastic in this song segment, as are all the chord and tempo changes that I won’t go into because I have eight parts to write up.  Sheesh. 

The first portion is the skewering of Allen Klein that Paul mentioned.  George agreed with the sentiment:  “'’Funny paper' – that's what we get. We get bits of paper saying how much is earned and what this and that is, but we never actually get it in pounds, shillings and pence. We've all got a big house and a car and an office, but to actually get the money we've earned seems impossible."  It starts with a melancholy vocal and poignant piano that emphasizes the downbeat nature with some nice pregnant pauses, then adds urgency from the increased tom-tom sound and insistent vocals into the next section.

The second portion is a look back at how the band spent its early years, with some nostalgia but no sappiness.  It describes how the guys didn’t have many prospects and were uncertain their futures, until they decided to dive headlong into the music business and pursue “that magic feeling.”  I love Paul’s jaunty piano work, his bass playing, and old-fashioned ragtime sound, and in particular his singing style and the way he presents “that magic feeling.”

The third portion, including the guitar solo leading into it, is my favorite part; this section is another reference (like “Two Of Us”) to Paul and Linda’s penchant for hopping in the car and getting lost in the countryside.  The rising vocals swell into a major key while Ringo offers a nice counterpoint on to every measure, with guitars and tambourines increasing the urgency, until they fall away into that countdown sequence that you probably find fun and intriguing (if you’re me) or annoying.

Mr. krista: “McCartney was the band dad, wasn’t he? This is Band Dad saying like “#### you guys.”  But it really kind of rocks.”

Suggested cover:  Glenn Tilbrook

Sun King

Beatles version:  Spotify  YouTube

My favorite part of this one is the soaring transition into it from the prior section, which, as in “Tomorrow Never Knows,” Paul accomplished by including some tape loops, this time with bells, birds, bubbles and crickets.  That transition sets a nice dreamy mood, but this segment of the medley is kind of boring to me, and I’m oddly not that into the rich vocals, including the harmonies.  Maybe it’s all slightly too languid for my taste, even though it sets an appropriately stark mood.  If this comes on the radio in isolation, I always think it’s going to be “Don’t Let Me Down” and then get disappointed.  Paul does a nice bass line, though, as well as some interesting counter-melodies on the organ, and I’m amused by the partly-Spanish gibberish they string together. John thoughtfully called this segment, “a piece of garbage I had around.”   :lmao:   

Fun fact: The guitar part was heavily influenced by Fleetwood Mac’s “Albatross.”   

Mr. krista: “I don’t really care for it singularly that much but I like its inclusion in there.  It breaks it up.” 

Suggested cover:  Gomez

Mean Mr Mustard

Beatles version:  Spotify  YouTube

This segment was written along with “Polythene Pam” while the lads were in India.  Once they decided to make the medley, John changed the reference in this part from “sister Shirley” to “sister Pam” so that it would link with the latter.  John’s inspiration:  “I'd read somewhere in the newspaper about this mean guy who hid five-pound notes, not up his nose but somewhere else. No, it had nothing to do with cocaine.”Although this is my least favorite section of the medley, I wouldn’t go so far as to say it’s “a bit of crap,” as John did.  I like Paul’s cheesy backing vocal and the silliness of the segment in this small of a dosage, but I find myself just killing time to get to the next segment.

As a reminder from my prior write-up (which no one read), this segment was intended to be followed by “Her Majesty,” and when the latter was cut out of the medley, this one lost its final chord, which became part of “Her Majesty” instead. The build-up in this song seems to lead well into “Polythene Pam” anyway.

Mr. krista: “I don’t care for it all that much.”

Suggested cover:  Cornershop

Polythene Pam

Beatles version:   Spotify  YouTube

LOOK OUT!

As I stated above, the end of this building into the beginning of the next segment is not just my favorite part of this medley, but my favorite part of almost any Beatles song.  This was recorded through with “She Came In Through the Bathroom Window,” so it makes sense that that transition is so compelling.  I get a little bored with the prior two portions of the medley, but beginning here and all the way through “The End,” it rocks my face off.

