The Beatles, I Should Have Known Better - A Classical Musician’s First Listen and Reaction /Excerpts

#thebeatles #johnlennon #paulmccartney #georgeharrison #ringostarr
I had no idea when doing this first listen but … I should have known better! Anyway, it’s a fun song with some playful features, and I’m very happy that I can continue this series here!
Here’s the link to the original song by The Beatles:
• I Should Have Known Be...
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Amy Shafer, LRSM, FRSM, RYC, is a classical harpist, pianist, and music teacher, Director of Piano Studies and Assistant Director of Harp Studies for The Harp School, Inc., holds multiple degrees in harp and piano performance and teaching, and is active as a solo and collaborative performer. With nearly two decades of teaching experience, she teaches privately, presents masterclasses and coaching sessions, and has performed and taught in Europe and USA.
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Credits: Music written and performed by The Beatles
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[@richardfehlmann4593]

Thank you for this great review, it was a fun review and a pleasure for me to listen to your explanations 👍😃 It's always a delight 👌 See you next time, I'm already looking forward to your next Beatles song review 😊

[@fractaljack210]

When I was six I inherited a bunch of Beatles albums from my aunt. I plyed them on my Micky Mouse turntable. This song made me want to play harmonica. There was a girl that I remember in the neighborhood, and this song brings up memories of her, and us running around and playing. Ah, the innocence of childhood..

[@1967PONTIACGTO]

I've always adored this song... it is an expression of pure, youthful joy... and Lennon's young voice is like the ringing of a bell!

[@stephenreeds3632]

Possibly one of his greatest songs....loved it in the film. Interesting that a man who couldn't read or write music was so naturally talented that it didn't matter a damn.

[@fractaljack210]

Dylan's big influence on Lennon can be heard clearly on, "You've got to Hide your Love Away."

[@jcb640]

In which song was Dylan singing about his homosexual manager?

[@fractaljack210]

@@jcb640 Where did you get that information?

[@Ilovesactown]

Okay, I’m officially hooked on your Beatles reviews and going to have to subscribe to get your initial reaction to your first listen. I love the way you break down the notes, structure, and his voice inflection 😊

[@Greg-om2hb]

I heard that first two notes from the harmonica and then the entire song played inside my head. It's a joy to see your delight in listening to this classic Pop music.

[@lupcokotevski2907]

"That guy (Dylan) can't sing" My mother circa 1980. She's 85 now, and remains the only negative remark she ever made about my 6000 album record collection. I still find it hilarious.

[@peterliljeholmen5703]

Haha, spot on! And “with a voice like sand and glue” as Bowie depicts in his ‘Song for Bob Dylan’. Terrible singer but still one of the best, haha

[@andymccabe6712]

​@@peterliljeholmen5703haha, indeed... You should listen to his 'Christmas' album from '09.....he rarely makes more than a vague stab at the tune.... It can literally make your ears bleed...!!

[@miles-thesleeper-monroe8466]

It's the reprise or chorus that contains the magic for me. "And when i tell you that i ......" goes from a chirpy pop song to something almost off key soulful and serious and way more sincere than a pop melody. That's the difference for me which raises it up a whole level 😊

[@splitimage137.]

Great to see you back doing The Beatles again. I'll go right now to your Patreon channel to see the video whole...

[@nationaltrails9585]

#53 on the Billboard Top 100 in 1964 - 65. The song is the second song in the film played in the train freight compartment during a card game, through it was actually filmed in a van and rocked by crew members to simulate train movement per the internet. :)

[@Hartlor_Tayley]

I love that you pointed out how the harmonica motif repeats but not exactly and how it moves to a different beat in the measure. I think that’s part of the brilliance of the Beatles and rock in general. A 4/4 time seems limiting but these subtle shifts in rhythm and melody gives it amazing movement. Great insights. Thanks Virgin Rock. At some point you should probably give the Velvet Underground a spin. They were very influential. “Head Held High” is a good one.

[@splitimage137.]

I've been recommending that Amy listen to VENUS IN FURS as an introduction to Velvet Underground, especially with the litterary lyrics and John Cale's musicianship.

[@Hartlor_Tayley]

@@splitimage137. so many great tracks. I was just listening to their Loaded album.

[@terben7339]

John is playing a Gibson Jumbo J-160E acoustic guitar and George is playing his Rickenbacker 360 electric 12-string.

[@richardfehlmann4593]

Wonderful 👍😃 A new video about a song from the Hard Day's Night album. I can't wait to watch it once I get home ... 🤞

[@supafrogg258]

What was also special about Dylan was that he was a Wordsmith, and that he had a knack for writing songs which initially presented as simple-sounding pieces, but in fact turned out to be very good songs!

