Yesterday

carr · Post by **carr** » Thu May 08, 2003 10:16 pm

I have just finished the book about Yesterday and Paul McCartney and it lead me to thinking.....As a "beatles song" it has been recorded so many times by so many ( name ) singers.
If it had been writen by McCormack and Westwood and been hawked around the publishers... would it have ever been recorded and if so would it have been recorded by so many ? Assume that the demo was simply a solo vocal with a solo guitar. I guess the backside of this question is..."did the celebrity status add the magic ingredient or was the song strong enough on its own merits'.

What do you think?

admin · Post by **admin** » Fri May 09, 2003 3:31 am

John: The celebrity status was important in having the opportunity to record the song. Beyond that, my view is that this melody is very strong but would not have been a gigantic hit without the haunting lyrics. The song is many things, but for me a reminder that we change over the lifespan with the likelihood that tomorrow's trials and tribulations may be far more taxing than the seemingly trying events of today.

Tomorrow,
Will all today's thoughts be clear
Perhaps these moments will disappear
When tomorrow, I think of today

Ok Westwood, you start on the melody.

larrywassgren · Post by **larrywassgren** » Fri May 09, 2003 5:49 pm

Call me a major oddball but I have never really been crazy about Yesterday. McCartney says he woke up with the melody in his head. The chords are beautiful and the words are very good. But, I've just never felt he broke new ground. Also, I remember seeing The Beatles on Ed Sullivan when Paul did this song solo. I've always thought the others should have been included for the live performance. It just didn't seem right to give Paul the spotlight for one song. If Paul had come on Sullivan a week later as Paul McCartney and did his solo bit, that would have been alright. Any other thoughts on this?

carr · Post by **carr** » Fri May 09, 2003 8:04 pm

I 'like " yesterday " but its not what I would call a commercial biggie. I feel it was carried by its novelty as an out of character Beatles song.Sure the melody is haunting and the lyrics are strong but I never felt that it had "hit" written all over it . I too was a little discomfitted by the solo aspect of the performances by Paul Mac. I was and am a fan of The Beatles quartet..

admin · Post by **admin** » Sun May 11, 2003 9:52 am

Larry and John: It is hard for me not to consider Yesterday a big hit. I can't site all the figures off the top of my head, however, it has to be the most highly covered song in rock and roll history. The fact that it had appeal to a wide audience was the key for its success. To some extent if an artist had the same success today it might even be called a cross-over hit.

When one considers that it appealed not only to the fans of the day but even their parents, that was certainly going some in the 1960s. Moreover, the fact that strings were added was, not a first, but did break new ground for Scouser Rock.

The solo appearance did take away from the other members of the group, I agree. I don't consider, however, that we thought any less of John, George or John or any more of Paul for this one deviation from the status quo.

Yesterday is not my favourite Beatle song but it is a great one. Let's take a poll on the street this week, Stop a number of people and ask them what group sang "Yesterday." Then ask the same person what group sang "Don't Bother Me." Yesterday is unique, was a big hit and I think deservingly so. Perhaps its considerable deviation from the mainstream Beatles' numbers has it a little to sweet and syrupy for our liking.

admin · Post by **admin** » Wed May 14, 2003 1:25 am

A future note to our discussion pertaining to "Yesterday." I was at a Fab Four concert on May 12, 2003 and Yesterday was performed by the more than able Ardy Sarraf. The reception was over the top. This song was and is a big hit four decades later. An evening highlight without question.

shamustwin · Post by **shamustwin** » Wed May 14, 2003 5:21 am

There's a decent video version of the Beatles performing Yesterday live as a band in Japan somewhere. Bob Dylan does a recent version, which to me is the most surprising artist to do so. You can go to the BMI website and go to Paul McCartney and get some stats on how many performances. Actually it's fun to look for your favorite artist on this site.

shamustwin · Post by **shamustwin** » Tue Jul 08, 2003 10:30 am

An article in today's L.A. Times quotes the Times of London saying "Yesterday" may have been subconsciously "borrowed" from a song Nat King Cole did in the '50's called "Answer Me". This song was simultaneously a hit for Frankie Laine in England, the article states. I would think someone would have noticed and mentioned this before, wouldn't you?

rhinobass · Post by **rhinobass** » Wed Jul 09, 2003 3:35 am

Jerry,

I heard a piece on NPR yesterday afternoon on that very topic. They played bytes of the two songs back to back. The songs have similarities, as do many songs, but I would not say that it goes as far as a copy, by any strech of the imagination.

