"No Reply" is a song by the English rock band

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

from their 1964 album ''

Beatles for Sale ''Beatles for Sale'' is the fourth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. It was released on 4 December 1964 in the United Kingdom on EMI's Parlophone label. The album marked a departure from the upbeat tone that had characterised ...

''. In North America, it was issued on

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

' variant on the British release, ''

Beatles '65 ''Beatles '65'' is an album by the English rock band the Beatles that was issued in the United States and Canada in December 1964. Released as the North American alternative to ''Beatles for Sale'', it was the band's fifth studio album culled by ...

''. The song was written mainly by

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...

and credited to

Lennon–McCartney Lennon–McCartney was the songwriting partnership between English musicians John Lennon (1940–1980) and Paul McCartney (born 1942) of the Beatles. It is the best-known and most successful musical collaboration ever by records sold, with the ...

. Lennon originally gave the song to another artist managed by

Brian Epstein Brian Samuel Epstein (; 19 September 1934 – 27 August 1967) was a British music entrepreneur who managed the Beatles from 1962 until his death in 1967. Epstein was born into a family of successful retailers in Liverpool, who put him i ...

Tommy Quickly Tommy Quickly (born Thomas Quigley, 7 July 1945, in Norris Green, Liverpool, Lancashire, England) is an English rock and roll singer who recorded mostly in the early 1960s. He was a later signing of artist manager Brian Epstein, whose biggest ac ...

, in June 1964, but Quickly decided not to use it. The Beatles recorded the track in London soon after returning from their first full tour of the United States. The lyrics typify Lennon's more introspective and mature songwriting on the ''Beatles for Sale'' album.

Background

John Lennon began writing "No Reply" in May 1964 while in

Tahiti Tahiti (; Tahitian ; ; previously also known as Otaheite) is the largest island of the Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia. It is located in the central part of the Pacific Ocean and the nearest major landmass is Austr ...

, where he was on holiday with his Beatles bandmate

George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...

and their respective partners,

Cynthia Lennon Cynthia Lennon (born Powell; 10 September 1939 – 1 April 2015) was the first wife of John Lennon and the mother of Julian Lennon. Born in Blackpool and raised in Hoylake on the Wirral Peninsula, she attended the Liverpool College of Art where ...

and

Pattie Boyd Patricia Anne Boyd (born 17 March 1944) is an English model and photographer. She was one of the leading international models during the 1960s and, with Jean Shrimpton, epitomised the British female look of the era. Boyd married George Harri ...

. Once back in London, Lennon finished writing the song with some assistance from

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

. On 3 June, after the Beatles had completed the recording for their album '' A Hard Day's Night'', they taped a demo of the track at

EMI Studios Abbey Road Studios (formerly EMI Recording Studios) is a recording studio at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music co ...

. In the description of author John Winn, the performance was lighthearted, with Lennon and McCartney joking as they sang.

Ringo Starr Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, singer, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the ...

had been hospitalised earlier that day and was therefore absent for the recording. Winn writes that the line-up on the demo was most likely Lennon on guitar, McCartney playing drums in place of Starr, and Harrison on bass. The demo was then passed on to

, a singer who was signed to NEMS, the agency owned by Beatles manager

. By late September, Lennon and McCartney were stuck for new material for the Beatles' new album, and since Quickly had not issued a recording of the song, the Beatles decided to reclaim "No Reply" and record it themselves. According to the liner notes for ''Beatles for Sale'', the song was a candidate for the band's next single before it was supplanted by "

I Feel Fine "I Feel Fine" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released in November 1964 as the A-side of their eighth single. It was written by John Lennon and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. The recording includes one o ...

Composition

Lyrics

"No Reply" is about a young man who is unable to contact his apparently unfaithful girlfriend, although he knows she is home. In a 1980 interview, Lennon recalled that the lyrics were inspired by "

Silhouettes A silhouette ( , ) is the image of a person, animal, object or scene represented as a solid shape of a single colour, usually black, with its edges matching the outline of the subject. The interior of a silhouette is featureless, and the silhou ...

", a 1957 song first recorded and released by

doo-wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chica ...

group

the Rays The Rays were an American group formed in New York City in 1955, and active into the early 1960s. They first recorded for Chess Records. Their biggest hit single was "Silhouettes", a moderately-slow doo-wop piece of pop music that reached numb ...

. Lennon added: "I had that image of walking down the street and seeing her silhouetted in the window and not answering the phone …" According to Lennon in a 1972 interview, the Beatles' music publisher,

Dick James Dick James (born Leon Isaac Vapnick; 12 December 1920 – 1 February 1986) was a British music publisher and singer. He and Brian Epstein established the Beatles' publisher Northern Songs. Later, with his son Stephen, James founded the DJM rec ...