The character “Polythene Pam” was conceived from a combination of two people.  The first was a girl nicknamed “Polythene Pat,” whom the guys knew from their Cavern Club days, and who garnered the nickname because of her proclivity to eat polythene.  She had a friend who worked at a factory and got her a never-ending supply, which she ate raw as the Good Lord intended, or sometimes would burn and then eat it after it cooled down.  Nom!  The second inspiration was the girlfriend of poet Royston Ellis, who joined John and Ellis for a sleepover (ahem) one night.  As described by Ellis:  “We'd read all these things about leather and we didn't have any leather but I had my oilskins and we had some polythene bags from somewhere. We all dressed up in them and wore them in bed. John stayed the night with us in the same bed. I don't think anything very exciting happened and we all wondered what the fun was in being 'kinky.'”  John remembered it as an actual sexual encounter, though:  “perverted sex in a polythene bag.”

I love every second of this segment, starting with John’s stabbing riffs during the intro, so thrashing for an acoustic guitar, followed by George and Paul joining with their distinctive guitar and bass lines and Ringo on his tom-toms, continuing through John’s Scouse vocal and then the swirling harmonies.  The entire segment is an intense propulsive groove and full of blasting energy, but it’s George’s guitar solo and that final build that make this, together with the next segment, the most rocking part of the song.

Fun fact: You can hear Paul overshoot his bass note ~0:45.  He wanted to fix it, but the others insisted he leave in the mistake.

Mr. krista: “Love it  Awesome track.  Rocks super hard.  Sounds like a great Who song.  Better because the Beatles are a better band.  Really funny lyrics, too.”

Suggested cover:   :scared:   Don't kill me.  Bee Gees

She Came In Through The Bathroom Window

Beatles version:  Spotify  YouTube

Though there are some competing stories, this is most likely based on an incident involving the “Apple Scruffs,” the name given to the girls who would hang out around the studio hoping to see the Beatles.  A few of them found a ladder and actually entered Paul’s house through an open bathroom window while Paul wasn’t home, proceeding to rummage around, meet Martha the sheepdog, and even abscond with some photos and clothing.

As discussed, the lead in to this is perfect, and then Paul’s “oh look out!’ launches us excitedly into the pulse of this song.  I ####### love the harmonies on the chorus, love the guitar work and especially the little “responses” at the end of every line, love the interplay of the bass and guitar, love Ringo’s fills that keep propelling everything ever-more-urgently along, love the off-the-beat handclaps.  My face is missing having been rocked off.  “Oh yeah.”

Mr. krista:  “Also really funny lyrics.  I really like it.  It’s that jivey, bouncy number.  If Paul McCartney had a little less talent and a little more hacker, he’d so be [name redacted.”]  I think he’s just too decent of a person.  Or maybe just so much more true to the music.”

Suggested cover:  Ike & Tina Turner  (see Bee Gees on "Polythene Pam" above)

Golden Slumbers

Beatles version:  Spotify  YouTube

First and foremost, IT’S FUNNY BECAUSE IT’S TRUE.

Now that we have that out of the way, back to the serious stuff.  This one was conceived by Paul based on a lullaby he found in a songbook at his father’s house.  The song contained lyrics by the poet Thomas Dekker, but Paul couldn’t read music so adapted the lyrics using his own tune.  This was recorded at the same time as “Carry That Weight,” which might account for the fabulous transition.  Speaking of transitions, I wish there were one between this and “Polythene Pam” before it; sounds too chopping to me without that.  These two were initially recorded while John was out due to his car accident; John recorded some backing vocals for “Carry That Weight” about six weeks later but doesn’t appear on this section, so just Paul, Ringo, and George here, along with about a squillion orchestral musicians.

There’s a lot of speculation about the words’ meanings, from mourning the disintegration of the band to longing for his mother to wondering why krista4 ditched him (I might have added that last one), but I don’t particularly care about the lyrics on this one.  Paul’s vocal is the standout, as even Alleged Paul Hater Mr. krista states below; it is gently yearning and chillingly beautiful.  It would be impossible to choose a favorite Paul vocal among the Beatles songs, just as it would be a monumental, perhaps Christ- or at least Salk-like accomplishment to rank 204 Beatles songs, but if one were to be so brazen, she might rank this near the top.  George also contributes a Paul-like fantastic bass line that adds to the emotional reach of this segment.

It’s a perfect lullaby…you know, other than the shout-y bits.

Mr. krista:  “Paul’s vocal is the standout.  Once the lullaby is over, I think you could do without the strings.  It’s strong enough with just his voice and the Beatles.”

