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180-524: " Eleanor Rigby " is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1966 album Revolver . It was also issued on a double A-side single, paired with " Yellow Submarine ". Credited to the Lennon–McCartney songwriting partnership, the song is one of only a few in which John Lennon and Paul McCartney later disputed primary authorship. Eyewitness testimony from several independent sources, including George Martin and Pete Shotton , supports McCartney's claim to authorship. "Eleanor Rigby" continued

360-528: A Desert Island Discs selection by individuals such as Cathy Berberian , Charles Aznavour , Patricia Hayes , Carlos Frank and Geoffrey Howe . Similarly, Marshall Crenshaw named it to a list of ten songs that represent perfect songwriting. By the mid-2000s, over 200 cover versions of "Eleanor Rigby" had been made. George Martin included the song on his November 1966 album George Martin Instrumentally Salutes "The Beatle Girls" , one of

540-473: A torch from his pocket (in the dimly lit club) to inspect the portions on each of their plates. This was to make sure that the portions were exactly as they had ordered, which McCartney always found amusing. Although Harrison, McCartney and Starr had passed their driving tests, Lennon didn't pass his driving test until 1965; however, he rarely drove himself due to being a notoriously bad driver by poorly navigating roads and failing to notice other traffic, and as

720-644: A December 2005 auction. In England, meanwhile, Harrison met sitar maestro Ravi Shankar , who agreed to train him on the instrument. During a tour of the Philippines the month after the Yesterday and Today furore, the Beatles unintentionally snubbed the nation's first lady, Imelda Marcos , who had expected them to attend a breakfast reception at the Presidential Palace . When presented with

900-666: A Liverpool company for two years, receiving a wage of £ 2-10s–0d. (£2.50 decimal equivalent) per week as a trainee accountant. The Beatles played at the opening of the Casbah Coffee Club on 29 August 1959, which was in the cellar of Mona Best 's house. Aspinall later rented a room in the house and became very good friends with then-Beatle Pete Best . The Beatles had previously used public transport to travel to local bookings, however by February 1961, they were playing two or three shows per night at different locations needing their own transportation. Best asked Aspinall to be

1080-405: A backing band and electric instrumentation , and "dressed in the height of Mod fashion". As a result, Gould continues, the traditional division between folk and rock enthusiasts "nearly evaporated", as the Beatles' fans began to mature in their outlook and Dylan's audience embraced the new, youth-driven pop culture. During the 1964 US tour , the group were confronted with racial segregation in

1260-580: A bass guitar with the proceeds, joined in January 1960. He suggested changing the band's name to Beatals , as a tribute to Buddy Holly and the Crickets . They used this name until May, when they became the Silver Beetles , before undertaking a brief tour of Scotland as the backing group for pop singer and fellow Liverpudlian Johnny Gentle . By early July, they had refashioned themselves as

1440-639: A bright, joyous, original sound, filled with ringing guitars and irresistible melodies." That "ringing guitar" sound was primarily the product of Harrison's 12-string electric Rickenbacker , a prototype given to him by the manufacturer, which made its debut on the record. Touring internationally in June and July, the Beatles staged 37 shows over 27 days in Denmark, the Netherlands, Hong Kong, Australia and New Zealand. In August and September, they returned to

1620-466: A collection of singles. Now we were really beginning to think about albums as a bit of art on their own." Released in December, Rubber Soul was hailed by critics as a major step forward in the maturity and complexity of the band's music. Their thematic reach was beginning to expand as they embraced deeper aspects of romance and philosophy, a development that NEMS executive Peter Brown attributed to

1800-432: A condition of the settlement, Apple Computer was allowed to use its logo as long as it did not enter the music business . The second suit with Apple Computer arose in 1989, when Apple Corps sued Apple Computer over its Apple IIGS (which included a professional synthesiser chip) claiming violation of the 1981 settlement agreement. In 1991, a settlement of £13.5 million was reached. McCartney praised Aspinall for trademarking

1980-605: A condom in a concrete corridor; the authorities deported them. Lennon returned to Liverpool in early December, while Sutcliffe remained in Hamburg until late February with his German fiancée Astrid Kirchherr , who took the first semi-professional photos of the Beatles. During the next two years, the Beatles were resident for periods in Hamburg, where they used Preludin both recreationally and to maintain their energy through all-night performances. In 1961, during their second Hamburg engagement, Kirchherr cut Sutcliffe's hair in

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2160-432: A contemporary classic", adding that, aside from the quality of the string arrangement, "the haunting melody is one of the most beautiful to be found in our current pop music" and the lyrics "[are] both accurate and unforgettable". Cash Box found the single's pairing "unique" and described "Eleanor Rigby" as "a powerfully arranged, haunting story of sorrow and frustration". The NME chose "Eleanor Rigby" as its "Single of

2340-510: A controversy with Christians in America's conservative Bible Belt region. The Vatican issued a protest, and bans on Beatles records were imposed by Spanish and Dutch stations and South Africa's national broadcasting service . Epstein accused Datebook of having taken Lennon's words out of context. At a press conference, Lennon pointed out, "If I'd said television was more popular than Jesus, I might have got away with it." He claimed that he

2520-544: A copy of the British single "I Want to Hold Your Hand" in mid-December 1963 and began playing it on-air. Taped copies of the song soon circulated among other radio stations throughout the US. This caused an increase in demand, leading Capitol to bring forward the release of "I Want to Hold Your Hand" by three weeks. Issued on 26 December, with the band's previously scheduled debut there just weeks away, "I Want to Hold Your Hand" sold

2700-554: A departure from McCartney's previous songs, in their avoidance of first- and second-person pronouns and by diverging from the themes of a standard love song. The narrator takes the form of a detached onlooker, akin to a novelist or screenwriter. Beatles biographer Steve Turner says that this new approach reflects the likely influence of Ray Davies of the Kinks , specifically the latter's singles " A Well Respected Man " and " Dedicated Follower of Fashion ". Author Howard Sounes compares

2880-711: A director of Standby Films, which was run from his home in Twickenham , London. On 10 April 2007, Aspinall retired from Apple Corps and died of lung cancer in New York in 2008. Aspinall was born in Prestatyn , North Wales , after his mother had been evacuated from the family home in Liverpool because of the air-raids on Liverpool during the Second World War , while Aspinall's father was away at sea with

3060-415: A faster tempo, a studio session in late November yielded that recording, of which Martin accurately predicted, "You've just made your first No. 1". In December 1962, the Beatles concluded their fifth and final Hamburg residency. By 1963, they had agreed that all four band members would contribute vocals to their albums – including Starr, despite his restricted vocal range, to validate his standing in

3240-434: A further progression outside the traditional boundaries of popular music. As the lyrics grew more artful, fans began to study them for deeper meaning. While some of Rubber Soul ' s songs were the product of Lennon and McCartney's collaborative songwriting, the album also included distinct compositions from each, though they continued to share official credit. " In My Life ", of which each later claimed lead authorship,

3420-752: A level of despair unacceptable to English middle-class sensibilities and, rather than being a reference to make-up, suggests that Rigby "is faceless, is nothing" once alone in her home. In 1982, the Eleanor Rigby statue was unveiled on Stanley Street in Liverpool as a donation from Tommy Steele in tribute to the Beatles. The plaque carries a dedication to "All the Lonely People". In 2004, Revolver appeared second in The Observer ' s list of "The 100 Greatest British Albums", compiled by

3600-452: A million copies in under four weeks. It became their first single to sell a million copies, and remained the biggest-selling record in the UK until 1978. The success brought increased media exposure, to which the Beatles responded with an irreverent and comical attitude that defied the expectations of pop musicians at the time, inspiring even more interest. The band toured the UK three times in

3780-684: A million copies, becoming a number-one hit in the US by mid-January. In its wake Vee-Jay released Introducing... The Beatles along with Capitol's debut album, Meet the Beatles! , while Swan reactivated production of "She Loves You". On 7 February 1964, the Beatles departed from Heathrow with an estimated 4,000 fans waving and screaming as the aircraft took off. Upon landing at New York's John F. Kennedy Airport , an uproarious crowd estimated at 3,000 greeted them. They gave their first live US television performance two days later on The Ed Sullivan Show , watched by approximately 73 million viewers in over 23 million households, or 34 per cent of

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3960-414: A panel of 100 contributors. In his commentary for the newspaper, John Harris highlighted "Eleanor Rigby" as arguably the album's "single greatest achievement", saying that it "perfectly evokes an England of bomb sites and spinsters, where in the darkest moments it does indeed seem that 'no one was saved'". Harris concluded: "Most pop songwriters have always wrapped up Englishness in camp and irony – here, in

