{"id":179049963,"date":"2025-11-16T13:54:51","date_gmt":"2025-11-16T13:54:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.weberbooks.com\/kindle\/2025\/11\/16\/%f0%9f%8e%b8-the-beatles-and-please-mr-postman-when-liverpool-met-motown-%f0%9f%8e%b5\/"},"modified":"2026-04-18T18:24:05","modified_gmt":"2026-04-18T22:24:05","slug":"%f0%9f%8e%b8-the-beatles-and-please-mr-postman-when-liverpool-met-motown-%f0%9f%8e%b5","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.weberbooks.com\/kindle\/2025\/11\/16\/%f0%9f%8e%b8-the-beatles-and-please-mr-postman-when-liverpool-met-motown-%f0%9f%8e%b5\/","title":{"rendered":"🎸 The Beatles and \u201cPlease Mr. Postman\u201d: When Liverpool Met Motown 🎵"},"content":{"rendered":"

🎤 The Beatles Discover a Motown Gem<\/h2>

In December 1961, long before they became famous outside Liverpool, The Beatles <\/strong>added \u201cPlease Mr. Postman\u201d<\/strong> to their live repertoire, making it their third Tamla song after the Miracles\u2019 \u201cWho\u2019s Lovin\u2019 You\u201d and Barrett Strong\u2019s \u201cMoney (That\u2019s What I Want).\u201d The song became a staple at their live concerts at Liverpool\u2019s Cavern Club, where Billy Hatton of the Four Jays recalled seeing one of the Beatles\u2019 first live performances of it, calling it \u201ca Wow moment.\u201d<\/p>

Since the original Marvelettes version hadn\u2019t made it into the British charts, few in the UK knew the song, allowing the Beatles to make it their own among all Liverpool groups. John Lennon sang lead vocal with the same reckless abandon he usually reserved for songs like \u201cTwist And Shout\u201d\u2014matching the rough desperation he heard in the original.<\/p>

For their recording on With the Beatles<\/strong><\/em> in 1963, John Lennon<\/strong> sang lead with Paul McCartney<\/strong> and George Harrison<\/strong> providing backing vocals, while all three added handclaps. Due to their different vocal range from the Marvelettes, the Beatles modulated their version into A major. Between recording two takes of overdubs, the band added handclaps while Lennon double tracked his original vocal. The intensity of their performance drew critical acclaim: Music critic Robert Christgau considered the Beatles\u2019 covers of \u201cPlease Mr. Postman\u201d and \u201cMoney\u201d as two of the band\u2019s best ever recordings, \u201cboth surpassing the superb Motown originals.\u201d<\/p>

Origins of the Motown Classic<\/h2>

The song The Beatles had fallen in love with was written by Georgia Dobbins, William Garrett, Freddie Gorman, Brian Holland and Robert Bateman, and became the debut single for the Marvelettes<\/strong> on Motown\u2019s Tamla label. The song\u2019s creation involved multiple contributors: William Garrett originally wrote it as a blues tune and gave it to his friend Georgia Dobbins<\/strong>, a founding member of the Marvelettes, who transformed it into a doo-wop song before Motown songwriters Brian Holland, Robert Bateman and Freddie Gorman further refined it. One particularly authentic detail: Freddie Gorman himself was a real-life postman, lending extra authenticity to the lyrics. <\/p>

The Marvelettes\u2019 version achieved historic significance by becoming the first Motown song to reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in late 1961, also topping the R&B chart. The recording featured lead vocalist Gladys Horton<\/strong>, whose delivery combined desperation and hope in equal measure. An interesting footnote to the recording session: among the musicians was Marvin Gaye on drums, who was serving time as a session musician, just after the commercial failure of his debut album.<\/p>

This essay continues below. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.<\/em><\/h6>

Motown Meets The Beatles (Audio CD)<\/a><\/h1>
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The British Invasion\u2019s Love Affair with Girl Groups<\/h2>

The practice of male rock groups covering songs originally performed by female vocal groups, particularly from the Motown stable, was not merely common during the early 1960s\u2014it was fundamental to the British Invasion sound. The Beatles displayed an early interest in girl group music, covering songs by groups like the Shirelles, the Cookies, and the Donays.<\/p>

