I completely agree. As a youngster, I think this song inspired me to write poetry, which is a very gratifying thing to do, still today. By the way, you two are are a delight to follow, guys.
What’s striking about Eleanor Rigby is the sheer economy of the lyrics- there isn’t a syllable wasted; the whole song is tighter than a drum, and delivers a series of vignettes, complete with characterization and pathos.
@@degsbabe It seems obvious from the lyrics that it's about "all the lonely people" out there. Their tragic faces are hidden behind the faces they wear when they're in front of others. It's about people who are old and so alone nobody comes to their burial. It's all right there in the lyrics.
@@Chris-kj7de I can read lyrics. .. How come someone can feel lonely in a crowded room.? People can be hidden behind the masks placed onto them by other people. Its called being ostracized... by your own kind. Snobbery. A CLASS system. Thats why the UK is seen as weak and is being over run by foreigners. Because the stupid English are selfishly placing masks on each other...divide and fall. Get it..? 😈
💯✨ 👏👏👏 Paul McCartney recounted this song's origin story in a 2018 interview with GQ. He said: "When I was really little I lived on what was called a housing estate, which is like the projects - there were a lot of old ladies and I enjoyed sitting around with these older ladies because they had these great stories, in this case about World War II. One in particular I used to visit and I'd go shopping for her - you know, she couldn't get out. So I had that figure in my mind of a sort of lonely old lady. Over the years, I've met a couple of others, and maybe their loneliness made me empathize with them. But I thought it was a great character, so I started this song about the lonely old lady who picks up the rice in the church, who never really gets the dreams in her life. Then I added in the priest, the vicar, Father McKenzie. And so, there was just the two characters. It was like writing a short story, and it was basically on these old ladies that I had known as a kid." In Observer Music Monthly, November 2008, McCartney said: "These lonely old ladies were something I knew about growing up, and that was what 'Eleanor Rigby' was about - the fact that she died and nobody really noticed. I knew this went on." The lyrics "wearing the face that she keeps in a jar by the door" are a reference to the cold-cream she wears in an effort to look younger.
Ahh. That was absolutely lovely and poignant to read. I never knew why Paul wrote Eleanor Rigby. Thank you for posting your comment with this helpful and insightful information.🙏☺💞😺🍀
I have his book "Lyrics". He met the ladies doing chores for them. He'd get paid a schilling for mowing yards, shopping, etc. He was originally going to call her Daisy Hawkins after Jim Hawkins in Treasure Island, but it didn't fit. The "face that she keeps in a jar by the door" is a reference to Nivea Cold Cream. It was his mom's favorite and it scared him as a kid every time she would put it on.
I love watching Paul describe how he wrote songs like this. Because his talent is on another planet, he sounds like me describing how make a peanut butter sandwich. Just so matter of a fact. Just like John. I can't imagine having just 1% of their talent.
When the Beatles played at the local memorial hall father McKenzie was inspired by a Mr McKenzie who used to look after the lads when they played there I believe
This is a magnificent song. The tragic poetry, the choppy, baroque scaling strings cutting through Paul's soulful sound - what an absolute *masterpiece.* 🖤
When I ask people what their favorite Beatles song is and then I tell them mine is this track, they seem very surprised. Most people don't choose this as their favorite Beatles song but it's definitely my favorite. I think it's just because it was so freaking different and it also touches a cord with the lyrics
@@ON-NO-ODM Yes, I'd never heard anything like it before when I discovered it as a child (two decades after it was written). It's unusual for 'young cool bands' to write about older people and the often grinding bleakness of their lives. It's not a cool topic, I think that's why it rarely features in song lyrics. _Wearing the face that she keeps in a jar by the door_ is such a vivid and jolting piece of writing by McCartney. 🤍
Hey guys, I gotta repeat this, I'm a Beatles fanatic and I've said one time before, you really need to do a deep dive on the Beatles and listen to their entire catalog in chronological order so you can see the growth and change in just 8 years (1962-1970).
@@phillipbachelor3884 oh 23 that old hey that makes all the difference then, the point remains the same you pedantic sod ! he wasn't in his 60's or 70 was he .
Agreed, Kate Bush was similar. One her first hits, 'The Man with Child in their Eyes' she wrote when she was 13 and most of her big hits by the time she was in her early 20s.
Great heartfelt song about loneliness. The strings were arranged by the Beatles producer George Martin. The harmonies and backing vocals included some by John and George, but also multi tracked Paul singing with himself.
I've always found this to be a very sad song, even though Rob likes the violin work. "Eleanor Rigby died in the church and was buried along with her name, nobody came" says it all.
@@alexanderwalter4595 I agree. It's beautiful but sad. Lonely people whose lives may not actually make a difference, but people like Father McKenzie continue to do their under appreciated jobs. Not the typical story for a pop song.
In seventh grade, my English teacher made us each pick a poem to memorize and recite. She said it could be a song, so I picked "Eleanor Rigby." Even at age12, this song had really hit me as very poignant. It's an extremely memorable song, one I've always kept in mind as I interact with people. You never know who might be lonely, so I try to be friendly and show an interest in them.
@@joebersik9846 Which is kind of weird, right? This number sounds like it would have been on Srgt. Pepper, or The White Album. 1966 just seams a little too early for a sound that's so progressive. Paul McCartney was something else in his day!
This song is the second track on the album Revolver. But yes, Rubber Soul is great in its own right. However, if you've really been listening to Rubber Soul for years, and you're now 70, you should've known that Eleanor Rigby isn't on it; decades ago.😂
@@thelegendinhisownmind7038 I was simply commenting that Rubber Soul is my favorite album. Nothing to do with this reaction, just simply stating my opinion. :)
Yesterday. You don't know The Beatles until you hear Yesterday. It's the most covered song in history. They were the second-best selling artists of the 2000-2009 decade. And they last recorded together in 1970. Yes, they are the GOATs unquestionably.
Eleanor Rigby is from their "Revolver" album. Arguably, their greatest record for the music and its revolutionary sound techniques. It's very hard to pick a favorite on that record. Recommend "Taxman", "Tomorrow Never Knows" and "Here there and Everywhere".
@@MyOliver64 Penny Lane is a wonderful song but I wouldn't exactly call it deeply emotional. More like affectionately observational. Although, of course we long time Beatles fans can get deeply emotional when we hear anything by them, so there's that...
Paul was doing the harmony in the background too as well as lead vocals. With the Beatles, the lead singer on any Beatles song is always the primary writer of the song. This is the best way to find out who the writer is.
This song has basically just catapulted the Beatles into a whole new level of music. This is another Beatles' classic that will continue to stand the test of time. Thanks for the upload.
"Father McKenzie, wiping the dirt from his hands as he walks from the grave.........no one was saved" is one of the greatest lines in any Pop song, so simple, so direct, gets the point over perfectly.
@@steve55sogood16 Nope, GBPaddling was right, its "saved" - you can clearly hear Paul articulate the "ed" at the end of the word if you listen carefully.
@@steve55sogood16 No it isn't. Your line also makes no sense. Father McKenzie didn't save any souls that day in church because there was no congregation to hear his sermon. He no longer has a function or purpose as a priest - his life is now meaningless, as well as cripplingly lonely. 😔
It's a magnificent and powerful song. My favourite line is *_Wearing the face that she keeps in a jar by the door._* It's such a vivid and jolting piece of writing by McCartney. 🤍
paul wrote She's leaving home when he was a teenager, but it was left on the shelf until pepper, hard to believe than a teenager could write such a classic song.
@@macca1146 Wow. Roger Hogdson of Supertamp-whom loved & strived to emulate The Beatles, in his own way of course, also wrote many of his songs as a teenager.
"In My Life" is one of the most beautiful songs I have ever heard. Bette Midler did a remake of this song in 1991 for the film "For The Boys". Both versions are pretty but the Beatles' version knocks it out of the park. Please review this song. Definitely a tearjerker.
Yes. That's the word: bleak. I've heard nothing thing like it in popular music. For someone who had virtually no formal training in music ( unlike, say, Billy Joel,) McCartney verges on genius again and again and again.
For young people it's hard to express how revolutionary this was in its day. The Beatlrs were really on a different planet musically from their contemporaries.
