A Taste Of Honey: Introduction

A Taste of Honey is a Beatles’ song available on the Fab Four’s first album from 1963, “Please Please Me.” However, such was the popularity of the song at the time that they recorded it seven times for BBC radio shows in the early 1960s, which they took part in. So, a version of this song is available on the “Live At The BBC” album too.

In Detail

• Release Date: March 22, 1963 in the UK, and January 10, 1964 in the US
• Recorded: February 11, 1963
• Track Duration: 2:01
• Record Label: Parlophone
• Songwriters: Bobby Scott/Ric Marlow
• Producer: George Martin
• Engineer: Norman Smith

Performers

• Paul McCartney: lead vocals as well as bass guitar
• John Lennon: backing vocals and acoustic guitar
• George Harrison: backing vocals and lead guitar
• Ringo Starr: brushed drums

Where To Find A Taste Of Honey

At the moment, if you need to buy this song, you’ll find it on the following albums:

A Taste Of Honey: Beatles Song

Originally, Bobby Scott and Ric Marlow wrote “A Taste Of Honey” as an instrumental track. It was for a Broadway adaptation of the 1958 British play of the same name. The play was basically a “kitchen sink drama.” There was also a film release in 1961, again with the same name.

However, in 1962, the American singer Lenny Welch recorded and released a vocal version of the song. This inspired The Beatles to do a version, but they changed the wording ever so slightly. Whereas Welch’s lines are “A taste of honey, A taste much sweeter than wine,” The Beatles’ version is “A taste of honey, Tasting much sweeter than wine.”

Since this song was one of The Beatles’ early recordings, it is on the “Please Please Me” album from 1963. The song became an important part of their live act onstage in places such as the Cavern Club in Liverpool.

“A Taste Of Honey was one of my big numbers in Hamburg—a bit of a ballad. It was different, but it used to get requested a lot. We sang close harmonies on the little echo mikes, and we made a fairly good job of it. It used to sound pretty good, actually.”

Paul McCartney
Anthology

Recording Studio: A Taste Of Honey

The Beatles began recording “A Taste of Honey” on February 11, 1963, in Studio Two at the EMI Studios, London, during a marathon recording session between 10 am and 10.45 pm. On this day, they almost recorded all of their first studio album, “Please Please Me.” In fact, they recorded 10 songs that day for the album and even managed to record “Hold Me Tight” as well.

The Fab Four recorded 5 takes of “A Taste of Honey,” of which the last was suitable for the master track. On this, Paul McCartney double-tracked his vocals for the first time. Indeed, this is the only time that any double-tracking of vocals occurs on the album.

Despite all those songs being rush jobs, they are all professional masterpieces, especially this track. Together with songs such as “I Saw Her Standing There” and “Twist And Shout,” their debut album became a classic. The variety of songs also gave us a glimpse at what a gig in the Cavern Club may have been like.

On their debut album, “A Taste Of Honey” is track 5 on side 2 after “Do You Want To Know A Secret” and comes before “There’s A Place.”

The Fab Four would receive requests to play this song, and they loved it too, so they didn’t mind. One of the seven recordings they made for the BBC radio shows also appears on their 1994 album, “Live At The BBC.” This was the recording from their session at the Aeolian Hall, London, on July 10th, 1963, broadcast on July 23rd that year on “Pop Go The Beatles.”

Many artists have also recorded the song, such as Barbra Streisand, Tony Bennett, and Billy Dee Williams.

Take A Listen

Listen to the song, then leave us your thoughts below.