This lovely song, clearly a Paul McCartney composition, is on the Beatles’ White Album (1968), which has some great stuff (“Goodnight,” “While My Guitar Gently Weeps”, “I Will,” “Back in the USSR,” and the underappreciated “Martha My Dear”) but also some dreck ( “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da,”and especially “Revolution Number 9”, which ranks just above “Octopus’s Garden” as the worst Beatles song ever).
But back to the sublime. I like to present live performances whenever possible, but those are rare on YouTube for this group, and the Beatles stopped performing live during the last part of their career together. Here’s an older but still great McCartney doing “Blackbird.”
Rolling Stone ranks this as #38 on the list of Greatest 100 Beatles Songs. It was recorded by McCartney without the others; as the site notes:
McCartney recorded “Blackbird” on his own. Harrison and Starr were in California (where Harrison was being filmed for Ravi Shankar’s movie Raga), and Lennon was in a different studio working on “Revolution 9.” McCartney has said that the fingerpicked guitar lines of “Blackbird,” written at his Scotland farm soon after he returned from India, were loosely based on Bach’s “Bourrée in E minor,” which he and Harrison used to practice in their early years. The blackbird heard on the track was from a sound-effects collection. “He did a very good job, I thought,” McCartney joked. “He sings very well on that.”
After he’d run through the song a number of times, McCartney told engineer Geoff Emerick that he wanted the song to sound as if he were singing it outdoors. “Fine,” Emerick said, “then let’s do it outdoors” — and they relocated to tape “Blackbird” outside Abbey Road Studios’ echo chamber.
McCartney gave the first semipublic performance of “Blackbird” to a group of fans outside his Cavendish Avenue home. “Paul opened the window and called out to us, ‘Are you still down there?'” one of them recalled. “Then he sat on the windowsill with his acoustic guitar and sang ‘Blackbird’ to us, standing down there in the dark.”
The song is about civil rights, and Wikipedia gives some details, including a transcript from an interview with McCartney:
I had been doing poetry readings. I had been doing some in the last year or so because I’ve got a poetry book out called Blackbird Singing, and when I would read “Blackbird”, I would always try and think of some explanation to tell the people, ’cause there’s not a lot you can do except just read the poem, you know, you read 10 poems that takes about 10 minutes, almost. It’s like, you’ve got to, just, do a bit more than that. So, I was doing explanations, and I actually just remembered why I’d written “Blackbird”, you know, that I’d been, I was in Scotland playing on my guitar, and I remembered this whole idea of “you were only waiting for this moment to arise” was about, you know, the black people’s struggle in the southern states, and I was using the symbolism of a blackbird. It’s not really about a blackbird whose wings are broken, you know, it’s a bit more symbolic.
— Paul McCartney, Interview with KCRW’s Chris Douridas, May 25, 2002 episode of New Ground (17:50–19:00)
Also, before his solo acoustic guitar set during the Driving USA Tour, McCartney explained that “bird” is British slang for girl, making “blackbird” a synonym for ‘black girl’. Near the end of the song’s performance, a young black woman sang the lyrics, “You were only waiting for this moment to arrive, blackbird fly…”, after which the program faded to commercial.
One more tidbit:
The instrumentation consists of tapping, guitar, vocal and birdsong overdub. The tapping “has been incorrectly identified as a metronome in the past”, according to engineer Geoff Emerick, who says it is actually the sound of Paul tapping his foot, which Emerick recalls as being mic’d up separately.Footage included in the bonus content on disc two of the 2009 remaster of the album shows McCartney tapping both his feet alternately while performing the song.
You can see that video, with the foot-tapping, here.
I have a vague feeling I’ve posted this song before, but I’m not going to check, for it’s worth hearing again (and again. . . ).
sub
…and again.(and again…)
This is one of those moments where I feel I quite don’t fit in. I am absolutely fascinated with the variety of music that appeals to individuals, so in no way am I attempting to put down Jerry’s choice here. In fact, I don’t know of one other person that dislikes this song – aside from me. I am not very musical and am fairly tone deaf in fact – is this a song that is considered a “musician’s song” wherein it appeals to the more musically complex people? This song makes me uneasy – like it never really hits a stride – I keep waiting for something to happen – is that the appeal of it as well? That being said, I do love The Beatles (Eleanor Rigby being my favorite) so I am not completely tasteless lol.
LOL. I like this song but I consider a complete music moron. I was once at some event and there was a musician playing the piano. I could tell by the way people responded that she was good but I had to ask, “is that really good?”. 🙂
Don’t tell anyone, but . . . I actually like Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da.