Suggested cover:  Ben Folds  (see also Phil Collins on "The End" below)

Carry That Weight

Beatles version:  Spotify  YouTube

My notes from our initial listening sessions said simply, “####### rocks, dawg.”  No idea why I was channeling a Samuel L. Jackson/Randy Jackson mash-up.

This is another of the segments dealing with Paul’s dissatisfaction with Allen Klein: “We were taking so much acid and doing so much drugs and all this Klein #### was going on and getting crazier and crazier and crazier. Carry that weight a long time: like for ever!  … It was serious, paranoid heaviness and it was just very uncomfortable.”  Poor Allen Klein:  unlike Jane Asher who at least got some love songs, too, he got a bunch of Paul’s #### songs.  Wait, no, he was a #### who deserved it.  

After a new lyrical section (“Boy, you’re gonna carry that weight”), the segment reprises “You Never Give Me Your Money” with new lyrics in its section section, and then repeats the guitar’s arpeggio from the counting section to lead into “The End.” The first part is fantastic and notable for having all four Beatles singing in unison, with Ringo prominently heard!  And I love these reprises as a way to link the entire medley together, and besides I loved them in the first segment, too.  

Mr. krista: “This is a great idea for them all to sing about themselves.  Also a great sing-along idea.  Can’t play that in a bar without half the people singing along.”

Suggested cover:  It ain't gonna be for everyone:  Noah and the Whale  (see also Phil Collins on "The End" below)

The End

Beatles version:   Spotify  YouTube

It’s A RINGO SHOWCASE!  OK, maybe not quite, but it does feature the only extended Ringo drum solo in Beatles history, and I’m running out of chances to declare anything A RINGO SHOWCASE!  No other songs had contained such a solo, because Ringo in particular hated them. Per Paul:  “Ringo would never do drum solos. He hated those guys who went on and on, incessantly banging while the band goes off and has a cup of tea or something.  And when he joined The Beatles we said, "Ah, what about drum solos then?", thinking he might say, 'Yeah, I'll have a five-hour one in the middle of your set,' and he said, 'I hate 'em!'  We said, 'Great! We love you!'” But on this segment, Paul asked Ringo if he would do a “token solo,” which Ringo resisted until George Martin convinced him to the “bloody solo” he hated.  Geoff Emerick got a kick out of the whole scenario:  “Usually, you have to try to talk drummers out of doing solos! He didn't want to do it, but everybody said, 'No, no, it'll be fantastic!' So he gave in – and turned in a bloody marvelous performance! … It’s not just a drummer going off.”  Ringo’s solo is so beautifully Ringo; as the Human Metronome, it focuses on the beat more than ostentatious flourishes, then reintroduces the full band with a helluva groove.

In addition to the RINGO SHOWCASE!, this segment is notable for containing the band's only instance of Paul, John, and George playing the guitar solo together, which amazingly was a John idea, and he even sent Yoko out of the studio for it to be recorded in private.  In each sequence, the solo begins with Paul, moves to George, and ends with John; I find George’s parts particularly brilliant..  They managed it in one take, which Emerick described resulting from “all the bad blood, all the fighting, all the crap that had gone down between the three former friends was forgotten….  John, Paul, and George looked like they had gone back in time, like they were kids again, playing together for the sheet enjoyment of it.”  He called their joy as a heartwarning “high point of summer 1969,” never failing to make him smile.

Paul’s “very cosmic, philosophiscal” (per John) final line – “And in the end, the love you take, is equal to the love you make” – sounds kind of simplistic to me, but, whether or not intended, it formed a fitting and poignant farewell, and a graceful exit as the last line recorded by the Beatles together on a record.  The orchestral flourish that follows is appropriately grand and majestic, then marching downward into a thoughtful finish that leaves you feeling like it’s all been tied neatly together.  

Mr krista: “Love the jam in the middle.  I think I and many people first heard that on Paul’s Boutique.  I’d like to know how they recorded Ringo’s drums to sound so monstrous in that solo. Sounded like Dave Grohl or something. Must have festooned that place with 15 microphones.”

Suggested cover:  I wanted to find one with just "The End" in isolation, but since there was nothing suitable, in honor of the RINGO SHOWCASE!, here's Phil Collins on the last three segments.

 
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Now I know what George Harrison must have felt like waiting for Derek Taylor in Los Angeles.  Just waiting...

