UK Single Release: Paperback Writer – 10 June 1966
Friday 10 June 1966 | Single Release | Parlophone R5452
On 10 June 1966, The Beatles released ‘Paperback Writer’ as their twelfth Parlophone single in the United Kingdom. It was their first single not to be a love song, their first to be built around a bass-driven, bluesy sound quite unlike any of their previous releases, and — despite reaching number one — their lowest-selling single since ‘Love Me Do’ in 1962. Its B-side, ‘Rain’, written by John Lennon, was arguably even more adventurous: the first Beatles record to feature backwards vocals.
The single entered the UK charts on 16 June 1966 and reached number one the following week, remaining there for two weeks. In total it spent eleven weeks on the chart. In the United States it also reached number one, on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the Cash Box chart.
‘Paperback Writer’: The Song
‘Paperback Writer’ was written by Paul McCartney — with a songwriting credit shared with John Lennon, as was standard practice for Lennon-McCartney compositions at this period, regardless of the primary author. McCartney has consistently identified the song as primarily his own work, written in response to a challenge from his aunt to write a song that was not a love song.
The lyric takes the form of a letter from an aspiring writer to a publisher, pitching a novel based on a man named Lear — a reference, possibly deliberate, to Edward Lear, the Victorian nonsense poet. The narrator describes his book as ‘a dirty story of a dirty man’, acknowledges that it is ‘based on a novel by a man named Lear’, and promises that it can be made longer or shorter to suit the publisher’s requirements. It is a comic, self-aware lyric — the first Beatles single to treat its subject with irony rather than earnestness.
The musical setting was equally innovative. McCartney’s bass — a Rickenbacker 4001S — is the dominant instrument in the mix, pushed to the front of the sound in a way that was unprecedented for a Beatles single. The bass line is melodic, driving, and complex, and its prominence in the mix was a deliberate choice: McCartney and George Martin had been experimenting with ways of making the bass more audible in recordings, and ‘Paperback Writer’ was the first major result of those experiments.
The backing vocals — ‘Frère Jacques’ sung in counterpoint to the main melody — were a McCartney idea, adding a layer of musical sophistication to what might otherwise have been a straightforward rock track. The guitar riff, played by Harrison, was inspired by the riff from ‘Day Tripper’, the group’s previous single.
Recording ‘Paperback Writer’
‘Paperback Writer’ was recorded at Abbey Road on 13 and 14 April 1966, during the sessions that would eventually produce the Revolver album. The recording was produced by George Martin and engineered by Geoff Emerick, who had recently taken over from Norman Smith as the group’s balance engineer. Emerick’s willingness to experiment with unconventional microphone placement and signal processing was central to the distinctive sound of the recording.
The bass sound on ‘Paperback Writer’ was achieved in part by placing a microphone inside the bass speaker cabinet — a technique that Emerick had developed and that gave the bass a presence and warmth that had not previously been achievable in pop recordings. The result was a sound that influenced bass recording practice for years afterwards.
The B-Side: ‘Rain’
‘Rain’ was written by John Lennon and recorded at Abbey Road on 14 and 16 April 1966, in the same sessions as ‘Paperback Writer’. It is widely regarded as one of the finest B-sides in the history of popular music — a record that, had it been released as an A-side, would have been a significant single in its own right.
The lyric is a meditation on perception and consciousness: the narrator observes that some people complain about rain and some about sunshine, and suggests that both responses miss the point — that the weather, like all external phenomena, is a matter of how you choose to perceive it. The lyric was inspired, Lennon later said, by his experiences with LSD and the feelings of introspection and altered perception that the drug produced. It was one of the first Beatles lyrics to engage directly with the psychedelic experience, predating the more explicit psychedelia of Revolver and Sgt Pepper.
Musically, ‘Rain’ is built around a heavy, droning guitar riff and Ringo Starr’s drumming — which Lennon later described as the finest drumming on any Beatles record. The tempo of the backing track was recorded slightly faster than the final playback speed, giving the finished recording a slightly slowed, heavy quality that suited the lyric’s mood of languid introspection.
The coda of ‘Rain’ features the first use of backwards vocals on a Beatles record. Lennon later gave varying accounts of how the effect was discovered — in one version, he accidentally threaded the tape backwards while listening to playback at home and was struck by the sound; in another, the effect was a deliberate studio experiment. Whatever its origin, the backwards vocal — a reversed fragment of the song’s opening line — was a genuinely novel sound in pop music in 1966 and pointed directly towards the tape manipulation experiments that would characterise Revolver and Sgt Pepper.