But this one too. The Beatles cover so many different genres, you have to adjust your expectations accordingly. Serious message/folk/hard rock/happy-dancy…
Since you’re not a musician, I can tell you those are official categories… 😉
I pretty much agree with Jeanine on this one. I don’t actively dislike it but I keep waiting for it to do something and it doesn’t.
I absolutely love “Martha My Dear.” Definitely underappreciated.
Beg to differ but “You know my name (look up the number)” is the worst Beatles song ever, period.
I do agree however that “Revolution Number 9” is also awful, but at the same time just happen to think that “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da” is a decent enough song.
But for sure my favorite off the White album is “Dear Prudence” which has a beautiful guitar riff and is mellow as an electrified instrument could ever hope to be.
Is “Revolution #9” even a song at all??
Exactly what I was thinking.
I was going to mention this in a stand-alone comment, but since you bring up “You Know My Name” I think it’s better to post as a reply here.
I think there have been great composers since The Beatles, but owing to the whole nature/nurture thing, there’s no way anyone now can be just like them. It’s not just their innate talent that made them what they are/were, it was their backgrounds and lives, combined with the talent. The influence of British musical culture, or general entertainment culture, of the 20s through early 60s is clearly evident in almost all of their songs (some more than others), with “You Know My Name” being one of the most obvious. And I actually like that song, though I very much prefer the version on Anthology 2.
And while it’s still a little early to tell how they’ll turn out, I’m keeping my eye on these kids (I think they’re 16 or so). Sort of a harder edged With The Beatles-era sound.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZb8nEemK2k
They do a pretty good Tax Man too.
I really liked that. Thanks for the heads up.
“Dear Prudence” is absolutely the best song on the White Album. Great writing and guitar playing by John, just he right amount of subtle guitar from George, and from Paul, a musical tour de force: here play a bassline that is absolutely integral to the song in addition to piano, flügelhorn, tambourine, cowbell, and perhaps most importantly, drums (in a huff, Ringo had quit the band for a few days and Paul played the drums in his stead on this and Back in The U.S.S.R.) The drum fill and the piano at the climax of the song make a great song spectacular. Ringo could not have pulled off the drum fill that McCartney does.
Dear Prudence is wonderful. I think Julia is is one of Lennon’s more underrated songs as well.
I was always amused by the fact that when John and Paul set up the running order for the album (which they did by themselves during a marathon 24-hour session) they chose as the first two songs on the album the only two songs on which Ringo did not play drums. Had to have been deliberate.
Love this song! Macca is a living legend and I often wonder what John Lennon could have produced, had he not been gunned down that dreadful December day in ’81.
Harrison is sorely missed too..a great songwriter in his own right.
*’80…My apologies comrades, I must be a little tipsy.
Cheers! 🙂
I have to write this to defend Octopus’s Garden! Great guitar on that, really fun to play! I also like Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da, though it’s not one of my favourites. Still, Jerry is correct about the Beatles overall! 🙂
And he’s definitely correct about Blackbird!
This is an acapella version in a medley with Bye, Bye Blackbird.
As the camera went to the crowd, it occurred to me that Paul, could still, if he wanted, draw crowds like that where ever he went.
So many years…and there’s never been anyone like them.
Oops. I’m with you Jeannine. That makes 2 of us. Nothing separates the generations like their music.
Isn’t that a bit bleak? 😉
In some ways I think you could argue that music is one of the artforms that ties generations together. Plenty of young people listen to all sorts of different music.
I think both Octupus’s Garden and Ob-La-Di are fun songs, if not particularly great. Revolution No. 9 does pretty much suck. A Beatles song I have never much liked is Dr. Roberts.
I got to see Paul when he was in Indianapolis last month—what a show! Tons of Beatles hits, good choice of Wings and solo hits. Paul played guitar, bass, and two different pianos depending on the song. They played for two-and-half hours straight. Paul did Blackbird and Yesterday by himself while the rest of the band, guys half his age, took a break!
If you ever get the chance, see him!
He does put on a fine show. I saw him here in Milwaukee a few years ago. My daughter, in her 20’s, has seen him three or four times, most recently on this tour. Some music crosses generations just fine. (I also enjoy attending operas with her. Life can be wonderful.)
Well his voice certainly isn’t what it used to be but the guy can still play. I didn’t like the White Album for a long time but it really grew on me. Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da was the only song on the album that I liked as a kid but now as an adult, I can’t stand it.