[@walterhambrick8705]

The guitar you are speaking of was the Rickenbacker 360 12 string played by George Harrison. Rickenbacker 12 strings are the only 12 string models (to my knowledge) that leave the factory with the octave strings BELOW (physically) the main strings. by the way - - That guitar was second 12 string produced by Rickenbacker, and it was for George !

[@geoffmower8729]

I particularly like the chorus in this song and how it breaks the song up. I think George played his 12 string Rickenbacker in this one you hear the twin harmony notes in the lead break. There is an interesting I should have known better guitar tab on KZbin that shows the guitar parts.

[@Hartlor_Tayley]

Lennon wrote Norwegian Wood which borrowed heavily from a Dylan song. Dylan then wrote a song based heavily on Norwegian Wood. I wish I could remember the names of those songs.

[@brandonflorida1092]

Apart from his music, which is often excellent, Bob Dylan is the only composer to have won a Nobel Prize for literature for his lyrics.

[@jcb640]

On a par with Kissinger being awarded Peace Prize

[@brandonflorida1092]

@@jcb640 Well, naturally, you don't say what you mean, but I was alive then and I remember: 1. Opening China-U.S. relations - In 1972, Kissinger played a key role in normalizing relations between the United States and China. 2. Kissinger was a key figure in negotiating strategic arms limitation agreements, such as the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT) I and II, which placed limits on the number of nuclear weapons each country could possess. 3. Diplomatic efforts in the Middle East - Kissinger played a key role in brokering peace agreements between Israel and Arab countries, including the Camp David Accords, which led to a peace treaty between Israel and Egypt. 4. Diplomatic efforts in Southeast Asia - As Secretary of State, Kissinger played a key role in negotiating an end to the Vietnam War, which eventually led to the withdrawal of U.S. troops and the signing of the Paris Peace Accords, not that it was a very good deal. 5. Promoting detente with the Soviet Union - Kissinger was instrumental in promoting detente, or a relaxation of tensions, between the United States and the Soviet Union, which led to several important arms control agreements. 6. Kissinger did his best to advocate for democracy and the rule of law in countries such as Chile and Argentina. 7. Advancing economic cooperation - Kissinger helped promote economic cooperation between countries, including the creation of the Group of Seven (G7), which is composed of the world's leading industrialized democracies.

[@andymccabe6712]

​@@brandonflorida1092er...... This is a trivial little music reaction channel... Were not negotiating world peace.....!!!

[@brandonflorida1092]

@@andymccabe6712 I'm not the one who made the ridiculous reference, but I couldn't let the false implication in it stand.

[@ninoboludi3587]

​@@brandonflorida1092who cares a bout Kissinger now, this is a musical reaction. wrong forum.

[@frankylaseure2641]

Was "The gathering - Travel" recommended yet in this channel ? Considering the subject of that song, the exceptional voice of the Anneke and the musical preferences of our dear Virgin Rock, it's a perfect match.

[@tgmcface]

I tried to go to ko-fi but could not figure out where to find the videos, or what I needed to pay to see them. Love your videos, would have paid a little money to see videos without pause and cuts. Appreciate your great knowledge of music, it brings insight to music i have listed to for many years that I never noticed.

[@binxbolling]

The vocals were double-tracked, meaning Lennon is singing the song 2 times with one performance placed over the other. The Beatles did this a lot.

[@andymccabe6712]

Well.... Lots of bands do it.....!!

[@toddmorrison-c5w]

The Beatles are releasing their final song ever November 2nd (now and then). Amy should do a special same day reaction or a live that day. Never get another chance to do a real time reaction to a Beatles song!

[@hatchedague]

It's not real time. Lennon died in 1980

[@katelynmeaghan3410]

KZbin has succeeded in making these review channels unwatchable. These people aren't happy until everyone who uses their website are miserable.

[@brianemmanuelgrey9276]

Wow! Exactly! You are sooo right. KZbin sucks.

[@ed.z.]

I think Lisel wants to have his own KZbin channel. Every time Dylan or Harmonica is mentioned the little man wants to rave about it. Also, he might be a musician in the making.

[@Hartlor_Tayley]

She. ;)

[@ed.z.]

@@Hartlor_Tayley ooops. Apologies. To me all babies start to sound alike. I should’ve recognised her correct gender identity. (Did I say that right?, probably not).

[@Hartlor_Tayley]

@@ed.z. lol. I hear ya.

[@dennismason3740]

Well that took all of 37 seconds - George is playing the Rickenbacker 12-string guitar, electric. The Ricky 12 is a BEAST and nothing sounds like it. I advise the live version with the screaming girls. That guitar costs, like, thousands of dollars.

