![]() Beathoven Studying the Beatles
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Two Bridges All Together Now has a peculiar structure: Intro + Verse + Verse + Bridge + Chorus + ... I only know of one other Beatlesong where the bridge precedes the chorus. What's more both bridges have the same five unit structure where the closing phrase is extended an extra bar: c b c d f# Tune -- this song
C G C D D Chord
e eb e f# f# Tune -- other song
C F7 C D D Chord
The other song is Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. In that song the first bridge is orchestrated for the horn solo, but it's the bridge nevertheless. Intro + Verse + Bridge + Chorus + Bridge + Verse.. There are other similarities. Both are in G major and have horn parts. Both are primarily McCartney songs. Although not credited, Lennon sings the bridges. I suspect he also wrote both bridges. Lennon says little about Pepper. The recent McCartney book puts it thus: Sgt. Pepper was Paul's song, with little or no input from John.
BMPM310
But in 1990 McCartney said it a little differently: What's nice about Sgt Pepper is the way John and I conceived it,
it's all directed to an audience. Splendid time guaranteed for
all... the whole idea of Pepper is a show, a circus. The song
works great live cause you're saying You're such a lovely audience
we'd love to take you home with us...
McCartney, December 1990 in ATB44
Note that in quoting the bridge, McCartney inadventantly uses Kite: A splendid time is guaranteed for all, rather than Pepper: but they're guaranteed to raise a smile. McCartney doesn't mention Lennon in regard to All Together Now at all. Lennon is fairly brief: Paul. I put a few lines in it somewhere, probably. Lennon DSL170 I think the bridge lyric sounds very Lennonesque: Sail the ship
Chop the tree
Skip the rope
Look at me...
So, why do I think Lennon wrote them: the five bar structure, the fact that Lennon sings them, the Lennon-language. There are other factors too, but not as strong. One of the frustrating things about McCartney's Many Years From Now was that although he said that they contributed sections to eachs others songs, he gave few examples. These are two strong candidates. |