In 1960, the American girl group the Shirelles released "Boys" as the B-side of "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" (Scepter single 1211), published by Ludix Pub. Inc. (BMI).[1]
The Beatles' version was recorded at Abbey Road Studios on February 11, 1963, in a single take. It is Ringo Starr's first recorded lead vocal with the Beatles and, as the fifth track on the Beatles' first album, Please Please Me, represents the first time many fans heard Starr singing a lead vocal.[2] This version bears many similarities to Ray Charles's hit "What'd I Say", particularly during the chorus verses. February 11 was a marathon day for the Beatles, because they recorded 10 of the 14 tracks they needed for Please Please Me.[3] The band also included another song by the Shirelles, "Baby It's You" on the album.[4][5]
The Beatles did not concern themselves about possible homosexual undertones that go with singing a song about boys, although they altered the gender pronouns employed on the Shirelles' version (e.g. "My girl says when I kiss her lips..."). In an October 2005 Rolling Stone interview, Paul McCartney stated: "Any one of us could hold the audience. Ringo would do 'Boys', which was a fan favourite with the crowd. And it was great — though if you think about it, here's us doing a song and it was really a girls' song. 'I talk about boys now!' Or it was a gay song. But we never even listened. It's just a great song. I think that's one of the things about youth — you just don't give a shit. I love the innocence of those days."[6]
McCartney also said: "Ringo always used to do a song in the show. Back then he had 'Boys'. It was a little embarrassing because it went, 'I'm talking about boys - yeah, yeah - boys'. It was a Shirelles hit and they were girls singing it, but we never thought we should call it Girls, just because Ringo was a boy. We just sang it the way they'd sung it and never considered any implications." (Paul McCartney. From Anthology.)[7]
"Boys" had always been the Beatles' "drummer" song during their Cavern days – Pete Best sang it at that time[8] – and it was their main "drummer" song until 1964.[7] Coincidentally, Starr also sang the song for his solo spot with Rory Storm and the Hurricanes, and Cilla Black would sometimes join him on stage, sharing the microphone.[9] Best released his own version of the song in 1965.
A live version of the song was included on the Beatles live album The Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl, first released in 1977, and re-released in 2016 as Live at the Hollywood Bowl. Recorded on 23 August 1964, 'Boys' was the first track to be released on digital download and streaming platforms, one week prior to the full remastered album release on 9 September 2016.
On February 9, 2014, Ringo performed "Boys" as part of the finale on the CBS 50th-anniversary special of the Beatles' first Ed Sullivan Show appearance on February 9, 1964, and later performed it again, with the help of Green Day, for his Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction.
On July 7, 2020, Joe Walsh performed the song as part of a virtual concert celebrating Ringo Starr's 80th birthday.
↑ Harry, Bill (1992). The Ultimate Beatles Encyclopedia. p.118. ISBN0-86369-681-3.
↑ Harry, Bill (2000). The Beatles Encyclopedia: Revised and Updated. p.202.
↑ MacDonald, Ian (2005). Revolution in the Head: The Beatles' Records and the Sixties (Second Reviseded.). London: Pimlico (Rand). pp.73–74. ISBN1-84413-828-3.
Please Please Me is the debut studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Produced by George Martin, it was released in the UK on EMI's Parlophone label on 22 March 1963. The album is 14 songs in length, and contains a mixture of cover songs and original material written by the partnership of band members John Lennon and Paul McCartney.
A Hard Day's Night is the third studio album by the English rock band the Beatles, released on 10 July 1964 by Parlophone, with side one containing songs from the soundtrack to their film of the same name. The American version of the album was released two weeks earlier, on 26 June 1964 by United Artists Records, with a different track listing that included selections from George Martin's film score. In contrast to the Beatles' first two albums, all 13 tracks on A Hard Day's Night were written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, showcasing the development of their songwriting partnership.
"Love Me Do" is the debut single by the English rock band the Beatles, backed by "P.S. I Love You". When the single was originally released in the United Kingdom on 5 October 1962, it peaked at number 17. It was released in the United States in 1964 and topped the nation's song chart. Re-released in 1982 as part of EMI's Beatles 20th anniversary, it re-entered the UK charts and peaked at number 4. "Love Me Do" also topped the charts in Australia and New Zealand.
"What Goes On" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, featured as the eighth track on their 1965 album Rubber Soul. The song was later released as the B-side of the US single "Nowhere Man", and then as the tenth track on the North America-only album Yesterday and Today. It is the only song by the band credited to Lennon–McCartney–Starkey and the only song on Rubber Soul that features Ringo Starr on lead vocals. The song reached number 81 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in 1966.
