Bill Harry.

"The Paul McCartney Encyclopedia"The Beatles 1963-1970

BILL HARRY. THE PAUL MCCARTNEY ENCYCLOPEDIA

Yale Bowl, New Haven
An arena in Connecticut, with a 63,000 capacity, where Paul was
originally to appear on Sunday 29 July 1990 on the final leg of his
world tour.
There was a history of hostility towards rock concerts at this venue
and in previous years planned concerts by Michael Jackson, Bruce
Springsteen, the Who and Simon and Garfunkel had been cancelled due
to opposition from the council and local citizens.
The city council originally vetoed the concert due to complaints
from residents in the nearby Westville neighbourhood. The local
Board of Aldermen then decided to allow it after voting 19-6 to
approve the show although they had presented MPL with a list of
twenty restrictions that they said had to be adhered to. Despite
this, there were still complaints.
Billboard magazine was to comment, 'The same neighbourhood that
feared it would be overrun during concerts has gladly lent its front
lawns as parking lots for the Yale-Harvard football matches.'
On 1 April 1990, prior to Paul's concert at Berkeley Memorial
Stadium, Paul's manager Richard Ogden said that they had discovered
that only 50 people had voiced objections while 60,000 wanted the
concert to go ahead. However, it had been decided not to do the
show.
Ogden commented, 'I have closely followed the events in New Haven
over the past few weeks, both through official channels and by
communications with my wife's family who live in the area, and I
have decided that the strength of local opposition was formidable
enough to have us reconsider the proposed New Haven show. Paul is
very sensitive to community concerns of this sort and has no desire
to be the catalyst for such a deep and divisive controversy within
the city.'
He was to add, 'Fortunately, as a contingency plan, we held tickets
for the July twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth shows at Boston's
Sullivan Stadium and these will go on sale immediately to fans in
the New Haven area.'
Yates, Kerry
An Australian journalist whose meeting with Paul benefited her
career.
Glenn A Baker relates the event in his book The Beatles Down Under.
Kerry was seventeen years old and working for Women's Weekly when
the Beatles arrived in Sydney in June 1964. She was among the large
group of reporters and photographers waiting in a corridor in the
Sheraton hotel, hoping to get a story on Paul as he was celebrating
his 22nd birthday.
Paul decided to have a few words with the press, but as soon as he
saw Kerry he went straight to her and invited her to his room for an
interview.
Kerry commented, 'I had long blonde hair and a pink sweater and I
must have stood out from all the grey and brown suits because Paul
made a beeline right for me and invited me up to his room. He let my
photographer take shots of him surrounded by his presents and the
next week we ran one of them on the front cover with my "exclusive"
story inside. For years I've been asked what I had to do to get that
scoop, which really did help my career. I know that everyone wants
to know but I'm not saying if I did it or if I didn't.'
Years Roll Along, The
A song that Paul wrote in the late 1950s, which was never recorded.
When he wrote a letter to a local journalist in 1959 attempting to
get some publicity for the Quarry Men, Paul mentioned the title of
the number.
Yellow Roads Of Texas
One of several numbers created in a jam session during Wings' second
trip to Lympne Castle, Kent in May 1979.
Yellow Submarine
Paul was to comment, 'I was lying in my bed one night, and, just
before I went to sleep, I had this idea about a yellow submarine. It
just came into my mind, so, the next day I started writing it and
finished it up. This was written as a commercial song, a kids' song.
People say, "Yellow Submarine? What's the significance? What's
behind it?" Nothing! I knew it would get connotations, but it was
just a children's song. Kids get it straight away. I just loved the
idea of kids singing it. I was playing with my little stepsister the
other day, looking through a book about Salvador Dali, and she said
to me, "Oh look. A soft watch." She accepted it. She wasn't
frightened or worried. Kids have got it. It's only later that they
get messed up. With "Yellow Submarine", the whole idea was "if
someday I come across some kids singing it, that will be it".'
