Yesterday attained fame and its everlasting elevated stature thanks principally to Paul's captivating melody and lyric. but also in part because the Beatle's recording featured, innovatively, a string quartet. This was overdubbed (on 17 June) on to Take 2. Issued on Anthology 2 is the only alternative studio recording of the song, Take 1, performed solo by Paul, voice and acoustic guitar. (While Paul can be heard instructing chord changes to George Harrison before starting up, George does not appear to be musically evident on the tape.) Paul transposed two lines of the finished master, "There's a shadow hanging over me"/ "I'm not half the man I used to be", in the first take.

The musicians for the string quartet were: Tony Gilbert and Sidney Sax (violins), Francisco Gabarro (cello) and Keneth Essex (viola)

The song was recorded in two takes, and two mono mixes were made June 17 from take 2. The second mix was used for release. The stereo mix was completed June 18. An alternate mix of this song has been bootlegged. Take 1 from the June 14 recording session was released in both the US and the UK on March 19, 1996 on "The Beatles Anthology Volume 2."

The Beatles performed this song live on the UK TV show "Blackpool Night Out" on August 1, 1965. They also recorded an appearance for "The Ed Sullivan Show" on August 14, which aired September 12. The first performance was released in both the US and the UK on March 19, 1996 on "The Beatles Anthology Volume 2." The Sullivan performance is available on several bootlegs.

The Beatles performed 'Yesterday' during their live concerts in 1966 including the Circus-Krone-Bau in Munich, Germany (June 24), Nippon Budokan Hall in Tokyo, Japan (one show June 30 and July 1) and their final concert at Candlestick Park in San Francisco (August 29). All of these recordings have been bootlegged.

George Harrison and Bob Dylan recorded this song in Nashville on May 1, 1970 while Dylan was working on his "Self Portrait" album. This track has been bootlegged and can be found on "Harrison And Dylan Meet J. Cash," "Bob Dylan Meets George Harrison And Johnny Cash" and "Classified Document Volume Three."

During the celebration of John Lennon's 31st birthday in a hotel room in Syracuse, New York, John, Ringo Starr, Yoko Ono, Phil Spector, Klaus Voorman, Allen Ginsberg, Jim Keltner, Eric Clapton, Mal Evans and Neil Aspinall recorded this song. This recording has been bootlegged and can be found on "John Lennon's 31st Birthday Party" (CD) and "Let's Have A Party" (CD).

Paul performed this song during his "James Paul McCartney" TV special which aired April 16, 1973. This performance has been bootlegged and can be found on "James Paul McCartney" (CD).

Paul and Wings performed this song at several concerts during their 1975 tour of Australia including the Entertainment Centre in Perth (November 1) and Myer Music Bowl in Melbourne (November 13). Both of these performances have been bootlegged and can be found on "Paul McCartney And Wings Fly South."

Wings performed this song at several concerts during their 1976 World Tour including Falkoner Theatre in Copenhagen (March 21), Fort Worth, Texas (May 3), Largo, Maryland (May 15) Atlanta, Georgia (May 19) and Los Angeles (June 21). All of these performances have been bootlegged. Another live version of this song was recorded during the 1976 World Tour and released on the triple album "Wings Over America." This album was released in the US and the UK on December 10, 1976.

During a broadcast of "Goodnight America" on June 28, 1976 a clip of this song performed at Wing's June 10 Seattle concert was aired. This clip has been bootlegged and can be found on "Ft. Worth/Seattle."

Paul and Wings taped an interview with Melvin Bragg during October 1977, which was aired on "The South Bank Show" on January 14, 1978. During the interview, a version of this song was heard which has been bootlegged. This can be found on "Sunshine Supermen."

A few seconds of this song were recorded November 19, 1976 while George Harrison and Paul Simon taped their appearance for "Saturday Night Live." This episode aired November 20; however, this recording was not included in the broadcast. This recording has been bootlegged and can be found on "Somewhere In Utopia."

Paul and Wings performed this song at several concerts during late 1979 including Liverpool (November 25), Wembley (December 7) and at London's Hammersmith Odeon (December 29). All of these performances have been bootlegged.

Paul recorded a new version of this song between November 5, 1982 and May 8, 1983 for the film "Give My Regards To Broad Street." This track was released on the soundtrack album in both the US and the UK on October 22, 1984.

Paul performed this song at several concerts during his 1989 - 90 world tour including Stockholm's Johanneshovs Isstadion (September 30), Milan (October 26), Rotterdam (November 8), Los Angeles (November 23 and 27), New York (December 15), Berkeley (March 31 and April 1), Glasgow (June 23) and Washington, DC (July 4). All of these performances have been bootlegged.

Paul performed this song at his concert at the Montreal Forum on December 9, 1989. This performance was released on his album "Tripping The Live Fantastic" in both the US and the UK on November 5, 1990.

Paul McCartney performed this song at several concerts during his 1993 New World Tour including Milan (February 19), Frankfurt (February 23), Melbourne (March 9), Sydney (March 16), Las Vegas (April 14), Anaheim (April 17), Charlotte, North Carolina (June 15), Paris (October 13), Tokyo (November 12) and Mexico City (November 27). All of these performances have been bootlegged. Paul also performed this song at a rehearsal following his press conference at the London Arena on February 5, 1993. This performance has also been bootlegged. Paul performed this song on March 23, 1995 with the Brodsky Quartet at London's St. James Palace. This performance has been bootlegged and can be found on "A Royal Performance: Paul McCartney, Elvis Costello And Friends" (CD).

Paul performed this song at the Royal Albert Hall concert on September 15, 1997. The concert was held to benefit the victims of the volcanic eruption on the island of Monserrat. This performance was released in 1998 on the home video cassette "Music For Monserrat."