Girl (The Beatles song)
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| "Girl" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Song by The Beatles
from the album Rubber Soul |
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| Released | 3 December 1965 | |||
| Recorded | 11 November 1965 Abbey Road Studios |
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| Genre | Folk rock | |||
| Length | 2:33 | |||
| Label | Parlophone | |||
| Writer | Lennon/McCartney | |||
| Producer | George Martin | |||
| Rubber Soul track listing | ||||
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"Girl" is a song written by John Lennon[1] and Paul McCartney[2] based on an original idea by Lennon[2] and performed by The Beatles on their 1965 album Rubber Soul. "Girl" was the last complete song recorded for that album.[3][4]
Contents |
[edit] History
The song's lyrics describe a girl the singer loves, but with misgivings: "She's the kind of girl who puts you down / When friends are there, you feel a fool." Backing the bridges is a refrain sung by Lennon while McCartney and George Harrison repeatedly sing a syllable for vocal percussion (they were supposed to sing "dit-dit-dit-dit" but decided to sing "tit-tit-tit-tit" as a joke).[2][3] The deep breaths in the chorus were rumoured to have symbolised taking a long inhalation (toke) of a marijuana joint.[5]
According to McCartney, he wrote the lines "Was she told when she was young that pain would lead to pleasure" and "That a man must break his back to earn his day of leisure."[2], but in a 1970 interview with Rolling Stone, Lennon claimed those lyrics were a dig at the Roman Catholic Church.
In an interview for Rolling Stone magazine on 5 December 1980, Lennon said his 1980 song "[Woman] reminds me of a Beatles track, but I wasn't trying to make it sound like that. I did it as I did 'Girl' many years ago. So this is the grown-up version of 'Girl.'"[6] ("Woman" was the second single released from the Double Fantasy album, and the first Lennon single issued after his death on 8 December 1980.)
In November 1977, Capitol Records scheduled the United States release of "Girl" backed with "You're Going to Lose That Girl" as a single (Capitol 4506) to accompany the release of Love Songs, a Beatles' compilation album that contains both of these songs. However, the single was cancelled before it was issued.
[edit] Cover versions
- Dalida recorded "Girl" in Italian and released it as "Amo" on her 1967 Italian album "Piccolo Ragazzo" (which is the Italian version of "Little Man" by Sonny Bono and Cher). The song Amo was re-released on the Italia Mia box set in 2007.
- Jim Sturgess sang "Girl" in the film musical Across the Universe.
- Rhett Miller recorded a version of "Girl" that can be found on the album This Bird Has Flown - A 40th Anniversary Tribute to the Beatles' Rubber Soul.
- St. Louis Union recorded a cover version in 1965, that was released in January 1966, and reached #11 on the UK Singles Chart.[7]
- Tiny Tim recorded a dramatic reinterpretation with the band Brave Combo in 1996.
[edit] Personnel
- John Lennon – vocal, acoustic guitars
- Paul McCartney – backing vocal, bass
- George Harrison – backing vocal,[3] lead acoustic guitar
- Ringo Starr – drums
- Personnel per Ian MacDonald except as noted.[4]
[edit] Notes
- ^ Sheff 2000, p. 197.
- ^ a b c d Miles 1997, pp. 275–276.
- ^ a b c Lewisohn 1988, p. 68.
- ^ a b MacDonald 2005, p. 181.
- ^ Hertsgaard 1995, p. 154.
- ^ Cott 1980.
- ^ Roberts 2006, p. 479.
[edit] References
- Cott, Jonathan (05 December 1980). "Rolling Stone Interview with John Lennon". Rolling Stone. http://www.john-lennon.com/1980rollingstoneinterview.htm. Retrieved 27 October 2006.
- Hertsgaard, Mark (1995). A Day in the Life: The Music and Artistry of the Beatles. New York: Delacorte Press. ISBN 0-385-31377-2.
- Lewisohn, Mark (1988). The Beatles Recording Sessions. New York: Harmony Books. ISBN 0-517-57066-1.
- MacDonald, Ian (2005). Revolution in the Head: The Beatles' Records and the Sixties (Second Revised ed.). London: Pimlico (Rand). ISBN 1-844-13828-3.
- Miles, Barry (1997). Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now. New York: Henry Holt & Company. ISBN 0-8050-5249-6.
- Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- Sheff, David (2000). All We Are Saying: The Last Major Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono. New York: St. Martin's Press. ISBN 0-312-25464-4.
