This Beatles podcast episode attempts to get at why Help feels so relatable even after all these years. We are joined by songwriter Jeremy Ivey and open up the song as a John Lennon turning point, a George Harrison guitar showcase, and a surprisingly strange bit of Beatles detective work.

We cover:

-George Harrison’s lead guitar part, the chromatic descent, and the countrified feel of the playing

-How John wrote Help, from the film title to Paul’s counter melody

-The mystery of a secret recording session pieced together from photos uncovered in 2002

-Where Help landed on the music charts with the other songs of the day

Check out Jeremy Ivey: https://jeremyivey.net

Video on George's guitar part: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ec6M_6ua16o

Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries

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In this Beatles Lecture Series episode, Kenyon argues that “That Means a Lot” is one of Paul McCartney’s strangest songs, sounding deeply like Paul and strangely unlike him at the same time as an apparently simple love song turns anxious, vulnerable, and hard to pin down. It makes you hear the song less as a minor castoff and more as a fascinating anomaly, where emotional need, uncertainty, and real musical ambition are all pulling in different directions.

Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries

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In this Beatles podcast episode, Mary Devlin joins us for a songwriter’s conversation about That Means a Lot, one of the more interesting Beatles deep cuts. As usual, there is more here than meets the eye, and we have a sharp discussion about songwriting, social media, and Beauty and the Beast.

We cover:

-How That Means a Lot could be Paul's response to Ticket to Ride

-Is there a number of chords you need to have a good song?

-PJ Proby’s version of the song

-The Beatles’ multiple attempts to record the song, including a Beatles first

Check out Mary's socials: https://hoo.be/beatledirt

Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries

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On this episode of our Beatles podcast, we take a song Peter barely knew and turn it into one of the most spirited conversations in the series. On Bad Boy, Note by Note brings in Jesse Pollack from All You Need Is Pod to talk about this iconic track, one of the last of its kind.

We cover:

-Larry Williams’ original versus the Beatles version and what changed in the arrangement

-John Lennon’s vocal performance and the debate over where it ranks among Beatles covers

-The emergency Help-era session, Beatles VI, and the rush to get the song to America

-The Hohner Pianet C, the Studer tape machine, and a new recording technique

Check out All You Need Is Pod: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/all-you-need-is-pod/id1857843520

Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries

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In this Beatles Lecture Series, “Yes It Is” stops sounding like a simple warning about a color and starts sounding like grief masked as control, with the lecture arguing the real “it” is pride and the performance carries a ghost-like weight. You also get a guided listen through the three-part harmony, why it feels unusually crunchy and a little unstable, how it shifts between tight clusters and barbershop-like movement, and the question of how much George Martin may have shaped what we’re hearing.

Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries

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This Beatles Lecture Series argues that Ticket to Ride is built on contradictions: the words keep flipping between heartbreak and irritation while the track itself feels bright enough to sound like a shrug. Once you hear how “not caring” can read like a mask instead of confidence, you’ll stop taking the song’s attitude at face value.

Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries

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On this Beatles podcast, Note by Note goes deep on Yes It Is and why it lands like a private confession. We explore the emotional core, the craft behind the recording, and how this B-side fits into the bigger "cry for help" thread.

We cover:

-Storytime: Peter and Kenyon band history and origin story

-Comparisons: Yes It Is next to This Boy and the A-side Ticket To Ride

-Recording details: how the session evolved, including choices around vocals and takes

-Music theory: harmony and chord movement, with a focus on why the chorus feels so intense

]-Sound and texture: George’s volume pedal and how production shapes the mood

Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Season 2 kicks off with Ticket To Ride on this Beatles podcast, and it turns into one of those conversations where the song keeps getting bigger the longer you sit with it. We jump through personal memories, the emotional push and pull of a happy-sad track, the feel of that unforgettable guitar line, and a few surprising detours that shed more light on this song's role in the Beatles canon.

We cover:

-How Ticket To Ride hits different as grown-ups

-The rhythm, groove, and musical choices that give the track its tension and momentum

-Lyrics, title meaning, and how our brains mishear songs we swear we know

-A pop culture thread that unexpectedly preserves a piece of Beatles history

Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries

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A Beatles podcast where a “throwaway” closer turns into a full-on investigation with Dan Rivkin, the guy who went second-by-second through the Get Back Nagra tapes. If you’ve ever skipped “Everybody’s Trying to Be My Baby,” this episode is a serious attempt to make you hear why it matters.

We cover:

- Dan Rivkin’s Nagra-tape method and why it changed Get Back study

- Beatles for Sale’s closer, George’s vocal, and what the song is doing as an ending

- Rex Griffin vs Carl Perkins vs The Beatles: what’s actually shared and what’s not

- October 18 session details: one take, overdubs, and early STEED echo on vocal

- Storytime: the 1964 “Another Beatles Christmas Show” pantomime and the live set

Dan Rivkin's website: https://theymaybeparted.com/

Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries

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This week on our Beatles podcast, we bring in a fourth voice and it gets delightfully nerdy fast. Guest Raymond Schillinger from You Can’t Unhear This joins us to re-hear “What You’re Doing” like it is hiding in plain sight.

We cover:

- Why “What You’re Doing” feels like a throwaway song

- The song’s girl group fingerprints in the call and response vocals

- The bass fill at the end, maybe the first time the Beatles had one

- Recording breakdown: the September 1964 sessions

- Seltaeb, NEMS, Stramsact, the lawsuit, and the merch money fallout

Raymond's Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@YouCantUnhearThis

Website: https://www.notebynoteseries.com

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/NoteByNoteSeries

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/notebynoteseries

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.