Chains

The story behind

When The Beatles decided to include Chains on their debut album, Please Please Me, in 1963, they gave George Harrison a chance to showcase his lead vocals. It was the first time many of their followers heard him sing in a lead register, accompanied on harmonies by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. The track, originally released in 1962 by the American female trio The Cookies, had reached number 17 in the United States. However, its popularity was greater in England, where groups from Liverpool had incorporated it into their live performances, which likely motivated its inclusion on the record. The recording session for Chains took place on February 11, 1963, just after finishing Boys and before starting Baby It's You. Producer George Martin oversaw the recording, with Richard Langham, Norman Smith, and A. B. Lincoln as engineers. Although The Beatles' version did not introduce major innovations compared to the original, beyond Lennon's harmonica at the beginning, Harrison's vocal performance sounded somewhat insecure on that occasion, something that, as it is said, would improve over time. Critic Ian MacDonald noted that the take was "slightly out of tune and lacked spontaneity." The song, composed by the duo Gerry Goffin and Carole King, from the Brill Building, thus joins the compositions that made up the English band's first studio album, Please Please Me, released in the United Kingdom on March 22, 1963.