, was quite pleased with "No Reply": "I remember Dick James coming up to me after we did this one and saying, 'You're getting better now – that was a complete story.' Apparently, before that, he thought my songs wandered off."

Music

The song is in the key of

C major C major (or the key of C) is a major scale based on C, consisting of the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. C major is one of the most common keys used in music. Its key signature has no flats or sharps. Its relative minor is A minor and ...

. The song form is standard AABA (verse-verse-bridge-verse), without a chorus as such, but including the refrain "No reply". The main instrumentation on the Beatles recording comprises acoustic guitars (played by Lennon and Harrison on their

Gibson J-160E The Gibson J-160E is one of the first acoustic-electric guitars produced by the Gibson Guitar Corporation. The J-160E was Gibson's second attempt at creating an acoustic-electric guitar (the first being the small-body CF-100E"''As implied by it ...

s), bass guitar and drums. In addition to handclaps by all four members of the group, the overdubs included a piano part by their producer,

George Martin Sir George Henry Martin (3 January 1926 – 8 March 2016) was an English record producer, arranger, composer, conductor, and musician. He was commonly referred to as the "Fifth Beatle" because of his extensive involvement in each of the B ...

, and electric guitar played by Harrison. The rhythm over the song's verses is partly

bossa nova Bossa nova () is a style of samba developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is mainly characterized by a "different beat" that altered the harmonies with the introduction of unconventional chords and an innovativ ...

. The bridge, or middle sixteen, reverts to a standard rock rhythm. Lennon had intended to sing the higher harmony part, as this was the original melody. However, his voice had deteriorated due to excessive use, forcing McCartney to sing the part, and relegating Lennon to the lower harmony line.

Reception

In his book, ''

Revolution in the Head ''Revolution in the Head: The Beatles' Records and the Sixties'' is a book by British music critic and author Ian MacDonald, discussing the music of the Beatles and the band's relationship to the social and cultural changes of the 1960s. The fir ...

'',

Ian MacDonald Ian MacCormick (known by the pseudonym Ian MacDonald; 3 October 1948 – 20 August 2003) was a British music critic and author, best known for both ''Revolution in the Head'', his critical history of the Beatles which borrowed techniques from a ...

comments that the "double-tracked vocals generate a stunning power" in the song's "climactic middle sixteen", which is among the most exciting 30 seconds in the Beatles' catalogue. He describes the track as "an enticingly downbeat opener" for ''Beatles for Sale''. McDonald adds that the group considered repeating the section, but "wisely" decided that "less-is-more". In 2006, ''

Mojo Mojo may refer to: *Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in voodoo Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * MOJO HD, an American television network * ''Mojo'' (play), by Jez Butterworth, made into a 1997 film * '' ...

'' placed "No Reply" at number 63 on its list of "The 101 Greatest Beatles Songs". In his commentary on the track,

Chris Hillman Christopher Hillman (born December 4, 1944) is an American musician. He was the original bassist of and one of the original members of the Byrds, which in 1965 included Roger McGuinn, Gene Clark, David Crosby and Michael Clarke. With frequent ...

, a founding member of the American folk-rock band

the Byrds The Byrds () were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) remaining the sole cons ...

, admired the imagery of the lyrics and the "funky, out of left-field" rhythms played by Lennon and Harrison. He added: "There is no rock blueprint for this … This is the stuff which got us all over here to put down the mandolins and banjos and plug in and pay attention to rock again."

Cover versions

Parody band

Beatallica Beatallica is a mash-up band that plays music made from combinations of songs of the Beatles and Metallica. A Beatallica song is typically a blend of a Beatles song and a Metallica song with a related title (e.g. "The Thing That Should Not L ...

recorded a mashup of "No Reply" and

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

's "No Remorse" entitled "No Remorseful Reply", on their 2001 EP ''

A Garage Dayz Nite ''A Garage Dayz Nite'', is the first E.P. from Beatallica. It contains seven tracks, made from combinations of Beatles and Metallica songs. The cover is a parody of The Beatles' second UK album ''With The Beatles'', while the crude handwriting ...

''.

Personnel

According to Ian MacDonald: The Beatles *

– double-tracked lead vocal, acoustic guitar, handclaps *

– harmony vocal, bass guitar, handclaps *

– acoustic guitar, electric guitar, handclaps *

– drums, handclaps Additional personnel *

– producer, piano * Norman Smith –

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...

References

Sources

* * * * * * * * * *

External links

Full lyrics for the song at the Beatles' official website
* * {{authority control 1964 songs The Beatles songs Songs written by Lennon–McCartney Song recordings produced by George Martin Songs published by Northern Songs Songs about telephone calls Torch songs British folk rock songs Songs about infidelity