The single was available in stores on March 6, but the guitar solo was recorded on April 30, 1969. Phil Spector remixed “Let It Be” on March 26. He also added huge amounts of tape echo to Ringo’s hi-hat in the second verse, extended the song by repeating part of the final chorus, and used the guitar solo of January 4. This was the “album” version.
True or False?
On the information sheet Echo Dernière n° 1 from February 26, 1970 and published by Pathé Marconi, it says that Paul wrote Let It Be for Aretha Franklin to record on her new album.
Maggie Mae
Lennon-McCartney-Harrison-Starkey (arr.) / 0:39
1970
TRADITIONAL FOLK SONG
MUSICIANS
John: vocal, acoustic guitar
Paul: vocal, acoustic guitar
George: lead guitar (?), bass (?)
Ringo: drums
RECORDED
Apple Studios: January 24, 1969
NUMBER OF TAKES: UNKNOWN
MIXING
Olympic Sound Studios: March 4 and 13, 1969
Abbey Road: March 26, 1970 (Room 4)
TECHNICAL TEAM
Producers: George Martin, Phil Spector
Sound Engineers: Glyn Johns, Peter Bown
Assistant Engineers: Neil Richmond, Roger Ferris
Genesis
“Maggie May” was a traditional Liverpool folk song and part of the repertoire of the Quarrymen. The song was originally written around 1757. For years, this story about a prostitute had been the unofficial anthem of the Fab Four’s home. In 1964, “Maggie May” inspired Lionel Bart, writer and composer of British pop music and musicals, to adapt the song for a musical based on a libretto by Alun Owen. Alun Owen, a British screen-writer and actor, had coauthored the script for the 1964 Beatles classic film A Hard Day’s Night. The Beatles had not recorded a cover song since 1965’s “Act Naturally.” “Maggie May,” which they spelled “Maggie Mae,” was the last cover of their career.
Production
The Beatles recorded the song on January 24 in tribute to their native city. John and Paul were on acoustic guitars, Ringo on drums, and George played on his Telecaster or his Fender six-string bass, as he did for “Two of Us.” “Maggie Mae” was the second-shortest song released on an official Beatles album.
FOR BEATLES FANATICS
“Maggie May” was a big success for Rod Stewart in 1971 on his album Every Picture Tells a Story. Other than the title, the song had nothing in common with the traditional Liverpool folk song.
I’ve Got A Feeling
Lennon-McCartney / 3:35
1970
SONGWRITERS
Paul and John
MUSICIANS
Paul: vocal, bass
John: vocal, rhythm guitar
George: lead guitar, backing vocal
Ringo: drums
Billy Preston: electric piano
RECORDED
Apple Studios: January 22, 24, 27–28, and 30, 1969
NUMBER OF TAKES: UNKNOWN
MIXING
Apple Studios: February 5, 1969
Olympic Sound Studios: March 4, 1969
Abbey Road: March 23, 1970 (Room 4)
TECHNICAL TEAM
Producers: George Martin, Phil Spector
Sound Engineers: Glyn Johns, Peter Bown
Assistant Engineers: Neil Richmond, Alan Parsons, Roger Ferris
Genesis
After “A Day in the Life,” “I’ve Got a Feeling” was the last song John and Paul wrote together. They continued to help each other, but only to complete a phrase or an arrangement. The inspiration for this piece was Paul’s. “I’ve Got a Feeling” was a love song written for Linda Eastman, whom he married on March 12, 1969. John went to Paul’s house on Cavendish Avenue, bringing “Everybody Had a Hard Year,” an unfinished song at the same tempo as “I’ve Got a Feeling.” Indeed, the two matched perfectly and could be joined together. John also provided the beautiful arpeggio riff that introduces the song. John had just finished a difficult period: there had been dissension within the group, who had rejected Yoko; he had divorced Cynthia; he had been arrested for marijuana possession; Yoko had had a miscarriage … He sought to put all this into his lyrics. His pessimistic worldview, even when laced with humor, contrasted with Paul’s optimism.
