Jump to content

In My Life

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Bossanoven (talk | contribs) at 20:53, 1 February 2015 (added Category:Songs from Rubber Soul using HotCat). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

For other uses, see In My Life (disambiguation).

"In My Life"
Song

"In My Life" is a song by the Beatles released on the 1965 album Rubber Soul written mainly by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. The song originated with Lennon, and while Paul McCartney contributed to the final version, he and Lennon later disagreed over the extent of his contributions (specifically the melody). George Martin contributed the instrumental bridge. It is ranked 23rd on Rolling Stone's "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" as well as fifth on their list of the Beatles' 100 Greatest Songs.[2][3] The song placed second on CBC's 50 Tracks. Mojo magazine named it the best song of all time in 2000.

Composition

According to Lennon, the song's origins can be found when the English journalist Kenneth Allsop made a remark that Lennon should write songs about his childhood.[4] Afterwards, Lennon wrote a song in the form of a long poem reminiscing on his childhood years. The original version of the lyrics was based on a bus route he used to take in Liverpool, naming various sites seen along the way, including Penny Lane and Strawberry Field.[5] Those original lyrics are on display at The British Museum.

File:Original lyrics to John Lennon's 'In my life'.jpg
Original lyrics to John Lennon's "In My Life"

However, Lennon found it to be "ridiculous", calling it "the most boring sort of 'What I Did On My Holidays Bus Trip' song"; he reworked the words, replacing the specific memories with a generalised meditation on his past.[6] "Very few lines" of the original version remained in the finished song.[5] According to Lennon's friend and biographer Peter Shotton, the lines "Some [friends] are dead and some are living/In my life I've loved them all" referred to Stuart Sutcliffe (who died in 1962) and to Shotton.[4]

Regarding authorship of the melody, Lennon's and McCartney's recollections differ. Referring to McCartney, Lennon said "his contribution melodically was the harmony and the middle-eight itself."[7][8] McCartney claimed he set Lennon's lyrics to music from beginning to end, taking inspiration for the melody from songs by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles.[9] "I liked 'In My Life'. Those were words that John wrote, and I wrote the tune to it. That was a great one."[10]

Recording

The song was recorded on 18 October 1965, and was complete except for the instrumental bridge.[11] At that time, Lennon had not decided what instrument to use, but he subsequently asked George Martin to play a piano solo, suggesting "something Baroque-sounding".[1] Martin wrote a Bach-influenced piece that he found he could not play at the song's tempo. On 22 October, the solo was recorded with the tape running at half speed, so when played back at normal pace the piano was twice as fast and an octave higher, solving the performance challenge and also giving the solo a unique timbre, reminiscent of a harpsichord.[12][13]

Personnel

Personnel per Ian MacDonald[14]
Personnel notes
  • A ^ MacDonald was unsure if Starr played Bells.
  1. ^ a b Hertsgaard 1996, p. 156.
  2. ^ Rolling Stone 2010.
  3. ^ "5. In My Life". 100 Greatest Beatles Songs. Rolling Stone. Retrieved 21 May 2013.
  4. ^ a b Everett 2001, p. 319.
  5. ^ a b Spitz 2005, p. 587.
  6. ^ Sheff 2000, p. 152.
  7. ^ Sheff 2000, p. 178.
  8. ^ The section to which Lennon referred is unclear, as the song does not contain a recognisable middle-eight aside from a brief instrumental break (the melody for which is attributed to producer George Martin).
  9. ^ Miles 1997, p. 277.
  10. ^ Gambaccini 1976, p. 19.
  11. ^ Lewisohn 1988, p. 64.
  12. ^ Spitz 2005, p. 591.
  13. ^ Lewisohn 1988, p. 65.
  14. ^ MacDonald 2005, p. 169.

Cover versions

  • Metallica covered the song during their acoustic set at MusiCares MAP Fund Benefit in 2014.

Matt Scannell covered the song for the end of the 2005 film Little Manhattan.

Notes

  1. ^ "For the Boys - Bette Midler : Awards". AllMusic. 12 November 1991. Retrieved 1 July 2012.
  2. ^ Oliver, Good Morning Starshine Retrieved 14 March 2012.
  3. ^ "Dušan Prelević, ''Ja, Prele''". Discogs.com. Retrieved 1 July 2012.
  4. ^ Love (Boyz II Men album)

References

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=In_My_Life&oldid=645209286"