Channel dedicated to the greatest band in the world, The Beatles!


Beatles Bible

📅 ON THIS DAY: Recording: Oh! Darling, Come Together, The End (1969)

Studio Three, EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Producer: George Martin
Engineers: Geoff Emerick, Phil McDonald

This day’s session began with Paul McCartney finally recording the lead vocals for ‘Oh! Darling’.

McCartney had been arriving at the studio early each day for several mid-July 1969 sessions, in an attempt to capture a suitably raw take. He taped just one performance on each day before setting ‘Oh! Darling’ aside for another day. On this afternoon, however, the final attempt was recorded.

More vocals were then added to ‘Come Together’, before work began on ‘The End’, which at this stage had the working title ‘Ending’.

The Beatles began by rehearsing the song a number of times, before recording seven takes of the backing track. The best, take seven, was 1’20” long, but was later extended by editing and repeating part of the section which later contained the sparring guitar solos.

After take seven, the tape contains outtakes numbered 23-33. These were likely to have been rehearsals, the early ones of which were recorded over with the proper takes.

Ringo Starr’s drums were recorded on tracks one and two of the eight-track tape, which later allowed them to be mixed in stereo; John Lennon’s rhythm guitar was on track three; George Harrison’s guitar was on four; and Paul McCartney’s bass guitar was on five.

The recording of ‘Ending’ ended at the point where the piano later entered; the final words and orchestral finale were recorded later. Take three from this first session can be heard on some formats of the 50th anniversary reissue of Abbey Road.

The day ended with an hour-long playback of songs recorded so far, held in the control room of Studio Two.

1 day ago | [YT] | 3,189

Beatles Bible

At what age did you become a Beatles fan?

3 days ago | [YT] | 1,559

Beatles Bible

📅 ON THIS DAY: John and Paul sing on The Rolling Stones’ We Love You (1967)

John Lennon and Paul McCartney attended a Rolling Stones recording session at Olympic Studios on this day, where they contributed backing vocals, handclaps and percussion (tambourine and maracas respectively) to the song ‘We Love You’.

The song was written as a token of appreciation to the fans who stood by the Stones in the wake of their drugs busts, and was also an ironic commentary on the authorities.

Beat poet Allen Ginsberg had been in London for a pro-marijuana rally at Hyde Park, and met Mick Jagger at Paul McCartney’s house. Jagger invited Ginsberg, Lennon and McCartney to the session that night, although Ginsberg did not perform. “They looked like little angels,” he later wrote of the groups, “like Botticelli Graces singing together for the first time.”

5 days ago | [YT] | 3,532

Beatles Bible

📅 ON THIS DAY: Recording: Cry Baby Cry, Helter Skelter (1968)

Studio Two, EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Producer: George Martin
Engineer: Ken Scott

The Beatles completed the recording of ‘Cry Baby Cry’ during this day’s two sessions, and also began work on ‘Helter Skelter’.

The first session began at 2.30pm and lasted seven hours. Just one track was spare on the four-track tape, so The Beatles filled it with a number of simultaneous recordings. John Lennon redid his lead vocals in the verses, with harmonies by Paul McCartney in places; George Martin played a descending harmonium part in the introduction; Ringo Starr shook a tambourine; and George Harrison added electric guitar and tea party effects were made during the “Duchess of Kirkcaldy” verse.

‘Cry Baby Cry’ was transferred to eight-track tape on 17 September 1968, but no further music was added.

The day’s second session began at 10.30pm and ended at 3.30am. The Beatles recorded three takes of ‘Helter Skelter’, which were essentially rehearsals; they lasted 10’40”, 12’35” and 27’11” respectively.

The last was the longest recording in the group’s career. An edited mix of take two, meanwhile, was released on 1996’s Anthology 3.

Read the full article here: www.beatlesbible.com/1968/07/18/recording-cry-baby…

6 days ago | [YT] | 3,139

Beatles Bible

What is the best Beatles song to play loud?

1 week ago | [YT] | 1,562

Beatles Bible

📅 ON THIS DAY: Julia Lennon dies (1958)

John Lennon’s mother Julia died on 15 July 1958.

From 1946 John had lived with his Aunt Mimi (Mary Smith) and Uncle George in their house, ‘Mendips’, at 251 Menlove Avenue, Liverpool, after Julia had handed over care of her son to them.

Despite the living arrangements, Julia came to see John almost every day. In 1957 she bought him his first guitar, a cheap Gallotone Champion acoustic “guaranteed not to split”. Julia shared John’s love of rock and roll music, despite Mimi’s disapproval, and saw her son playing in the Quarrymen.

Read the full article here: www.beatlesbible.com/1958/07/15/julia-lennon-dies/

1 week ago | [YT] | 3,334

Beatles Bible

📅 ON THIS DAY: Recording: In Spite Of All The Danger, That’ll Be The Day (1958)

The Quarrymen recorded two songs at Phillips Sound Recording Services, a home studio in Liverpool, on 12 July 1958. It was the first recording session featuring John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison.

The studio was owned and run by Percy F Phillips, and was based in the living room of his home at 38 Kensington, a Victorian terraced house.

The Quarrymen recorded ‘In Spite Of All The Danger’ and a version of Buddy Holly’s ‘That’ll Be The Day’. The former was credited to McCartney-Harrison, with Lennon on lead vocals.

"It says on the label that it was me and George but I think it was actually written by me, and George played the guitar solo! We were mates and nobody was into copyrights and publishing, nobody understood – we actually used to think when we came down to London that songs belonged to everyone. I’ve said this a few times but it’s true, we really thought they just were in the air, and that you couldn’t actually own one. So you can imagine the publishers saw us coming! ‘Welcome boys, sit down. That’s what you think, is it?’ So that’s what we used to do in those days – and because George did the solo we figured that he ‘wrote’ the solo." – Paul McCartney

Read the full article here: www.beatlesbible.com/1958/07/12/recording-in-spite…

1 week ago | [YT] | 3,820

Beatles Bible

What was the best Beatles song about breaking up?

2 weeks ago | [YT] | 1,533

Beatles Bible

Who introduced you to The Beatles?

2 weeks ago | [YT] | 1,494

Beatles Bible

Best Ringo track?

2 weeks ago | [YT] | 1,273