The Beatles, Yesterday - A Classical Musician’s First Listen and Reaction / Excerpts

[@PitchWheel]

And yet it happened again. I watch your video and find myself crying in emotions

[@lynby6231]

It’s Baroque and roll, Paul has a lot of emotion in his voice naturally which nobody else seems to be able to achieve, I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone else come close to the original for its simple beauty. Paul doesn’t really get the credit he should for his voice, it’s very pure, his voice makes the song for me.

[@richardfehlmann4593]

I fully agree to that 👍 Very well said 👌

[@jorgeb555]

Absolutely. As with the cover of “Til There Was You”, which is simply perfect.

[@davidmontgomery4696]

Paul and John both developed a direct connection between their feelings, thought and vocals. I have always thought that was part of the symbiotic magic underlying their music. A sort of trust and courage that they shared and sustained their relationship.

[@jnagarya519]

It is a ballad that was popular. It does not "rock," and it is not "baroque".

[@lynby6231]

@@jnagarya519. It “rocks” alright

[@1967PONTIACGTO]

This was a monster hit in 1965, and was the song that made a lot of parents realize that their kids' love of the Beatles wasn't just another teen craze... that the Beatles WERE as great as we'd been telling them... it was their first cross-generation hit song.... you can watch Paul perform this live on the Ed Sullivan Show

[@gettinhungrig8806]

Granny song in other words

[@1967PONTIACGTO]

@@gettinhungrig8806 that would only fit if only grannies liked it... everyone liked it

[@thomastimlin1724]

@@gettinhungrig8806 when your songs are 50 years old they will be Granny songs too lol. Lennon's In My Life apparently is a Granny song then....

[@jnagarya519]

They'd already shown their appeal across generations with "Till There was You" and "A Taste of Honey".

[@tommyk6719]

@@gettinhungrig8806Nah, that’s you and your mom, fool.

[@colindebourg9012]

I've heard many cover versions of Yesterday with many different arrangements, but nothing even comes close to the simplicity and beauty of the original.

[@Doutsoldome]

I completely agree.

[@Uetti]

Well, over the years many have wondered WHAT exactly make this song so special, or "The Perfect Song" as somebody has put it. I think after so many years your analysis helped me to understand a bit more what in the song works so well to make it so pleasing, emotional and unique to our ears: The restraint, the balance, some unusual notes here and there and a rather rare 7-bars verse structure, among other things. It's both an instinctual and refined composition: Paul composed the whole bulk of it in the flick of a switch waking up one morning, years, but it took him a year and a half of continuing rechurning, replaying and remumbling to refine and complete it

[@LeeKennison]

I absolutely loved your reaction and analysis. I have been waiting in anticipation for this. It's a big one. Great background information, particularly Paul's recollections and George Martin's contributions. Such a great story. I really enjoyed your enthusiasm for this, along with your musical analysis. You brought out a lot of interesting tidbits. I would still love to hear you do a harp arrangement of this, regardless of how many others are out there. I am sure yours would do quite well. A piano arrangement would be nice too. You can find full orchestral arrangements on KZbin, not just string quartets, for you to evaluate. You are now starting to enter into realm of some of the really great Beatles songs, with more to come.

[@Steve-gx9ot]

She is Overly dramatic. She knows things but can be irritating

[@joesaynuk9291]

Amy is as overdramatic as a beautiful sunrise. I believe she is sincere and honest.

[@wilhelmbeermann2424]

I agree with you....I would like to listen to Amy's harp version too ❤🎉

[@thomassharmer7127]

Yes, respect to the rest of the band for deciding not to play on this. A good musician knows when to stay out of the way of the music rather than play for the sake of it. There is a King Crimson track, a live progressive jazz/rock improvisation, that specifically credits drummer Bill Bruford with having the good taste of deciding not to play. His silence was his creative contribution to the music which his fellow musicians recognised as an equally important component of the piece.

[@rrheipel]

Paul and John were originally songwriting partners but there were many songs, especially later in their partnership, when Paul or John wrote entire songs without substantial input from the other partner. But they always credited each other.

[@docsavage8640]

They always wrote apart from the beginning. But both added and subtracted bits from each others' compositions. Very few were really written together in the same room all at once.

[@AnthonySmyth-n2c]

@@docsavage8640 Do some research.

[@terrycox1247]

As a teenager in the '60s, I can tell you the importance of this McCartney song is that it marked the point where my parent's generation suddenly realized that this bunch of long haired youths surrounded by screaming girls were somehow something more than the stereotypical here today, gone tomorrow pop groups they found so jarring and irritating when compared to their own wartime crooners and big swing bands. I can remember my own dad's surprise at the answer "Beatles" to the question "Who's that?" and the grudging "Really? That's rather nice"

[@richardeast3328]

Same experience here.

