Paul McCartney Compared Writing 1 of The Beatles’ Songs to Writing a James Bond Theme – Showbiz Cheat Sheet

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Paul McCartney compared one of The Beatles songs to a James Bond theme. Subsequently, he said the track was tongue in cheek. The track appeared on The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour.

In the 1968 book The Beatles: The Authorised Biography, journalist Hunter Davies described the writing of With a Little Help From My Friends. John started playing his guitar and Paul started banging on his piano, Davies wrote. For a couple of hours they both banged away.

Davies discussed the Lennon-McCartney collaboration. Each seemed to be in a trance until the other came up with something good, then he would pluck it out of a mass of noises and try it himself, he wrote.

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In the 1997 book Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now, Paul discussed the songs origin. It was pretty much co-written, John and I doing a work song for Ringo, a little craft job, he recalled. I always saw those as the equivalent of writing a James Bond film theme. It was a challenge, it was something out of the ordinary for us because we actually had to write in a key for Ringo and you had to be a little tongue in cheek.

Paul contrasted With a Little Help From My Friends with Yellow Submarine. Ringo liked kids a lot, he was very good with kids so we knew Yellow Submarine would be a good thing for Ringo to sing, he remembered. In this case, it was a slightly more mature song, which I always liked very much.

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Since With a Little Help From My Friends was never a single in the United States, it didnt hit the Billboard Hot 100. The Beatles included the track on Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band. Sgt. Pepper topped the Billboard 200 for 15 weeks and remained on the chart for 233 weeks altogether.

The Official Charts Company says With a Little Help From My Friends became a double A-side single with Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band in the United Kingdom. The tracks reached No. 63 and lasted three weeks on the chart. For 28 weeks, Sgt. Pepper topped the U.K. charts. It stayed on the chart for 277 weeks in total.

With a Little Help From My Friends was a hit even if it doesnt sound much like a Bond theme.

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Paul McCartney Compared Writing 1 of The Beatles' Songs to Writing a James Bond Theme - Showbiz Cheat Sheet