Another time he recalled, 'I was just drifting off to sleep and
there's that nice twilight zone as you drift off. I remember
thinking that it would be a good idea to write a children's song. I
thought of images and the colour yellow came to me and a submarine
came to me and I thought "That's kind of nice; like a toy, very
childish yellow submarine."
Donovan also helped Paul with some of the lyrics and said, 'I helped
Paul with the lyrics for "Yellow Submarine". He came round to my
apartment and parked his Aston Martin in the middle of the road with
the doors open and the radio blaring. He walked away from the car
and came up to my apartment and played me "Eleanor Rigby" with
different lyrics and he also said that he had another song that was
missing a verse. It was a very small part and I just went into the
other room and put together "Sky of blue, sea of green". They had
always asked other people for help with a line or two, so I helped
with that line. He knew that I was into kids' songs and he knew I
could help. I'm sure he could have written the line himself but I
suppose he wanted someone to add a line and I added a line.'
John Lennon was to say, '"Yellow Submarine" is Paul's baby. Donovan
helped with the lyrics. I helped with the lyrics too. We virtually
made the track come alive in the studio, but based on Paul's
inspiration, Paul's idea, Paul's title.'
The song was an ideal vehicle for Ringo, providing him with his
first vocal A-side on a Beatles single, and was recorded on 28 May
and 1 June 1966 and included on the Revolver album.
The number became the inspiration for the animated movie Yellow
Submarine and was also included on the Yellow Submarine soundtrack
album issued on Parlophone CDP7 46445 2. A version in which Ringo
makes a spoken word introduction was included on Volume Two of The
Beatles Anthology.
'Yellow Submarine' was also issued as a single in the US on 8 August
1966 on Capitol 5715 with 'Eleanor Rigby' and reached No. 2 in the
charts. It was issued in Britain on 5 August on Parlophone R5493 and
topped the charts.
Yesterday
One of Paul's most famous compositions, of which there have been
over 2,500 versions by a wide variety of artists of almost every
musical genre, including Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, Ray Charles,
Tammy Wynette, Placido Domingo, Howard Keel, Liberace and Erroll
Garner. Only four versions have actually reached the charts: those
by the Beatles, Matt Monro, Ray Charles and Marianne Faithfull.
Billy J. Kramer said that at one point in his career when he was
looking for a new song he travelled to Blackpool to see Paul and ask
him if he had a suitable number. Paul played him 'Yesterday', but
Billy said he turned it down because he didn't think it was right
for him. Chris Farlowe also says that he turned the number down,
telling Paul, 'It's not for me. It's too soft. I need a good rocker,
a shuffle or something.'
Although Paul says he played 'Yesterday' to both artists, he said it
wasn't with the intention of giving them the song to record.
Paul began writing it when he was 21 and it was the first time a
Beatle had made a solo recording.
In 1980 Paul said i really reckon "Yesterday" is probably my best
song. I like it not only because it was a big success, but because
it was one of the most instinctive songs I've ever written. I was so
proud of it. I felt it was an original tune - the most complete
thing I'd ever written. It's very catchy without being sickly.'
Paul woke up one morning, late in 1963 in the attic bedroom of the
Ashers' house at 57 Wimpole Street with the melody in his head and
set some nonsense words to the tune, which had the working title of
'Scrambled Egg'. He said, 'I just fell out of bed and the bones of
the melody were there. I had a piano by the side of my bed and just
got up and played the chords.'
He was later to state, 'It was the only song I ever dreamed.'
He later went along to Alma Cogan's flat and played her the tune on
the piano. He was to ask her 'This is something I've written; does
this remind you of anything?' He was still working on it when he was
visiting the family home in the Wirral and Ruth McCartney recalls
Paul walking around the house singing 'Scrambled eggs, Oh, you've
got such lovely legs, scrambled eggs. Oh, my baby how I love your
legs.'
Paul was unsure whether he'd actually created the melody or had
heard the tune somewhere before. He played it to his fellow Beatles
as a new composition and recalled, 'It was like handing in something
you'd found at the police station and waiting to see if anyone
claimed it. After two weeks they hadn't in this case so I felt
entitled to collect it and call it my property.'