4140-464: A part-time road manager for the band, so Aspinall bought an "old, grey and maroon Commer van" for £80, and charged each of the group five shillings (60d [old pence], or 25p [new post-1971 pence]) per concert. Harrison later said: "Our early van became the centre of attention every time it pulled up. It was brush-painted red and grey and from head to foot was covered in graffiti – girls' names, and things like 'I love you, John'. It looked interesting, but

4320-482: A problem". As a result, six covers from their extensive repertoire were chosen to complete the album. Released in early December, its eight original compositions stood out, demonstrating the growing maturity of the Lennon–McCartney songwriting partnership. In early 1965, following a dinner with Lennon, Harrison and their wives, Harrison's dentist, John Riley, secretly added LSD to their coffee. Lennon described

4500-581: A quality rare in pop music, compassion, born of an artist's ability to project himself into other situations." He found this "Specific understanding of emotion" evident also in McCartney's new love songs and described him as "the Beatle with the strongest musical staying power". While bemoaning that Americans' attention was overly focused on the band's image and non-musical activities, KRLA Beat ' s album reviewer predicted that "Eleanor Rigby" would "become

4680-494: A rare moment for British rock, post-war Britain is portrayed in terms of its truly grave aspects." David Simonelli cites the chamber-orchestrated "Eleanor Rigby" as an example of the Beatles' influence being such that, whatever the style of song, their progressiveness defined the parameters of rock music. Music academics Michael Campbell and James Brody highlight the track's melodic shape and imaginative backing to illustrate how, paired with similarly synergistic elements in " A Day in

4860-466: A report in Melody Maker , the reason for this was to thwart sales of cover recordings of "Eleanor Rigby". Harrison confirmed that they expected "dozens" of artists to have a hit with the song; however, he also said the track would "probably only appeal to Ray Davies types". Writing in the 1970s, music critics Roy Carr and Tony Tyler described the motivation behind the single as a "growing dodge in

5040-538: A result, he was usually chauffeured to and from recording sessions and appointments by his own personal chauffeur. Although not a musician, Aspinall made minor contributions to a handful of the Beatles' recordings. He played a tamboura on " Within You Without You ", harmonica on " Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite! ", some percussion on " Magical Mystery Tour ", and was among the many participants singing on

5220-420: A score composed by George Martin. When writing the string arrangement, Martin drew inspiration from Bernard Herrmann 's work, particularly the latter's score for the 1960 film Psycho . Whereas "Yesterday" is played legato , "Eleanor Rigby" is played mainly in staccato chords with melodic embellishments. McCartney, reluctant to repeat what he had done on "Yesterday", explicitly expressed that he did not want

5400-407: A series of articles in which Mann offered detailed analyses of the music, lending it respectability. With the Beatles became the second album in UK chart history to sell a million copies, a figure previously reached only by the 1958 South Pacific soundtrack . When writing the sleeve notes for the album, the band's press officer, Tony Barrow , used the superlative the "fabulous foursome", which

5580-518: A series of interpretive works by the band's producer designed to appeal to the easy listening market. The song was also popular with soul artists seeking to widen their stylistic range. Ray Charles recorded a version that was released as a single in 1968 and peaked at number 35 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 36 in the UK. Lennon highlighted it as a "fantastic" cover. Aretha Franklin 's version of "Eleanor Rigby" charted at number 17 on

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5760-528: A show in Atlanta, the Beatles gave one of the first live performances ever to make use of a foldback system of on-stage monitor speakers. Towards the end of the tour, they met with Elvis Presley , a foundational musical influence on the band, who invited them to his home in Beverly Hills . Presley later said the band was an example of a trend of anti-Americanism and drug abuse. September 1965 saw

5940-659: A store in Bristol, Rigby & Evens Ltd. McCartney noticed the store while visiting his girlfriend of the time, actress Jane Asher , during her run in the Bristol Old Vic 's production of The Happiest Days of Your Life in January 1966. He recalled in 1984: "I just liked the name. I was looking for a name that sounded natural. 'Eleanor Rigby' sounded natural." In an October 2021 article in The New Yorker , McCartney wrote that his inspiration for "Eleanor Rigby"

6120-437: A succession of drummers, including Pete Best , before inviting Starr to join them in 1962. Manager Brian Epstein moulded them into a professional act, and producer George Martin guided and developed their recordings, greatly expanding their domestic success after they signed with EMI Records and achieved their first hit, " Love Me Do ", in late 1962. As their popularity grew into the intense fan frenzy dubbed " Beatlemania ",

6300-563: A three-motion-picture deal, primarily for the commercial potential of the soundtracks in the US. Directed by Richard Lester , A Hard Day's Night involved the band for six weeks in March–April 1964 as they played themselves in a musical comedy. The film premiered in London and New York in July and August, respectively, and was an international success, with some critics drawing a comparison with

6480-569: A victory for Apple Computer; the judge ruled the company's iTunes Music Store did not infringe on the trademark of Apple Corps. Aspinall was also involved in several court cases in which Apple Corps took action against EMI : We have tried to reach a settlement through good faith negotiations and regret that our efforts have been in vain. Despite very clear provisions in our contracts, EMI persist in ignoring their obligations and duty to account fairly and with transparency. The Beatles and Apple are, once again, left with no choice but to sue EMI. In

6660-528: A video clip for the song, taken from the Yellow Submarine film. In 1996, a stereo remix of Martin's isolated string arrangement was released on the Beatles' Anthology 2 outtakes compilation. For the song's inclusion on the Love album in 2006, a new mix was created that adds a strings-only portion at the start of the track and closes with a transition featuring part of Lennon's acoustic guitar from

6840-458: Is "vivid and yet common enough to elicit enormous compassion for these lost souls". "Eleanor Rigby" does not have a standard pop backing. None of the Beatles played instruments on it, although Lennon and Harrison did contribute harmony vocals. Like the earlier song " Yesterday ", "Eleanor Rigby" employs a classical string ensemble – in this case, an octet of studio musicians, comprising four violins , two violas and two cellos , all performing

7020-428: Is considered a highlight of the entire Lennon–McCartney catalogue. Harrison called Rubber Soul his "favourite album", and Starr referred to it as "the departure record". McCartney has said, "We'd had our cute period, and now it was time to expand." However, recording engineer Norman Smith later stated that the studio sessions revealed signs of growing conflict within the group – "the clash between John and Paul

7200-422: Is supported by others' recollections. In the early 1970s, Lennon told music journalist Alan Smith that he wrote "about 70 per cent" of the lyrics, and in a letter to Melody Maker complaining about Beatles producer George Martin 's comments in a recent interview, he said that "Around 50 per cent of the lyrics were written by me at the studios and at Paul's place." In 1980, he recalled writing almost everything but

7380-677: The Aeolian mode , also known as natural minor , and the Dorian mode . Set in E minor , the song is based on the chord progression Em–C, typical of the Aeolian mode and utilising notes ♭ 3, ♭ 6, and ♭ 7 in this scale. The verse melody is written in Dorian mode , a minor scale with the natural sixth degree. "Eleanor Rigby" opens with a C-major vocal harmony ("Aah, look at all ..."), before shifting to E-minor (on "lonely people"). The Aeolian C-natural note returns later in

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7560-538: The BBC , also joined the airport reception, the first of more than 100 such events. The next day, the band began its fourth tour of Britain within nine months, this one scheduled for six weeks. In mid-November, as Beatlemania intensified, police resorted to using high-pressure water hoses to control the crowd before a concert in Plymouth. On 4 November, they played in front of The Queen Mother and Princess Margaret during

7740-557: The Billboard Hot 100 in December 1969. Music journalist Chris Ingham recognises the Charles and Franklin recordings as notable progressive soul interpretations of the song. McCartney recorded a new version of "Eleanor Rigby", with Martin again scoring the orchestration, for his 1984 film Give My Regards to Broad Street . Departing from the premise of the film, the song's sequence features McCartney dressed in Victorian costume. On

7920-602: The Chelsea Register Office , London, with Magic Alex as best man. McCartney, Starr and his wife attended, and were also at a surprise party held later in the King's Road, London. Suzy Aspinall is the daughter of Bud Ornstein, the late chief executive of United Artists Pictures (UK). Aspinall had met her during 1964/1965 when her father was the United Artists representative overseeing the production of

