# What is the definitive Beatles song? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 23, 2003, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817 "2003-11-23T06:29:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/1 "2003-11-23T06:29:32Z")
I don’t mean the _best_ song, necessarily, and I don’t mean individual statements like Lennon’s “Across the Universe” or McCartney’s “Yesterday.” I mean what song wpould you say best defines and typifies the Beatles collectively as a band. My vote would go to “All You Need Is Love.” It has Lennon’s word play and philosophic sense, Paul’s melodic signature, a typically simple yet distint guitar solo from George and, as always, Ringo’s solid and underrated drumming. To me it sums up the Beatles as a band with both it’s message and it’s music. Any other ideas out there? ---
**Author:** ![syncrolecyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f08c70/32.png) [@syncrolecyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/syncrolecyne)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 7:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/2 "2003-11-23T07:23:11Z")
“There’s A Place” was off their first album, and I don’t think it ever became a hit. I have never heard it on the radio even. It’s one of their less noted songs…yet it captures their collective personality very well. The cliche is the Beatles wrote simple boy loves girl songs until “Help!” or “Nowhere Man” in 1965, when they began to emulate Bob Dylan. But here is a introspective song with despair and loneliness balanced with optimism way back in early 1963, with one of the best blends of Lennon and McCartney’s voices. ---
**Author:** ![eli\_the\_fanatic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ccd318/32.png) [@eli\_the\_fanatic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eli_the_fanatic)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/3 "2003-11-23T07:24:24Z")
“You Know My Name - Look Up the Number.” Either that or “She’s a Woman.” ---
**Author:** ![Gmork](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f19dbf/32.png) [@Gmork](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gmork)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 8:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/4 "2003-11-23T08:37:58Z")
The suggestions so far are all good. But it would be hard (for me) to choose just one song that defined the Beatles. They did all change from their beginning to the break-up, both in musical styles and taste and, I believe, personally. They were so young when they started out, and still pretty young when they became big. (Granted, I mean young by the standards of their time - I realise today’s pop charts are flooded with teens.) But don’t let that stop you guys from defining what they mean to you:) ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/5 "2003-11-23T11:27:35Z")
I also thought of _All You Need Is Love_ as being a signature tune for the Beatles, since that title encapsulated some much of their song lyrics. But then, on a good day the Hollies or the Bee Gees could have thought up a song a lot like that, too. Which leaves my other choice: _I Am the Walrus_. The psychedelic lyrics. The use of rock band and orchestral instruments. The complex aural layering (think of the glissando “ewwwwwws” during the chorus, the switch from true stereo to fake stereo at the midpoint, or the Shakespeare broadcast at the fadeout). _Nobody_ else could have done that song in 1967 but the Beatles. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/6 "2003-11-23T11:28:48Z")
Oops, meant to write, “_so_ much of their song lyrics.” ---
**Author:** ![Stratocaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stratocaster/32/16393_2.png) [@Stratocaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stratocaster)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 11:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/7 "2003-11-23T11:30:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Diogenes the Cynic \* > \*\*My vote would go to “All You Need Is Love.” It has Lennon’s word play and philosophic sense, Paul’s melodic signature, a typically simple yet distint guitar solo from George and, as always, Ringo’s solid and underrated drumming. To me it sums up the Beatles as a band with both it’s message and it’s music. > > Any other ideas out there? \*\* But how is that reflective of their earliest stuff, which is some of their greatest? “I Saw Her Standing There,” “She Loves You,” “I Feel Fine,” are all terrific, and they invoke images of a certain phase of the Beatles that “AYNIL” does not. How does “AYNIL” compare to the stuff on Revolver, for that matter, or Rubber Soul? Question’s unanswerable. The Beatles’ collective works simply cover too many styles and types of production, and span too many phases of the Beatles, and there is greatness in all of it. Fun to think about it, though. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/8 "2003-11-23T12:06:18Z")
I think _Ticket To Ride, Nowhere Man, I Wanna Hold Your Hand and Hard Day’s Night_ are all contenders… ---
**Author:** ![omni-not](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8dc957/32.png) [@omni-not](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/omni-not)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/9 "2003-11-23T13:33:33Z")
I don’t think there’s any **one** song, but my vote would go to _Help!_. Perhaps reflective of what the four guys – and not just Lennon – were going through at the time (and afterwards). ---
