For No One
Working title: Why Did It Die?Written by: Paul McCartney (100%)
(credited to Lennon-McCartney)
Recorded: May 9, 16, and 19, 1966 (Studio 2, Abbey Road Studios, London, England)
Mixed: June 21, 1966
Length: 2:03
Takes: 14
Musicians:
Paul McCartney: lead vocals, bass guitar (1961 Hofner 500/1), piano (1905 Steinway Vertegrand "Mrs. Mills"), clavichord
Ringo Starr: drums (Ludwig), tambourines
Alan Civil: French horn
Available on: (CDs in bold)
Revolver (UK: Parlophone PMC 7009; PCS 7009; US: Capitol (S)T 2576; Parlophone CDP 7 46441 2)
Love Songs (UK: Parlophone PCSP 721, US: Capitol SKBL 11711)
History:
- This sad yet stately McCartney ballad, yet another high point of Revolver, was written sometime in March of 1966, while he was enjoying a ski vacation with his girlfriend, actress Jane Asher, in Klosters, Switzerland. Paul himself says this portrait of a breakup is semi-autobiographical, and so it's been suggested that an argument with Asher while in the Swiss Alps led to its creation. Later statements, however, seemed to clarify that it had something to do with a couple that got very serious at a young age -- which suggests the real subject is his first real Beatle-era girlfriend, Dot Rhone, his steady girlfriend from age 16 and the subject of "P.S. I Love You." Rhone claimed Paul had broken up with her because the band was on the verge of being famous, yet the recollections of Paul's own brother Mike, as well as a surviving letter from earlier band member Stuart Sutcliffe, suggests that Dot broke the relationship off, which would be more in keeping with the tone of the song.
- Originally entitled "Why Did It Die?," the song's surviving handwritten lyrics, penned in the chalet, contain some more hopeful lines that were eventually excised: "Why did it die? I'd like to know, try to save it," and "You believe it may work out one day, you need each other." The original chorus of "No sign of love behind the tears / cried for no one" was "Why did it die? You'd like to know / Cry and blame her" and "Why did it die? I'd like to know / Try and save it."
- "For No One" was recorded very simply, with Paul (on piano) and Ringo laying down the basic track on May 9, 1966; Ringo then went back and added hi-hat emphasis in the verses, and maracas and tambourine to liven up the chorus. Paul then added the sound of a clavichord, a sort of harpsichord in which the keys are struck like a piano rather than plucked, which added to the delicate chamber-music feel of the track. (George Martin has claimed the instrument came from his home; others present insist it was rented.) On the 16th, McCartney laid down bass and his vocal track, and Ringo contributed a second tambourine.
- The track needed just one more finishing touch, and Paul suggested a French Horn, having always liked its distinctive sound. On the 19th, Martin called up Alan Civil, whom he'd known as an Abbey Road session player since the early '50s. Here the memories differ: McCartney and George Martin both claim that Paul himself came up with the melody for the solo, but Alan has insisted he came up with it completely from scratch. All agree that it was Paul and John's idea to have Alan incorporate a note at "high F," one note higher than the range of the actual instrument. Civil complied, but when Paul, not realizing how well the horn player had done, asked him politely if he couldn't come up with something better, Alan became rather angry. The solo stayed as you hear it.
Trivia:
- Civil was one of the first outside musicians to get credit on a Beatles track; tabla player Anil Bhagwat is the only other such credit on Revolver, having performed on "Love You To."
- The basic track of "For No One" was recorded in C, but for some reason, Paul decided to cut the vocals and bass tracks in Bb and then speed them up to fit. Civil was playing a Bb flat horn and so the engineers brought the track down a whole step for him, too, but when the result sounded strange, they sped the track up a half-step (more or less) and recorded the solo in B.
- Along with "Here, There and Everywhere," this was one of John's favorite Paul ballads.
- This song was re-recorded by Paul for his 1984 film Give My Regards To Broad Street, and also performed by him during his 2004 world tour. Emmylou Harris sang the song for him at the White House in 2010, when President Barack Obama honored him with the coveted Gershwin Award.
Covered by: Elliott Smith, Rick Springfield, Cilla Black, Emmylou Harris, Chet Atkins, Floyd Cramer, Rickie Lee Jones, Elvis Costello, Maureen McGovern, Liza Minnelli, Maceo Parker, Pat DiNizio, Diana Krall, Barclay James Harvest, Zap Mama, Maura O'Connell, Janis Siegel and Fred Hersch, Blackwater Park, Caetano Veloso, Theo Bikel, Jon and Randy, Andrea Marcovicci, Meret Becker, Peter Mulvey, Gregorian, The Farewell Drifters