8100-640: The Kaiserkeller in October. When he learned they had been performing at the rival Top Ten Club in breach of their contract, he gave them one month's termination notice, and reported the underage Harrison, who had obtained permission to stay in Hamburg by lying to the German authorities about his age. The authorities arranged for Harrison's deportation in late November. One week later, Koschmider had McCartney and Best arrested for arson after they set fire to

8280-585: The Marx Brothers . United Artists released a full soundtrack album for the North American market, combining Beatles songs and Martin's orchestral score; elsewhere, the group's third studio LP, A Hard Day's Night , contained songs from the film on side one and other new recordings on side two. According to Erlewine, the album saw them "truly coming into their own as a band. All of the disparate influences on their first two albums coalesced into

8460-548: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility, 1988, and each principal member was individually inducted between 1994 and 2015. In 2004 and 2011, the group topped Rolling Stone ' s lists of the greatest artists in history . Time magazine named them among the 20th century's 100 most important people . In November 1956, sixteen-year-old John Lennon formed a skiffle group with several friends from Quarry Bank High School in Liverpool . They were called

8640-646: The Royal Navy . Aspinall and his mother returned to Liverpool later in 1942 after the bombing had subsided. Aspinall later attended West Derby School, where he passed his 11-Plus exams. When he was twelve years old, Aspinall gained a place at the Liverpool Institute in Mount Street, and was in the same class as Paul McCartney for English and Art lessons. Aspinall later commented about his first meeting with George Harrison, who also attended

8820-682: The Royal Variety Performance at the Prince of Wales Theatre . Please Please Me maintained the top position on the Record Retailer chart for 30 weeks, only to be displaced by its follow-up, With the Beatles , which EMI released on 22 November to record advance orders of 270,000 copies. The LP topped a half-million albums sold in one week. Recorded between July and October, With the Beatles made better use of studio production techniques than its predecessor. It held

9000-578: The Tidewater area of Virginia from Gene Loving of radio station WGH and was featured on the "Rate-a-Record" segment of American Bandstand , but it failed to catch on nationally. Epstein brought a demo copy of " I Want to Hold Your Hand " to Capitol's Brown Meggs , who signed the band and arranged for a $ 40,000 US marketing campaign. American chart success began after disc jockey Carroll James of AM radio station WWDC , in Washington, DC, obtained

9180-499: The University of York , published a book-length analysis of the lyrics, titled The Continuing Story of Eleanor Rigby . Writing in the 1970s, however, Roy Carr and Tony Tyler dismissed the song's sociological relevance as academics "rear[ing] a mis-shapen skull", adding: "Though much praised at the time (by sociologists), 'Eleanor Rigby' was sentimental, melodramatic and a blind alley." According to author and satirist Craig Brown ,

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9360-403: The album era , as albums became the dominant form of record use over singles . These records also increased public interest in psychedelic drugs and Eastern spirituality, and furthered advancements in electronic music , album art , and music videos . In 1968, they founded Apple Corps , a multi-armed multimedia corporation that continues to oversee projects related to the band's legacy. After

9540-489: The most influential band of all time and were integral to the development of 1960s counterculture and the recognition of popular music as an art form. Rooted in skiffle , beat , and 1950s rock 'n' roll , their sound incorporated elements of classical music and traditional pop in innovative ways. The band also explored music styles ranging from folk and Indian music to psychedelia and hard rock . As pioneers in recording , songwriting, and artistic presentation,

9720-457: The " exi " (existentialist) style, later adopted by the other Beatles. Later on, Sutcliffe decided to leave the band early that year and resume his art studies in Germany. McCartney took over bass. Producer Bert Kaempfert contracted what was now a four-piece group until June 1962, and he used them as Tony Sheridan 's backing band on a series of recordings for Polydor Records . As part of

9900-567: The "imaginative truth of 'Eleanor Rigby'", likening it to author James Joyce 's treatment of his own hometown in Dubliners . Novelist and poet A.S. Byatt recognised the song as having the "minimalist perfection" of a Samuel Beckett story. In a talk on BBC Radio 3 in 1993, Byatt said that "Wearing a face that she keeps in a jar by the door" – a line that MacDonald deems "the single most memorable image in The Beatles' output" – conveys

10080-469: The 1968 song " Julia ". McCartney's recollection of how he chose the name of his protagonist came under scrutiny in the 1980s, after a headstone engraved with the name "Eleanor Rigby" was discovered in the graveyard of St Peter's Parish Church in Woolton , in Liverpool . Part of a well-known local family, Rigby had died in 1939 at the age of 44. Close by was a headstone bearing the name McKenzie. St Peter's

10260-584: The American population. Biographer Jonathan Gould writes that, according to the Nielsen rating service, it was "the largest audience that had ever been recorded for an American television program ". The next morning, the Beatles awoke to a largely negative critical consensus in the US, but a day later at their first US concert, Beatlemania erupted at the Washington Coliseum . Back in New York

10440-586: The Animals , Petula Clark , the Kinks , and the Rolling Stones to achieve success in America. During the week of 4 April 1964, the Beatles held twelve positions on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, including the top five. Capitol Records' lack of interest throughout 1963 did not go unnoticed, and a competitor, United Artists Records , encouraged its film division to offer the Beatles

10620-544: The Apple name worldwide, and called Aspinall "Mr. X" in the Apple Corps organisation. In September 2003, Apple Computer, Inc. was again sued by Apple Corps, this time for the introduction of the iTunes Music Store and the iPod , which Aspinall and Apple Corps believed was a violation of the previous agreement for Apple Computer to not distribute music. The trial began on 27 March 2006 in the UK, and ended on 8 May 2006 in

10800-419: The Apple office (at 3 Savile Row ) all through the recording of The White Album and Let It Be album. Life in the Apple office, however, was improved by having a chef and assistants at hand: "The liquor bill was £600 per month and the food bill was close to that." This was mostly due to Aspinall's and Peter Brown's four-course lunches with expensive wines in the dining room at Apple. After Allen Klein

10980-709: The Beatles faced a fierce backlash from US religious and social conservatives (as well as the Ku Klux Klan ) over a comment Lennon had made in a March interview with British reporter Maureen Cleave . "Christianity will go", Lennon had said. "It will vanish and shrink. I needn't argue about that; I'm right and I will be proved right ... Jesus was alright but his disciples were thick and ordinary. It's them twisting it that ruins it for me." His comments went virtually unnoticed in England, but when US teenage fan magazine Datebook printed them five months later, it sparked

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11160-476: The Beatles recorded ten songs during a single studio session for their debut LP, Please Please Me . It was supplemented by the four tracks already released on their first two singles. Martin considered recording the LP live at The Cavern Club, but after deciding that the building's acoustics were inadequate, he elected to simulate a "live" album with minimal production in "a single marathon session at Abbey Road". After

11340-481: The Beatles replaced him in mid-August with Ringo Starr , who left Rory Storm and the Hurricanes to join them. A 4 September session at EMI yielded a recording of " Love Me Do " featuring Starr on drums, but a dissatisfied Martin hired drummer Andy White for the band's third session a week later, which produced recordings of "Love Me Do", " Please Please Me ", and " P.S. I Love You ". Martin initially selected

11520-574: The Beatles revolutionized many aspects of the music industry and were often publicized as leaders of the era's youth and sociocultural movements. Led by primary songwriters Lennon and McCartney , the Beatles evolved from Lennon's previous group, the Quarrymen , and built their reputation by playing clubs in Liverpool and Hamburg , Germany, over three years from 1960, initially with Stuart Sutcliffe playing bass . The core trio of Lennon, McCartney, and Harrison, together since 1958, went through

11700-431: The Beatles' 1968 animated film Yellow Submarine as the band's submarine drifts over the desolate streets of Liverpool. Its poignancy ties in quite well with Starr (the first member of the group to encounter the submarine), who is represented as quietly bored and depressed. Starr's character states in his inner thoughts: "Compared with my life, Eleanor Rigby's was a gay, mad whirl." Media theorist Stephanie Fremaux groups

11880-531: The Beatles' talents among contemporary pop acts and highlighted the song's string arrangement as an example of the eclectic qualities that made 1960s pop music worthy of recognition as art. Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees said that their 1969 song " Melody Fair " was influenced by "Eleanor Rigby". America 's single " Lonely People " was written by Dan Peek in 1973 as an optimistic response to the Beatles track. In 2000, Mojo ranked "Eleanor Rigby" at number 19 on

