#19: I'll Get You

Written by: John Lennon & Paul McCartney
Released: August 23rd, 1963
Appears on: Past Masters, Vol. 1
Lead vocal: John & Paul

"I'll Get You", the B-Side of "She Loves You", starts off innocent enough with John & Paul harmonizing the "Imagine I'm in love with you/It's easy 'cause it's true..." verse and the track picks up speed whenever it reaches the chorus, where the singer tells the girl that no matter what, "I'll get you/I'll get you in the end!/Yes, I will, I'll get you in the end..."
The best part of the song is the fantastic bridge:

"Well, there's gonna be a time,
Well I'm gonna change your mind.
So you might as well resign yourself to me, oh yeah!"

Besides the fact that John appears to sing "I'm gonna make your mind" while Paul sings "I'm gonna change your mind", there is that one fantastic word that just catapults the Lennon/McCartney team from standard to unique....resign. Who would use that word? Wouldn't it have been easier to say "So you might as well give up yourself to me!"? Maybe I'm making too much out of it, but the fact that these songwriters used this word proves (to me, at least) that they were always trying to reach a higher, more intellectual audience. I don't mean to say that children and teenagers of 1963 would not know what "resign" means, but to go with such a definitive word takes a huge leap. John & Paul are not just asking the girl to give herself up, but basically to sign her rights over to them! This is a fantastic song and definitely one of my favorite early tracks.
next up: with the beatles!