The 10 most underrated Beatles songs
- Varun
- Jun 4, 2020
- 6 min read
Being a huge Beatles fan, I’m familiar with their entire discography right from their first scratchy recording in 1958 to the magically crafted ‘Free as a Bird’ and ‘Real Love’ releases in 1995. They are one of the, if not the most well-known bands ever, so a lot of their songs are still played, covered and familiar to people of all generations. For such a prolific band, a lot of their songs don’t get the acclaim that I feel they should, and that’s no one’s fault. Here are 10 of their most underrated songs (in alphabetical order) in my opinion. I can’t comment much on the technical aspects of the music as I’m not qualified to do so, but I’ll try to explain what I like about it, along with some information about each. Happy Listening!
1.) Cry Baby Cry
Songwriters: Lennon-McCartney (Primarily written and composed by Lennon)
Album: The White Album
Released: 1968
Written by John Lennon while The Beatles were in India, it was partly inspired by childhood nursery rhymes and partly by a television commercial. In my opinion, this is one of Lennon’s classic, haunting vocals, and despite its weak lyrics, it makes for a solid listen. The end of the song was followed by a short ad-libbed Paul McCartney song, ‘Can you take me back’ which seems a bit out of place at first, but blends in well. Lennon himself was dismissive of the song in later years, calling it a “piece of rubbish” shortly before his death in 1980. This was not uncommon in his later years, as he sought to distance himself from the Beatle years, so it’s unclear how sincere he was in his assessment.
2.) Don’t Let Me Down
Songwriters: Lennon-McCartney (Primarily written and composed by Lennon)
Album: Let It Be
Released: 1970
Released on their final released album as the B-side to McCartney’s get back, Don’t Let Me Down is all about Lennon’s still new-found infatuation with Yoko Ono. He had trust and vulnerability issues throughout his life, and this song was almost a plea to Yoko, letting her know that he’s giving his all to her and begging her not to let him down. It’s one of his strongest, rawest vocals, with stellar backing vocals from McCartney and Harrison. The version that I linked is the live version from their last live performance, the famous Rooftop Concert in 1969. Despite tensions being high during this point, it’s refreshing to see them enjoying singing and playing this one together
3.) For No One
Songwriters: Lennon-McCartney (Primarily written and composed by McCartney)
Album: Revolver
Released: 1966
One of Paul McCartney’s most beautifully written melodies, For No One was written in 1966 while he was on holiday in Switzerland with his then-girlfriend, Jane Asher. It reflects on the end of a relationship, with its lyrics baring stunning maturity considering McCartney was just 23 years old at the time. It also features a French Horn for the first time on a Beatles track, an instrument that was a favourite of Paul’s while growing up. It was one of the rare tracks to earn grudging post-Beatles praise from Lennon, who called it “One of my favourites of his, a nice piece of work” in a 1980 interview.
4.) Happiness Is A Warm Gun
Songwriters: Lennon-McCartney (Primarily written and composed by Lennon)
Album: The White Album
Released: 1968
Written by Lennon during the tense White Album sessions, Happiness Is A Warm Gun was also a favourite of McCartney and Harrison and was one of the most collaborative songs on the album with every member of the band putting in their best. The song was made up of four distinct fragments joined together, and took its title from a magazine called ‘The American Rifleman’, which the producer George Martin showed Lennon. There’s a rumour that the lyrics refer to heroin which Lennon was addicted to at the time, though he strongly denied this. I love the backing vocals on this one, and the whole collaborative energy you can feel through this track.
