Did George write any of the great guitar riffs?

mojo_jojo · Post by **mojo_jojo** » Wed Jul 11, 2007 4:15 am

Just wondering if George had a hand in creating (other than just playing) any of the great Beatle guitar riffs, like:

Day Tripper
Ticket to Ride
And Your Bird Can Sing
You Can't Do That
I Want You (She's So Heavy)
I Feel Fine
Etc.

twangs · Post by **twangs** » Wed Jul 11, 2007 4:19 am

How about "I Want To Tell You"? Excellent riff, and one of my favorite songs on Revolver.

brammy · Post by **brammy** » Wed Jul 11, 2007 10:06 am

I think a lot of them were written or at least heavily influenced by John and Paul and George Martin.... especially early on. Day Tripper, Ticket to Ride and I Feel Fine were certainly dictated to George note for note.

sloop_john_b · Post by **sloop_john_b** » Wed Jul 11, 2007 10:11 am

Maybe not one of the "great" riffs, but he did write the "Octopus' Garden" intro.

peewee · Post by **peewee** » Wed Jul 11, 2007 10:26 am

Not a "riff", but certainly one of the most beautiful guitar solos ever recorded - "Something". I still marvel at what a gorgeous piece of music it is.

I always thought that George contributed some of the more interesting songs. Always loved "Don't Bother Me", "Only A Northern Song", "It's All Too Much", "Savoy Truffle", "Blue Jay Way" and all the raga inspired pieces. I used to blow my neighbor's minds as an 8 year old by cranking out "The Inner Light" on my cheap-o GE record player at full volume! Not something that was exactly "normal" in suburban DC during the early '70s.

lyle_from_minneapolis · Wed Jul 11, 2007 4:55 pm

This question is exactly the kind of stuff I wish we really knew.

We don't!

500mpl · Post by **500mpl** » Wed Jul 11, 2007 8:10 pm

Daytripper is Paul playing lead.
And your bird has to be George. It's too complicated and precise for either John or Paul. They may have suggested the riff but how would they have been able to articulate the complexity that George pulled off.
I Feel Fine is a Lennon signature riff. Paul was never a smooth lead player while George was too technical. It screams John all the way.

Regards,

rick36 · Post by **rick36** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 7:10 am

How about "Run for Your Life" - and the biggie: "Taxman". Also "If I Needed Someone" - inspired, of course, by McGuinns' "Bells Of Rhymney"
"And Your Bird Can Sing" is George AND John playing the two parts together (no writing credit to George). John was a lot better guitarist than he gets credit for.

studiotwosession · Post by **studiotwosession** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 7:24 am

>>John was a lot better guitarist than he gets credit for.<<

After all, he conceived and played the I Feel Fine lick (on an acoustic no less) plus the solos in Get Back and Honey Pie.

peewee · Post by **peewee** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 7:34 am

"Bells Of Rhymney" is actually a Pete Seeger composition, not McGuinn; although the Byrds take is wonderful!

rick36 · Post by **rick36** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 8:07 am

Idris Davies (January 6, 1905 - April 6, 1953), was a Welsh poet, originally writing in Welsh, but later writing exclusively in English. He is now known mostly for The Bells of Rhymney, a ballad on a mining accident on the pattern of the nursery rhyme Oranges and Lemons that was set to music by Pete Seeger.

Credit where credit is due...

peewee · Post by **peewee** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 8:13 am

Touche`!

tennis_nick · Post by **tennis_nick** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 9:11 am

George claims the And YOur Bird lead part was a duet between him and PAUL, not John... on Casino's no less!

steambyrd · Post by **steambyrd** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 9:36 am

On his Limited Edition cd, McGuinn does " If I Needed Someone" as a tribute to George.

8mileshigher · Post by **8mileshigher** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 11:28 am

Ref "And Your Bird Can Sing" if you link over to the Beatles Site link of this magnificent Ric Resource Forum site and follow down to the contents and click on "Meeting George Harrison at LAX", the author indicates that he spoke with GH about AYBCS and that George indicated that it was both he and Paul playing the dual-leads simultaneously on this song.

To reinforce that, I also remember reading something Joe Walsh said in a Guitar Player magazine article (many, many years ago) that he suffered through teaching himself to single-handedly play the guitar part on AYBCS and that it was his claim to fame as an early guitarist (in a high school band or whatever) and only many years later, Walsh learned that in fact it was two Beatles doing it on the recording, what he had painstakingly mastered as a solo player !

Another Bealtes site: http://perso.wanadoo.es/sissu/revolv.htm#1

indicates that John, George and Paul all played Epihone Casinos on this great song.
Regards - Rich F.