Elvis Presley’s favourite Beatles songs were all written by the Fab Four member ‘he loved’.
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had a mixed relationship with . The Fab Four were heavily influenced by the King of Rock and Roll during their 1950s upbringing. And by the time the five men finally met 60 years ago this August, The King saw them as his rivals whose music careers were in a much better place than his own. By 1970, he was telling President Nixon that the Beatles were “un-American” due to their association with hippy drug culture. And yet Elvis would end up covering a number of their hits live during his residency years from Yesterday to Hey Jude.
During our conversation, the Memphis Mafia confidant and bodyguard shared that, of all the Beatles, Elvis “loved .” Davis shared: “He thought George was the most prolific writer. He really liked his writing.” He then listed off Elvis’ four favourite Beatles songs all penned by the Quiet Beatle.
Something (1969)
This is the only Beatles song on the list Elvis regularly covered live, including at his 1973 concert movie Aloha from Hawaii via Satellite. Penned by Harrison for the Abbey Road album, the track is believed to be a love song to his first wife Pattie Boyd.
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If I Needed Someone (1965)
Harrison wrote this Rubber Soul album track for Pattie too. Upon its release this song was widely considered to be his best to date.
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Here Comes the Sun (1969)
Another Abbey Road classic, Harrison’s lyrics on the arrival of spring also reflected his brief break from the Beatles’ business dealings. With over 1.5 billion listens to date, it’s by far the most played Beatles song on Spotify with Let It Be in a far-off second place on 786 million.
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Norwegian Wood (1965)
This Rubber Soul track is a cheeky addition, because it was penned by John Lennon with lyrical contributions by Paul McCartney. However, Harrison introduced his sitar part for the first time to a Beatles song. This song also marked the first time an Indian string instrument featured on a Western rock recording.
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