Songs with Earlier Histories Than the Hit Version

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And I Love Her

First recorded (in an uptempo arrangement) by The Beatles (1964).
Hit versions by The Beatles (US #12/CAN #15/BEL #10 1964), Esther Phillips (as “And I Love Him” US #54/R&B #11 1965), The Vibrations (US #118/R&B #47 1966).

From the wiki: “‘And I Love Her’ was written by Paul McCartney (credited to Lennon-McCartney) for the movie soundtrack of A Hard Day’s Night. It was composed in the music room in the basement of the house in Wimpole Street, London, which belonged to the parents of Jane Asher, Paul‘s then-current girlfriend. It is likely that Asher was the inspiration behind the song.

“The Beatles began recording the song on 25 February 1964. They recorded two takes that day, with a full electric line-up, but it was evidently not the sound they were after. The second take was later released in 1995 on Anthology 1. The group returned to it the next day, recording 16 takes and changing the song’s arrangement as they went along.

“Of the song, Paul recalls ‘It was the first ballad I impressed myself with. It’s got nice chords in it, ‘Bright are the stars that shine, dark is the sky …’ I like the imagery of the stars and the sky. It was a love song really. The ‘And’ in the title was an important thing. ‘And I Love Her,’ it came right out of left field, you were right up to speed the minute you heard it.’

“‘And I Love Her’ is the second most-covered Beatles song, with 372 versions recorded by 1972. (Their most-covered track is ‘Yesterday’.) Among the early covers were charted versions by Esther Phillips, in 1965, and The Vibrations (‘Stranded in the Jungle‘, as The Jayhawks; ‘Hang On Sloopy‘), in 1966, with their harmonic nod to The Beatles mid-chorus.”

The Beatles, “And I Love Her” released version (1964):

Esther Phillips, “And I Love Him” (1965):

The Vibrations, “And I Love Her” (1966):

Auditorio Nacional de Música de Madrid, “And I Love Her” (2011):

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