‘Ticket To Ride’ was the first song to be released from Help!, The Beatles’ fifth album. The band’s performance of the song, filmed on the ski slopes in Austria, was one of the highlights of the Help! film.
The song was written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, although the precise nature of their contributions has been disputed. In one of his final interviews, Lennon claimed it as mainly his work.
That was one of the earliest heavy-metal records made. Paul’s contribution was the way Ringo played the drums.
All We Are Saying, David Sheff
In his authorised biography, published in 1994, McCartney claimed ‘Ticket To Ride’ to have been a more collaborative effort.
We wrote the melody together; you can hear on the record, John’s taking the melody and I’m singing harmony with it. We’d often work those out as we wrote them. Because John sang it, you might have to give him 60 per cent of it. It was pretty much a work job that turned out quite well…John just didn’t take the time to explain that we sat down together and worked on that song for a full three-hour songwriting session, and at the end of it all we had all the words, we had the harmonies, and we had all the little bits.
Many Years From Now, Barry Miles
McCartney also explained how he was particularly proud of the double-time coda in ‘Ticket To Ride’:
I think the interesting thing was a crazy ending: instead of ending like the previous verse, we changed the tempo. We picked up one of the lines, ‘My baby don’t care’, but completely altered the melody. We almost invented the idea of a new bit of a song on the fade-out with this song; it was something specially written for the fade-out, which was very effective but it was quite cheeky and we did a fast ending. It was quite radical at the time.
Many Years From Now, Barry Miles
The first Beatles single to be longer than three minutes, ‘Ticket To Ride’ was heralded by the music press upon its release as a departure from the group’s familiar territory. Certainly its unusual drum patterns and downbeat lyrics were a departure from The Beatles’ usual upbeat optimism.
‘Ticket To Ride’ was slightly a new sound at the time. It was pretty f*****g heavy for then, if you go and look in the charts for what other music people were making. You hear it now and it doesn’t sound too bad; but it’d make me cringe. If you give me the A track and I remix it, I’ll show you what it is really, but you can hear it there. It’s a heavy record and the drums are heavy too. That’s why I like it.
Anthology
The song’s meaning has been subject to a number of interpretations over the years. While ostensibly about a liberated girl choosing her own path in life, a pair of incidents in The Beatles’ past may have inspired the song in part.
McCartney’s cousin Bett and her husband Mike Robbins owned a pub on Union Street in Ryde, on the north coast of the Isle of Wight. In the early 1960s Lennon and McCartney hitch-hiked to stay with them, and several years later the journey inspired a pun on the phrase ‘ticket to Ryde’ in the song.
I remember talking about Ryde but it was John’s thing.
Many Years From Now, Barry Miles
McCartney was more forthcoming about the Ryde connection in his 2021 book The Lyrics: 1956 To The Present:
John and I always liked wordplay. So, the phrase ‘She’s got a ticket to ride’ of course referred to riding on a bus or train, but – if you really want to know – it also referred to Ryde on the Isle of Wight, where my cousin Betty and her husband Mike were running a pub. That’s what they did; they ran pubs. He ended up as an entertainment manager at a Butlin’s holiday resort. Betty and Mike were very showbiz. It was great fun to visit them, so John and I hitchhiked down to Ryde, and when we wrote the song we were referring to the memory of this trip. It’s very cute now to think of me and John in a little single bed, top and tail, and Betty and Mike coming to tuck us in.
The Lyrics: 1956 To The Present
Another suggestion is that the title refers to sexually-transmitted diseases, and was inspired by the prostitutes encountered by The Beatles during their time performing in Germany.
The girls who worked the streets in Hamburg had to have a clean bill of health and so the medical authorities would give them a card saying that they didn’t have a dose of anything.I was with The Beatles when they went back to Hamburg in June 1966 and it was then that John told me that he had coined the phrase ‘a ticket to ride’ to describe these cards. He could have been joking – you always had to be careful with John like that – but I certainly remember him telling me that.
A Hard Day’s Write, Steve Turner
‘Ticket To Ride’ was the soundtrack to a key scene in the Help! film. Filmed on the ski slopes of Obertauern, Austria on 20 March 1965, it was a forerunner of the music videos which would later become widespread.
It also became part of The Beatles’ live repertoire in 1965, particularly on their summer tour of America. They played it during their final appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, and at their Shea Stadium and Hollywood Bowl concerts.
A version of ‘Ticket To Ride’, recorded for the British television show Blackpool Night Out, was included on Anthology 2. Another recording, taped for the radio show The Beatles Invite You To Take A Ticket To Ride, was included on Live At The BBC.