Except I'm not going to write a ####ty song about the experience.

 
krista4 said:
3.  Abbey Road medley (Abbey Road, 1969)

Beatles version:  see separate links below

First, because I promised, and what I need in my life is more ranking, that I would indicate my favorite segments within this song as well, here we go:

  1. She Came In Through The Bathroom Window
  2. Polythene Pam
  3. The End
  4. Golden Slumbers
  5. You Never Give Me Your Money
  6. Carry That Weight
  7. Sun King
  8. Mean Mr. Mustard
This is just phenomenal and probably doesn’t get to be #1 or #2 just because there’s so much to it, including some parts I like significantly less than others.  At its peaks, though, it’s my favorite song; as I already mentioned in a prior write-up (that no one read), the last 23 seconds of “Polythene Pam” leading into the first 47 seconds of “She Came In Through The Bathroom Window” is one of my three favorite Beatles song, along with the bridge in “Something” and the drum fills in “Strawberry Fields Forever.”

Paul described the idea of the “montage” of songs as they referred to it:  ““We did it this way because John and I had a number of songs, which were great as they were, but we'd finished them.  It often happens that you write the first verse of a song and then you've said it all, and can't be bothered to write a second verse, repeating or giving a variation.  So, I said to John, 'Have you got any bits and pieces, which we can make into one long track?'  And he had, and we made a piece that makes sense all the way through.”

While it might have been a desire to use up some loose ends, Paul also had a vision of this melding into an “operatic structure,” or perhaps it could be called “symphonic” instead.  It certainly has that feel to me, successfully combining disparate parts in a flowing fashion, displaying a dozen or more musical styles within the context of one integrated piece.  I think we can call it A BEATLES SHOWCASE!

Mr. krista on the medley as a whole:  “Better than the sum of its parts.  Guided by Voices records remind me of this.  This mixture of disparate styles thrown in there.  In a good Guided by Voices record I usually hate 30% of it but somehow together it seems so complete ”

It’s going to be easier, though not in any way freaking easy, to break this down piece by piece.

You Never Give Me Your Money

Beatles version:  Spotify  YouTube

This was written by Paul as a rare protest song from him, against the new manager that he had not wanted to bring on:  “This was my lambasting Allen Klein’s attitude to us:  no money, just funny paper, all promises and it never works out.” Like John’s “Happiness Is A Warm Gun,” it’s a mashing together of three different parts. It’s a medley within The Medley!  I love this one; it’s like a “Best of Paul,” with so many different parts and segues and styles thrown in.  His vocal work is fantastic in this song segment, as are all the chord and tempo changes that I won’t go into because I have eight parts to write up.  Sheesh. 

The first portion is the skewering of Allen Klein that Paul mentioned.  George agreed with the sentiment:  “'’Funny paper' – that's what we get. We get bits of paper saying how much is earned and what this and that is, but we never actually get it in pounds, shillings and pence. We've all got a big house and a car and an office, but to actually get the money we've earned seems impossible."  It starts with a melancholy vocal and poignant piano that emphasizes the downbeat nature with some nice pregnant pauses, then adds urgency from the increased tom-tom sound and insistent vocals into the next section.

The second portion is a look back at how the band spent its early years, with some nostalgia but no sappiness.  It describes how the guys didn’t have many prospects and were uncertain their futures, until they decided to dive headlong into the music business and pursue “that magic feeling.”  I love Paul’s jaunty piano work, his bass playing, and old-fashioned ragtime sound, and in particular his singing style and the way he presents “that magic feeling.”

The third portion, including the guitar solo leading into it, is my favorite part; this section is another reference (like “Two Of Us”) to Paul and Linda’s penchant for hopping in the car and getting lost in the countryside.  The rising vocals swell into a major key while Ringo offers a nice counterpoint on to every measure, with guitars and tambourines increasing the urgency, until they fall away into that countdown sequence that you probably find fun and intriguing (if you’re me) or annoying.

Mr. krista: “McCartney was the band dad, wasn’t he? This is Band Dad saying like “#### you guys.”  But it really kind of rocks.”

