Recently, there were two articles about which Beatles songs were most recorded by other artists. Here’s a combined graphic from the two articles, and as you can see there are some differences. We’ll also do an analysis of the songs artists have chosen.
First, you’ll notice that the songs are in a different order, even though they start out the same with “Yesterday” and “Eleanor Rigby”. All eight of the songs in the shorter list also appear in the top nine of the longer list. So they’re not that different. As for the order, it’s likely the list with 14 songs (actually 15, because of the tie at the end) is the more accurate one, because other similar rankings show “Let It Be” is very popular with musicians, so coming in third makes sense.
Obviously, the lists are from two different sources, and they may have been from two different times as well. Here’s what I got today when I asked Google.
That top five is a strong group. All five had Paul McCartney as the lead songwriter. In fact, Paul McCartney was the main songwriter on 10 of the top 15 on the long list. John Lennon has two non-single tracks from the Rubber Soul album…“Norwegian Wood” at #10 and “In My Life” at #13, plus “Come Together” at #11. George Harrison has “Something” at #4 on that list, and “Here Comes The Sun” (another non-single) at #12. Half of McCartney’s ten songs were also non-singles. That means that only seven of the top 15 Beatles cover songs were hits, which speaks highly for the quality of their album tracks.
“Yesterday” is not just the most covered Beatles song, it’s the most recorded song ever written. The music and lyrics are solely by Paul McCartney, and he’s the only Beatle on the recording.
Beatles songs have been around for over half-a-century, so there’s been time for a clear perspective of their quality. Beatles fans all love John, Paul, George, and Ringo, but when it comes to songwriting, time has proven that Paul McCartney’s melodies stand out the most. That doesn’t lessen the amazing level of John Lennon’s or George Harrison’s songwriting and performances, it simply confirms the reality of McCartney’s talent.