It’s no secret that Paul McCartney and John Lennon spent a massive amount of time working together. The sight of the other hunched over a guitar and trying to think of a tune, lyrics, and melody will have become a familiar sight for both of them, but the product of long days in the studio, committing ideas to paper and recording demos were some truly excellent songs. Of course, some things came a little easier than others.
A lot of songs come to people incredibly naturally, especially when Lennon and McCartney were at their peak. They both had different styles that complemented one another, making it easy for them to bring the best out of each other and avoid the dreaded writer’s block. However, there were exceptions to this rule, and one came when putting together the Beatle’s most recognisable songs.
Heading into the studio one day, McCartney had music and a melody written for what would eventually become ‘Drive My Car’, though his lyrics were substandard. “The lyrics were disastrous, and I knew it…” he said, “This is one of the songs where John and I came nearest to having a dry session. The lyrics I brought in were something to do with golden rings, which is always fatal.”
McCartney went on to describe his disdain towards the word “rings” and why he tries to avoid putting it in any of his songs. “’Rings’ is fatal anyway, ‘rings’ always rhymes with ‘things’ and I knew it was a bad idea. I came in, and I said, ‘These aren’t good lyrics, but it’s a good tune.’”
Lennon and McCartney agreed that the song’s melody worked well but didn’t know how to word the lyrics to sound decent. Lennon eventually wanted to call it a day, but McCartney convinced him to push on until the alternative words were born, the duo ditching the idea of rings and instead opting for ‘Drive My Car.’
“It was wonderful because this nice tongue-in-cheek idea came, and suddenly there was a girl there, the heroine of the story,” said McCartney, “And the story developed and had a little sting in the tail like ‘Norwegian Wood’ had, which was ‘I actually haven’t got a car, but when I get one you’ll be a terrific chauffeur.’”
The song was well-received by Beatles fans. The melody that Lennon and McCartney were so sure about rings through incredibly well, and the newly thought-up lyrics, laced with double meaning and a few winks to the camera, gave the track a layer of cheekiness, which was very on-brand for the Fab Four. It just shows that even the best had slow days sometimes.
