A song with virtually three chords in it, John Lennon's "Don't Let Me Down" is his sincere plea to Yoko Ono. One could also interpret it as a plea to himself, singing "Don't fuck this up", meaning his current relationship. John and Yoko had already and would continue to get a good amount of shit for being a couple and though they both played it off that "love was all that mattered", John was fully aware that his career may take a few hit points in the process. "Don't Let Me Down" is an honest, full-tilt declaration to make it all work and the simple arrangement along with Paul's equally soaring harmony vocals help slam that idea home.
This would probably be another one in the top five best harmony vocal performances in The Beatles cannon. John, Paul, and George sing virtually the entire song together and "Nowhere Man" was noteworthy at the time for being the very first Beatles song to exclusively have nothing to do with love or love themes of any kind. John Lennon wrote it autobiographically after a five hour period pulling his hair out trying to come up with something and getting "nowhere". Finally the song came to him complete, patience for a classic paying off.
Inspired in equal parts by transcendental meditation and Cynthia Lennon apparently nagging at her husband one night when the line "Words are flowing out like endless rain into a paper cup" came to him, John toyed with "Across the Universe" around late '67/early '68. Out of the two versions that were released when the group was still active, I have always preferred the more toned-down, bird-noises-less Let It Be one. This was the second to be put out, the song originally appearing on the No One's Gonna Change Our World charity album released in December of '69.
The last Beatles song to feature John on harmonica and probably the first and only to feature George Martin on honky-tonk piano, "Rocky Raccoon" is Paul McCartney's country and western, folk spoof on The Beatles (The White Album). I have always dug this rather funny tale of a love triangle gone wrong and it is one of the few songs I know all of the words to. Paul wrote it as a lighthearted goof, inspired by jamming with John and singer/songwriter Donovan whilst in India. I think it fits with "Yellow Submarine" and a handful of other Beatles songs as more kid friendly and lighthearted. Yes, even though Rocky gets shot in it. *spoilers*
If I had to choose, this may actually be my favorite Beatles riff. It was played by both Paul and George in synch with each other, John actually writing the rest of the song. So another example of the Fabs powers combined to make one of their own songs that much better. Lennon apparently was not that fond of "And Your Bird Can Sing", proving that sometimes geniuses can also be wrong. I also love the "Tell me that you've heard every sound there is" moment that sounds like a key change. Beatles songs are loaded with little nuances like this, just little tweaks to make it so every time that a part comes around, it is usually never exactly the same.
By far the best Beatles song for children, (sorry "Yellow Submarine"), has always been "All Together Now" in my eyes. The song was written mostly by Paul for the cartoon film Yellow Submarine, though John had some input as well. Here or there, both were keen on writing the occasional song that tailored to kids, this one being wrapped up in about six hours on May 12th, 1967. You can tell it was a hoot to record as well and it also has one of my favorite endings, where the tempo picks up and all of the Beatles and anybody else in the studio at the moment keeps feverishly singing along.
A very rare moment in Beatles history for a song to feature only John Lennon and Paul McCartney with no other Beatles or outside musicians was "The Ballad of John and Yoko". John of course authored it, this one whilst on his honeymoon in Paris. It chronicles all that had led up to that very moment in he and Yoko's almost film-script worthy dash to get married. Upon returning, John rang up Paul and said "we gotta record it now" whilst both George and Ringo were off holidaying and making a film respectively. The result is the most autobiographical song John Lennon had ever written at that point and the bass line is in the long list of McCartney's finest moments on a four string.
Authorship for "Ticket To Ride" is debatable as John claims that Paul's only involvement creatively was telling Ringo what to play, while Paul says the two of them hashed it out together during a three hour songwriting session. Whether or not Paul is to credit with the drum part idea, kudos for whoever is responsible as it is one of Ringo's most memorable. The origin as to the meaning of the song's title was also something both Paul and John apparently could not agree on. Paul said it was in reference to "a British Railways ticket to the town of Ryde", while John said it referenced a card that whores were given in Hamburg, Germany saying they were disease free. I certainly hope it is the funnier of the two.
Another that features no John or George, just Paul on everything except that excellent French horn solo and Ringo on the drums. Regardless of his zero involvement with the song, "For No One" was one of John's favorites of Paul's and it is easily one of Revolver's finest moments. Great lyrics once again inspired by Jane Asner, Paul wrote it whilst on holiday with his then ladyfriend in the bathroom of all places. Though most Beatles covers are not worth anyone's time, Emmylou Harris does arguably the best Beatles cover I have yet heard of "For No One" on Pieces of the Sky.
One of my favorite Beatles intros is in "Mother Nature's Son". Paul wrote the song whilst in India, inspired by a speech made by the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and John supposedly threw in a few words as well. When it came time to track it though, McCartney simply grabbed George Martin for two different sessions and did it sans-any other Beatles. John was apparently pissed that Paul seemed to posses the patience of a five year old when given access to a studio, but (The White Album) was infamous for The Beatles being at their most divided as a band, often running about doing things on their own far more than ever. None of it made for inferior music that is for sure, this song being proof positive.
The first and not last Beatles song to feature zero members playing any instruments on it was Revolver's "Eleanor Rigby". It is a Paul song, but one that got a good amount of input from a few other blokes. George came up with the "Ah, look at all the lonely people" chorus, Ringo had the line "Writing the words of a sermon that no one will here", and band friend Pete Sheldon suggested changing Paul's original name for the priest as well as the idea to have Father McKenzie and Eleanor "meet" at the song's end. George Martin then scored the brilliantly famous string section and the song was released as a single, supplying yet another bit of proof that The Beatles were as innovative as they were glorious.