[@richardfehlmann4593]

I very very much enjoyed this reaction. Like many of us I was astonished that you didn't know this song before. The more I was interested to see your reaction 👌 And to your reaction and explanations I can listen again and again. I never noticed the particularity that there were 7 bars for the melody, and there were many interesting topics you mentioned. I'm just awe-struck by this. Thank you for this fantastic video 👌😃👏👏👏

[@ifandwhen-kl2cr]

The reason it’s called “baroque” is because when Brian Wilson finally got control of the studio the first thing he did was record a harpsichord. The track he used it for was full of complexity as compared to The Beach Boys previous output. The lyrics also were about maturing. In the following few years the harpsichord became a signifier of maturity/complexity in a quickly developing world of pop music used by musicians and producers ad nauseum . (See Beatles, Stones, Doors, Simon and Garfunkel, Kinks, Who, Mamas and Papas, Zombies, Donavan, Yardbirds, Love, Hendrix, Association, Hollies, Monkees, Pink Floyd, Supremes, Bee Gees, Van Morrison and on and on.) A cultural “race to mature” was on and within 2 years it was impossible to listen to pop radio for a half hour without hearing a harpsichord. (By that time Brian Wilson had moved on to Theremin).

[@Firstname.Lastname]

Great comment. I do think it’s a strange choice that she has yet to listen to Good Vibrations or Pet Sounds yet.

[@thomastimlin1724]

Ex public school music teacher here....actually a musician is called baroque when he has no girlfriend or wife...

[@tonytjandra4798]

The subconscious mind of Sir Paul McCartney is extraordinary.

[@Steve-gx9ot]

He was Gifted by God, indeed❤❤

[@Bassman2353]

Glad you noticed the seven measure construction of the verses. To have the lyric "Suddenly" come in one bar before expected in a normal eight-bar construction is one more piece of genius in this song - it truly underscores how "suddenly" his life has changed. Musicologist Wilfrid Mellers has a wonderful deconstruction of "Yesterday" in his book "Twilight of the Gods - The Music of The Beatles".

[@MarkusSellmann]

That's how I always feel, when I listen to many Beatles tunes: happy and melancholyc at the same time. Simply brillant!

[@inkwolf77]

I find her manner of speech so reminiscent of Carl Sagan. The pauses for consideration of what to say, contemplations, clarity and precision of communication, all delivered in a calm but affable manner.

[@Steve-gx9ot]

Reactor is educated. But annoying to watch her try too hard to explain. Seems in-natyral and forced Grinding

[@TillyOrifice]

@@Steve-gx9ot This comment could have used some pauses for consideration of what to say, contemplations, clarity and precision of communication. Also a spelling check.

[@orcaflotta7867]

Isn't it refreshing to hear a narration without all the ums and errs, and that in the year 2024?

[@carolgarcia6180]

So appreciated and very endearing

[@thomastimlin1724]

@@TillyOrifice 😂.

[@geopapa80]

You're getting into the more mature works now.. pure gold

[@altair8598]

Sophisticated simplicity, a song that will outlive generations. I think you would enjoy the film of the same title, its conceit being , 'what would the music scene be like if the Beatles hadn't existed?'. It is light, amusing touching and ironic, with a real kicker near the end which made me well up. Some of the other covers are overwrought, I totally agree with what you say about the 'just enough' and 'not too much'. The slightly more impassioned "why she had to go, I don't know" isn't just resigned melancholy, there is the merest subtle taste of longing. Perfect song and a perfect reaction.

[@blechtic]

Hey dude.

[@lejoe48]

I love the quality of this recording, how pure and classical the voice and the guitar sound. George Martin and Norman Smith.

[@sallymarkey3759]

Your analysis is so fine. You pass on your amazing knowledge to us simply, with elegance, and with the reverence and love the music deserves. Thank you.

[@markforster2794]

Beautifully explained as usual. All this technical musical skill and Paul just dreamt it! We should be thankful that we are living in the time of a musical genius like Macca.

[@nellgwenn]

Same thing with Keith Richards and Satisfaction.

[@zebraphoniamusic1523]

For those of you wondering, the bluesy cello part is right after the second "Why she had to go I don't know, she wouldn't say". The cello moves briefly to an Eb, making the chord an F7, which, as George Martin apparently said, is something you'd never do classically. And so McCartney said, "Oh, we're definitely doing it, then." The way it's described, you'd think it would stick out like a sore thumb, but I've always thought it blends in quite well. You don't really notice anything off about it at all.

[@docsavage8640]

I never noticed it being out of place or unusual until I read about it many years later

[@fromchomleystreet]

To modern western ears, conditioned as we are by a full century of blues-based popular music, it’s completely unremarkable. But to a composer of the baroque period like Bach, who had never encountered the blues and whose sensibility was limited by contemporary convention, you would NEVER add a minor seventh to a major chord built on the tonic of the piece as a whole. It would have sounded very wrong.

[@eduardocervantesaca]

Hi Amy. You will understand more about the sound of the recorded guitar if you watch Paul performing the song live. You will notice that he plays it with two fingers only, his thumb and his index. That is the way he plays many songs. And finally to this day during his concerts he uses the exact same guitar he used during the original recording. That would be a really expensive guitar to lose but he doesnt care and still carries it on tour.

[@docsavage8640]

That's nothing, just think how much his famous Hofner basses would go for at an auction

[@codetech5598]

Paul is actually a sloppy guitar player. I mean there are many guitarists here on KZbin who have much better technique. But they never wrote _Yesterday._

[@joshualopez3260]

I'm going to speak for all of your fans and say that we ALWAYS want to hear you play! Especially The Beatles. Especially YESTERDAY!

