What is the best Beatles "folk rock" style song?

Yes, nothing screams "folk rock" more than heavy metal drumming.

 

Make your own list then.

Warm regards,
Diamond Star Halo

 

I'll never understand the people saying it's proto heavy metal.

 

- You've Got To Hide Your Love Away
- I've Just Seen A Face
- Michelle
- I'm Looking Through You
- Two Of Us

 

Nowhere Man
Norwegian Wood
You've Got To Hide Your Love Away

Lennon '65 all the way!

 

It is indeed mysterious. It's almost as if the drums might have something to do with it.

 

You've Got To Hide Your Love Away
I'll Follow the Sun

 

Maybe I'm just not well versed enough in heavy metal.
Sounds like folk rock to me. Drums or no.

 

Penny Lane
is the only proper British folk rock song, init?

 

Mysterious, and it has something to do with drums. I think Halo's proof is rock solid.

 

Hide
Face
Wood

Dats it.

 

That's the thing of having way too much Beatles threads. It inspires trolling. And encourages weird categorisation that people immediately want to discuss. In public. It does get boring.

 

Jawoll

 

probably 'on my life' but its' not on the list.

 

I like the No Reply suggestion. It would have made my top five. I've always thought that its sound and that of I'll Be Back are very similar. Ditto for Any Time at All. I generally associate those three songs with each other.

 

I voted "Just Seen A Face" but certainly "You've Got To Hide..." is a valid choice. I don't know if it's folk-rock, but I'll Be Back is a fantastic piece of work. It's in my top 5 or 10 Beatles songs.

 

"I've Just Seen a Face" and "I'm Looking Through You" are clearly the leaders in this category. "If I Needed Someone" is a close third. Most of the songs that are options in this thread are really good, but they aren't Folk ROCK. They are more like Folk BALLADS.

I'd argue that "No Reply" is an earlier example of Folk Rock from the Beatles, and it's such an underrated song. Maybe that's my second favorite. And it's an album opener, so I don't get why it is overlooked so often.

 

What about Lewisohn calling take one of "Tomorrow Never Knows" "A heavy metal recording of unknown proportions" or whatever he called it in the Recording Sessions book?

 

I've Just Seen A Face my very top choice
Others were:
I'm A Loser
Nowhere Man
I'm Looking Through You
Two Of Us

I also would have voted for If I Needed Someone if that were a choice. Those guitars are pure Byrds!

 

I'll Be Back
I'm a Loser
I'll Follow the Sun
You've Got to Hide Your Love Away
Julia

I would have loved it if they had taken the more acoustic route more often in 1964/65, absolutely spotless songs. I'll Be Back, the chords, the mood and the lyrics; sheer brilliant. One of my favorite songs of all time. And Julia is another favorite, probably in my Top 10 Beatles songs. The further that song progresses, the more beautiful it gets both in sound and in lyrical content.

 

the OP is a great list, though I'd choose
"I Need You" ~ written and sung by Harrison.
.... always loved that one !

 

I think "Love Me Do" has some folkiness about it, not just because of the harmonica.

 

Yeah No Reply would have made my top 5 for sure.

 

Wonder why Long, Long, Long is not on the list... I love that song so much. Probably my favorite Beatles song. Don't know if it falls into proper folk territory though.

 

I gotta go with I've Just Seen A Face. That song must be a favorite of Paul's, it was one of the few Beatles songs he did on the Wings Over America tour and is also on the Unplugged set list, among others.