"Thank You Girl" is a song recorded by the English rock band the Beatles, written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. It was issued as the B-side of the single "From Me to You", which was recorded on the same day. While not released on an LP in the United Kingdom until Rarities in 1978, the song was the second track on The Beatles' Second Album in the United States. As the B-side of the single "Do You Want to Know a Secret", it hit No. 35 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the spring of 1964.
"Oh! Darling" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, appearing as the fourth song on their eleventh studio album Abbey Road (1969). It was written primarily by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney. Its working title was "Oh! Darling ". Although not issued as a single in either the United Kingdom or the United States, a regional subsidiary of Capitol successfully edited it as a single in Central America, having "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" as its B-side. It was also issued as a single in Portugal. Apple Records released "Oh! Darling" in Japan with "Here Comes the Sun" in June 1970.
"Please Please Me" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles. It was their second single in the United Kingdom, and their first in the United States. It is also the title track of their first LP, which was recorded to capitalise on the success of the single. It is a John Lennon composition, although its ultimate form was significantly influenced by producer George Martin.
"Octopus's Garden" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written and sung by Ringo Starr, from their 1969 album Abbey Road. George Harrison, who assisted Starr with the song, commented: "'Octopus's Garden' is Ringo's song. It's only the second song Ringo wrote, and it's lovely." He added that the song gets very deep into the listener's consciousness "because it's so peaceful. I suppose Ringo is writing cosmic songs these days without even realising it." It was the last song released by the Beatles featuring Starr on lead vocals.
"Sun King" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1969 album Abbey Road. Written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney, it is the second song of the album's climactic medley. Like other tracks on the album the song features lush multi-tracked vocal harmonies, provided by Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison.
"Carry That Weight" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1969 album Abbey Road. Written by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney, it is the seventh and penultimate song in the album's climactic side-two medley. It features unison vocals in the chorus from all four Beatles, a rarity in their songs. It is preceded by "Golden Slumbers" and segues into "The End".
"Girl" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1965 album Rubber Soul. It was written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. "Girl" was the last complete song recorded for that album. "Girl" is considered to be one of the most melancholic and complex of the Beatles' earlier love songs.
"Hold Me Tight" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1963 album With the Beatles. It was first recorded during the Please Please Me album session, but not selected for inclusion and re-recorded for their second album.
"You've Really Got a Hold on Me" is a song written by Smokey Robinson, which became a 1962 Top 10 hit single for the Miracles. One of the Miracles' most covered tunes, this million-selling song received a 1998 Grammy Hall of Fame Award. It has also been selected as one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll. It was recorded by the Beatles for their second album, With the Beatles (1963). Many other musicians also recorded versions.
"Ask Me Why" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles originally released in the United Kingdom as the B-side of their single "Please Please Me". It was also included on their 1963 debut album Please Please Me. It was written primarily by John Lennon and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership.
"P.S. I Love You" is a song recorded by English rock band the Beatles in 1962. It was composed principally by Paul McCartney, and produced by Ron Richards. The song was released in the UK on 5 October 1962 as the B-side of their debut single "Love Me Do" and is also included on their debut album Please Please Me (1963). It was later included on the American release Introducing... The Beatles (1964), its reissue The Early Beatles (1965), and the Beatles compilation album Love Songs (1977).
"Do You Want to Know a Secret" is a song by English rock band the Beatles from their 1963 album Please Please Me, sung by George Harrison. In the United States, it was the first top ten song to feature Harrison as a lead singer, reaching No. 2 on the Billboard chart in 1964 as a single released by Vee-Jay, VJ 587. In the UK, Billy J. Kramer released a cover of the song as his debut single, reaching No. 1 on the NME singles chart and No. 2 on the Record Retailer chart.
"There's a Place" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their debut album, Please Please Me, released in March 1963. It was written primarily by John Lennon and credited to McCartney–Lennon. In the United States, the song was released in July 1963 on the group's first US LP, Introducing... The Beatles, later reissued in January 1964 as Beatlemania surged there. It was also issued as a non-album single in the US, in March 1964, as the B-side to "Twist and Shout", reaching number 74 in the Billboard Hot 100.
"I'll Get You" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, and released by the Beatles as the B-side of their 1963 single "She Loves You". The song was initially titled "Get You in the End".
"Baby It's You" is a song written by Burt Bacharach (music), Luther Dixon, and Mack David (lyrics). It was recorded by the Shirelles and the Beatles and was a hit for both. The highest-charting version of "Baby It's You" was by the band Smith, who took the track to No.5 on the US charts in 1969.
"If You've Got Trouble" is a song written by Lennon–McCartney and recorded by the Beatles on 18 February 1965 with Ringo Starr singing the lead vocal. The song was intended to be Starr's vocal appearance on the Help! album and the Help! film, but the Beatles were not happy with the recording and later chose to record "Act Naturally" instead. "If You've Got Trouble" remained unreleased until Anthology 2 in 1996.
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