To me there is another category of Beatles, the ones that make you cry. Eleanor Rigby, She's Leaving Home, A Day in the Life. All this time later and I still come away with tears.
@FreedomsRealm Each one of those affects me the same way. And I would add "In My Life" as the one that made me cry even as a 12 year old kid. I can't imagine growing up without The Beatles.💙☮
@@deborahcornell171 Oh yes that's a great one too. And in some ways it feels good to acknowledge these experiences. That in seeing them it allows them to belong.
One time I got out of the subway in NYC and there was a group of street performers playing Eleanor Rigby all with violins and I burst into tears I was so moved.
@@KTRS i have a beautiful daughter too, she`s left home. but I am thankful that her partner, with whom she now lives, is a fabulous young man, and he adores her and she him. he was part of her crew when they were kids. So I know she is safe and happy. and yet this song makes me cry every single time, "standing alone at the top of the stair...she breaks down" this is purely and simply... art. you know macartney met the girl who left home before and after she left home coincidentally.
Whether someone loves the Beatles or hates them, they are still always going to be the greatest band ever. NO BAND EVER innovated or influenced more than they did. Those are simply facts.
You’re right and it’s the breadth and depth of their innovation and influence that makes them so impressive (and I don’t enjoy all their stuff, but really respect them). Nowadays, it’s really difficult to convey how radically different the pre-Beatles era is from what happened post-Beatles.
dave seguin there are people that hate the beatles ? the only person I ever heard say that was lou reed, which to me is tantamount to an admission that you dont like music. transformer is a magnificent album, but is effectively Bowie. love lou`s stance generally and some of the other stuff, but his grand opus was produced by another real genius and was the high point of lou`s career. so I end up saying what did lou reed know about music ? he was an arrogant twat too.
George Martin was the Beatles producer, arranger, composer, conductor and a musician. He was the one in the studio who said "that doesn't work, lets try it this way". Martin was classically trained and I am sure that he added much polish to their work. Any time that I hear a symphony backing a Beatles song I am sure that he was the man controlling that part of the song. I always thought that there should have been five Beatles credited on their albums.
The Beatles have a huge range of music and styles. To get a better idea of what they were capable of, you really need to start from their earliest albums and work your way through them sequentially. You don't have to do it all on your reaction channel. They were doing everything from ballads to screaming rockers from their earliest days (way before they recorded anything). And every one of their albums was a change up to a new level - the progression from Rubber Soul through Revolver and Sergeant Pepper's and on to the White Album is amazing.
Yes, I was going to suggest that myself. It would be *awesome* for the channel to do an album by album reaction to the astounding progression of Beatles music, start to finish.
Paul McCartney once said that “If anyone earned the title of the fifth Beatle, it was George Martin." There is no doubt that The Beatles created, wrote and made great music. At the same time, The Beatles may not have had their diversity of sound and some of their creativity without George Martin, the man who signed The Beatles and also produced the vast majority of their work. Martin was such a vital force in helping The Fab Four sound different than other bands of the era. He also helped the band's musical visions come to life. Martin was a classically trained and gifted musician and through his musical knowledge and experience, he helped the band incorporate various ideas- uncommon for Pop acts- from strings to horns and other instrumentation into the band's sound. Martin wrote and performed the majority of the orchestral arrangements for many of The Beatles songs. He even played keyboard on their early recordings.
I found the other day that George Martin worked with Spike Milligan in the years before the Beatles, and there is the belief that without his mind being opened by Spike's craziness his work with the Beatles wouldn't have happened
You will never know the impact the Beatles had unless you lived through Beatlemania. I was 6 in 1963, and it was pretty wild. They pretty much turned the world upside down.
Your exactly right. I was 4 in '64 when my half brother who was 18 arrived in Canada, in June, from Liverpool. Their music was all over the radio stations in Canada 6 months before the Ed Sullivan Show in the U.S. The anticipation was intense while waiting for him to arrive. The first time I saw him; he had a Beatle hair cut, wore a Beatle suit, Beatle boots, and sounded just like them when he talked. Unfortunately he turned out to be a bad seed, and was deported from Canada a year later. I never saw him again. I know he got married and had 3 kids, in the late '80's, but he went to work one day and disappeared. Weird what happens in life.
I grew up in England in the 60s and early 70s, and while they were together it was as if the air itself was carrying them, their music was a constant and everyone knew each of them as if they were personally acquainted. When they split, it was the biggest news story. There was so much good, ground-breaking music then, but nothing was so pervasive, so part of that ever-changing spirit we call the 60s, as the Beatles' stuff. I don't think that's ever been repeated by any artiste(s) no matter how successful. As you say, you really had to be there.
Paul has a sweet voice and there are other songs with The Beatles that showcase it like Here There and Everywhere or She's Leaving Home. He is one of a kind and yes a pure genius.
My favorite Beatles song and I was 13 when they came to the U.S. This is soul-shattering poetry. It twisted my insides even as a teen. Now that I'm 70 and a widow it hurts no less than ever.
Paul McCartney was in his early 20s when he wrote this song. I think it shows a deep empathy for people that struggle through life. Even at that age he had great emotional intelligence.
They had probably broken up or were about to before I was really aware of who they were, even though I must have heard them all my life. (I was born in ‘62.) So my perspective may not be entirely accurate but it seems to me that they maintained an appreciation for regular people, in particular the older generations, at a time when rock and roll was getting disillusioned, angry, and critical of anyone who represented traditional values. I suspect it’s because they grew up in Liverpool, which was a working class city. The deep empathy that you mentioned shows up from time to time in their songs which is why we never outgrew them and why more than fifty years later a new generation can flip out over how great they were.
And I just remembered that Paul was 14 when his mom died and John was 17 when he lost his mom. Losing their own mothers but also seeing each other’s pain must have opened their eyes to the fact that this is a hurting world, and you don’t always know what someone else is going through.
The name Eleanor Rigby came from a real headstone in a Liverpool churchyard. Paul McCartney noticed the name and wrote a song around it. The orchestral music is really beautiful
I’m sure you are probably correct. It’s very possible that I am wrong. Urban legends have a tendency to stick around until they are disproved. Thanks for your input
Paul has said the name Eleanor Rigby came from the actress that starred in the beatles movie help Eleanor bron and rigby came from a removal van he saw was called rigby and son. But the Eleanor rigby grave is in St Peters Church in Woolton in Liverpool the same chuch yard that John and Paul met in 1957.
@@jamesscott9456 Actually, they did get the name from a grave in Liverpool (I have been to said grave), but they denied it in interviews to avoid the grave becoming some sort of tourist hot spot. Respect!
@@ethanlivemere1162Paul has denied this many many times. Prior comment is the correct one. He even dismissed someone spending a ridiculous amount of money a few years ago purchasing Eleanor Rigby’s payroll time card from the hospital she worked at.
As a 65-year-old man who first heard the Beatles as a five year old in 1962, and never stop since then, you both remind me of myself when I first heard every one of their songs on the radio!
I was a Beatles fan from the get go. My late mother was an enormous music instructor and was sick of me playing The Beatles all the time until one morning, I played Eleanor Rigby. She got out of bed, raced over and said, “they are brilliant. I was wrong.” I didn’t hear that a lot. Ha! Gorgeous piece of music. Thanks for appreciating it.
One thing I can say about The Beatles is that you can appreciate the evolution of their sound from the beginning until they broke up. My Dad grew up on The Beatles and introduced me to it. I loved the early classics (“I Wanna Hold Your Hand”, “Can’t Buy Me Love”, “And I Loved Her”), but as I got older, I really REALLY loved their more mature songs (“Come Together”, “Penny Lane”, “The Long and Winding Road”, “Something”). Personally, I think their best song that really experimented with sounds they can play with in the studio was “A Day in the Life” from the Seargent Pepper’s album. It sounds like something John came up with on an LSD trip (along with “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds”), and the middle part written by Paul expertly melds into the main song. If Amber is really into their psychedelic sound, “A Day in the Life” is the epitome of that sound.
