On the record: The Beatles and boy James
By Susan Pugh on May. 01, 2008
Q: During the instrumental portion of “For You Blue,” we hear George Harrison say something like, “That boy James got nothing on this baby.” Was he trying to be funny by referring to Paul McCartney by his first name, James, or was he referring to someone else?
A: History has largely judged “For You Blue,” included on “Let It Be” to be one of George Harrison’s lesser compositions, despite the interesting slide guitar played by John Lennon. Recorded in only six takes on Jan. 25, 1969, the song was among those recorded during the ten-day period initially known as the “Get Back” sessions. As has been noted in this column previously, the Beatles were going through a very tense and strained time by 1969. Paul had emerged as the driving force within the group following the August 1967 death of their manager, Brian Epstein. It was largely his idea to have the Beatles “get back” to what had made them great: performing live, albeit for a film rather than before an actual live audience. On “For You Blue,” originally known simply as “George’s Blues,” George makes several encouraging comments to John. Although Paul’s first name is James, what you hear George say is, “Elmore James’s got nothing on this baby.” So, instead of Paul McCartney, George is jokingly comparing John to the blues legend, Elmore James, who has been hailed as the most influential slide guitarist in the post-World War II era.
Q: I have a friend who likes Tammy Wynette. He is trying to find the name of a song that she sang on a TV special. The song includes the following words: “Somewhere down the road a warm light shines, Someday soon its bound to shine on me, Somewhere in my life there waits somebody, Somewhere in my life there is a song, Somewhere in the future ain’t so crazy, Somewhere in the sky the clouds are gone.” Can you identify this song for me?
A: Tammy Wynette was born Virginia Wynette Pugh in 1942. She grew up listening to country music and longed to be a star on the country music stage. She married her first husband while still in high school. When her third child developed spinal meningitis, she began performing at night to earn extra money. She was eventually noticed by a record producer and signed to a recording contract in 1966. During this time, she changed her name to Tammy Wynette. She hit the Top 10 on the country charts in 1967 with the song “Your Good Girl’s Gonna Go Bad” and seemingly never left the charts for the next decade. In 1968 and 1969, she had five No. 1 hits, including her most famous song, “Stand By Your Man.” Her popularity began to decline in the late ’70s, and it was during this time of declining album sales that she released “Just Tammy” in 1979. The album only reached No. 25 on the country album charts and included “Somewhere,” the song that you are seeking.
--What’s the name of that song? Where are they now? What does that lyric mean? Send questions to or visit http://www.musicontherecord
.com. Brady and Maron are freelance music writers based in Raleigh, N.C.
COMMENTS