"Day Tripper" is a riff-driven rock song written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney and released by The Beatles as a "double A-side" single with "We Can Work It Out". Both songs were recorded during the sessions for the Rubber Soul album. The song topped the UK Singles Chart and peaked at #5 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Under the pressure of needing a new single for the Christmas market, Lennon wrote most of the lyrics and the famous guitar break, while McCartney helped with the verses. "Day-tripper" was a typical play on words by John: "Day trippers are people who go on a day trip, right? Usually on a ferryboat or something.
McCartney said in Melody Maker that "Day Tripper" and "Drive My Car" (recorded three days prior) were "funny songs, songs with jokes in." McCartney provides the lead vocal and Lennon the harmony, in contrast to the Beatles' usual practice of a song's principal composer singing lead.
The song was recorded on 16 October 1965 at Abbey Road Studios. The Beatles recorded the basic rhythm track for "If I Needed Someone" after completing "Day Tripper".
The released master contains one of the most noticeable mistakes of any Beatles song, a drop out at 1:58 (1:49 in the version on Past Masters, Volume Two) in which the rhythm guitar part momentarily disappears; This may have been done to cover tape damage or some other recording mishap. This was later fixed on the 2000 compilation 1.
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