12060-412: The Beatles, Aspinall was promoted to become their personal assistant , later becoming chief executive of their company, Apple Corps. He was one of several Beatles associates to earn the nickname " the fifth Beatle ". On behalf of Apple, Aspinall was involved in court cases against Allen Klein , EMI and Apple Computer . He supervised the marketing of music, videos and merchandising, as well as being

12240-455: The Beatles, believed they were the real Father McKenzie. In 1990, McCartney responded to a request from Sunbeams Music Trust by donating a historical document that listed the wages paid by Liverpool City Hospital; among the employees listed was Eleanor Rigby, who worked as a scullery maid at the hospital. Dating from 1911 and signed by the 16-year-old Rigby, the document attracted interest from collectors because of what it seemingly revealed about

12420-494: The Beatles." Ray Davies offered an unfavourable view when invited to give a song-by-song rundown of Revolver in Disc and Music Echo . He dismissed "Eleanor Rigby" as a song designed "to please music teachers in primary schools", adding: "I can imagine John saying, 'I'm going to write this for my old schoolmistress.' Still it's very commercial." Reporting from London for The Village Voice , Richard Goldstein stated that Revolver

12600-485: The Life ", the Beatles' use of music and lyrics made them one of the two acts in 1960s rock, along with Bob Dylan , who were "most responsible for elevating its level of discourse and expanding its horizons". Soon after its release, Melly stated that "Pop has come of age" with "Eleanor Rigby", while songwriter Jerry Leiber said, "I don't think there's ever been a better song written." In a 1967 interview, Pete Townshend of

12780-471: The Liverpool Institute: "My first encounter with George was behind the school's air-raid shelters . This great mass of shaggy hair loomed up and an out-of-breath voice requested a quick drag of my Woodbine . It was one of the first cigarettes either of us had smoked. We spluttered our way through it bravely but gleefully. After that the three of us did lots of ridiculous things together.... By

12960-514: The Moondogs, were playing rock and roll whenever they could find a drummer. They also performed as the Rainbows . Paul McCartney later told New Musical Express that they called themselves that "because we all had different coloured shirts and we couldn't afford any others!". Lennon's art school friend Stuart Sutcliffe , who had just sold one of his paintings and was persuaded to purchase

13140-404: The Quarrymen , a reference to their school song "Quarry men old before our birth". Fifteen-year-old Paul McCartney met Lennon on 6 July 1957, and joined as a rhythm guitarist shortly after. In February 1958, McCartney invited his friend George Harrison , then aged fifteen, to watch the band. Harrison auditioned for Lennon, impressing him with his playing, but Lennon initially thought Harrison

13320-567: The Silver Beatles , and by the middle of August simply the Beatles . Allan Williams , the Beatles' unofficial manager, arranged a residency for them in Hamburg . They auditioned and hired drummer Pete Best in mid-August 1960. The band, now a five-piece, departed Liverpool for Hamburg four days later, contracted to club owner Bruno Koschmider for what would be a 3 + 1 ⁄ 2 -month residency. Beatles historian Mark Lewisohn writes: "They pulled into Hamburg at dusk on 17 August,

13500-598: The Starr version of "Love Me Do" for the band's first single, though subsequent re-pressings featured the White version, with Starr on tambourine. Released in early October, "Love Me Do" peaked at number seventeen on the Record Retailer chart. Their television debut came later that month with a live performance on the regional news programme People and Places . After Martin suggested rerecording "Please Please Me" at

13680-411: The US, with a 30-concert tour of 23 cities. Generating intense interest once again, the month-long tour attracted between 10,000 and 20,000 people to each 30-minute performance in cities from San Francisco to New York. In August, journalist Al Aronowitz arranged for the Beatles to meet Bob Dylan . Visiting the band in their New York hotel suite, Dylan introduced them to cannabis . Gould points out

13860-426: The US. A similar situation arose during their May–June tour with Roy Orbison . In late October, the Beatles began a five-day tour of Sweden, their first time abroad since the final Hamburg engagement of December 1962. On their return to the UK on 31 October, several hundred screaming fans greeted them in heavy rain at Heathrow Airport . Around 50 to 100 journalists and photographers, as well as representatives from

14040-584: The United Kingdom to reach number one. The band's third single, " From Me to You ", came out in April and began an almost unbroken string of seventeen British number-one singles, including all but one of the eighteen they released over the next six years. Issued in August, their fourth single, " She Loves You ", achieved the fastest sales of any record in the UK up to that time, selling three-quarters of

14220-519: The Who commented on the Beatles: "They are basically my main source of inspiration – and everyone else's for that matter. I think 'Eleanor Rigby' was a very important musical move forward. It certainly inspired me to write and listen to things in that vein." In his television show Inside Pop: The Rock Revolution , which aired in April 1967, American composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein championed

14400-568: The Year" for 1966. Melody Maker included the song among the year's five "singles to remember", and Maureen Cleave of The Evening Standard recognised the single and Revolver as the year's best records in her round-up of 1966. At the 9th Annual Grammy Awards in March 1967, "Eleanor Rigby" was nominated in three categories, winning the award for Best Contemporary (R&R) Vocal Performance, Male or Female for McCartney. "Eleanor Rigby" appears in

14580-437: The accompanying soundtrack album , the track segues into a symphonic extension titled "Eleanor's Dream". He has also performed the song frequently in concert, starting with his 1989–90 world tour . The Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison , and Ringo Starr . They are widely regarded as

14760-454: The accountants and Brian, whoever, had that. The Beatles had been given copies of various contracts, maybe, I don't know. I didn't know what the [recording] contract was with EMI, or with the film people or the publishers or anything at all. So it was a case of building up a filing system, find out what was going on while we were trying to continue doing something." Derek Taylor (Apple's press officer ) said that Aspinall hated being stuck in

14940-415: The airport with news of Sutcliffe's death the previous day from a brain haemorrhage . Epstein began negotiations with record labels for a recording contract. To secure a UK record contract, Epstein negotiated an early end to the band's contract with Polydor, in exchange for more recordings backing Tony Sheridan. After a New Year's Day audition, Decca Records rejected the band , saying, "Guitar groups are on

15120-465: The album Introducing... The Beatles , comprising most of the songs of Parlophone's Please Please Me , but a management shake-up led to the album not being released. After it emerged that the label did not report royalties on their sales, the licence that Vee-Jay had signed with EMI was voided. A new licence was granted to the Swan label for the single "She Loves You". The record received some airplay in

15300-446: The album still sounds fresh, precisely because of its intense origins." Lennon said little thought went into composition at the time; he and McCartney were "just writing songs à la Everly Brothers , à la Buddy Holly, pop songs with no more thought of them than that – to create a sound. And the words were almost irrelevant." Released in March 1963, Please Please Me was the first of eleven consecutive Beatles albums released in

15480-467: The album's best tracks. Derek Johnson, reviewing the single for the NME , said it lacked the immediate appeal of "Yellow Submarine" but "possess[ed] lasting value" and was "beautifully handled by Paul, with baroque-type strings". Although he praised the string arrangement, Peter Jones of Record Mirror found the song "Pleasant enough but rather disjointed", saying, "it's commercial, but I like more meat from

15660-400: The album, recorded between August and October 1964, to continue the format established by A Hard Day's Night which, unlike their first two LPs, contained only original songs. They had nearly exhausted their backlog of songs on the previous album, however, and given the challenges constant international touring posed to their songwriting efforts, Lennon admitted, "Material's becoming a hell of

15840-792: The band acquired the nickname "the Fab Four". Epstein, Martin or other members of the band's entourage were sometimes informally referred to as a " fifth Beatle ". By early 1964, the Beatles were international stars and had achieved unprecedented levels of critical and commercial success. They became a leading force in Britain's cultural resurgence, ushering in the British Invasion of the United States pop market. They soon made their film debut with A Hard Day's Night (1964). A growing desire to refine their studio efforts, coupled with

16020-472: The band as well, but Best strongly advised him not to. Aspinall asked McCartney and Lennon at the next concert why they had fired Best and was told, "It's got nothing to do with you. You're only the driver." However, in a 2007 interview, Aspinall provided Beatles historian Mark Lewisohn with a distinctly different version of events, saying that he was physically present when Epstein sacked Best, that he told Best unprompted that he planned to continue working for

16200-447: The band members' "now habitual use of marijuana". Lennon referred to Rubber Soul as "the pot album" and Starr said: "Grass was really influential in a lot of our changes, especially with the writers. And because they were writing different material, we were playing differently." After Help! ' s foray into classical music with flutes and strings, Harrison's introduction of a sitar on " Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) " marked