Paul is a great and often under-rated musician. I was shocked to hear that the guitar solo on Taxman was actually McCartney.
Paul often played some of the best guitar solos. He played another excellent solo on “Good Morning Good Morning” as well. John received more accolades, but Paul was, and still is, the most talented of all the Beatles. Just listen to Band On The Run. While Linda played some synthesizer and Denny Laine plenty of guitar, Paul played everything else on the only solo Beatles album that ranks with the best of the Beatles.
One of my favorites. It was on their White Album which I had in 8-track tape on a road trip around the USA when you could still do those things.
Gonna make myself unpopular and say I think Revolution no. 9 is pretty good. It’s experimental and not really a song, but I think it works quite well, although there are probably better exponents of “sound collage” type music than the Fab Four. Music’s not just about pretty harmonies and nice chord progressions, in my opinion . However, I’m glad the Beatles didn’t make a habit of making such tracks.
+ 1
Agreed. Mistaking it for a song is a category error, no?
Yes.
If music sin’t about melody, harmony, or chords, what could it possibly be?
Any noise produced along with a beat?
Blackbird is indeed a great McCartney song. It has a wonderfully unique feel to it. I love that Geoff Emerick accommodated Paul’s desire to have the song song like it was performed outside by actually recording him playing the song outside. Geoff was just as much an asset to the Beatles as George Martin.
That said, Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da is an extremely catchy and fun song. It’s good bubblegum music! The only person whose hatred of the song I can understand is Lennon’s (and perhaps George and Ringo, though they never made a huge fuss about it) because of the number of takes of the song that they did and the fact that they had completely a fully produced version of the song (which can be found on the 3rd Beatles Athology) only to have Paul decide to scrap it and start all over. Lennon went out and got extremely stoned before returning to the studio, at which point he pounded out the now familiar opening piano chords, increased the tempo of the song, and insisted that that was how the song be played. That’s the version that made it onto the White Album and it’s a much better song than many of the other tracks from the White Album (Helter Skelter is not 100% awful, but it’s dull, repetitive, boring, and embarrassing).
I also have to vehemently disagree about “Revolution 9.” As far as avant garde song colleges go this is one of the best I’ve ever heard. It has an internal logic to it and it’s obvious that it was made by a musician, someone who knows how to make a piece hold together. It’s the most underappreciated Beatles’ song ever (though it’s arguably not a Beatles’ song at all). It not’s a fantastic song, but neither is it horrible.
As I stated earlier, Dear Prudence is the best song on the White Album.
Jerry’s calling “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da” dreck got me think about that side of McCartney that a lot of people have a problem with (not me). I’m referring to his music hall-styled songs, and if “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da” isn’t exactly music hall, it still has that overtly happy and catchy singalong quality to it that’s redolent of that genre (and almost like bubblegum music, as a previous commenter noted).
So here are the seven songs that fit this side of McCartney. I’m curious to know people’s favorite song from this list and their least-favorite.
In chronological order:
1. Yellow Submarine
2. All Together Now
3. Your Mother Should Know
4. When I’m Sixty-Four
5. Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da
6. Honey Pie
7. Maxwell’s Silver Hammer
My favorite of the seven is “Yellow Submarine” because it’s such a Beatles song, that is, it’s such a group song, with all four having a good time with it. My least favorite of the seven is “All Together Now.”
I’ll play. I think Yellow Submarine belongs on the short list of worst Beatles songs, along with Bungalow Bill (but not Octopus’s Garden, which I like). When I’m Sixty-four and Maxwell’s Silver Hammer, on the other hand, are among my favorites. All Together Now is forgettable.
All right. Let’s see who else weighs in.
Yes, “All Together Now” is forgettable. “Bungalow Bill” has never done much for me. I’ve always been indifferent to the song. Don’t love it. Don’t hate it.
One of my favorite songs to play on the guitar. Still working up to singing it at the same time …
I can’t tell you how many people have told me, after I play it, “that is my FAVORITE song of all time.”
This song does not resemble the Bourrée in Em much, really. I play both, on the guitar.
The main similarity is the use of 9ths and 10ths. Most of Blackbird is built from these combinations.
Revolution 9 is great if you like experimental types of music. Its probably my favorite Beatles song, followed by Helter Skelter and then The Ballad of John and Ono or As My Guitar Gently Weeps. Although since I like Ono’s solo, perhaps work my opinion doesn’t count.
I forgot about I am the Walrus, that’d be my third favorite.