The Beatles, “You Won’t See Me” from Rubber Soul (1965): Deep Beatles
A semi-autobiographical track, “You Won’t See Me” was inspired by Paul McCartney’s rocky relationship with then-girlfriend Jane Asher. The song represents the final recording session for 1965’s Rubber Soul, as well as the longest track the Beatles had recorded to date. Its polished sound also belies the fact that it resulted from a virtually non-stop, 13-hour recording session — a frantic attempt to finish the album in time for the lucrative holiday season.
After Asher temporarily moved out of her parents’ house to star in a staging of Great Expectations at the Old Vic theater, McCartney frequently found it difficult to contact her. “You Won’t See Me” reportedly resulted from his frustration at his girlfriend’s busy schedule. However, Paul McCartney also wanted to pay tribute to one of his greatest influences: Motown.
He told biographer Barry Miles that he wanted to mimic bassist James Jamerson’s melodic approach to the instrument, a key element of the Motown sound. The foundation of the melody, he told Miles, is built on a two-note progression. “I had it high up on the high E position, and I just let the note on the B string descend a semitone at a time, and kept the top note the same, and against that I was playing a descending chromatic scale. Then I wrote the tune for ‘You Won’t See Me’ against it.”
By: Kit O'Toole
Source: Something Else Reviews
