This Boy

This Boy is a song by The Beatles. Although credited to Lennon/McCartney, it was mainly composed by John Lennon. "This Boy" was performed on The Beatles' second appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show.

Background
This song was written by John and Paul in a hotel bedroom as a exercise in three-part harmony.

Recordings
"This Boy" was originally recorded on October 17, 1963, on the A-Side of "I Want to Hold Your Hand".

The session was The Beatles' first song to use 4-track (multi-track) recording facilities. They recorded fifteen takes of "This Boy", as well as two overdubs. The song was recorded with a rounded ending; however, it was faded out during a mixing session on October 21.

Two alternate recordings have also been officially released. A live version performed on The Morecambe and Wise Show in 1963 was released on Anthology 1, and two incomplete takes from the original recording were released as a track on the single "Free as a Bird".

Credits

 * John Lennon – Acoustic guitar, lead vocal
 * Paul McCartney – Bass guitar, harmony vocal
 * George Harrison – Lead guitars, harmony vocal
 * Ringo Starr – Drums

Lyrics
Please click here for lyrics.