16380-409: The band over the next couple of months, and they appointed him as their manager in January 1962. Throughout early and mid-1962, Epstein sought to free the Beatles from their contractual obligations to Bert Kaempfert Productions. He eventually negotiated a one-month early release in exchange for one last recording session in Hamburg. On their return to Germany in April, a distraught Kirchherr met them at

16560-415: The band's May 1966 single tracks " Paperback Writer " and " Rain " as examples of the Beatles' "pointed social commentary " that consolidated their "dominance of London's social scene". In the United States, the record's release coincided with the group's final tour and a public furore over the publication of Lennon's remarks that the Beatles had become " more popular than Jesus Christ "; he also predicted

16740-477: The band, and that on his first subsequent encounter with the other band members, their first question to him was how Best had taken being sacked. Aspinall stayed with the band, ending his affair with Best's mother, a relationship that had led to the birth of baby Vincent "Roag" Best. Aspinall denied the story for years before publicly acknowledging that he was indeed Roag's father. Aspinall worked closely with Epstein, who provided weekly notes for Aspinall to give to

16920-468: The burgeoning youth culture. The group's popularity generated unprecedented interest in British music, and many other UK acts subsequently made their American debuts, successfully touring over the next three years in what was termed the British Invasion . The Beatles' success in the US opened the door for a successive string of British beat groups and pop acts such as the Dave Clark Five ,

17100-508: The challenging nature of their concert tours, led to the band's retirement from live performances in 1966. During this time, they produced albums of greater sophistication, including Rubber Soul (1965), Revolver (1966), and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967). They enjoyed further commercial success with The Beatles (also known as "the White Album", 1968) and Abbey Road (1969). The success of these records heralded

17280-493: The chorus of " Yellow Submarine ". Following the death of Epstein in August 1967, there was a vacuum in the management of the Beatles' affairs. The Beatles asked Aspinall to take over the management of Apple Corps in 1968, which had been founded in April of the same year. Aspinall later said that he only accepted the position after being asked, but did not want to do it full-time, and would only do it "until they found somebody else." George Martin (The Beatles' record producer )

17460-452: The commercialised popular culture of television, radio, pop records, fan magazines, and teen fashion. To many of Dylan's followers in the folk music scene, the Beatles were seen as idolaters, not idealists." Within six months of the meeting, according to Gould, "Lennon would be making records on which he openly imitated Dylan's nasal drone, brittle strum, and introspective vocal persona"; and six months after that, Dylan began performing with

17640-599: The country at the time. When informed that the venue for their 11 September concert, the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Florida , was segregated, the Beatles said they would refuse to perform unless the audience was integrated. Lennon stated: "We never play to segregated audiences and we aren't going to start now ... I'd sooner lose our appearance money." City officials relented and agreed to allow an integrated show. The group also cancelled their reservations at

17820-405: The customary group photograph, its Aubrey Beardsley -inspired cover – designed by Klaus Voormann , a friend of the band since their Hamburg days – was a monochrome collage and line drawing caricature of the group. The album was preceded by the single " Paperback Writer ", backed by " Rain ". Short promotional films were made for both songs; described by cultural historian Saul Austerlitz as "among

18000-576: The decline of religion in society. McCartney replied that the song was about lonely individuals, one of whom happened to be a priest. The double A-side topped the Record Retailer chart (subsequently adopted as the UK Singles Chart ) for four weeks, becoming their eleventh number-one single on the chart, and Melody Maker ' s chart for three weeks. It was also number 1 in Australia. The single topped charts in many other countries around

18180-573: The downfall of Christianity and described Christ's disciples as "thick and ordinary". In the US South, particularly, some radio stations refused to play the band's music and organised public bonfires to burn Beatles records and memorabilia. Capitol Records were therefore wary of the religious references in "Eleanor Rigby" and promoted "Yellow Submarine" as the lead side. During the band's first tour press conference, on 11 August, one reporter suggested that Father McKenzie's sermons going unheard referred to

18360-401: The early 1990s, Aspinall became the executive producer for The Beatles Anthology ; he, producer George Martin, and press officer Derek Taylor are the only non-Beatles seen in new footage for the documentary. He continued to advise the surviving Beatles, as well as Lennon's and Harrison's estates, and to supervise the marketing of music, music videos and merchandising . On 10 April 2007, it

18540-418: The elderly" as "just one example of why the Beatles' appeal reached so far beyond the traditional rock audience". In its inclusion of compositions that departed from the format of standard love songs, Revolver marked the start of a change in the Beatles' core audience, as their young, female-dominated fanbase gave way to a following that increasingly comprised more serious-minded, male listeners. Commenting on

18720-499: The ever-innovative music industry", building on UK record companies' policy of reissuing an album's most popular tracks, particularly those that had been culled for release as a single in the US, on a spin-off extended play . The pairing of a ballad devoid of any instrumentation played by a Beatle and a novelty song marked a significant departure from the content of the band's previous singles. Writing in his 1977 book The Beatles Forever , Nicholas Schaffner recalled that not only did

18900-413: The experience: "It was just terrifying, but it was fantastic. I was pretty stunned for a month or two." He and Harrison subsequently became regular users of the drug, joined by Starr on at least one occasion. Harrison's use of psychedelic drugs encouraged his path to meditation and Hinduism. He commented: "For me, it was like a flash. The first time I had acid , it just opened up something in my head that

19080-434: The extended business trips of Best's stepfather, the 19-year-old Aspinall became romantically involved with Best's mother, Mona Best, who was 17 years his senior. As a result, during this period, Aspinall fathered a child by Mona: Vincent "Roag" Best. Roag Best was born in late July 1962, and just three weeks later, on 16 August 1962, Best was dismissed from the Beatles. On 30 August 1968, Aspinall married Suzy Ornstein at

19260-517: The first Beatle to discuss LSD publicly, declaring in a magazine interview that "it opened my eyes" and "made me a better, more honest, more tolerant member of society". Controversy erupted in June 1965 when Queen Elizabeth II appointed all four Beatles Members of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) after Prime Minister Harold Wilson nominated them for the award. In protest – the honour

19440-564: The first half of the year: a four-week tour that began in February, the Beatles' first nationwide, preceded three-week tours in March and May–June. As their popularity spread, a frenzied adulation of the group took hold. On 13 October, the Beatles starred on Sunday Night at the London Palladium , the UK's top variety show. Their performance was televised live and watched by 15 million viewers. One national paper's headlines in

19620-590: The first true music videos", they aired on The Ed Sullivan Show and Top of the Pops in June. Neil Aspinall Neil Stanley Aspinall (13 October 1941 – 24 March 2008) was a British music industry executive . A school friend of Paul McCartney and George Harrison , he went on to head the Beatles ' company Apple Corps . The Beatles employed Aspinall first as their road manager , which included driving his old Commer van to and from shows, both day and night. After Mal Evans started work for

19800-619: The first two Beatles' films: A Hard Day's Night and Help! . They went on to have four children: daughters Gayla, Dhara, Mandy and son Julian. As well as his work for Apple Corps, Aspinall and his wife were the sole directors of their own Standby Films Ltd. company, which is run from their home in Twickenham, London. In 1999, Standby Films released a film about Jimi Hendrix , called Hendrix: Band of Gypsys . Aspinall died of lung cancer in New York City in 2008. His funeral

19980-412: The first verse. Shotton remembered Lennon's contribution as being "virtually nil", while McCartney said that "John helped me on a few words but I'd put it down 80–20 to me, something like that." According to McCartney, " In My Life " and "Eleanor Rigby" are the only Lennon–McCartney songs where he and Lennon disagreed over their authorship. In musicologist Walter Everett 's view, the lyric writing "likely

20160-456: The flow of the music (and perhaps to the plight of the characters in the song)". London may have been swinging in 1966, but in the midst of the Cold War, Britain was also a place where faith in the old religions was fading, and where many feared annihilation in an atomic Third World War. There is a bleak end-times feel to "Eleanor Rigby" ... – Author Howard Sounes The lyrics represent

20340-402: The following day, the Beatles met with another strong reception during two shows at Carnegie Hall . The band flew to Florida, where they appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show a second time, again before 70 million viewers, before returning to the UK on 22 February. The Beatles' first visit to the US took place when the nation was still mourning the assassination of President John F. Kennedy