The Lowest-Selling Single Since ‘Love Me Do’
Despite reaching number one in the UK, ‘Paperback Writer’ was The Beatles’ lowest-selling single since ‘Love Me Do’ in October 1962. The reasons for this relative commercial underperformance have been debated. The most commonly cited explanation is that the subject matter — an aspiring writer pitching a novel — was less immediately accessible to the group’s core audience than the love songs that had dominated their previous singles. The sound, too, was more demanding than their earlier work: the bass-heavy mix and the absence of a conventional melodic hook in the chorus made ‘Paperback Writer’ a more challenging listen than ‘She Loves You’ or ‘I Want to Hold Your Hand’.
It is also worth noting that by June 1966, the singles market in Britain was changing. The album had become the primary format for serious rock music, and the relationship between singles sales and artistic credibility was shifting. The Beatles themselves were moving away from the singles-driven model that had defined their career to 1965: Revolver, released in August 1966, would be their most ambitious album to date, and the group would play their last concert in August 1966 before retreating permanently to the studio.
The Promotional Films
To promote ‘Paperback Writer’ and ‘Rain’, The Beatles made two promotional films — early examples of what would later be called music videos. The films were directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg and shot at Chiswick House and in the grounds of Chiswick House in London on 20 May 1966. They were broadcast on Top of the Pops in the UK and on The Ed Sullivan Show in the United States, allowing the group to promote the single without making personal appearances.
The promotional film for ‘Paperback Writer’ shows the group performing the song in the grounds of Chiswick House, dressed in their increasingly elaborate mid-1960s style. The film for ‘Rain’ is more experimental, with the group filmed in slow motion. Both films are significant early examples of the promotional film format that would become standard practice in the music industry.
Chart Performance
- UK release date: 10 June 1966
- UK chart entry: 16 June 1966
- UK peak position: Number one (two weeks)
- UK chart weeks: 11
- US peak position: Number one (Billboard Hot 100 and Cash Box)
- Catalogue number: Parlophone R5452
Key Facts: 10 June 1966
- Date: Friday 10 June 1966
- Release: ‘Paperback Writer’ / ‘Rain’
- Catalogue number: Parlophone R5452
- A-side writer: McCartney (credited Lennon-McCartney)
- B-side writer: Lennon (credited Lennon-McCartney)
- Producer: George Martin
- Engineer: Geoff Emerick
- Recorded: 13–16 April 1966, Abbey Road Studio Two
- UK peak: Number one (two weeks); 11 weeks on chart
- Significance: First Beatles single not to be a love song; first Beatles record with backwards vocals (on ‘Rain’); lowest-selling Beatles single since ‘Love Me Do’
Frequently Asked Questions
When was Paperback Writer released in the UK?
‘Paperback Writer’ was released in the UK on 10 June 1966 as Parlophone R5452. It entered the UK singles chart on 16 June 1966 and reached number one the following week, remaining there for two weeks and spending eleven weeks on the chart in total.
Who wrote Paperback Writer?
‘Paperback Writer’ was written primarily by Paul McCartney, credited to Lennon-McCartney. McCartney has said the song was written in response to a challenge from his aunt to write a song that was not a love song. The lyric takes the form of a letter from an aspiring writer to a publisher.
What is the B-side of Paperback Writer?
The B-side of ‘Paperback Writer’ is ‘Rain’, written by John Lennon. It was recorded at Abbey Road on 14 and 16 April 1966 and features the first use of backwards vocals on a Beatles record — a reversed fragment of the opening line in the coda. Lennon later described Ringo Starr’s drumming on ‘Rain’ as the finest on any Beatles record.
Why was Paperback Writer The Beatles’ lowest-selling single?
Despite reaching number one, ‘Paperback Writer’ was The Beatles’ lowest-selling single since ‘Love Me Do’ in 1962. The non-love-song subject matter and the bass-heavy, more demanding sound are the most commonly cited reasons. By mid-1966, the group was also moving away from the singles-driven model that had defined their earlier career.
What was the first Beatles record to use backwards vocals?
‘Rain’ — the B-side of ‘Paperback Writer’, released 10 June 1966 — was the first Beatles record to feature backwards vocals. The effect appears in the coda and consists of a reversed fragment of the song’s opening line. Lennon said the idea came from accidentally threading a tape backwards while listening to playback at home.
Who engineered Paperback Writer?
Geoff Emerick, who had recently taken over from Norman Smith as The Beatles’ balance engineer at Abbey Road. Emerick achieved the prominent bass sound on ‘Paperback Writer’ by placing a microphone inside the bass speaker cabinet — a technique that influenced bass recording practice for years afterwards.
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