For my fourth installment of Hack’s Back Pages Lyrics Quiz, I thought I’d take a different tack.

First, we’re going to focus on lyrics from songs written by just one artist — in this case, The Beatles.  The band’s catalog is still pretty much the most recognizable musically, and I dare say lyrically as well.

Second, I’ve divided three dozen lyrics into three categories — easy, intermediate and difficult.  You can decide what level challenge to attempt, or you can try all three.

Grab a pencil and paper and jot down your answers as you proceed.  When you’re done, simply scroll down to find the correct answers.  I’d love to hear how you did!

It’s a good mental exercise to test your memory bank now and then, and recalling rock music lyrics is a great place to start.  Enjoy!

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EASY

1  “Newspaper taxis appear on the shore, waiting to take you away…”

2  “Well, my heart went ‘boom’ when I crossed that room, and I held her hand in mine…”

3  “Got to be a joker, he just do what he please…”

4  “I’ll pretend that I’m kissing the lips I am missing…”

5  “Many times I’ve been alone, and many times I’ve cried…”

6  “Say you don’t need no diamond rings and I’ll be satisfied…”

7  “I look at the floor and I see it needs sweeping…”

8  “All these places had their moments with lovers and friends I still can recall…”

9  “Look at him working, darning his socks in the night when there’s nobody there…”

10  “Boy, you’ve been a naughty girl, you let your knickers down…”

11  “Baby says she’s mine, you know, she tells me all the time, you know, she said so…”

12  “Remember to let her under your skin, then you’ll begin to make it better…”

INTERMEDIATE

13  “You keep all your money in a big brown bag inside a zoo, what a thing to do…”

14  “You don’t need me to show the way, love, why do I always have to say, love…”

15  “If looks could kill, it would’ve been us instead of him…”

16  “I’m taking the time for a number of things that weren’t important yesterday…”

17  “But till she’s here, please don’t come near, just stay away…”

18  “‘Cause I couldn’t stand the pain, and I would be sad if our new love was in vain…”

19  “You and I have memories longer than the road that stretches out ahead…”

20  “When you say she’s looking good, she acts as if it’s understood, she’s cool…”

21  “Then we’d lie beneath the shady tree, I love her and she’s loving me…”

22  “Saving up to buy some clothes, keeps a ten-bob note up his nose…”

23  “She don’t give the boys the eye, she hates to see me cry…”

24  “It’s a thousand pages, give or take a few…”

 

DIFFICULT

25  “‘We’ll be over soon,’ they said, now they’ve lost themselves instead…”

26  “In my mind, there’s no sorrow, don’t you know that it’s so?…”

27  “All that I was looking for was somebody who looked like you…”

28  “You’re giving me the same old line, I’m wondering why…”

29  “But listen to the color of your dreams, it is not living, it is not living…”

30  “Pick up the bags and get in the limousine…”

31  “You could find better things to do than to break my heart again…”

32  “I feel so suicidal, just like Dylan’s Mr. Jones…”

33  “Had you come some other day, then it might not have been like this…”

34  “Waiting to keep the appointment she made, meeting a man from the motor trade…”

35  “Don’t you know I can’t take it, I don’t know who can…”

36  “You don’t take nothing with you but your soul, think!…”

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Answers:

EASY

1  “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds” (from “Sgt. Pepper,” 1967)

2  “I Saw Her Standing There” (from “Please Please Me,” 1963)

3  “Come Together” (from “Abbey Road,” 1969)

4  “All My Loving” (from “With the Beatles,” 1963)

5  “The Long and Winding Road” (from “Let It Be,” 1970)

6  “Can’t Buy Me Love” (from “A Hard Day’s Night,” 1964)

7  “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” (from “The White Album,” 1968)

8  “In My Life” (from “Rubber Soul,” 1965)

9  “Eleanor Rigby” (from “Revolver,” 1966)

10  “I Am the Walrus” (from “Magical Mystery Tour,” 1967)

11  “I Feel Fine” (single, 1964)

12  “Hey Jude” (single, 1968)

INTERMEDIATE

13  “Baby You’re a Rich Man” (from “Magical Mystery Tour,” 1967)

14  “Please Please Me” (from “Please Please Me,” 1963)

15  “The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill” (from “The White Album,” 1968)

16  “Fixing a Hole” (from “Sgt. Pepper,” 1967)

17  “Don’t Bother Me” (from “With the Beatles,” 1963)

18  “If I Fell” (from “A Hard Day’s Night,” 1964)

19  “Two of Us” (from “Let It Be,” 1970)

20  “Girl” (from “Rubber Soul,” 1965)

21  “Good Day Sunshine” (from “Revolver,” 1966)

22  “Mean Mr. Mustard” (from “Abbey Road,” 1969)

23  “She’s a Woman” (single B-side, 1964)

24  “Get Back” (single, 1969)

 

 

 

DIFFICULT

25  “Blue Jay Way” (from “Magical Mystery Tour,” 1967)

26  “There’s a Place” (from “Please Please Me,” 1963)

27  “I’ve Got a Feeling” (from “Let It Be,” 1970)

28  “Not a Second Time” (from “With the Beatles,” 1963)

29  “Tomorrow Never Knows” (from “Revolver,” 1966)

30  “You Never Give Me Your Money” (from “Abbey Road,” 1969)

31  “I’ll Be Back” (from “A Hard Day’s Night,” 1964)

32  “Yer Blues” (from “The White Album,” 1968)

33  “If I Needed Someone” (from “Rubber Soul,” 1965)

34  “She’s  Leaving Home” (from “Sgt. Pepper,” 1967)

35  “I Call Your Name” (from “Long Tall Sally” EP, 1964)

36  “The Ballad of John & Yoko” (single, 1969)

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