The Beatles’ remarkable legacy is defined by a nearly unmatched level of quality. John Lennon and Paul McCartney may have had dozens of songs tucked away before the Fab Four’s rise to fame, but their catalog is astonishingly free of complete misfires. However, even they weren’t immune to the occasional misstep. One song, in particular, was deemed so underwhelming by McCartney that The Beatles refused to release it themselves.
A Band That Set Its Standards High
In their early days, The Beatles didn’t always adhere to a strict standard of quality. While albums like With the Beatles and Beatles for Sale contain timeless hits, they also feature tracks that were clearly rushed or less polished. For example, Lennon once wrote Little Child as a filler song, and the uneven finish of Help! with a Larry Williams cover instead of Yesterday has been debated by fans for decades.
Despite these moments, the Lennon-McCartney partnership kept delivering hit after hit, often sharing their songwriting talents with other artists. By the time McCartney wrote Etcetera, he knew it wasn’t worthy of The Beatles’ name but thought it might work for someone else.
Giving the Song Away
McCartney originally envisioned Etcetera for Marianne Faithfull, an artist who had benefited from collaborations with other musicians. Reflecting on the decision to hand it off, McCartney later admitted, “I knew Marianne, so it was natural that I would be asked to write a song at some point. I did write a song, but it was not a very good one. It was called Etcetera, and it’s a bad song. I think it’s a good job that it’s died a death in some tape bin. Even then, I seem to remember thinking it wasn’t very good.”
Was It Really That Bad?
While McCartney dismisses Etcetera outright, some elements of the song are worth noting. The early version, once titled Thingumybob, may have leaned heavily into saccharine territory, but its orchestration and skeletal structure offer a glimpse into McCartney’s creative process. That said, when compared to masterpieces like For No One or Eleanor Rigby, it’s easy to understand why McCartney viewed it as subpar.
The Forgotten Tune
Ultimately, Etcetera never made it into the Beatles’ discography, and McCartney seems relieved that the track disappeared into obscurity. While it may have been a creative misstep, it highlights the incredibly high standards The Beatles maintained, even when churning out songs at an incredible pace.
For a band known for innovation and perfection, even their “failures” remind us why their music endures: their dedication to excellence, even at the cost of leaving some tracks behind.
