MusicMusic CommentaryMusic History

The Beatles: Note By Note

Note By Note Series

A Beatles podcast that goes song-by-song through every Beatles release in chronological order. We focus on the music itself, breaking down what you’re hearing and why it works.

Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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35 episodes
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Avg 1 hr 5 min
English

Episodes 35

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S2 · E104
Friday · 32 min
We Can Work It Out - Lecture Series 104 (bonus)
In this Beatles lecture series, we explore the music and lyrics of We Can Work It Out. Paul’s verses frame an argument around seeing things his way, while John’s middle eight questions the value of fighting at all. We consider how these sections might represent a conversation between friends or competing thoughts within one mind. Musically, we explore how the two sections perfectly contrast with each other, and how the argument may be resolved musically by the end. Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E103
Friday · 40 min
Day Tripper - Lecture Series 103 (bonus)
In this Beatles lecture series, we look at the music and lyrics of Day Tripper. Lennon uses ambiguous language to give overlapping meanings. Musically, the song begins with familiar blues gestures before taking a series of harmonic detours on its way home. The instrumental middle section builds tension by layering a repeating riff, rising guitar and vocal lines, and a sustained bass note over a prolonged dominant chord. Throughout, we trace how a few recurring gestures connect the riff, melody, refrain, and outro, giving the song a strong internal unity even as its harmony moves in unexpected directions. Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E104
October 30 · 1 hr 22 min
We Can Work It Out - Episode 104 with Scott DeVeaux
On this episode of our Beatles podcast, music historian Scott DeVeaux joins Kenyon and Peter to explore the song We Can Work It Out. The song originated from a fight between Paul and Jane Asher, but wasn't considered complete until John came in with a darker middle 8 to complete the composition. We are just getting into Rubber Soul season, and if the first few songs are any indication, it's going to be a great ride. We cover: -Paul McCartney's relationship with Jane Asher, Margaret Asher, and the importance of the Asher family -The mysterious "Lucy from Littletown" demo and Beatrix Potter's The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle -John Lennon's middle eight and competing interpretations of the song's lyrics -George Harrison's suggested shift into 3/4 time and the Beatles' evolving use of unusual meters -The October 1965 recording sessions -The harmonium and the its place in the emerging Rubber Soul sound -The three promotional films filmed at Twickenham Studios -The double-A-side release with Day Tripper Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E103
October 30 · 1 hr 32 min
Day Tripper - Episode 103 with Aristotle Dreher
On this episode of our Beatles podcast, we kick off Rubber Soul season with Day Tripper and special guest Aristotle of Aristotle Digs Music. We explore the song’s origins, the interplay between the Beatles’ instruments, and the humor hiding in its lyrics. The storytime digs into the lore of the first time John, Cynthia, George, and Pattie took LSD. We cover: - The “Day Tripper” work tape and disputed riff origins - Bobby Parker's Watch Your Step and I Feel Fine - Paul’s Rickenbacker 4001S and the guitar riff - Ringo’s Stax-inspired drums and Al Jackson influence - Sex, drugs, and weekend hippies - The October 16, 1965 recording session - “Day Tripper” at the Beatles’ final Candlestick Park concert - The first LSD trip of John Lennon, Cynthia Lennon, George Harrison, and Pattie Boyd Check out Aristotle: https://www.instagram.com/aristotledreher Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E102
October 16 · 1 hr 1 min
Dizzy Miss Lizzy - Episode 102
Dizzy Miss Lizzy closes Help! by going back to the Beatles’ roots. It was an old stage favorite, a Larry Williams rocker they had known for years, and the last cover they would ever record. For this episode of our Beatles podcast, it also gives us our first official "Beatles last" as we work our way through the catalog. We talk about why the recording feels so relentless, and how the song comes across differently when they play it live. And this episode storytime is John Lennon’s second book, A Spaniard in the Works. We cover: -Larry Williams' version and René Hall’s original guitar riff -King Size Taylor and the Dominoes and the Beatles’ early stage repertoire -Capitol’s request for more material and the May 10, 1965 “Larry Williams session” -George Harrison’s doubled, repeating guitar line and our "axe to grind" theory -The Beatles’ 1965 Atlanta performance -The Beatles’ final BBC session, The Beatles Invite You to Take a Ticket to Ride -The two-night Hollywood Bowl composite and John Lennon’s later Toronto performance with Eric Clapton -Would another song have been a better closer for Help! -John Lennon’s second book, A Spaniard in the Works Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E101
October 9 · 1 hr 12 min
Yesterday - Lecture Series 101 (bonus)
In this Beatles lecture series, we are looking at Yesterday, a song built around the longing to return to a past that can’t be recovered. We examine how the lyrics move from a changed world, to a changed self, to a broken relationship, and how the music supports this emotional weight. We also explore the melody, harmony, form, and George Martin’s string arrangement and how they work together to create the song’s sense of nostalgia and loss. A new lecture series feature, we explore George Martin's handwritten score note by note to discover the subtle details that give Yesterday its character. Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E101
