For today’s classic song of the day we turn to the Beatles and their song, “You’re Going to Lose That Girl.” Featured on the soundtrack to the movie Help!, this track was one of the best of the group’s songs of that period.
“You’re Going to Lose That Girl” was written by the team of John Lennon and Paul McCartney, with John doing most of the work on this one. John also sang lead on the recording.
The Beatles recorded “You’re Going to Lose That Girl” in a three-hour afternoon session at EMI Studios on February 19, 1965, with George Martin producing and “Normal” Norman Smith and Ken Scott behind the board. The basic track featured John and George on rhythm guitars, Paul on bass, and Ringo on drums; John also sang lead and Paul and George provided harmony vocals. Overdubs added double-tracked vocals by John, Paul on piano, Ringo on bongos, and George with a lead guitar solo on his new Sonic Blue Fender Stratocaster.
“You’re Going to Lose That Girl” was somewhat unusual for the group at the time in that the lyrics were in the third person. The singer was telling another guy that he was going to steal that guy’s girl if the guy didn’t treat his girl right:
You’re gonna lose that girl (yes, yes, you’re gonna lose that girl)
You’re gonna lose that girl (yes, yes, you’re gonna lose that girl)If you don’t take her out tonight
She’s gonna change her mind (she’s gonna change her mind)
And I will take her out tonight
And I will treat her kind (I’m gonna treat her kind)
Musically, the song is interesting in that it changes key (from E major to G major) in the bridge. The song form is rather standard AABA, but that key change (as well as some odd-numbered phrases) make it special. In retrospect, this seemed to signal a new way of working for the boys, with one of them writing the main song (verses mainly) and the other contributed a bit of a completely different song for the bridge or chorus. This explains all the mid-song key changes going forward; John and Paul were cobbling together new songs from bits of existing ones. (This is most notable on “A Day in the Life,” which is all John except for Paul’s completely different bit during the “Woke up, got out of bed” bit. It’s also extremely evident on the second side of the Abbey Road album, which is all little bits of songs strung together.)
In the film, Help!, “You’re Going to Lose That Girl” is presented as if the boys are recording it in a studio, with them effectively lip-synching to the pre-recorded track. At the end of the recording they notice a buzz that ruined the take, which is coming from a chainsaw cutting a hole around Ringo’s drum kit. Ringo (and his drums) subsequently fall through the studio floor, and we’re off.
Which leads us to today’s daily bonus video of the day, the Beatles performing “You’re Going to Lose That Girl” in the movie Help!. Yeah!
