Martha My Dear
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| “Martha My Dear” | ||
|---|---|---|
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| Song by The Beatles | ||
| Album | The Beatles | |
| Released | 22 November 1968 | |
| Recorded | 4 October 1968 | |
| Genre | Rock | |
| Length | 2:28 | |
| Label | Apple Records | |
| Writer | Lennon/McCartney | |
| Producer | George Martin | |
| The Beatles track listing | ||
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Side one
Side two
Side three
Side four
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"Martha My Dear" is a Beatles song written by Paul McCartney (credited to Lennon/McCartney), which first appeared on the double album The Beatles (more popularly known as The White Album).
The song features a music hall-inspired piano line that recurs throughout the piece, as well as a brass band. Typical of Beatles songs of the period, the song modulates smoothly through several keys.
The song was arguably inspired by the tune and lyrics of M'appari' tutt' amor[citation needed] from the opera Martha by Friedrich Von Flotow (1812-1883), first performed in Vienna in 1847, appearing thereafter in the following films:
- Rosalie (sung by Nelson Eddy), 1937
- This Time for Keeps (Lauritz Melchior; traditional and swing versions by Johnnie Johnston), 1947
- The Toast of New Orleans (Mario Lanza), 1950
- The Great Caruso (Mario Lanza), 1951
- The Seven Hills of Rome (Mario Lanza), 1958
Also performed in recitals by Fritz Wunderlich and Luciano Pavarotti[1].
One web site[2]attributes the lyrics to James Joyce (1882-1941), but the opera was performed 35 years before his death, and some 120 years before the Beatles hit. The similarities in sentiment are also unmistakable.
It is reported by others that the title "Martha My Dear" was inspired by McCartney's Old English Sheepdog, also named Martha. McCartney has said, cryptically, that the song itself is probably about McCartney's longtime love interest Jane Asher. Asher broke off their engagement in mid-1968 when she found McCartney in bed with an Apple employee. McCartney chides her with the lyrics in the song "...when you find yourself in the thick of it, help yourself to a bit of what is all around you..."[3] Asher inspired many of McCartney's songs, including Here, There, and Everywhere and We Can Work It Out. (A later "Martha" lyric explains, "You have always been my inspiration..." McCartney has also said, cryptically, that the song is about his "muse"—the voice in his head that tells him what words and music to write.[4])
McCartney's 1993 live album, Paul Is Live, features one of Martha's offspring on its cover.[5]
[edit] Personnel
- Paul McCartney – double-tracked vocal, piano, bass, lead guitar, drums, handclaps, brass and string arrangement
- George Martin – brass and string arrangement
- Bernard Miller – violin
- Dennis McConnell – violin
- Lou Soufier – violin
- Les Maddox – violin
- Leo Birnbaum – viola
- Henry Myerscough – viola
- Reginald Kilby – cello
- Frederick Alexander – cello
- Leon Calvert – trumpet, flugelhorn
- Stanley Reynolds – trumpet
- Ronnie Hughes – trumpet
- Tony Tunstall – french horn
- Ted Barker – trombone
- Alf Reece – tuba
- Credits per Ian MacDonald[6] and Mark Lewisohn[7]
[edit] Cover versions
This song was covered by Will Taylor and Strings Attached, with guest Libby Kirkpatrick. It is featured on their "Beatles White Album Live" CD,[8]released in 2006. German pop band Fool's Garden also did a cover of this song on their album Go and Ask Peggy for the Principal Thing, released in 1997. Slade covered this song on their début album. The Brad Mehldau Trio covered this song on their 2005 album, Day Is Done.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Pavarotti M'appari' tutt' amor
- ^ M'appari' tutt' amor lyrics at JamesJoyceMusic.com
- ^ Interview, Brian Matthews BBC Radio 2, Saturday 23rd February, 2008
- ^ Turner, Steve. A Hard Day's Write: The Stories Behind Every Beatles Song. New York: Harper Paperbacks, 157-158. ISBN 0-06-084409-4.
- ^ McCartney bio at Lyricsfreak and Photos at Rarebeatles
- ^ MacDonald, Ian (2005). Revolution in the Head: The Beatles' Records and the Sixties, Second Revised Edition, London: Pimlico (Rand), 322. ISBN 1-844-13828-3.
- ^ Lewisohn, Mark (1988). The Beatles Recording Sessions. New York: Harmony Books, 159. ISBN 0-517-57066-1.
- ^ White Album at CDBaby.com
