Rumours envelop various
Beatles songs, most about hidden vocals or possible references to
Paul McCartney's apparently imminent death. Whether this is due to inflated hype surrounding the band or whether they are actually
the cherries on top of the vast bitter-sweet musical cake the Beatles produced, I can't tell you.
Who can?
Information and Symbolism
First recorded on February 22, 1969,
I Want You (She's So Heavy) is the longest Beatles song.
Revolution 9 (
The White Album), which clocks in at 8'20", is
37 seconds longer than IWY(SSH), but it is a
Lennon & Ono piece. Anyway, special features included are the cymbal drums and an
organ. The speed varies; some parts of the song play in a moderate
4/4 tempo. Other parts play more languidly in
6/8 tempo. The whole track is in D minor key, harking back to the traditional blues influence prevalent in many Beatles tracks.
During the drawn out final instrumental, the sound mellows and seems to subdue; the guitars just keep on playing and the cymbals crash through like waves breaking.
The end is reminiscent of
Bach's
Endlessly Rising Canon, a part of his
Musical Offering.
The abrupt end of the song (at
7'43") is supposed to symbolize the sudden death of
Paul McCartney. He hasn't died (as of December 3rd 2002);
George Harrison died of
cancer (on December 1st, 2001);
John Lennon was
assassinated (on December 8th 1980). However, it is also noted that the 'main body' and the 'outro' are split in approximately the
Golden Section proportion ... go figure.
Repetition
Repetitive lyrics in
I want you (she's so heavy):
I want you
I want you so bad
I want you
I want you so bad
It's driving me mad
It's driving me mad
Other Beatles tracks with repetition used as a significant part of the song:
Hey Jude;
nah, nah, nah
Across the Universe;
nothing's going to change my world
All you need is love;
love is all you need
She loves you;
yeah yeah yeah
Let it be;
let it be
References:
amiright.com
thebeatlessongs.com
icce.rug.nl