Eleanor Rigby
Encyclopedia
"Eleanor Rigby" is a song by The Beatles
, simultaneously released on the 1966 album
Revolver
and on a 45 rpm
single. The song was written primarily by Paul McCartney
and credited to Lennon–McCartney. With a double string quartet arrangement by George Martin
, and striking lyrics about loneliness, the song continued the transformation of the group from a mainly pop
-oriented act to a more experimental studio-based band.
reported that he heard McCartney play it to him before it was finished with completely different lyrics. In 1966, McCartney recalled how he got the idea for his song:
Others believe that Father McKenzie refers to 'Father' Tommy McKenzie, who was the compere
at Northwich
Memorial Hall.
McCartney said he came up with the name Eleanor from actress Eleanor Bron
, who had starred with The Beatles in the film Help!
. Rigby came from the name of a store in Bristol, Rigby & Evens Ltd, Wine & Spirit Shippers, that he noticed while seeing his then-girlfriend Jane Asher
act in The Happiest Days Of Your Life. He recalled in 1984, "I just liked the name. I was looking for a name that sounded natural. Eleanor Rigby sounded natural." However, it has been pointed out that the graveyard of St Peters Church in Liverpool, where John Lennon and Paul McCartney first met, contains the gravestone of an individual called Eleanor Rigby. Paul McCartney has admitted he may have been unconsciously influenced by the name on the gravestone.
McCartney wrote the first verse by himself, and The Beatles finished the song in the music room of John Lennon's home at Kenwood
. John Lennon
, George Harrison
, Ringo Starr
, and their friend Pete Shotton all listened to McCartney play his song through and contributed ideas. Starr contributed the line "writing the words of a sermon that no one will hear " and suggested making "Father McCartney" darn his socks, which McCartney liked. Shotton then suggested that McCartney change the name of the priest, in case listeners mistook the fictional character in the song for McCartney's own father.
The song is often described as a lament for lonely people or a commentary on post-war life in Britain.
McCartney could not decide how to end the song, and Shotton finally suggested that the two lonely people come together too late as Father McKenzie conducts Eleanor Rigby's funeral. At the time, Lennon rejected the idea out of hand, but McCartney said nothing and used the idea to finish off the song, later acknowledging Shotton's help.
Lennon was quoted in 1972 as having said that he wrote 70% of the lyrics, and in 1980 claimed that he wrote all but the first verse, but Pete Shotton, Lennon's childhood friend, remembered Lennon's contribution as being "absolutely nil". McCartney said that "John helped me on a few words but I'd put it down 80-20 to me, something like that."
In the 1980s, a grave of an Eleanor Rigby was "discovered" in the graveyard of St. Peter's Parish Church in Woolton
, Liverpool
, and a few yards away from that, another tombstone with the last name McKenzie scrawled across it. During their teenage years, McCartney and Lennon spent time sunbathing there, within earshot of where the two had met for the first time during a fete
in 1957. Many years later McCartney stated that the strange coincidence between reality and lyric could be a product of his subconscious, rather than being a meaningless fluke. The actual Eleanor Rigby was born in 1895 and lived in Liverpool
, possibly in the suburb of Woolton
, where she married a man named Thomas Woods. She died on 10 October 1939 at age 44. Whether this Eleanor was the inspiration for the song or not, her tombstone has become a landmark to Beatles fans visiting Liverpool. A digitised version was added to the 1995 music video
for The Beatles' reunion song "Free as a Bird".
In June 1990, McCartney donated a document dating from 1911 which had been signed by the 16-year-old Eleanor Rigby to Sunbeams Music Trust, instantly attracting significant international interest from collectors because of the significance and provenance of the document. The nearly 100-year-old document was sold at auction in November 2008 for £115,000 ($250,000). The Daily Telegraph reported that the uncovered document "is a 97-year-old salary register from Liverpool City Hospital." The name E. Rigby is printed on the register, and she is identified as a scullery maid
.
, the latter of which was used. McCartney's choice of a string backing may have been influenced by his interest in the composer Antonio Vivaldi
. Lennon recalled in 1980 that "Eleanor Rigby" was "Paul's baby, and I helped with the education of the child ... The violin backing was Paul's idea. Jane Asher had turned him on to Vivaldi, and it was very good."
The octet was recorded on 28 April 1966, in Studio 2 at Abbey Road Studios
and completed in Studio 3 on 29 April and on 6 June. Take 15 was selected as the master.
George Martin, in his autobiography All You Need Is Ears, takes credit for combining two of the vocal parts, having noticed that they would work together contrapuntally
. He cited the influence of Bernard Herrmann
's work, particularly the score for the film Fahrenheit 451
, on his string scoring.
The original stereo mix had Paul's voice only in the right channel during the verses, with the string octet mixed to one channel, while the mono single and mono LP featured a more balanced mix. On the Yellow Submarine Songtrack
and Love
versions, McCartney's voice is centred and the string octet appears in stereo in an attempt to create a more "modern" sounding mix.
"Eleanor Rigby" was released simultaneously on 5 August 1966 on both the album Revolver
and on a double A-side single with "Yellow Submarine
" on Parlophone
in the United Kingdom and Capitol
in the United States. It spent four weeks at number one on the British charts, but in America it only reached the eleventh spot.
The song was nominated for three Grammys and won the 1966 Grammy for Best Contemporary (R&R) Vocal Performance, Male or Female for McCartney. Thirty years later, George Martin's isolated string arrangement (without the vocal) was released on The Beatles' Anthology 2
. A remixed version of the track was included in the 2006 album Love
.
It is the second song to appear in The Beatles' 1968 animated film Yellow Submarine. The first is "Yellow Submarine"; it and "Eleanor Rigby" are the only songs in the film which the animated Beatles are not seen to be singing. "Eleanor Rigby" is introduced just before the Liverpool
sequence of the film, and its poignancy ties in quite well with Ringo Starr
(the first member of the group to encounter the submarine) who is represented as quietly bored and depressed. "Compared with my life, Eleanor Rigby's was a gay, mad world."
In 1984, a re-interpretation of the song was included in the film and album Give My Regards to Broad Street
, written by and starring McCartney. It segues into a symphonic extension, "Eleanor's Dream."
In 1996, a stereo remix featuring only the string arrangement was released on Anthology 2
, and a fully remixed stereo version was issued in 1999 on the Yellow Submarine Songtrack
, with some minor fixes to the vocals.
"Eleanor Rigby" is also important in The Beatles' evolution from a pop, live-performance band to a more experimental, studio-oriented band, though the track contains little studio trickery. In a 1967 interview Pete Townshend
of The Who
commented "I think 'Eleanor Rigby' was a very important musical move forward. It certainly inspired me to write and listen to things in that vein."
Though "Eleanor Rigby" was not the first pop song to deal with death and loneliness, according to Ian MacDonald
it "came as quite a shock to pop listeners in 1966." It took a bleak message of depression
and desolation, written by a famous pop band, with a sombre, almost funeral-like backing, to the number one spot of the pop charts. The bleak lyrics were not The Beatles' first deviation from love songs, but were some of the most explicit.
In some reference books on classical music, "Eleanor Rigby" is included and considered comparable to art song
s (lieder). Howard Goodall
said that The Beatles' works are "a stunning roll-call of sublime melodies that perhaps only Mozart can match in European musical history" and that they "almost single-handedly rescued the Western musical system" from the "plague years of the avant-garde
". About "Eleanor Rigby", he said it is "an urban version of a tragic ballad in the Dorian mode
."
Jerry Leiber said, "The Beatles are second to none in all departments. I don't think there has ever been a better song written than 'Eleanor Rigby.'"