In January 1964 while they were in Paris, staying at the George V
Hotel, Paul played it to George Martin, while it was still under the
working title of 'Scrambled Eggs'. Martin recalls, 'Paul wanted a
one-word title except that he thought the word "Yesterday" was
perhaps too corny. I persuaded him that it sounded fine to me.'
Paul was still working on the number when the Beatles were filming
their second feature Help! at Twickenham Studios, playing it
constantly on piano. This irritated director Richard Lester who told
him, 'If you play that bloody theme one more time I'll have the
piano taken off the set. Either finish the song properly or give up
on it.'
Ray Coleman was to write an entire book dedicated to the song in
1995 which was called Yesterday and Today.
Beatles publisher Dick James was to tell Coleman that he heard Paul
playing it at the Twickenham Studios during the filming of Help!
He was to say, 'Paul said to me, "Come and listen to this. It's my
latest tune, we'll be recording it soon, I've got an idea but I
haven't worked out the lyrics yet." And he switched on the Hammond
organ and very quietly just held the keys and used the bass part.
Paul, in his construction of the song, always seemed to feature the
bass before almost any other part of the melody. He played the left
hand on the bass of the organ, and used the words "Scrambled Eggs"
as the title. Funny words, but you really didn't have to be a great
musician or even a music man to know that it was one of the greatest
melodies that your ears had ever heard.'
The song was recorded in June 1965. In his book All You Need Is
Ears, George Martin was to write 'I started to leave my hallmark on
the music when a style started to emerge which was partly of my
making. It was on "Yesterday" that I started to score their music.
It was on "Yesterday" that we first used instruments or musicians
other than the Beatles and myself.'
Paul had said, 'We tried ways of doing it with John on organ but it
sounded weird, and in the end I was told to do it as a solo. I was
never comfortable doing that, especially with the others.'
The next step was the use of a string quartet and Martin recalled,
'And that, in the pop world in those days, was quite a step to take.
We started breaking out of the phase of using just four instruments
and went into something more experimental, though our initial
experiments were severely limited by the fairly crude tools at our
disposal and had simply to be moulded out of my recording
experience.'
When recalling that the number had been a tune without words for
quite a long time, he pointed out that the working title 'Scrambled
Eggs' had three syllables, as did 'Yes-ter-day'. He took his time to
work out the lyrics, saying they were 'not too sickly but certainly
it was always going to be a love song. I'm hip to the fact that
people like a love song. I like ballads and I know people like them
too.'
Recording of the number began on Monday 14 June 1965 at Abbey Road's
No. 2 Studio with Paul playing 'Yesterday' on acoustic guitar and
vocal. George Harrison was also present at the recording. The number
was completed on Thursday 17 June with the overdubbing, an
additional vocal track by Paul - and the presence of a string
quartet comprising Tony Gilbert on first violin, Sidney Sax on
second violin, Francisco Gabarro on cello and Kenneth Essex on
voila.
Initially, Paul talked to the quartet, explaining his ideas, with
such instructions as 'No vibrato. I don't want vibrato.' He
recalled, "When they dropped the vibrato it sounder stronger.
Before, it had sounded quite classical enough. Now it was no longer
like the old gypsy violinist playing round a camp fire.'
Martin considered that the number was a solo Paul McCartney effort
and thought that it should be released as such. He even approached
the Beatles' manager Brian Epstein to discuss it. He said, 'I
actually went to Brian and said: "What are you going to call this?
Is it Paul McCartney?" And he looked at me very sternly and said:
"No. It is the Beatles." He did not want to divide his holy quartet.
Though it wasn't the Beatles at all, it had to remain so, as part of
their recordings. I don't think it irritated Paul at the time
because he considered himself to be a Beatle above all other
things.'
When the Beatles appeared on Blackpool Night Out on Sunday 1 August
1965, Paul performed 'Yesterday.' Apparently John Lennon was not
pleased with Paul getting what amounted to a solo spot and was
shouting out sarcastic comments when Paul was rehearsing the number.