Liverpool had a connection with Motown. British label Oriole Records represented Tamla Motown in the UK, and with its busy docks, Merseyside was the biggest source of Motown records in Britain. As Mersey Beat magazine founder Bill Harry explained, Liverpool bands adapted Motown songs to fit the developing Liverpool sound\u2014the basic three guitars\/drums\/harmony lineup, creating a hybrid he called \u201cthe Mersey Motown sound.\u201d<\/p>

The Beatles weren\u2019t alone in this practice. British beat groups from the late 1950s played American music for their friends, imitating all kinds of hit sounds\u2014from Chuck Berry to the Shirelles, from Carl Perkins to the Isley Brothers. However, The Beatles took this admiration further than most of their contemporaries, making Motown covers a central part of their identity during their formative years.<\/p>

What Attracted The Beatles to Motown<\/h2>

The Beatles\u2019 attraction to Motown\u2014and to \u201cPlease Mr. Postman\u201d specifically\u2014went far beyond simple musical appreciation. As Ringo Starr recalled, the shared love of Motown helped the band gel: \u201cWhen I joined The Beatles we didn\u2019t really know each other, but if you looked at each of our record collections, the four of us had virtually the same records. We all had The Miracles, we all had Barrett Strong and people like that. I suppose that helped us gel as musicians, and as a group.\u201d<\/p>

The musical appeal was multifaceted. The song tapped into a youthful emotional reservoir and brought teenage girlhood to the forefront of American music in a way rarely seen before. John Lennon understood the song\u2019s emotional core well, singing it with the same reckless abandon he usually reserved for songs like \u201cTwist And Shout\u201d\u2014matching the rough desperation in Gladys Horton\u2019s pleading vocal.<\/p>

Music critic Tim Riley praised The Beatles\u2019 version as having \u201ctremendous\u201d beat, sounding \u201cperilously close to falling apart at any minute,\u201d calling it \u201cthe most reckless and completely irresistible playing\u201d and \u201cthe most flammable rock \u2018n\u2019 roll they\u2019ve given us since \u2018She Loves You.\u2019\u201d<\/p>

The Original Artists\u2019 Reactions<\/h2>

The Motown artists\u2019 reactions to Beatles covers of their songs were overwhelmingly positive and deeply appreciative. Smokey Robinson expressed what became a representative sentiment when discussing The Beatles\u2019 cover of \u201cYou Really Got A Hold on Me\u201d<\/strong>: \u201cWhen they recorded it, it was one of the most flattering things that ever happened to me. I listened to it over and over again, not to criticise it but to enjoy it… They were not only respectful of us, they were down-right worshipful.\u201d<\/p>

Robinson continued: \u201cWhenever reporters asked them about their influences, they\u2019d enter into a euphoria about Motown. I dig them, not only for their songwriting talent, but their honesty.\u201d<\/p>

In a 2010 interview, Robinson recalled meeting The Beatles before they became globally famous, sharing: \u201cOne of the things I loved when they became popular was that they were the first really popular white band\u2014or white artists that I had heard\u2014who came right out and said, \u2018We grew up and were very influenced by Black music and by Motown.\u2019 I really loved them for that, and I thought it was so wonderful they would say that.\u201d<\/p>

This open acknowledgment was crucial and historically significant. White artists have a long and problematic history of plagiarising and stealing the music of Black artists without credit, but The Beatles never shied away from an opportunity to discuss the importance of Black music on developing their own sound.<\/p>

Lennon, reflecting in the 1970s, said:<\/p>

\u201cI\u2019ll never stop acknowledging it: Black music is my life,\u201d he told Jet magazine in 1972. \u201cThe Beatles and Sgt. Pepper and all that jazz \u2013 it doesn\u2019t mean a thing. All I talk about is 1958 when I heard [Little Richard\u2019s] \u2018Long Tall Sally,\u2019 when I heard [Chuck Berry\u2019s] \u2018Johnny Be Good,\u2019 when I heard Bo Diddley. That changed my life completely.\u201d Lennon was even more emphatic about Chuck Berry specifically: \u201cBerry is the greatest influence on Earth. So is Bo Diddley and so is Little Richard. There is not one white group on Earth that hasn\u2019t got their music in them \u2013 and that\u2019s all I ever listened to. The only white I ever listened to was [Elvis] Presley on his early music records, and he was doing black music.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>