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
, simultaneously released on the 1966 album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
Revolver
Revolver (album)
Revolver is the seventh studio album by the English rock group The Beatles, released on 5 August 1966 on the Parlophone label and produced by George Martin. Many of the tracks on Revolver are marked by an electric guitar-rock sound, in contrast with their previous LP, the folk rock inspired Rubber...
and on a 45 rpm
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
single. The song was written primarily by Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
and credited to Lennon–McCartney. With a double string quartet arrangement by George Martin
George Martin
Sir George Henry Martin CBE is an English record producer, arranger, composer and musician. He is sometimes referred to as "the Fifth Beatle"— a title that he often describes as "nonsense," but the fact remains that he served as producer on all but one of The Beatles' original albums...
, and striking lyrics about loneliness, the song continued the transformation of the group from a mainly pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
-oriented act to a more experimental studio-based band.
Inspiration
As with many of McCartney's songs, the melody and first line of the song came to him as he was playing around on his piano. The name that came to him, though, was not Eleanor Rigby but Miss Daisy Hawkins. DonovanDonovan
Donovan Donovan Donovan (born Donovan Philips Leitch (born 10 May 1946) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist. Emerging from the British folk scene, he developed an eclectic and distinctive style that blended folk, jazz, pop, psychedelia, and world music...
reported that he heard McCartney play it to him before it was finished with completely different lyrics. In 1966, McCartney recalled how he got the idea for his song:
Master of Ceremonies
A Master of Ceremonies , or compere, is the host of a staged event or similar performance.An MC usually presents performers, speaks to the audience, and generally keeps the event moving....
at Northwich
Northwich
Northwich is a town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It lies in the heart of the Cheshire Plain, at the confluence of the rivers Weaver and Dane...
Memorial Hall.
McCartney said he came up with the name Eleanor from actress Eleanor Bron
Eleanor Bron
Eleanor Bron is an English stage, film and television actress and author.-Early life and family:Bron was born in 1938 in Stanmore, Middlesex, to a Jewish family of Eastern European origin...
, who had starred with The Beatles in the film Help!
Help! (film)
Help! is a 1965 film directed by Richard Lester, starring The Beatles—John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr—and featuring Leo McKern, Eleanor Bron, Victor Spinetti, John Bluthal, Roy Kinnear and Patrick Cargill. Help! was the second feature film made by the Beatles and is a...
. Rigby came from the name of a store in Bristol, Rigby & Evens Ltd, Wine & Spirit Shippers, that he noticed while seeing his then-girlfriend Jane Asher
Jane Asher
Jane Asher is an English actress. She has also developed a second career as a cake decorator and cake shop proprietor.-Early life:...
act in The Happiest Days Of Your Life. He recalled in 1984, "I just liked the name. I was looking for a name that sounded natural. Eleanor Rigby sounded natural." However, it has been pointed out that the graveyard of St Peters Church in Liverpool, where John Lennon and Paul McCartney first met, contains the gravestone of an individual called Eleanor Rigby. Paul McCartney has admitted he may have been unconsciously influenced by the name on the gravestone.
McCartney wrote the first verse by himself, and The Beatles finished the song in the music room of John Lennon's home at Kenwood
Kenwood, St. George's Hill
Kenwood is a house on the St. George's Hill estate, Weybridge, Surrey, England. Originally called the Brown House, it was designed by architect T.A. Allen, and built in 1913 by local builders, Love & Sons. The estate was constructed around the Weybridge Golf Club, which was designed in 1912 by...
. John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
, George Harrison
George Harrison
George Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...
, Ringo Starr
Ringo Starr
Richard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
, and their friend Pete Shotton all listened to McCartney play his song through and contributed ideas. Starr contributed the line "writing the words of a sermon that no one will hear " and suggested making "Father McCartney" darn his socks, which McCartney liked. Shotton then suggested that McCartney change the name of the priest, in case listeners mistook the fictional character in the song for McCartney's own father.
The song is often described as a lament for lonely people or a commentary on post-war life in Britain.
McCartney could not decide how to end the song, and Shotton finally suggested that the two lonely people come together too late as Father McKenzie conducts Eleanor Rigby's funeral. At the time, Lennon rejected the idea out of hand, but McCartney said nothing and used the idea to finish off the song, later acknowledging Shotton's help.
Lennon was quoted in 1972 as having said that he wrote 70% of the lyrics, and in 1980 claimed that he wrote all but the first verse, but Pete Shotton, Lennon's childhood friend, remembered Lennon's contribution as being "absolutely nil". McCartney said that "John helped me on a few words but I'd put it down 80-20 to me, something like that."
Historical artefacts
Woolton
Woolton is a suburb of Liverpool, Merseyside, England and a Liverpool City Council Ward. It is located at the south of the city, bordered by Gateacre, Hunts Cross, Allerton and Halewood. At the 2001 Census the population was recorded as 14,836.-History:...
, Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, and a few yards away from that, another tombstone with the last name McKenzie scrawled across it. During their teenage years, McCartney and Lennon spent time sunbathing there, within earshot of where the two had met for the first time during a fete
Fête
Fête is a French word meaning festival, celebration or party, which has passed into English as a label that may be given to certain events.-Description:It is widely used in England and Australia in the context of a village fête,...
in 1957. Many years later McCartney stated that the strange coincidence between reality and lyric could be a product of his subconscious, rather than being a meaningless fluke. The actual Eleanor Rigby was born in 1895 and lived in Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, possibly in the suburb of Woolton
Woolton
Woolton is a suburb of Liverpool, Merseyside, England and a Liverpool City Council Ward. It is located at the south of the city, bordered by Gateacre, Hunts Cross, Allerton and Halewood. At the 2001 Census the population was recorded as 14,836.-History:...
, where she married a man named Thomas Woods. She died on 10 October 1939 at age 44. Whether this Eleanor was the inspiration for the song or not, her tombstone has become a landmark to Beatles fans visiting Liverpool. A digitised version was added to the 1995 music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
for The Beatles' reunion song "Free as a Bird".
In June 1990, McCartney donated a document dating from 1911 which had been signed by the 16-year-old Eleanor Rigby to Sunbeams Music Trust, instantly attracting significant international interest from collectors because of the significance and provenance of the document. The nearly 100-year-old document was sold at auction in November 2008 for £115,000 ($250,000). The Daily Telegraph reported that the uncovered document "is a 97-year-old salary register from Liverpool City Hospital." The name E. Rigby is printed on the register, and she is identified as a scullery maid
Scullery maid
In great houses, scullery maids were the lowest-ranked and often the youngest of the female servants and acted as assistant to a kitchen maid. The scullery maid reported to the cook or chef...
.
Recording
"Eleanor Rigby" does not have a standard pop backing; none of The Beatles played instruments on it, though John Lennon and George Harrison did contribute harmony vocals. Instead, McCartney used a string octet of studio musicians, composed of four violins, two cellos, and two violas, all performing a score composed by producer George Martin. For the most part, the instruments "double up"—that is, they serve as two string quartets with two instruments playing each part in the quartet. Microphones were placed close to the instruments to produce a more vivid and raw sound; George Martin recorded two versions, one with and one without vibratoVibrato
Vibrato is a musical effect consisting of a regular, pulsating change of pitch. It is used to add expression to vocal and instrumental music. Vibrato is typically characterised in terms of two factors: the amount of pitch variation and the speed with which the pitch is varied .-Vibrato and...