20520-412: The following days coined the term " Beatlemania " to describe the riotous enthusiasm by screaming fans who greeted the band – and it stuck. Although not billed as tour leaders, the Beatles overshadowed American acts Tommy Roe and Chris Montez during the February engagements and assumed top billing "by audience demand", something no British act had previously accomplished while touring with artists from

20700-429: The grinning Beatles dressed in butcher's overalls, accompanied by raw meat and mutilated plastic baby dolls. According to Beatles biographer Bill Harry , it has been incorrectly suggested that this was meant as a satirical response to the way Capitol had "butchered" the US versions of the band's albums. Thousands of copies of the LP had a new cover pasted over the original; an unpeeled "first-state" copy fetched $ 10,500 at

20880-405: The group in the passenger seat, but with the other three on a hard bench seat in the back. Aspinall's job as personal assistant consisted of driving to concerts and meetings, but mostly meant just being there whenever someone needed something. Aspinall went on the first trip to the United States, and when George Harrison became ill with a fever and had a temperature of 102 °F (39 °C), he

21060-485: The group members detailing their concert appearances and the fees they would receive. The Beatles had to travel in Aspinall's van along with their equipment, but British roads in the early 1960s were notoriously pot-holed and slow to navigate. Ringo Starr remembered that the travelling never seemed to stop during the early tours of Britain in Aspinall's van, as they would be driven up and down Great Britain with one of

21240-404: The group's break-up in 1970, all principal former members enjoyed success as solo artists, and some partial reunions occurred. Lennon was murdered in 1980, and Harrison died of lung cancer in 2001. McCartney and Starr remain musically active. The Beatles are the best-selling music act of all time , with estimated sales of 600 million units worldwide. They are the most successful act in

21420-652: The group, and the reprise of the title song near the end of the album. After recording sessions, Lennon, Harrison and Starr would be chauffeured back to their houses in the ' stockbroker belt ' of Southern England , but Aspinall would often drive McCartney and Evans in an Austin Princess limousine to a late-night club to eat. The Bag O'Nails nightclub was one of their favourites, at 8 Kingly Street in Soho , London, as it also presented live music. They would eat steak, chips and mushy peas , but Aspinall would always take out

21600-524: The group. Lennon and McCartney had established a songwriting partnership , and as the band's success grew, their dominant collaboration limited Harrison's opportunities as a lead vocalist . Epstein, to maximise the Beatles' commercial potential, encouraged them to adopt a professional approach to performing. Lennon recalled him saying, "Look, if you really want to get in these bigger places, you're going to have to change – stop eating on stage, stop swearing, stop smoking ...". On 11 February 1963,

21780-439: The headstone was added to the 1995 music video for the Beatles' reunion song " Free as a Bird ". Continued interest in a possible connection between the real-life Eleanor Rigby and the 1966 song led to the deeds for the grave being put up for auction in 2017, along with a Bible that once belonged to Rigby and a handwritten score for the track (subsequently withdrawn) and other items of Beatles memorabilia. Although "Eleanor Rigby"

21960-678: The history of the US Billboard charts , holding the record for most number-one albums on the UK Albums Chart (15), most number-one hits on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart (20), and most singles sold in the UK (21.9 million). The band received many accolades , including seven Grammy Awards , four Brit Awards , an Academy Award (for Best Original Song Score for the 1970 documentary film Let It Be ), and fifteen Ivor Novello Awards . They were inducted into

22140-400: The idea of the line working contrapuntally to the chorus melody. The original stereo mix had the lead vocal alone in the right channel during the verses, with the strings mixed to one channel, while the mono single and mono LP featured a more balanced mix. For the track's inclusion on Yellow Submarine Songtrack in 1999, a new stereo mix was created that centres McCartney's voice and spreads

22320-405: The idea, later acknowledging Shotton's help. In Lennon's recollection, the final touches were applied to the lyrics in the recording studio, at which point McCartney sought input from Neil Aspinall and Mal Evans , the Beatles' longstanding road managers. "Eleanor Rigby" serves as a rare example of Lennon subsequently claiming a more substantial role in the creation of a McCartney composition than

22500-514: The inspiration behind the Beatles song. It sold at auction in November 2008 for £115,000. McCartney stated at the time: "Eleanor Rigby is a totally fictitious character that I made up ... If someone wants to spend money buying a document to prove a fictitious character exists, that's fine with me." Rigby's grave in Woolton became a landmark for Beatles fans visiting Liverpool. A digitised image of

22680-614: The invitation, Epstein politely declined on the band members' behalf, as it had never been his policy to accept such official invitations. They soon found that the Marcos regime was unaccustomed to taking no for an answer. The resulting riots endangered the group and they escaped the country with difficulty. Immediately afterwards, the band members visited India for the first time. We're more popular than Jesus now; I don't know which will go first – rock 'n' roll or Christianity. – John Lennon, 1966 Almost as soon as they returned home,

22860-400: The kind of insensitivity he would have, which upset me in later years." In addition to citing this emotional hurt, Weber suggests that the song's critical acclaim may have motivated Lennon's assertions, as he sought to portray himself as a greater musical genius than McCartney in the years following the Beatles' break-up . The song is a prominent example of mode mixture , specifically between

23040-401: The last covers the band would include on an album until Let It Be 's brief rendition of the traditional Liverpool folk song " Maggie Mae ". The band expanded their use of vocal overdubs on Help! and incorporated classical instruments into some arrangements, including a string quartet on the pop ballad " Yesterday ". Composed and sung by McCartney – none of the other Beatles perform on

23220-519: The launch of an American Saturday-morning cartoon series, The Beatles , that echoed A Hard Day's Night 's slapstick antics over its two-year original run. The series was the first weekly television series to feature animated versions of real, living people. In mid-October, the Beatles entered the recording studio; for the first time when making an album, they had an extended period without other major commitments. Until this time, according to George Martin, "we had been making albums rather like

23400-416: The lonely people come from and where they all belong as if they really want to know. Their capacity for fun has been evident since the beginning; their capacity for pity is something new and is a major reason for calling them artists. – Dan Sullivan , The New York Times , March 1967 In Melody Maker ' s appraisal of Revolver , the writer described "Eleanor Rigby" as a "charming song" and one of

23580-399: The lonely people". But I thought people would think it was supposed to be my dad, sitting knitting his socks. Dad's a happy lad. So I went through the telephone book and I got the name McKenzie. McCartney said that the idea to call his character "Eleanor" was possibly because of Eleanor Bron , the actress who starred with the Beatles in their 1965 film Help! "Rigby" came from the name of

23760-579: The lyrics to "Eleanor Rigby" have been "the most extravagantly praised" of all the Beatles' songs, "and by all the right people". These include poets such as Allen Ginsberg and Thom Gunn , the last of whom likened the song to W.H. Auden 's poem "Miss Gee", and literary critic Karl Miller , who included the lyrics in his 1968 anthology Writing in England Today . In his 1970 book Revolt in Style , Liverpudlian musician and critic George Melly admired

23940-516: The magazine's list of "The 100 Greatest Songs of All Time". In BBC Radio 2 's millennium poll, listeners voted it as one of the top 100 songs of the twentieth century. It was ranked at number 137 on Rolling Stone ' s list " The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time " in 2004, and number 243 on the 2021 revised list. "Eleanor Rigby" was inducted into the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences ' Grammy Hall of Fame in 2002. It has been

24120-408: The media widely adopted as "the Fab Four". EMI's American subsidiary, Capitol Records , hindered the Beatles' releases in the United States for more than a year by initially declining to issue their music, including their first three singles. Concurrent negotiations with the independent US label Vee-Jay led to the release of some, but not all, of the songs in 1963. Vee-Jay finished preparation for

24300-428: The melody for "Eleanor Rigby" as he experimented on his piano. Donovan recalled hearing McCartney play an early version of the song on guitar, where the character was named Ola Na Tungee. At this point, the song reflected an Indian musical influence and its lyrics alluded to drug use, with references to "blowing his mind in the dark" and "a pipe full of clay". The name of the protagonist that McCartney initially chose

24480-409: The moderate success of "Love Me Do", the single "Please Please Me" was released in January 1963, two months ahead of the album. It reached number one on every UK chart except Record Retailer , where it peaked at number two. Recalling how the Beatles "rushed to deliver a debut album, bashing out Please Please Me in a day", AllMusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote: "Decades after its release,

