Songs the Beatles Didn't Do

by Joseph Brennan, copyright 1993, 1995, 1996.
brennan@columbia.edu
version 2.2, updated through the "Anthology" CDs.

Songs the Beatles didn't do: meaning, songs they wrote while the Beatles existed, but which did not appear on official EMI Beatles records. This list is limited to songs that might be considered finished, which we'll define as one of: published; recorded by someone else; registered for copyright; or attempted at EMI for release. Composer credit is shown only where established by publisher or copyright documentation. Comments mention the probable composer in other cases.


Songs

Get Back tapes

This is the morass of any project attempting to list unreleased Beatles songs. Firstly, do you want to call rehearsals and partial, off-the-cuff renditions Beatles versions? And then there's the problem that more Get Back stuff is still leaking out, and who can keep up with it. But I'll toss out a few lists of songs more or less performed. I'll skip the fact that much of "Abbey Road" appears here too. For much more detail, see the book "Drugs, Divorce and a Slipping Image".

Note: On the unreleased "Get Back" albums, "The Walk" is the Jimmy McCracklin hit written by McCracklin, and the opening instrumental sometimes called "Rocker" is pretty much "Down the road a piece" by Don Raye (recorded by many artists including Chuck Berry).

Soundtracks

  • The Family Way
    Instrumental music by Paul and George Martin for the 1966 film. There was a soundtrack LP and a single with one short piece titled "Love in the Open Air". Paul does not sing or play on the recordings, so this is a "soundtrack the Beatles didn't do".

  • Wonderwall
    Instrumental music by George Harrison for the 1968 film. There was a soundtrack LP called "Wonderwall Music". George does not sing or play on it (according to the credits), but is credited as arranger and producer, and it is sometimes called his first solo album.

    Print sources

    Mark Lewisohn, "The Beatles Recording Sessions" and "The Beatles Chronicle".

    L.R.E. King, "Do You Want to Know a Secret" and "Fixing a Hole".

    Doug Sulpy and Ray Schweighardt , "Drugs, Divorce and a Slipping Image".

    Doug Sulpy, ed., issues of "The 910" (journal).