George Harrison Wanted The Beatles’ ‘We Can Work It Out’ to Sound More German

Paul McCartney revealed The Beatles‘ “We Can Work It Out” was originally a country song. Subsequently, George Harrison decided the track should sound like a waltz. Paul revealed how The Beatles changed the track to fit George’s vision.

George Harrison wanted to change the tempo of The Beatles’ ‘We Can Work It Out’

In the 1997 book Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now, Paul discussed the evolution of “We Can Work It Out.” “I wrote it as a more up-tempo thing, country and western,” he said. “Then it was George Harrison’s idea to put the middle into waltz time, like a German waltz. That came on the session, it was one of the cases of the arrangement being done on the session.”

The Beatles used an old instrument on “We Can Work It Out.” “The other thing that arrived on the session was we found an old harmonium hidden away in the studio, and said, ‘Oh, this’d be a nice color on it,'” Paul recalled. “We put the chords on with the harmonium as a wash, just a basic held chord, what you would call a pad these days.”

The song almost replaced another classic Beatles song as a single

Paul analyzed the lyrics of “We Can Work It Out.” “The lyrics might have been personal,” he said. “It is often a good way to talk to someone or to work your own thoughts out. It saves you going to a psychiatrist, you allow yourself to say what you might not say in person.”

Initially, “Day Tripper” was supposed to be The Beatles’ next single but “We Can Work It Out” was deemed more commercial. John objected to this. Ultimately, “We Can Work It Out” and “Day Tripper” became a double A-side single in the United States and the United Kingdom.

How ‘We Can Work It Out’ and ‘Day Tripper’ performed on the charts in the United States and the United Kingdom

“We Can Work It Out” topped the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks, staying on the chart for 12 weeks altogether. Meanwhile, “Day Tripper” reached No. 5 and stayed on the chart for 10 weeks.

In the U.K., “We Can Work It Out” and “Day Tripper” were a double A-side. The Official Charts Company says the tracks reached No. 1 for five weeks in the 1960s, staying on the chart for 12 weeks. In 1985, the songs were re-released. Then, the tracks hit No. 79 and remained on the chart for three weeks.

“We Can Work It Out” became a bit of a standard. Stevie Wonder, Deep Purple, and Big Time Rush were some of the artists to record the track.

“We Can Work It Out” became a massive hit — and it wouldn’t be the same without George.