Behka’s Breakfast with The Beatles Recap: Week of July 21

Here's a look back at all the songs I've played in our Breakfast with Behka and The Beatles this week. On Monday, I played "I'm Talking About You".

"I'm Talking About You" is a song by Chuck Berry, released by him in 1961. The Beatles did this song in their early live performances. There were two different live versions recorded, one in Hamburg, Germany in 1962, available on Live! at the Star-Club in Hamburg, Germany; 1962, the other in 1963 for the BBC included on On Air – Live at the BBC Volume 2 (2013).

On Tuesday, I played the demo and alternate versions of "Strawberry Fields Forever".

The working title was "It's Not Too Bad", and Geoff Emerick, the sound engineer, remembered it being "just a great, great song, that was apparent from the first time John sang it for all of us, playing an acoustic guitar." The band recorded three distinct versions of the song. After Lennon played the song for the other Beatles on his acoustic guitar, the band recorded the first take. Lennon played an Epiphone Casino; McCartney played a Mellotron, a new home instrument purchased by Lennon on 12 August 1965. Four days later the band reassembled to try a different arrangement. The second version of the song featured McCartney's Mellotron introduction followed by the refrain. They recorded five takes of the basic tracks for this arrangement (two of which were false starts) with the last being chosen as best and subjected to further overdubs. Lennon's final vocal was recorded with the tape running fast so that when played back at normal speed the tonality would be altered, giving his voice a slurred sound. This version was used for the first minute of the released recording. These are the first versions, that were spliced into the final version.

On Wednesday I played, "I Want to Tell You".

"I Want to Tell You" is a song written by George Harrison and originally released by the Beatles on their 1966 album Revolver. Working titles, originating from Harrison's inability to name his songs, were "Laxton's Superb" (a breed of apple, following on from "Granny Smith") and "I Don't Know". The lyrics are, in Harrison's own words, "about the avalanche of thoughts that are so hard to write down or say or transmit".

On Thursday, I played "Mean Mr Mustard".

"Mean Mr. Mustard" is a song written by John Lennon on their album Abbey Road. The Abbey Road version was recorded with "Sun King" in one continuous piece. The song was written in India; Lennon said that it was inspired by a newspaper story about a miser who concealed his cash wherever he could in order to prevent people from forcing him to spend it. The one I played is the demo version of the song that was recorded in May 1968 at Kinfauns, George Harrison's home in Esher. It appears on Anthology 3. In this version, Mustard's sister is named Shirley. John changed it to Pam when he saw the opportunity to ease the segue into the song "Polythene Pam", which follows "Mean Mr. Mustard" on the album.

On Friday, I played "When I Get Home".

"When I Get Home" is a John Lennon song recorded by the Beatles on 2 June 1964, during the last session for their LP A Hard Day's Night. Its first US release was on the Something New LP. Influenced somewhat by the Shirelles, "When I Get Home" is essentially a rock and roll number, and it also is typical of this period of the Beatles for the vocal leap into falsetto.

Let me know if there's something you'd like to hear next week. We'll start up again on Monday at 6:00 a.m.!

Mustardly yours,
Behka