13. We Can Work It Out (1965) / non-album single

5/17 votes

 

Exiting in 13th place is 'We Can Work It Out'! The release of this song in 1965 marked the first time in Britain that a double A-side format was released. 'Day Tripper' was the other half of this double A-side in question. It outlasts 'We Can Work It Out' in the poll - something that John Lennon would greatly approve of! The double A-side decision came about because most of the band wanted the softer, arguably more commercial 'We Can Work It Out' to be released as a single, whereas Lennon argued for the rocky 'Day Tripper'. EMI announced that the A-side would be 'We Can Work It Out' - only for Lennon to publicly contradict this a couple of days later! So the 'Day Tripper' / 'We Can Work It Out' release was born to stop the confusion. The release was a success as it went to #1 in both the U.K. and U.S. - with 5 weeks at the top in the former. Paul McCartney was the band member who began composing 'We Can Work It Out' but Lennon would later finish it off. The tones of both Paul and John's lyrics are often compared - with the former's demonstrating positivity (such as the titular lyric) and the latter's being impatient and less optimistic ("life is very short, and there's no time for fussing and fighting, my friend") - however, the bigger picture soon shows that some of Paul's lyrical contributions aren't so sunny - for instance "do I have to keep on talking until I can't go on?". Ultimately, the optimistic title prevails amongst all the tensions in life. This is also demonstrated by the structure of the song. Most of it is in 4/4 time, but the middle section is overhauled by a slower rhythm, supposedly to represent tiresome struggle. The Beatles' now famous promotional clips were born with the release of 'Day Tripper' and 'We Can Work It Out' - these were a way to get the group's music out on television (including to international audiences) without having to appear for performances. On 23rd November 1965 they filmed these two clips for their new singles, but also some for previous releases 'I Feel Fine', 'Ticket To Ride' and 'Help!'.

 

13. We Can Work It Out | 5/17 votes

14. I Feel Fine | 8/18 votes

15. A Hard Day's Night | 5/20 votes

16. Can't Buy Me Love | 5/22 votes

17. Come Together | 4/19 votes

18. Something | 4/19 votes

19. Love Me Do | 4/18 votes

20. Yellow Submarine | 5/20 votes

 

21. Eight Days A Week | 5/17 votes

22. From Me To You | 4/21 votes (original vote) / 10/16 votes (tie-break round)

23. Get Back | 5/17 votes

24. The Long And Winding Road | 4/20 votes

25. She Loves You | 6/21 votes

26. Lady Madonna | 6/21 votes

27. The Ballad Of John And Yoko | 7/25 votes

 

Please vote for your least favourite single from the 12 above!

'We Can Work It Out' is solid but I'm pleased that 'Day Tripper' is the more popular song of the double A-side on BuzzJack!

 

Switching to 'Paperback Writer' now - the final song that missed out on my top 50 Beatles songs list :o

Paperback Writer definitely needs to leave now.

Really down to all great songs now, tough to decide my next vote but have gone with 'Help!' ('I Want To Hold Your Hand' just avoiding being in the firing line for now).

That's about right for We Can Work It Out, not quite top 10 worthy.

 

Neither is Hello, Goodbye.

I'm ploughing on with voting for 'Help'

Paperback Writer definitely needs to leave now.

 

 

Yes voted that too this time.

Paperback writer.

Eleanor Rigby.