24660-442: The moment anybody saw it they would feel free to write all over it." The Beatles returned from their second trip to Hamburg in July 1961, and Aspinall left his job to become their permanent road manager, as he was earning more money driving them around than he was earning by being an accountant. The Beatles were driven down to London by Aspinall on New Year's Eve in 1962, for their Decca audition , but Aspinall lost his way, and

24840-496: The monotony of numerous appearances at the same clubs night after night. In November 1961, during one of the group's frequent performances at the Cavern Club , they encountered Brian Epstein , a local record-store owner and music columnist. He later recalled: "I immediately liked what I heard. They were fresh, and they were honest, and they had what I thought was a sort of presence ... [a] star quality." Epstein courted

25020-440: The music room of John Lennon 's home at Kenwood . Lennon, George Harrison , Ringo Starr and Lennon's childhood friend Pete Shotton all listened to McCartney play his song through and contributed ideas. Harrison came up with the "Ah, look at all the lonely people" hook. Starr contributed the line "writing the words of a sermon that no one will hear" and suggested making "Father McCartney" darn his socks, which McCartney liked. It

25200-445: The musical and cultural significance of this meeting, before which the musicians' respective fanbases were "perceived as inhabiting two separate subcultural worlds": Dylan's audience of "college kids with artistic or intellectual leanings, a dawning political and social idealism, and a mildly bohemian style " contrasted with their fans, "veritable ' teenyboppers ' – kids in high school or grade school whose lives were totally wrapped up in

25380-509: The preponderance of young people who, under the influence of drugs such as marijuana and LSD , increasingly afforded films and rock music exhaustive analysis, Mark Kurlansky writes: "Beatles songs were examined like Tennyson's poems. Who was Eleanor Rigby?" The song's lyrics became the subject of study by sociologists , who from 1966 began to view the band as spokesmen for their generation. In 2018, Colin Campbell, professor of sociology at

25560-418: The previous November. Commentators often suggest that for many, particularly the young, the Beatles' performances reignited the sense of excitement and possibility that momentarily faded in the wake of the assassination, and helped pave the way for the revolutionary social changes to come later in the decade. Their hairstyle, unusually long for the era and mocked by many adults, became an emblem of rebellion to

25740-562: The recording  – "Yesterday" has inspired the most cover versions of any song ever written. With Help! , the Beatles became the first rock group to be nominated for a Grammy Award for Album of the Year . The group's third US tour opened with a performance before a world-record crowd of 55,600 at New York's Shea Stadium on 15 August – "perhaps the most famous of all Beatles' concerts", in Lewisohn's description. A further nine successful concerts followed in other American cities. At

25920-555: The sessions, the Beatles were signed to Polydor for one year. Credited to "Tony Sheridan & the Beat Brothers", the single " My Bonnie ", recorded in June 1961 and released four months later, reached number 32 on the Musikmarkt chart. After the Beatles completed their second Hamburg residency, they enjoyed increasing popularity in Liverpool with the growing Merseybeat movement. However, they were growing tired of

26100-421: The slightest deficiencies in their technique, the players kept moving their chairs away from the microphones until Martin got on the talk-back system and scolded: "Stop moving the chairs!" Martin recorded two versions, one with vibrato and one without, the latter of which was used. Lennon recalled in 1980 that "Eleanor Rigby" was "Paul's baby, and I helped with the education of the child ... The violin backing

26280-489: The song with " Only a Northern Song " and " Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds " as a scene that most clearly conveys the Beatles' "aims as musicians". In her description, the segment depicts "moments of color and hope in a land of conformity and loneliness". With special effects directed by Charlie Jenkins, the animation incorporates photographs of silhouetted people; bankers with bowler hats and umbrellas are seen on rooftops, overlooking

26460-440: The song's narrative to "the isolated broken figures" typical of a Samuel Beckett play, as Rigby dies alone, no mourners attend her funeral, and the priest "seems to have lost his congregation and faith". In Everett's view, McCartney's description of Rigby and McKenzie elevates individuals' loneliness and wasted lives to a universal level in the manner of Lennon's autobiographical " Nowhere Man ". Everett adds that McCartney's imagery

26640-492: The streets. The track also appears on several of the band's greatest-hits compilations, including A Collection of Beatles Oldies , The Beatles 1962–1966 and 1 . In 1986, "Yellow Submarine" / "Eleanor Rigby" was reissued in the UK as part of EMI's twentieth anniversary of each of the Beatles' singles and peaked at number 63 on the UK Singles Chart. The 2015 edition of 1 and the expanded 1+ box set includes

26820-444: The string octet across the stereo image. On 5 August 1966, "Eleanor Rigby" was simultaneously released on a double A-side single, paired with " Yellow Submarine ", and on the album Revolver . In the LP sequencing, it appeared as the second track, between Harrison's " Taxman " and Lennon's " I'm Only Sleeping ". The Beatles thereby broke with their policy of ensuring that album tracks were not issued on their UK singles. According to

27000-443: The strings to sound too cloying. For the most part, the instruments "double up" – that is, they serve as a single string quartet but with two instruments playing each of the four parts. Microphones were placed close to the instruments to produce a more biting and raw sound. Engineer Geoff Emerick was admonished by the string players saying "You're not supposed to do that." Fearing such close proximity to their instruments would expose

27180-535: The time we were ready to take the GCE exams we added John Lennon to our 'Mad Lad' gang. He was doing his first term at Liverpool College of Art which overlooks the Liverpool Institute playground and we all got together in a students coffee bar at lunchtime." Aspinall took nine GCEs at the Institute and passed eight of them, failing French. Aspinall left school in July 1959 to study accountancy . Aspinall worked for

27360-484: The time when the red-light area comes to life ... flashing neon lights screamed out the various entertainment on offer, while scantily clad women sat unabashed in shop windows waiting for business opportunities." Koschmider had converted a couple of strip clubs in the district into music venues, and he initially placed the Beatles at the Indra Club . After closing Indra due to noise complaints, he moved them to

27540-529: The top spot for 21 weeks with a chart life of 40 weeks. Erlewine described the LP as "a sequel of the highest order – one that betters the original". In a reversal of then standard practice, EMI released the album ahead of the impending single " I Want to Hold Your Hand ", with the song excluded to maximise the single's sales. The album caught the attention of music critic William Mann of The Times , who suggested that Lennon and McCartney were "the outstanding English composers of 1963". The newspaper published

27720-425: The transformation of the Beatles from a mainly rock and roll and pop-oriented act to a more experimental, studio-based band. With a double string quartet arrangement by George Martin and lyrics providing a narrative on loneliness, it broke sharply with popular music conventions, both musically and lyrically. The song topped singles charts in Australia, Belgium, Canada, and New Zealand. Paul McCartney came up with

27900-522: The trip took ten hours. They arrived at 10 o'clock at night, and John Lennon said that they arrived "just in time to see the drunks jumping in the Trafalgar Square fountains." In 1963, Aspinall was joined by Mal Evans , who also helped set up the Beatles' equipment (and acted as a bodyguard) which freed Aspinall to concentrate on other duties, like arranging appointments or buying things for them, such as suits, boots, meals, or drinks. Best

28080-424: The two sides have little in common with one another, but "'Yellow Submarine' was the most flippant and outrageous piece the Beatles would ever produce, [and] 'Eleanor Rigby' remains the most relentlessly tragic song the group attempted." Unusually for their post-1965 singles also, the Beatles did not make a promotional film for either of the songs. Music historian David Simonelli groups "Eleanor Rigby" with "Taxman" and

28260-592: The verse on the word "dre-eam" (C–B) as the C chord resolves to the tonic Em, giving an urgency to the melody's mood. The Dorian mode appears with the C ♯ note (6 in the Em scale) at the beginning of the phrase "in the church". The chorus beginning "All the lonely people" involves the viola in a chromatic descent to the 5th; from 7 (D natural on "All the lonely peo-") to 6 (C ♯ on "-ple") to ♭ 6 (C on "they") to 5 (B on "from"). According to musicologist Dominic Pedler, this adds an "air of inevitability to

28440-433: The way out, Mr. Epstein". However, three months later, producer George Martin signed the Beatles to EMI 's Parlophone label. Martin's first recording session with the Beatles took place at EMI Recording Studios (later Abbey Road Studios) in London on 6 June 1962. He immediately complained to Epstein about Best's drumming and suggested they use a session drummer in his place. Already contemplating Best's dismissal,