Financial Impact and Career Boosts<\/h2>

The Beatles\u2019 covers did translate into tangible financial benefits for Motown and its songwriters. The Beatles\u2019 recording of \u201cPlease Mr. Postman\u201d for their second UK album With The Beatles<\/em> generated substantial music-publishing royalties for Motown and its writers: Brian Holland, Robert Bateman, Georgia Dobbins, Freddie Gorman and William Garrett.<\/p>

Berry Gordy, recognizing the rising popularity of The Beatles in the UK, agreed to lower royalty rates for use of the songs, as he was thrilled to have The Beatles recording tracks from his roster. This was a calculated business decision that paid dividends beyond immediate royalties. In the wake of The Beatles\u2019 soul covers on With the Beatles<\/em>, Motown\u2019s presence in Britain increased significantly, and within a few short years, groups like The Four Tops, The Supremes, and Martha Reeves were achieving substantial chart success on both sides of the Atlantic.<\/p>

The song itself proved to be an enduring copyright. \u201cPlease Mr. Postman\u201d evolved into one of Motown\u2019s most enduring and successful copyrights, with the Carpenters\u2019 1974 cover topping the Billboard Hot 100 in early 1975.<\/p>

Awareness and Appreciation<\/h2>

Did the Marvelettes and other Motown artists know who The Beatles were when they discovered the covers? <\/p>

Smokey Robinson mentioned meeting \u201cthe Beatles in London before they became the Beatles Beatles,\u201d suggesting the Motown artists were aware of them during their rise but before their explosive global fame in 1964. This relationship became reciprocal, with Motown artists eventually recording their own covers of Beatles songs, collected on the 1995 CD Motown Meets The Beatles<\/em>, featuring 14 covers by top-tier Motown acts including The Supremes, The Four Tops, Stevie Wonder, The Temptations, and Marvin Gaye.<\/p>

Artistic Assessments<\/h2>

Regarding the quality of The Beatles\u2019 performances, opinions varied\u2014though the appreciation from the original artists remained consistent. One critic noted that hearing the Marvelettes\u2019 original left them \u201cjust as satisfied,\u201d calling it \u201ca rare thing with the Beatles, who, as I insist, almost always improved on the songs they covered, at least from a \u2018technical\u2019 angle.\u201d<\/p>

However, some fans of the original remained loyal. As one listener commented, the debate between versions continues, with some arguing the Beatles version was too pop-oriented and lacked the soul and fire of the original\u2014though others countered that both versions were classics in their own right.<\/p>

Cultural Significance<\/h2>

The story of \u201cPlease Mr. Postman\u201d and The Beatles represents more than a simple cover song narrative. The Beatles\u2019 cover, slightly faster and more rock-oriented, brought the song to a new audience and was emblematic of how deeply American R&B had permeated British pop sensibilities, helping to forge a bridge between Motown and the British Invasion and creating a musical feedback loop that enriched both traditions.<\/p>

The Beatles learned from the Motown Sound, covering their early songs and emulating Smokey Robinson\u2019s smooth singing style and eloquent songwriting techniques, while Motown artists thanked The Beatles for their support by covering their songs\u2014creating a symbiotic relationship between the two musical movements.<\/p>

The mutual respect, the financial benefits to the songwriters, the career boosts for Motown\u2019s UK presence, and the genuine artistic appreciation from both sides created a model for how cultural exchange in popular music could work at its best<\/strong>. The Beatles didn\u2019t merely borrow from Motown; they celebrated it, acknowledged it, and helped introduce it to a wider audience\u2014all while the Motown artists themselves expressed gratitude for the attention and recognition their work received from one of history\u2019s most influential bands.<\/p>

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