, the latter of which was used. McCartney's choice of a string backing may have been influenced by his interest in the composer Antonio Vivaldi
Antonio Vivaldi
Antonio Lucio Vivaldi , nicknamed because of his red hair, was an Italian Baroque composer, priest, and virtuoso violinist, born in Venice. Vivaldi is recognized as one of the greatest Baroque composers, and his influence during his lifetime was widespread over Europe...
. Lennon recalled in 1980 that "Eleanor Rigby" was "Paul's baby, and I helped with the education of the child ... The violin backing was Paul's idea. Jane Asher had turned him on to Vivaldi, and it was very good."
The octet was recorded on 28 April 1966, in Studio 2 at Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios is a recording studio located at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music company EMI, its present owner...
and completed in Studio 3 on 29 April and on 6 June. Take 15 was selected as the master.
George Martin, in his autobiography All You Need Is Ears, takes credit for combining two of the vocal parts, having noticed that they would work together contrapuntally
Counterpoint
In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more voices that are independent in contour and rhythm and are harmonically interdependent . It has been most commonly identified in classical music, developing strongly during the Renaissance and in much of the common practice period,...
. He cited the influence of Bernard Herrmann
Bernard Herrmann
Bernard Herrmann was an American composer noted for his work in motion pictures.An Academy Award-winner , Herrmann is particularly known for his collaborations with director Alfred Hitchcock, most famously Psycho, North by Northwest, The Man Who Knew Too Much, and Vertigo...
's work, particularly the score for the film Fahrenheit 451
Fahrenheit 451 (1966 film)
Fahrenheit 451 is a 1966 film directed by François Truffaut, in his first colour film as well as his only English-language film. It is based on the novel of the same name by Ray Bradbury....
, on his string scoring.
The original stereo mix had Paul's voice only in the right channel during the verses, with the string octet mixed to one channel, while the mono single and mono LP featured a more balanced mix. On the Yellow Submarine Songtrack
Yellow Submarine Songtrack
Yellow Submarine Songtrack is a compilation /soundtrack album by The Beatles for the 1999 re-release of the 1968 film Yellow Submarine...
and Love
Love (The Beatles album)
Love is a Grammy Award-winning soundtrack remix album of music recorded by The Beatles, released in November 2006. It features music compiled and remixed as a mashup for the Cirque du Soleil show of the same name...
versions, McCartney's voice is centred and the string octet appears in stereo in an attempt to create a more "modern" sounding mix.
Releases
Revolver (album)
Revolver is the seventh studio album by the English rock group The Beatles, released on 5 August 1966 on the Parlophone label and produced by George Martin. Many of the tracks on Revolver are marked by an electric guitar-rock sound, in contrast with their previous LP, the folk rock inspired Rubber...
and on a double A-side single with "Yellow Submarine
Yellow Submarine (song)
"Yellow Submarine" is a 1966 song by The Beatles, written by Paul McCartney , with lead vocals by Ringo Starr. It was included on the Revolver album and issued as a single, coupled with "Eleanor Rigby". The single went to number 1 on every major British chart, remained at number 1 for four weeks...
" on Parlophone
Parlophone
Parlophone is a record label that was founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch was formed in 1923 as "Parlophone" which developed a reputation in the 1920s as a leading jazz label. It was acquired in 1927 by the Columbia Graphophone Company which...
in the United Kingdom and Capitol
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
in the United States. It spent four weeks at number one on the British charts, but in America it only reached the eleventh spot.
The song was nominated for three Grammys and won the 1966 Grammy for Best Contemporary (R&R) Vocal Performance, Male or Female for McCartney. Thirty years later, George Martin's isolated string arrangement (without the vocal) was released on The Beatles' Anthology 2
Anthology 2
Anthology 2 is a compilation album by The Beatles, released by Apple Records in March 1996. It is the second of the three-volume Anthology collection, all of which tie-in with the televised special The Beatles Anthology. The opening track is "Real Love", the second of the two recordings that...
. A remixed version of the track was included in the 2006 album Love
Love (The Beatles album)
Love is a Grammy Award-winning soundtrack remix album of music recorded by The Beatles, released in November 2006. It features music compiled and remixed as a mashup for the Cirque du Soleil show of the same name...
.
It is the second song to appear in The Beatles' 1968 animated film Yellow Submarine. The first is "Yellow Submarine"; it and "Eleanor Rigby" are the only songs in the film which the animated Beatles are not seen to be singing. "Eleanor Rigby" is introduced just before the Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
sequence of the film, and its poignancy ties in quite well with Ringo Starr
Ringo Starr
Richard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
(the first member of the group to encounter the submarine) who is represented as quietly bored and depressed. "Compared with my life, Eleanor Rigby's was a gay, mad world."
In 1984, a re-interpretation of the song was included in the film and album Give My Regards to Broad Street
Give My Regards to Broad Street
Give My Regards to Broad Street is the soundtrack album to the 1984 film of the same name. Unlike the film, the album was successful, achieving #1 in the UK chart and its lead single "No More Lonely Nights" was BAFTA and Golden Globe award nominated....
, written by and starring McCartney. It segues into a symphonic extension, "Eleanor's Dream."
In 1996, a stereo remix featuring only the string arrangement was released on Anthology 2
Anthology 2
Anthology 2 is a compilation album by The Beatles, released by Apple Records in March 1996. It is the second of the three-volume Anthology collection, all of which tie-in with the televised special The Beatles Anthology. The opening track is "Real Love", the second of the two recordings that...
, and a fully remixed stereo version was issued in 1999 on the Yellow Submarine Songtrack
Yellow Submarine Songtrack
Yellow Submarine Songtrack is a compilation /soundtrack album by The Beatles for the 1999 re-release of the 1968 film Yellow Submarine...
, with some minor fixes to the vocals.
Significance
Pete Townshend
Peter Dennis Blandford "Pete" Townshend is an English rock guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and author, known principally as the guitarist and songwriter for the rock group The Who, as well as for his own solo career...
of The Who
The Who
The Who are an English rock band formed in 1964 by Roger Daltrey , Pete Townshend , John Entwistle and Keith Moon . They became known for energetic live performances which often included instrument destruction...
commented "I think 'Eleanor Rigby' was a very important musical move forward. It certainly inspired me to write and listen to things in that vein."
Though "Eleanor Rigby" was not the first pop song to deal with death and loneliness, according to Ian MacDonald
Ian MacDonald
Ian MacCormick was a British music critic and author, best known for Revolution in the Head, his forensic history of The Beatles which borrowed techniques from art historians, and The New Shostakovich, a controversial study of the Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich...
it "came as quite a shock to pop listeners in 1966." It took a bleak message of depression
Depression (mood)
Depression is a state of low mood and aversion to activity that can affect a person's thoughts, behaviour, feelings and physical well-being. Depressed people may feel sad, anxious, empty, hopeless, helpless, worthless, guilty, irritable, or restless...
and desolation, written by a famous pop band, with a sombre, almost funeral-like backing, to the number one spot of the pop charts. The bleak lyrics were not The Beatles' first deviation from love songs, but were some of the most explicit.
In some reference books on classical music, "Eleanor Rigby" is included and considered comparable to art song
Art song
An art song is a vocal music composition, usually written for one voice with piano or orchestral accompaniment. By extension, the term "art song" is used to refer to the genre of such songs....
s (lieder). Howard Goodall
Howard Goodall
210px|thumb|Howard Goodall at St. John the Baptist Church in Devon, United Kingdom, May 2009Howard Lindsay Goodall CBE is a British composer of musicals, choral music and music for television...
said that The Beatles' works are "a stunning roll-call of sublime melodies that perhaps only Mozart can match in European musical history" and that they "almost single-handedly rescued the Western musical system" from the "plague years of the avant-garde
Avant-garde
Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
". About "Eleanor Rigby", he said it is "an urban version of a tragic ballad in the Dorian mode
Dorian mode
Due to historical confusion, Dorian mode or Doric mode can refer to three very different musical modes or diatonic scales, the Greek, the medieval, and the modern.- Greek Dorian mode :...
