1. We Can Work It Out
- 5 months after the release of Help! and it's related singles, came this single and the album Rubber Soul (both released on the same day in early December 1965).
- this song is one of the few post-1963 Beatles songs to be co-written 50/50 between McCartney and Lennon.
- this single was the first single to ever be designated as a 'double A-side'. McCartney wanted We Can Work It Out to be the A-side, whilst Lennon favoured Day Tripper. Radio stations had a field day marketing it as the first double a-side and it became one of the band's fastest selling singles.
- McCartney did the verses, writing about his experiences with his then-wife Jane Asher, and Lennon contributed the bridge section.
- George Harrison suggested the waltz-timing for the bridge, making this the first Beatles song to switch time signatures mid-song.
- the band spent 11 hours non-stop working on this song, the longest they had spent in one sitting on a single track to date.
- McCartney sings the lead vocals, which he double-tracked in two different sessions.
- Lennon plays the harmonium on the recording, as well as acoustic guitar. Ringo provides some tambourine along with his usual drums.
- A video of the Beatles performing this song (with no audience) was specially recorded for promotional purposes, making it the first music video.
- Runs for just over two minutes, and took two takes to record.
2. Day Tripper
- Lennon wrote this song under pressure to deliver another commercial hit single. He wrote the famous guitar riff that opens the song and majority of the lyrics, whilst McCartney contributed some of the bridging chords.
- the song is written to make the listener think it is a standard 12-bars blues-type deal but then prematurely flips back into where it began... this kind of gimmick-ish self-awareness and playing with conventions would start to characterize the band's songs during the mid-60s and was reflective of their sense of humour (and some might say cockiness) in regards to music.
- Lennon implied in later years that the song's lyrics were a swipe at McCartney's hesitance to take LSD.
- Lennon later felt that the recording for this song was a bit rushed.
- McCartney sings the lead vocals despite Lennon being the primary composer. Both Lennon and Harrison provide backing vocals.
- Ringo overdubbed some tambourine.
- Much like We Can Work It Out, a special promo video was shot for this song.
- Runs for about two minutes and fifty seconds, and took 3 takes to finish.