[@PFNel]

It's credited to Lennon-McCartney because when they started writing songs, they were inspired by famous songwriting partnerships such as Rogers & Hammerstein, Leiber/Stoller, Pomus/Shuman, and many others. They thought it sounded cool to present themselves as a partnership in that tradition so, on a handshake, they decided that all their songs would be credited to Lennon-McCartney, regardless of their relative contributions. They stuck to the agreement until the breakup. In practice, the vast majority of their songs after the early days were written by one or the other, perhaps with one or two touches from the other. McCartney has also named "Here, There, and Everywhere" as his best song (although my favourite is "For No One", with "Penny Lane" a close second).

[@docsavage8640]

Except their first record credited the songs "McCartney-Lennon"

[@MMT58]

I’m more interested in what you’ll say about McCartney’s other art rock classic - Eleanor Rigby.

[@stevenmeyer9674]

I think that Eleanor Rigby was as good or better than Yesterday.

[@docsavage8640]

@stevenmeyer9674 he has lots of better songs than Yesterday. Eleanor Rigby is just one of them

[@madelefanni749]

Aspetta. Ha finito "Help!", deve ancora arrivare a "Revolver".

[@Steve-gx9ot]

As Einstein said the most Important single "Thing" to him in life is INTUITION which Paul has❤😮

[@michelepaccione8806]

I heard that Lennon’s criticism of the song was that it doesn’t “go anywhere;” there’s no resolution. But that’s the beauty and strength of the song… there IS no resolution. It’s nothing but longing and regret, and the realization that what he’s done to the relationship is irreparable. And the simplicity of the singing and arrangement is perfect…you imagine him alone in his room, resigned to the end of this relationship, longing to go back in time and not say whatever it is he said that was so wrong it changed his life forever.

[@strathman7501]

"doesn't go anywhere" An absurd comment from Lennon. Please Please Me, Tell Me Why, Rain, Strawberrty Fields Forever, Glass Onion, Come Together, etc etc.... Where do they "go"? Nowhere. They describe a situation, express a wish or an opinion or a feeling or ask a question, or vaguely evoke some sort of vibe.. but they don't go anywhere, there's no narrative resolution. In fact Lennon was always the first to sneer at narrative lyrics when Paul came up with them.

[@jamesmanon3000]

​@@strathman7501I read he said that about Foo on the Hill.I guess we read two different books.

[@strathman7501]

@@jamesmanon3000 Quoted interview with David Sheff 1980 re Yesterday: “The lyrics don’t resolve into any sense, they’re good lines. They certainly work, you know what I mean? They’re good- but if you read the whole song, it doesn’t say anything; you don’t know what happened. She left and he wishes it were yesterday, that much you get, but it doesn’t really resolve."

[@docsavage8640]

@michelepaccione8806 except it does resolve itself. It's just one of his usual criticisms caused by envy and bitterness in the early 1970s when he was trying to promote himself and downplay the others

[@yulekyulek4336]

What makes it perfect and balanced is hope. The major scale leaning on "I beiive in yesterday" is the "hope" moment that lifts you after the sadness.

[@jnagarya519]

MUST READ: _All You Need is Ears_ by George Martin. It is in print. His instrument during his music education was oboe. As a producer, in addition to recording "Goon" comedy, he recorded orchestras, and wrote film soundtracks (McCartney's "The Family Way," "classical" interludes in "Yellow Submarine"). And he produced many popular music recordings. The book is simultaneously autobiography, description of the evolution of recording technology, and how "Beatles" recordings were made. He had been a producer for 25 years when "The Beatles" first walked into the studio.

[@thomastimlin1724]

He took oboe lessons from Margaret Eliot (the mother of Jane Asher, who later became involved with Paul McCartney). After that, Martin explained that he had just picked it up by himself. Martin also took courses at Guildhall in music composition and orchestration.

[@jnagarya519]

@@thomastimlin1724 Yes -- he had substantial formal education in music. Then at EMI he eventually rose to producing the stripped-down backwater Parlophone label, where, somewhat out-of-sight-and-out-of-mind, he had some freedom from the otherwise suit-tie-and-white-lab-coat uniform required by the corporate regimentation. It is important to understand the role of producer in and across the industry: they are employed to make money for the corporation that employs them. None of that translates into the fiction that it was he, not "The Beatles," who "made" "The Beatles". At the beginning he was their "instructor," but they were sponges and fast learners. And as their career and success evolved and grew, he gave them more and more freedom, and became "midwife" to their ideas, the ideas taking the lead. And at the end he was trying to keep up. If he hadn't known to LISTEN and give them their head as possible, we wouldn't know anything about him -- who looks at everything on a record sleeve or label (I always ate up ever detail of every record I got)? Who ever cares by whom it was "produced"?

[@stlmopoet]

This was a really great review! It gave me a lot of insight into the mechanics of the song. I have no musical background, so most anything you say is new to me. Thank you. Strangely, this peaceful song brought the fist stirrings of discord in the band. When this was played live, the other three walked offstage and there was, literally, just one spotlight on Paul. The writing of the song didn't bother them, but the performance did. After a little while they stopped performing it live.

