For You Blue

When George Harrison composed For You Blue in late 1968, he did so with his wife, Pattie Boyd, in mind. He himself described the piece as a very simple and cheerful twelve-bar song, which followed usual structures but with a carefree spirit. This musical creation was partly influenced by a stay Harrison had in Woodstock, where he shared time and music with Bob Dylan and The Band. That experience provided him with a musical camaraderie that contrasted with the tense atmosphere within The Beatles at that time, especially during the recording of the album that would eventually become Let It Be. The song, of the country blues genre, was recorded at Apple's studio in London on January 25, 1969. A curious fact is that, in the final version, John Lennon plays the lap steel guitar and can be heard making comments like "Elmore James has nothing on this, baby," in reference to the legendary slide guitarist.

For You Blue was released as the B-side of the single The Long and Winding Road in May 1970. This combination worked very well, reaching number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 and Canada's national chart in June of the same year. On the Cash Box Top 100 chart, which measured the performance of each side of the single separately, For You Blue reached number 71. The composition almost entirely follows the twelve-bar blues pattern, with a five-bar introduction that deviates slightly. The recording for the album Let It Be was completed on January 8, 1970, and producer Phil Spector added an introduction by Lennon taken from dialogues from previous sessions. Over the years, this song has appeared on compilations such as The Best of George Harrison in 1976 and Anthology 3 in 1996, which included an alternate take. A live version from Harrison's 1974 North American tour was even known, which had a limited release in 1988.