“Eleanor Rigby” is very different when compared to a normal Beatles song, such as “I Want to Hold Your Hand.” Usually, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and John Lennon played a variety of electric guitars while Ringo Starr played drums. In “Eleanor Rigby”, the entirety of the band is not playing their usual instruments. Starr was not even a part of the song hence the lack of drums. Harrison and Lennon instead sang harmony while McCartney sang as the lead vocalist. Furthermore, with the lack of guitars and drums, the music heard below the vocals was played by a string octet. Usually, a string quartet consists of two violins, one viola, and one cello. However, in this case, the string quartet is doubled, which means 4 violins, two violas, and two cellos, in order to create a more powerful sound. Oddly, “Eleanor Rigby” begins strongly with the chorus. While the cellos are arpeggiating, the violins and violas are playing a series of short, fast notes. While the cellos are sustained, the violins and violas are playing a brief subject that eventually returns to the tonic. At 0:14, the first verse begins with vocals and, again, short notes from the upper strings. From the lower strings, we hear a punctual, driving bass line with an occasional arpeggio. We also hear another brief subject of eighth notes from the upper strings. At 0:31, the first of two bridges begins. The violas are playing eighth notes underneath the vocals while the violins and cellos are sustained. At 0:46, the second verse begins with the same melody from the vocalist as the first verse. However, the second verse includes a major scale played by the cellos alongside a short melodic subject played by the second violins. The second bridge starts at 1:03, which consists of the same musical characteristics as the first bridge. At 1:17, the chorus is reintroduced and leads into the third verse, which begins at 1:31. Musically, the third verse is unlike any other because it features the cellist playing in unison with the melody that the lead vocalist is singing. Also, the cellist plays a repetitive interval at the beginning of the verse. Lastly, the chorus returns at 1:48 and leads into the final bridge. Aretha Franklin’s version of “Eleanor Rigby”, released three years after the version originally written by the Beatles, begins with a brief, soulful piano riff. At 0:11, the first verse begins with a wide variety of instruments including: electric bass guitar, electric guitar, drums, and the lead vocalist. At 0:26, a duo of backup vocalists singing harmony below Franklin enters, which highlights the entrance of the first repetition of the chorus. At 0:41, the second verse begins and the background music progression heard in the first verse continues. At 0:56, the chorus is reintroduced, which features the return of the duo of backup vocalists. At 1:12, there is a brief bridge that includes the introduction of some sort of electric keyboard instrument. This bridge had the tone of a jam session, per say, that featured a different drum pattern and occasional vocal improvisations. At 1:28, the third verse begins with Franklin singing emphatically. At 1:42, the chorus is reintroduced and the background music pattern stays consistent while the electric keyboard instrument continues to be heard. Starting at about 2:00, there is a final bridge that leads to the end of the song, which consists of all of the instruments heard throughout the song alongside Franklin and the backup duo. The rhythm throughout the song is constantly upbeat and driving. Also, there is consonant harmony heard between all instruments, but it is especially prominent between Franklin and the backup duo. Between the two songs, there is a balance of differences and similarities. The tone of the music heard in the Beatles version is more solemn and intense than Franklin’s version despite being in a major key. The beat and meter in the original is either duple or quadruple and can be difficult to pick out when the upper and lower strings are playing against each other. The meter in the cover version would be considered a strong, quadruple meter. Also, the dynamics of both songs stays relatively constant throughout. At the beginning of the third verse in the cover version, Franklin sings “Eleanor Rigby” much higher than she did earlier in the song, but, overall, the dynamic stayed right around forte. In terms of harmony, it would be considered consonant in both songs. Specifically, the background duo in the cover version is singing in major, parallel thirds, which compliments Franklin’s voice in the choruses. Both songs are played in major keys, which makes them both pleasing to the ear compared to other dissonant songs played in minor keys. The melody in the original version is catchier than the cover version because the original song had more of a musical structure than Franklin’s version and, thus, we hear the chorus more consistently and can recognize it upon introduction following a verse or bridge. Rhythmically, the cover version is more upbeat and driving than the original version. The musical texture in both songs would be considered polyphonic due to the high number of melodic lines. Lastly, the timbre of the original version is dark and mildly gloomy compared to the cover version, which is bright and soulful. There is quite a difference in lyrics between the original and cover version. Each verse in Franklin’s version condensed compared to the original version. She left out many words that the Beatles originally included. However, if she did not do this, the song might have lost some of its soulfulness. Also, Franklin adds small lyrical embellishments that the Beatles did not include. For example, in the choruses she adds “yeah” and “well” a few times. Furthermore, Franklin often pronounces words differently than the Beatles. For example, in the third verse, instead of singing, “wiping the dirt from his hands”, Franklin sings, “wipin’” instead of enunciating the entire word. This is another example of Franklin covering this song loosely and with freedom. The music from each song certainly portrays the meaning behind the lyrics. The heavy musical texture coming from the stringed instruments in the original version reflects the dark timbre of the ballad-like song. In the cover version, Aretha Franklin calls herself Eleanor Rigby and completely redefines the meaning of the song with the upbeat rhythm and bright timbre, which is what might have been expected from the “Queen of Soul.” Franklin’s version created a new meaning for what was previously perceived as a melancholy song with her dramatic revisions to the instrumentation, timbre, and rhythm.