."
Jerry Leiber said, "The Beatles are second to none in all departments. I don't think there has ever been a better song written than 'Eleanor Rigby.'"
Personnel
- Paul McCartneyPaul McCartneySir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
– vocalLead vocalistThe lead vocalist is the member of a band who sings the main vocal portions of a song. They may also play one or more instruments. Lead vocalists are sometimes referred to as the frontman or frontwoman, and as such, are usually considered to be the "leader" of the groups they perform in, often the...
and harmony vocal - John LennonJohn LennonJohn Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
– harmony vocal - George HarrisonGeorge HarrisonGeorge Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...
– harmony vocal - Tony Gilbert – violinViolinThe violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
- Sidney SaxSidney SaxSidney Sax was a leading violinist in London's session musician circles. In addition to being an eminent and influential orchestral leader he was also contractor, 'fixing' the personnel for recording sessions...
– violin - John Sharpe – violin
- Juergen Hess – violin
- Stephen Shingles – violaViolaThe viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...
- John Underwood – viola
- Derek SimpsonDerek Simpson (cellist)Derek Simpson was an English cellist, known primarily from his work with the Aeolian Quartet, and as the teacher of many contemporary cellists.-Career:...
– celloCelloThe cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is... - Norman Jones – cello
- George MartinGeorge MartinSir George Henry Martin CBE is an English record producer, arranger, composer and musician. He is sometimes referred to as "the Fifth Beatle"— a title that he often describes as "nonsense," but the fact remains that he served as producer on all but one of The Beatles' original albums...
– producerRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, string arrangement - Geoff EmerickGeoff EmerickGeoffrey Emerick is an English recording studio audio engineer, who is best known for his work with The Beatles' albums Revolver, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, The Beatles and Abbey Road...
– engineerAudio engineeringAn audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
- Personnel per Ian MacDonaldIan MacDonaldIan MacCormick was a British music critic and author, best known for Revolution in the Head, his forensic history of The Beatles which borrowed techniques from art historians, and The New Shostakovich, a controversial study of the Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich...
Studio versions
The following artists have recorded "Eleanor Rigby" in a variety of styles, at least 62 released on albums by one count:- Steve AllenSteve AllenSteve Allen may refer to:*Steve Allen , American musician, comedian, and writer*Steve Allen , presenter on the London-based talk radio station LBC 97.3...
recorded a narrative recitation, as a 1967 orchestrated album track (despite having criticised rock music during the 1950s and 1960s). - El ChicanoEl ChicanoEl Chicano is an American chicano rock and brown-eyed soul group from Los Angeles, California, whose style incorporates various modern music genres including rock, funk, soul, blues, jazz, and salsa...
released a cover of the song on their 1970 debut album "Viva Tirado". It was one of 9 songs on the album that produced their first El ChicanoEl ChicanoEl Chicano is an American chicano rock and brown-eyed soul group from Los Angeles, California, whose style incorporates various modern music genres including rock, funk, soul, blues, jazz, and salsa...
hit single "Viva Tirado". - Doodles WeaverDoodles WeaverWinstead Sheffield Weaver , who used the professional name Doodles Weaver, was an American actor and comedian on radio, recordings, and television. He was the brother of NBC executive Sylvester "Pat" Weaver and the uncle of actress Sigourney Weaver.Born in Los Angeles, Weaver was given the nickname...
recorded a comedic version for the record Feetlebaum Returns! that was also included on the album Dr. DementoDr. DementoBarret Eugene Hansen , better known as Dr. Demento, is a radio broadcaster and record collector specializing in novelty songs, comedy, and strange or unusual recordings dating from the early days of phonograph records to the present....
's Delights. - Vanilla FudgeVanilla FudgeVanilla Fudge is an American rock band. The band's original lineup – vocalist/organist Mark Stein, bassist/vocalist Tim Bogert, lead guitarist/vocalist Vince Martell, and drummer/vocalist Carmine Appice – recorded five albums during the years 1966–69, before disbanding in 1970...
covered the song on their debut album Vanilla FudgeVanilla Fudge (album)Allmusic's Paul Collins rated Vanilla Fudge four out of five stars. He stated that "nobody could accuse Vanilla Fudge of bad taste in their repertoire" and that most of the tracks "share a common structure of a disjointed warm-up jam, a Hammond-heavy dirge of harmonized vocals at the center, and a...
in 1967. - Joan BaezJoan BaezJoan Chandos Baez is an American folk singer, songwriter, musician and a prominent activist in the fields of human rights, peace and environmental justice....
's 1967 version, included on her JoanJoan (album)Joan was a 1967 album by Joan Baez. Having exhausted the standard voice/guitar folksong format by 1967, Baez collaborated with composer Peter Schickele , on an album of orchestrated covers of mostly then-current pop and rock and roll songs...
album, was sung to classical orchestration arranged by Peter SchickelePeter SchickeleJohann Peter Schickele is an American composer, musical educator, and parodist. He is best known for his comedy music albums featuring his music that he presents as music written by the fictional composer P. D. Q...
. - Richie HavensRichie HavensRichard P. "Richie" Havens is an African American folk singer and guitarist. He is best known for his intense, rhythmic guitar style , soulful covers of pop and folk songs, and his opening performance at the 1969 Woodstock Festival.-Career:Born in Brooklyn, Havens was the eldest of nine children...
included his version of the song on his 1967 debut album Mixed BagMixed BagMixed Bag is a 1967 album by Richie Havens. Although often mistaken as his debut, this was actually Havens's third record. It followed two earlier, lesser-known releases on Douglas Records...
. - P.P. Arnold sang a cover of the song on her album The First Cut – The Immediate Anthology.
- The Free DesignThe Free DesignThe Free Design was a Delevan, New York-based vocal group playing jazzy pop music. Their music can be described as sunshine pop and baroque pop, which were pop music subgenres at the time, which later influenced the bands Stereolab, Cornelius, Pizzicato Five, Beck and The High Llamas.-Early...
recorded a cover on their second album You Could Be Born AgainYou Could Be Born AgainYou Could Be Born Again is the second album by The Free Design; it was released in 1968.-Track listing:#"You Could Be Born Again"#"A Leaf Has Veins"#"California Dreamin'"#"The Windows of the World"#"Eleanor Rigby"#"Quartet No. 6 in D Minor"...
. - Ray CharlesRay CharlesRay Charles Robinson , known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records...
released a version as a single and on the album A Portrait of Ray (1968). - Bobbie GentryBobbie GentryRoberta Lee Streeter , professionally known as Bobbie Gentry, is a former American singer-songwriter notable as one of the first female country artists to compose and produce her own material...
released a version on her 1968 album Local GentryLocal GentryLocal Gentry is the third album by Bobbie Gentry. The second of four albums she released in 1968, it was produced by Kelly Gordon.-Side one:# "Sweete Peony 2:26" *# "Casket Vignette 2:34" *...
. - Big Jim SullivanBig Jim SullivanBig Jim Sullivan is an English musician, whose career started in 1959. He is best known as a session guitarist. In the 1960s and 1970s, Sullivan was one of the most "in-demand" studio musicians in the UK, and performed in more than one thousand charting singles over his career...
did a sitarSitarThe 'Tablaman' is a plucked stringed instrument predominantly used in Hindustani classical music, where it has been ubiquitous since the Middle Ages...
reworking of the song on his 1968 album Lord Sitar. - Booker T and the MGs included an instrumental version on their 1968 Soul LimboSoul LimboSoul Limbo is the eighth album by Booker T. & the MGs, released in 1968 on Stax Records. The album was the first Stax LP issued after the label severed its ties with former distributor Atlantic Records in 1968....
album release. - Dutch group Sandy Coast recorded a version of the song which was released as a single in 1969 (POF 166).
