ABBEY ROAD and in the End… the Beatles Come Together for One Last Studio Hurrah
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ABBEY ROAD And in the end… The Beatles come together for one last studio hurrah. Steve Harnell wipes a tear away from his eye 106 XXXXX Dr. Ronald Kunze Ronald Dr. Hallowed ground: the junction of Abbey Road and Grove End Road in St John’s Wood in 1969, with the zebra crossing and the studio in the background or the romantics among us, absence from the charts of a year or Recording sessions were a stop-start Abbey Road is The Beatles’ more, although almost unheard-of at affair. The backing track to its darkest swansong, a concerted effort the time, may have alleviated the moment, the biting blues of I Want You by the band to return to the tension which had built up. Perhaps a (She’s So Heavy), was laid down on 22 Fcamaraderie so evident in their solo album or four could have slipped February 1969, before a lengthy gap earlier work, but it’s arguable it also out; Harrison’s backlog of songs, in while Ringo filmed The Magic represents one of the great ‘what particular, was astonishing, and would Christian, a freewheeling black comedy ifs?’ of their career. indeed result in his 1971 double LP starring Peter Sellers, various Monty Thanks to Paul McCartney’s opus All Things Must Pass. Financial Python members and Raquel Welch. workaholic obsession with keeping the disagreements and management issues After a brief session where the band band going at all costs, the quartet which had plagued the band since worked on early ideas for You Never were reconvened for a fresh set of Brian Epstein’s death and the arrival of Give Me Your Money on 6 May, it was recording work just three weeks after Allen Klein could have been smoothed eight weeks before recording began in completing the fractious, debilitating out with less time pressures. earnest on Abbey Road. Get Back sessions, which would If McCartney’s intention had been to eventually see the light of day as the COMING TOGETHER get back to the boys’ club atmosphere Let It Be album. As usual, McCartney had an armload of of yore, an unfortunate twist of fate As it was, barring the odd material ready to go for what became skewed the in-studio vibe for much of disagreement, The Beatles were on Abbey Road and was itching to get back the LP’s recording. John and Yoko reasonable terms and some of the joie to the studio. Nevertheless, he knew were involved in a car accident in June de vivre of old returned to the confines only too well that the band’s dynamic which left Ono bedridden, and Lennon of Studio 2 at NW8. Flare-ups still was in poor shape. He asked George got around the problem of being occurred, though, with the band often Martin to corral the troops once again without his constant companion by being caustically bitter with each other. in the hope that they would return to installing a bed for her in Studio 2. Even banal problems could become their old working methods, leaving With Ono thus a permanent major flare-ups: on one occasion, war their egos at the front door. Martin, by presence, often making songwriting broke out as John swiped one of now dejected at how far apart his suggestions as proceedings played out, George’s chocolate digestives – a former charges had grown, refused the it’s remarkable that the band members trademark example of Lennon taking invitation at first but was persuaded by managed to remain mostly civil with the biscuit. McCartney when told he’d be allowed each other. Paul, Ringo and George But what if McCartney had taken his to produce the record free from Martin have expressed fond memories foot off the gas and allowed a more interference from the band, of the sessions, and George Harrison extended break between sessions? An particularly Lennon. has remarked it was a welcome 107 advocate labelmate James Taylor and his Timothy fingerpicked acoustic folk tune Leary, Something In The Way She Moves, forever which had appeared on the singer- enshrined songwriter’s debut album the previous in hippie year. George penned the track during lore for his the ‘The White Album’ sessions after “turn on, Taylor played the song for the lead tune in, drop guitarist and Paul McCartney during out” slogan. A an Apple Records audition in 1968. rough draft of The version of Something that the song was appears on Abbey Road is truncated written during from its nigh-on eight-minute full Lennon’s second running time, which included an ‘bed-in’ event at the unused instrumental passage. If Queen Elizabeth Hotel in McCartney was considered the Montreal in May 1969 – John pre-eminent balladeering Beatle, then had intended to stage the event in here was George giving him a very New York but was denied entry to the good run for his money. US due to his conviction for possessing return to a more straightforward band cannabis the previous