Love You To

• 1. Background And Inspiration

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  George Harrison wrote Love You To in early 1966 while the Beatles enjoyed an unusually long period free of professional commitments. The group could not find a suitable film project, so they had time to explore Indian music and the sitar further. Journalist Maureen Cleave noted that this interest had given new meaning to his life. Harrison honeymooned in Barbados with his wife Pattie Boyd during this time. He received sitar tuition from an Indian musician at the Asian Music Circle in north London. He also attended music recitals there and saw Ravi Shankar perform at the Royal Festival Hall. Harrison immersed himself in recordings by Shankar, who agreed to take him as a student when they met in June 1966. This meeting took place at the home of Ayana and Patricia Angadi, whose network added to Harrison's self-education. The song was partly inspired by Harrison's experimentation with LSD, which he credited as a catalyst for increased awareness and his interest in Eastern philosophical concepts.

• 2. Musical Composition Analysis

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  Love You To is in the key of C and adheres to the pitches of Kafi thaat, the Indian equivalent of Dorian mode. The composition emulates the khyal vocal tradition of Hindustani classical music. Structurally it comprises an opening alap, a gat section serving as the main portion, and a short drut gat to close the piece. The alap consists of sitar played in free tempo, during which the song's melody is previewed in the style of an Indian raga. A seven-note motif that closes the alap serves as a recurring motif during the ensuing gat. The change of metre following the alap marks the first such example in the Beatles' work. The gat is set in madhya laya and features a driving rock rhythm accentuated by heavy tambura drone. This portion consists of eight-bar A sections and twelve-bar B sections structured in an A-B-A-B pattern. Throughout the vocal line avoids melodic embellishment typical of khyal, apart from the use of melisma over the last line in each of the A sections. During the mid-song instrumental passage, the melody line of the sitar incorporates aspects of the alap, raising the melody previewed there by an octave.

• 3. Recording Session History

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  The basic track for Love You To was taped at EMI Studios on the 11th of April 1966. Harrison initially sang and played acoustic guitar accompanied by Paul McCartney on backing vocals. By the end of the first session three takes had been made with Harrison introducing his sitar on the last of these. Work resumed at 8 pm with the participation of Anil Bhagwat, a tabla player sourced through Patricia Angadi. Other outside contributors from the Asian Music Circle included musicians on tambura and sitar. Harrison and Bhagwat rehearsed the song together many times before recording the sitar and tabla parts onto the earlier performance. Take six was selected as the best performance and a reduction mix carried out on the 13th of April. Harrison added another vocal part to what was now referred to as take seven while Ringo Starr played tambourine. McCartney contributed a high harmony vocal over specific words but this part was omitted from the final mix. Harrison also overdubbed fuzz-tone electric guitar controlling the output via a volume pedal. Final mixing took place on the 21st of June as the Beatles rushed to complete Revolver before beginning their world tour.

• 4. Critical Reception Upon Release

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  Richard Green enthused about Love You To in a joint album review for Record Mirror saying it starts like a classical Indian recital and is great. Allen Evans of the NME described the song as an Oriental-sounding piece with sitar jangles and a Kama Sutra-type lyric. Melody Makers reviewer lauded Harrison's sitar playing as stunning and tremendous before concluding it is one of the most striking tracks. Ray Davies of the Kinks wrote that Harrison must have quite a big influence on the group now adding that it is well performed which is always true of a Beatles track. Paul Williams heaped praise on the song according to Rodriguez. The majority of contemporary US reviews were lukewarm towards Revolver however due to Lennon's comment that the Beatles had become more popular than Christ. New York critic Richard Goldstein praised the album as a revolutionary record and later wrote that the song's lyrics exploded with a passionate sutra quality. KRLA Beats reviewer said that Harrison had created a new extension of the music form which he introduced in Rubber Soul and described it as musically valid but unrecognized.

• 5. Retrospective Legacy Assessment

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  Ethnomusicologist David Reck has cited Love You To as being revolutionary in Western culture stating it is absolutely unprecedented in the history of popular music. For the first time an Asian music was not parodied utilizing familiar stereotypes but rather transferred into a new environment with sympathy and rare understanding. Peter Lavezzoli describes the song as the first conscious attempt in pop to emulate a non-Western form of music in structure and instrumentation. Lester Bangs termed it the first injection of ersatz Eastern wisdom into rock while Peter Doggett credits Harrison's spiritual concerns with inspiring an entire new genre of songwriting. The song has been recognized as a precursor to the world music genre through the success of Revolver in 1966. It was a key factor in the rise in popularity of Indian classical music among contemporary Western youth. In addition the song inspired other rock musicians to experiment with non-Western instruments and tones helping expand the scope of raga rock. Dave Thompson wrote that it opened creative doors through which Harrison's bandmates may not have ever dreamed of passing.

• 6. Cover Versions And Adaptations

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  The Trypes covered Love You To on their 1984 EP The Explorers Hold. A version of the song was covered by Ronnie Montrose that included a rare vocal performance by the guitarist on his 1986 album Territory. The song has also been covered by experimental rock band Bongwater on their 1988 debut album Double Bummer. My Morning Jacket singer Jim James performed the track on a banjo for his 2009 EP Tribute To a collection of Harrison songs recorded shortly after the former Beatle's death in November 2001. Mojo included James's version on Harrison Covered a tribute CD accompanying the November 2011 issue of the magazine. In 2012 Cornershop recorded it for Mojos multi-artist compilation Yellow Submarine Resurfaces. These interpretations span four decades showing the enduring influence of the original composition across different musical styles and generations.