Production
On January 22, the Beatles started recording in their new studio at Apple’s headquarters. “I’ve Got a Feeling” was one of the songs they recorded. On January 24, they recorded the song for release as part of the Get Back project. They continued recording three days later on January 27 and 28, during which time the song took on its final form. As with “Dig a Pony,” it was the live performance on January 30 that appeared on the album. “I’ve Got a Feeling” was the third song performed that day on Apple’s rooftop. The old live concert energy was back, even though they had stopped touring in August 1966 and had just been through two difficult weeks at Twickenham Film Studios. Paul and John shared lead vocals, allowing Paul to give an exceptional vocal performance in a traditional rock ’n’ roll style. In addition to bass and rhythm guitar, John played an arpeggio riff, the backbone of the song: George was on lead guitar and contributed briefly to the backing vocals. Ringo played his Ludwig, covering the snare and bass drums with towels to absorb hits. Finally, Billy Preston on electric piano brought a touch of soul to the piece. The final stereo mix was made on March 23, 1970.
FOR BEATLES FANATICS
John messed up his guitar riff at 2:41.
One After 909
Lennon-McCartney / 2:51
1970
SONGWRITER
John
MUSICIANS
John: vocal, rhythm guitar
Paul: vocal, bass
George: lead guitar
Ringo: drums
Billy Preston: electric piano
RECORDED
Abbey Road: March 5, 1963 (Studio Two)
Apple Studios: January 28–30, 1969
NUMBER OF TAKES: 1
MIXING
Apple Studios: February 5, 1969
Abbey Road: March 23, 1970 (Room 4)
TECHNICAL TEAM
Producers: George Martin, Phil Spector
Sound Engineers: Norman Smith (1963), Glyn Johns, Peter Bown
Assistant Engineers: Richard Langham (1963), Alan Parsons, Roger Ferris
Genesis
The Beatles performed “One After 909” in 1960 in Liverpool and Hamburg. “That was something I wrote when I was about seventeen,”1 said John. It was one of his first songs from the earliest days of his collaboration with Paul. Paul said, “It’s not a great song but it’s a great favorite of mine because it has great memories for me of John and I trying to write a bluesy freight-train song. There were a lot of those songs at the time like ‘Midnight Special,’ ‘Freight Train,’ ‘Rock Island Line …’”2 In the film Let It Be, Paul confessed that he hated the lyrics.
John also referred to the number nine: “It’s just a number that follows me around.”3 He attached a lot of significance to it. In 1980, he commented: “I lived at 9 Newcastle Road. I was born on the ninth of October, the ninth [sic] month of the year.”4 Despite John’s fascination with numerology, the girl in the song misses train 909 and takes the next one. What would Dr. Freud have thought?
Production
On March 5, 1963, after the recording of the Beatles’ third single, “From Me to You” and the B-side “Thank You Girl,” the remaining time was devoted to “One After 909,” a new Beatles song. They recorded five takes, none of them satisfactory, and decided to set it aside. Six years later, in January 1969, they revived it. Paul said to Barry Miles, “It was a number we didn’t used to do much but it was one that we always liked doing, and we rediscovered it.”5
They reworked “One After 909” on January 28 and 29 without finalizing anything. At the concert on the rooftop of Apple’s building, they brilliantly recorded the tune in one take. This was the fifth s
ong in the set list. John sang and played his Epiphone Casino rhythm guitar. Paul was on vocals and played bass on his Hofner 500/1. George played lead guitar on his Rosewood Telecaster, Ringo played his Ludwig drums, and Billy Preston played the electric piano. The group was full of energy and enjoyed giving a live performance. John concluded by performing a cappella an impromptu line from the Irish ballad “Danny Boy.” Phil Spector mixed the song on March 23, 1970, without any additions. “One After 909” had been waiting exactly seven years and seventeen days before being completed.
FOR BEATLES FANATICS
The introduction on the guitar of the March 5, 1963, version is very similar to the one on “Thank You Girl,” recorded just before (see Anthology 1).
