The Beatles: Note By Note

On this episode of our Beatles podcast, Peter and Kenyon look at George Harrison’s You Like Me Too Much, an overlooked Help! track that turns out to have more going for it than its reputation suggests.It is an entry point into the bigger story of how the Beatles worked. How arrangements took shape in the studio, how imperfect performances still made it onto finished records, and what happened when someone other than John or Paul started finding their own songwriter voice.We talk to Anne (BeatlesResearchSociety) to sort through the song’s unusual piano parts and surviving session notes. In the end, we find out what's going on with this song and why it's important in the Beatles catalog.What we cover:- The writing and recording of “You Like Me Too Much”- George Martin’s session notes and the disputed piano parts- The song’s unusual piano-and-guitar solo- George Harrison’s development as a songwriter- The different UK and US releases of Help!Follow Beatles Research Society:https://www.instagram.com/beatlesresearchsociety

In this Beatles lecture series, we dive into the music and lyrics of It's Only Love. Lennon begins with a unique rhyming scheme, but somehow manages to build a story within this constraint. Musically, John develops a number of melodic and rhythmic ideas that he reuses throughout the song in different ways. What can seem like a slight Beatles song turns out to be an interesting example of how a songwriter can create unity from a few simple ideas.

John Lennon called It's Only Love a lousy song with abysmal lyrics. But is he right?Peter and Kenyon are joined by their long-time friend Elli to take a closer look at this late addition to Help! and figure out what works, what doesn’t, and whether Lennon judged it too harshly.The conversation turns toward how artists make their work and how old, cringy experiments can become embarrassing with time. Kenyon, Peter, and Elli each bring in an old poem and read it aloud in a beautiful shaming ritual that will now live on the internet forever. Along the way, they consider whether failed work is simply part of the creative process, how artists develop higher standards, and whether John Lennon was too hard on his music.What we cover:- The writing and recording of “It’s Only Love”- The unusual intro guitar effect- Hoshika Rumiko’s visit to the Beatles’ recording session- The song’s release history- George Martin’s orchestral version "That's A Nice Hat"

In this Beatles lecture series, we dive into the music and lyrics of You're Going To Lose That Girl. On first impression, the lyrics seem conniving, but there may be alternative readings. Musically, this is a quintessential Lennon composition and we find all the fingerprints hidden inside the song. At the same time, John moves into new territories and gives us an exciting key change for the middle 8.

On this episode of our Beatles podcast, you are going to lose assumptions you had about this Help! era song. Joined by Cameron from NationSquid and FeedYourHead, we dig deep and try to uncover the essence of this song. As usually, we talk about the songwriting, the recording process and how it was released. But we also dive into adjacent topics such as American cinema and the tech world. Do yourself a favor and check it out.Check out Cameron:https://www.youtube.com/nationsquidhttps://www.youtube.com/@FeedYourSquid

In this Beatles lecture series, Kenyon analyzes the lyrics and music for Paul McCartney's Another Girl. Underneath a fun blues jam, a sinister story starts to emerge. And while the song may seem like another one of Paul's work songs for the movie, Paul experiments with the melody's phrasing and the song's form. The middle 8 is one of the most fascinating of the early Beatles middle 8s, and we break down exactly what is happening and why it works.

On this episode of our Beatles podcast, we cover another song, Another Girl. For the first time in a while, it's just Kenyon and Peter alone together, so things get loose pretty quickly. We come into the episode talking about a minor Paul song, but by the end, we talk about the major pivot point that this song represents. It's insightful and it's a little chaotic.What we cover:-Unconventional songwriting spaces-Sequencing of the first side of Help!-The iconic guitar line-Paul crossing the bar line with his lyrics-Paul's Tunisian vacation

In this Beatles lecture series, Kenyon begins by focusing on the word "need." We follow the story from George's devotion to his heartbreak and devastation. From there, the music takes over and the volume-pedal guitar motif takes center stage. The music and lyrics are working together and tell us more of the story than the song seems to say at first.