Ask Me Why

Written in early 1962, "Ask Me Why" is principally a John Lennon composition,{{sfn|Miles|1998|p=92}} but was credited to Lennon and Paul McCartney, as were all other Lennon–McCartney originals on the first pressings of Please Please Me album. McCartney said, "It was John's original idea and we both sat down and wrote it together, just did a job on it. It was mostly John's."Barry Miles. Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now[http://www.beatlesbible.com/songs/ask-me-why/ Ask Me Why | The Beatles Bible] It was part of their live act prior to their recording contract, and was one of the songs performed at their first Parlophone recording session in EMI's Abbey Road studio two on 6 June 1962.{{sfn|Miles|1998|p=92}}{{sfn|Harry|1992|p=50}}{{sfn|Lewisohn|2013|pp=1222–1230}} The song emulates the style of Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, by whom Lennon was influenced, and draws its opening guitar phrase from the Miracles' "What's So Good About Goodbye" (1961).{{sfn|MacDonald|2005|p=64–65}}

The song is in the key of E major, with some leaning to its relative minor of C#, and is in 4/4 time. Structurally, the song is complex and, as Alan Pollack states, contains three different variants of the verse.{{sfn|Pollack|2001}} The song also contains "jazzy parallel sevenths" in most of the chords, and has a live ending.{{citation needed|date=December 2012}}

"Ask Me Why" was originally recorded at Abbey Road studios on 6 June 1962 with drummer Pete Best. As the session was a 'commercial test', none of the performances recorded that day were deemed suitable for release, and the two quarter-inch tape reels from that session were thought to be destroyed by EMI. However, two songs survived; "Besame Mucho" and "Love Me Do" were later discovered on acetate discs.{{sfn|Lewisohn|1988|pp=17}}{{sfn|Lewisohn|2013|pp=1222–1230, 1232}} The group performed "Ask Me Why" for the BBC Light Programme's Teenager's Turn – Here We Go on 15 June 1962 recorded at the BBC Playhouse in Hulme, Manchester, nine days after the EMI session.

It was recorded again, along with "Please Please Me", on 26 November 1962 with Ringo Starr on drums. The Beatles also rehearsed "Tip of My Tongue", another Lennon and McCartney song which was also being considered for the B-side of the "Please Please Me" single.{{sfn|MacDonald|2005|p=64–65}} However, producer George Martin felt that "Tip of My Tongue" still needed some work, and it was eventually given to Tommy Quickly to record.{{sfn|Lewisohn|1988|p=23}}

• Capitol Records, EMI's American counterpart to Parlophone, initially refused to distribute Beatle music in the US and so the "Please Please Me"/"Ask Me Why" single was released by Vee-Jay Records on 25 February 1963.
• Vee-Jay included "Ask Me Why" on version 2 of Introducing... The Beatles.
• Capitol eventually released "Ask Me Why" in 1965 on The Early Beatles when Vee-Jay's rights expired.
• A live version from December 1962 was released on the German/UK version of Live! at the Star-Club in Hamburg, Germany; 1962 album in 1977, but was left off the initial US version.
• A version was recorded for the BBC on 3 September 1963. It was released on On Air – Live at the BBC Volume 2 in 2013.

The song was covered by the Smithereens on their 2008 album B-Sides The Beatles.{{AllMusic |class=album |id=mw0000795509 |tab=| label=B-Sides the Beatles |first=Mark |last=Deming |accessdate=27 December 2016 }}{{Importance example|reason=no indication that this meets WP:SONGCOVER}}

• John Lennon – vocals, acoustic rhythm guitar
• Paul McCartney – bass, backing vocals
• George Harrison – lead guitar, backing vocals
• Ringo Starr – drums

Engineered by Norman Smith

:Personnel per Ian MacDonald{{sfn|MacDonald|2005|p=64–65}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite book

| last = Dowlding

| first = William J.

| year = 2009

| title = Beatlesongs

| publisher = Simon and Schuster

| isbn = 9781439147191

}}

• {{cite book

| last=Harry

| first=Bill

| year=1992

| author-link=Bill Harry

| title=The Ultimate Beatles Encyclopedia

| publisher=Virgin Books

| location=London

| isbn=0-86369-681-3

}}

• {{cite book

| last=Lewisohn

| first=Mark

| year=1988

| author-link=Mark Lewisohn

| title=The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions

| publisher=Hamlyn

| location=London

| isbn=0-600-55798-7

}}

• {{cite book

| last=Lewisohn

| first=Mark

| year=2013

| author-link=Mark Lewisohn

| title=The Beatles: All These Years

| volume=one - Tune In

| edition=Extended Special

| publisher=Little, Brown

| location=London

| isbn=978-1-4087-0478-3

}}

• {{cite book

| last=MacDonald

| first=Ian

| year=2005

| author-link=Ian MacDonald

| title=Revolution in the Head: The Beatles' Records and the Sixties

| edition=Second Revised

| publisher=Pimlico (Rand)

| location=London

| isbn=1-84413-828-3

}}

• {{cite book

| last=Miles

| first=Barry

| year=1998

| author-link=Barry Miles

| title=Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now

| publisher=Vintage

| location=London

| isbn=0-7493-8658-4

}}

• {{cite web

| last=Pollack

| first=Alan W.

| author-link=Alan W. Pollack

| title=Notes on "Ask Me Why"

| date=27 March 2001

| work=Notes on Series

| url=http://www.icce.rug.nl/~soundscapes/DATABASES/AWP/amw.shtml

}}

{{Please Please Me}}

{{The Beatles singles}}

{{authority control}}

Category:The Beatles songs

Category:1963 songs

Category:Song recordings produced by George Martin

Category:Songs written by Lennon–McCartney

Category:Parlophone singles

Category:Vee-Jay Records singles

Category:1963 singles

it:Please Please Me/Ask Me Why#Ask Me Why