Suggested cover:  To come

Sun King

Beatles version:  Spotify  YouTube

My favorite part of this one is the soaring transition into it from the prior section, which, as in “Tomorrow Never Knows,” Paul accomplished by including some tape loops, this time with bells, birds, bubbles and crickets.  That transition sets a nice dreamy mood, but this segment of the medley is kind of boring to me, and I’m oddly not that into the rich vocals, including the harmonies.  Maybe it’s all slightly too languid for my taste, even though it sets an appropriately stark mood.  If this comes on the radio in isolation, I always think it’s going to be “Don’t Let Me Down” and then get disappointed.  Paul does a nice bass line, though, as well as some interesting counter-melodies on the organ, and I’m amused by the partly-Spanish gibberish they string together. John thoughtfully called this segment, “a piece of garbage I had around.”   :lmao:   

Fun fact: The guitar part was heavily influenced by Fleetwood Mac’s “Albatross.”   

Mr. krista: “I don’t really care for it singularly that much but I like its inclusion in there.  It breaks it up.” 

Suggested cover:  To come

Mean Mr Mustard

Beatles version:  Spotify  YouTube

This segment was written along with “Polythene Pam” while the lads were in India.  Once they decided to make the medley, John changed the reference in this part from “sister Shirley” to “sister Pam” so that it would link with the latter.  John’s inspiration:  “I'd read somewhere in the newspaper about this mean guy who hid five-pound notes, not up his nose but somewhere else. No, it had nothing to do with cocaine.”Although this is my least favorite section of the medley, I wouldn’t go so far as to say it’s “a bit of crap,” as John did.  I like Paul’s cheesy backing vocal and the silliness of the segment in this small of a dosage, but I find myself just killing time to get to the next segment.

As a reminder from my prior write-up (which no one read), this segment was intended to be followed by “Her Majesty,” and when the latter was cut out of the medley, this one lost its final chord, which became part of “Her Majesty” instead. The build-up in this song seems to lead well into “Polythene Pam” anyway.

Mr. krista: “I don’t care for it all that much.”

Suggested cover:  To come

Polythene Pam

Beatles version:   Spotify  YouTube

LOOK OUT!

As I stated above, the end of this building into the beginning of the next segment is not just my favorite part of this medley, but my favorite part of almost any Beatles song.  This was recorded through with “She Came In Through the Bathroom Window,” so it makes sense that that transition is so compelling.  I get a little bored with the prior two portions of the medley, but beginning here and all the way through “The End,” it rocks my face off.

The character “Polythene Pam” was conceived from a combination of two people.  The first was a girl nicknamed “Polythene Pat,” whom the guys knew from their Cavern Club days, and who garnered the nickname because of her proclivity to eat polythene.  She had a friend who worked at a factory and got her a never-ending supply, which she ate raw as the Good Lord intended, or sometimes would burn and then eat it after it cooled down.  Nom!  The second inspiration was the girlfriend of poet Royston Ellis, who joined John and Ellis for a sleepover (ahem) one night.  As described by Ellis:  “We'd read all these things about leather and we didn't have any leather but I had my oilskins and we had some polythene bags from somewhere. We all dressed up in them and wore them in bed. John stayed the night with us in the same bed. I don't think anything very exciting happened and we all wondered what the fun was in being 'kinky.'”  John remembered it as an actual sexual encounter, though:  “perverted sex in a polythene bag.”

I love every second of this segment, starting with John’s stabbing riffs during the intro, so thrashing for an acoustic guitar, followed by George and Paul joining with their distinctive guitar and bass lines and Ringo on his tom-toms, continuing through John’s Scouse vocal and then the swirling harmonies.  The entire segment is an intense propulsive groove and full of blasting energy, but it’s George’s guitar solo and that final build that make this, together with the next segment, the most rocking part of the song.

Fun fact: You can hear Paul overshoot his bass note ~0:45.  He wanted to fix it, but the others insisted he leave in the mistake.

Mr. krista: “Love it  Awesome track.  Rocks super hard.  Sounds like a great Who song.  Better because the Beatles are a better band.  Really funny lyrics, too.”

Suggested cover:  To come

She Came In Through The Bathroom Window

Beatles version:  Spotify  YouTube

Though there are some competing stories, this is most likely based on an incident involving the “Apple Scruffs,” the name given to the girls who would hang out around the studio hoping to see the Beatles.  A few of them found a ladder and actually entered Paul’s house through an open bathroom window while Paul wasn’t home, proceeding to rummage around, meet Martha the sheepdog, and even abscond with some photos and clothing.