When Paul was about to play it, George Harrison introduced him with
the word's 'We'd like to do something now that we've never ever done
before. It's a track off our new LP and this song's called
"Yesterday". So for Paul McCartney of Liverpool, opportunity
knocks!'
Matt Monro, a leading British ballad singer watched the Blackpool
Night Out television show and the next day phoned George Martin
asking him when the number was being issued as a single. Martin told
him that there were no plans for it to be released as a single -
Brian Epstein had vetoed it. Monro then said he wanted to record it
and, as Martin was his own recording manager, asked him to score it
for him.
Martin recalled, 'That was most difficult because I had already
scored it for Paul and I didn't want to do it any other way. I did
re-score it for Matt, and produced his record with a string
orchestra. We had a French horn and I changed the harmonies. All the
things Paul would hate were there, but it worked for Matt Monro.'
Paul was keen on Marianne Faithfull recording the number and even
attended her recording session on 11 November 1965.
When the Beatles began touring in June 1965, Paul initially didn't
play 'Yesterday' because he thought it might upset John. However,
Capitol Records wanted to issue it as a single in America and asked
if Paul could perform it on The Ed Sullivan Show, which the Beatles
recorded on Saturday 14 August 1965. George Harrison announced,
'We'd like to carry on with a song from our new album in England and
it will be out in America shortly. And it's a song featuring just
Paul, and it's called "Yesterday".' Paul sang it and was accompanied
by a pre-taped track featuring three violins. When Paul finished the
number, John announced, 'Thank you Paul, that was just like him.'
The show was screened on 12 September 1965.
'Yesterday' was included on the Help! album, but was not released as
a Beatles single in Britain until 1970. It was the title song on
their British EP, released on GEP 8948 on 4 March 1966 with the
tracks 'Yesterday', 'Act Naturally', 'You Like Me Too Much' and
'It's Only Love'. However, it was issued in many other countries and
topped the charts in America, Hong Kong, Finland, Norway and
Belgium.
It was included on the compilation album A Collection of Beatles
Oldies (But Goldies) issued on Parlophone PCS 7016 on 10 December
1966. It was also included on The Beatles 1962-1966 issued on
Parlophone PCSP 717 on 19 April 1973. It was finally released as a
single in Britain on Parlophone R 6013 on 8 March 1976 with 'I
Should Have Known Better' on the flip. It was also the opening track
on the mail order set issued by World Records as The Beatles
Collection in 1977 and was also the opening track on The Beatles
Ballads, issued on Parlophone PCS 7214 on 20 October 1980.
The American single was issued on Capitol 5498 on 13 September 1965
with 'Act Naturally' on the flip and was a million-seller there
within ten days. It was also included on the American album
Yesterday and Today issued on Capitol ST2553 on 20 June 1966 and was
the opening track on the American album Love Songs, issued on
Capitol SKBL 11711 on 21 October 1977.
'Yesterday' received the Ivor Novello Award as 'The Outstanding Song
Of The Year' in 1966 and was the most performed song in America for
eight consecutive years from 1965-1973.
Paul continued to use the number during his solo years and included
it on his Wings 1975/6 tour, his British tour of 1979, also as an
encore on his 1989/90-world tour and his 1993 tour. It also surfaced
on the Wings Over America album. He also decided to include it in
his Give My Regards to Broad Street feature film and it was part of
the movie soundtrack album which was issued on 22 October 1984.
At the Dorchester Hotel, London, in November 1993 Paul was to
receive an award for the 6 millionth American radio play, which was
said to be 'the most performed song ever on US radio and
television.'
He said, 'I asked as a favour if I could have my name before John's
on the Anthology credit for "Yesterday" and Yoko refused.
'I could question her but I'm a civil person and life isn't long
enough. I'd prefer to walk in the park, have fun.
'At one time Yoko earned more from "Yesterday" than I did. It
doesn't compute, especially when it's the only song that none of the
Beatles had anything to do with.'
During April 1998 he performed the number for a BBC 2 television
tribute to Spike Milligan on his eightieth birthday. He played an
acoustic version on guitar, slipping in part of Milligan's 'Ying
Tong Song' into it.