November. UNPLEASANT SCENES performance recording style. However, As on earlier-recorded works such as From the harmonious beauty of one of later Lennon interviews poured scorn Dig It and Dig A Pony, later released on the foursome’s most delicate love songs on the entire period. Proving Let It Be, by 1969 Lennon’s songs to a hugely bitter episode in their dismissive even of his most famous increasingly became an assemblage of history. By now, the rest of the band work as he attempted to distance disparate non-sequiturs. With only a had tired of McCartney’s tendency for himself from his past and establish a nominal rewrite of Chuck Berry’s whimsy. Maxwell’s Silver Hammer reputation as a solo artist, Lennon “Here come a flat-top, he was movin’ would become notorious as one of the criticised Abbey Road for lacking up with me” from You Can’t Catch Me authenticity and relying on studio for the opening line of Come Together, wizardry to paper over the cracks. Lennon was sued by music publisher According to John, Side 2’s medley was Morris Levy, the beginning of a ABBEY ROAD “junk… just bits of songs thrown long-running legal dispute between the 1969 • APPLE together”. Indeed, such was John’s pair. Meanwhile, John’s whispered alienation from Paul by this point that intro declarations of “shoot me!” he even suggested that their songs would take on darkly tragic should not share the same side of the significance in the light of his murder Come Together (Lennon & McCartney) album. Nevertheless, John’s 11 years later. Something (Harrison) Maxwell’s Silver Hammer (Lennon & LENNON CRITICISED ABBEY ROAD FOR McCartney) Oh! Darling (Lennon & McCartney) RELYING ON STUDIO WIZARDRY; THE Octopus’s Garden (Starr) MEDLEY WAS “JUNK… BITS OF SONGS I Want You (She’s So Heavy) (Lennon & THROWN TOGETHER” McCartney) revisionism does Abbey Road a With the exception of Yesterday, disservice; the album is typically George’s stunning ballad Something is Here Comes The Sun (Harrison) diverse and even the famed medley has the most covered song in The Beatles’ Because (Lennon & McCartney) a coherence that far exceeds the catalogue. It was Lennon’s favourite You Never Give Me Your Money (Lennon & pragmatic reasons for its birth. track on Abbey Road and McCartney McCartney) With his writing muse revitalised considered it to be George’s best Sun King (Lennon & McCartney) following the ‘The White Album’ and songwriting contribution to The Mean Mr Mustard (Lennon & McCartney) the Rishikesh trip, Lennon is on good Beatles. Frank Sinatra went as far as Polythene Pam (Lennon & McCartney) form for much of Abbey Road. The calling it “the greatest love song ever She Came In Through The Bathroom Window striking opener Come Together is a written” – although unfortunately Ol’ (McCartney) sterling example of his nonsensical Blue Eyes credited it to the pens of Golden Slumbers (Lennon & McCartney) couplets finding their own meaning. Its Lennon and McCartney. As with Come Carry That Weight (Lennon & McCartney) genesis came from a song Lennon Together, the springboard for the song The End (Lennon & McCartney) wrote for a political campaign by was the slight revision of another Her Majesty (Lennon & McCartney) controversial US psychologist and LSD artist’s lyric – this time it was Apple 108 PERSONNEL JOHN LENNON – lead, harmony and background Maxwell’s Silver Hammer and Golden Slumbers/ PRODUCTION vocals; rhythm, lead and acoustic guitars; acoustic Carry That Weight; harmonium and Moog Something and Here Comes The Sun orchestrated and electric pianos, Moog synthesiser, Hammond synthesiser; handclaps and percussion; lead vocals and conducted by George Martin with George organ; white noise generator and sound effects; (Something and Here Comes the Sun) Harrison tambourine and maracas Golden Slumbers, Carry That Weight and The End RINGO STARR – drums and percussion; anvil on orchestrated and conducted by George Martin with PAUL MCCARTNEY – lead, harmony and background Maxwell’s Silver Hammer; background vocals; lead Paul McCartney vocals; bass, rhythm, lead and acoustic guitars; vocals (Octopus’s Garden) Produced by George Martin with The Beatles acoustic and electric pianos, Moog, harmonium; Recorded by Geoff Emerick and Phil McDonald. sound effects; wind chimes, handclaps, percussion ADDITIONAL MUSICIANS Assistant engineering by Alan Parsons GEORGE MARTIN – harpsichord, organ, percussion Mixed by Geoff Emerick, Phil McDonald and George GEORGE HARRISON – harmony and background BILLY PRESTON – Hammond organ on Something Martin with The Beatles vocals; lead, rhythm and acoustic guitars; bass on and I Want You (She’s So Heavy) Moog programming by Mike Vickers band’s most fraught recordings. An odd Ruben And The Jets album, he would and grabbing Peter Sellers’ yacht for a mixture of perky melodic bounce and lay down vocal takes early in the family holiday in Sardinia.