I am mainly interested in this alternate take — the last of the 36 takes of “You Never Give Me Your Money” recorded on May 6 — because of the first 45 seconds, which have Paul playing around at the piano as the band tunes. “OK, alright, you win,” he growls in a voice that — as one YouTube commenter noted — sounds like he’s auditioning for ZZ Top. “I’m in love with you.”
Ringo comes in and Paul repeats “OK, you win, I’m in love with you,” deepening the growl, this time adding an “alright.” His voice is almost unrecognizable, which was one of Paul’s superpowers; he could sound very different from song to song, unlike John, who always sounded like himself. (This is why John was so eager to subject his voice to various studio treatments.) Over the years I’ve noticed that if there’s ever a voice you don’t recognize on a Beatles recording, 90% of the time it turns out to be Paul.
Meanwhile, after a couple more “OK”s, Paul mutters what sounds like “Walnetto sandwich.” Lyric sites I looked at say this too; I thought maybe it was some British equivalent of a vegemite sandwich. But the Walnetto is an American candy; according to seriouseats.com,
Walnettos were first sold in 1919 and were in fact one of America’s top ten candies up until the 1940s. They were an especially popular movie theater treat.
The candy enjoyed a renaissance in the 1960s and ’70s when it made its small-screen debut on Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In. In one recurring sketch, a seedy old man named Tyrone played by Arte Johnson would persistently try to pick up spinster Gladys Ormphby, played by the Ruth Buzzi, to no avail. After his reproaches, which would usually end with Gladys hitting him with her handbag, Tyrone would often ask, “How about a Walnetto?”
I’m guessing this is where Paul got it from. Although I couldn’t locate a clip of the Walnetto line, based on the examples of the sketch I found, the voice Paul is doing seems to be that of Arte Johnson’s character (full name: Tyrone F. Horneigh). So that’s one mystery solved.
As for the song itself, I had never really paid attention to the fact that in addition to forming part the medley that occupies most of side 2 of Abbey Road, “YNGMYM” is itself made up of of three distinct parts. Sayeth the Super Deluxe Liner Notes,
The first section, written in New York around late March and early April 1969, referred to the group’s business dealings during the early months of 1969. “This was me directly lambasting Allen Klein’s attitude to us: no money, just funny paper, and it never works out….”
The next section, “Out of College,” while suggesting the uncertainty felt while trying to make a mark, also strikes an optimistic note with the phrase “Oh, that magic feeling, nowhere to go.” Paul wrote that line in his notebook with a K crossed out before nowhere.”
The “One Sweet Dream” verse continues the theme of “Two of Us,” recorded in January. Paul and Linda Eastman, who were married in March, were fond of making day trips into the countryside. “We used to like to escape London,” Paul remembered. “And we’d just drive, going nowhere. We’d try to get lost.”
In the end it was take 34, not the one we’ve been discussing, that served as the basis of the finished track. But if you want to hear Paul sing “You never give me your coffee,” take 36 is the place to go.
Wow, thanks. Listening to these alternate takes, I am always reminded of what John Lennon once said about the band, to wit, and I am paraphrasing, I’m afraid, “What I’ve always thought about the Beatles is they were a band that could deliver a song.”
A band that could deliver a song, indeed.