Aerial Tour Instrumental

The next song on the Capitol LP of the "Magical Mystery Tour" is an instrumental/chant original written by Lennon/McCartney/Harrison/Starr and is one of the few instrumentals performed and written by the group during thier career entitled "Flying'. This was originally considered as incidental music for a segment of the television special where clouds are shown with different coloured filters. When the television special was shown in the UK for the first time; it was shown in black and white therefore ruining the original intention of the segment.

The song was recorded on September 08 1967 at EMI studio three with Paul on bass, Ringo on the drums, George on guitar and John on the organ. It's basically a form of a 12 bar blues with improvisation. It took six takes to complete with take 6 being the best of the bunch. Also added were backwards organ sounds which were dropped into the tune. Finally, the four track was filled so that two reductions was made taking the song into take 08. Onto take 08 went the overdubs on a mellotron keyboard as well as the chanting by all four Beatles although I really hear Ringo mixed a little forward. The song at this point ended with a dixieland type jazzy ending. The song was then mixed in mono and pressed on an acetate intended for the television special. It can be heard in this form on the CD "Unsurpassed Masters Three".

More overdubbing for the tune took place on Thursday September 28 1967 at EMI studio two. More mellotron (by John), guitar (by George) and percussion (by Ringo) were added to the song. Finally, a series of backwards mellotron sounds were compiled by John and Ringo and this was added to the end of the tune while the dixieland ending was discarded. The commercial version contains the mellotron sounds. Three mono mixes of "Flying" were completed at this session; the last one being released commercially.

The stereo mix was completed on November 07 1967 from the control room of EMI studio two.

"Flying" appears on the Parlophone 2-EP "Magical Mystery Tour" as well as the North American Capitol LP/CD "Magicaly Mystery Tour".

The Eyes (In His Head)

The next song that appears on the original Capitol LP as well as the CD is also the next song that appears in the television special of "Magical Mystery Tour". An original Lennon/McCartney composition written mainly by Paul entitled "The Fool On The Hill".

In the television special, this segment features Paul alone with a cameraman in Nice, France. Paul is "frolicking" amongst the hills and just generally standing there being filmed from different angles.

The song itself was first demoed on Wednesday September 06 1967 in EMI studio two featuring just Paul on the piano. This demo has been bootlegged for several years including being featured on the LP "Strawberry Fields Forever" and on CD in the "Ultra Rare Trax" series before being commercially available on the EMI/Apple 3-LP/2-CD "Anthology 2"

The first proper recording of "The Fool On The Hill" was commenced on Monday September 25 1967 at EMI studio two with three takes of the basic track. The instrumentation included piano, acoustic guitars and harmonicas. Take three was deemed as best so a tape reduction was completed bringing the song to take four. Onto this Paul added recorders. Drums and vocals were also added at this stage. A mono mix was also completed at this session of the work in progress for demo purposes. This take four was also released in stereo on the EMI/Apple 3-LP/2-CD "Anthology 2".

The next day on Tuesday September 26 1967 the song was re-started from the beginning with another basic track recorded and named take 5 after another tape reduction. This included the re-taping of the piano, the acoustic guitar, bass and drums. Paul also recorded a new lead vocal. This brought the song into take 6.For practical purporses, let's just say that this was basically a "re-make".

The following day on Wednesday September 17 1967 at EMI studio one, Paul added another overdubbed another vocal onto take 06. Once the overdub was complete a mono mix was conducted but the mix was never used.

Almost a month later on October 20 1967 in EMI studio three, the flutes (3 of them) were overdubbed onto take 06 of "The Fool On The Hill" and the song was complete.

Five days later on October 25 1967 from EMI studio two, three more mono mixes were completed and the song was edited to bring it's time down to under three minutes. The song was allegedly over four minutes long in it's original form !!

Finally, on November 01 1967 from Room 53 at EMI, "The Fool On The Hill" was mixed in stereo. Five attempts were conducted with the final attempt being used on the commercial version.

"The Fool On the Hill" appears on the Parlophone 2-EP "Magical Mystery Tour" as well as the North American Capitol LP/CD "Magical Mystery Tour". It is also featured on the Apple 2-LP/2-CD "The Beatles 1967-1970" and on the UK Parlophone/Capitol of Canada LP "The Beatles Ballads".

Paul McCartney and his band performed this tune on his 1989-1990 World Tour (of which I witnessed from the front row at the Montreal Forum in December 1989. Paul actually flashed me a peace sign from his rotating piano during this song! ) A performance of the song can be heard on the EMI/Capitol 3-LP/2-CD "Tripping the Live Fantastic !"

