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7.53am
27 March 2015
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I really like the song. I love how the main guitar riff just gets repeated all the time. Not many artists can get away with that, but the Beatles definitely could and did on multiple occasions.
Until fairly recently, I wasn’t able to tell who sang what on which record. I distinctly remember discussing the Beatles with my mum years ago, and saying their voices all sounded pretty much the same to me. That was before I really got into their music. I’ve always been able to spot the obvious Paul songs because his voice is so prolific, but John and George were more difficult for me to tell apart. It’s quite easy now…haha! Anyway, I’ve also spent a lot of time assuming they always played the same instrument, so I never really listened for difference in styles which would have been able to tell me someone other than Ringo was on drums, or someone other than Paul was on bass. I was very surprised to hear people dump on Dear Prudence , and particularly on Paul. I’ve seen people say things to the extent of “Yeah, that’s Paul’s show-off drumming”and I’d wonder WTH they were talking about. The bridge fill sounds pretty awesome, but the drumming throughout the song is quite minimalistic, which fits the tune very nicely. Ringo can (and has) played some amazing drum fills too, so why would people dislike Paul so much on this particular record? Anyway, I digress…. Great tune! One of John’s best ones I’d say!
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10.38am
20 January 2015
Offline Its a “White – Highlight”
The guitar riff is John at his best – He really knew how to play that thing.
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Matt BusbyThe Beatles are English - They have influences from all over - but they are English
12.03pm
8 February 2014
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chrisredditch said
Its a “White – Highlight”
The guitar riff is John at his best – He really knew how to play that thing.
I said it somewhere else…the descending maj/min/otherwise modified chords are really beautiful…makes the song – well i dunno the vocals are pretty cool too…also love the way it fades from USSR. I think he was pretty clearheaded at the time. One of my very faves (but then, i’ve said that about 50 or so songs – just depends on what’s on at the time :). I’m listening to Frudua’s howto play it on guitar even (inexplicably i don’t play guitar).
Is downtuning one string by one step common?
7.42pm
17 October 2013
Offline Prudence…….comes out to play……
5.27am
12 May 2015
Offline Love everything about this track, especially johns vocal and george’s drone guitar underpinning the main riff. The backing vocals are just sublime as well.
It’s easily one of the best tracks on ‘the beatles’
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Matt Busby3.22pm
3 August 2014
Offline Matt Busby said
Is downtuning one string by one step common?
It is for the bottom E. If you want to strum all six strings using the simple three-fingered D chord shape, normally you would only play the top four strings. When you drop the bottom E string down, the D simple chord becomes full and sounds great instead of shrill/awkward. If you have already learnt that Travis picking style John uses on Dear Prudence it just makes you want to experiment more! I can see what drove him once Donovan showed him that Folk style picking.
If any other guitar pickers here are struggling with that style, don’t give up! It’s like those magic eye pictures, if you keep plugging away one day it suddenly comes 🙂 Eureka!
4.08pm
31 March 2008
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Don’t most guitarists play the top five strings on a D chord? I’ve always let the A string ring out.
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4.21pm
17 October 2013
Offline This guy gets everything right…….
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Matt Busby, Shamrock Womlbs3.54pm
3 August 2014
Offline Joe said
Don’t most guitarists play the top five strings on a D chord? I’ve always let the A string ring out.
I am absolutely not a proper musician but you wouldn’t normally play the A string if you are playing the simple three fingered version of D. If you play those notes singly from the top down you can hear that that the A doesn’t quite fit. It sounds good enough if you are strumming and you can certainly use it sometimes if you are picking.
Re Dear Prudence – I sent a rough demo to of that song to Mr Kite for the Beatles Bible Band’s version of the White Album a while back. But that track was already spoken for, so if anyone can bear to listen, here is that demo (mistakes and all!)
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sigh butterfly, Shamrock Womlbs, Wigwam, ewe24.03pm
11 June 2015
Offline I liked your version a lot-sounded great! I’m a little late to the party, is there a Beatle’s Bible band? If so where can I access the music?
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4.13pm
24 March 2014
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Nice demo, sugarplum. You did a pretty nice job there : )
About strumming the top five strings when playing a 3 fingered D chord: that would be correct, since D Major is bild up from D-F#-A and when you play the open 5th string you’re playing an A, so it really fit with the harmony.