Oh, Darling is a great song. And John Lennon wished he wrote it because he felt his voice would have been better for the song than Paul's. I wish they did a version with John singing it just to hear what John would have done with it. That said, I think I would prefer Paul's voice on Oh, Darling over John's but I will never know for sure because we will never hear John sing it. Paul does great on the vocals and the bassline. Both just incredible.
Credit their producer, Sir George Martin (fifth Beatle) for the orchestration. His input and classical training was a major part of the Beatles growth.
The more you listen to The Beatles, the more you will appreciate them and how it changed the world! Honestly, I can never pick a favorite song, but one of my favorites are "In My Life"! I want it to be played at my funeral...
The genius behind The Beatles sound was George Martin. John and Paul would have these amazing ideas of different sounds and quirky instrumentation, and George was smart enough to say YES…
If anyone were to ask me "What is the saddest Beatles song," my answer would be "The last verse of Eleanor Rigby." You really should check out the movie Yellow Submarine." Very trippy, very clever, and tons of fun.
This song has always touched me. As someone who has clinical & bipolar depression, I am very familiar with that "face in a jar by the door" that we put on whenever we step outside so people won't know how lonely and depressed we are. Thank you for listening to this one.
OMG! All these years I have loved this song and I never thought of it that way, being someone who is also depressed and bi-polar. You have put into words something I never thought.
The Beatles are considered incredible because they were so innovative. They were one of the first to write and sing their own songs; their music kept evolving and it was hard to stick them into any one genre of music; their music was so new that other bands would emulate them; no one knew what would come next! And that's why my generation holds them in such high esteem. Their songs and music are as relevant now, as they were back in the 60's.
The appreciation "gateway" for young teens who are exploring the mysteries of dating and mating develops from the Beatles "early period." The "pronoun songs" such as "She Loves You," "I Saw Her Standing There," "Please Please Me," all pointed boys and girls to get together. Establishing that "hook," the curious will explore the rest of the Beatles' catalog. There are many of them that have the same reaction as Rob and Amber. This musical "dance" will repeat itself as long as 13 and 14 year olds discover it. They will tell their friends which gets the entire cycle to begin again.
You can argue all day if the Beatles were the GOAT. That’s opinion. What is fact is the Beatles changed EVERYTHING. Pop culture in the 20th century can be divided into what came before the Beatles and what came after. That cannot be over-emphasized.
The Beatles were at the forefront of almost everything new in music during this time, they invented the modern concept of what rock and pop music would be. However, I believe this song, about sadness and loneliness, is a direct spin off of the Rolling Stones "Paint it Black", about loss and depression, that came out several months prior. Before these songs came out everyone in pop/rock music would only sing about happiness and love and joy, but after these songs the doors were opened for anyone to sing about real life, real pain, real emotions.
This is one of the first songs where they start to flex their musical prowess. It's Paul signing. These guys were doing things that flew in the face of popular music - And they made it popular. Because they were the Bealtes !!!
If you want psychedelic Beatles, give a listen to pretty much anything on the Sargent Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album. But in particularly: - Mr. Kite - A Day In The Life - Sargent Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - Lucy In The Sky, I think you've done. This album gave the way to, When I'm 64. You can't miss with the Beatles.
this song and yesterday were the songs where parents, who had earlier been dismissive of the Beatles, had to finally admit that they were great... this song expanded their audience from us kids to just about everybody
The "White Album" was their most creative album, in my opinion. Beautiful masterpieces like "Martha My Dear", "o-bla-de-o-bla-da", "Back in the U.S.S.R", "Julia", "I Will", "Cry Baby Cry", "Dear Prudence", "Long Long Long", "Mother Nature's Son", "The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill", "Piggies", and more.
Interesting thought, For me it could be their best with a little edit. Suppose you could choose any songs from it you want, but you only have two sides to fill. What stays in your cut?
@@IvorPresents I agree. They could have done without Revolution #9, Wild Honey Pie, Why Don't We Do It In The Road (although the song was about protesting, not sex). I'm not sure what you mean by two sides, but my top five in order : Revolution 1, Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da, Martha My Dear, Dear Prudence, Mother Nature's Son.
This song has always just made me so emotional. The music, the lyrics, that trance effect, the connotations to my life. It's overwhelming. I love it. My favorite album is Rubber Soul. You should absolutely check out "Norwegian Wood" and "Michelle" from that album if you haven't already. I love that more people are learning to love the Beatles. Thanks for sharing your discovery...it brings me a lot of joy.
Rubber Soul is my favorite album too, but my favorite songs from the album are "Girl", "In my life" and "Nowhere Man". Johns contributions to that album are extremely strong. I think Pauls best contribution is "Drive my Car".
When the Beatles started, there was just the bare bones of “genre’s” blues, classical, country, jazz and rock and roll. They pushed musical boundaries and evolved into probably one of the most influential bands in history
My older sister was a fan of the early Beatles. My dad was a fan during their next phase. And my brother a fan of the later Beatles. They experimented with and innovated a lot of different styles. I heard them all. One of my favorite storyteller Beatles songs is Maxwell’s Silver Hammer.
The Beatles are fantastic! This is one of my favorites. I'm having trouble choosing one favorite album, so I'll say Rubber Soul and Revolver. Amber is probably going to want songs from the White Album and Abbey Road... and maybe some Magical Mystery Tour.
Rubber Soul and Revolver are, for me, the best Beatles albums. They mark the transition from the Fab 4 pop era to something much more. This two albums are the turning point for the band, when they became true creative geniuses, leading music into new, untried territory and cementing them as the best band ever.
We were all stunned when a Beatles record came out, actually speechless, it was so like the world was different forever more, and no one knew what to say, we were blown away
After you watch the "Get Back" documentary, you will see the brilliance at work. It will blow you away & you'll come away with an even greater appreciation.
Eleonor Rigby is one of the most heart-wrenching songs ever written. The strings are of course the genius of the 5th Beatle Producer George Martin. This was from Revolver 1966 before the Seargent pepper's album. There is a graveyard in Liverpool with a grave of Eleonor Rigby. This is definitely a Paul McCartney song and he must have subliminally remembered her name from childhood.
@@Embur12 Exactly. Right from the very outset - with no introduction or warning - the overall sound of Paul's voice and the string quartet takes the listener somewhere bleak.
My favorite album is 'Let It Be' (their last album together). Speaking of Yellow Submarine, it was written as a children's song and sung by Ringo ! It's a fun sing-along.
That's the only way to describe it is masterpiece. Pure poetry set to beautiful violins and cello. One of two Beatles songs that had no drums. At least I believe that is correct. Beatlemania continues to grow to new generations. Beatles forever. Peace out.
This song was ground breaking back in 1966. Imagine we are only 3 years from Dion and “Runaround Sue” which you guys liked, but a world away in terms of subject ( no one until then ( or since) had done a #1 song about loneliness), lyrics, instruments ( no rock instruments, just strings) all novel then. Imagine yourself back in 1966 listening to the radio and then THIS comes on. No one but the Beatles- the biggest act in the world- could have pulled it off. Listen to this song sometime but with lyrics. Sir Paul wrote this at 24; he just turned 80 last month. But for a different vibe, try this song’ b side - Yellow Submarine- could not be more different- a kid singalong. Your kids will love it!
Listening the Beatles is a transcendent experience for me. Of course, I grew up in the 60's and 70's. I grew up in Southern California and the Beatles were everywhere. We took transistor radios to the beach and blasted the music as we fried on the sand. It was played on the bus as we road to school. I took a school sponsored trip to the Anza Borega desert and someone had brought along their big radio and he blasted Beatles songs all the way there and back. It was just immersive. Now when I hear them not only do I feel nostalgic but sad in a way. Young people today will never have that experience. The world is a different place and so much scarier than it was. I am not saying that musician's today are not good, but come on, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Moody Blues, etcetera. I am sorry for them that they will never have that wonderful experience. Anyway, I am so thankful I lived through it.
If you like the Beatles psychedelia, by all means check out Tomorrow never knows from the revolver album. My favorite Beatles album was number 1 through 13. Seriously I could never pick a favorite. Saw them live in Atlanta Georgia 18 August 65. Still one of the happiest days of my long life.
I've never seen the Beatles in concert (I'm 55) but grew up as a kid listening to them in the 1970'd (and lots of other brilliant music). I think it's amazing we're all still discussing the merits of these fabulous tracks 57 years after your concert!
