Written by:Â Lennon-McCartney
Recorded:Â 11 February 1963
Producer:Â George Martin
Engineer:Â Norman Smith
Released: 22 March 1963 (UK), 26 December 1963 (US)
Available on:
Please Please Me
Live At The BBC
Anthology 1
On Air – Live At The BBC Volume 2
Personnel
Paul McCartney: vocals, bass, handclaps
John Lennon: backing vocals, rhythm guitar, handclaps
George Harrison: lead guitar, handclaps
Ringo Starr: drums, handclaps
Authored by John Lennon and Paul McCartney in McCartney’s Liverpool residence, “I Saw Her Standing There” served as the inaugural track on The Beatles’ debut album, “Please Please Me.”
I co-wrote it with John in the front parlor of my house at 20 Forthlin Road, Allerton. We skipped school to compose it, using guitars and a bit of piano that was available there.
The conception of the song is attributed to McCartney, who came up with the idea while returning from a concert in Southport. The song was subsequently completed in September 1962, in collaboration with Lennon.
Sometimes we initiated songs from scratch, although one of us often had a seed of an idea, be it a title or a rough concept. “I Saw Her Standing There” was my original idea; I had started it and composed the first verse, which provided the tune, tempo, and key. This verse also determined the subject matter and a substantial portion of the lyrics. It was a co-written effort, with the initial idea originating from me, and we completed it that very day.
The lyrics were inscribed in an exercise book from the Liverpool Institute. Mike McCartney’s book, “Remember,” features a photograph of Paul and John working on the song, reading the book, and strumming their guitars.
We were honing our skills. John liked some of my lines but not others. He approved most of my work, but occasionally there was a cringe-worthy line like, “She was just seventeen, she’d never been a beauty queen.” John thought, “Beauty queen? Ugh.” We were thinking about Butlin’s, so we asked ourselves, “What should it be?” That’s when we came up with, “You know what I mean.” It worked well, as it added a layer of ambiguity.
A slightly slower rendition of “I Saw Her Standing There,” believed to have been recorded during a rehearsal at the Cavern Club in late 1962, is accessible on bootleg recordings. This recording excludes John Lennon’s rhythm guitar; instead, he played the harmonica in the introduction and supported McCartney’s vocals during the verses.
The recording captures McCartney and Lennon’s laughter as they sing, “Well, we danced all night, and I held her tight, and I held her hand in mine” during the second bridge.
A live rendition of “I Saw Her Standing There,” recorded on October 24, 1963, in Stockholm during The Beatles’ Swedish tour, was released on “Anthology 1” in 1995. Several other bootlegged live versions exist, including two from the Star-Club in Hamburg.
Although it was the leading track on the “Please Please Me” album in the UK, “I Saw Her Standing There” was initially released in the US as the B-side of the “I Want To Hold Your Hand” single on December 26, 1963.
In the studio, “I Saw Her Standing There” was recorded on February 11, 1963, during an extensive session that produced most of the tracks on the “Please Please Me” LP. It was recorded under the working title, “Seventeen.”
John Lennon noted that Paul did his usual excellent job in producing what George Martin referred to as a “potboiler.” John lent a hand with a few of the lyrics.
During the morning session, the group recorded nine takes, only three of which were complete. Take one was deemed the best, and that afternoon, The Beatles added handclaps to the recording.
George Martin later edited McCartney’s spirited “One, two, three, FOUR” count-in from take nine. The complete version of take nine can be heard on the “Free As A Bird” single, released in 1995.
McCartney later revealed that the bass guitar part in “I Saw Her Standing There” was inspired by Chuck Berry’s song “I’m Talking About You,” a single from February 1961 that The Beatles covered for the BBC on March 16, 1963.
I played the exact same notes as he did, and it fit our song perfectly. Even now, when I tell people about it, few of them believe me. Therefore, I maintain that a bass riff doesn’t have to be entirely original.
The Beatles recorded “I Saw Her Standing There” a total of eleven times for BBC Radio. The initial recording took place during a live broadcast for the “Saturday Club” program on March 16, 1963, and the final recording was on May 1, 1964, for “From Us To You.”
A version recorded on October 16, 1963, for the radio show “Easy Beat” was first broadcast on October 20 and was commercially released in 1994 on “Live At The BBC.”
Another recording was included in the 2013 compilation, “On Air – Live At The BBC Volume 2.” It was recorded for “Saturday Club” on September 7, 1963, and first aired on October 5.