The Long And Winding Road - The Beatles

Artist: The Beatles
Song: The Long And Winding Road
Year: 1970
Album: Let It Be

Could this be the song that broke the Beatles up for good? Some sources say that the remixing of this song by Phil Spector was the straw that broke the camel's back. I think that might be a pretty accurate portrayal of what happened in 1970.

Tensions were at an all time high, when this album came out. The album was nothing like the Beatles had envisioned it. Regular producer George Martin called the album uncharacteristic of the Beatles. Phil Spector originally took this track and added on layers of orchestral overdubs to drown out the shoddy bass playing of John Lennon.

Simpler techniques could have been used on this track and were used in other parts of the album. One begins to wonder why the bass wasn't just overdubbed and left. Where did the chorus of women and full blaring horn section come from? This was to be the simplest sounding song on Let It Be and now it was the busiest.

The years have washed away some of the bitterness of this incident. In 2003, the Beatles released a sparse version of "The Long And Winding Road" on Let It Be... Naked to good reviews. Phil Spector has argued that Paul McCartney had no trouble picking up the Academy Award for the soundtrack and playing the song with horns during 25 years of touring. Maybe it's best to say that there are positives about both versions.

Lyrics:

The long and winding road that leads to your door,
Will never disappear,
I've seen that road before
It always leads me here,
Leads me to your door.

The wild and windy night the rain washed away,
Has left a pool of tears crying for the day.
Why leave me standing here, let me know the way
Many times I've been alone and many times I've cried
Anyway you'll never know the many ways I've tried, but
Still they lead me back to the long and winding road
You left me standing here a long, long time ago
Don't leave me waiting here, lead me to you door
Da, da, da, da

Love Me Do - The Beatles

Artist: The Beatles
Song: Love Me Do
Year: 1962
Album: Please Please Me

I know what you're thinking. Please Please Me didn't come out until 1963 and the "Love Me Do" single didn't come out until 1964. Wrong! The first single of "Love Me Do" came out in 1962, in England. It is the only studio version to feature Ringo Starr on drums. The Please Please Me version featured Andy White and the Anthology 1 version featured Pete Best.

Record-wise, this is where it all started for the Beatles. Originally, this wasn't going to be the lead single. A song called "How Do You Do It?" was going to be the lead single, but ended up not being released until 1995 on Anthology 1. That song ended up being a number one single for Gerry and the Pacemakers.

"Love Me Do", despite it's sorted recording history, remains a favorite of Beatles fans. Many fans prepped themselves with this song in anticipation to the Beatles arrival in America. Although the Beatles did not play this song during their legendary Ed Sullivan performances, "Love Me Do" is still an important exposure to the band.

I couldn't tell you what my first exposure to the Beatles was. They had been broken up for six years when I was born. I can tell you that there was no escape from the Beatles when I was in my formative years. I would hear them in grocery stores, on the radio, in elevators, and seemingly everywhere else that I went. It all started with this song's single release in 1962.

Lyrics:
Love, love me do
You know I love you
I'll always be true
so please, love me do
oh, love me do

Love, love me do
You know I love you
I'll always be true
so please, love me do
oh, love me do

Someone to love
Somebody new
Someone to love
Someone like you

Love, love me do
You know I love you
I'll always be true
so please, love me do
oh, love me do

Love, love me do
You know I love you
I'll always be true
so please, love me do
oh, love me do
Yeah, love me do
Oh, love me do

Strawberry Fields Forever - The Beatles

Artist: The Beatles
Song: Strawberry Fields Forever
Year: 1967
Album: Magical Mystery Tour

This is either one of the greatest accomplishments of the sixties or an overwrought piece of self-indulging trash, depending on who you ask. I choose to think of this song as the former. It is the birth of studio innovation.

This song started out as a simple acoustic song and blossomed into the gem we all hear today. A friendly rivalry with the Beach Boys turned into a cavalcade of the finest music of the decade. The Rubber Soul album inspired the Beach Boys to record Pet Sounds. "Strawberry Fields Forever" and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band were the answer to that album.

This song was partially responsible for the shelving of the Beach Boys SMiLE album. When Brian Wilson heard "Strawberry Fields Forever", he felt that the Beatles had acheived the sound that the Beach Boys were trying to get.

There was a promotional film shot for this song. It can be argued that without this film, there would be no MTV in 1981. There would be nothing but live performance videos. It featured reversed film, stop motion animation and jump cuts. A truly innovative piece of film that has gone on to inspire thousands of artists.

This is one of the songs that inspired the Paul Is Dead hoax of 1969. At the end of the song, the words "cranberry sauce" can be heard. If you are in the right frame of mind, it could be thought of as, "I buried Paul" at the end of the song. In other mixes of the song, "cranberry sauce" is more clearly heard.

Lyrics:
Let me take you down, 'cause I'm going to Strawberry Fields.
Nothing is real and nothing to get hungabout.
Strawberry Fields forever.

Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see.
It's getting hard to be someone but it all works out, it doesn't matter much to me.

Let me take you down, 'cause I'm going to Strawberry Fields.
Nothing is real and nothing to get hungabout.
Strawberry Fields forever.

No one I think is in my tree, I mean it must be high or low.
That is you can't you know tune in but it's all right, that is I think it's not too bad.

Let me take you down, 'cause I'm going to Strawberry Fields.
Nothing is real and nothing to get hungabout.
Strawberry Fields forever.

Always, no sometimes, think it's me, but you know I know and it's a dream.
I think I know I mean a 'Yes' but it's all wrong, that is I think I disagree.

Let me take you down, 'cause I'm going to Strawberry Fields.
Nothing is real and nothing to get hungabout.
Strawberry Fields forever.
Strawberry Fields forever.

And I Love Her - The Beatles

Artist: The Beatles
Song: And I Love Her
Year: 1964
Album: A Hard Day's Night

The Beatles have always been a part of my life. I resisted for a long time though. After awhile, the songs were just so catchy that I couldn't help start liking them.

By 1995, I had tracked down every Beatles album on CD. A few years earlier, I had obtained two records from my dad's collection. He doesn't really like Beatles music, so I think someone left them at his place when he was younger.

The American versions of Rubber Soul and Beatles '65 have stared at me since I was a kid. Now they are in my collection. In this age of digital tracks, I do still have all of my records.

When I was down on my luck, dating-wise, I was hooked up with a mutual friend's friend. Don't you love when that happens? We dated on and off for many years and still remain on speaking terms. Her mom was a huge Beatles fan. We would talk about the Beatles for hours on end, when her daughter was busy with other things.

One cold February night, I was in their backyard waiting. What exactly I was waiting for has been lost to the erasure of time. I do remember that she was always late, so I was probably waiting for her to come out.

I'm strange, I like the silence of a cold, winter night. The kind where it's crystal clear and the air is crisp. I can stand out there for hours, if it's not windy. I remember looking at the stars in the sky and admiring how bright they were. It's rare for the Chicago suburbs to get dark enough to where the stars brightly shine, but this was the perfect night for that.

While I was out in the cold, I started singing "And I Love Her" softly to myself. It was a perfect stolen moment.

Lyrics:
I give her all my love
That's all I do
And if you saw my love
You'd love her too
I love her

She gives me everything
And tenderly
The kiss my lover brings
She brings to me
And I love her

A love like ours
Could never die
As long as I
Have you near me

Bright are the stars that shine
Dark is the sky
I know this love of mine
Will never die
And I love her

Bright are the stars that shine
Dark is the sky
I know this love of mine
Will never die
And I love her