13 JANUARY 1966
The Beatles’ ‘Day Tripper’/’We Can Work it Out’ double-A side was still at No.1 in the UK. It has been claimed that this was the first ever double-A side record. It was also the band’s 11th #1 hit in under two years!
‘We Can Work It Out’ was their most ‘mature’ single release to date, moving away from the teen-pop of their early days, and it reflected the general tone of their recent ‘Rubber Soul’ album. I get the feeling that it probably wouldn't have made #1 without being twinned with 'Day Tripper'.
As he later recalled, McCartney wrote the words and music to the verses and the chorus, and then took the song to Lennon:
‘I took it to John to finish it off, and we wrote the middle together. Which is nice: 'Life is very short. There's no time for fussing and fighting, my friend.' Then it was George Harrison's idea to put the middle into 3/4 time, like a German waltz.’
A-side: 'Day Tripper'
Recorded: 16 October 1965, EMI Studios, London
Released: 3 December 1965 (UK), 6 December 1965 (US)
Released: 3 December 1965 (UK), 6 December 1965 (US)
Highest chart position: #1 (UK), #5 (US)
Length: 2:50
Label: Parlophone (UK), Capitol (US)
Writers: Lennon-McCartney