The Long And Winding Road
Lennon-McCartney / 3:38
1970
SONGWRITER
Paul
MUSICIANS
Paul: vocal, piano
John: bass
George: lead guitar
Ringo: drums
Billy Preston: electric piano, organ
Orchestra: 18 violins, 4 violas, 4 cellos, 1 harp, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, 2 acoustic guitars, 14 female vocalists
RECORDED
Apple Studios: January 26 and 31, 1969
Abbey Road: April 1, 1970 (Studios One and Three)
NUMBER OF TAKES: 18
MIXING
Olympic Sound Studios: March 4, 1969
Abbey Road: March 26, 1970 (Room 4) / April 2, 1970 (Room 4)
TECHNICAL TEAM
Producer:s George Martin, Phil Spector
Sound Engineers: Glyn Johns, Peter Bown
Assistant Engineers: Neil Richmond, Alan Parsons, Roger Ferris, Richard Lush
RELEASED AS A SINGLE
“The Long and Winding Road” / “For You Blue”
United States: May 11, 1970 / No. 1 on June 13, 1970, for 2 weeks
Genesis
On September 19, 1968, during sessions for the White Album, Paul recorded demo versions of “Let It Be” and “The Long and Winding Road.” The songs reflected the dissension and troubled atmosphere within the group. According to Paul, “I was a bit flipped out and tripped out at that time. It’s a sad song because it’s all about the unattainable; the door you never quite reach. This is the road that you never get to the end of.”1 Paul wrote the song with Ray Charles’s voice in mind. “[Charles] would have probably had some bearing on the chord structure of [“The Long and Winding Road”], which is slightly jazzy.”2 Ray Charles later confessed that he had cried when he heard the song for the first time. He subsequently recorded his own version.
Unfortunately, the “long and winding road” lived up to its name, because it precipitated the end of the group. John called in Phil Spector, creator of the Wall of Sound, to finish the album in March 1970 and gave him the unfinished tapes from the Get Back project. In his remix, the original arrangements were accompanied by lavish orchestrations and other sound effects for several titles, including Paul’s “Long and Winding Road.”
Paul complained bitterly in mid-April in the columns of the Evening Standard: “The album was finished a year ago, but a few months ago American record producer Phil Spector was called in by Lennon to tidy up some of the tracks. But a few weeks ago, I was sent a re-mixed version of my song ‘The Long and Winding Road,’ with harps, horns, an orchestra and women’s choir added. No one had asked me what I thought. I couldn’t believe it. I would never have female voices on a Beatles record. The record came with a note from Allen Klein saying he thought the changes were necessary.”3 Despite Paul’s protests, Let It Be was released with all the changes in Paul’s compositions still in place. Paul then decided to leave the Beatles. In an interview released with Paul’s first solo album, McCartney, Peter Brown asked if the duo Lennon-McCartney would continue to write more songs in the future. Paul unequivocally answered no. In 1980, John said, “Paul had a little spurt just before we split. I think the shock of Yoko Ono and what was happening gave him a creative spurt including ‘Let It Be’ and ‘Long and Winding Road,’ ’cause that was the last gasp from him.”4
April Fool?
When Ringo recorded his drum part on April 1, 1970, he was the last Beatle to attend a recording session. The day marks the final recording ever made by a Fab Four member for one of the group’s songs. Unfortunately, it was not an April Fool’s Day joke.
Production
On January 26, after a long series of rehearsals, the Beatles began recording “The Long and Winding Road” at Twickenham. Paul was on vocals and piano, John on his Fender six-string bass, George on guitar fed through a Leslie speaker, Ringo on drums, and Billy Preston on electric piano and organ. Recording resumed on January 31 with more takes. It was only fourteen months later that the song was completed with take 18. Phil Spector expanded the song with orchestra and female vocalists. The orchestra was scored and conducted by Richard Hewson, and the choral arrangements were completed by John Barham. Ringo added more drums. Brian Gibson, technical engineer, remembers, “He [Spector] wiped one of Paul’s two vocal tracks in order to put the orchestra on.”5 The mix was made the next day.