Waiting To Take You Away

The title track on the Parlophone UK EP and the North American Capitol LP is an original Lennon/McCartney song written mainly by Paul entitled "Magical Mystery Tour". This was also the title of the 1967 television special.

The concept of the song came to Paul while he was in the United States visiting the country in April 1967. The idea of a film aboard a mystery coach appealed to him and while McCartney was on route back to England in mid April 1967, he started to jot down ideas for the film. Naturally, since a film was to be made, a title track had to be written and recorded.

On Tuesday April 25 1967 at EMI studio three, Paul was seated at the piano and there were a lot of ideas and rehearsals for the song as it was being composed basically in the studio. Once the basic idea and structure of the song were settled, recording proper began with Paul at the piano, John on guitar and George on guitar and Ringo on the drums. Three takes of the basic track were recorded and take three was selected as the one to be used on the commercial version. A tape reduction of the four track into one track was done in five attempts (with McCartney assisting) bringing the basic track into take eight. Also created at this session were the bus coach noises that appear sporadically throughout the song (panning left to right or right to left on the stereo version).

The next day on April 26 1967 and once again in EMI studio three, the bass guitar played by Paul and percussion played by all members of The Beatles was overdubbed onto the previous day's basic track. Also added some background vocals by John Paul and George. All of this once again filled the four tracks so that another reduction was made bringing the song into take nine.

The next day on April 27 1967 and once again in EMI studio three, the lead vocal (by Paul) and the backing vocals (by John and George) were overdubbed onto take 09. The backing vocals were recorded while the tape was running slow so that the backing vocals would sound speeded up during the playback. At this stage of the song, four attempts at a mono mix were completed but these were mainly used as demos.

A few days later on May 03 1967 at EMI studio three, the brass overdub of four trumpets was completed for "Magical Mystery Tour". Also at this session, a glockenspeil was added for the coda section of the song.

The next day on May 04 1967, seven mono mixes were conducted from the control room of EMI studio three. One of these mixes was used at the beginning of the original mono television special (with added narration by John) but not used for the commercial EP or LP or CD releases. When the home video/ DVD was released, the mix was recreated using the original narration and separating the basic track of take eight with the vocal and brass overdubs of take nine.

Finally, on November 06 1967 from the control room of EMI studio three, a stereo mix of "Magical Mystery Tour" was completed in four attempts although it was decided to edit in a new recorded narration introduction done the following day.

On November 07 1967 from the control room of EMI studio two, it was Paul this time rather than John who recorded the introduction narration and this was then added to the track requiring new mono and stereo mixes. Two stereo mix attempts were completed with the recent mix being used on the commercial stereo versions. Three mono mix attempts were completed with the recent mix being used on the commercial mono versions.

So this is why the television special, the home video and DVD have the introduction narration by John Lennon but the recorded version which appears on vinyl and CD have the introduction narration by Paul McCartney. Also note that the voices on the mono mix are much more "phased" than the stereo mix.

"Magical Mystery Tour" appears on the Parlophone UK 2-EP set as well as the North American Capitol LP/CD "Magical Mystery Tour". The song also appears on the Apple 2-LP/2-CD "The Beatles 1967-1970" as well as the film music compilation EMI/Capitol "Reel Music". Roll up, roll up!!

A performance of the song live by Paul McCartney and his band during the 1993 "New World Tour" is available on the Parlophone CD/ UK 2-LP set "Paul Is Live".

Magical Mystery Tour

The Beatles follow up to the "Sgt. Pepper" project and also the name of their self-directed television special. The music was delivered in two separate formats: In the UK, "Magical Mystery Tour" was issued as a double EP set by Parlophone in mono (MMT-1) and in stereo (SMMT-1). The UK release was issued on December 08 1967.

In North America, however, the EP format was still a very foreign concept so the music was issued on one side of an LP with the previously released singles: "Strawberry Fields Forever/Penny Lane", "All You Need Is Love/Baby, You're A Rich Man" as well as "Hello Goodbey" issued on side two of an LP. The LP was released in mono on Capitol MAL-2835 and released in stereo on Capitol SMAL-2835. Well, sorta stereo...since "All You Need Is Love", "Baby, You're A Rich Man" and "Penny Lane" were not available in stereo Capitol Records in it's infinite wisdom decided not to wait for stereo mixes and released the original vinyl with what they called "duophonic' mixes meaning that the high end of the song filled one speaker while the low end of the song filled the other speaker. Side two of "Magical Mystery Tour" on the original North American vinyl had the worst sound of any Beatles album. I'm amazed that Capitol did not even bother to ask for proper stereo mixes.