- Tony BennettTony BennettTony Bennett is an American singer of popular music, standards, show tunes, and jazz....
released a version on his January 1970 album Tony Sings the Great Hits of Today!Tony Sings the Great Hits of Today!Tony Sings the Great Hits of Today! is a 1970 album by American classic pop and jazz singer Tony Bennett. Done under pressure from his record company for more marketable material, it featured misguided attempts at Beatles and other current songs and a ludicrous psychedelic art cover...
. Bennett was dismayed by having to record contemporary, rock-influenced material under pressure from his record company. His partly spoken take on the song was poorly received, with music writer Will FriedwaldWill FriedwaldWill Friedwald is an American author and music critic. He has written for such newspapers as The New York Times, The Village Voice, Newsday, The New York Observer, and The New York Sun, and for such magazines as Entertainment Weekly, Oxford American, New York, Mojo, BBC Music Magazine, Stereo...
saying it was recited as if it were Thomas GrayThomas GrayThomas Gray was a poet, letter-writer, classical scholar and professor at Cambridge University.-Early life and education:...
's Elegy Written in a Country ChurchyardElegy Written in a Country ChurchyardElegy Written in a Country Churchyard is a poem by Thomas Gray, completed in 1750 and first published in 1751. The poem’s origins are unknown, but it was partly inspired by Gray’s thoughts following the death of the poet Richard West in 1742. Originally titled Stanza's Wrote in a Country...
and TimeTime (magazine)Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
magazine describing it as "Shatneresque", making reference to Star TrekStar TrekStar Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
actor William ShatnerWilliam ShatnerWilliam Alan Shatner is a Canadian actor, musician, recording artist, and author. He gained worldwide fame and became a cultural icon for his portrayal of James T...
's 1968 interpretationThe Transformed ManThe Transformed Man is actor William Shatner's debut album. It was released in 1968, while Shatner was still starring in the original Star Trek series, and began his musical career. The concept of the album was to juxtapose famous pieces of poetry with their modern counterparts, pop lyrics...
of "Lucy in the Sky with DiamondsLucy in the Sky with Diamonds"Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" is a song written primarily by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney, for The Beatles' 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band...
". - Aretha FranklinAretha FranklinAretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...
released a version as a single in 1969 and on the album This Girl's In Love With YouThis Girl's in Love with YouThis Girl's In Love With You is a 1970 album by Aretha Franklin. It reached Billboards Top 20 and was reissued on compact disc through Rhino Records in the 1990s....
(1970). - Jazz musicians such as The Jazz Crusaders, Wes MontgomeryWes MontgomeryJohn Leslie "Wes" Montgomery was an American jazz guitarist. He is widely considered one of the major jazz guitarists, emerging after such seminal figures as Django Reinhardt and Charlie Christian and influencing countless others, including Pat Martino, George Benson, Russell Malone, Emily...
(on his 1967 album A Day in the Life), Stanley JordanStanley JordanStanley Jordan is an American jazz/jazz fusion guitarist and pianist, best known for his development of the tapping technique for the guitar....
(on the album Magic Touch, 1985) and John PizzarelliJohn PizzarelliJohn Paul Pizzarelli, Jr. is an American jazz guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and bandleader. He has had a lengthy career as a recording artist, performing for a variety of labels that include Telarc Records, RCA Records and Chesky Records, among others...
recorded it as an instrumental, with lead-guitar taking over the vocal line. - Australian band ZootZoot (band)Zoot are a pop/rock band formed in Adelaide, South Australia in 1965 as Down the Line. They changed their name to Zoot in 1967 and by 1968 had relocated to Melbourne...
released a psychedelic rockPsychedelic rockPsychedelic rock is a style of rock music that is inspired or influenced by psychedelic culture and attempts to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues rock bands in United States and the United Kingdom...
version in 1970 that reached #4 on the Australian charts and went gold after its 1980 re-release. - German group The RattlesThe RattlesThe Rattles are a rock band from Germany. Their biggest selling record was their 1968 recorded song, "The Witch", which sold over one million copies globally.-Career:...
recorded an almost 10 min version of the song for their 1971 album "The Rattles" (Decca SKL R 5088). - Dutch group Dizzy Man's Band recorded a 8m 45s version of the song for their 1971 album "Luctor et Emergo" (CNR 657507).
- Jamaican musician, singer, songwriter and producer B.B. SeatonB.B. SeatonHarris Lloyd "B.B." Seaton , also known as "Bibby" is a Jamaican reggae singer and record producer who was a member of The Gaylads, The Astronauts, Conscious Minds, and The Messengers , and who has had a long solo career which dates back to 1960.-Biography:Seaton first recorded as a solo...
with the band The GayladsThe GayladsThe Gaylads were one of the top Rocksteady vocal groups active in Jamaica between 1963 and 1973. The group, formed in Kingston, originally consisted of singers Harris "B.B." Seaton, Winston Delano Stewart and Maurice Roberts; Seaton and Stewart had previously been successful as the duo Winston &...
recorded a reggaeReggaeReggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
version of this song in 1972. - Brazilian composer/singer Caetano VelosoCaetano VelosoCaetano Emanuel Viana Teles Veloso , better known as Caetano Veloso, is a Brazilian composer, singer, guitarist, writer, and political activist. Veloso first became known for his participation in the Brazilian musical movement Tropicalismo which encompassed theatre, poetry and music in the 1960s,...
recorded it on the album Qualquer coisa (1975). - In 1975, Belgo-English progressive rockProgressive rockProgressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
band Esperanto covered the song on their album Last Tango. - German group Streetmark recorded the song for their 1975 album "Nordland" (Sky Records SKY 003). On the CD edition there is a Bonus track 'Da Capo' a variation on the 'Eleanor Rigby' theme
- Wing And A Prayer Fife And Drum CorpsWing and a Prayer Fife and Drum CorpsWing and a Prayer Fife and Drum Corps was an American disco group in existence from 1975 to 1978. The "fife and drum corps" was actually an assemblage of studio musicians put together by Harold Wheeler; the group's vocalists were Linda November, Vivian Cherry, Arlene Martell, and Helen Miles.Their...
recorded this song in their 1976 album Babyface. - Ethel the FrogEthel the Frog (band)Ethel the Frog was a heavy metal band formed in 1976 in Hull, England. They are notable for being a part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement. The band's unusual name was taken from a Monty Python sketch about the "Piranha Brothers".-Career:...
covered this song on a single recorded for EMI in 1979. - Sarah VaughanSarah VaughanSarah Lois Vaughan was an American jazz singer, described by Scott Yanow as having "one of the most wondrous voices of the 20th century."...
included a version on her 1981 LP Songs of The BeatlesSongs of the BeatlesSongs of the Beatles is a 1981 album by American jazz singer Sarah Vaughan.-Track listing:# "Get Back" - 2:55# "And I Love Her" - 4:08# "Eleanor Rigby" - 3:48# "The Fool on the Hill" - 4:15...
. - Stanley JordanStanley JordanStanley Jordan is an American jazz/jazz fusion guitarist and pianist, best known for his development of the tapping technique for the guitar....
played a solo instrumental version on his 1985 debut album "Magic TouchMagic Touch (album)Magic Touch is the Blue Note Records debut album by jazz musician Stanley Jordan. Allmusic critic Daniel Gioffre has described the album as "[a]n instant classic, and one of the definitive moments of modern jazz guitar."- Track listing :...