"A good composer does not borrow from other composers, he steals." Leonard Bernstein

shamustwin · Post by **shamustwin** » Wed Jul 09, 2003 3:49 am

Paul once said if he gets stuck (while trying to write), he'll 'nick' something. Doubt it in this case. Anyway, this "theory" is being offered in two new books about the fabs.

sneakers · Post by **sneakers** » Wed Jul 09, 2003 8:03 am

"Nick". Is that what Bob Dylan recently did with "Floater"?

Read this:

TOKYO—A Japanese writer said yesterday he was flattered to learn that passages from one of his books apparently found their way into Bob Dylan's lyrics.

In the song "Floater" from his 2001 album, Love And Theft, Dylan croons: "My old man, he's like some feudal lord, got more lives than a cat." He also sings, "I'm not quite as cool or forgiving as I sound" and then, "Sometimes somebody wants you to give something up, And tears or not, it's too much to ask.''

On page 6 of Junichi Saga's 1989 book Confessions Of A Yakuza, the protagonist recalls: "My old man would sit there like a feudal lord." Later he says: "I'm not as cool or forgiving as I might have sounded." And on page 182: "Tears or not, though, that was too much to ask."

It was unclear if Dylan intentionally lifted any material. A publicist from Dylan's record label, Columbia Records, said the musician could not be reached for comment yesterday.

A month ago, Saga, a 62-year-old physician who has written 15 books, had no more than a vague idea of the legendary singer-songwriter. "I had heard his name before, but I wasn't familiar with his music," Saga said in a phone interview from his home in Tsuchiura. "I'm ecstatic that such an influential singer was inspired by what I wrote.''

An English translation of Confessions Of A Yakuza appeared in 1991, a decade before Dylan's album. Saga said he first heard about the parallel passages a month ago from a reporter with The Wall Street Journal, which broke the story yesterday.

His primary reaction was surprise. "My book hasn't even sold that well, and it's out of print in Japan." Saga estimates the book, which was also translated into German, French and Portuguese, earned him about one million yen, or $8,475 (U.S.)

Confessions details the story of Eiji Ijichi, an ex-gangster whose life of crime in pre-war Japan was also full of loneliness and hardship. Dylan, 62, is known to sprinkle references to literature, art and other sources in his songs.

Saga said he harbours no ill feelings toward Dylan. He has told his publisher that while he would prefer to be credited as a source for Dylan's songs, he has "absolutely no plans to sue." "Why would I? To take something that made people around the world happy and try to exploit it for money — that's poverty. I'm just happy someone read my book and liked it.''

shamustwin · Post by **shamustwin** » Wed Jul 09, 2003 2:34 pm

There's a man with an incredible attitude. The rest of the world should be so cool.

rictified · Post by **rictified** » Wed Jul 09, 2003 5:19 pm

"Don't Bother Me" has always been one of my favorite Beatle songs. While I understand the commercial appeal of "Yesterday" it just never really did it for me. At the same time I feel that it was a great leap forward for The Beatles and pop music in general similar to "You've got to hide your love away" (which really did do it for me) in that it was very different from most of their stuff, kind of pushed the envelope as they say, stretched the boundries of what was acceptable to a pop audience, at least from the British groups.

simer4001 · Post by **simer4001** » Wed Jul 16, 2003 8:54 pm

Interesting that many of you didn't think of Yesterday as a "big hit". I believe the Beatles felt the same. It was simply an album track to fill out the "HELP" album. It wasn't originally released in the UK as a single. In fact the song wasn't released as a single until the 70's. Here in the US, Capitol released everything as a single in the early days. Nevertheless it certainly became a standard. My question is...Is Paul ****** because "Yesterday" isn't the number one played song of all time anymore? I believe "Unchained Melody" has surpassed it. I'm thinking he isn't because he owns "Unchained Melody" and he doesn't own "Yesterday." Another quickie. When I was about 18 my brother-in-law was saying that someone elses version of "Yesterday" was better than the original. I of course argued the point. We finally turned to the Sinatra expert in the house, my father who said his favorite version of "Yesterday" was by Roy Clark. Good job Dad! I knew I could count on you.

shamustwin · Post by **shamustwin** » Thu Jul 17, 2003 4:23 am

On the BMI website, they list just those kind of facts. And, though I haven't looked recently, I know even a couple of years ago "Unchained Meelee" was king. Something like 8 million radio plays, to Yesterday's 7 mil. They say that's like having it played back to back for 8 years nonstop.

Brian- Was your dad thinking of "Yesterday, When I Was Young" by Roy Clark? That was a big hit for him.