The EP and the LP both contained a 24 page booklet. The booklet was edited by Tony Barrow with assistance from Neil Aspinal and Mal Evans. The photography was taken by John Kelley and the cartoon drawings were drawn by Bob Gibson.

On November 19 1976, Parlophone/EMI finally disposed of the EP format for "Magical Mystery Tour" and the LP similar to the North American issue was released as Parlophone PCTC 255. When the Beatles compact discs were released in 1987, the North American format with the singles as well as the film music was released. For the September 2009 remasters, the label on the compact disc retained the same look at the 1960s Capitol records label of the time. The lyrics for the film music was available on the inside cover of the LP.

Tuned To A Natural E

The B-side of the "All You Need Is Love" single is an original Lennon/McCartney composition with the verses written mainly by John and the chorus written mainly by Paul entitled "Baby, You're A Rich Man". This song was originally recorded and intended for the upcoming Beatles project of the animated film "Yellow Submarine". Once the BBC television live satelitte show had been announced and "All You Need Is Love" to be released as a single, "Baby, You're A Rich Man" was dropped from being on the film soundtrack and delegated to the B-side of "All You Need Is Love". A snippet of "Baby, You're A Rich Man" still appears in the film however but the entire song is not and the tune was not included on the 60s soundtrack.

The entire song was recorded and mixed at Olympic Sound Studios in Barnes, England on Thursday May 11 1967. The recording consisted of piano, drums and percussion. A myriad of rehearsals took place and it was decided that the "12th take" would be used for the commercial release. Overdubbed onto take 12 were Paul's bass guitar and John's lead vocals as well as the backing vocals by the other Beatles. After a tape reduction the third track added George Harrison's guitar work and the playing of a keyboard called a Clavioline by John. On the last track of the tape went more backing vocals, a bit of piano near the end and a vibraphone played by one of the engineers.

Once this was complete, "Baby, You're A Rich Man" was mixed for mono. This mono mix was released as the commercial version.

There was no stereo version of this song until 1971 so that copies of the North American "Magical Mystery Tour" LP on Capitol Records used a fake stereo known as "Duophonic" whereby the high end came out one side of the speakers while the low end came out of the other end of the speaker.

A stereo mix of "Baby, You're A Rich Man" was finally completed on October 22 1971 and issued on the German import version of "Magical Mystery Tour" (Apple/ Hor ZU-Electrola SHZE 327). The stereo mix of the song was also issued on the CD releases of "Magical Mystery Tour". The main difference between the mono and stereo mixes is that there is a "swelling" effect present on the mono mixes between the verses and choruses. This is not present on the stereo mixes. Finally, the song was mixed once again for stereo in the nineties and included on the "Yellow Submarine Songtrack" with the piano a little louder and the chorus vocals panned around the stereo spectrum.

"Baby, You're A Rich Man" can be found on the single in the UK (Parlophone R 5620) as well as the North American single (Capitol 5964) with a picture sleeve pictured above. "Baby You're A Rich Man" is also available on the North American Capitol LP/CD "Magical Mystery Tour". Finally, the song can be found on the Apple/EMI/Capitol LP/CD "Yellow Submarine Soundtrack".

The song was strummed on a guitar by George Harrison in the summer of 1967 as he walked along the Haight-Ashbury section of San Francisco.

There's Nothing You Can Do That Can't Be Done

"Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" was released in the UK in mono and stereo on Parlophone June 01 1967 (although there are claims tha the album was released on May 16 1967 depending on who you read).

The next piece of music to be officially released by The Beatles was a single 45 around the world. It was the summer of love and the purpose of the single was to enlighten the world with their special message of Love. ( It also helped that the single was released around the world almost exclusively at number one thereby making The Beatles and their related companies a lot of money). The single was "All You Need Is Love/ Baby, You're A Rich Man".

The next tune we'll be looking at is an original composition by Lennon/McCartney written mainly by John entitled "All You Need Is Love".

The song was originally commissioned for a live satelitte television special in which the Beatles would appear to represent the BBC and perform their latest single. There were a couple of song in contention (It's been said the "You're Mother Should Know" was also in the running) before selecting John's "All You Need Is Love".