". - The Jerry Garcia BandJerry Garcia BandThe Jerry Garcia Band was a San Francisco Bay Area rock band led by Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead. Garcia founded the band in 1975; it remained the most important of his various side-projects until his death in 1995...
played an instrumental version as part of a medley with "After Midnight". - RealmRealm (band)Realm is an American thrash/progressive metal band from Milwaukee, Wisconsin that formed in 1985.-History:Realm formed in 1985 in Milwaukee. They released two underground demo tapes at first; Perceptive Incentive in 1985 and the landmark Final Solution in 1986...
covered this song on their 1988 album Endless WarEndless WarEndless War is the first full-length album recorded by the Thrash metal/Progressive metal band Realm. It was released in 1988 and re-released in CD and digipack form by Metal Mind Productions on January 16,2007 in US, and in late 2006 in Europe...
. - Junior ReidJunior ReidDelroy "Junior" Reid is a Jamaican reggae and dancehall musician, best known for the songs "One Blood" and "Funny Man", as well as being the man that replaced Michael Rose as lead vocalist for Black Uhuru.-Biography:...
released a dancehall version of the song on his 1990 album One Blood. - The Violet BurningThe Violet BurningThe Violet Burning is an independent rock and roll band based in Long Beach, USA. The band was formed in 1990 in Orange County, California by Michael J. Pritzl....
released this song on their 1992 album, Strength. - Wayne JohnsonWayne JohnsonWayne Johnson is an American jazz and acoustic guitarist based in Southern California. Johnson won a joint Grammy Award in 2004 for his contribution to the album Pink Guitar, which featured the songs of composer Henry Mancini....
recorded an acoustic version of this song for his 1995 acoustic album Kindred Spirits. - Shirley BasseyShirley BasseyDame Shirley Bassey, DBE , is a Welsh singer. She found fame in the late 1950s and was "one of the most popular female vocalists in Britain during the last half of the 20th century"...
covered this song on her 1995 album Sings the MoviesSings the MoviesSings the Movies is a studio album from Shirley Bassey released in 1995.In 1995 Shirley Bassey signed a deal with the PolyGram TV label, she recorded and released two albums with the label. The first was a themed album of movie songs...
. - KansasKansas (band)Kansas is an American rock band that became popular in the 1970s initially on Album-Oriented Rock charts, and later with hit singles such as "Carry On Wayward Son" and "Dust in the Wind"...
recorded this song on their 1998 album Always Never the Same. - GodheadGodhead (band)Godhead, occasionally typeset as gODHEAD, is an American alternative rock/metal band from Washington, D.C.. They are most often credited with being the only band signed to musician Marilyn Manson's short-lived vanity label, Posthuman Records.-History:...
recorded this song on their 2001 album 2000 Years of Human Error2000 Years of Human Error-Personnel:* Jason C. Miller – vocals, rhythm guitar, mixing* Mike Miller – lead guitar, backing vocals* Ullrich "Method" Hepperlin – bass, programming* James O'Connor – drums* Marilyn Manson – producer, vocals...
. - PainPain (Swedish band)Pain is a musical project from Sweden that mix Metal with influences from Electronic metal and Techno. The project started out as a hobby project for front man Peter Tägtgren, whose idea was to fuse metal with 1980's-inspired electro-industrial and techno influences...
recorded this song on their 2002 album Nothing Remains the SameNothing Remains the SameNothing Remains The Same is the 3rd album by the Swedish metal band Pain. It was released in 2002 on the Swedish label Stockholm Records and features the hit singles "Shut Your Mouth" and "Just Hate Me"...
. - Liane CarrollLiane CarrollLiane Carroll is an English pianist/vocalist who grew up in a musical family. She has played professionally since she was 15....
includes a version on her 2005 album Standard Issue - ThriceThriceThrice is an American rock band from Irvine, California, formed in 1998. The group was founded by guitarist/vocalist Dustin Kensrue and guitarist Teppei Teranishi while they were in high school....
included a cover of the song in their album If We Could Only See Us NowIf We Could Only See Us NowIf We Could Only See Us Now is a dual disc release by the post hardcore band Thrice, and has been certified Gold by the RIAA. The first disc is a CD of rarities including unreleased songs...
in 2005. - Twisted SisterTwisted SisterTwisted Sister is an American heavy metal band from Long Island. Musically, the band implements elements of traditional heavy metal bands such as Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, along with a style that is similar to early glam metal bands...
guitarist Eddie OjedaEddie OjedaEddie "Fingers" Ojeda is one of the two guitarists of the American heavy metal band Twisted Sister....
recorded a cover version of the song for his 2006 solo album Axes 2 Axes. Dee SniderDee SniderDaniel "Dee" Snider is an American singer-songwriter, screenwriter, radio personality, and actor. Snider is most famous for his role as the frontman of the heavy metal band Twisted Sister...
performed the vocals. - A cover of the song by David Schommer (feat. David JensenDavid JensenDavid "Kid" Jensen , is a Danish Canadian-born, British radio DJ.-Early career:Born in a Danish family residing Victoria, British Columbia, Jensen began his career in his home country at the age of sixteen playing jazz and classical music. He then joined Radio Luxembourg at the age of eighteen in...
) can be found on the soundtrack for the 2006 movie AcceptedAcceptedAccepted is a 2006 American comedy film directed by Steve Pink and written by Adam Cooper, Bill Collage, and Mark Perez. The main plot centers around a group of would-be college freshmen who, after being rejected from all the colleges and universities to which they had applied, proceed to create...
. - Elevator SuiteElevator SuiteElevator Suite is a three piece electronic pop group. They were formed in January 1999 by the English DJ Andy Childs, his friend DJ Paul "Robbo" Roberts, and Steve Grainger, who was working as a record producer of a small recording studio in Totnes, Devon....
included a cover in their 2007 self-titled album. - In 2008, David CookDavid Cook (singer)David Roland Cook is an American rock singer-songwriter, who rose to fame after winning the seventh season of the reality television show American Idol...
, winner of the seventh seasonAmerican Idol (season 7)The seventh season of American Idol, the annual reality show and singing competition, began on January 15, 2008 and concluded on May 21, 2008. Ryan Seacrest continued to host the show with Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson returning as judges...
of American IdolAmerican IdolAmerican Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
, sang the song on the show and later released a single via iTunesITunes StoreThe iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
. - In 1982, Twelfth NightTwelfth Night (band)Twelfth Night are an English neo-progressive rock band of the 1980s, reformed in 2007.-Formation:The seeds of Twelfth Night were sown when guitarist Andy Revell and drummer Brian Devoil joined forces on 23 February 1978 to win a talent competition at Reading University. The road crew included Geoff...
recorded a 80s-style cover of this song for a single, and later included it as one of the bonus tracks on an extended edition of their Fact and FictionFact and FictionFact and Fiction is a studio album released by UK neo-progressive band Twelfth Night in 1982.-Details:Recorded during down-time at Revolution Studios, Cheadle Hulme, Fact and Fiction was engineered by Stuart Rickering, Johnny Gluck, and Pablo, and produced by Twelfth Night and Andy MacPherson...
album. - The John LaBarberaJohn LaBarberaJohn LaBarbera is a trumpet player and arranger who worked with the Buddy Rich Orchestra during the late 1960s.Born in Mount Morris, New York, he has performed and written with many big bands...
