The Beatles: Note By Note

In this Beatles lecture series, we analyze Tell Me What You See. We look at the way the lyrics gradually reveal that this promise is actually an attempt of persuasion. Musically, we explore Paul’s melodic contours, the song’s recurring question-and-answer phrases, and how its simple harmony takes on a more modal character. We also compare blues-inflected and warmer pop sounds, and how the unusual instrumental middle section develops the song’s Latin-influenced character.

On this episode of our Beatles podcast, musician, singer, songwriter and obsessive album listener Caro Kelley joins us for Tell Me What You See. Caro has spent a lot of time not just listening to music, but rating and ranking it and she brings that perspective to a song that Paul McCartney himself dismissed as not particularly memorable. Would you call this a filler track?For our storytime, we have a remarkable firsthand account of the Beatles actually working out the song in the studio with George Martin. Melody Maker journalist Ray Coleman was there as they rehearsed, argued over what was wrong, experimented with percussion, added the electric piano and tried to find a sound they admitted they couldn’t yet define.Tell Me What You See opens up bigger questions about singing, intimacy, imagination and why a song can become more interesting the closer you get to it.What we cover:- Paul McCartney and John Lennon’s conflicting memories of who wrote “Tell Me What You See”- John and Paul’s unusually loose rhythmic phrasing- Ringo Starr’s drum break- Paul McCartney’s Hohner Pianet C- A British post-war religious motto- A possible connection to Elvis Presley’s “Trying to Get to You”- Ray Coleman’s February 1965 Melody Maker article- George Martin’s orchestral version of “Tell Me What You See”Follow Caro Kelley:https://www.instagram.com/caro_kelley

In this Beatles lecture series, we look at the music and lyrics of George Harrison’s You Like Me Too Much. The uneasy relationship at the center of the song seems caught in a cycle: one person threatens to leave, but neither quite manages to end things. Musically, George builds that uneasy feeling into the song. The harmony repeatedly avoids landing on a firm resolution. We explore how these techniques make the verse unusually effective, and how George was already developing some distinctive songwriting instincts. But not every part works equally well. The middle eight introduces a collection of melodic, harmonic, and lyrical ideas that struggle to develop the song’s central premise. Finally, we look at the barrelhouse piano intro, instrumental break, and outro, and how George Martin’s arrangement helps frame the song and give its wandering structure a sense of unity.

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"

On this episode of our Beatles podcast, Kenyon, Peter, et al hold 3 important corporate meetings to determine once and for all which song will serve as Ringo's contribution to the Help! album. We have a pre-production meeting, a production meeting and a post mortem to decide what and how Ringo can contribute for this project. They are joined by a few guests that add their input that may or may not help the boys arrive at a conclusion.

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