My 80-year-old mother is bummed she never got to see the Beatles live-they are her absolute fave-but she did get to see a very young Elvis live in 1956! She was only 14, her mom took her and her little boyfriend at the time: the funny part about the whole thing is that the boy broke up with her afterward-he got jealous of all the screaming she was doing at the concert for Elvis! 😂
The Beatles' early phase was just fun, adolescent joy and romance. The psychadelic phase was more aural and production-based. This middle period was the time of some genuinely profound poetry in their lyrics. The middle phase has meant more to me as I've aged. Theirs were old souls, wise souls.
Props necessary for their producer George Martin who did the string arrangements. I once sang this acapella in middle school as requested by my art teacher. I've been a long term Beatles fan. Their style varies so much. "Because" harmonies are fantastic. Love all of their albums--it's like having to say which child is your favorite.
The Beatles were such a versatile band. I was reading a critique of a great George Harrison song and someone mentioned that if the 3rd best songwriter in your band is Harrison then its one hell of a band.
George Martin is the genius behind the strings in all the of the Beatles songs. After he passed away his son Giles Martin finished things as he did the strings to the final Beatles song "Now and Then". And so life goes. Enjoy each day for tomorrow is not promised. Peace
My 2 favorite Beatles albums are Rubber Soul and Revolver. I think I'd give Rubber Soul a slight edge, but both albums are wonderful. This song is from Revolver. Another beautiful Paul song from Revolver, and a very romantic song, is "Here, There. and Everywhere".
These shorter songs by the Beatles always fascinate me. The lyrics pack so much into such a small package. I followed the Beatles from the very beginning and listened to all their music right till the end but the simple songs seem to me to be the ones that grow in stature over time. Songs like Eleanor Rigby IMHO are masterpieces of the songwriters art.
The Beatles changed the game forever!! They brought music to a new level, they were the pioneers, from the albums they put out from 1963 to 1970 they evolved musically so much within that short time period!!
Eleanor Rigby is in a class of its own.
I completely agree. As a youngster, I think this song inspired me to write poetry, which is a very gratifying thing to do, still today. By the way, you two are are a delight to follow, guys.
The Beatles were in a class of their own. Great song, great band!
She lives in a dream
True. I had the 45 when I was a kid
My contender for greatest song they ever did. Just beats Yesterday for me....
Eleanor Rigby, in my opinion, is the best song Paul ever wrote. It's profound in so many ways, never gets old.
A cautionary tale in many ways.
I never cease to be amazed how someone so young could imagine such lyrics, blows me away.
death, total and complete death. It's coming, it shows itself, It's there, then it's gone. You're gone..
@@mashokaise6881 OH, then maybe I won't finish the household chores
I prefer Paint It Black, in terms of topic.
What’s striking about Eleanor Rigby is the sheer economy of the lyrics- there isn’t a syllable wasted; the whole song is tighter than a drum, and delivers a series of vignettes, complete with characterization and pathos.
So, whats the song about.......?
@@degsbabe It seems obvious from the lyrics that it's about "all the lonely people" out there. Their tragic faces are hidden behind the faces they wear when they're in front of others. It's about people who are old and so alone nobody comes to their burial. It's all right there in the lyrics.
@@Chris-kj7de I can read lyrics. .. How come someone can feel lonely in a crowded room.? People can be hidden behind the masks placed onto them by other people. Its called being ostracized... by your own kind. Snobbery. A CLASS system. Thats why the UK is seen as weak and is being over run by foreigners. Because the stupid English are selfishly placing masks on each other...divide and fall. Get it..? 😈
It's violins, violas, and cellos that have you amazed and lost in that sound.
George Martin input ..Brilliant
💯✨ 👏👏👏 Paul McCartney recounted this song's origin story in a 2018 interview with GQ. He said: "When I was really little I lived on what was called a housing estate, which is like the projects - there were a lot of old ladies and I enjoyed sitting around with these older ladies because they had these great stories, in this case about World War II. One in particular I used to visit and I'd go shopping for her - you know, she couldn't get out. So I had that figure in my mind of a sort of lonely old lady. Over the years, I've met a couple of others, and maybe their loneliness made me empathize with them. But I thought it was a great character, so I started this song about the lonely old lady who picks up the rice in the church, who never really gets the dreams in her life. Then I added in the priest, the vicar, Father McKenzie. And so, there was just the two characters. It was like writing a short story, and it was basically on these old ladies that I had known as a kid."
In Observer Music Monthly, November 2008, McCartney said: "These lonely old ladies were something I knew about growing up, and that was what 'Eleanor Rigby' was about - the fact that she died and nobody really noticed. I knew this went on." The lyrics "wearing the face that she keeps in a jar by the door" are a reference to the cold-cream she wears in an effort to look younger.
I had not heard the story behind this song so thank you for sharing.
Ahh. That was absolutely lovely and poignant to read. I never knew why Paul wrote Eleanor Rigby. Thank you for posting your comment with this helpful and insightful information.🙏☺💞😺🍀
I have his book "Lyrics". He met the ladies doing chores for them. He'd get paid a schilling for mowing yards, shopping, etc. He was originally going to call her Daisy Hawkins after Jim Hawkins in Treasure Island, but it didn't fit. The "face that she keeps in a jar by the door" is a reference to Nivea Cold Cream. It was his mom's favorite and it scared him as a kid every time she would put it on.
I love watching Paul describe how he wrote songs like this. Because his talent is on another planet, he sounds like me describing how make a peanut butter sandwich. Just so matter of a fact. Just like John. I can't imagine having just 1% of their talent.
When the Beatles played at the local memorial hall father McKenzie was inspired by a Mr McKenzie who used to look after the lads when they played there I believe
This is a magnificent song. The tragic poetry, the choppy, baroque scaling strings cutting through Paul's soulful sound - what an absolute *masterpiece.* 🖤
When I ask people what their favorite Beatles song is and then I tell them mine is this track, they seem very surprised. Most people don't choose this as their favorite Beatles song but it's definitely my favorite. I think it's just because it was so freaking different and it also touches a cord with the lyrics
@@ON-NO-ODM It may be my favorite, but with so many great songs, so difficult to choose.
@@ON-NO-ODM Yes, I'd never heard anything like it before when I discovered it as a child (two decades after it was written).
It's unusual for 'young cool bands' to write about older people and the often grinding bleakness of their lives. It's not a cool topic, I think that's why it rarely features in song lyrics.
_Wearing the face that she keeps in a jar by the door_ is such a vivid and jolting piece of writing by McCartney. 🤍
@@ON-NO-ODM It could have been a Thomas Hardy poem.
When the Beatles first arrived on the scene, I didn't pay them much mind...until I heard this song.
Hey guys, I gotta repeat this, I'm a Beatles fanatic and I've said one time before, you really need to do a deep dive on the Beatles and listen to their entire catalog in chronological order so you can see the growth and change in just 8 years (1962-1970).
YES!!!
I agree 100% , the only way to see their genius
Would that include the Quarry Men
Dude. Get off of your beatle worship. They have LIVES!
@@special420player Could add that, I love everything they did including all the bootleg stuff I have.
Paul wrote this at the age of 21 !! it takes a life time to come up with that insight , unbelievable song and lyric genius true genius .
@@phillipbachelor3884 oh 23 that old hey that makes all the difference then, the point remains the same you pedantic sod ! he wasn't in his 60's or 70 was he .
Agreed, Kate Bush was similar. One her first hits, 'The Man with Child in their Eyes' she wrote when she was 13 and most of her big hits by the time she was in her early 20s.
Kate is also a GOAT in a much smaller niche, mostly alone. I love that song too 🎉
@martinogle4509
Great heartfelt song about loneliness. The strings were arranged by the Beatles producer George Martin. The harmonies and backing vocals included some by John and George, but also multi tracked Paul singing with himself.
This was the only Beatles song where none of them played any instruments during the taping.
I've always found this to be a very sad song, even though Rob likes the violin work.
"Eleanor Rigby died in the church and was buried along with her name, nobody came" says it all.
