I'm a Loser

{{Quote box

| quote=Looking back on it I think songs like 'I'm a Loser' and 'Nowhere Man' were John's cries for help. We used to listen to quite a lot of country and western songs and they are all about sadness and 'I lost my truck' so it was quite acceptable to sing 'I'm a loser' ... It's only later you think, God! I think it was brave of John.

| source=Paul McCartney{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=176}}

| width=21em

| align=left

}}

In 1980, Lennon said the song was "me in my Dylan period" and added, "Part of me suspects I'm a loser and part of me thinks I'm God Almighty. [Laughs]"{{sfn|Sheff|2000|p=195}} Country music and Bob Dylan were catalysts for the song. The country is in the fingerpicking, guitar twang and downhearted words; in 1964, the Beatles were listening to songs by Buck Owens and George Jones that McCartney said were "all about sadness."{{cite magazine|title=71 – 'I'm a Loser'|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/100-greatest-beatles-songs-20110919/im-a-loser-19691231|series=100 Greatest Beatles Songs|magazine=Rolling Stone|access-date=17 June 2012}} Musicologists say the song was "notable for being perhaps the first Beatles' song to directly reflect the influence of Dylan, thus nudging folk and rock a little closer together toward the folk-rock explosion of the following year."{{sfn|Unterberger|2009}} Musicologist Alan Pollack said the song contained "a stronger blend of folk elements than almost anything else The Beatles had done to-date."{{sfn|Pollack|1992}} The line "I'm not what I appear to be" was Lennon's most introspective to date, the start of the progression that led to "Help" and "Nowhere Man" the following year.{{cite book|last1=Hwertsgaard|first1=Mark|title=ADay in the Life: The Music and Artistry of the Beatles|date=1995|publisher=Delacorte Press|location=New York|isbn=0-385-31377-2|page=104}}

Lennon hits a low G2 in the verses, a note usually reserved for baritone and/or bass singers. This was atypical of Lennon; he sang the bulk of his Beatles songs in a tenor register. "I'm a Loser" does not mark the only occasion on which Lennon sang a low G, he also did so in "Happiness Is a Warm Gun".{{cite web |url=http://oldies.about.com/od/thebeatlessongs/a/imaloser.htm |title=The Beatles – I'm A Loser – History and Information on the Beatles' I'm A Loser |publisher=Oldies.about.com |access-date=2011-08-21 |archive-date=2 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120402064915/http://oldies.about.com/od/thebeatlessongs/a/imaloser.htm |url-status=dead }}

The song includes what would be the last of John Lennon's harmonica solos, which had been a prominent feature of the band's early-era records and live shows. The group still occasionally used harmonica in their later recordings, such as "Rocky Raccoon".{{sfn|Lewisohn|1988|p=149}}

The Beatles recorded this song on 14 August 1964, the same day as "Mr. Moonlight" and "Leave My Kitten Alone". It was recorded in eight takes.{{sfn|Lewisohn|1988|p=48}}

It was released four months after it was recorded, but beforehand, it was previewed on BBC Radio on 17 November, along with three other songs from Beatles for Sale and also the "I Feel Fine"/"She's a Woman" single.

It was also performed before its 4 December 1964 release date. The Beatles performed and recorded an appearance for a British edition of the US music TV show Shindig! at the Granville Studio in London on Saturday, 3 October 1964. The performance was watched by London residents of the Beatles Fan Club. The Beatles performed three songs live: "Kansas City/Hey-Hey-Hey-Hey!," "I'm A Loser" and "Boys." The British edition of Shindig! was first broadcast in the US by ABC on Wednesday, 7 October 1964, but was never shown in Britain.{{cite web|url=https://www.beatlesbible.com/1964/10/03/television-shindig/|title=Television: Shindig!|date=3 October 1964 |access-date=30 March 2018}}

On the original pressings of Beatles for Sale, the title was misprinted as "I'm a Losser".{{cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/Beatles-Beatles-For-Sale/release/7280034|title=The Beatles – Beatles For Sale|date=1965 |publisher=Discogs|access-date=20 November 2017}}

• John Lennon – lead vocals, harmonica, acoustic rhythm guitar
• Paul McCartney – harmony vocal, bass guitar
• George Harrison – electric lead guitar
• Ringo Starr – drums, tambourine

