On this date in 1967 The Beatles' All You Need is Love was released. 10 things you might not know about the song.
All You Need Is Love was written by John Lennon.
The song had been heard before the release date. It was Britain’s contribution to Our World, the first live global television link, which took place on 25 June. The Beatles had been asked to provide a song with a message, using simple English so it could be understood by everyone. The programme was broadcast via satellite and seen by an audience of over 400 million in 25 countries.
The song opens with the French national anthem, "La Marseillaise," and ends with a coda which incorporates Greensleeves, Glenn Miller's In The Mood, plus two of the Beatles own hits, She Loves You and Yesterday.
The song is unusual because the chorus has only one note, and it’s in a rare 7/4 tempo.
The B side was Baby, You're a Rich Man.
John Lennon, in an interview with official Beatles biographer Hunter Davies, said that although the message seems simple, there’s more than one way to interpret it. There’s the obvious one, “that love is the most important thing in the world” but he went on to say that it could also mean “that love is the one thing you are lacking, the thing you haven't got."
Lennon didn’t value his hand written lyrics to the song all that much; in fact, he left them behind in the studio after the Beatles final appearance on The BBC. A member of staff picked them up and saved them from the bin. In 2005 that same piece of Paper sold for a million pounds.
All You Need Is Love was the entrance music for Queen Elizabeth II during the UK Millennial celebrations in 1999. It was also sung by choirs across the kingdom in 2002 during the Queen's Golden Jubilee celebration.
Although the performance for One World was extremely colourful and psychedelic, it was broadcast by the BBC in black and white, which annoyed The Beatles' right-hand man Neil Aspinall. "It was psychedelic and all the rest of it,” he said, “but the BBC filmed it and black and white! If we'd have known that, we'd have filmed it ourselves."
There have been many cover versions, including Echo and the Bunnymen, Elvis Costello, Noel Gallagher, Brandi Carlile, The Flaming Lips, Katy Perry and Pinky and Perky. It has also been performed by the North Somerset Good Afternoon Choir.
Beta
(Combat Team Series #2)
Steff was abducted by an evil alien race, the Orbs, at fourteen. Used as a weapon for years, he eventually escapes, but his problems are just beginning. How does a man support himself when his only work experience is a paper round and using an Orb bio-integrated gun?
Warlord is an alien soldier who knows little but war. When the centuries-old conflict which ravaged his planet ends, he seeks out another world where his skills are still relevant. There are always wars on Earth, it seems. However, none of Earth's powerful armies want him.
Natalie has always wanted to visit England and sees a chance to do so while using her martial arts skills, but there are sacrifices she must make in order to fulfil her dream.
Maggie resorted to crime to fund her sister's medical care. She uses her genetic variant abilities to gain access to the rooms of wealthy hotel guests. The Ballards look like rich pickings, but they are not what they seem. When Maggie targets them, little does she know that she is walking into a trap.
Hotel owner Hamilton Lonsdale puts together a combat team to pit against those of other multi-millionaires. He recruits Warlord, Natalie, Maggie and Steff along with a trained gorilla, a probability-altering alien, a stockbroker whose work of art proved to be much more than he'd bargained for, a marketing officer who can create psionic forcefields, a teleporting member of the landed gentry, and a socially awkward fixer. This is Combat Team Beta.
Steff never talks about his time with the Orbs, until he finds a woman who lived through it, too. Steff believes he has finally found happiness, but it is destined to be short-lived. He is left with an unusual legacy which he and Team Beta struggle to comprehend; including why something out there seems determined to destroy it.
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