In the studio
Recorded in an afternoon session on 15 February 1965, at the first session for what became the Help! album, ‘Ticket To Ride’ marked a departure from The Beatles’ previous method of recording.
Although completed in just two takes, the first of which was a false start, ‘Ticket To Ride’ was the first Beatles song to be built from the ground up. Whereas in the past they’d rehearsed and recorded what amounted to an ‘as-live’ performance of their songs, from February 1965 they adopted the practice of recording just the rhythm tracks, and then building from there.
As such, although only two takes of ‘Ticket To Ride’ were needed, the song underwent a number of overdubs, revisions and experiments during the three hour session. They initially recorded drums and bass on track one of Abbey Road’s four track machines, then overdubbed rhythm and lead guitars (the latter played by Paul McCartney), John Lennon’s lead vocals, and then finally tambourine, guitars, backing vocals and handclaps onto track four.
‘Ticket To Ride’ was The Beatles’ first song to feature McCartney on lead guitar. He played the lines, which can be heard in the fade-out, on an Epiphone Casino hollow-body electric guitar. Lennon played a Fender Stratocaster, and it is likely that George Harrison played a Rickenbacker 360 12-string.
Chart success
‘Ticket To Ride’ was released on 9 April 1965 in the UK, and on 19 April in the US. Both editions were coupled with ‘Yes It Is’ on the b-side.
The single topped the charts in many countries. It spent three weeks at the top of the UK charts, and one in the US.
It sounds like there is an organ playing in the song, most audible in the intro, “under” the guitar. Or maybe it’s just guitar.
PS (for all songs):
When you write guitar it would be great if you wrote what kind of guitar. Especially if it is acoustic or electric. Same for bass guitar.
I think that George plays 12-string lead guitar in this.
No. Paul plays the lead guitar in this one.
Paul may have played the high riff in the middle of the song, but its sure sounds like George’s 360/12 Rickenbacker during the intro and throughout the song.
Paul plays the bluesy leads on the Casino. The intro is definitely George & maybe John on 12 string Ricks.
The guitar sample on the beginning of ticket to ride and the middle of Girl Don’t Tell me sounds alike
?
John actually played his Fender Stratocaster, according to George Martin’s handwritten notes, and George obviously played his 12-string Rickenbacker.
The intro is on a Ricky 12, so Macca could not have played it as there wasn’t a leftie Rick 360/12 in the world, George had number 2.
There is NO 12 string on Tix to Ride . Why do people and “ critics “ always claim to know what they don’t understand. Listen to the song. The intro actually sounds like Lennon’s 6 string Rick, you can hear the attack on the strings, the natural open S string stands out , there is nothing even close to octaves on intro or any other part of the song. Rolling Stone and the “ Beatles Bible “ also claim it’s a 12 string. Maybe someone should listen to the song.
Yes it’s George on 12 string, not only is that in George Martin’s track sheet notes for the song, but if you still can’t hear it, put it into a DAW and slow it WAY down so you can hear the octaves in the open.
I agree with you. It sounds like a very bright 6-string electric to me. I have tried and tried to hear 12-string in the jangly guitar part (not Paul’s solo bits) and I just don’t hear it. The pitch of each note is just too pure to be 12-string.
The high e and b strings are just doubled on a twelve string guitar. The Ticket Top Ride riff ist mainly played on these two strings, so there are no octaves, just a slight natural chorus effect.
He does, and so does George. Paul’s is a Rickenbacker 325, but I don’t know what George plays.
Left handed Rick 325?
I think you’re right. It definitely does sound like a 6-string. Good call, man!
Not even close. The solo after the bridge is a 6 string. Everyone insists there is a 12 string in the song, listen to it, it’s all 6 strings, intro ,solo and outro.
I think you’re right. It definitely does sound like a 6-string. Good call, man!
George is playing his Rickenbacker 12-string.
How about also digging out the information for what type of guitar, whether 1964 Rickenbacker 325 Jetglo or 1964 Rickenbacker 325-12 Jet-glo (for examples).
That’s a very nice site – thanks for mentioning it.
I’ve thought about giving information on instrumentation where available, but normally it’s a question of whether I have enough time to research it all, and whether the majority of people are likely to care. A feature on the group’s equipment is on the cards at some point. When that’s done I might think about going through each song’s equipment, though I’ve got a ton of other stuff to do first!