[@Hartlor_Tayley]

Those old twelve string electrics sounded wonderful but keeping it in tune was a beast.

[@dennismason3740]

@@Hartlor_Tayley - true, pretty much all 12-strings (and all of my 6-strings) are just built to be tuned. Oddly enough my 1985 Hyundai acoustic 12 tends to stay in tune when I find the perfect tension for the strings, not too high or low. I tune it to an open Db chord, all firsts and fifths and the guitar actually tends to stay in tune. I invented that tuning for a neutral feel, neither major nor minor or both and it's absurdly easy to pull off amazing riffs and chords that sound like no one else. Keith inherited the open-tuning-signature sound from blues guitar players. Polynesians and their offspring call it "slack-key", usually an open D or G, just like blues. Japanese shimisen - open slack tuning. Blues is galactic.

[@Hartlor_Tayley]

@@dennismason3740 I also have an old acoustic I tuned to open D but I tune the G string down to F# for melodic movement on the third. I had an electric 12 string Japanese 60s guitar, it was a one song wonder because after one song I had to retune it. Generally the older electrics had trouble staying in tune imho.

[@dennismason3740]

@@Hartlor_Tayley - One song wonder, hee. In the 60s there was an American guitar-maker called Tedesco, famous for the worst electric guitars ever built. There are actual collectors and luthiers (restorers) who specialize in the Tedesco restorations. Nothing sounds like the terrible guitars of the sixties, nothing on Earth. Since Japan, then Korea, then China started copying expensive American guitars everything changed. The hardware got better, the wood a little greener (not seasoned) and the frets properly positioned. Since 2000 I wanted the Baby Taylor, which cost 300 dollars more than I had. In 2018 a dude on a bicycle sold me a Chinese copy of a Baby Taylor and it is an excellent guitar, if not quite up to Taylor's standards. I basically got the guitar I couldn't afford for 73 dollars, all in one-dollar bills. When I can type I'll tell you about the Epi SG and Eric's Fool (his psychedelic SG in Cream) and my half-century wait for my perfect electric (the SG). If I live a little while longer I might, by completely unexpected circumstances, be gifted with a Ricky-12, which I have wanted since 1965. "If I'm not back in five minutes" said Ace Ventura, "wait a little longer".

[@Hartlor_Tayley]

@@dennismason3740 Tedesco. Wow that takes me back. Now it’s all done on C and C Machines. Robots make a consistent product. The fir and finish vary a lot but the basic build is great. Back in 2012 I win a super basic epiphone Les Paul. After I switched out the electronics it’s the guitar I play most.

[@dennismason3740]

Desolation Row? Like a Rollin' Stone? How many strikes, will YT allow, before they discard a new list of words...

[@manofconstantsorrow]

Bob Dylan and The Beatles, two greatest artists.

[@IDLERACER]

🥸👍 Just giving you a heads up...99% of Bob Dylan's music up until that time was completely diatonic, "Don't Think Twice, It's Alright" being a noteworthy exception.

[@lynby6231]

Whilst the Beatles were influenced by Dylan early on, it’s also true that Dylan was influenced by the Beatles as he started as man with a guitar and a harmonica but later he put together a band. The only real “folk” song I can remember Lennon doing was “Working class hero”. You may know that Dylan, George Harrison (of the Beatles”, Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne (of ELO) and Roy Orbison all got together to form The Travelling Wilburys,

[@Randallsmith-m9t]

Hi, if you're interested in hearing pivotal beatle influences you must listen to, and make a study really of, Harry Nilsson

[@mauricetaylor4018]

Would enjoy your comments on the Dave Clark Five they were popular at the same time ty moe

[@dennismason3740]

Whooooaaaa guitar question! Where ammi gonna find Beatles? Brb.

[@zzzaphod8507]

No mention of the double-tracked vocal being slightly out of tune with itself on the opening syllable, the long "I"?

[@andymccabe6712]

Ooh! ... Maybe a bit too needy for most people.......!?

[@fromchomleystreet]

Saying that any Beatles song is “100% Lennon” is a little misleading, especially when speaking to someone from a classical background, where there is typically not the same conceptual distinction between “composition” and “arrangement” as exists in popular music (for example, every member of an orchestra performing a bach piece is playing the specific notes that Bach wrote for them, therefore such a piece could truly be said to be “100% Bach”) Lennon composed the basic chord sequence and the lead vocal melody. He didn’t write the parts that the other three musicians played. They made them up themselves. There are very few Beatles tracks that could truly be called solo compositions, in the classical sense. Other than a couple that consist of one instrument and one voice, both performed by the writer (eg “Blackbird”), they are all, in reality, collaborative compositions to some extent.

