Till There Was You: Introduction

“Till There Was You” was a popular cover song for The Beatles while they performed on the live circuit. They also sang it 8 times for their BBC Radio appearances as well as at the Royal Command Performance on November 4, 1963. That performance was at the Prince of Wales Theatre in London, and you can hear this version on their Anthology 1 album.

In Detail

Release Date: November 22, 1963 (mono), November 30, 1963 (stereo), also January 20, 1964 (US)
Recorded: July 18 & 30, 1963
Studio: Abbey Road Studios, London
Genre: Pop
Track Duration: 2:16
Record Label: Parlophone
Songwriter: Meredith Willson
Producer: George Martin
Engineer: Norman Smith

Performers And Instruments

Paul McCartney: lead vocal, bass guitar
John Lennon: acoustic rhythm guitar
George Harrison: acoustic lead guitar
Ringo Starr: bongos

Where To Find “Till There Was You”

You can still buy this song, as it appears on a number of albums (click on the images below). However, if your budget is tight, you’d be better off getting their original recording on the album “With The Beatles.” The others may be demos, of course.

Till There Was You: Background

Meredith Willson wrote the song for the musical play “The Music Man” (1957). “Till There Was You” is the only Beatles song from any of the Broadway musicals. There was also a 1962 film release in which the song appeared. However, Paul McCartney didn’t hear the song through those channels. In fact, he heard the song through his cousin, Bett Robbins.

“I had an elder cousin, Elizabeth Danher, now Robbins. She was quite an influence on me. Betty would play me records like Peggy Lee’s Fever. Peggy Lee did “Till There Was You” as well. I didn’t know that was from the musical The Music Man until many years later. This led me to songs like A Taste Of Honey and things which were slightly to the left and the right of rock ‘n’ roll.”
Paul McCartney
Anthology

Paul McCartney sang this song in his natural singing voice to great effect. The rhythm came from a bossa nova beat that Ringo Starr created on the bongos. Meanwhile, George Harrison and John Lennon played their guitars in a classical Spanish style. The band loved performing it so it became part of their act while gigging, etc.

“I looked at the recording scene and realised that a few people were taking offbeat songs, putting them into their acts, and modernising them a bit. So I looked at a few songs with that in mind. Till There Was You was one; no one was doing that except Peggy Lee, so I thought it’d be nice to play.”
Paul McCartney
The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions, Mark Lewisohn

The difference between “Till There Was You” and “Twist and Shout” couldn’t be more contrasting. However, in front of Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother, at the Royal Variety Show on November 4, 1963. Now that is variety!4th November, 1963, they played those two contrasting songs in that order! This version of the song is on their Anthology 1 album.

They also sang this song in America on their famous first appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show on February 9, 1964. That show allowed The Beatles to get a foothold in America.

Recording Studio

The Fab Four began recording for their new album, “With The Beatles,” at the EMI Studios in London, on July 18, 1963. They loved “Till There Was You” so much; it was one of the first numbers up during those sessions. However, their three takes that day didn’t give them the sound that they were looking for.

On July 30, 1963, The Beatles recorded four more takes, and they chose the last of those for their new album.

In the early 1960s, The Beatles were in great demand and even had many shows on BBC Radio. In fact, the band recorded the song eight times for the BBC. The version we hear on the “Live At The BBC” album features their last recording for the BBC. This version was part of the BBC’s “From Us To You” show on February 28, 1964.

Take A Listen

Now that you are loaded with information about the song, take a listen to it. Then, perhaps you can comment below.