The basic track for the song was recorded Wednesday June 14 1978 at Olympic Sound Studios in Barnes, England at Studio one. There were 33 takes in all of the following instrumentation: Paul playing the double bass, John playing the harpsichord, George scratching a violin and Ringo on drums. Take 10 was chosen as best and a four track tape reduction was made at this point.

Five days later back at EMI studio three on June 19 1967, John added lead vocals and the backing vocals by the other Beatles was also recorded. On one track: added drums, a piano (by George Martin) was added to the basic track as well.

Two days later on June 21 1967 from EMI room 53, the basic track was mixed in mono twice. The first mix was kept in-house, while the second mix was given to the director of the BBC for reference via the upcoming television appearance by The Beatles.

Two days after that, the orchestra entered the studio (EMI studio one) on June 23 1967 and nine takes of the orchestra taped rehearsal was completed onto take 10. The same musicians on this overdub also appeared in the television broadcast.

On June 24 1967, one day before the event, there were more rehearsals with the orchestra. Four takes were rehearsed and taped.

Finally, on June 25 1967, the Beatles and the orchestra and family and friends all gathered at EMI studio one for the big event. There were three rehearsal takes (with orchestra and vocal) and four-track to four-track recording takes 51 to 58 (take 58 being the commercial version). As you can see , most of the rhythm track had already been previously recorded. The only "live" recording as witnessed on the television broadcast are: John Lennon's lead vocals (the backing vocals were mimed by Paul and George), Paul's Rickenbaker bass , George's Fender electric guitar and Ringo's drums. Once the televised signal was completed and the orchestra left, John Lennon attempted to fix some of his vocal. Ringo added the snare drum roll at the beginning of the song as an overdub.

"All You Need Is Love" was mixed for mono on June 26 1967 from the control room of EMI studio two. Nine mixes were attempted with remix four being deemed at "best". The commercial released single contains this mix.

"All You Need Is Love" was once again mixed for mono on November 01 1967 due to preparation for the "Yellow Submarine" animated film. This mix (11) was used in the original film.

Finally, "All You Need Is Love" was mixed for stereo on October 29 1968 from the control room of EMI studio three. The reason for the stereo mix was due to the inclusion of the song on the "Yellow Submarine" soundtrack. There is also a stereo mix which was conducted in the nineties whereby the vocals and orchestra tracks have been re-positioned in the stereo spectrum and this unique mix was used on the "Yellow Submarine Songtrack".

"All You Need Is Love" was originally released as the single on Parlophone R 5620 on July 07 1967 and released as the single on Capitol 5964 on ten days later on July 17 1967. The song can be found on the Capitol LP/CD "Magical Mystery Tour" as well as the Apple LP/CD "Yellow Submarine" and the Apple compilation "The Beatles 1967-1970". This song is also featured on the Theatre Projects Record UK LP "All You Need Is Love - The Story of Popular Music" as well as the EMI/Capitol compilation LP "Reel Music". It is also included on the UK and North American version of the EMI/Capitol LP "20 Greatest Hits" and the EMI/Apple/Capitol 2-LP/CD "1", the Apple/EMI/Capitol LP/CD "Yellow Submarine Soundtrack" as well as the EMI/Apple/Capitol 2-LP/CD "Love".

Nemrepus Ekil Uoy Ckuf Ll'ew

Known as "Sgt. Pepper Inner Groove", the concentric run-out groove on UK copies of the Parlophone UK "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" contains a spoken message of gibberish recorded by The Beatles on Friday April 21 1967 at EMI Studio two. At the recording stage it was known as "Edit For LP End". This consisted of noise, talking, etc by filling up two tracks of nonsense and editing it down to the length of the groove ( 3 seconds ) heard on the vinyl record ( and at the end of the CD). The vinyl record only contains the one groove playing over and over again until the stylus of your record player was lifted. If the record player was automatic, only a short burst of the groove would be heard before the needle lifted off the record. The CD contains the recording being heard over and over until it fades out.

There is also a 15 kilocycle high pitch noise heard between the end of "A Day In The Life" and the "Inner Groove" that was produced during the cutting of the mono and stereo copies of "Sgt. Pepper" . This was added at EMI studios in the cutting room by Harry Moss. The mono copy was cut on April 28 1967 and the stereo copy was cut on May 01 1967. It's been said that if you play the inner groove backwards, a nasty message is produced.