[@fredneecher1746]

I've been waiting for this song! A highly informative reaction to a song that has much more about it than at first meets the ear. One curious note (literally) is that although the first word, "Yesterday" is all on one note, everyone seems tempted to sing the "Yes-" part one tone higher. Why is that, do you suppose? Because the one-note "Yesterday" creates an ominous mood, as if something tragic has happened (which it has - he lost the girl), which is not there in the version most people sing. Incidentally, the unexpectedness of The Beatles coming up with a song like this blew my mind back in 1965 when I came home from school with the album and put it on the turntable. Yesterday, indeed, all my troubles were far away.

[@emmanuelmartin1238]

I think I recall someone doing an analysis of the opening notes and came to the conclusion that there's a microtonal shift. Imo Mcartney has a most subtle voice.

[@emanuelediiorio-gp7wl]

Amy, i hope you are strong enough not to read all the comments of a ridiculous amount of haters under this video. Too many people seem to feel entitled to judge upon others based on their life experiences only. These toxic manners are just ridiculous and egocentric. No matter what they believe, your trusted followers know that your reactions are genuine and truthful. Thank you for sharing your musical journey with us! It is a privilege to listen to your thoughts and your so carefully chosen precise words.

[@Latokk]

Don't be so ignorant. It's impossible not to have been exposed to all these songs she is reviewing. She doesn't live on the banks of the Amazon river, deeply into some tropical forest, now does she? Never heard Yesterday? Sound Of Silence? Just stop it.... Edit: my girlfriend suggested she could have escaped from some amish community or something. That would sound fair enough! And edit2: I do like her analysis a lot though :) It doesn't need the 'first listen' bladibladibla at all....

[@hiataki7]

Amy, can't believe that you didn't get to that final droning 'A' note after Paul sings 'love was such an easy game to play' a second time. To me, that stamps this song as immortal.

[@donnabertolotti8954]

As always, a fascinating analysis

[@PaulBrown-kg3qw]

I love your reactions now. Here is a question for you. If Mozart or any of the great composers, had had no musical education i.e. lived in a tiny village away from society, would they still be Mozart etc? Would they still have had all those great melodies inside them. I guess this is how I think of Lennon and McCartney.

[@sillysausage4549]

Sorry to butt in... but no chance. Those classical composers were completely informed by the music of the day, and the past. Without it, it would be liking trying to write a book without an alphabet. They were geniuses, but to borrow a phrase, they were standing on the shoulders of giants

[@PaulBrown-kg3qw]

@@sillysausage4549 I understand what you are saying, but where did their melodies come from, what is the nature of inspiration? Surely the act of creation means you create something that has not been heard before, or you could just nudge it to a slightly different level based on your previous experiences.

[@darcyperkins7041]

​@@sillysausage4549What about oral literature and folk music? Remember: the music came before the theory and the language came before the alphabet. Think of how strange it would be if it were the reverse.

[@netuno60]

I don’t think they would produce all their great music without any music theory or any music listening. I think many of their great music came from their excellent ear, memory and comprehension of the music material pre existing.

[@docsavage8640]

A lot of those melodies were stolen from folk songs...

[@tonytjandra4798]

This story of Paul’s experience highlights the power of the subconscious mind, working away below consciousness to solve a problem, complete a song or piece of music, finish an unfinished manuscript or locate a missing object. How often have we given up looking for something and found some time later that the item “turns up” when we were not consciously looking for it but doing something else. Meanwhile, the subconscious mind has created a new significance and a heightened level of awareness for the item so that when you accidently come into contact with the item, you become suddenly, consciously aware that “this is what I was looking for!” - all very amazing. by Ron Passfield

[@dporper6390]

I don't know why this song and you're insightful analysis brings a steady stream of tears to me.

[@fromchomleystreet]

It’s the major II and major III chords (in the context of a major key) that give it its particular harmonic magic.

[@BRGKasumi77Main]

Amazing song recorded on June 14 & 17, 1965 on Abbey Road's Studio Two along with a string quartet!

[@EddieReischl]

This reaction just kept getting better and better. It was very interesting listening to you discuss the irregularity of the 7 bar construction. And it doesn't really have a refrain, which is not uncommon in Beatle songs. It's sort of amazing it became so popular, because there isn't this one part of the song where everybody joins in and sings along with. I'm glad Paul took his time and gave his music a perfect set of lyrics to go along with what the music was saying. I really think this song was the catapult for the guys starting to take their songwriting extra seriously, as they were starting to get some positive recognition from composers like Henry Mancini and Leonard Bernstein, which drives a young songwriter to put their best foot forward and pay attention to other forms of music and what else is possible. George Martin builds those string arrangements so nicely, that violin is just longing for the day to be yesterday in the last verse, and he always has a nice part for the cello, which is my favorite orchestral instrument, probably because it usually rests in the same pitch area that the guitar does.

[@jorgeb555]

If you listen very carefully, you may notice that each time he sings the word, “yesterday“, he starts on a different note. The first time he sings an F. The second time he sings an A. The last time he sings a G, which is the note we all hear all of the time in our minds. You may argue that he sings the G the first time as well, but it sounds like F to me.

[@davidcarter5038]

Indeed. I'm not a musician but to me it sounds like he sings the first "Yesterday" on the same note but the published score disagrees.

[@fredneecher1746]

@@davidcarter5038 It is on one note. The pitch recorder confirms it. Those scores had to be written by ear, and it seems not everyone's ear is accurate.