I dunno if that’s what most guitarrist do or not, i don’t use to, but it surely will sound good and in tune.
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4.17pm
1 November 2013
Offline sigh butterfly said
I liked your version a lot-sounded great! I’m a little late to the party, is there a Beatle’s Bible band? If so where can I access the music?
Yes and a song hasn’t been released yet. Everyone can help even if you don’t have or play a instrument or singing you can submit some na na nas for Hey Jude and some background for Revolution 9 .
Send your stuff to
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6.13pm
8 January 2015
Offline Well I can say I learnt a thing today, I’ve always played the simple version of Dear Prudence on guitar and never considered he was using the exact same style as Julia . But that’s why I’m mainly a bassist these days and not so much a guitarist (although I started on acoustics, and can play clawhammer fingerpicking).
@Mademoiselle Kitty >^..^< said:
I was very surprised to hear people dump on Dear Prudence , and particularly on Paul. I’ve seen people say things to the extent of “Yeah, that’s Paul’s show-off drumming”and I’d wonder WTH they were talking about. The bridge fill sounds pretty awesome, but the drumming throughout the song is quite minimalistic, which fits the tune very nicely. Ringo can (and has) played some amazing drum fills too, so why would people dislike Paul so much on this particular record?
edit: wrong, I got this mixed up with Back In The USSR , but I still think there’s more than just Paul playing drums on it, and possibly it is John and George helping out.
I'm like Necko only I'm a bassist ukulele guitar synthesizer kazoo penguin and also everyone. Or is everyone me? Now I'm a confused bassist ukulele guitar synthesizer kazoo penguin everyone who is definitely not @Joe. This has been true for 2016 & 2017 
but I may have to get more specific in the future.
4.51am
Reviewers
Moderators
1 May 2011
Offline I thought it was ‘Back In The USSR ‘ that had all three drumming and ‘Dear Prudence ‘ was just Paul?
"I told you everything I could about me, Told you everything I could" ('Before Believing' - Emmylou Harris)
5.28am
8 January 2015
Offline meanmistermustard said
I thought it was ‘Back In The USSR ‘ that had all three drumming and ‘Dear Prudence ‘ was just Paul?
Aargh I got mixed up there, it was definitely Back In The USSR with all three, but it’s possible someone else played drums as well as Paul on Dear Prudence , the fills at the end sound like more than one person playing. We have no idea for sure because Trident kept even worse notes than Abbey Road . Ken Scott just assumes this, but I find it hard to believe, and especially in the case of Savoy Truffle .
I'm like Necko only I'm a bassist ukulele guitar synthesizer kazoo penguin and also everyone. Or is everyone me? Now I'm a confused bassist ukulele guitar synthesizer kazoo penguin everyone who is definitely not @Joe. This has been true for 2016 & 2017 but I may have to get more specific in the future.
3.21pm
Reviewers
Moderators
1 May 2011
Offline Do you only have to change one word not to get sued? Compare
The sun is up, the sky is blue
It’s beautiful and so are you
with
The sun is out, the sky is blue
There’s not a cloud to spoil the view
from ‘Raining In My Heart’.
This and the ‘Run For Your Life ‘ direct plagiarism (“I’d rather see you dead little girl than to be with another man”) always make me wonder why ‘Come Together ‘ was the first.
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3.25am
8 January 2015
Offline It’s very close. I’m willing to bet though, that there’s older lyrics even with similar rhymes prior to Raining In My Heart also. There’s certainly a lot of sun, sky, blue lyrics out there even if they’re not as close. It just seems a generic rhyme to make.
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6.24pm
11 November 2010
Offline Yeah. I’m sure that Michelle isn’t the first song to include the line “I love you.”
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3.20am
8 January 2015
Offline I’ve never heard another song use ‘tres bien ensemblah”, though.
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1.04pm
Reviewers
Moderators
1 May 2011
Offline Necko said
Yeah. I’m sure that Michelle isn’t the first song to include the line “I love you.”
Its not three words tho, its a sentence.
Is there any other song that adds “cause you tell me things I need to know”?
"I told you everything I could about me, Told you everything I could" ('Before Believing' - Emmylou Harris)
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