5.) Hey Bulldog
Songwriters: Lennon-McCartney (Primarily written and composed by Lennon)
Album: Yellow Submarine
Released: 1969
Written and recorded in 1968, but released almost a year later on the Yellow Submarine album, Hey Bulldog is a greatly underrated track that flew under the radar. Recorded just before the band left for India, it was one of their last ‘true group efforts’ according to studio engineer Geoff Emerick, and was originally called ‘Hey Bullfrog’ till McCartney, believe it or not, made a barking noise during the final ad-lib portion of the song, which made them change the name to Hey Bulldog! The recording of the song was captured by a film crew, who were present to record a promotional film for ‘Lady Madonna’. I love everything about this song, from the bassline to the vocals, the lyrics and of course the barking ad-lib at the end
6.) If I Needed Someone
Songwriters: Harrison
Album: Rubber Soul
Released: 1965
My favourite Beatle finally makes an entry on this list, but then again he didn’t write much during his Beatle years. If I Needed Someone was easily Harrison’s best song during the touring years (up to 1966) and was heavily influenced by the guitar style of Roger McGuinn of The Byrds. I like it because, well, it’s written by Harrison and his voice which might be dreary to some, is one I could listen to all day. It was also held in relatively high esteem by both Lennon and McCartney and was a staple of The Beatles’ live performances, including being played at their final live paid concert at San Francisco’s Candlestick Park in 1966.
7.) No Reply
Songwriters: Lennon-McCartney
Album: Beatles For Sale
Released: 1964
A standout composition in an otherwise lacklustre album rounding off a whirlwind 1964 for the band, No Reply is the opener on the album and a personal favourite of mine. Originally written by Lennon for another artist, Tommy Quickly, it was never released by him and was finished off in the studio with the help of McCartney. The group didn’t particularly take the recording sessions too seriously, evidenced by the hilarious takes that they did before finally getting it right after 8 takes. (Listen to the Anthology version of the song to find out more). The lyrics reflect some of Lennon’s insecurity that would become a feature of his songs, being about someone who is unable to get in touch with his unfaithful girlfriend, despite him knowing she is home. I think it’s a really strong opener to the album and features great vocal harmony between Lennon and McCartney that was omnipresent in their earlier work.
8.) Rain
Songwriters: Lennon-McCartney
Album: No Album (Released as a B-side to Paperback Writer)
Released: 1966
It’s a mark of how great The Beatles were that this song was only considered good enough to be released as a B-side to Paperback Writer. Ringo’s drums on this are considered by many, including himself, to be his best work, with him saying “I feel as though that was someone else playing- I was possessed!”. The song’s lyrics are nothing spectacular, written about people “moaning about the weather all the time” (cough, Canada), though there is speculation that it was actually about the ‘rain’ and ‘sun’ experienced during an LSD trip, which the group, particularly Lennon and Harrison, had just started to experiment with at the time. If Ringo’s drumming wasn’t good enough, McCartney also plays one of his most distinctive basslines, and the last verse consists of Lennon singing ‘backwards’, something that he discovered worked ‘as a stoned accident’.
9.) The Word
Songwriters: Lennon-McCartney
Album: Rubber Soul
Released: 1965
The Beatles wrote a lot about love, including this song, though it marked a transition from their earlier songs, in that this was more about the concept of love, as opposed to a more personal expression of love. Written by Lennon and McCartney it pre-dated the psychedelic era by 2 years and featured the band realizing their power as spokesmen and role models. It was also the first song they wrote together after smoking marijuana, which was in McCartney’s perspective, a hindrance. I enjoy the message that the song portrays, that the answer really is ‘love’ if you think about it.
10.) Things We Said Today
Songwriters: Lennon-McCartney (Primarily written and composed by McCartney)
Album: A Hard Day’s Night
Released: 1964
The last one on this list, this song was one of McCartney’s few compositions on what was essentially a Lennon album and was written on board a yacht called Happy Days, during his holiday with his girlfriend Jane Asher, plus Ringo Starr and his girlfriend, Maureen. The song reflects McCartney’s already growing frustration with his relationship with Asher, who was equally career-minded, uncommon at the time. The lyrics are sombre, but I enjoy their reflective nature, and the chord changes and changes in style through the song are fun to listen to.
Are there any other Beatles songs that you think should have made this list? Do you agree with this list? Let me know!
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