@@alexanderwalter4595 I agree. It's beautiful but sad. Lonely people whose lives may not actually make a difference, but people like Father McKenzie continue to do their under appreciated jobs. Not the typical story for a pop song.
I'd always heard this was all Paul on vocals. I'll have to listen to it a bit closer to detect John and George.
In seventh grade, my English teacher made us each pick a poem to memorize and recite. She said it could be a song, so I picked "Eleanor Rigby." Even at age12, this song had really hit me as very poignant. It's an extremely memorable song, one I've always kept in mind as I interact with people. You never know who might be lonely, so I try to be friendly and show an interest in them.
"Wearing a face that she keeps in a jar by the door." Such incredible lyrics!
Ajar...one word
It's an old saying that means someone's pretending to be happy in public but actually miserable in private.
Cold cream.
@@dravenblackthorn4765 A jar. A door can be ajar...but this line refers to a jar of makeup, cold cream or rouge.
@@yakbutterfly1 that's what I read it means. Cold cream to make her look younger than she really is.Adds to the sadness of Elenor Rigby's lonely life.
One of Paul's masterpieces. Those are cellos and violins.
Four violins, two cellos, and two violas to be precise.
Thanks to George Martin for the classical vibe.
Rubber Soul is my all time favorite album by the Beatles. 70 years old and still loving it !
this song was on REVOLVER....
Thanks. And both those albums are filled with great songs.
@@joebersik9846
@@joebersik9846 Which is kind of weird, right? This number sounds like it would have been on Srgt. Pepper, or The White Album. 1966 just seams a little too early for a sound that's so progressive. Paul McCartney was something else in his day!
This song is the second track on the album Revolver. But yes, Rubber Soul is great in its own right. However, if you've really been listening to Rubber Soul for years, and you're now 70, you should've known that Eleanor Rigby isn't on it; decades ago.😂
@@thelegendinhisownmind7038 I was simply commenting that Rubber Soul is my favorite album. Nothing to do with this reaction, just simply stating my opinion. :)
Yesterday. You don't know The Beatles until you hear Yesterday. It's the most covered song in history.
They were the second-best selling artists of the 2000-2009 decade. And they last recorded together in 1970. Yes, they are the GOATs unquestionably.
Eleanor Rigby is from their "Revolver" album. Arguably, their greatest record for the music and its revolutionary sound techniques. It's very hard to pick a favorite on that record. Recommend "Taxman", "Tomorrow Never Knows" and "Here there and Everywhere".
Taxman is underrated, IMO.
Here, There and Everywhere is a beautiful love song
And don't forget "Got To Get You Into My Life". Amber will love those horns!
Revolver is the greatest record of all time
She Said She Said, I'm Only Sleeping, and And Your Bird Can Sing are all top notch as well
“Yesterday,” “She’s Leaving Home”, “Let It Be,” and “Something” are deeply emotional Beatles songs as well.
Great choices!
And of course: Penny Lane.
She’s Leaving Home would be great
@@MyOliver64 Penny Lane is a wonderful song but I wouldn't exactly call it deeply emotional. More like affectionately observational. Although, of course we long time Beatles fans can get deeply emotional when we hear anything by them, so there's that...
In my life
Paul was doing the harmony in the background too as well as lead vocals. With the Beatles, the lead singer on any Beatles song is always the primary writer of the song. This is the best way to find out who the writer is.
This song has basically just catapulted the Beatles into a whole new level of music. This is another Beatles' classic that will continue to stand the test of time. Thanks for the upload.
"Father McKenzie, wiping the dirt from his hands as he walks from the grave.........no one was saved" is one of the greatest lines in any Pop song, so simple, so direct, gets the point over perfectly.
... it's "no one will save".
@@steve55sogood16 Nope, GBPaddling was right, its "saved" - you can clearly hear Paul articulate the "ed" at the end of the word if you listen carefully.
Y guy Ives me chills
@@steve55sogood16 No it isn't. Your line also makes no sense.
Father McKenzie didn't save any souls that day in church because there was no congregation to hear his sermon. He no longer has a function or purpose as a priest - his life is now meaningless, as well as cripplingly lonely. 😔
It's a magnificent and powerful song. My favourite line is *_Wearing the face that she keeps in a jar by the door._*
It's such a vivid and jolting piece of writing by McCartney. 🤍
" She's Leaving Home " - is a real work of art, also on the ground breaking Sgt. Pepper album.
Eleanor Rigby is on Revolver.
Yes
paul wrote She's leaving home when he was a teenager, but it was left on the shelf until pepper, hard to believe than a teenager could write such a classic song.
The whole album is a work of art. That is what makes it a game changer. Before this no one would have even imagined it possible
@@macca1146 Wow. Roger Hogdson of Supertamp-whom loved & strived to emulate The Beatles, in his own way of course, also wrote many of his songs as a teenager.
"In My Life" is one of the most beautiful songs I have ever heard. Bette Midler did a remake of this song in 1991 for the film "For The Boys". Both versions are pretty but the Beatles' version knocks it out of the park. Please review this song. Definitely a tearjerker.
Sean Connery did it on the George Martin album!
Totally agree!!!! In My Life is a definitely a must-hear!
YESYESYES!
@@ajivins1 I love that version ...
My favorite Beatles song.
This song is so haunting & so sad for all the lonely people. You'll love this one.✌🌻🌻
A powerful song with a powerful message. The ending is brutal in it's bleakness. You just don't expect that.
Yes. That's the word: bleak. I've heard nothing thing like it in popular music. For someone who had virtually no formal training in music ( unlike, say, Billy Joel,) McCartney verges on genius again and again and again.
Probably because they were under pressure to get it done for recording....1963..1970..how many recordings..phew
For young people it's hard to express how revolutionary this was in its day. The Beatlrs were really on a different planet musically from their contemporaries.
To me there is another category of Beatles, the ones that make you cry. Eleanor Rigby, She's Leaving Home, A Day in the Life. All this time later and I still come away with tears.
@FreedomsRealm
Each one of those affects me the same way. And I would add "In My Life" as the one that made me cry even as a 12 year old kid.
I can't imagine growing up without The Beatles.💙☮
@@deborahcornell171 Oh yes that's a great one too. And in some ways it feels good to acknowledge these experiences. That in seeing them it allows them to belong.
This song has a Haunting quality about it. The violins. The lyrics. Touches the soul somehow. Love it.
Cellos
@@carolmartin4413 four violins, two cellos, and two violas.
“Haunting” is an understatement. It’s the saddest song I’ve ever heard.
It has a spook facter in there, too.
Dorian mode.
One time I got out of the subway in NYC and there was a group of street performers playing Eleanor Rigby all with violins and I burst into tears I was so moved.
"She's leaving home" did that to me, still does!
@@margaretflounders8510 tell me about it! My daughter’s starting college in 3 weeks and that song is STUCK IN MY HEAD 🥲
@@KTRS
i have a beautiful daughter too,
she`s left home. but I am thankful that her partner, with whom she now lives, is a fabulous young man, and he adores her and she him. he was part of her crew when they were kids.
So I know she is safe and happy.
and yet this song makes me cry every single time,
"standing alone at the top of the stair...she breaks down"
this is purely and simply... art.
you know macartney met the girl who left home before and after she left home coincidentally.
IT IS SUCH joy to see young people appreciating OUR music
Amen
absolutely ... Its just wonderful.
Your music? .... Eh nope
"Our" music means "our era's" music. Our = Baby Boomers. I love that this music is still alive and being listened to 60+ years after it was recorded.
"Our" music means "our era's" music. Our = Baby Boomers. I love that this music is still alive and being listened to 60+ years after it was recorded.
The White album is my favorite. My favorite Beatles song is “Across the Universe” John Lennons brilliance shines through on this one
♥ white album too!
Same for me!
Ditto the White Album. One of my fondest childhood memories. 8)
Back to back Beatles?!? This put a smile on my face!
I suggest listening to “Let it Be” next.
Let it Be one of my Favorites!
Two in a row...maybe 3??? Almost as good as laying on my belly watching them on the Ed Sullivan show in 1964 at age 8!
Lucy in the sky with DIMONDS 💎💎💎
@@marietheresahughes2911 Yes,a thousand times!
ooh I hope so! ♥
Whether someone loves the Beatles or hates them, they are still always going to be the greatest band ever.
