‘I’m Down’, a Little Richard-inspired, larynx-shredding rocker written by Paul McCartney, was originally released as the b-side to the ‘Help!’ single.
I could do Little Richard’s voice, which is a wild, hoarse, screaming thing, it’s like an out-of-body experience. You have to leave your current sensibilities and go about a foot above your head to sing it. You have to actually go outside yourself… A lot of people were fans of Little Richard so I used to sing his stuff but there came a point when I wanted one of my own, so I wrote ‘I’m Down’.
Many Years From Now, Barry Miles
‘I’m Down’ was written at the house of Jane Asher‘s parents, in London’s Wimpole Street. Like ‘Help!’, it showed a negative side not often associated with the Fab Four.
Unlike ‘Help!’, however, ‘I’m Down’ was clearly more joking than earnest, with lines such as “Man buys ring, woman throws it away/Same old thing happens everyday”, and “We’re all alone and there’s nobody else/You still moan, ‘Keep your hands to yourself!’”
I’m not sure if John had any input on it, in fact I don’t think he did. ‘I’m Down’ was my rock ‘n’ roll shouter. I ended up doing it at Shea Stadium. It worked very well for those kind of places, it was a good stage song, and in as much as they are hard to write, I’m proud of it. Those kind of songs with hardly any melody, rock ‘n’ roll songs, are much harder to write than ballads, because there’s nothing to them.
Many Years From Now, Barry Miles
The Beatles opened their 1965 North American tour at Shea Stadium on 15 August, performing to a crowd of 55,600 – the largest audience the group ever drew. During their frenzied version of ‘I’m Down’ – which closed the concert – John Lennon played a Vox Continental organ, at times with his elbows. The clip can be seen on the Anthology DVD collection.
I was putting my foot on it and George couldn’t play for laughing. I was doing it for a laugh. The kids didn’t know what I was doing.Because I did the organ on ‘I’m Down’, I decided to play it on stage for the first time. I didn’t really know what to do, because I felt naked without a guitar, so I was doing all Jerry Lee – I was jumping about and I only played about two bars of it.
Anthology
In the studio
‘I’m Down’ was recorded on 14 June 1965. In a remarkable demonstration of his musical versatility, Paul McCartney’s ‘I’ve Just Seen A Face’ was recorded earlier that afternoon, and in the evening he sang the timeless ballad ‘Yesterday’.
It took the group seven takes to perfect ‘I’m Down’. Take one can be heard on Anthology 2, without the sound of the backing vocals that would later be overdubbed onto take seven.
During the session, and particularly between takes one and two (included on Anthology 2), McCartney repeated the phrase “Plastic soul, man, plastic soul”, explaining to the other Beatles that it was a phrase used by black musicians to describe Mick Jagger. The words were later adapted by the group for the Rubber Soul album title.
I loved the way Paul said, “Tear it up, John!” That was followed by something unintelligible followed by some raucous laughter.
If you listen closer, he says hurry up John!
you are right. Paul says Hurry up John, then he says Can you hear me. loved the video from Shea which sadly like most of the Beatles stuff is now gone from Youtube. my fav Paul Rocker. and although he didn;t know it, was i could tell him thanks for the first verse. have said that in my mind many times now when someone does something to hurt me and they know it. You telling lies thinking i can’t see/ you can’;t cry cause your laughing at me/ I’m down
I think Paul says Rip it up, John. Or Tear it up, John.
Ooh boy! Paul Mc really let’s loose on this one!
The organ solo by John just makes this one of my favorites by the band!
I always thought that Paul says “very odd, John”. Also, isn’t in this one that Paul hits one of if highest recorded notes? (a high D in “oh baby I’m Dooooooown” by the end of the song).
i thought he said carry on john when he finished his singing part and let john go with the organ solo
Quite racy lyrics for a song at that time. No wonder it was a “B” side release. Great rocker. It should have been included on “Help”. Wonder why it was not on the “Hey Jude / Beatles Again” LP? By that time, the words would have been more socially acceptable.
I wonder who is backing singing “Down…” in a very low tone all the time. Is Paul, is Ringo, or are George & John in an overdub session ?
I’ve never been able to tell if that’s John or Ringo. Sounds like it could be either, but I suspect it’s Ringo as John can be heard in a higher register on the backing vocals.
Another Rock’nRoll standard created by the Beatles.
First heard this on older sisters 45 of single Help! A great B side. Love lead guitar solo and organ. Great vocals by Paul McCartney.
Actually the organ is present on take 1, a bit low in the mix but quite evident in the right channel.
…or perhaps I should have said “an organ”, as it seems there might be two in the released take — in the master take there is an organ playing basic chords in the right (with the rest of the instruments — the right, unusually!) and also the wild solo which leans towards the left, most likely indicating it was on a different track.
Goodness, I must have been half asleep when I wrote the above comment! Of course the master take and mix of I’m Down has the instruments in the LEFT. But there is indeed an organ performance over there, and the organ solo is roughly up the middle. I must have had my headphones on backwards!
I just love this song, all the exuberance and fun they are having, performing it at Shea Stadium!
It’s definitely “Hurry up, John!”
Brilliant Paul McCartney rocker. As everyone knows inspired by Little Richard. One of the great B sides. Paul’s vocals,coupled with George’s lead guitar and John Lennon’s brilliance on the organ make this a classic.
It is alway said that it was a Little Richard inspired song, and I agree, but I also feel it was inspired by Ray Charles’ “What’d I Say”, especially in the last half of the song.
I think it’s ‘Help me out John’. Meaning I’ve done my bit now it’s your turn.
Great rocker!! And their performance of “I’m Down” at Shea Stadium appeared to be at least as much fun for them, if not more, than the audience.
Definitely ‘help me out John’
in 2014, Carlos asked the question “I wonder who is backing singing “Down…” in a very low tone all the time.”
No answers then, how about now? Doesn’t seem like a Beatles’ voice..
I always assumed it was Ringo because he’s the only one not accounted for vocally, and it’s in the lower range of his voice. But, I’ve never read nor heard any confirmation of that.
“Start it up, John!”
“Tear It Up, John!”
Still not sure what paul says, but there’s definitely an ´r´ in there before ¨it up john¨
Little Richard, Ray Charles, Jerry Lee Lewis, Gene Vincent…this song’s got it all. I love George and John work off each other in the background. And as playful as Macca has said he was during the recording, you practically hear him seething through certain words. One of their best from ’65.
People tend to focus on the latter stages of the Beatles careers and forget that they could rock with the best of them. I wish I could have seen the on stage in a small club in the early ’60s.
Extraordinary that 3 Paul songs were recorded on the same day, and all so different.
What’s baffling though is recording Yesterday AFTER I’m Down, Paul’s voice must have been bulletproof in those days to record such a sweet, tender vocal a couple of hours after giving it full rip on I’m Down!
Unfortunately, I’m pretty sure the “tear it up John” is in fact “baby I’m down”…
no, not at all
Paul is so versatile and eclectic as a songwriter as well as a multi-instrumentalist, singer and record producer. I really like the energy of the Shea Stadium performance where he screams like Little Richard and John is going crazy on the Vox organ – he sure loved playing keyboards as much as he loved playing guitar.
A big Rock N Roll song.
There is a second voice, an octave lower, when Paul screams “I’m down.” Who is it?