The 15 kilocycle frequency and the "Inner Groove" are available on the Parlophone UK LP/CD "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" on the mono and stereo version. The North American Capitol LP of the same name does NOT have either the high frequency nor does it contain the "Inner Groove". This item was subsequently available on the North American Capitol LP "Rarities".

He Hadn't Noticed That The Lights Had Changed

The final musical song on the marvellous Parlophone UK LP "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" is often cited as one of the best recorded by The Beatles. This epic, thematic finale was another original composition written by Lennon/McCartney and shared by the two songwriters who evenly wrote this tune ( a rarity during this time frame of the Beatles' career). The title of the song is "A Day In The Life". The verses were written by John Lennon while the middle was written by Paul McCartney. They are joined by a series of ochestral glissandos from the lower note of the respective instrument to the highest.

Originally on the first day of recording "A Day In The Life" was known as "In The Life Of...". The basic track was recorded on Thursday January 19 1967 in EMI studio two. The instrumentation consisted of acoustic guitar, piano, maracas and bongos. John Lennon sang a guide vocal heavy with reverb. The two points between the verses and the middle section consisted of the same note played over and over with Beatles' roadie Mal Evans counting 24 bars. As he spoke the numbers, the higher the number, the more echo was added to his voice. An alarm clock was sounded at the end of the 24 bars. Once this was complete, Lennon added more vocal passages also laden with reverb onto two tracks of the four track machine. The basic track at this session took four takes to perfect.

The next day on January 20 1967, a reduction mix of the four tracks from take four were reduced three times taking the song into takes 5,6 and 7. Take six was deemed best and onto this take went Paul playing the bass and Ringo playing the drums. John Lennon added another vocal onto the current take six. Paul also added his vocal, but was inturrupted by his mistake and then his expletive ("shit!).

The first mono mix was completed ten days later on January 30 1967 from the control room of EMI studio three. This mix was put on an acetate and can be heard on various bootleg LPs and CDs such as "Foretaste", "1967" and "Acetates".

The next session for "A Day In The Life" took place on February 02 1967 at EMI studio two. After hearing the mono mix from January 30, it was decided to re-record both the bass and the drums. Paul's vocal was also re-recorded on this night.

By this time in the history of the "A Day In The Life" recordings, it was decided that an orchestra would filled the 24 bars left empty up until now. These 24 bars would consist of the orchestral building from the lowest note to the highest note of thier instruments and getting louder as they were going to do this! A very strange idea at the time. Therfore, the Beatles gathered at EMI studio one on February 10 1967 with the orchestra and the orchestral instruments were recorded on a separate four track machine. 40 extra musicians were used for this session. The orchestra was recorded four times therefore you hear the equivalent of 160 musicians on the commercial recording! Paul McCartney and George Martin conducted the orchestra. Also recorded at this session was The Beatles and various friends "humming" at the very end of the song where the elongated piano would later be. This was considered an "edit piece" and three attempts were made of the noise. The third attempted was considered the best version and was added to the song. The orchestral overdub brought the song to take seven.

Three days later on February 13 1067, the current state of "A Day In The Life" was given three mono mixes. None of these mono mixes were used.

On Wednesday February 22 1967, it was decided to scrap the previous ending of the with the Beatles and their friends "humming" the ending and the idea of the elongated piano chord was born. Three pianos played by John, Paul, Ringo and Mal Evans were played simultaneously as an E chord with the sustain pedals held down. It took nine attempts to completed this. After the ninth attempt, the sounds were overdubbed three more times and George Martin added a further sound from a harmonium. Once this was complete, nine mono mixes of "A Day In The Life" were completed including the ninth mix which was used on the commercial release. There were also nine attempts at a stereo mix of the song but none of the nine stereo mixes were used.

The next day on February 22 1967 from EMI studio two, three more stereo mixes were completed with number 12 attempt being used for the commerical version. The difference between the mono and stereo mixes is mainly the sync factor of the band and the orchestra. I can't tell the difference too much, but supposedly the sync is better on the mono mix rather than the stereo mix.

It should be noted that a piano overdub was recorded on March 01 1967 in EMI Studio two but was never used as both the mono and stereo mixes had been completed and compiled.

"A Day In The Life" is available on the Parlophone UK/CD "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" as well as the North American Capitol LP of the same name. It appears on the Apple 2-LP/2-CD "The Beatles 1967-1970".It is also available on the 1978 release as the B side of the single "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band/ With A Little Help from My Friends" released on EMI in the UK and Capitol in North America. The song is also featured on the picture discs of "Pepper" released in the UK and North America in the late 1970s. Finally, "A Day In The Life" can be found on the EMI/ Apple 2-LP/CD "Love".