NO BAND EVER innovated or influenced more than they did.
Those are simply facts.
You’re right and it’s the breadth and depth of their innovation and influence that makes them so impressive (and I don’t enjoy all their stuff, but really respect them). Nowadays, it’s really difficult to convey how radically different the pre-Beatles era is from what happened post-Beatles.
dave seguin
there are people that hate the beatles ?
the only person I ever heard say that was lou reed,
which to me is tantamount to an admission that you dont like music.
transformer is a magnificent album, but is effectively Bowie.
love lou`s stance generally and some of the other stuff, but his grand opus was produced by another real genius and was the high point of lou`s career.
so I end up saying what did lou reed know about music ?
he was an arrogant twat too.
we really, really need you to tell us the all time greatest meal, which all of us must agree upon.
@@jimcarlson6157 Based on what people eat, that would have to be some form of pizza.
George Martin was the Beatles producer, arranger, composer, conductor and a musician. He was the one in the studio who said "that doesn't work, lets try it this way". Martin was classically trained and I am sure that he added much polish to their work. Any time that I hear a symphony backing a Beatles song I am sure that he was the man controlling that part of the song. I always thought that there should have been five Beatles credited on their albums.
He was...
Listen to George Martin's Theme One.
The man was a genius!
@@DavidPlayfair Do I have to listen to it twice
@@DavidPlayfair Do I have to listen to it twice
Sorry, finger trouble!
Edited.
Definitely worth listening to more than twice though. IMO! :) @@edeledeledel5490
The Beatles have a huge range of music and styles. To get a better idea of what they were capable of, you really need to start from their earliest albums and work your way through them sequentially. You don't have to do it all on your reaction channel. They were doing everything from ballads to screaming rockers from their earliest days (way before they recorded anything). And every one of their albums was a change up to a new level - the progression from Rubber Soul through Revolver and Sergeant Pepper's and on to the White Album is amazing.
Yes, I was going to suggest that myself. It would be *awesome* for the channel to do an album by album reaction to the astounding progression of Beatles music, start to finish.
Paul McCartney once said that “If anyone earned the title of the fifth Beatle, it was George Martin." There is no doubt that The Beatles created, wrote and made great music. At the same time, The Beatles may not have had their diversity of sound and some of their creativity without George Martin, the man who signed The Beatles and also produced the vast majority of their work. Martin was such a vital force in helping The Fab Four sound different than other bands of the era. He also helped the band's musical visions come to life. Martin was a classically trained and gifted musician and through his musical knowledge and experience, he helped the band incorporate various ideas- uncommon for Pop acts- from strings to horns and other instrumentation into the band's sound.
Martin wrote and performed the majority of the orchestral arrangements for many of The Beatles songs. He even played keyboard on their early recordings.
I found the other day that George Martin worked with Spike Milligan in the years before the Beatles, and there is the belief that without his mind being opened by Spike's craziness his work with the Beatles wouldn't have happened
@@simoncutts8570 That's interesting.
Totally. Great comment.
If wasn't for George Martin, the Beatles wouldn't be as great, that's my opinion.
Martins production made the albums avant garde wirks of art
You will never know the impact the Beatles had unless you lived through Beatlemania. I was 6 in 1963, and it was pretty wild. They pretty much turned the world upside down.
Your exactly right.
I was 4 in '64 when my half brother who was 18 arrived in Canada, in June, from Liverpool.
Their music was all over the radio stations in Canada 6 months before the Ed Sullivan Show in the U.S.
The anticipation was intense while waiting for him to arrive.
The first time I saw him; he had a Beatle hair cut, wore a Beatle suit, Beatle boots, and sounded just like them when he talked.
Unfortunately he turned out to be a bad seed, and was deported from Canada a year later. I never saw him again.
I know he got married and had 3 kids, in the late '80's, but he went to work one day and disappeared.
Weird what happens in life.
We’re so lucky to have experienced their magic.
I grew up in England in the 60s and early 70s, and while they were together it was as if the air itself was carrying them, their music was a constant and everyone knew each of them as if they were personally acquainted. When they split, it was the biggest news story. There was so much good, ground-breaking music then, but nothing was so pervasive, so part of that ever-changing spirit we call the 60s, as the Beatles' stuff. I don't think that's ever been repeated by any artiste(s) no matter how successful. As you say, you really had to be there.
Paul has a sweet voice and there are other songs with The Beatles that showcase it like Here There and Everywhere or She's Leaving Home. He is one of a kind and yes a pure genius.
Two great songs‼️
Paul has/had about 6 different voices. Incredibly wide-ranging.
My favorite Beatles song and I was 13 when they came to the U.S. This is soul-shattering poetry. It twisted my insides even as a teen. Now that I'm 70 and a widow it hurts no less than ever.
Paul McCartney was in his early 20s when he wrote this song. I think it shows a deep empathy for people that struggle through life. Even at that age he had great emotional intelligence.
They had probably broken up or were about to before I was really aware of who they were, even though I must have heard them all my life. (I was born in ‘62.) So my perspective may not be entirely accurate but it seems to me that they maintained an appreciation for regular people, in particular the older generations, at a time when rock and roll was getting disillusioned, angry, and critical of anyone who represented traditional values. I suspect it’s because they grew up in Liverpool, which was a working class city. The deep empathy that you mentioned shows up from time to time in their songs which is why we never outgrew them and why more than fifty years later a new generation can flip out over how great they were.
And I just remembered that Paul was 14 when his mom died and John was 17 when he lost his mom. Losing their own mothers but also seeing each other’s pain must have opened their eyes to the fact that this is a hurting world, and you don’t always know what someone else is going through.
His mother was a nurse, and she died when McCartney was 14. Can't imagine what that is like.
hey wrote hey jude for John's son when he left his mam
"All you Need is Love" is one of my favorites. Love Beatles, cant get enough and I lived thru it... Any song on any album is a hit!
One thing wrong with "All You Need" is the guitar solo. It sucked so bad. I'd never heard Lennon play so amaturishly.
The name Eleanor Rigby came from a real headstone in a Liverpool churchyard. Paul McCartney noticed the name and wrote a song around it. The orchestral music is really beautiful
Paul denied that he wrote the song after seeing a headstone in a cemetery
I’m sure you are probably correct. It’s very possible that I am wrong. Urban legends have a tendency to stick around until they are disproved. Thanks for your input
Paul has said the name Eleanor Rigby came from the actress that starred in the beatles movie help Eleanor bron and rigby came from a removal van he saw was called rigby and son. But the Eleanor rigby grave is in St Peters Church in Woolton in Liverpool the same chuch yard that John and Paul met in 1957.
@@jamesscott9456 Actually, they did get the name from a grave in Liverpool (I have been to said grave), but they denied it in interviews to avoid the grave becoming some sort of tourist hot spot. Respect!
@@ethanlivemere1162Paul has denied this many many times. Prior comment is the correct one. He even dismissed someone spending a ridiculous amount of money a few years ago purchasing Eleanor Rigby’s payroll time card from the hospital she worked at.
As a 65-year-old man who first heard the Beatles as a five year old in 1962, and never stop since then, you both remind me of myself when I first heard every one of their songs on the radio!
Me too. I was 7 in 1962. It was fab growing up with this amazing music xxx
I was a Beatles fan from the get go. My late mother was an enormous music instructor and was sick of me playing The Beatles all the time until one morning, I played Eleanor Rigby. She got out of bed, raced over and said, “they are brilliant. I was wrong.” I didn’t hear that a lot. Ha! Gorgeous piece of music. Thanks for appreciating it.
One thing I can say about The Beatles is that you can appreciate the evolution of their sound from the beginning until they broke up. My Dad grew up on The Beatles and introduced me to it. I loved the early classics (“I Wanna Hold Your Hand”, “Can’t Buy Me Love”, “And I Loved Her”), but as I got older, I really REALLY loved their more mature songs (“Come Together”, “Penny Lane”, “The Long and Winding Road”, “Something”). Personally, I think their best song that really experimented with sounds they can play with in the studio was “A Day in the Life” from the Seargent Pepper’s album. It sounds like something John came up with on an LSD trip (along with “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds”), and the middle part written by Paul expertly melds into the main song. If Amber is really into their psychedelic sound, “A Day in the Life” is the epitome of that sound.
