"Rain"

Title: “Rain”

Album: (Not released on LP)

Lennon’s “Rain,” which B-sided 1966’s “Paperback Writer,” was recorded during the Revolver sessions. It’s widely considered the Beatles’ finest B-side. The song was written following a particularly rainy stint the band had in Australia. John said it was “about people moaning about the weather all the time.” It’s musically simple, but technically impressive and highly experimental, containing a slowed down rhythm track and backward-played vocals, which foreshadowed things to come on Revolver (released later the same year). Also notable on the track is Paul’s complex basssline and Ringo’s drumming, which Starr himself (as well as many critics) consider his finest recorded performance. The performances and the technical effects pioneered in this song cannot be overstated. And the three promotional films shot for "Rain" (one of which can be seen below) marked another way in which the Beatles influenced the emergence of the music video (again, well over a decade before MTV was launched).

"Yesterday"

Song: “Yesterday”
Album: Help (1965)

As the story goes, McCartney (literally) dreamed the melody of “Yesterday,” and rushed to a piano upon waking to play it out before forgetting the tune. Because it came to him so clearly and completely, he was worried that his subconscious was plagiarizing someone else’s song while he slept. So he played it for numerous people, figuring if no one claimed to have heard it before, he'd probably be safe in continuing to work on it. But he agonized over it, kicking the song around for quite some time before recording it. Actually, it was quite a while before it even had a title. As John and Paul often did when working out a new song, McCartney used nonsense “working lyrics”: “Scrambled Eggs/Oh, my baby how I love your legs.”

The song was a point of contention in the group, because the other Beatles were annoyed with Paul’s incessant fiddling with and chattering about the song. It probably could have been included on either A Hard Day’s Night or Beatles for Sale, but disagreements about the arrangement (or whether or not the song was even appropriate for a Beatles’ album) delayed its release. After Paul was comfortable with a  completed version of the song, it was actually initially offered to musician Chris Farlowe (probably because it didn’t sound like a Beatles tune), but Farlowe turned it down because it was “too soft.” Paul finally recorded it in June 1965 (four days after his 23rd birthday). A string arrangement was later added to the track, but none of the other Beatles were included in the final recording. George Martin apparently had a conversation with Brian Epstein about this, suggesting that maybe they should just release it as a Paul McCartney song, as the rest of the band had little to do with it (and it sounded unlike anything else they’d recorded).  But Epstein was adamant that they not split up the Beatles. The song was ultimately included on the Beatles 1965 Help!

The rest, as they say, is history. “Yesterday” went on to become one of the Beatles’ most popular songs. It’s still popular today, and has been covered more than 2,000 times. 

"Do You Want to Know a Secret"

Song: “Do You Want to Know a Secret”
Album: Please Please Me (1963)

“Do You Want to Know a Secret” was written primarily by Lennon and was recorded during an epic nine-song session in February 1963. It was released on the Please Please Me LP in March 1963 and as a single (B-sided by “Thank You Girl”) in March 1964. John and Paul composed the tune for Harrison to sing, whose voice range—at least by Lennon’s estimation—was limited at the time. (John later said George’s voice improved significantly with time). In 1964, it became the first George-sung tune to crack the top ten of the Billboard Top 100, peaking at #2, just behind “Can’t Buy Me Love.”

The lyrics were inspired by the song “I’m Wishing,” which was featured in Walt Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Apparently Lennon’s mom Julia would sing it to him as a child. In fact, the first lines from the Snow White tune—“Want to know a secret? Promise not to tell?”—are used almost verbatim as the third and fourth lines of the Beatles’ track.

"All My Loving"

Song: “All My Loving”

Album: With the Beatles (1963)

Although not released as a single, “All My Loving” was immensely popular and enjoyed significant radio play after its release on the group’s 1963 U.K. LP With the Beatles. So much, in fact, that EMI later issued it as the title track to an EP. It was also the opening number for the Beatles’ first performance on the Ed Sullivan Show in February 1964, and it was later used in the background during scenes in both A Hard Day’s Night and (as an instrumental piece) Magical Mystery Tour.

It was a solid early Paul song. For many, it was the track that made people realize McCartney could write just as well as John. In fact, many critics consider it the best non-single Beatles’ track before 1964.

Even John spoke fondly about the tune, joking with interviewers that he wished he’d been the one to write it. And legend has it (or, at least, TV producer Alan Weiss—who was at Roosevelt Hospital when Lennon was brought in—claims that) “All My Loving" was playing in the emergency room when was Lennon was pronounced dead. 

"I'm a Loser"

Song: “I’m a Loser”

Album: Beatles for Sale (1964)

Recorded in eight takes (with no overdubs) in August 1964—on the same day as “Mr. Moonlight” and “Leave My Kitten Alone”—John’s “I’m a Loser” was originally considered for release as a single (until John composed “I Feel Fine,” which was selected over it).   The tune instead appeared on Beatles for Sale (Beatles ’65 in the U.S.) and was regularly played while touring.

Both its overall sound and its lyrical content were influenced by country music (as well as by folk, especially Bob Dylan). The song, in part, marked the beginning of rock and folk coming together in a meaningful way, as well as the shifting of the Beatles into darker musical and lyrical territory. Not a happy track (as its title clearly indicates), “I’m a Loser” was among the first of the Beatles’ grown up love songs, dwelling on the despondency of a tough breakup instead of the euphoria of new love. Fitting nicely with the character of the song, Lennon even dips to a low G during the verses, something he rarely did (as it was a note typically hit only by Baritones or Bass—and Lennon was a Tenor).

An interesting tidbit: the original pressing of Beatles for Sale (in the U.K.) misprinted the title as “I’m a Losser."

"Helter Skelter"

Song: “Helter Skelter”

Album: The Beatles (The White Album) (1968)

Paul wrote “Helter Skelter” in an effort to make the loudest, dirtiest sounding song he could, apparently in response to a 1967 Guitar Player interview in which Who guitarist Pete Townshend described their single, “I Can See for Miles,” as the loudest, rawest song they’d ever recorded. Many critics credit “Helter Skelter” as a forerunner of heavy metal.

Paul said he used the “symbol of helter skelter as a ride from the top to the bottom; the rise and fall of the Roman Empire.” Charles Manson, however, infamously cited several The Beatles (The White Album) songs as a coded prophecy for an apocalyptic vision of white people killing each other off with Manson and his followers emerging as the rulers of the remaining black people, or some such ridiculousness.  Manson referred to the prophetic course of events as helter skelter.

The song was recorded several times during sessions in July 1968, including 12 and 27 minute versions, and apparently all acted quite zany during the recording. It’s rumored that George even ran around the study with a flaming ashtray held above his head while Paul recorded his vocals.

"I'm Happy Just to Dance with You"

Song: "I'm Happy Just to Dance with You"
Album: Hard Day's Night (1964)

Written before Harrison composed his own material, Paul and John penned “I’m Happy Just to Dance with You” specifically for him to perform. It was recorded in March of 1964 for the Hard Day’s Night soundtrack, and the clip from the film below marked the first commercial video piece in which George sang lead.

Lennon and McCartney considered it a formula song, but there’s a few interesting bits about its structure nonetheless. The Beatles often used unique and unpredictable chords, and in this song they augmented the B7th chord on “dance,” adding a hint of dissonance to a crucial point of the chorus. Also, the opening of the song is taken from the last four bars of the bridge instead of from the verse or chorus (which was standard for most pop tunes at the time).