Written by: Harrison
Recorded: 15, 16 February 1965
Producer: George Martin
Engineer: Norman Smith
Released: 6 August 1965 (UK), 13 August 1965 (US)
George Harrison: vocals, acoustic guitar, 12-string electric guitar
John Lennon: harmony vocals, acoustic guitar, snare drum
Paul McCartney: harmony vocals, bass guitar
Ringo Starr: acoustic guitar percussion, cowbell
Available on:
Help!
The second of George Harrison's songs to be recorded by The Beatles, I Need You was featured in the film Help! and appeared on its soundtrack LP.
A simple, rather melancholic love song, I Need You was written for Harrison's future wife Pattie Boyd. It appeared in the Help! film during the Salisbury Plain sequence, along with The Night Before.
In the studio
The Beatles recorded the rhythm track of I Need You in five takes on 15 February 1965 – the first day of recording for what was to become the Help! album.
The line-up was unusual, and documented by George Martin in his detailed session notes (originally published in his limited edition book Playback). Harrison played a Spanish guitar and McCartney was on his usual Hofner bass, but Starr created a percussive rhythm on the back of a Gibson Jumbo acoustic guitar. Lennon, meanwhile, played the snare drum on beats two and four throughout the song.
The backing was recorded onto track one of the tape. Harrison's guide vocals were recorded at the same time onto track two. More guide vocals, with Harrison joined occasionally by McCartney, were added to track three; and track four contained further vocals from the pair, with cowbell by Starr.
Track four was wiped the next day, and Harrison added a new lead vocal part, with harmonies from Lennon and McCartney. Harrison's guide vocals on track two were replaced with more vocals from Lennon and McCartney, as well as cowbell by Starr and Harrison's Rickenbacker 12-string guitar, the latter played using a volume foot pedal. The effect was used again for Yes It Is during the same recording session.
I could never coordinate it. So some of those, what we do is, I played the part, and John would kneel down in front of me and turn my guitar's volume control.
i love every beatle song but for some reason this one is my favorite.i think i like it so much because of its melancholic nature
Same here. This one might be my favorite.
isn´t the 12-strings rickenbacker again with a pedal ?
George could write beautiful melodies…
Too bad they didn’t let him do it more often. I need you is one of his early bests.
He was not a confident writer at this time… He could barely string two songs together so not too sure what you’re saying.
This song & “Don’t Bother Me” are 2 of George’s earliest compositions, & still 2 of my favorites by him… Sorry, but his later Indian stuff left me cold.
Does John play guitar on this? There’s no mention of it in George Martin’s Playback notes … but who knows!
Trough the years. I always thought that George used a volume pedal on this song. I’m amused to read here that John controls George’s guitar volume knob while strumming the part/chord A – A9 – Asus4 – A. 🙂
Actually its A – Asus2 – Asus4 – A, i believe
I always loved how in the “Hard Day’s Night” end credits, George pops up to let us know that “I Need You” was (written) by George Harrison. Very dry sense of humour our George.
It was “Help”, not “A Hard Days Night”. 🙂
Lennon seems to have had a hand in writing “I Need You” and “You Like Me Too Much”, spending the night before Starr’s wedding finishing the two songs with Harrison:
…Ritchie and…Maureen tied the knot on 11 February 1965…George and John dared to arrive on a bicycle, looking surprisingly alert considering that he and John had been up most of the night polishing off two of his compositions for possible inclusion on the soundtrack of HELP!…
Alan Clayson, RINGO STARR, p99
“Well it was four-thirty in the morning when we got to bed, and we had to be up at six-thirty–what a fantastic time.”
Harrison in Alan Clayson, THE QUIET ONE, p168
(and Record Mirror, January 1, 1966)
The slow whole-note backup vocals by John and Paul are exquisite, and provide a great deal of the melancholy feel that mentioned above.
That musical genius, my friend… saying so much by doing so little!
(Similar accolades for their wonderful backup singing on “I’m Happy Just to Dance With You”)
I love all the technical data of those great recording sessions.
Wouldn’t it be nice to have also a quick pointer to a description of every instrument used?
I always felt “I Need You by George Harrison” was spoken over the end credits of Help because in AHDN “all songs by Lennon/McCartney” was credited even tho “Don’t Bother Me” be George was included in the disco scene.
I love I need you its just awesome cos back at school I sang it at a concert with a partner who gave me butterflies wow wonder where he would be right now memories beautiful schooldays
One of the things I do here at my office is every time a Beatles song comes on Little Steven’s Underground Garage on Sirius XM I jump over here and read about the song while listening. Very informative.
Beatles’ songs are the only ones that I can sing word-for-word while actually concentrating on something else, such as reading about the song while it is playing as you describe.
One of the highlights of the help album. I also enjoy the night before and ive just seen a face to name a couple.
I love this song. I could never figure out what that background instrument was. It almost sounds like an accordion until the end when it does sound like a guitar. Glad I came here to find that out.
Needs more cowbell.
I first heard this song on”Love Songs” compilation and instantly loved it.Later got it on the album it was originally off “Help!”. Fine George Harrison composition, love the words, his vocal delivery and 12 string electric guitar on this. As some one else pointed out Harrison was a great melody writer. Love this in the film “Help!”.
Did George ever play this live -during the post Beatle years?