Now you're talking! One of my favorites in the category of "She's leaving Home", "Nowhere Man" and "A day in the life"
This song teaches empathy.
Oh Darling is a great song by the Beatles. Paul's gritty voice just takes the song over the top. You two would love it!
Can’t pick a “Beatles best song”, but that one is up there!
Love Oh Darling too, Paul's voice!
Definitely!!!
Oh, Darling is a great song. And John Lennon wished he wrote it because he felt his voice would have been better for the song than Paul's. I wish they did a version with John singing it just to hear what John would have done with it. That said, I think I would prefer Paul's voice on Oh, Darling over John's but I will never know for sure because we will never hear John sing it. Paul does great on the vocals and the bassline. Both just incredible.
I concur.
Credit their producer, Sir George Martin (fifth Beatle) for the orchestration. His input and classical training was a major part of the Beatles growth.
This song is so great, it continues to thrill us 55 years later.
You should listen to one of their biggest songs call something in the way she moves written by George Harrison and try not to cry
The more you listen to The Beatles, the more you will appreciate them and how it changed the world! Honestly, I can never pick a favorite song, but one of my favorites are "In My Life"! I want it to be played at my funeral...
Lets hope that a long way off!
"In My Life" is my absolute favorite Beatle song. It's always hard to pick favorite of theirs, but I did it♡
The genius behind The Beatles sound was George Martin. John and Paul would have these amazing ideas of different sounds and quirky instrumentation, and George was smart enough to say YES…
If anyone were to ask me "What is the saddest Beatles song," my answer would be "The last verse of Eleanor Rigby."
You really should check out the movie Yellow Submarine." Very trippy, very clever, and tons of fun.
I once heard a version of Eleanor Rigby with the vocals removed and I found myself openly weeping in the middle of an HMV.
This song has always touched me. As someone who has clinical & bipolar depression, I am very familiar with that "face in a jar by the door" that we put on whenever we step outside so people won't know how lonely and depressed we are. Thank you for listening to this one.
100%
OMG! All these years I have loved this song and I never thought of it that way, being someone who is also depressed and bi-polar. You have put into words something I never thought.
Great analogy. The jar is fard creme, make up foundation.
I suffer with Bi polar and my go to is Behind Blue eyes.
@@OLDSKOOLRAVER1 mine is "How To Fight Loneliness" by Wilco
The Beatles are considered incredible because they were so innovative. They were one of the first to write and sing their own songs; their music kept evolving and it was hard to stick them into any one genre of music; their music was so new that other bands would emulate them; no one knew what would come next! And that's why my generation holds them in such high esteem. Their songs and music are as relevant now, as they were back in the 60's.
The appreciation "gateway" for young teens who are exploring the mysteries of dating and mating develops from the Beatles "early period." The "pronoun songs" such as "She Loves You," "I Saw Her Standing There," "Please Please Me," all pointed boys and girls to get together. Establishing that "hook," the curious will explore the rest of the Beatles' catalog. There are many of them that have the same reaction as Rob and Amber. This musical "dance" will repeat itself as long as 13 and 14 year olds discover it. They will tell their friends which gets the entire cycle to begin again.
You can argue all day if the Beatles were the GOAT. That’s opinion. What is fact is the Beatles changed EVERYTHING. Pop culture in the 20th century can be divided into what came before the Beatles and what came after. That cannot be over-emphasized.
With over forty number one hits they are definitely the GOAT.
Pop culture as we know it today really only dates back to the 1950s. Hence, there wasn't much before The Beatles in terms of that.
@gigi v Popular music goes back long before that, at least 100 yrs, but probably many hundreds.
@gigi v He did say "as we know it today". I think Elvis Presley is a gigantic stepping stone even for The Beatles.
I would have to say chuck berry...thats what they said too, but ok.
The Beatles were at the forefront of almost everything new in music during this time, they invented the modern concept of what rock and pop music would be.
However, I believe this song, about sadness and loneliness, is a direct spin off of the Rolling Stones "Paint it Black", about loss and depression, that came out several months prior. Before these songs came out everyone in pop/rock music would only sing about happiness and love and joy, but after these songs the doors were opened for anyone to sing about real life, real pain, real emotions.
One of the truly great songs of the Beatles. The lyrics define poignancy.
This is one of the first songs where they start to flex their musical prowess. It's Paul signing. These guys were doing things that flew in the face of popular music - And they made it popular. Because they were the Bealtes !!!
If you want psychedelic Beatles, give a listen to pretty much anything on the Sargent Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album.
But in particularly:
- Mr. Kite
- A Day In The Life
- Sargent Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
- Lucy In The Sky, I think you've done.
This album gave the way to, When I'm 64.
You can't miss with the Beatles.
JUST DON'T WATCH THE MOVIE LOL
That is my favorite Beatles album!
this song and yesterday were the songs where parents, who had earlier been dismissive of the Beatles, had to finally admit that they were great... this song expanded their audience from us kids to just about everybody
One of my favorite Beatles songs ever. Hauntingly beautiful.
The "White Album" was their most creative album, in my opinion. Beautiful masterpieces like "Martha My Dear", "o-bla-de-o-bla-da", "Back in the U.S.S.R", "Julia", "I Will", "Cry Baby Cry", "Dear Prudence", "Long Long Long", "Mother Nature's Son", "The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill", "Piggies", and more.
You forgot "While My Guitar Gently Weeps".
I love the Souxsie and the Banshees cover of "Dear Prudence"
Paul, not forgotten. I can't list all the songs on the album, besides, Amber and Jay already reacted to "While My Guitar Gently Weeps".
Interesting thought, For me it could be their best with a little edit. Suppose you could choose any songs from it you want, but you only have two sides to fill. What stays in your cut?
@@IvorPresents I agree. They could have done without Revolution #9, Wild Honey Pie, Why Don't We Do It In The Road (although the song was about protesting, not sex). I'm not sure what you mean by two sides, but my top five in order : Revolution 1, Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da, Martha My Dear, Dear Prudence, Mother Nature's Son.
This song has always just made me so emotional. The music, the lyrics, that trance effect, the connotations to my life. It's overwhelming. I love it.
My favorite album is Rubber Soul. You should absolutely check out "Norwegian Wood" and "Michelle" from that album if you haven't already. I love that more people are learning to love the Beatles. Thanks for sharing your discovery...it brings me a lot of joy.
Rubber Soul is my favorite album too, but my favorite songs from the album are "Girl", "In my life" and "Nowhere Man". Johns contributions to that album are extremely strong. I think Pauls best contribution is "Drive my Car".
@@allanwielund9545 It's so hard to choose a favorite.
norwegian wood is about an illicit one night stand and so naturally belongs to john
My personal favorite Beatles song is from that album, In My Life. I think Rubber Soul was their best album.
This was really just Paul with some strings (and the rest of the Beatles only on some harmonies). Pretty like his earlier "Yesterday."
This song still brings a sense of sadness and loss........God Bless the Beatles and their talent.
The album this is on, “Revolver” is typically the one critics call the greatest album of all time. All the songs on it are just KILLER.
My favorite Beatles Album
Paul McCartney said the best album ever recorded was “Pet Sounds” by The Beach Boys. I think they’re both high on the list.
"Rain," "She Said She Said," "Taxman," "Tomorrow Never Knows." So many great songs on that album.
When the Beatles started, there was just the bare bones of “genre’s” blues, classical, country, jazz and rock and roll. They pushed musical boundaries and evolved into probably one of the most influential bands in history
Probably?
Swing, Big Band, Soul, Opera ...
It's so Great that many young people are loving the Beatles songs.😊☮️🇬🇧
One of McCartney's best melodies. The song is from the 1966 album "Revolver."
The best Beatles album IMHO.
@@lemming9984 Revolver and Rubber Soul were just masterpieces.
My favorite Beatles song. The strings , the lyrics, all of it just moves me every time I hear it.