As discussed, the lead in to this is perfect, and then Paul’s “oh look out!’ launches us excitedly into the pulse of this song.  I ####### love the harmonies on the chorus, love the guitar work and especially the little “responses” at the end of every line, love the interplay of the bass and guitar, love Ringo’s fills that keep propelling everything ever-more-urgently along, love the off-the-beat handclaps.  My face is missing having been rocked off.  “Oh yeah.”

Mr. krista:  “Also really funny lyrics.  I really like it.  It’s that jivey, bouncy number.  If Paul McCartney had a little less talent and a little more hacker, he’d so be [name redacted.”]  I think he’s just too decent of a person.  Or maybe just so much more true to the music.”

Suggested cover:  To come.

Golden Slumbers

Beatles version:  Spotify  YouTube

First and foremost, IT’S FUNNY BECAUSE IT’S TRUE.

Now that we have that out of the way, back to the serious stuff.  This one was conceived by Paul based on a lullaby he found in a songbook at his father’s house.  The song contained lyrics by the poet Thomas Dekker, but Paul couldn’t read music so adapted the lyrics using his own tune.  This was recorded at the same time as “Carry That Weight,” which might account for the fabulous transition.  Speaking of transitions, I wish there were one between this and “Polythene Pam” before it; sounds too chopping to me without that.  These two were initially recorded while John was out due to his car accident; John recorded some backing vocals for “Carry That Weight” about six weeks later but doesn’t appear on this section, so just Paul, Ringo, and George here, along with about a squillion orchestral musicians.

There’s a lot of speculation about the words’ meanings, from mourning the disintegration of the band to longing for his mother to wondering why krista4 ditched him (I might have added that last one), but I don’t particularly care about the lyrics on this one.  Paul’s vocal is the standout, as even Alleged Paul Hater Mr. krista states below; it is gently yearning and chillingly beautiful.  It would be impossible to choose a favorite Paul vocal among the Beatles songs, just as it would be a monumental, perhaps Christ- or at least Salk-like accomplishment to rank 204 Beatles songs, but if one were to be so brazen, she might rank this near the top.  George also contributes a Paul-like fantastic bass line that adds to the emotional reach of this segment.

It’s a perfect lullaby…you know, other than the shout-y bits.

Mr. krista:  “Paul’s vocal is the standout.  Once the lullaby is over, I think you could do without the strings.  It’s strong enough with just his voice and the Beatles.”

Suggested cover:  To come

Carry That Weight

Beatles version:  Spotify  YouTube

My notes from our initial listening sessions said simply, “####### rocks, dawg.”  No idea why I was channeling a Samuel L. Jackson/Randy Jackson mash-up.

This is another of the segments dealing with Paul’s dissatisfaction with Allen Klein: “We were taking so much acid and doing so much drugs and all this Klein #### was going on and getting crazier and crazier and crazier. Carry that weight a long time: like for ever!  … It was serious, paranoid heaviness and it was just very uncomfortable.”  Poor Allen Klein:  unlike Jane Asher who at least got some love songs, too, he got a bunch of Paul’s #### songs.  Wait, no, he was a #### who deserved it.  

After a new lyrical section (“Boy, you’re gonna carry that weight”), the segment reprises “You Never Give Me Your Money” with new lyrics in its section section, and then repeats the guitar’s arpeggio from the counting section to lead into “The End.” The first part is fantastic and notable for having all four Beatles singing in unison, with Ringo prominently heard!  And I love these reprises as a way to link the entire medley together, and besides I loved them in the first segment, too.  

Mr. krista: “This is a great idea for them all to sing about themselves.  Also a great sing-along idea.  Can’t play that in a bar without half the people singing along.”

Suggested cover:  To come

The End

It’s A RINGO SHOWCASE!  OK, maybe not quite, but it does feature the only extended Ringo drum solo in Beatles history, and I’m running out of chances to declare anything A RINGO SHOWCASE!  No other songs had contained such a solo, because Ringo in particular hated them. Per Paul:  “Ringo would never do drum solos. He hated those guys who went on and on, incessantly banging while the band goes off and has a cup of tea or something.  And when he joined The Beatles we said, "Ah, what about drum solos then?", thinking he might say, 'Yeah, I'll have a five-hour one in the middle of your set,' and he said, 'I hate 'em!'  We said, 'Great! We love you!'” But on this segment, Paul asked Ringo if he would do a “token solo,” which Ringo resisted until George Martin convinced him to the “bloody solo” he hated.  Geoff Emerick got a kick out of the whole scenario:  “Usually, you have to try to talk drummers out of doing solos! He didn't want to do it, but everybody said, 'No, no, it'll be fantastic!' So he gave in – and turned in a bloody marvelous performance! … It’s not just a drummer going off.”  Ringo’s solo is so beautifully Ringo; as the Human Metronome, it focuses on the beat more than ostentatious flourishes, then reintroduces the full band with a helluva groove.