[@jorgeb555]

@@davidcarter5038 You are the first person in the entire world who has made the same observation as me. At least thank you for reassuring me that I’m not nuts. 😎

[@gregoryharris4838]

Another amazing breakdown of one of my favorite songs of all time ..Thank you Amy ! I'm curious as to how many of the subtle musical nuances - were concious and deliberate decisions by Paul -( like the beautiful counterpoint of the acsending and decending melodic movement) or were some of these placed by George Martin ? Gregory.

[@sporg]

@@jorgeb555 It's a similar thing with Eleanor Rigby -- most covers of the song start with "El-ean-or" in three semitones -- whereas the original (like this song) has the same first two notes... much nicer!

[@XFLexiconMatt]

I loved your breakdown. Regarding the lyrics, I have often wondered if Paul and Jane Asher had had a minor argument prior to the writing? Jane was often his muse, but they had a tempestuous relationship, Jane was a stage and film actor, that took priority and that caused tension, she was simply too independent, as much as I heard he really loved her. It is interesting that he woke up to this melody. I am not comparing myself to Paul, but often this has happened to me, where I get an idea when I just wake up, where you are in that Twilight state, as a storyteller and music writer, I have had cases of hearing a melody, a character name, and image or idea just as I wake. When your ego has been submerged and open to things, I call this the Alpha zone, you don't even need to be using drugs to be inspired and get into that space. Amazing work from a young Paul, thank you.

[@docsavage8640]

Why? It's clearly inspired by his mother's death when he was young and his regret over blurring out financial concerns

[@J0hnC0ltrane]

Amy I love the sincerity your reaction as is the song Yesterday. Thank you Amy and Vlad.

[@dan2050]

The event that came suddenly in Paul’s life is the death of his mother in 1956 when Paul was 14. His mother only found out she had breast cancer that summer and Paul and his younger brother were kept in the dark. She died in October. When his Dad told the boys their mom died, Paul said “what will we do without her money” as she earned more as a nurse than his Dad. Per his brother, Paul then broke into tears and hid in his bedroom. Years later he wrote about this and his guilt in the lyrics to Yesterday: “why she had to go/ I don’t know she wouldn’t say/ I said something wrong/ now I long for Yesterday”.

[@rickbertoldo-gz9cc]

Love all your reviews……which is really more like an introspection. Keep up the awesome work…. Stay well and thank you… - Rick

[@richardfehlmann4593]

Wonderful to have this now here. Can't wait to watch this but got to wait until I'm free .. 😅

[@drothberg3]

Thank you for the interesting analysis. Two important things occurred to me that you didn’t touch on. One is another thing that musically separates this seemingly simple song from the ordinary, which is that the second and third chords are chromatic. As soon as he establishes the key, with the word “Yesterday” and the tonic chord, he temporarily leaves it. There’s another chromatic chord later, near the end of the verse. The other thing that I find amazing is that he wrote the entire melody before he even had a lyrical concept, and then came up with lyrics that are perfect in terms of naturalness, sentiment matching the music, prosody (the words scanning the melody), and that sound completely unforced.

[@littlejimmy7402]

Some songs I don't believe are written so much as they are pulled from the ether of common experience. This is one of those, there's not a chisel mark on it. I'll also add, it's completely possible that anyone who lives in the U.S. has heard this song in a supermarket, elevator, or dentist's office. I've lived long enough to achieve liking elevator music, yeah me.

[@cgjunglemusic]

Thanks for another great reflection on a great Beatles song! And thank you especially for pointing out that there is nothing baroque about it. I wish people would take the opportunity of the internet and actually delve into the centuries rather than just decades of music. What makes this piece so special is, in my opinion, that obviously nothing in the basic composition was left to McCartney´s decision - he dreamed it, he really just received it. The melodic conclusion alone is absolutely original to my ears.

[@tludden]

Are you implying that Paul is incapable of making good musical decisions? I get that from your tone. I remind you, that despite your opinion, the song “Yesterday “ didn’t write or compose itself.

[@epikourosallebook790]

MASTERPIECE

[@nicolas.ordialesjuarez]

60 years of the dreaming of the melody AND I can't believe Paul Still doesn't realized he wrote a Song about the death of His mother AND Is not about a romance. Look at the lyrics like almost doesn't make Sense until you realized Is talking about His childhood (easy- game- to play) before His mother's death AND the natural feeling of "guilt" ("i said something wrong?") about it as a son💔 : "why she had to go? I don't know..."

[@docsavage8640]

"Something wrong" was his shocked immediate response "what will we do without her money?" knowing his mother was the primary earner in the McCartney house

[@joshualopez3260]

You finally got me. Now I have to go pay to watch this! I can't wait!

[@eccentriastes6273]

This is quite a milestone in the Beatles' career. It's interesting to hear they had some reservations about it at the time. The success of this song may have emboldened them to move further from their roots. Doing a song with only one Beatle also set a precedent. There were more to come, though of course they didn't become the norm. More importantly, from here on they grew more independent from each other as artists, John and Paul (and George insofar as he could get them to record his songs) taking their songwriting in different directions and sometimes clashing over it. It was ultimately a factor in the band's breakup.

