Beatles Songs Inspired by The Beach Boys
TL;DR:
- Some of The Beatles’ songs were inspired by The Beach Boys.
- Paul McCartney said one of The Beatles’ songs was inspired by the vocal harmonies of The Beach Boys.
- Mike Love said he helped inspire the lyrics of The Beatles’ “Back in the U.S.S.R.” from The White Album.
The Beatles and The Beach Boys are two of the most important classic rock bands of the 1960s. In addition, some of The Beatles’ songs were directly inspired by The Beach Boys. One Fab Four song was even a parody of “California Girls.”
4. ‘Paperback Writer’
During a 2015 interview with Billboard, Paul said The Beach Boys inspired “Paperback Writer.” “Before that, we had been influenced by artists like Smokey Robinson & The Miracles or Phil Spector,” he recalled. “But at this point, it was The Beach Boys. ‘Paperback Writer’ is a nod to them, and to the idea that everyone wants to write a novel. I liked the word ‘paperback.'”
3. ‘Here, There and Everywhere’
“Here, There and Everywhere” is arguably the most delicate moment from The Beatles’ Revolver. In his 2021 book The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present, Paul discussed the inspiration behind the song.
“In terms of circularity, though, it’s hard to beat the fact that ‘Here, There and Everywhere’ was influenced most immediately by The Beach Boys’ ‘God Only Knows’ from Pet Sounds,” he said. “What’s really interesting is that ‘God Only Knows’ was itself inspired by Brian Wilson’s repeated listening to our songs on Rubber Soul.”
2. ‘Back in the U.S.S.R.’
Because of its references to the long-gone Soviet Union, “Back in the U.S.S.R.” is one of The Beatles’ most dated songs. According to the book The Beatles Encyclopedia: Everything Fab Four, the tune was an homage to The Beach Boys’ “California Girls.”
During a 2013 interview with The Guardian, The Beach Boys’ Mike Love discussed the time he went to India with The Beatles. He said he came up with the concept for the song “I was at the breakfast table when Paul McCartney came down with his acoustic guitar playing ‘Back in the U.S.S.R.,'” he recalled. “I said, ‘You ought to put something in about all the girls around Russia,’ and he did.” While Love said he helped create “Back in the U.S.S.R.,” the tune is credited to Lennon-McCartney and Love didn’t receive a writing credit.
1. ‘Penny Lane’
“Penny Lane” has layered sounds and a strong melody reminiscent of The Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds. According to Stereogum, Pet Sounds was a direct influence on the song.
While the tune is similar to The Beach Boys’ psychedelic style, it’s also different from The Beach Boys in other important ways. The Beach Boys are known as “America’s band,” partly because they idealize the country, especially the state of California, in their music. On the other hand, “Penny Lane” idealizes the London of Paul’s youth.
The Beatles are the biggest band of all time, however, they wouldn’t be the same if they didn’t take inspiration from The Beach Boys and other famous artists.