October 2 · 1 hr 30 min
Yesterday - Episode 101 with Kyle Hopson
Yesterday may be the most popular song The Beatles ever recorded, but it's surprising just how unusual its story really is. On this episode of our Beatles podcast, we are joined by Kenyon’s longtime friend and former songwriting partner Kyle Hopson. We look at the song as a piece of Beatles history and a case study in how songs actually come into the world. What makes Yesterday feel so universal? How did it expand the boundaries of what a Beatles record could be? Did Paul actually rewrite an earlier song? We cover: -Paul McCartney’s dream, Scrambled Eggs, and the long development of the song -John Lennon’s possible role in completing the song -Billy J. Kramer, Chris Farlowe, Brian Epstein, and whether Yesterday was always destined to be a Beatles song -Delia Derbyshire, the BBC Radiophonic Workshop, Ray Cathode, and Paul’s interest in an electronic arrangement -George Martin, the string quartet, and the original handwritten score -The recording session, detuned guitar, orchestral overdubs, and Paul’s solo performance -George Martin Orchestra arrangement of Yesterday -Possible connections to The Night Before, Georgia on My Mind, and Answer Me, My Love Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E100
September 25 · 38 min
I've Just Seen A Face - Lecture Series 100 (bonus)
In this Beatles lecture series, we are looking at I’ve Just Seen a Face, a song that captures the head-spinning rush of love at first sight. We examine how Paul combines deceptively simple musical and lyrical materials to create the song’s breathless and frenetic energy. Beneath the surface, its overlapping patterns continually pull against one another, while rising and falling gestures mirror the exhilaration of suddenly being swept off balance by another person. Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E100
September 18 · 1 hr 14 min
I've Just Seen A Face - Episode 100 with Ian Leslie
Have you ever realized that another person will change your life forever? Author Ian Leslie joins us to talk about I’ve Just Seen a Face and his book, John & Paul: A Love Story in Songs. Together, we use Paul’s breathless love song to explore chance, recognition, conflict and the mixture happiness and sadness that can exist in a single moment. Could this song tell us something about Paul in 1965 or maybe about what he saw in John Lennon years earlier? We cover: -Ian Leslie’s John & Paul: A Love Story in Songs -This song's origins -John and Paul’s creative and emotional relationship -Love at first sight, fate, and chance -The acoustic arrangement and rapid-fire vocal phrasing -Take 3 from Anthology 4 -The opening of Rubber Soul -A legendary recording session, Paul's Event Horizon Check out Ian Leslie: https://www.ian-leslie.com/ Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E99
September 11 · 42 min
Tell Me What You See - Lecture Series 99 (bonus)
In this Beatles lecture series, we analyze Tell Me What You See. We look at the way the lyrics gradually reveal that this promise is actually an attempt of persuasion. Musically, we explore Paul’s melodic contours, the song’s recurring question-and-answer phrases, and how its simple harmony takes on a more modal character. We also compare blues-inflected and warmer pop sounds, and how the unusual instrumental middle section develops the song’s Latin-influenced character. Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E99
September 4 · 1 hr 29 min
Tell Me What You See - Episode 99 with Caro Kelley
On this episode of our Beatles podcast, musician, singer, songwriter and obsessive album listener Caro Kelley joins us for Tell Me What You See. Caro has spent a lot of time not just listening to music, but rating and ranking it and she brings that perspective to a song that Paul McCartney himself dismissed as not particularly memorable. Would you call this a filler track? For our storytime, we have a remarkable firsthand account of the Beatles actually working out the song in the studio with George Martin. Melody Maker journalist Ray Coleman was there as they rehearsed, argued over what was wrong, experimented with percussion, added the electric piano and tried to find a sound they admitted they couldn’t yet define. Tell Me What You See opens up bigger questions about singing, intimacy, imagination and why a song can become more interesting the closer you get to it. What we cover: - Paul McCartney and John Lennon’s conflicting memories of who wrote “Tell Me What You See” - John and Paul’s unusually loose rhythmic phrasing - Ringo Starr’s drum break - Paul McCartney’s Hohner Pianet C - A British post-war religious motto - A possible connection to Elvis Presley’s “Trying to Get to You” - Ray Coleman’s February 1965 Melody Maker article - George Martin’s orchestral version of “Tell Me What You See” Follow Caro Kelley: https://www.instagram.com/caro_kelley Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E98
August 28 · 42 min
You Like Me Too Much - Lecture Series 98 (bonus)
In this Beatles lecture series, we look at the music and lyrics of George Harrison’s You Like Me Too Much. The uneasy relationship at the center of the song seems caught in a cycle: one person threatens to leave, but neither quite manages to end things. Musically, George builds that uneasy feeling into the song. The harmony repeatedly avoids landing on a firm resolution. We explore how these techniques make the verse unusually effective, and how George was already developing some distinctive songwriting instincts. But not every part works equally well. The middle eight introduces a collection of melodic, harmonic, and lyrical ideas that struggle to develop the song’s central premise. Finally, we look at the barrelhouse piano intro, instrumental break, and outro, and how George Martin’s arrangement helps frame the song and give its wandering structure a sense of unity. Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E98