**Author:** ![Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Ridley_s_Shooting_Party)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/10 "2003-11-23T13:49:15Z")
I don’t see how any of the songs already mentioned are representative of songs such as Helter Skelter and I am The Walrus. ---
**Author:** ![Ilsa\_Lund](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a6a055/32.png) [@Ilsa\_Lund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ilsa_Lund)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/11 "2003-11-23T15:07:42Z")
I Am The Walrus ---
**Author:** ![eli\_the\_fanatic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ccd318/32.png) [@eli\_the\_fanatic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eli_the_fanatic)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/12 "2003-11-23T15:13:44Z")
My serious answer is “Magical Mysery Tour,” because the Beatles took us all on a wild ride. ---
**Author:** ![omni-not](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8dc957/32.png) [@omni-not](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/omni-not)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/13 "2003-11-23T15:27:38Z")
what would be your crazy/go nuts answer, **eli**?😃 ---
**Author:** ![eli\_the\_fanatic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ccd318/32.png) [@eli\_the\_fanatic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eli_the_fanatic)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/14 "2003-11-23T15:29:33Z")
Earlier I suggested “You Know My Name - Look Up The Number,” a ridiculous B-side that few people know about. The title is the only lyric. ---
**Author:** ![omni-not](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8dc957/32.png) [@omni-not](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/omni-not)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/15 "2003-11-23T15:51:55Z")
LOL. I remembered the _You Know My Name_ suggestion, but not that it had been made by you. Indeed, I thought it odd at the time (you made it), but I figured it was been made seriously – even if I couldn’t understand why. OK, no need for further crazy/go nuts answer: you’ve already done enough… ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/16 "2003-11-23T17:27:40Z")
There is no satisfactory answer, but you could do a lot worse than “A Day In The Life.” ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/17 "2003-11-23T17:56:09Z")
I nominate two songs to capture the two main points on the arc of the Beatles’ development: 1. I Want to Hold Your Hand - while the Boys were huge in the UK, they hadn’t crossed the pond, and it was the act of coming to the States and doing the Sullivan show that blew them into the stratosphere - they single-handedly gave Americans something to be happy about after the death of JFK. And this was the song that was their big hit as they arrived and that they played on the show. Plus, it captures the melodic creativity of Paul and rocker of John (a song they both claim they wrote together), with some tasteful trademark licks of George’s - it is a quintessential song, with the hugest cultural and historic impact of their more traditional pop-rock songs. Plus, although it is a simple pop song, it is well-written and stands the test of time. And it rocks. 2. Tomorrow Never Knows - the last song, the anchoring foundation of Revolver, IMHO their best album and the best album every produced. While most of the songs on the album are amazing, this is the song where the Beatles turn a corner - jumpting feet first into full-blown studio experimentation, psychedelic lyrics that are not the least bit poppy, yet holding onto their songcraft roots enough to ensure that the song is melodic and accessible. Coming after Rubber Soul - sophisticated pop - and before Sgt. Pepper’s - full-blown concept psychedelia - this song represents the Beatles coming out as mature artists capable of producing music as innovative as anyone in history. And it rocks. my $.02. ---
**Author:** ![captainQwark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e68b1a/32.png) [@captainQwark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/captainQwark)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/18 "2003-11-23T23:34:11Z")
This is just my idea, and it may be stretching the term “son”, but how about that medley on _Abbey Road_ ? ---
**Author:** ![captainQwark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e68b1a/32.png) [@captainQwark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/captainQwark)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/19 "2003-11-23T23:35:42Z")
that should be “song”, I’m such a doofus. ---
**Author:** ![doctordoowop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecc23a/32.png) [@doctordoowop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doctordoowop)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2003, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817/20 "2003-11-24T00:01:23Z")
Please Please Me- Everly Bros style harmony(Paul is great), quick intro, George’s lead guitar, Lennon’s harmonica & lastly John’s screw up on the lyrics(which he did a lot). And it was the title of their 1st album- on Vee Jay. syncro-it was the flip of “Twist & Shout.” I heard it on the radio in 1964-not since. Agree it is great & much overlooked. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-definitive-beatles-song/214817.md?page=2)