[@narlycat]

If Bach were here he wouldn't play that bluesy line, well great if Bach ever comes back we'll have to show him around, show him what we did with the place 😅

[@codetech5598]

At 23:18 what you hear is because the key is concert F but is played using G guitar chords with each string being tuned down a full step, causing the strings to be loose and buzzy.

[@yinoveryang4246]

Just checked out the King Singers version of this song. They've introduced a lot of altered type chords and irresolution. Which really detracts from the songs emotional impact and meaning, Which is possibly why it didn't strike home when you heard it before. It may have also have detracted from your appreciation of it, when you mention the sentimentality. `

[@jorgeb555]

Without hearing it, any change to the melody or chord progression sounds extremely misguided. 😒

[@abrahammontano2256]

She looks like the nicest person on earth.

[@davidlauder-qi5zv]

She's the most irritating person on earth.

[@MikeBruno-qt5es]

A humorous story about this song. McCartney said that the first time that he performed this song on the Ed Sullivan show, he was really nervous because he would be performing it alone without the other Beatles. He tried to calm himself down saying it'll be ok. The guy running the curtains asked him "are you nervous"? Paul said that he wasn't and the guy said to him ,"you should be. There are 30 million people getting ready to watch you".

[@martingifford5415]

Also, Paul said he wanted to keep the tempo up to reduce the sentimentality. Imagine if it were sung at a slower tempo!

[@fatimaerdogan8193]

I can't really remember hearing Beatles on the radio. However, besides covers, many of their songs have been arranged for classical instrumentation, hence find their way into classical radio. One of these is "Blackbird" (1968) - especially arranged for solo guitar. Blackbird is like Yesterday a Paul solo. Only Pauls guitar (and audible tap of his foot) is recorded, but in the second half a real blackbird sings along. The guitar playing is itself inspired by Bachs bourree!

[@johnwest7993]

It's just simple enough to sound entirely sincere. His vocal presentation is just simple enough. The lyrics are just simple enough. The instrumentals are just simple enough. It's all just simple enough to become a famous and well loved song. The first time I heard it many decades ago I thought, this is the best song the Beatles have ever done. I still think that, although now I know that it was essentially just Paul's song.

[@stevenmeyer9674]

How much of this song could be credited to George Martin?

[@AdamCortright]

Better than Tomorrow Never Knows? A Day in the Life? Strawberry Fields? Come Together?

[@jeffjaworski7182]

@@AdamCortrightYup

[@johnwest7993]

@@AdamCortright, yes. It projects a personal, honest simplicity and sincerity that all the subtleties included only adds to. Paul got it right. He has a deep sense of musical 'rightness' on par with the greats of musical history.

[@docsavage8640]

@stevenmeyer9674 none. Helping arrange a song doesn't earn you a credit as a songwriter

[@D800Lover]

I remember when it came out and rather being shmaltzy, it just came across as one of the bravest pieces of music and it almost shocked us, then it amazed us. And the reaction was _"only the The Beatles."_ It was not considered a sad piece, quite the contrary. It woke us up. It opened our eyes to the possibility and power of music, but only if you were brave enough.

[@intheflesh8356]

Well, as they say… if it ain’t Baroque, don’t fix it

[@brandonflorida1092]

You absolutely have encyclopedic knowledge of your field. There's no doubt about that. but for a music professor to have never heard the most covered song in popular music history is just weird.

[@paulridoutt8529]

Yep. Super weird

[@DavidBrant-l4m]

Not really if you understand her upbringing

[@brandonflorida1092]

@@DavidBrant-l4m On Mars?

[@darcyperkins7041]

​@@brandonflorida1092Rural area of California, then an Amish community and mostly listened to classical, if I remember correctly from her videos.

[@DavidBrant-l4m]

@brandonflorida1092 A tadge rude that. No learn her story & then maybe you wouldn't be so rude

[@gregorybrown3272]

In 1965 the Beatles mastered the Pop Song, over the course of the next two albums, they explore what a Pop Song can be, and, what can be a Pop Song. Buckle up!

[@hansvandermeulen5515]

I think this is the very first baroque pop song. Another style The Beatles pioneered.

[@ifandwhen-kl2cr]

Come on, now.

[@docsavage8640]

@ifandwhen-kl2cr no, "Come On Now" was the Kinks

[@ifandwhen-kl2cr]

@@docsavage8640 Dave Davies, nice

[@garyneilson3075]

I used to spend all my juke box money on this when it came out, I was just 'in the zone' with it, and never wanted out of it..... And still, hearing it, I slide right back into that..... Zone.....

[@yes_head]

This is one of those times when not being able to hear the whole song (even chopped up) is especially maddening. And yeah, the string arrangement is much more early-mid 1800's, but the term 'baroque' works best cuz most people easily understand it to be associated with 'classical music'. If they'd called it 'classical pop', that might mean something entirely different. About the sentimentality, even at the time it came across as conspicuously sweet. But the strength of the song overcomes most criticisms. Paul was playing it in the Beatle's live shows right off the bat, which you can imagine was not only a bit awkward, but also a challenge given they were up till then a four piece rock band with instruments, amps and microphones, and that's it. Now they had to figure out what to do with the acoustic guitar part (sometimes it was a miked acoustic and sometimes he'd play it on an electric) and the strings (it was usually piped into the PA via a tape player -- manually synced with no monitors or click!)