I would definitely love something like that, but only whenever you get the time. I’ve loved The Beatles since I was a little kid, but it wasn’t until recently (helped by the whole 09.09.09 marketing) that I really got into how their recording sessions were like and what instruments they used for which albums. The extra knowledge really adds another level of appreciation and wonder for all of their accomplishments.
There’s a great series that’s available from Amazon that details every instrument, microphone, mixer, amplifier, effects units and everything else that is associated with the Beatles Recordings. It is the Beatles Recording Reference Manuals set. There are five that cover their entire career.
John Lennon sings lead (double-tracked), Paul is doing harmony and George does not sing.
This isn’t the first Beatles song longer than 3 minutes; She’s a Woman, the B-side to I Feel Fine, was released in November 1964 and is slightly longer than 3 minutes.
Thanks Michael – I’ve amended it now.
Yep, She’s A Woman is 3:01
Neither She’s a Woman nor Ticket to Ride were the first over three minutes.
You Really Got a Hold on Me was the first, at 3’02. And I think TTR is actually 3’10, not 3’13
So it was. Thanks for that.
The length of TTR depends on which mix you’re listening to – stereo or mono, UK or US. Either way it’s well over three minutes, though for the sake of clarity I’ll take out the mention of 3’13.
Well, in the article it says “single,” not “song.”
You Really Got a Hold On Me was Smokey Robinson, and even though the Beatles covered it, it shouldn’t count.
I must’ve listened to this song for twenty years before I realized that the drum pattern changes after the first verse/chorus. Ringo starts out in a syncopated pattern that mirrors the lead riff but subsequent verse/chorus are a more straight forward beat.
Me too. Just realized that. Really nice.
>I realized that the drum pattern changes after the first verse/chorus
So, the middle section has the straighter kick pattern (Xo oo XX oo) and the verse has Xo oX Xo oo, but as the song goes along, he starts doing the 2nd one for the later verses – BUT – if you listen to the 1965 Wembley version live, he’s very strict about always playing the verse the first way throughout – and in the youtube where he’s demonstrating it for that clinic, he always plays it the first way. So I think the studio version was before he’d fully settled on the part.
Right.. Ringo’s drums are superbly played with exceptional timing. The Pete Best Band or whoever he was jamming with recorded this song and the drumming sounds absolutely nothing like Ringo’s. Played well Pete but give Ringo his just dues on this masterpiece.
Ticket to Ride… the drone maybe derived from Indian music, .the unique rhythm, where the verse seems to go forward, then hesitate, with every measure. The Beatles psychedelic roots might start here especially in it’s relation to “Tomorrow Never Knows” and “Rain.
I rank this as in the top ten Beatles songs ever. It’s interesting to speculate what, beyond the drumming, Paul contributed. John claims it as mainly his song, Paul cites the amount of time he spent working on it. How many of the words did John have done before Paul came in? Elsewhere in his biography, Paul mentions having had the first verse of a particular song before bringing it to John, and adds “which usually means you have the melody and the tempo.” So with Paul claiming that John wrote the melody and he the harmony, where does that leave his contribution? What else might he have contributed? Did he have a hand in the middle? Maybe suggesting John speed up on “She-oughta-think-twice…”? Maybe he suggested the fadeout? What “little bits” did he contribute??
“Elsewhere in his biography, Paul mentions having had the first verse of a particular song before bringing it to John, and adds “which usually means you have the melody and the tempo.” So with Paul claiming that John wrote the melody and he the harmony…”
That’s a bit of a leap, isn’t it?
George plays his Rick 12 for the intro guitar while Paul does the bridge and end fills on his Casino, which he used later the same evening to do the same sounding fills in “Another Girl.”
There are two other guitars in the song, both Fender Stratocasters (John on rhythm, George on via an overdub). The “Help” sessions were the first time Fender Strats showed up on Beatles records.
Is this not the coolest record ever?!
What I like most about it: Lennon’s dry, sardonic vocal delivery, McCartney chiming in with his beautiful high harmony
(“…she could never be free…”), Harrison’s tasty jangling guitar, Ringo’s tight drumming, especially the `machine-gun-like bit toward the end (after Lennon sings `she’s got a ticket to ri-iiide…’). So sweeet all the way around!
“Lennon played a 12-string Rickenbacker 325, and it is likely that George Harrison played a Rickenbacker 360 12-string.”
Lennon did not play a 12 string on this record, but instead played one of the two new Sonic blue Fender Stratocasters Mal had gone out and gotten at George and John’s request.
Paul’s lead guitar fills are a wee bit clumsy.
Total nonsense, they are pretty wonderful, and everyone raved about them when the record came out.
I don’t remember it that way, nobody raved about anything but the great singing and song itself.