We'd Like To Thank You Once Again

The second last song on the Parlophone UK LP "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" is a reprise of the title track which is an original composition by Lennon/McCartney written mainly by Paul. This idea to reprise the title track was considered near the end of the completion of the LP. Once again, a great 4/4 drum beat, heavy guitars and Paul's raunchy voice dominate this exciting track. Plenty of audience noises are also present on this as with the title track.

"Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (reprise)" was recorded in it's entirety on Saturday April 01 1967 from EMI studio one. Due to the size of the studio one room, the drums on this track sound very big and reverberated. The Beatles recorded the whole track in nine takes. The instrumentation for this track featured Ringo on drums, Paul on bass and guide vocal, John and George playing their electric guitars and George Martin on the harmonium. Once take nine was completed , the harmony vocals were overdubbed along with percussion such as tambourine and maracas. Lastly, audience noise was overdubbed onto the track and the song was complete. An alternate take of the tune (take 05) is available on the EMI/Apple 3-LP/2-CD "Anthology 2".

The mono mix for "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (reprise)" was mixed at EMI studio one from the control room at the same date as the recording session (April 01 1967). Nine mono mixes were attempted with the last mix being used commercially.

The stereo mix was completed in ten attempts on Thursday April 20 1967 from the control room of EMI studio three. The tenth attempt was released commercially.

There are differences in the mono and stereo mixes for this tune. A few extra drum beats at the beginning of the song are available on the mono mix. The stereo mix has less beats. The audience noises tend to differ slightly (either that..or the levels are different) between the mono and stereo mix. Lastly, Paul can be heard shouting over the final chords of the song louder on the mono mix than the stereo mix.

"Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (reprise)" can be found on the Parlophone UK LP/CD "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" as well as the North American Capitol LP of the same name. This tune is also available on the UK and North American picture discs of the LP of the same name released in the late 1970s.

Go To A Show You Hope She Goes.

The next song on the incredible "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" Parlophone UK LP is another original Lennon/McCartney composition written mainly by John entitled "Good Morning Good Morning". Lennon was inspired by a television commercial on a UK broadcast that advertised Kellog's Corn Flakes. This would not be the last time that "Corn Flakes" would be used in a Lennon song. During this time frame in the Beatles' career (1967); it's been said that Lennon used to sit at home and have the television on constantly with the sound off. This habit would continue on and off for most of his short life. The song has a very odd time signature to it but this is typical of the future songwriting efforts of Lennon where he would constantly break up the four/four timing with different rhythm attempts.

The basic track for "Good Morning Good Morning" was recorded on Wednesday February 08 1967 at EMI studio two with the instrumentation consisting of an electric guitar and John's guide vocal, drums and percussion. This basic track took eight takes to perfect and the eighth take would be the base for the future overdubs.

The next recording took place on February 16 1967 from EMI studio three. This time the lead vocal was added as well as Paul's bass guitar. Once this was complete, the instruments were reduced to one track and the vocals were reduced to a second track. The two reduction mixes brought this tune to take 10. A demo mono mix was also completed at this session. The song as it sounded from this time is available on the EMI/Apple 3-LP/2-CD "Anthology 2".

Four days later on February 20 1967, "Good Morning Good Morning" was given a mono mix probably as a demo for the Beatles or George Martin to take away. This was also done at EMI studio three.

After almost three weeks, on March 13 1967 at EMI studio two; the brass musicians who went under the name "Sounds Incorporated" were assigned to overdub a french horn, two trombones and three saxes onto the basic track. These brass instruments were heavily compressed and sound very "beefy" on the recording.

Over two weeks later on March 28 1967 at EMI Studio two John Lennon re-taped his lead vocal and once completed John , Paul and George overdubbed their background vocals. Also overdubbed at this session was the searing guitar solo - played by Paul. If you listen carefully to the background vocals near the end , the Beatles are actually saying "Good Morgan, Good Morgan". An isolation of these background vocals have revealed this fact. It was also decided at this session that animal sounds would be added to the tune: this was compiled featuring a rooster, a cat, a dog, horses, sheep, lions, elephant, a fox, cow and finally a hen. A tape reduction of the song was also completed at this session which brought the tune into take 11.

The next day on Wednesday March 29 1967 from EMI studio two, the addition of the overdubbed animal sounds effect tape was completed at this session.

