'Greatest' Beatles song showed Paul McCartney and John Lennon they couldn't 'dominate' any more

Paul McCartney, Ed Sullivan, George Harrison, Ringo Starr (back) and John Lennon on the set of the Ed Sullivan Show
-Credit:Redferns


The vast majority of The Beatles' songs were written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon, with them jointly credited to Lennon-McCartney. Paul and John's writing partnership was legendary, with their contrasting moods and approaches often meeting in a very happy medium.

About that partnership, Music and Musicians magazine's Wilfred Mellors wrote in 1972: "Opposite poles generate electricity: between John and Paul the sparks flew. John's fiery iconoclasm was tempered by Paul's lyrical grace, while Paul's wide-eyed charm was toughened by John's resilience."

However they were not the only talented songwriters in the group. George Harrison wrote a number of The Beatles' finest songs, including 'Here Comes the Sun', 'While My Guitar Gently Weeps' and ‘Within You Without You’.

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At times George had to fight to make his voice heard, with Paul and John assuming creative control of the band as the principal songwriters. The Wavertree-born star had written some songs that The Beatles recorded and was given a quota but he grew frustrated with the supporting role he had to play on 'Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' and 'The White Album'.

George also temporarily left the band in early 1969 during the famously acrimonious 'Get Back' sessions. It was during those sessions, however, that he introduced the track 'Something' to the band.

He had begun writing the track during the sessions for 'The White Album', believed to be inspired by his wife Pattie Boyd. However, George denied this, saying the song was about the Hindu deity Krishna.

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John and Paul were not interested when George first played the song - with the atmosphere in the studio tense - and producer George Martin was said to have believed the song was lightweight. The band then rehearsed it in late January 1969 but went no further.

The iconic cover of The Beatles' 1969 album 'Abbey Road'
The iconic cover of The Beatles' 1969 album 'Abbey Road' -Credit:Daily Record / Handout

George then taped demos of the song that February, toying with the idea of releasing a solo album of his songs not used by the band. He also gave the song to other artists to record, wanting to make it happen.

However, when George returned to the band and they went into the studio for 'Abbey Road', he put his foot down and wanted The Beatles to work on his songs. 'Something' and 'Here Comes the Sun' both featured on the album and led John and Paul to realise how talented George was.

In his book 'The Rough Guide to The Beatles', Chris Ingham wrote: "Both Lennon and McCartney, in interviews given at the time, hinted at 'Something' being the best track on 'Abbey Road', while Frank Sinatra sang it throughout the 1970s and 1980s, never failing to introduce it as 'the greatest love song of the last fifty years'".

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About the song, Paul said in 2000: "George's 'Something' was out of left field. It was about Pattie, and it appealed to me because it has a very beautiful melody and is a really structured song.

He added: "I think George thought my bass-playing was a little bit busy. Again, from my side, I was trying to contribute the best I could, but maybe it was his turn to tell me I was too busy."

In The Beatles' anthology, Paul waxed lyrical about the song. He said: "I thought it was George’s greatest track – with 'Here Comes The Sun' and 'While My Guitar Gently Weeps'. They were possibly his best three. Until then he had only done one or two songs per album.

"I don’t think he thought of himself very much as a songwriter, and John and I obviously would dominate – again, not really meaning to, but we were 'Lennon and McCartney'. So when an album comes up, Lennon and McCartney go and write some stuff – and maybe it wasn’t easy for him to get into that wedge.

"But he finally came up with 'Something' and a couple of other songs that were great, and I think everyone was very pleased for him."

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About the recording, audio engineer Geoff Emerick recalled: "George had a smugness on his face when he came in with this one, and rightly so – he knew it was absolutely brilliant. And for the first time, John and Paul knew that George had risen to their level."

Producer George Martin said 'Something' made him appreciate Harrison. He explained: "I first recognised that he really had a great talent when we did 'Here Comes the Sun.' But when he brought in 'Something,' it was something else... It was a tremendous work – and so simple."

John pushed Apple Records to release 'Something' as a single and it became the band's first A-side written by George. About that, he said: "They blessed me with a couple of B-sides in the past, but this is the first time I've had an A-side. Big deal, eh?"

The track was hailed by critics and Time magazine called it the best song on the album. It won the Ivor Novello Award for 'Best Song Musically and Lyrically' of 1969 in July 1970.

George's peers were very complimentary about it. Elton John said: "'Something' is probably one of the best love songs ever, ever, ever written. It's better than 'Yesterday,' much better. It's like the song I've been chasing for the last thirty-five years."