Another version of this number, lasting two minutes and seven
seconds, was recorded live for the Tripping The Live Fantastic album
on 9 February 1990 at the Worcester Centrum, Worcester,
Massachusetts during the 1989/90 World Tour.
Ying Tong Song
One of the nonsense songs created by the Goons, the cult British
comedy group comprising Peter Sellers, Spike Milligan, Harry Secombe
and Michael Bentine. On 18 April 1998, the night after Linda's
death, a programme celebrating Spike Milligan's eightieth birthday,
'Happy Birthday Spike', was screened in Britain on BBC 2 with a
pre-recorded piece from Paul in which he mentioned Spike's huge
influence on the Beatles' sense of humour and sang a version of
'Yesterday', mixing it with the 'Ying Tong Song'.
You Gave Me The Answer
A track on the Venus And Mars album. It was also used as the flip of
the 'Letting Go' single and was included on the Wings Over America
album. Paul performed the number during the Wings World Tour of
1975/76 and often dedicated this particular number to actor/dancer
Fred Astaire.
You Know I'll Get You Baby
One of several numbers Paul recorded in July 1979 during sessions
for McCartney II, which weren't used on the album. Paul had
originally intended issuing a double album and 'You Know I'll Get
You Baby' had been planned for Record Two.
You Never Give Me Your Money
A number penned by Paul for the Beatles 1969 album Abbey Road. It
was recorded at Olympic Studios on 6 May, with overdubbing at Abbey
Road on 1, 11, 15, 30 and 31 July and 5 August 1969. The theme was
inspired by the financial problems at Apple.
Paul commented, This was me directly lambasting Allen Klein's
attitude to us. No money, just funny paper. All promises and it
never works out. It's basically a song about no faith in a person.'
You Won't See Me
A track on the Rubber Soul album.
Paul was to comment, 'It was one hundred per cent me, as I recall,
but I was always happy to give John a credit because there's always
a chance that, on the night of the session, he might have said,
"That'd be better" to me. It was very Motown flavoured. It's got a
James Jameson feel. He was the Motown bass player.'
The Beatles recorded it on Monday 22 November 1965 and it was the
last session for the album.
Paul wrote and performed the song on the piano and Mai Evans played
Hammond organ in the recording studio.
It was inspired by a row Paul had had with Jane Asher.
You'll Never Walk Alone
A number from the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Carousel that
became a No. 1 British hit for Gerry & the Pacemakers. It also
became an anthem at Liverpool FC where the fans sang the song en
masse. The gates outside the football ground now sport the message
'You'll Never Walk Alone'.
Following the fire in the stands of a football match at Bradford
City ground in which 55 people died, Gerry Marsden set out to make a
charity record to raise funds for the bereaved families. He amassed
a group of artists that he called the Crowd and issued the record on
Friday 24 May 1985.
Paul had been invited to take part, but couldn't attend the actual
recording session. However, he recorded a seventeen-second telephone
message of sympathy that was included on the B-side of the record,
entitled 'Messages'.
Young Boy
A track from the Flaming Pie album lasting 3 minutes and 54 seconds.
It was penned and produced by Paul and engineered by Geoff Emerick
and Jan Jacobs, assisted by Keith Smith and Frank Farrell.
Recording began on 22 February 1995 and Paul sang lead vocal and
played drums, bass guitar, acoustic guitar and Hammond organ. Steve
Miller provided backing vocal and played electric guitar and rhythm
guitar.
It was issued in the UK on Parlophone RP 6462 on Monday 28 April
1997 in three different formats, a 7" picture disc and two different
CDs.
Trevor Dann of the BBC, who'd originally vetoed 'Real Love' from
being played on Radio One in 1998, banned 'Young Boy' from Top Of
The Pops on the grounds that it was not new music.
'Looking For You' was on the flip.
Commenting on the number, Paul said, 'This was another written
against the clock. I wrote it in the time that it took Linda to cook
a lunch for a feature in the New York Times. It was great to renew
my sixties friendship with Steve Miller.'
