by Nick DeRiso
Almost certainly written by Paul McCartney in an attempt to mirror some of the heavier, more intellectually raw pieces that John Lennon had begun to craft. Lennon was not outwardly impressed — famously sniffing that it was “the best song Paul ever wrote” — but there are some who think “Why Don’t We Do It?” actually pushed Lennon to greater experimental heights on “Revolution 9.” The idea, it seems, was for McCartney to take the same repeated line and try for different emotional underpinnings with the presentation. The volume is pushed to the point of distortion, giving the listener a sense of up-close urgency. But in the end, I think the song is more transition than true composition, something meant to help with sequencing to the more powerfully conceived — but more delicately presented — pieces “I Will” and “Julia.”
Half Notes is a quick-take music feature on Something Else! Reviews, presented whenever the mood strikes us.
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