Big Band recorded a version of this song on their CD On the Wild Side. - Mark WoodMark Wood (violinist)Mark Winthrop Wood is an electric violinist, as well as the founder of Wood Violins, a company that makes unique electric violins. He is also an Emmy-winning composer. His music and strings education program has been featured on news programs nationwide....
released a version of this song on his 2003 album These Are a Few of My Favorite Things with his wife, Laura Kaye, on vocals. - Ilan RubinIlan RubinIlan Rubin is an American musician, best known for being former drummer of Lostprophets & industrial rock act Nine Inch Nails during their last tour...
covered this song during his CoupCoup (album)Coup is the debut album by The New Regime, which is a solo project by Ilan Rubin, the previous drummer of Welsh band Lostprophets and current drummer of Nine Inch Nails. Ilan recorded all 10 tracks himself on all instruments, including vocals...
recording sessions and released it as a free download. - Chick CoreaChick CoreaArmando Anthony "Chick" Corea is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, and composer.Many of his compositions are considered jazz standards. As a member of Miles Davis' band in the 1960s, he participated in the birth of the electric jazz fusion movement. In the 1970s he formed Return to Forever...
performed a cover of the song on the 1995 GRPGRP RecordsGRP Records is an American jazz record company, owned by Universal Music Group and operates through its Verve Music Group. The company's name has had different meanings. In its early days, it stood for "Grusin/Rosen Productions," after the founders...
tribute album (I Got No Kick Against) Modern Jazz(I Got No Kick Against) Modern JazzModern Jazz is a 1995 tribute album by various jazz artists and bands. It consists of jazz cover versions of songs originally by The Beatles. The album's title comes from the lyrics of the Beatles's cover of the Chuck Berry song, "Rock and Roll Music", which was originally released on the studio...
. - Charlotte PerrelliCharlotte PerrelliCharlotte Perrelli is a Swedish singer and occasional television host, perhaps most famous for winning the 1999 Melodifestivalen and subsequently that year's Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Take Me to Your Heaven."Since then she has released six singles and five albums...
covered Monica Zetterlund’sMonica ZetterlundEva Monica Zetterlund was a Swedish singer and actress.-Biography:Zetterlund was a singer particularly noted for her jazz work. She began by learning the classic jazz songs from radio and records, initially not knowing the language and what they sang about in English...
Swedish cover, Ellinor Rydholm, on her 2006 album I din röstI din röstI din röst is an album by the Swedish singer Charlotte Perrelli, released July 5, 2006. It peaked at 29th place on the Swedish music charts. It is a tribute album to Monica Zetterlund...
. - FatherFather (band)Father is an alternative metal band from Rijeka, Croatia. The band was assembled in March 2000 under the name Easyman, later changing their name to Father. They released their debut album Inspirita on Dallas Records in October 2005 to critical and commercial acclaim...
released a cover version in 2009 as a pre-single to their untitled second album. - Joshua BellJoshua BellJoshua David Bell is an American Grammy Award-winning violinist.-Childhood:Bell was born in Bloomington, Indiana, United States, the son of a psychologist and a therapist. Bell's father is the late Alan P...
released a cover version on the album At Home With Friends featuring Frankie Moreno. - Outside RoyaltyOutside RoyaltyOutside Royalty is a six-piece indie rock band originating from Pittsburgh, PA. In 2006, four members of the band moved to London, England where they were joined by cellist Frederique Legrand and bassist Paul Crawford-SmithIn 2007 the band were among the 14 finalists in the Virgin 'Road to V'...
released a cover version on the single "Lightbulb (Turning Off)" in 2009. - The Ides of March on the album Vehicle as "Symphony for Eleanor." Apart from the lyrics it bears no similarity to the original, but is credited solely to Lennon/McCartney.
- Daze recorded a version of this song on their EP Fresh Red in 2007.
- Talib KweliTalib KweliTalib Kweli Greene , better known as Talib Kweli, is an American hip-hop artist and poet from Brooklyn, New York. His first name in Arabic means "student" or "seeker" ; his in Swahili means "true"...
& LaToiya Williams released a cover of the song in 2004 entitled "Lonely People" on Kweli's The Beautifil Mix CD - Michael LyncheMichael LyncheMichael Alexander Lynche is an American singer from St. Petersburg, Florida who was the fourth place finalist on the ninth season of American Idol. He is the second finalist ever to receive the judges' save, which was introduced in season eight.-Early life:Lynche was born to Michele and Marque...
covered the song on American IdolAmerican Idol (season 9)The ninth season of American Idol premiered on January 12, 2010 and concluded on May 26, 2010 on Fox. Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Kara DioGuardi all returned as judges, and Ellen DeGeneres permanently replaced Paula Abdul as the fourth judge. Idol Gives Back also returned for the season and was...
and released it as a single. He was the lowest vote getter but was then saved by the four idol judges. - The FrayThe Fray-Literature:*Fray, a phenomenon in Terry Pratchett's The Carpet People*Fray , a comic book series by Joss Whedon**Melaka Fray, titular character of the comic book series-Music:*"Fray", a song from the album 14 Shades of Grey by Staind...
recorded an acoustic version of this song on the album "Stripped Acoustic Set". - ThriceThriceThrice is an American rock band from Irvine, California, formed in 1998. The group was founded by guitarist/vocalist Dustin Kensrue and guitarist Teppei Teranishi while they were in high school....
recorded a cover version in their 2005 album " If We Could Only See Us Now" - Ja RuleJa RuleJeffrey Atkins , better known by his stage name Ja Rule, is an American rapper, singer, and actor.Born in Hollis, Queens, he began his career in the group Cash Money Click and debuted in 1999 with Venni Vetti Vecci and its single "Holla Holla"...
recorded a hip-hop version of this song entitled "Father Forgive Me" on his 2008 album "The Mirror" - SouliveSouliveSoulive is a funk/jazz trio that originated in Woodstock, New York, and is known for its solos and catchy, upbeat songs. The band consists of Eric Krasno , Alan Evans , Neal Evans...
recorded an instrumental version for their album "Rubber Soulive", an album of Beatles covers. - B.o.BB.o.BBobby Ray Simmons, Jr. , better known by his stage name B.o.B, is an American rapper, singer-songwriter and record producer. He is currently signed under the labels of Grand Hustle Records, Rebel Rock Entertainment, and Atlantic Records. His debut single "Nothin' on You" reached number one in both...
recorded a song called "Lonely People", which features the actual "Lonely People" chorus. - Tree PitTree PitTree Pit is a British Rock band formed in London, UK, in 2008 by Lior Seker , Yaron Rosenblum , Nim Sadot...
recorded a cover version in 2011 as an album pre release to their début album. - Hank Williams Jr. recorded a cover version on the album "High Notes".
- TétéTétéTété is a French musician, born in Dakar, Senegal on 25 July 1975. His mother is from Martinique and his father is from Senegal.Tété. He is known to be called the French version of Jeff Buckley. Tété's music is not "rock music"; it can more appropriately be described as an intimate, solo classical...
recorded a cover version on his second album L'air de rien in 2001. - Therapy, the 1970s British folk duo, also released an instrumental version
- John Chiasson the Canadian jazz singer recorded a cover version in 2006 on the CD "The Lonely Hearts Club Jazz Band".
- Dubstep group Love and Light recorded a remix of the track.
- Jared EvanJared EvanJared Evan, is an American musician, singer/songwriter, producer, rapper. He was born on September 21, 1989 in Nassau County, New York. He is currently signed to Zone 4 under Interscope Records. The song "Frozen" which Jared wrote and produced, appeared on the Lebron James documentary soundtrack ...
released a cover version in 2011 as a promotional track for his album "unCOVERED". - Doxology, a progressive rock band from Tacoma, WA, recorded a version of the song for their 2011 album "The Revolution."