August 21 · 1 hr 34 min
You Like Me Too Much - Episode 98 with Anne (Beatles Research Society)
On this episode of our Beatles podcast, Peter and Kenyon look at George Harrison’s You Like Me Too Much, an overlooked Help! track that turns out to have more going for it than its reputation suggests. It is an entry point into the bigger story of how the Beatles worked. How arrangements took shape in the studio, how imperfect performances still made it onto finished records, and what happened when someone other than John or Paul started finding their own songwriter voice. We talk to Anne (BeatlesResearchSociety) to sort through the song’s unusual piano parts and surviving session notes. In the end, we find out what's going on with this song and why it's important in the Beatles catalog. What we cover: - The writing and recording of “You Like Me Too Much” - George Martin’s session notes and the disputed piano parts - The song’s unusual piano-and-guitar solo - George Harrison’s development as a songwriter - The different UK and US releases of Help! Follow Beatles Research Society: https://www.instagram.com/beatlesresearchsociety Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E97
August 14 · 34 min
It's Only Love - Lecture Series 97 (bonus)
In this Beatles lecture series, we dive into the music and lyrics of It's Only Love. Lennon begins with a unique rhyming scheme, but somehow manages to build a story within this constraint. Musically, John develops a number of melodic and rhythmic ideas that he reuses throughout the song in different ways. What can seem like a slight Beatles song turns out to be an interesting example of how a songwriter can create unity from a few simple ideas. Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E97
August 7 · 1 hr 22 min
It's Only Love - Episode 97 with Elli Rader
John Lennon called It's Only Love a lousy song with abysmal lyrics. But is he right? Peter and Kenyon are joined by their long-time friend Elli to take a closer look at this late addition to Help! and figure out what works, what doesn’t, and whether Lennon judged it too harshly. The conversation turns toward how artists make their work and how old, cringy experiments can become embarrassing with time. Kenyon, Peter, and Elli each bring in an old poem and read it aloud in a beautiful shaming ritual that will now live on the internet forever. Along the way, they consider whether failed work is simply part of the creative process, how artists develop higher standards, and whether John Lennon was too hard on his music. What we cover: - The writing and recording of “It’s Only Love” - The unusual intro guitar effect - Hoshika Rumiko’s visit to the Beatles’ recording session - The song’s release history - George Martin’s orchestral version "That's A Nice Hat" Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E96
July 24 · 1 hr 11 min
Act Naturally - Episode 96
On this episode of our Beatles podcast, Kenyon, Peter, et al hold 3 important corporate meetings to determine once and for all which song will serve as Ringo's contribution to the Help! album. We have a pre-production meeting, a production meeting and a post mortem to decide what and how Ringo can contribute for this project. They are joined by a few guests that add their input that may or may not help the boys arrive at a conclusion. Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E95
July 17 · 38 min
You're Going To Lose That Girl - Lecture Series 95 (bonus)
In this Beatles lecture series, we dive into the music and lyrics of You're Going To Lose That Girl. On first impression, the lyrics seem conniving, but there may be alternative readings. Musically, this is a quintessential Lennon composition and we find all the fingerprints hidden inside the song. At the same time, John moves into new territories and gives us an exciting key change for the middle 8. Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E95
July 10 · 1 hr 22 min
You're Going To Lose That Girl - Episode 95 with Cameron (NationSquid)
On this episode of our Beatles podcast, you are going to lose assumptions you had about this Help! era song. Joined by Cameron from NationSquid and FeedYourHead, we dig deep and try to uncover the essence of this song. As usually, we talk about the songwriting, the recording process and how it was released. But we also dive into adjacent topics such as American cinema and the tech world. Do yourself a favor and check it out. Check out Cameron: https://www.youtube.com/nationsquid https://www.youtube.com/@FeedYourSquid Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E94
July 3 · 37 min
Another Girl - Lecture Series 94 (bonus)
In this Beatles lecture series, Kenyon analyzes the lyrics and music for Paul McCartney's Another Girl. Underneath a fun blues jam, a sinister story starts to emerge. And while the song may seem like another one of Paul's work songs for the movie, Paul experiments with the melody's phrasing and the song's form. The middle 8 is one of the most fascinating of the early Beatles middle 8s, and we break down exactly what is happening and why it works. Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S2 · E94
June 26 · 59 min
Another Girl - Episode 94
On this episode of our Beatles podcast, we cover another song, Another Girl. For the first time in a while, it's just Kenyon and Peter alone together, so things get loose pretty quickly. We come into the episode talking about a minor Paul song, but by the end, we talk about the major pivot point that this song represents. It's insightful and it's a little chaotic. What we cover: -Unconventional songwriting spaces -Sequencing of the first side of Help! -The iconic guitar line -Paul crossing the bar line with his lyrics -Paul's Tunisian vacation Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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