I Want to Tell You by The Beatles Song Info
"I Want to Tell You" is a Beatles song on the 1966 album Revolver (see 1966 in music). It was written by George Harrison and recorded on June 2, 1966 (with the bass overdubbed on June 3). Working titles were "Laxton's Superb" and "I Don't Know." The song marks the first time the band included three Harrison songs on a Beatles album, reflecting his growing stature as a songwriter. Although a melodic pop song similar to the others on the album, the song hints at Indian influences, although less overtly so than "Love You To", another Harrison composition from the same album. It is largely built around a drone, rarely straying from its home key of A major, not even for the bridge. It features a flat Harrison vocal, supported heavily by Lennon and McCartney on backup vocals, in a fashion similar to Harrison's earlier "If I Needed Someone". It is largely driven by the bass and the persistent, almost hypnotic, piano pounding throughout the song. A distinctive guitar part opens and closes the song and recurs between verses, which lends the song some structure where it might otherwise sound formless (given the subtle variation). Interestingly, it is one of the few Beatles songs to begin with a fade-in ("Eight Days a Week" being another notable example). The ending — where the group repeats the line "I've got time" over the opening guitar riff — makes notable use of melisma by McCartney (recalling, again, the song's understated Indian influences, as well as adding an increasing sense of disarray as the ensemble falls apart).