[@colindebourg9012]

A song which conveys the loneliness and pathos of a person's life and end, brilliantly written by a 23 year old, that's talent.

[@harrybartok]

Paul lived with the Ashers in Wimpole Street in 1965. The house is today worth about $12 million and he and John would frequently write songs there. He shared a floor with Peter Asher, who went on to produce and manage Linda Ronsdart and James Taylor. Margaret Asher was a music professor at a music school. She taught George Martin the oboe and Paul the recorder. Paul lost his mother at 14 and allegedly viewed Margaret Asher as a surrogate mother. One wonders whether his classical leanings reflected a need to impress Margaret. After he split from Jane Asher, the classical influences disappeared. He missed his talks with Margaret.

[@buddyneher9359]

Well.... he did return to classical forms later with Standing Stone and Liverpool Oratorio.

[@Dreadtower]

McCartney has a natural tendancy towards what I would term ‘formal beauty’. It does hark back to the Classical Period of Mozart and, to a very large extent, Beethoven. It allows him to present the melody in a very understated manner, knowing the formal beauty will carry the motive. The ‘missing bar’ has fascinated me for years.

[@mickyochoaify]

I have a hard time believing that any musician of any genre has not heard this song.

[@Rickengeezer]

Is anyone else waiting eagerly for Amy to get to "She's Leaving Home"?

[@patricknelson5151]

Check back in the history. “She’s Leaving Home” was actually the second song Amy did on the channel. “She’s Leaving Home” and “Strawberry Fields Forever” are currently the only two post-1965 Beatles songs she has listened to.

[@Rickengeezer]

@@patricknelson5151 I had checked and didn't see it, and I still can't find it. When I sort by "oldest" the first two songs I see are Queen and Metallica. Do you have a link? Thanks!

[@MMT58]

………..😏

[@yinoveryang4246]

@@Rickengeezer Its been removed because that one had the music playing on it, so inevitably it eventually got a copyright strike. She had to remove them, they are on her patreon channel I believe.

[@slavaukraini404]

The harp, yes.

[@Richard2003]

There actually is a movie titled Yesterday including the song.

[@docsavage8640]

Yeah. A lousy movie.

[@scottlang6065]

Love this!!! thanks!!!

[@ivanivic9901]

Great psychological analyses of poems. If I may, I’d recommend that you listen to ‘No Ordinary Love’ by Sade and ‘Orinoco Flow’ by Enya.

[@docsavage8640]

I think she prefers good music

[@ivanivic9901]

@@docsavage8640 Obviously, you haven’t heard anything from Sade and Enya. That’s sad.

[@Bassman2353]

To answer your question concerning George Martin, he attended Guildhall in London and took courses in conducting and orchestration, musical theory, harmony and counterpoint among other subjects. His primary instrument was piano (and had a number of bands prior to employment at Parlophone) and became a self-described mediocre oboist. The Beatles could hardly have found a more perfect collaborator - and Sir George had a phenomenal quote concerning the Beatles I'll search out when I have a chance. Suffice it to say, as crazy as that era was he loved them for it.

[@ricardo_miguel13]

Baroque Pop is just the genre challed, also chamber pop. Just some instruments that were used in the baroque era. It was a thing in the mid to late 60s. Even added to the clothing and style

[@Mibbitmaker]

It fit well into the psychedelic style of that era (esp. use of harpsicord), just like music from India did.

[@ianclarke3627]

You are very lucky ,I imagine so many more Beatles songs must have past you by . So much quality to catch up with .

[@walterhambrick8705]

Thank you for sharing.

[@jnagarya519]

After you've gone through the analysis, listen to the song all the way through without interruption. Then go back and listen to "Twist and Shout" again. And the song "I'm Down" ("B"-side to "Help!" single): that was McCartney's first "Little Richard" performance of a song not written by Little Richard. Note that the lead guitar as Harrison plays changes with each verse; it helps to watch their live performance of those two songs on "Ed Sullivan" in August, 1965.

[@lynby6231]

Don’t worry sometimes I can’t remember yesterday either, especially if I had a drink or two. I think you should listen to “Turn of the century” by Yes, I’m sure you will find it fascinating 🙂

[@johnhitchens2265]

gorgeous song

[@julian65886]

Did she mentioned how Paul wanted the string players to use very little vibrato while playing? Or how Paul added the pedal high note in the last verse? It adds massive longing feelings as the tune marches to the end.

[@fredpsal]

McCartney's voice was so smooth and sweet, in spite of the fact it was recorded right after his screamer, "I'm Down".

[@bohbro]

Haven’t scrolled all the comments but yet another genius is how the lyrics can apply to any lost love. “Why she had to go, I don’t know, she wouldn’t say”. Is it something he did? Or she did? Or didn’t do? We’ve all wondered.

[@MrDiddyDee]

Paul's comments you read about the chord progression make a bit more sense once you know that there are many ways a guitar can be tuned, other than the common standard of E A D G B e. It's an avenue that The Beatles very rarely ventured into though, other than possibly dropping the low E string down to D. However, they did write songs in which the chords they actually played in would sound in another key, by the use of a capo which would lift the key that is heard. A prominent example would be George Harrison's 'Here comes the sun', which sounds in A, but was in fact played in D with a capo fitted at the 7th fret, giving the guitar a very bright, sunny and tight sound by playing so high up the guitar neck. In the case of 'Yesterday', as Paul mentioned, he wrote the song starting with a G major, but at some point, either to suit his vocal performance better or to suit the string section better, he detuned his guitar down a full tone so the strings then sounded as D G C F A d. So as he played his original chords in G , it now sounded in the key of F.