[@andymccabe6712]

Agreed... In fact, probably collaborative to quite a large extent in many cases....!!

[@zoktoberfest]

Since you provide a link to a watchable video, of this song, why not reference the applicable time codes in that linked video in parallel with your analysis. We could have both videos open on our desktops and pause your video to watch the time coded segment on the other. This would be a way around KZbin's restrictive copyright prohibitions

[@isheetfromaswhole3657]

Time codes aren't necessary because songs are short and divided by verse and chorus. It would be far easier to just say "in the first verse" or "during the bridge" or "when the second chorus kicks in".

[@Richard2003]

Great song for driving in the car

[@peterliljeholmen5703]

Indeed! As well as ‘Drive my car’, especially when your wife or fiancée is driving you in your car…

[@robertfmorton]

Can't wait for you to do Dylan! Ah! But which period Dylan?

[@VirginRock]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/oKLYpnaQns6kn7s

[@VirginRock]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/g3-9eYujlMSghaM

[@Hartlor_Tayley]

She did some Dylan. Oops now I see the links.

[@Hartlor_Tayley]

@@VirginRock maybe try Dylan’s “One of Us Must Know” from his Blonde on Blonde album 1967, third in his incredible trilogy of albums recorded In 18 months. Dylan was a visionary. Also “Visions of Johanna” and “Stuck inside of Mobile” are widely considered among his best.. “Desolation Row” is a must.

[@splitimage137.]

@@Hartlor_Tayley I've been recommending that Amy now listen to NOT DARK YET from his 1997 Time Out Of Mind album, widely considered one of his "comeback" albums. Unlike the previous Dylan songs, which were pretty early in his career, NOT DARK YET is pretty lush, production-wise, and Dylan's voice has matured and softened somewhat - and yet he still has some of the best lyrics ever, to wit: "Well, my sense of humanity, has gone down the drain - Behind every beautiful thing, there's been some kind of pain - She wrote me a letter, and she wrote it so kind - She put down in writin', what was in her mind - I just don't see why, I should even care - It's not dark yet, but it's gettin' there." Now, tell me people, can you do better?

[@calrowles9790]

My heart is out to you. Copyright strikes are common for Beatles songs. Personally I think they are counter-productive.

[@dennismason3740]

True Stuff: The Beatles were turned on to weed by Bob Dylan in his hotel room in New York City. 1965?

[@joed1950]

Seems Bob Dylan gave The Beetles their first Marijuana. Perhaps it was Paul and John both that said after the first smoke that The Beetles changed forever.

[@nellgwenn]

That's an urban legend. It was tea that Bob introduced the Beatles to.

[@johnbyrnes7912]

​@@nellgwennthat's odd as they talk about how Ringo joined bob in the next room to come out high! 🤡

[@Hollingsworth2781]

These videos are good when you don't play a good portion of the song on it. if you chop the song up it is usually legal on KZbin. With no music, the video is unappealing.

[@JohnnyJohnny-f5o]

Cool. A song reaction with no reaction to the song. Breaking new ground.

[@erbesokrates7712]

Hearing this song I have always in my mind the train scene from the beatles film "a hard days night", in witch they performed the song, which really appealed to me as a young person. And still today. By the way, I don't like this chopped-up format at all. The copyright owners should put the song somewhere else, in any case it doesn't work that way. awful.

[@user-nq9gz4xf7f]

Its so weird to hear historical reconstructions of thing you lived through in that time. Its kind of academic useful but misses the zeitgeist, it misses the incredible moment in time in the sixties. Even their music doesnt explain the phenonemum

[@letsgomets002]

If I dont hear the song played ...this is a waste 😢

[@edwardrutledge2765]

Without actually listening to the music, these take on flavor of a mathematician explaining a formula. I love your virgin rock immersion, but it has limitations.

[@phadrus]

Ghost writers and session musicians. Very common in the 60s.

[@Richard2003]

That is all Beatles!

[@miles-thesleeper-monroe8466]

What a cynical perspective!

[@phadrus]

@@miles-thesleeper-monroe8466 you’re entitled to your opinion.

[@jcb640]

Relevance ?

[@andymccabe6712]

​@@miles-thesleeper-monroe8466er, it's not cynical... It's nonsense... !!!

[@jeffzimmer3313]

You don't need to move your hands so much

[@wesmiddaugh230]

outlaw copywrite after 2 years....

[@steveelsholz5297]

Please remove the 1st 5 minutes. Idc about Bob Dylan. I just wanted your take on the song.