Don’t know where you lived, or what bands you were in, or. whether you saw the record review saying “the new Beatles single features guitar breaks that are making session players swoon” etc.
It was an amazing guitar record, not just amazing song.
The drum rolls in ticket to ride sound like a old time ticket printing machine especially the one in the middle of the song @ around 1m 53s and really throughout the song the drums sound like the same ticket printing machine but as if the machine were slowed down. Or is it just me?
Paul says, ” We almost invented the idea of a new bit of a song on the fade-out with this song; it was something specially written for the fade-out, which was very effective but it was quite cheeky and we did a fast ending. It was quite radical at the time.”
One prior song comes to mind: “Leader of the Pack” Shangri-las.
Interesting comparison, and one I’d not considered before. Interestingly, the Shangri-las song gets slightly slower in the coda, whereas The Beatles played theirs in double time. As McCartney says: “We almost invented the idea”!
For those who are into “compare and contrast” exercises, listen to “Girl Don’t Tell Me” by the Beach Boys. This is one of the best Carl Wilson vocals, my favorite track on their 1966 Summer Days album… and I never could put my finger on “why?”…until the Beatles connection was pointed out to me recently. Check out the similar guitar motifs and drum figures, and also Carl’s “I’m the guy-eye-eye”…very much like “…ticket to ri-eye-eyed”,
Is it a rip off?…no, I think of it as Brian Wilson’s homage to kindred spirits.
Glad you mentioned the Beach Boys’ “Girl Don’t Tell Me”. I’d never heard it before. Just listened to it on YouTube. Nice song. Yes, there are some similarities to “Ticket to Ride”. Seems to have been influenced by it. Like you say, not a rip-off. The Beatles themselves were influenced by others, like Dylan on “You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away”.
Did McCartney’s cousin Bett and her husband Mike Robbins sell their pub in Reading after the Nerk Twin’s performance and in the same period moved to Ryde?
Hello, The Beatles are a part of my life for the last forty years. All the John vs. Paul discussion is strange to me. The real awesome power of the Beatles is the Lennon-Mccartney combination. As many examples show such as We Can Work It Out, In My Life, She’s Leaving Home, And Your Bird Can Sing, Getting Better and on and on. Then in the studio was the added input of George Harrison to the arrangements and of course. George Martin.
A great Beatles single. I love the scene in the film Help! with The Beatles skiing and skylarking on the Austrian Alps. Whilst it is a collaboration , to me this is more of a Lennon song. He often mentioned it and his songs ,( with the notable exception of Paul’s Yesterday ),tended to deal with themes of loss more often than the more upbeat McCartney. Ticket To Ride has one of my favorite Beatles chorus and I love the guitar/ drums intro.And when I make the comment about theme differences I am talking particularly about the 1964-65 period.
Guitar is tuned down almost a quarter-step.
There is a very interesting piece on YouTube; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3fbjHQxOZZU, 15 minutes into the programme this songs drumming pattern is discussed.
Lennon said, ” We were potty about Dylan at this point.” Couldn’t quite believe it. Never knew they were following anyone too closely, seemed to be leading. Second to none, the sound – track of a generation.
Another fantastic jangling-era stunner. Nothing sounded like this. They were at the top of their game, with so much more yet to come.
With regard to the who-wrote-what questions, I think it’s worth noting that John’s memory has been shown to be quite remarkably faulty. Examples abound – what John thought he contributed to “Eleanor Rigby” being flatly contradicted by Pete Shotton’s book, etc. etc.
Is McCartney´s “memory” better? 1971 McCartney said that “Lennon-McCartney” is only a myth, it´s all mine”, but later on he admited it was wrong. 1990 he said he wrote “Help”, but some years later he admited it´s Lennon´s song. That about Eleanor Rigby is uninteresting. Lennon only commented the lyrics not the melody.
I never believe a word of what McCartney is saying.
I look forward to your exact sources for Paul saying in 1990 that he wrote “Help!” and for saying in 1971 “It’s all mine.” I have no idea what the following means: “Lennon only commented the lyrics not the melody,” perhaps you can clarify.
Johann/John snipes at Paul constantly. For “Help” Johann contends that in some show/1990, Paul claims ownership for “Help” though in the song’s comments (written by Joe), Paul is quoted as saying the song is 70-30 John’s. When it comes to comments by Johann just consider the source as he is more than a little biased.
No. Johan never clarifys. Never cites sources, quotes, or factual data. Just his own twisted, biased flights of fancy. Take it with a gallon or two of salt.