Paul had originally recorded with Miller in London in the 1960s and
said, 'I rang up Steve, said I had this song, how about it? He's got
this studio in Sun Valley, Idaho, and we went out there. Working
with him was like falling back into an old habit. We worked on
"Young Boy" over three days at his place and it was fun, we didn't
sweat it. It's very straightforward, just a song straight from the
shoulder.'
Paul was also to say that he was inspired to write the number by his
son James. He commented, '"Young Boy" is just about a young guy
looking for a way to find love and basically I suppose I was
thinking of my own son, who's nineteen, though he'd kill me for
saying that.
'It's for anyone around that age, looking for love. I remember the
feeling well.
'I remember thinking, "There's three hundred million people out
there and one of them is the right one for me." But you don't know
if you'll ever meet them or how you'll do it. It's a pretty scary
feeling. So this song is for all those people.'
Your Loving Flame
A track on the Driving Rain album lasting 3 minutes and 43 seconds.
It was recorded on Tuesday 19 June 2001 and mixed by David Leonard.
A string quartet was overdubbed on the track. The musicians were:
David Campbell, viola; Matt Funes, viola; Joel Derouin, violin; and
Larry Corbett, cello.
Your Mother Should Know
The theme number for the conclusion of the Magical Mystery Tour
film, which was a spectacular finale. The Beatles were to descend a
gigantic winding staircase, dressed in white evening suits. As they
reached the bottom of the stairs they joined a huge gathering of
more than 200 people including 160 members of the Peggy Spencer
Formation Dancing team and 24 girl cadets from the Women's Air
Force.
The sequence was filmed at West Mailing's Air Station and Paul was
to say, 'That was the shot that used most of the budget!'
Apple's Alistair Taylor commented, 'The idea for this sequence was
because Paul was, very much, into the Busby Berkeley school of
thought. That's why he had the Peggy Spencer Formation Team there.
'The hour before we were due to film in this aircraft hangar, the
generator blew. Every light, the sounds, everything went. So, it was
panic stations. It was a Sunday and we couldn't get hold of the
people we hired the generator from. So, a guy brilliantly made a
wooden cog, because it was a wooden cog that had gone in the
generator and we, thankfully, got it going again. But it blew again,
and by this time it was getting near dusk and all the invited
villagers started drifting off. Children in prams and the other,
older children started going. So, the final scene in Magical Mystery
Tour was just a tenth of the people that should have been there.'
Paul had actually composed the number inspired by songs of the 1930s
and even included the line, 'a song that was a hit before your
mother was born'.
Due to the fact that the Abbey Road Studios were fully booked, the
number was recorded at Chappell Recording Studios at 52 Maddox
Street, London Wl. The sessions took place on Tuesday and Wednesday
22 and 23 August 1967. There were some sessions recording this
particular song at Abbey Road Studios, but the Chappell Studios
recordings were the ones used on the Magical Mystery Tour releases.
Your Way
A track from the Driving Rain album. The number lasts for 2 minutes
and 55 seconds and was recorded on 18 February 2001.
You're Sixteen
A number written by Robert and Richard Sherman that had given Johnny
Burnette a million-seller in 1960 and Ringo Starr a multi-million
seller in February 1974. It was also included on the Ringo album.
The track included a kazoo passage by Paul, Producer Richard Perry
had played Paul the tapes of the album and Paul felt that the number
needed something extra. He played the kazoo, a small mouth
instrument which can produce a tinny sound that people used to
imitate with a comb wrapped in paper, but which in this instance
sounded almost like a saxophone.
Yvonne's The One
A number Paul penned in collaboration with Eric Stewart that was
originally made as a demo disc in February 1985 under the title 'So
Long Yvonne'. It was included on the Press To Play album. Stewart
was to say the song was inspired by a postcard he'd received from
Nick Mason of Pink Floyd. It was re-recorded by Adrian Lee, with
Paul on rhythm, and issued as one of the tracks on lOcc's Mirror
Mirror album when it was issued in Europe and Japan in 1995,
although the track wasn't included on the American release.