- Peter Schnur released a solo piano version on his 2011 album "So Distant Now".
- L.A. rockers MargateMargate (band)Margate is a 3-piece melodic rock band based in Los Angeles, California. Formed in 2003, the band performs in the Southern California area. Members Alex Helbig , Doug Mitchell , and Steve Weil are schooled musicians and songwriters whose unique sound includes layered harmonies and complex time...
recorded a punk version on their EP "Rock and Roll Reserve" in 2011.
Live performances
- The Four Tops recorded this song for their 1969 album The Four Tops Now!.
- The SupremesThe SupremesThe Supremes, an American female singing group, were the premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s.Originally founded as The Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, The Supremes' repertoire included doo-wop, pop, soul, Broadway show tunes, psychedelic soul, and disco...
recorded this song in a live medley, together with The TemptationsThe TemptationsThe Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...
. - Joe JacksonJoe Jackson (musician)Joe Jackson is an English musician and singer-songwriter now living in Berlin, whose five Grammy Award nominations span from 1979 to 2001...
covered the track on his 2000 live album Summer in the City: Live in New YorkSummer in the City: Live in New YorkSummer in the City: Live in New York is a live album, produced by Joe Jackson and Sheldon Steiger.With semi-classical pieces on his previous three recordings, Jackson proved he had not abandoned pop altogether in June 2000, with this issue, an album drawn from an August 1999 concert...
. - Australian a cappellaA cappellaA cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
group The Idea of NorthThe Idea of NorthThe Idea of North are an Australian a cappella vocal ensemble, founded in Canberra in 1993. The group's name is taken from radio broadcasts of pianist Glenn Gould....
sing a jazz version of "Eleanor Rigby" on their Live at the Powerhouse album. - An electronic version appears on the Tangerine DreamTangerine DreamTangerine Dream is a German electronic music group founded in 1967 by Edgar Froese. The band has undergone many personnel changes over the years, with Froese being the only continuous member...
album Dream Encores. - Big CountryBig CountryBig Country are a Scottish rock band formed in Dunfermline, Fife in 1981. They were most popular in the early to mid-1980s, but they still release material for a cult following...
played this live at Dingwalls in London in 1996 and the track can be found on the Eclectic CD/DVD. - McCartney performed a live version of "Eleanor Rigby" at Citi Field in July 2009 in which he played acoustic guitar, and the string section was played on keyboard. This version can be found on that concert's recording Good Evening New York CityGood Evening New York CityGood Evening New York City is a CD/DVD double live album by Paul McCartney consisting of material performed over three nights as the inaugural concert at New York City's Citi Field, 17, 18 and 21 July 2009, part of his Summer Live '09 concert tour. Over 180,000 tickets were sold within hours of the...
.
Samples
- In 1994, Irish singer Sinéad O'ConnorSinéad O'ConnorSinéad Marie Bernadette O'Connor is an Irish singer-songwriter. She rose to fame in the late 1980s with her debut album The Lion and the Cobra and achieved worldwide success in 1990 with a cover of the song "Nothing Compares 2 U"....
used the lyrics of the song's chorus for her song, "FamineFamineA famine is a widespread scarcity of food, caused by several factors including crop failure, overpopulation, or government policies. This phenomenon is usually accompanied or followed by regional malnutrition, starvation, epidemic, and increased mortality. Every continent in the world has...
" which appears on Universal MotherUniversal MotherUniversal Mother is the fourth album by Irish singer Sinéad O'Connor. It was released in 1994, and sold 1.5 million copies worldwide.-Track listing:# "Germaine" – 0:38...
. The song was later remixed and released as a single in 1995, and was a Top 40 UK hit. - In 2004, Brooklyn rapper Talib KweliTalib KweliTalib Kweli Greene , better known as Talib Kweli, is an American hip-hop artist and poet from Brooklyn, New York. His first name in Arabic means "student" or "seeker" ; his in Swahili means "true"...
released "Lonely People", using "Eleanor Rigby" as the main sample. - In 2006, mashup artist team9Team9Team9 is the work of the English-Australian producer Neil Mason. Most of their work are unauthorized mashups.Team9 formed in 1997 as a five piece band and released two albums, Gas and Air in 1999 and My Tape Machine in 2002. Originally playing guitar based pop, by 2002 Team9 were incorporating...
created a remix of "Eleanor Rigby" using Queens of the Stone AgeQueens of the Stone AgeQueens of the Stone Age is an American rock band from Palm Desert, California, United States, formed in 1997. The band's line-up has always included founding member Josh Homme , with the current line-up including longtime members Troy Van Leeuwen and Joey Castillo , alongside Michael Shuman and...
's "In My Head". - In 2009 Producer J-Dilla sampled the live "Eleanor Rigby" cover by The Four Tops for RaekwonRaekwonCorey Woods , better known by the stage name Raekwon, is an American rapper and a member of the Wu-Tang Clan. He released his solo debut, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... in 1995, and has since recorded four solo albums, as well as work with Wu-Tang and an extensive amount of guest contributions with...
's "House of the Flying Daggers". - In 2010, the Trans-Siberian OrchestraTrans-Siberian OrchestraTrans-Siberian Orchestra is an American progressive metal band founded in 1993 by producer, composer, and lyricist Paul O'Neill, who brought together Jon Oliva and Al Pitrelli and keyboardist and co-producer Robert Kinkel to form the core of the creative team. Since then, TSO sold nearly 8...
used the opening harmony as a guitar riff in their live performances of the "Gutter BalletGutter Ballet-Song information:On the original cassette and CD releases, "Thorazine Shuffle" was a bonus track.Had the band originally stuck with the story set-out in Paul O'Neill's original 1979 story, the song "When the Crowds are Gone" would have followed Streets track "A Little Too Far".Two videos from the...
Medley," which also features a cover version of The Beatles' "Help!Help! (song)"Help!" is a song by The Beatles that served as the title song for both the 1965 film and its soundtrack album. It was also released as a single, and was number one for three weeks in both the United States and the United Kingdom....
". - In early 2000, Dru HillDru HillDru Hill is an American singing group, most popular during the late 1990s, whose repertoire included R&B, soul, and gospel music. Founded in Baltimore, Maryland, and active since 1992, Dru Hill recorded seven Top 40 hits, and is best known for the R&B #1 hits "In My Bed", "Never Make a Promise", ...
frontman SisqóSisqóMark Durrell Andrews , known by his stage name Sisqó, is an American R&B singer and actor. He is best known as the lead singer of R&B group Dru Hill, and also for "Thong Song", a song from his first solo LP, Unleash the Dragon, that became an international hit. - Biography :Sisqó was born Mark...
used a sample to "Eleanor Rigby" on the hit single, "Thong SongThong Song"Thong Song" is a 2000 song recorded by Sisqó of Dru Hill for the Def Soul imprint of Def Jam. The song was issued as the second single from Sisqó's Unleash the Dragon LP in February 2000, and was its second biggest hit....
".
Charts
| Chart (1966) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
1 |
| Canadian CHUM Chart CHUM Chart The CHUM Chart was a ranking of top 30 songs on Toronto, Ontario radio station CHUM 1050 AM, from 1957 to 1986, and was the longest-running Top 40 chart in the world produced by an individual radio station... |
1 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
11 |
| Chart (1986) | Peak position |
| UK Singles Chart | 63 |
- UK, starting 11 August 1966: 8-1-1-1-1-3-5-9-18-26-30-33-42
- UK, starting 30 August 1986: 63-81