In addition to the RINGO SHOWCASE!, this segment is notable for containing the band's only instance of Paul, John, and George playing the guitar solo together, which amazingly was a John idea, and he even sent Yoko out of the studio for it to be recorded in private.  In each sequence, the solo begins with Paul, moves to George, and ends with John; I find George’s parts particularly brilliant..  They managed it in one take, which Emerick described resulting from “all the bad blood, all the fighting, all the crap that had gone down between the three former friends was forgotten….  John, Paul, and George looked like they had gone back in time, like they were kids again, playing together for the sheet enjoyment of it.”  He called their joy as a heartwarning “high point of summer 1969,” never failing to make him smile.

Paul’s “very cosmic, philosophiscal” (per John) final line – “And in the end, the love you take, is equal to the love you make” – sounds kind of simplistic to me, but, whether or not intended, it formed a fitting and poignant farewell, and a graceful exit as the last line recorded by the Beatles together on a record.  The orchestral flourish that follows is appropriately grand and majestic, then marching downward into a thoughtful finish that leaves you feeling like it’s all been tied neatly together.  

Mr krista: “Love the jam in the middle.  I think I and many people first heard that on Paul’s Boutique.  I’d like to know how they recorded Ringo’s drums to sound so monstrous in that solo. Sounded like Dave Grohl or something. Must have festooned that place with 15 microphones.”

Suggested cover:  To come
Click to expand...
I will certainly have some thoughts about this and all its awesomeness, but my face has been rocked off just reading this and singing it in my head, so, with midnight approaching, I must get in my own golden slumbers and comment tomorrow, hoping my face has regenerated by morning.  

 
krista4 said:
3.  Abbey Road medley (Abbey Road, 1969)

....

You Never Give Me Your Money

Beatles version:  Spotify  YouTube

This was written by Paul as a rare protest song from him, against the new manager that he had not wanted to bring on:  “This was my lambasting Allen Klein’s attitude to us:  no money, just funny paper, all promises and it never works out.” Like John’s “Happiness Is A Warm Gun,” it’s a mashing together of three different parts. It’s a medley within The Medley!  I love this one; it’s like a “Best of Paul,” with so many different parts and segues and styles thrown in.  His vocal work is fantastic in this song segment, as are all the chord and tempo changes that I won’t go into because I have eight parts to write up.  Sheesh. 

The first portion is the skewering of Allen Klein that Paul mentioned.  George agreed with the sentiment:  “'’Funny paper' – that's what we get. We get bits of paper saying how much is earned and what this and that is, but we never actually get it in pounds, shillings and pence. We've all got a big house and a car and an office, but to actually get the money we've earned seems impossible."  It starts with a melancholy vocal and poignant piano that emphasizes the downbeat nature with some nice pregnant pauses, then adds urgency from the increased tom-tom sound and insistent vocals into the next section.

The second portion is a look back at how the band spent its early years, with some nostalgia but no sappiness.  It describes how the guys didn’t have many prospects and were uncertain their futures, until they decided to dive headlong into the music business and pursue “that magic feeling.”  I love Paul’s jaunty piano work, his bass playing, and old-fashioned ragtime sound, and in particular his singing style and the way he presents “that magic feeling.”

The third portion, including the guitar solo leading into it, is my favorite part; this section is another reference (like “Two Of Us”) to Paul and Linda’s penchant for hopping in the car and getting lost in the countryside.  The rising vocals swell into a major key while Ringo offers a nice counterpoint on to every measure, with guitars and tambourines increasing the urgency, until they fall away into that countdown sequence that you probably find fun and intriguing (if you’re me) or annoying.

Mr. krista: “McCartney was the band dad, wasn’t he? This is Band Dad saying like “#### you guys.”  But it really kind of rocks.”

... 
Click to expand...
I'm here. 

"came true...today..."

That bass line is my favs. 

 
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