Just beating out "Rigby" by a hair as McCartney's finest song on Revolver is "Here, There, and Everywhere". Paul, John, and George Martin have all sited it as one of the bass player's finest compositions at one point or another. Directly inspired by the Beach Boy's "God Only Knows", (another phenomenal song), Paul came up with "Everywhere" as his answer to said Pet Sounds cut. Whether it made Brian Wilson proud or insanely jealous that the Beatles once again one-upped him, the results are as good as good gets. It is arguably the most gorgeous Beatles song there is. George and John's background "Oooos" are quite soothing and Paul's delicate lead is likewise stellar.
Though the less famous B-side to the "Paperback Writer" single, "Rain" I nevertheless find superior. The one-two punch of both Ringo and Paul delivering the work of their careers on their respective instruments has oodles to do with this. Particularly Ringo, who had not nor would ever be better than on "Rain". It is his "Moby Dick". The song also has the Beatles first use of background anything, in the form of the vocal line near the fade out. John's voice is also slowed down and the musical track was recorded faster than normal so that when also slowed down, it then contributed to the song's intentional sluggishness. So, innovation and killer performances all in a song about people who bitch about the weather.
To release a new Beatles song in 1995, as in one that was currently recorded and worked on and not just some old unreleased track, is about as ballsy of a task as the Threetles Paul, George, and Ringo could have taken on. Thankfully, we got two such new songs in the process, both based off pf old John Lennon demos that were on friendly loan from Yoko Ono. Also, both ended up being fantastic. "Free As A Bird" was the first one that we all heard on the night they debuted the first part of The Beatles Anthology on ABC and I remember sitting by the TV, holding my breath in anticipation. The then surviving Beatles, (along with ELO's Jeff Lynne producing), painstakingly turned John's rough cassette demo into an instant classic. Now looking back, none of us should have been surprised that it came out so great.
Revolver's trippiest track was the album closer "Tomorrow Never Knows". Along with "I Am the Walrus", it is the most on-drugs Beatles song. All four members contributed homemade tape-loops that were all manually layered and faded over the track in real time. It also features backwards everything, compressed drums, a sitar and tambura, and a whole bunch going on with John's vocals. Lennon told George Martin that he wanted to sound like a hundred Tibetan monks chanting from a hilltop. The whole song is only on one chord, as Indian music often dictates, and it was given a Ringo malapropism for a title just because why not. Also if you blink your eyes really fast and sway your head around when you listen to it, it is awesome. Being high probably helps a lot too.
An almost mini-prog epic is "Happiness Is A Warm Gun", one of the countless excellent things that happens on The Beatles (The White Album). John wrote the song based off of a magazine that he was show which barred the title on the front. So taken was he by the ridiculous phrase that he proceeded to use it to merge three separate things that he was working on into one song. This is a rare moment of odd-timings being used on a Beatles song as well. Paul and George were also highly impressed by John's creation, as both have sited it as a favorite of theirs on said double album. John's vocal at the end is also one of his finest.
The writers of the 100 Best Beatles Songs book that I mentioned in the forward to this list made a rather daft decision to simply include almost the entire second side of Abbey Road as one entry, starting from "Because". So yes, I may be cheating by including these four songs together as one, but I am not cheating as much as those guys did at least. These four mini and full jams make up a near seven minute, compact "song" that ultimately wets your appetite for the later and even more amazing medley that wraps the album up, (more on that one in awhile). The first three are all John joints, "She Came In Through the Bathroom Window" being Paul's contribution. This band was so brilliant that you would think that the entire thing was written originally to sound exactly like it came out.
OK, I admit that I was scratching my head when it came time to make this list and figure out exactly how I wanted to split up the second side of Abbey Road. Many sources, including wikipedia, site "You Never Give Me Your Money" as the first song in the album's medley. So yes, I could have done that, but I stand by throwing it on as its own thing and just a single spot above the rest of the medley that follows it. For one, the song is over four minutes long, clearly enough to qualify it as its own stand-alone track. Also within those four-ish minutes, it goes through a number of styles all its own, from piano ballad to uptempo rock song, to a nursery rhyme at the end. Lyrically, Paul wrote it while being disillusioned with his band breaking up and the other three Beatles siding with Allen Klein to sort out their dwindling financial state.
Next to "Helter Skelter", The Beatles (The White Album) heaviest moment is John's balls awesome "Everybody's Got Something To Hide Except Me and My Monkey". Yes it is the longest title to a Beatles song and it is also damn near Mr. Lennon's best song on the album. John and Yoko were in the early stages of their long, "What's everybody's problem, we just wanna be together 24/7", honeymoon phase of their relationship and John wrote the song basically saying "Hey we're good, everybody just chill". Ultimately, this song just has a funny title, kicks all kinds of ass, and least us never forget, contains the greatest bass break in music history, "You Can Call Me Al" included.
George's second ever released song on a Beatles album was the Help! track "I Need You" and it improves leaps and bounds upon his also still solid debut "Don't Bother Me" from With the Beatles. The volume pedal hook perfectly compliments the vocal melody and simple acoustic arrangement of the song. A cowbell and snare is about the only percussion you hear and George's lyric to future wife Patti Harrison is most genuine. The band recorded it on the same day that they did "Another Girl" and "Ticket To Ride", all three marking the first day of recording for the year 1965. I would say that this is George's third best Beatles song and just about the highlight of Help!.
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