You said it: you don’t believe in what he says. That’s not something rational. It’s about feelings. There are witnesess who said that John didn’t contribute with Eleanor Rigby, not even a word, but that doesn’t count for you, because of your feelings. The source for the fact that John didn’t contribute was his best friend (Pete Shotton)’s book.
Paul never stated “Help” was his. I can’t any source satating Paul said this.
Anyway, it’s true that both of them had made some mistake regarding their recolecton of things (also George Martin, Geoff, George and Ringo did). The problem is that most people just loves to highlight Paul’s bad memory and dismiss the contradictions of the others. If Paul contradicts himself he is lying and is a mean person. If any of the others contradict themselves, it’s ok or there’s no problem. It’s quite annoying.
Ringo’s off-kilter drumming really stands out on this track, so it’s fascinating to discover that John attributed that sound to Paul. Someone else mentioned Paul’s high harmonies on this, and I couldn’t agree more about how wonderful they are. Other lovely tidbits: the way John sings that self-indulgent and almost world-weary ‘ahhhh’ at about 2:31, leading into ‘she’s got a ticket…’, the way the middle eight speeds up – the headlong rush in the delivery of the vocals there is just delightful, the little guitar licks at 2:15ish… yeah. Pretty much all of it.
Does anyone else notice the little flourish mistake John Lennon made at the last verse? It’s supposed to go, “She said that” But he sings, “She lel” lmao always forgetting them lyrics lol
A technical-accuracy correction: the Epiphone Casino is not a “semi-acoustic” (or more properly, “semi-hollow”) guitar. It is a true hollow-body electric.
No other “heavy” records out there at the time, John? “All Day and All of the Night” makes TTR sound like The Kingston Trio in the “heavy” sweepstakes.
As a Lefty, I can pick up a righty guitar and play it. Not as good as I can a Lefty but given time a Lefty can play a righty guitar. I comes from there being 99 righties for every one ‘lefty’. Just comes with the territory. (or curse of being a Left hander)
“John just didn’t take the time to explain that we sat down together and worked on that song for a full three-hour songwriting session…”
John said that Paul’s contribution to ‘Ticket to Ride’ was how Ringo played the drums. That takes about 10 seconds to explain. John had one decade to explain this stuff, unlike Paul who’s had half a century to go over every three-hour songwriting session that may or may not have happened (true collaborations only happening with John’s songs the way Paul explains it). Paul once said of John, “He was our own little Elvis in the group.” I didn’t realize he meant that John only sang the songs and Paul wrote them.
I saw an interesting video of Paul being asked about the song ‘Imagine’. Of course he praised it. You could see that was dying to say he helped John write it, but alas, he “wasn’t there” to do so. So instead he gives his 50% to Yoko.
‘So he gives his 50% to Yoko’. In which he is correct. The idea and inspiration for Imagine was Yoko’s and John wrote the lyrics. I believe he intended to give Yoko credit before he died. As with TTR perhaps Paul has a greater sense of justice whether for himself or for others?
Nonsense re: “Imagine.” 50% Yoko? Have you READ the poems in Grapefruit that happen to include the word “imagine,” but bear no other relationship to the song John wrote.
Plus Yoko for damn sure didn’t write the music. Passing influence, but obviously not a cowrite in ANY conventional sense.
John Lennon said to Hit Parader magazine in early 1972 that he wrote Ticket to Ride by himself. That was only 6 years after the song was released. Paul McCartney, who has a razor sharp recollection of a three hour session 32 years after the song was written, claims he wrote 40% and we’re supposed to dismiss what Lennon said? I love and respect Paul but there’s enough evidence he rewrites history.
This is a great song…would be #1 even if it was released today imho. I always thought my late older brother had been treated to a live version of Ticket To Ride at the Candlestick Park concert but I see from Joe’s song listing of that show that they didn’t play it that night. I think I was confusing it with Day Tripper…another great one!
In his recently released Lyrics book, Paul puts his name before John’s on Ticket to Ride. So it went from being mostly John’s song, to being 60-40 John (according to Paul in Many Years from Now) to being Paul’s song. What changed over that span?
Nothing change, other than Paul’s imagination.
i’d like to suggest my theory the the origin of the phrase “ticket to ride” that i haven’t seen elsewhere. hownlin’ wolf did a song called “who’s been talking?” in 1960. in the lyrics is this section:
My baby bought the ticket, long as my right arm
She says she’s gonna ride, long as I been from home
seems pretty close to me. maybe john was inspired by it?
I don’t believe for a minute that Ticket to “Ride “ was referring to Ryde, England.