| "Two of Us" | |
|---|---|
 Cover of the song's sheet music | |
| Song bythe Beatles | |
| from the albumLet It Be | |
| Released | 8 May 1970 (1970-05-08) |
| Recorded | 31 January 1969 |
| Studio | Apple, London |
| Genre | Folk rock |
| Length | 3:33 |
| Label | Apple |
| Songwriter | Lennon–McCartney |
| Producer | Phil Spector |
| Audio sample | |
"Two of Us" | |
"Two of Us" is a song written byPaul McCartney[1][2] and credited to theLennon–McCartney partnership. The song was recorded bythe Beatles on 31 January 1969.
"Two of Us" was originally released as the opening track onLet It Be (1970) and a remix of that recording was later included onLet It Be... Naked (2003). An outtake of the song, recorded on 24 January 1969, was released onAnthology 3 (1996).[3]
The song's title was used for the 2000 TV movieTwo of Us, which depicts a fictionalized version of a 1976 reunion between McCartney and Lennon.[4]
McCartney wrote this song about his travel adventures with his then-girlfriend,Linda Eastman, whom he married in March 1969. As the Beatles were breaking up, it took on new meaning as a gesture of affection to Lennon.[5]
The song was originally titled "On Our Way Home".Ian MacDonald suggested that the lyrics (e.g.: "you and I have memories/longer than the road that stretches out ahead" or "you and me chasing paper/getting nowhere") sounded like McCartney was probably addressing Lennon and contractual troubles.[6] "You Never Give Me Your Money", a different composition by McCartney from the previously released album, but recorded afterLet It Be,Abbey Road, also refers to the Beatles' contract withAllen Klein as "funny paper".
The song is also an ode to one of Lennon and McCartney's influences, the harmonies ofthe Everly Brothers.[7]
An early performance of the song, in a guitar-driven rock style, can be seen in theLet It Be film and later in the documentary seriesThe Beatles: Get Back. Unsatisfied with this style, which McCartney described as "chunky", the band reworked the song around acoustic guitars. The Beatles performed a finished version of the song live atApple Studios on 31 January 1969; this performance was included in both theLet It Be film and album. The clip was also broadcast onThe Ed Sullivan Show on 1 March 1970 as the final appearance by the Beatles on the program.
In between several takes of the song on 24 January 1969, the band spontaneously started playing a hammed-up version of traditional Liverpudlian song "Maggie Mae".[8] The 38-second song would also end up on theLet It Be album, but is omitted inLet It Be... Naked. A version ofTwo of Us from that day is released onAnthology 3.
In May 1969, McCartney produced a recording of the song using this title by the group Mortimer, a New York City trio that briefly recorded for Apple, but this recording was never released.[9]
On theLet It Be album, producerPhil Spector added, as a spoken introduction to the song, a remark by Lennon, who says: "'I Dig A Pygmy' byCharles Hawtrey and the Deaf-Aids! Phase one, in which Doris gets her oats!"[10] This intro was removed in theLet It Be... Naked version, but it can still be found in theGet Back documentary.
According toIan MacDonald:[7]