28620-460: The whites-only Hotel George Washington in Jacksonville. For their subsequent US tours in 1965 and 1966, the Beatles included clauses in contracts stipulating that shows be integrated. According to Gould, the Beatles' fourth studio LP, Beatles for Sale , evidenced a growing conflict between the commercial pressures of their global success and their creative ambitions. They had intended

28800-429: The world, although "Yellow Submarine" was usually the listed side. In the US, disc jockeys began flipping the single midway through the tour as the radio boycotts were lifted. With each song eligible to chart separately there, "Eleanor Rigby" entered the Billboard Hot 100 in late August and peaked at number 11 for two weeks, and "Yellow Submarine" reached number 2. [In "Eleanor Rigby", the Beatles are] asking where all

28980-496: Was Paul's idea. Jane Asher had turned him on to Vivaldi, and it was very good." The octet was recorded on 28 April 1966, in Studio 2 at EMI Studios . The track was completed in Studio 3 on 29 April and on 6 June. Take 15 was selected as the master. The final overdub, on 6 June, was McCartney's addition of the "Ah, look at all the lonely people" refrain over the song's final chorus. This was requested by Martin, who said he came up with

29160-478: Was a group effort". Historiographer Erin Torkelson Weber says that, from all the available accounts, McCartney was the principal author of the song and only Lennon's post-1970 recollections contradict this. In the same 1980 interview, Lennon expressed his resentment at the way McCartney had sought their bandmates' and friends' creative input, rather than collaborate with Lennon directly. Lennon added, "That's

29340-570: Was against the idea, as he thought that Aspinall did not have the necessary social qualifications to be able to speak to the upper class executives at EMI. Aspinall accompanied McCartney and Lennon to New York on 11 May 1968, to announce the formation of Apple to the American Media. Apple Corps had five divisions: electronics, film, publishing, records and retailing. Aspinall later spoke of the Beatles' business arrangements: "We did not have one single piece of paper. No contracts. The lawyer,

29520-402: Was an old lady who lived alone and whom he got to know very well. He would go shopping for her and sit in her kitchen listening to stories and her crystal radio set. McCartney said, "just hearing her stories enriched my soul and influenced the songs I would later write." McCartney wrote the melody and first verse alone, after which he presented the song to the Beatles when they were gathered in

29700-454: Was announced by Apple that Aspinall had "decided to move on" and Jeff Jones —a longtime VP at Sony Legacy—was hired as CEO to oversee the back-catalogue. One of Aspinall's final tasks at Apple was to oversee the remastering of The Beatles' back-catalogue for an anticipated 2008 release. In 1961 and 1962, Aspinall had become good friends with Pete Best and subsequently rented a room in the house where Best lived with his parents. During one of

29880-439: Was at that time primarily bestowed upon military veterans and civic leaders – some conservative MBE recipients returned their insignia. In July, the Beatles' second film, Help! , was released, again directed by Lester. Described as "mainly a relentless spoof of Bond ", it inspired a mixed response among both reviewers and the band. McCartney said: " Help! was great but it wasn't our film – we were sort of guest stars. It

30060-517: Was at the Church of St Mary the Virgin in Twickenham. Stella McCartney , Yoko Ono , Barbara Bach (wife of Starr), George Martin , Pete Best and Pete Townshend attended the funeral, with Townshend playing Bob Dylan 's " Mr. Tambourine Man " as a tribute. The private service was followed by Aspinall's burial at Teddington Cemetery . Aspinall left nearly £7 million in his will in a trust , with

30240-514: Was becoming obvious", he wrote, and "as far as Paul was concerned, George could do no right". Capitol Records, from December 1963 when it began issuing Beatles recordings for the US market, exercised complete control over format, compiling distinct US albums from the band's recordings and issuing songs of their choosing as singles. In June 1966, the Capitol LP Yesterday and Today caused an uproar with its cover, which portrayed

30420-608: Was brought in to be the Beatles' manager Aspinall was dismissed, but reinstated after complaints from the group, and because Klein realised that Aspinall was no threat to his control of the company. Klein lost a High Court action in 1971 (started by McCartney) but lawsuits between Klein and Apple kept Aspinall busy until 1977. In 1978, Aspinall instigated the first of three lawsuits on behalf of Apple Corps against Apple Computer, Inc. (now known as Apple, Inc. ) for trademark infringement . The first suit settled in 1981 with an amount of £41,000 being paid to Apple by Apple Computer. As

30600-423: Was far from the first popular song to deal with death and loneliness, according to Ian MacDonald it "came as quite a shock to pop listeners in 1966". It took a bleak message of depression and desolation, written by a famous pop group, with a sombre, almost funeral-like backing, to the number one spot of the pop charts. Richie Unterberger of AllMusic cites the song's focus on "the neglected concerns and fates of

30780-512: Was fun, but basically, as an idea for a film, it was a bit wrong." The soundtrack was dominated by Lennon, who wrote and sang lead on most of its songs, including the two singles: " Help! " and " Ticket to Ride ". The Help! album, the group's fifth studio LP, mirrored A Hard Day's Night by featuring soundtrack songs on side one and additional songs from the same sessions on side two. The LP contained all original material save for two covers, " Act Naturally " and " Dizzy Miss Lizzy "; they were

30960-457: Was inside of me, and I realised a lot of things. I didn't learn them because I already knew them, but that happened to be the key that opened the door to reveal them. From the moment I had that, I wanted to have it all the time – these thoughts about the yogis and the Himalayas, and Ravi 's music." McCartney was initially reluctant to try it, but eventually did so in late 1966. He became

31140-432: Was not Eleanor Rigby, but Miss Daisy Hawkins. In 1966, McCartney told Sunday Times journalist Hunter Davies how he got the idea for his song: The first few bars just came to me. And I got this name in my head – "Daisy Hawkins picks up the rice in the church where a wedding has been." I don't know why ... I couldn't think of much more so I put it away for a day. Then the name "Father McCartney" came to me – and "all

31320-429: Was ordered to stay in bed, so Aspinall stood in for him for The Ed Sullivan Show camera rehearsals; however, Harrison was back in time for the final shooting. Before the cover of Sgt. Pepper's could be completed by Peter Blake , Aspinall was sent out to find photographs of all of the people that were to be shown on the front cover. Aspinall suggested the idea of Sgt. Pepper being the compere , who would introduce

31500-526: Was referring to how other people viewed their success, but at the prompting of reporters, he concluded: "If you want me to apologise, if that will make you happy, then okay, I'm sorry." Released in August 1966, a week before the Beatles' final tour, Revolver marked another artistic step forward for the group. The album featured sophisticated songwriting, studio experimentation, and a greatly expanded repertoire of musical styles, ranging from innovative classical string arrangements to psychedelia . Abandoning

31680-605: Was sacked from the Beatles on 16 August 1962, by manager Brian Epstein acting on behalf of Lennon, McCartney and Harrison. Accounts vary of Aspinall during this event. According to Mersey Beat editor Bill Harry , Aspinall was waiting downstairs in Epstein's NEMS record shop, and was the first one to talk to the by then ex-Beatle in the Grapes pub, across from the Cavern . Aspinall was furious and said that he would stop working for

31860-417: Was then that Shotton suggested that McCartney change the name of the priest, in case listeners mistook the fictional character for McCartney's own father. McCartney could not decide how to end the song, and Shotton suggested that the two lonely people come together too late as Father McKenzie conducts Eleanor Rigby's funeral. At the time, Lennon rejected the idea out of hand, but McCartney said nothing and used

32040-504: Was too young. After a month's persistence, during a second meeting (arranged by McCartney), Harrison performed the lead guitar part of the instrumental song " Raunchy " on the upper deck of a Liverpool bus, and they enlisted him as lead guitarist . By January 1959, Lennon's Quarry Bank friends had left the group, and he began his studies at the Liverpool College of Art . The three guitarists, billing themselves as Johnny and

32220-444: Was ubiquitous around the city, as if Londoners were uniting behind the Beatles in response to the antagonism shown towards the band in the US. He wrote: "As a commentary on the state of modern religion, this song will hardly be appreciated by those who see John Lennon as an anti-Christ. But 'Eleanor Rigby' is really about the unloved and un-cared-for." Commenting on the lyrics, Edward Greenfield of The Guardian wrote, "There you have

32400-414: Was where Lennon attended Sunday school as a boy, and he and McCartney first met at the church fête there in July 1957. McCartney has said that while he often walked through the churchyard, he had no recollection of ever seeing Rigby's grave. He attributed the coincidence to a product of his subconscious. McCartney has also dismissed claims by people who, because of their name and a tenuous association with

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