[@grichard1585]

It's odd that she has such a problem with YT copyright when a quick search of - the beatles yesterday reaction - you can find many reactions with the entire song.

[@hiataki7]

I've searched all over YT and can not find a logical answer to why reaction videos get away with using the entire song and 'analysis' videos are held to a different standard.

[@jnagarya519]

John and Paul were writing songs before they met. When together in the band one would bring an unfinished song to the other, and they'd both work on it. Or they sat down and wrote together beginning to end. Or they wrote songs individually that were recorded by the full band. In all instances they were credited to Lennon-McCartney. Some "Beatles" songs were written entirely by John but, credited to Lennon-McCartney, as they had agreed to do from the beginning. I doubt Paul complains about getting 50 per cent of the royalties in those instances.

[@netzahuacoyotl]

The loose sound of the guitar strings is because the guitar was tuned down a whole step. Paul wrote the guitar accompaniment in G. When the decision to add strings was made, George Martin felt F would be a better key for the strings. Of course that would play havoc with the chord shapes on the guitar and the use of open strings. So the solution was to tune the guitar down so that Paul could play the chord shapes that he was using already.

[@johnsilva9139]

One thing I always wondered about was whether the lyrics were written about something that happened to Paul personally, about a specific relationship that he had. I don't think he ever commented one way or another about that.

[@arimakiaho2960]

Beethoven's "Song of Joy" was the unconscious inspiration.

[@davidlauder-qi5zv]

And how do you know?

[@chriseckert613]

With this album, you are exploring a period of rock music more heavily influenced by baroque, classical and romantic period music. I think it would be interesting for you and Vlad to have you explore some of the music that was coming out around the same time as this part of your Beatles journey. To my untrained ear, representing baroque influence, we have God Only Knows (1966) and Bridge Over Troubled Water (1970). A Whiter Shade of Pale (1967) is a classically influenced song. Finally, representing the "too much" romantic period, check out the album version of Nights in White Satin (1967). Hearing your tastes in music, you might roll your eyes at Nights in White Satin and at the same time find it beautiful. About all of these, I'm curious to hear what you think.

[@benoitrenaud519]

Interesting to know that the 7th at the base at the start of part B was Paul’s idea. He uses the same structure in the Long and Winding Road, with more emphasis. His other very sad song.

[@shacharh5470]

baroque pop (also chamber pop) is pop-rock written or arranged with chamber music instrumentation e.g. string quartet or a wind quintet or anything like that

[@colindonald3161]

Listening to some covers of this would be fun, I would vote for the ray charles version

[@davidwhite8220]

The second chord is not a relative minor. It's Em7 followed by A7, then Dm. This is to say that the first chord change goes outside the "proper" key. That's the Beatles, or rather McCartney, for you.

[@gustavogutierrezsuarez2051]

I knew this chapter was going to be this epic!! 😊

[@danielrockmyer949]

One day years ago, I was cleaning my living room while listening to a classical music radio station. While cleaning I heard in this instrumental classical piece, the melody of Yesterday. When I heard it I stopped what I was doing, and I said out loud, that's Yesterday. This classical piece was a long tune, about 20 minutes at least. Somewhere in the middle of it was the melody of Yesterday. I don't know which classical composer it was or the name of it. But what I do know is that it is a Fact that Paul McCartney of the Beatles subconsciously remembered this melody and it became Yesterday by The Beatles. 100% Real Fact.

[@terryhunt2659]

How do you know it wasn't a modern classical arrangement of 'Yesterday'? That seems rather more likely than that _no-one_ in nearly sixty years has ever identified a classical work from which the melody might have come. There have been over 2,000 different versions of this song, some of them certainly in a classical style.

[@MMT58]

Maybe you’re referring to Claude Debussy’s ‘La Mer,’ Debussy refered to it as three symphonic sketches, but it really is a symphony in three parts. If you listen to part one: From Dawn To Noon At Sea, check out the melody around 10:36. 😉

[@Palimbacchius]

It's not any kind of fact without evidence.

[@fromchomleystreet]

As beautiful as it is, I always thought the structure slightly let’s this song down. It starts with two verses before the bridge, and that works perfectly. But then there’s just ONE verse before the reprise of the bridge, and to my mind that always seems like not nearly enough time has elapsed - not enough “space” - between the two iterations of the bridge. I’m just never ready for the bridge to return yet. It always feels like what it really needed was an instrumental verse stuck in there before we get back to the bridge.

[@babyfacemichael1]

Once you have finished your Beatles 150 you should watch the brilliant film ` Yesterday` on Amy`s Cut , as its a wonderful fantasy ,about a hopeless musician, who after being knocked unconscious, discovers he`s the only person in the world who knows the Beatles songs , and in an alternate reality, they never met up- its my favourite film of 2019 , no surprise there !!

[@braudabo]

I don't like the film. The approach was certainly interesting, but the implementation was ultimately completely illogical, as well as a poor choice of songs.