On Thursday April 06 1967 from the control room of EMI studio two, two mono mixes were attempted for "Good Morning Good Morning" (none of which were used for commerical purposes) as well as five stereo mixes for "Good Morning Good Morning" ( the fifth stereo mix was used on the commercial version).

Almost two weeks later on April 19 1967 and once again from the control room of EMI studio two, an incredible 14 more mono mixes were attempted. The 14th mono mix of "Good Morning Good Morning" was used on the commerical version.

There is a cross fade on the "Pepper" LP where a hen is clucking and it leads into the guitar part for the reprise of the title song. This is not done very smoothly on the mono mix but sounds very synced on the stereo mix. Since the stereo mix was completed before the satisfaction of the mono mix, it is likely that the idea of the cross fade may have been planned way before April 19 1967 although some publications have stated that the idea for the clucking/guitar was only brought to frutition on the 19th. Another difference between the mono and stereo mix is that the guitar solo and fills are very much oscillated on the mono mix but sound very "straight" on the stereo mix.

"Good Morning Good Morning" appears on the Parlophone UK LP/CD "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" as well as the North American Capitol LP of the same name. The song also appears on the UK and North American picture disc of "Pepper" which were both released in the late 1970s.

Standing By A Parking Meter

The next song on the Parlophone UK LP "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" is another original Lennon/McCartney composition written mainly by Paul entitled "Lovely Rita". This tune was inspired by the meter maids around London at the time. It's a bit of a fantasy relationship song. There has also been a female traffic warden named Meta Davies who has claimed that the song was inspired by herself although this is under contention.

The basic track for the song was recorded on Thursday February 23 1967 at EMI studio two. John and George played their acoustic guitars while Paul played the piano and Ringo played his drums. It took eight takes to complete the basic track. Once the four tracks of the tape were full, a reduction mix was completed into take nine with all the instruments on one track. Once this was finished, Paul added his great bass guitar lines to the song.

The next day on February 24 1967 and once again at EMI studio two, Paul added his lead vocal recorded at a slower speed so that it would sound faster on playback. The background instruments were also slightly slowed down. Once again , all four tracks on the tape were full so that two reduction attempts were completed putting the tune into take 11.

The song was left as is until Tuesday March 07 1967 at EMI studio two. This session produced the back up vocals for "Lovely Rita" including all of the vocal sounds effect heard at the end of the song. There was tape echo added to the effects and a lot of vocal improvisation for this session. There was also a toilet-paper/comb combination that was overdubbed this session which sounds a bit like a modern day synthesizer.

Finally, on Tuesday March 21 1967, the piano solo for "Lovely Rita" was overdubbed onto the existing tape. This piano solo was played by George Martin and the tape was given a "wobble" effect in order to sound like a honky-tonk piano. The piano solo was recorded very slowly and sounded quite fast on playback.

Once the piano solo overdub was completed, fifteen attempts at a mono mix was conducted from EMI studio two. The last attempt is the mono mix that appears on all mono versions commercially.

The stereo mix for "Lovely Rita" was completed on Friday April 17 1967 from the control room of EMI studio two. Two attempts were completed with the second attempt being used on the commercial release of the song. In both cases of the mono and stereo mix, the tape was varisped a little slower. There are not significant differences between the stereo and mono mix that I can think of at the moment.

"Lovely Rita" appears on the Parlophone UK LP/CD "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" as well as appearing on the North American Capitol LP version of the same name. The song also appears on the equivalent picture discs released in the UK and North America during the late 1970s.

I Could Be Handy Mending A Fuse

The next song on the Parlophone UK LP "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" is an original Lennon/McCartney composition written mainly by Paul entitled "When I'm 64". This was a tune which was first composed when Paul was around 15 and it was written on the family piano at Forthlin Road in Liverpool (the family home). The song was revived with Paul's father, Jim McCartney, in mind.

The basic track for the recording was started on Tuesday December 06 1966 at EMI studio two. The instrumentation for this session including Paul playing the piano and overdubbing his bass with Ringo on the drums. Two takes of the basic track were required.

Two days later on Thursday December 08 1966 from EMI studio one, Paul added his lead vocal to the already recorded basic track.

A week and a half later on December 20 1966 at EMI studio two, John Paul and George added their background vocals to the tune. Also added at this session were the sound of the tubular bells played by Ringo. Now that all four tracks were full, the basic rhythm track of piano/guitar/bass and drums were all thrown onto one track taking take two into take four as two attempts at the reduction were completed.