The result was clearly not in the best taste. The female vocals and harp betrayed the musical aesthetics previously established by the group and George Martin. Spector tried to make the song into another Wall of Sound production. The song lacked the more subtle arrangements heard on other Beatles recordings. Additionally George’s guitar and Preston’s keyboard all but disappeared in the mix.
Technical Details
John was violently criticized for his bass performance. Ian McDonald even accused John of sabotage, noting many errors, wrong notes, bad guitar slides, etc. All this was exaggerated. John certainly committed some blunders, but he was not a bass player. The combination of a relatively rich harmony and a slow tempo made the bass accompaniment quite difficult to play. Even Paul, the perfectionist, chose to leave the bass part alone. Spector could have lowered the bass track in the mix—the Beatles were recording on an eight-track tape recorder at the time—to hide the errors instead of adding heavy orchestral parts.
FOR BEATLES FANATICS
Richard Hewson, the creator of the orchestral arrangements, was not unknown. He had already worked on Apple recording artist Mary Hopkin’s 1968 single “Those Were the Days,” produced by Paul. In 1977 he worked on two other orchestral projects produced by Paul, “Ram” and “Thrillington.”
For You Blue
George Harrison / 2:30
1970
MUSICIANS
George: vocal, acoustic guitar
John: lap steel guitar
Paul: piano, bass
Ringo: drums
RECORDED
Apple Studios: January 25, 1969
Olympic Sound Studios: January 8, 1970
NUMBER OF TAKES: 6
MIXING
Olympic Sound Studios: March 4, 1969 / January 8, 1970
Abbey Road: February 28, 1970 (Room 4) / March 25 and 30, 1970 (Room 4)
TECHNICAL TEAM
Producers: George Martin, Malcolm Davies, Phil Spector
Sound Engineers: Glyn Johns, Peter Bown, Mike Sheady, Eddie Klein
Assistant Engineers: Alan Parsons, Richard Langham, Roger Ferris
RELEASED AS A SINGLE
“The Long and Winding Road” / “For You Blue”
United States: May 11, 1970 / No. 1 on June 13, 1970 for 2 weeks
Genesis
In George’s autobiography, I, Me, Mine, he said that “‘For You Blue’ is a simple twelve-bar song following all the normal twelve-bar principles except it’s happy-go-lucky!”1 George Harrison wrote this blues song for his wife Pattie. However, according to an interview in Creem magazine in 1987, the song did not make much of an impression on him. “I don’t even remember that song. No, wait a minute—‘For You Blue’ was Paul, Paul was on that.”2
Without being a major song, “For You Blue” was a playful piece, and the Beatles enjoyed pla
ying it. During John’s solo, George encouraged Lennon with a few allusions to Chuck Berry—saying “Go, Johnny, go!”—and to Elmore James, the Mississippi Blues guitarist, with the words Elmore James got nothin’ on this baby. The song was the B-side of the U.S. single “The Long and Winding Road,” released on May 11, 1970, and the eleventh track on the Beatles’ final LP, Let It Be.
Production
The Fab Four recorded this song on January 25, 1969, under the title “George’s Blues (Because You’re Sweet and Lovely).” The sixth take of the rhythm track was final. George was on vocals and the Gibson J-200 acoustic guitar, Paul on acoustic piano, Ringo on drums, and John on a Hofner Hawaiian Standard lap-steel guitar. This is the only time John was recorded using this guitar. This guitar’s shape allows the performer to play slide with the instrument on his knees to get a typical blues sound. This explains George’s reference to Elmore James, although James played a normal guitar. Paul added more bass, barely audible in the mix, however. George confirmed in 1987 that Paul had played bass in this piece. George rerecorded his vocal on January 8, 1970. Phil Spector made the final mix on March 25, adding a slight delay to the vocal and the piano. On March 30, 1970, he added a curious introduction by John, extracted from the Twickenham film sessions: Queen says no to pot-smoking FBI members.
All the Songs Page 49