My older sister was a fan of the early Beatles. My dad was a fan during their next phase. And my brother a fan of the later Beatles. They experimented with and innovated a lot of different styles. I heard them all. One of my favorite storyteller Beatles songs is Maxwell’s Silver Hammer.
Sheer poetry...meaningful..
Melancholic...magnificent ...a complete two minute mini masterpiece
This song breaks the mold of what a song could be and once again highlights the genius that was the Beatles.
This is one of the saddest most beautiful songs. We all experience loneliness. Beatles are gospel.🙏
Sung with NO EMOTION??? Did we LISTEN to the SAME Lennon & McCartney song (Maclen music inc.)???
The Beatles are fantastic! This is one of my favorites. I'm having trouble choosing one favorite album, so I'll say Rubber Soul and Revolver. Amber is probably going to want songs from the White Album and Abbey Road... and maybe some Magical Mystery Tour.
Rubber Soul and Revolver are, for me, the best Beatles albums. They mark the transition from the Fab 4 pop era to something much more. This two albums are the turning point for the band, when they became true creative geniuses, leading music into new, untried territory and cementing them as the best band ever.
Eleanor Rigby is in a class of its own.. Paul Maccartney vocals are really my fav and his lyrics always brilliant.
We were all stunned when a Beatles record came out, actually speechless, it was so like the world was different forever more, and no one knew what to say, we were blown away
After you watch the "Get Back" documentary, you will see the brilliance at work. It will blow you away & you'll come away with an even greater appreciation.
Eleonor Rigby is one of the most heart-wrenching songs ever written. The strings are of course the genius of the 5th Beatle Producer George Martin. This was from Revolver 1966 before the Seargent pepper's album. There is a graveyard in Liverpool with a grave of Eleonor Rigby. This is definitely a Paul McCartney song and he must have subliminally remembered her name from childhood.
too bad they miss the lyrics so often which breaks my heart especially with Beatles and Simon and Garfunkel.
@@kelly9876 In their defence, it's easy to get lost in the sound.
@@Embur12 Exactly. Right from the very outset - with no introduction or warning - the overall sound of Paul's voice and the string quartet takes the listener somewhere bleak.
I think the backup harmonies were also Paul. It doesn't sound like John's voice!
If you're familiar with the Beatles anthology series you can find a strings only version of this song.
Beatles set the bar so high that it can't be matched ever.
To me this is one of those "perfect" songs, everything hits exactly how it should. Like it or not you'll be hard pressed to find a song that compares.
My favorite album is 'Let It Be' (their last album together). Speaking of Yellow Submarine, it was written as a children's song and sung by Ringo ! It's a fun sing-along.
Let It Be was released last, but Abbey Road was their last album recorded together.
Yellow submarine may have been the first movie I saw. Very young so those memories are vague. It was that or Pinocchio
That's the only way to describe it is masterpiece. Pure poetry set to beautiful violins and cello. One of two Beatles songs that had no drums. At least I believe that is correct. Beatlemania continues to grow to new generations. Beatles forever. Peace out.
This song was ground breaking back in 1966. Imagine we are only 3 years from Dion and “Runaround Sue” which you guys liked, but a world away in terms of subject ( no one until then ( or since) had done a #1 song about loneliness), lyrics, instruments ( no rock instruments, just strings) all novel then. Imagine yourself back in 1966 listening to the radio and then THIS comes on. No one but the Beatles- the biggest act in the world- could have pulled it off. Listen to this song sometime but with lyrics. Sir Paul wrote this at 24; he just turned 80 last month.
But for a different vibe, try this song’ b side - Yellow Submarine- could not be more different- a kid singalong. Your kids will love it!
Only closely (and were they following , or independent) perhaps Birmingham's Idle Race and Roy Wood with the Move - "Disturbance" (Dec 1966)
indeed this song is such a critique of loneliness its hard to believe that it was composed and performed by a 23 year old
Paul Maccartney vocals are really my fav and his lyrics always brilliant🙌
Listening the Beatles is a transcendent experience for me. Of course, I grew up in the 60's and 70's. I grew up in Southern California and the Beatles were everywhere. We took transistor radios to the beach and blasted the music as we fried on the sand. It was played on the bus as we road to school. I took a school sponsored trip to the Anza Borega desert and someone had brought along their big radio and he blasted Beatles songs all the way there and back. It was just immersive. Now when I hear them not only do I feel nostalgic but sad in a way. Young people today will never have that experience. The world is a different place and so much scarier than it was. I am not saying that musician's today are not good, but come on, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Moody Blues, etcetera. I am sorry for them that they will never have that wonderful experience. Anyway, I am so thankful I lived through it.
I saw Paul and Wings (Linda) in Miami. This song jerked the tears. Beatles songs pull you in. Everything they do pulls you in. It is Paul singing.
If you like the Beatles psychedelia, by all means check out Tomorrow never knows from the revolver album. My favorite Beatles album was number 1 through 13. Seriously I could never pick a favorite. Saw them live in Atlanta Georgia 18 August 65. Still one of the happiest days of my long life.
I've never seen the Beatles in concert (I'm 55) but grew up as a kid listening to them in the 1970'd (and lots of other brilliant music). I think it's amazing we're all still discussing the merits of these fabulous tracks 57 years after your concert!
My 80-year-old mother is bummed she never got to see the Beatles live-they are her absolute fave-but she did get to see a very young Elvis live in 1956!
She was only 14, her mom took her and her little boyfriend at the time: the funny part about the whole thing is that the boy broke up with her afterward-he got jealous of all the screaming she was doing at the concert for Elvis! 😂
The Beatles' early phase was just fun, adolescent joy and romance. The psychadelic phase was more aural and production-based. This middle period was the time of some genuinely profound poetry in their lyrics. The middle phase has meant more to me as I've aged. Theirs were old souls, wise souls.
The cello resonates so well with the human voice
Props necessary for their producer George Martin who did the string arrangements. I once sang this acapella in middle school as requested by my art teacher. I've been a long term Beatles fan. Their style varies so much. "Because" harmonies are fantastic. Love all of their albums--it's like having to say which child is your favorite.
Tomorrow Never Knows is the maybe most psychedelic Beatle song. Mind blowing off course.
Yes Dan. I definitely agree! :).....Hi Amber,Tomorrow Never Knows is a song you should listen to if you want some Beatle's psychedelic. :)
The Beatles were such a versatile band. I was reading a critique of a great George Harrison song and someone mentioned that if the 3rd best songwriter in your band is Harrison then its one hell of a band.
George Martin is the genius behind the strings in all the of the Beatles songs. After he passed away his son Giles Martin finished things as he did the strings to the final Beatles song "Now and Then". And so life goes. Enjoy each day for tomorrow is not promised. Peace
My 2 favorite Beatles albums are Rubber Soul and Revolver. I think I'd give Rubber Soul a slight edge, but both albums are wonderful. This song is from Revolver. Another beautiful Paul song from Revolver, and a very romantic song, is "Here, There. and Everywhere".
Those are my favorites to, but also a hard day's night
@@landonbledsoe6407 That's a great one too.
Spot on, Otis! Me too.
Art Garfunkel stated that Here ,There,and Everywhere is the most beautiful song ever written. I agree wholeheartedly with Mr. Garfunkel. 👍🙃
My 2 favorites too. I even like "I've Just Seen A Face" (rubber soul-US version). Fast paced yet very melodic.
It's the pure message and the pure singing that makes this one of their best.
This is real classic music, with real musicians. Such a beautiful song. Goosebumps.. 💕💕💕🎶🎶
Eleanor Rigby was a name Paul read on a gravestone.
For early Beatles rock, for Paul try "I Saw Here Standing There", for John try "Slow Down". A couple of great rockers that I'm sure you'll love.
These shorter songs by the Beatles always fascinate me. The lyrics pack so much into such a small package. I followed the Beatles from the very beginning and listened to all their music right till the end but the simple songs seem to me to be the ones that grow in stature over time. Songs like Eleanor Rigby IMHO are masterpieces of the songwriters art.
The Beatles changed the game forever!! They brought music to a new level, they were the pioneers, from the albums they put out from 1963 to 1970 they evolved musically so much within that short time period!!
I know how much it has been played, but I still love "Yesterday". It's a masterpiece, and so simple!!