THE HIT HAMMER: The Beatles' "Eight Days a Week"

(The Hit Hammer is where I'm reviewing each #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100. Starting from when the chart started in 1958 and eventually working my way to the present. To see my inspiration and more information about this blog, please refer to the "Poor Little Fool" post)

The Beatles - "Eight Days a Week"

Hit Number 1: March 13, 1965

Stay at Number 1: 2 Weeks

I promise, this is the LAST Beatles #1 song that could be labeled as "cutesy". "Eight Days a Week" came off of the "Beatles For Sale" album, and after they released that album is when they started getting out of their comfort zone. 1965 was a big year for the group, as they not only were changing the style of their music, but had successful singles from albums such as "Beatles For Sale", "Rubber Soul", and of course, "Help!". The last two albums weren't so concerned with hooks and innocence, but they were more "sophisticated". You'll see more of what I'm talking about later on, as the "Help!" album will bring us 3 #1 hits. ("Rubber Soul" never had a #1 hit on the album. The biggest song on there would have to be "Nowhere Man", which peaked at #3. It's a 10)

Paul McCartney was the Beatle mostly credited with the writing of "Eight Days a Week" but his story changes on where he came up with the song's title. One story of his claims that it came from one of Ringo Starr's malapropisms, with McCartney claiming "He said it as though he were an overworked chauffeur: 'Eight days a week.' When we heard it, we said, 'Really? Bing! Got it!'" But the other story of his says that it came from an actual chauffeur who drove McCartney to John Lennon's house one day. McCartney asked how he was and he said "Oh working hard, working eight days a week". It seems more likely that the latter story is the true one, as McCartney as reiterated that it came from an actual chauffeur, and Starr claiming he is not the source of the phrase. Wherever the phrase came from, it works.

Though "Eight Days a Week" is a lot like other Beatles early hits, there is one thing it has that was not only new for them, but new for music in general: A fade-in intro. I love the fade-in intro idea. It gives the listeners the feel of something approaching them quickly, and everything is steadily building up to something. After that, it's just a bunch of hooks and addicting phrases, the biggest one in my opinion being the "Hold me, love me" thrown in there. It's not necessarily a banger, and it is pretty repetitive, but you know what, "Eight Days a Week" is still a pretty damn good song. You still get the great Beatles harmonies, and the great Beatles hooks. Sometimes that's all you need.

GRADE: 8/10