Finally the next day on December 21 1966 also at EMI studio two, clarinets were added to the song. Two clarinets and one bass clarinet can be heard. These were overdubbed onto the existing take four. Once this was completed, three mono mixes were attempted at this session although none of the mono mixes were ever used commercially.

On Thursday December 29 1966, four more mono mixes of "When I'm 64" were attempted with one mono mix intended for the North American market and one mono mix intended for the UK market. Neither of the mixes were ever used commercially. It's been estimated that the possibility of having "When I'm 64" as a b-side to the "Strawberry Fields" single was probably the reason for these mixes. The recording of "Penny Lane" did not start until later during this same day.

The next day on Friday December 30 1966, all mono mixes for "When I'm 64" were scrapped and a new mono mix was made this day. At the same time, the song was speeded up half a tone higher in order to have the lead vocals sound somewhat more "youthful". This mix was the mono mix used on the commerical version of the song.

The stereo mix for "When I'm 64" was conducted four months later on April 17 1967. Only one attempt was taken.

Lastly, another stereo mix can heard on the "Yellow Submarine Soundtrack" that basically centers the vocals.

"When I'm 64" is available on the Parlophone UK LP/CD "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" as well as the North American Capitol equivalent of the same name. The song was also released on the related picture discs in the UK and in North America released in the late 1970s. Lastly, the song appears on the EMI/Apple LP/CD "Yellow Submarine Soundtrack".

Try To realize It's All Within Yourself

The first song to open side two of the Parlophone UK LP "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" ( or the eight song on the CD version) is an original George Harrison composition entitled "Within You Without You". The song was written after a conversation between Harrison and other friends at the home of Klaus Voorman (a Hamburg friend of the Beatles who designed the "Revolver" LP cover as well as played bass on various Beatles' solo LPs). The instrument used by Harrison was a pedal harmonium which was available at the home of Voorman. The song deals with the perception of philosophical dealings within one's self. A mix of Indian traditional instrument as well as western classical instruments is used on the song.

"Within You Without You" was started on March 15 1967 at EMI studio two with one take of the backing track. This consisted of Indian instruments played by Indian musicians "borrowed" from the Asian Music Circle from London. The tune was basically broken into three parts, the first vocal section, the second instrumental section in 5/8 time, and the last vocal section. All instruments on this date's recording were played by Indian musicians with the exception of the tabla which was also played by George Harrison and by Neil Aspinall. The song at this point remained untitled.

On Wednesday March 22 1967 at EMI studio two, two dilrabas were added to the song. Also on this day, the song was officially entitled "Within You Without You". Once this was completed, all four track of the machine were full and required a reduction mix which became take 2. There was also a quick mono mix done this evening and an acetate was cut in order for George Martin to take and arrange the classical section of the song.

On Monday April 03 1967 at EMI studio one, the violins and the cellos werre added to the existing take 2 of "Within You Without You". As an example of how things were working in the studio during this time of the Beatles' careers, the recording takes of the instruments overdubbed onto the track were not numbered, but were wiped off the track if any imperfections were discovered only to be taped over the previously offending attempt. Also overdubbed on this evening were George Harrison's lead vocal, some sitar in the middle section and some ver faint acoustic guitar. Three mono mixes were attempted of the first section, while two mono mix attempts were conducted for the second and third sections. None of these were used.

The next day on Tuesday April 04 1967, "Within You Without You" was mixed for mono and stereo as well as having an additional overdub: tapes of laughter were removed from the EMI tape library and a snippet of laughing was added to the end of the song. This was at the request of it's composer. Six mono mix attempts were completed for the first section of the song, while only one attempt of a mono mix was used for the second and third section of the song. Both final mono mixes were edited together with a further two mono mix attempts of the entire piece. The second attempt was best and used on the commercial LP. Three stereo mix attempts were undertaken for the first section, while two stereo mix attempts were undertaken for sections two and three. Once the sections were edited, two more stereo mixes were attempted and the last one was used on the commercial LP. During mixing, the tape was slightly sped up and the song sounds a little faster on the record than when first recorded. There is a difference in the mono and stereo mix at the end of the song: the laughter on the mono mix is louder and more pronouned than on the stereo mix.

"Within You Without You" is available on the Parlophone UK LP/CD "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" as well as being on the North American Capitol version of the LP of the same name. The song is also contained on the equivalent picture disc released in the late 1970s by EMI and Capitol in the UK and North America respectively.