Things We Love Today: The Beatles’ F & G Songs

Yes yes, Things We Love Today has returned with its latest installment. We’re going through every Beatles tune in alphabetical order and highlighting one (and just one) thing we love about it. There’s something to love in every Beatles song.

Even the lousy ones. And they exist. Somehow.

So now that you are familiar (or refamiliarized) with the process, let’s dive into today’s group of tunes, the Fs & Gs. We’re gonna get the doin’ done!

Fixing a Hole – I’d like to say George Burns ruined this tune for me, but let’s be brutally honest here. It’s the weak link on Sgt. Pepper’s, and people who think it’s actually Within You Without You can go pound sand. Still, it’s a decent tune. For some reason it sounds like something Davy Jones would have sung on The Monkees’ Pisces Aquarius Capricorn & Jones album, and I mean that quite complimentary. Regardless, George Martin’s harpsichord playing, especially during the intro, is the love through-line here. It elevates the song dramatically.

Flying – mostly an instrumental, Flying gets unfairly disregarded by many. Not that it’s even thought badly of; more like it’s barely thought of at all. But I love it when all four Beatles sing together. You can always hear Ringo just a bit more than the others, and that makes me smile.

For No One – gather round, all ye wildlings of the wastelands, ye staunch northmen of the night, ye proud pariahs of Pawtucket… OK I’m done with that. For No One is a perfect song. PERFECT song. Could be my favorite McCartney tune with the band. Maybe of all time. Who knows. But the beauty of this tune is so exquisite, it can’t even be quantified. This is heartbreak personified in musical form. And no single moment crystallizes that feeling more than the utterly beautiful, absolutely heart-rendering French horn solo performed by Alan Civil. Listen, if you’re going to be emotionally devastated by rejection and loss, this is where you go. Surrounded by beauty, empathy, understanding, and melody.

For You Blue – one of George’s most charming tunes, its “happy-go-lucky” vibes (as he described them) are toe-tapping and smile-inducing to gentle extremes. That acoustic shuffle combined with its folksy joy make For You Blue one of the best tracks off the Let It Be album. The big standout for me right now (besides the big smile on George’s face you can literally hear) is Paul’s piano riffing just after John’s lap guitar solo. There’s something about that so perfectly matches the song’s breezy energy and the exuberance of its simple pleasures.

Free as a Bird – OK. Look. I don’t like Free as a Bird. Full stop. Never have. I think the original 1995 recording was dismal and the remixes ever since, while improving the song significantly, do little to hide its fundamental deficiencies. But I do like when George handles a verse of the tune. The way he pronounces the word ‘so’ in the line ‘It always makes me feel so free’ always makes me smile. He gave it his all there and elevated the material accordingly.

From Me to You – in a lot of ways, From Me To You is a quintessential, or perhaps, prototypical Beatles tune from their 1962-64 era. John and Paul harmonizing on lead vocals, Ringo’s steady, dependable beat with his characteristic fills, the return of John’s harmonicky, George’s unmistakable Country Gentleman guitar twang, and an exquisite middle eight section all coalesce to help make the song a fine pop bauble. But man, it’s John and Paul’s characteristic “ooooooh” which ends the middle eight that takes the song right over the top.

Get Back – if only Billy Preston were still around to zap people back to life in a gold lamé jumpsuit to the tune of Get Back… and that’s the last Sgt. Pepper movie reference I’m making. Today, anyhow. Anyway, I don’t need to sell this classic rocker to anyone, and because I took a shot at the late great Billy Preston I’m sending the love his way. That keyboard solo? Chef’s kiss.

Getting Better – great tune, although the spousal abuse admission never sat well with me, even as a kid. Still, there’s a lot to love here. I always loved the cynicism of John’s “I can’t get no worse” in response to Paul’s “I have to admit it’s getting better”, and it almost ran away with it on this song. Heck, Paul’s melodic and prominent Rickenbacker bass lines are a masterclass in and of themselves. But nah. It’s the third verse where George Harrison introduces the tambura and George Martin strikes the piano strings directly, giving the song a delightful sounding Indian drone.

Girl – John on Rubber Soul is a joy the likes of which hardly needs to be expanded upon. Just listen to it. Girl is no exception. Lyrically and musically, this song is a gem. Even the little things, the exaggerated breath between utterances of “Girl” in the chorus. Or the cheeky “tit-tit” background vocals in the midsection. But I’m going with George’s lovely acoustic solo that acts as its own perfect counter-melody to an already flawless song.

Glass Onion – was this the first time The Beatles did callbacks to other tunes? No wait, they did that in All You Need Is Love a year earlier. Never mind then. Glass Onion is so emblematic of The White Album in entirely too many ways, and I love it for that. John’s being cheeky and mysterious, Paul is thumping that bass brilliantly, George’s chords root the song with some harder rock sensibilities, and Ringo’s drums are higher up in the mix and locking down that pocket with some powerful verve. But man. That string section. Violins, violas, and cellos just taking it to the next level. That’s where my love is going right now.

Golden Slumbers – it’s going to be hard judging discrete elements of the side 2 Abbey Road medley individually, especially one as beautiful as Golden Slumbers. This song drips with sweet perfection. But Paul’s dynamic vocal control is going to take it here. He shifts between soft and melodic to loud and raw (but no less melodic) so effortlessly… or rather, sounding so effortlessly. Paul at his vocal best, man.

Good Day Sunshine – Paul on Revolver was an evolution akin to John on Rubber Soul. Both geniuses completely upping their game, evolving their talents to new heights. The fact that this sweet little upbeat toe-tapper is the least awesome (but still amazing) McCartney tune on the album speaks volumes more than I could ever express. I’m going for the easy one here. The three-way vocal harmonies between John, Paul, and George. Like sweet jam on warm toast, set to music.

Good Morning Good Morning – I could make another Monkees reference here, except I think I just did, so that’s the end of that. John never thought too much of this track, but I always loved it. Paul cranked out a biting little guitar solo on this one, and John’s vocals sound strong and assured. But this song wouldn’t be so infectiously fun if it weren’t for the brilliant brass arrangement courtesy of Sounds Incorporated (alongside other saxes, trombones, and French horn). The combined brass and winds elevate the song with incredible power.

Good Night – not really much to say about Good Night. I reckon when most people sit down to listen to the White Album, they probably never make it to the finale in the first place. You have to get through Revolution 9 first and quite frankly, that’s asking a lot. In a review of “The Beatles (1968)” I wrote over a decade ago, I likened Good Night to the glass of water and kiss on the forehead a loving parent gives you after the nightmare of Revolution 9. I think the analogy fits. Anyway, this isn’t much of a song, but Ringo’s vocals are so safe and reassuring, I’ll throw the love right there. Where it belongs.

Got to Get You into My Life – another genius work from Paul from Revolver, and yet I think the Earth Wind & Fire cover from 1978 absolutely smokes it. To take an already brilliant Beatles tune and elevate it further? Lightning in a bottle, friends. But let’s stay with the original here. Paul’s catchy, R&B driven ode to the wicked weed is a joyous, upbeat, uptempo romp. And I hate to repeat myself but again: it’s the brass section. The trumpets and saxes absolutely shoot this great tune even higher into the stratosphere.  

And there you have it, all the Fs & Gs that the Fabs graced us with. Something wonderful in all of them. Stick with us gang, as we’ll return with the Hs post-haste!