:Personnel per Ian MacDonald{{sfn|MacDonald|2005|p=124}}

Marianne Faithfull covered the song in 1965 on her eponymous album.{{cite web|title=Marianne Faithful – Marianne Faithful|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/marianne-faithfull-mw0000738724|publisher=AllMusic|access-date=7 September 2017}} Vince Guaraldi covered the song on Live at El Matador in 1966 with Bola Sete.{{cite web|title=Vince Guaraldi and Bola Sete: Live at El Matador – Vince Guaraldi|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/vince-guaraldi-and-bola-sete-live-at-el-matador-mw0000267603|publisher=AllMusic|access-date=7 September 2017}} Dennis Tufano and Carl Giammarese covered this song on their first duo album "Tufano & Giammarese" in the early 1970s{{cite web|title=Tufano – Giammarese – Tufano-Giammarese|date=1973 |url=https://www.discogs.com/Tufano-Giammarese-Tufano-Giammarese/release/2795383|publisher=Discogs|access-date=7 September 2017}} after the breakup of their previous band, the Buckinghams. This song was covered by the Lost Dogs on their 1993 album, Little Red Riding Hood.{{cite web|title=Lost Dogs – Little Red Riding Hood|date=1993 |url=https://www.discogs.com/Lost-Dogs-Little-Red-Riding-Hood/release/3447066|publisher=Discogs|access-date=7 September 2017}} In 2004 the Punkles did a cover of this song on their third album Pistol.{{cite web|title=Pistol – The Punkles|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/pistol-mw0000459947|publisher=AllMusic|access-date=7 September 2017}} The bands Sum 41 and Eels have also covered it live in concert, the latter releasing it on Sixteen Tons (Ten Songs).{{cite web|title=Eels – Sixteen Tons (Ten Songs) 2003 KCRW Session|date=10 May 2005 |url=https://www.discogs.com/Eels-Sixteen-Tons-Ten-Songs-2003-KCRW-Session/release/1686321|publisher=Discogs|access-date=7 September 2017}} Doug Kershaw covered the song on his 1977 album Flip, Flop, and Fly.{{cite web|title=Flip, Flop & Fly – Doug Kershaw|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/flip-flop-fly-mw0000457639|publisher=AllMusic|access-date=7 September 2017}} The Buckinghams covered the song on their 1997 album Places in Five.{{cite web|title=Places in Five – The Buckinhghams|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/places-in-five-mw0001165213|publisher=AllMusic|access-date=7 September 2017}} Shaun Micallef and the cast of 'Shaun Micallef's MAD AS HELL' also covered this song for the closing credits of the show broadcast on Wednesday 27 March 2013.

In 2016 James Corden sang a version of this in Beat Bugs as Morgs the Stick Bug.

{{Reflist|colwidth=40em}}

{{Refbegin|2}}

• {{cite book

| last1=Womack

| first1=Kenneth

| last2=Davies

| first2=Todd

| year=2006

| title=Reading the Beatles: Cultural Studies, Literary Criticism, And the Fab Four

| publisher=SUNY Press

| isbn=0-7914-6716-3

}}

• {{cite book|last=Lewisohn|first=Mark|year=1988|author-link=Mark Lewisohn|title=The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions|publisher=Hamlyn|location=London|isbn=0-600-61207-4}}
• {{cite book

| last=MacDonald

| first=Ian

| year=2005

| author-link=Ian MacDonald

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

| publisher=Pimlico (Rand)

| location=London

| edition=Second Revised

| isbn=1-84413-828-3

}}

• {{cite book

| last=Miles

| first=Barry

| year=1997

| author-link=Barry Miles

| title=Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now

| publisher=Henry Holt and Company

| location=New York

| isbn=0-8050-5249-6

| url=https://archive.org/details/paulmccartneyman00mile

}}

• {{cite web

| last=Pollack

| first=Alan W.

| author-link=Alan W. Pollack

| title=I'm a Loser

| date=28 May 1992

| work=Notes On ... Series

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

}}

• {{cite book

| last=Sheff

| first=David

| year=2000

| author-link=David Sheff

| title=All We Are Saying: The Last Major Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono

| publisher=St. Martin's Press

| location=New York

| isbn=0-312-25464-4

| url=https://archive.org/details/allwearesayingla00lenn

}}

• {{cite AV media notes

| last=Taylor

| first=Derek

| year=1964

| author-link=Derek Taylor

| title=Beatles for Sale

| publisher=Parlophone

| others=The Beatles

| url=http://www.norwegianwood.org/beatles/disko/uklp/sale.htm

| access-date=26 December 2009

| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120904121706/http://www.norwegianwood.org/beatles/disko/uklp/sale.htm

| archive-date=4 September 2012

| url-status=dead

}}

• {{cite web

| last=Unterberger

| first=Richie

| year=2009

| author-link=Richie Unterberger

| title=Review of "I'm a Loser"

| publisher=AllMusic

| url={{Allmusic|class=song|id=t462339|pure_url=yes}}

| access-date=25 September 2009

| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101109051731/https://www.allmusic.com/song/t462339

| archive-date=9 November 2010

| url-status=dead

}}

{{Refend}}

{{Wikiquote|Beatles for Sale}}

• {{Notes on|http://www.icce.rug.nl/~soundscapes/DATABASES/AWP/ial.shtml}}

{{Beatles for Sale}}

{{The Beatles singles}}

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Category:The Beatles songs

Category:Song recordings produced by George Martin

Category:Songs written by Lennon–McCartney

Category:Eels (band) songs

Category:Songs published by Northern Songs

Category:1964 songs

Category:British folk rock songs

Category:British country music songs