1966 Top Ten: For No One (#1)

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Good morning from south-central Indiana. I’m still close to home but far enough away to only get traffic if I venture into a school zone at 3 PM. Thanks for spending the last two months celebrating my birthday with looks at songs that turn 40, 50, 60, and 70 years old this year. We close the 60th anniversary celebration with my favorite from that year. #1: For No One - The Beatles On August 5 of this year, Revolver will be 60. There are kids whose parents weren’t born in 1966 listening to this album and not caring how “old” it is. I’ll admit it, because it’s true: some songs sound very dated. The Beatles didn’t suffer from that problem. Although “For No One” wasn’t a single, it was, and remains, often played (and often covered) from that album. It’s a stunning counter punch to the bitterness of “Taxman” that opens the album. Paul McCartney said he wrote this in a bathroom at a ski resort while on vacation with his then-girlfriend Jane Asher (sister of Peter Asher, of Peter and Gordon fame, who went on to produce Linda Ronstadt’s superstar era albums). There’s a joke somewhere in there about what “comes out” in the bathroom, but it doesn’t apply here. This is my favorite Beatles song, hands down. (And no, not because of the French horn solo and the fact that I played French horn in junior high band. ) The Beatles’ music truly is timeless. In another 60 years, kids will be listening to this. Thanks for reading. For No One Written by Paul McCartney (credited to Lennon/McCartney) Recorded by The Beatles From Revolver, 1966 You day breaks, your mind aches: