- The 8th studio album
by the Beatles. Released June 1967.
- Although the band decided to give up touring and playing live in 1966, it wasn't until this album that it really took effect. Without the strictures of having to play any of the tracks live the band was free to do whatever they liked in the studio. Likewise, the pressure was off in terms of what the public expected, as Beatlemania was starting to die in the arse. The time was right for something completely different.
- At least 4 tracks from the Sergeant Peppers sessions didn't make it onto the album, these are the previously mentioned Strawberry Fields Forever and Penny Lane (which were held off to be released as a stand-alone single and eventually went onto the US-issued album for The Magical Mystery Tour), Only a Northern Song (which remained unreleased until the Yellow Submarine movie two years later) and Carnival of Light (which has remained unreleased to this day).
- Sergeant Peppers is often listed as the first concept album. This is really only half-true... it was intended to be a concept album (this was mainly McCartney's idea) but the end result wasn't really what he was aiming for. Lennon in particular wasn't too fussed with the idea so the band kind of did a bit of a concept album and then wrote a bunch of unrelated songs to fill in the middle.
- The concept itself was an extension of the promo-video clips the band had been making. The idea was that as they weren't going to tour themselves, the album could tour for them. So the band invented alter-egos for themselves, brought on in part by their newly acquired facial hair (which McCartney started in order to cover up the motorcycle-accident scar on his lip).
- Before the band came up with the Sergeant Pepper idea the original concept was to write a series of thematically-linked songs about childhood and everyday life. This can be heard in the lyrics in many of the songs. The early release of the two songs that deal most strongly with this (Strawberry Fields Forever and Penny Lane) meant that this idea was abandoned, but A Day in the Life, She's Leaving Home and a whole host of others fit in with this theme as well. Prior to this album very few Beatles songs had such themes.
- 8-track recording had been just invented but was yet to become available in the UK. Hence, Sergeant Peppers is recorded on 4-track. Nonetheless, several more innovations were made during the course of recording, particularly in reference to effects. One such innovation that they had been toying with (and was to come into proper use with this album) was the running of tracks at different speeds, EG. The speeding up of vocals for Lucy in the Sky to give the song an otherworldly quality.
- The UK release of the album ended on a strange sound, a high frequency tone run on a loop (which Lennon said was "especially intended to annoy your dog"). The US release of the album left it off.
- Aside from the ending, this album marks the first time the US and UK releases were exactly the same. Prior to this the standard idea had been to release similar albums on both sides of the atlantic, with one or two changes to tailor to the American audience (the fact that a lot of the band's singles were released in different forms in America meant that a lot of UK-released b-sides were included on US-released albums as they otherwise wouldn't have been heard by American fans). It's confusing and dumb, and the band had wanted to stop it for a while, and 1967 was when they started wising up and felt strong enough to stand up against industry practices. After 1967, other UK bands such as the Rolling Stones started following their example and stopped doing American-tailored album tracklistings.
- Although the band decided to give up touring and playing live in 1966, it wasn't until this album that it really took effect. Without the strictures of having to play any of the tracks live the band was free to do whatever they liked in the studio. Likewise, the pressure was off in terms of what the public expected, as Beatlemania was starting to die in the arse. The time was right for something completely different.
- At least 4 tracks from the Sergeant Peppers sessions didn't make it onto the album, these are the previously mentioned Strawberry Fields Forever and Penny Lane (which were held off to be released as a stand-alone single and eventually went onto the US-issued album for The Magical Mystery Tour), Only a Northern Song (which remained unreleased until the Yellow Submarine movie two years later) and Carnival of Light (which has remained unreleased to this day).
- Sergeant Peppers is often listed as the first concept album. This is really only half-true... it was intended to be a concept album (this was mainly McCartney's idea) but the end result wasn't really what he was aiming for. Lennon in particular wasn't too fussed with the idea so the band kind of did a bit of a concept album and then wrote a bunch of unrelated songs to fill in the middle.
- The concept itself was an extension of the promo-video clips the band had been making. The idea was that as they weren't going to tour themselves, the album could tour for them. So the band invented alter-egos for themselves, brought on in part by their newly acquired facial hair (which McCartney started in order to cover up the motorcycle-accident scar on his lip).
- Before the band came up with the Sergeant Pepper idea the original concept was to write a series of thematically-linked songs about childhood and everyday life. This can be heard in the lyrics in many of the songs. The early release of the two songs that deal most strongly with this (Strawberry Fields Forever and Penny Lane) meant that this idea was abandoned, but A Day in the Life, She's Leaving Home and a whole host of others fit in with this theme as well. Prior to this album very few Beatles songs had such themes.
- 8-track recording had been just invented but was yet to become available in the UK. Hence, Sergeant Peppers is recorded on 4-track. Nonetheless, several more innovations were made during the course of recording, particularly in reference to effects. One such innovation that they had been toying with (and was to come into proper use with this album) was the running of tracks at different speeds, EG. The speeding up of vocals for Lucy in the Sky to give the song an otherworldly quality.
- The UK release of the album ended on a strange sound, a high frequency tone run on a loop (which Lennon said was "especially intended to annoy your dog"). The US release of the album left it off.
- Aside from the ending, this album marks the first time the US and UK releases were exactly the same. Prior to this the standard idea had been to release similar albums on both sides of the atlantic, with one or two changes to tailor to the American audience (the fact that a lot of the band's singles were released in different forms in America meant that a lot of UK-released b-sides were included on US-released albums as they otherwise wouldn't have been heard by American fans). It's confusing and dumb, and the band had wanted to stop it for a while, and 1967 was when they started wising up and felt strong enough to stand up against industry practices. After 1967, other UK bands such as the Rolling Stones started following their example and stopped doing American-tailored album tracklistings.
- The album took an unprecedented four months to record.
- Perhaps almost as famous as the songs on the album is its artwork, which won a grammy. The collage of 70 famous people was made up of actresses, actors, famous philosophers and other luminaries chosen by Lennon, McCartney and Harrison (the various Indian gurus are attributed to Harrison). Amongst those pictured are original Beatles bassist Stu Sutcliffe, Karl Marx, Oscar Wilde, Lenny Bruce, Marlon Brando and William S. Burroughs. Lennon borrowed some family war medals from original Beatles drummer Pete Best for his costume. Lennon also asked for Hitler to be featured in the collage but was politely ignored. Anyone featured in the collage who was still alive had to be contacted by the label's legal department to make sure they gave permission for their likeness to be used. Mae West refused on the grounds that she would never be in a 'lonely hearts club', but later relented when the band sent her a personal letter. The band's manager, Brian Epstein, was worried about the whole thing after the recent debacle re: the US-issue cover for the Paperback Writer single (which infamously featured the band dressed as bloody butchers surrounded by doll parts). The collage also varies slightly in different countries, for example the Russian version features Rasputin instead of Karl Marx, etc, etc.
- The band originally wanted to make the album a package including pencils and pins and such, but this was abandoned as it would've been too expensive to mass produce.
- Reviews at the time were outstandingly positive and full of impossible hyperbole. Various critics even went as far as calling it the album of the century. Rolling Stone magazine later listed it as the greatest album of all time.
- A TV special was planned but later abandoned. It would've been an album-long video clip (in keeping with the album's concept). Some footage was shot for A Day in the Life before the idea was nixed, and it remained unreleased until the 1980 John Lennon documentary Imagine. It can also be seen on the Anthology documentary series.
- Perhaps almost as famous as the songs on the album is its artwork, which won a grammy. The collage of 70 famous people was made up of actresses, actors, famous philosophers and other luminaries chosen by Lennon, McCartney and Harrison (the various Indian gurus are attributed to Harrison). Amongst those pictured are original Beatles bassist Stu Sutcliffe, Karl Marx, Oscar Wilde, Lenny Bruce, Marlon Brando and William S. Burroughs. Lennon borrowed some family war medals from original Beatles drummer Pete Best for his costume. Lennon also asked for Hitler to be featured in the collage but was politely ignored. Anyone featured in the collage who was still alive had to be contacted by the label's legal department to make sure they gave permission for their likeness to be used. Mae West refused on the grounds that she would never be in a 'lonely hearts club', but later relented when the band sent her a personal letter. The band's manager, Brian Epstein, was worried about the whole thing after the recent debacle re: the US-issue cover for the Paperback Writer single (which infamously featured the band dressed as bloody butchers surrounded by doll parts). The collage also varies slightly in different countries, for example the Russian version features Rasputin instead of Karl Marx, etc, etc.
- The band originally wanted to make the album a package including pencils and pins and such, but this was abandoned as it would've been too expensive to mass produce.
- Reviews at the time were outstandingly positive and full of impossible hyperbole. Various critics even went as far as calling it the album of the century. Rolling Stone magazine later listed it as the greatest album of all time.
- A TV special was planned but later abandoned. It would've been an album-long video clip (in keeping with the album's concept). Some footage was shot for A Day in the Life before the idea was nixed, and it remained unreleased until the 1980 John Lennon documentary Imagine. It can also be seen on the Anthology documentary series.
- The album's influence was felt over the course of the '70s, with a tie-in feature film released in 1978 (which really had nothing to do with the Beatles). Lennon also made reference to the album in his solo song How Do You Sleep?, attacking McCartney's creative domination of the band from Sergeant Pepper onwards (the band had taken a break between their last live shows and the recording of this album, and McCartney took the opportunity to push the band in a new direction. From this point on McCartney would be the keenest bandmember in terms of creative control).
1. Sgt. Pepper's
Lonely Hearts Club Band
- Opening track on the album.
- Written by McCartney, after taking inspiration from a discussion with Beatles main-man and roadie Mal Evans. Evans asked McCartney what the S and the P stood for on his in-flight tray (they stood for Salt and Pepper, but somehow this became Sgt. Pepper and the concept grew from there). Evans also claims to have helped write the overall song, but I'm thinking that's most likely bullcrap.
- The band's road manager, Neil Aspinall, came up with the idea of making one of the alter-egos (the main one, Sgt Pepper, which was McCartneys' alter-ego for the album) a compere-styled figure. This leant itself to the style of lyrics McCartney wrote for the song.
- The sample of the orchestra tuning up at the beginning was taken from the recording session for the orchestrated parts of A Day in the Life. The crowd sounds were from George Martin's master-tapes from the Goon Show, recorded back in 1960.
- Opening track on the album.
- Written by McCartney, after taking inspiration from a discussion with Beatles main-man and roadie Mal Evans. Evans asked McCartney what the S and the P stood for on his in-flight tray (they stood for Salt and Pepper, but somehow this became Sgt. Pepper and the concept grew from there). Evans also claims to have helped write the overall song, but I'm thinking that's most likely bullcrap.
- The band's road manager, Neil Aspinall, came up with the idea of making one of the alter-egos (the main one, Sgt Pepper, which was McCartneys' alter-ego for the album) a compere-styled figure. This leant itself to the style of lyrics McCartney wrote for the song.
- The sample of the orchestra tuning up at the beginning was taken from the recording session for the orchestrated parts of A Day in the Life. The crowd sounds were from George Martin's master-tapes from the Goon Show, recorded back in 1960.
- The song was written just one day before the album's recording session started.
- McCartney provides the lead vocals, as well as both lead guitar and bass. Harrison plays two guitar tracks, and Lennon only contributes some harmony vocals.
- Four guest musicians also featured on french horns. The horn lines were based around McCartney's vocal melodies (the idea of John Burden, one of the hornplayers)
- Capital Records in the U.S. released this song as a U.S. single in 1978 with With a Little Help From My Friends as the joint A-Side and A Day in the Life as the B-Side.
- Although the band never performed the song live, many other artists have done so. Most notably, the song was covered by Jimi Hendrix within a few mere days of its official release on the album.
- Capital Records in the U.S. released this song as a U.S. single in 1978 with With a Little Help From My Friends as the joint A-Side and A Day in the Life as the B-Side.
- Although the band never performed the song live, many other artists have done so. Most notably, the song was covered by Jimi Hendrix within a few mere days of its official release on the album.
2. With a Little Help
From My Friends
- Written by McCartney and Lennon.
- As was becoming standard, a song was written for each album for Ringo to sing. Lennon later stated that he only contributed a little bit to this song, but popular wisdom says that he actually wrote the melody on a piano (without using the index finger on his good hand, due to it being hurt at the time - leading to the song provisionally being titled Bad Finger Boogie [this is also where the band Badfinger draw their name from, apparently]).
- This is one of the last songs, if not the last song, that McCartney and Lennon wrote together.
- Ringo sings the lead vocals, with McCartney, Lennon and Harrison all singing harmonies.
- McCartney wrote the lyric notes to be within a small range (as Ringo's range wasn't as good as the others). McCartney worked with Ringo to help him achieve the relatively-more difficult final note.
- One of the original lines was "What would you do if I sang out of tune? Would you throw ripe tomatoes at me?" but Ringo insisted on changing it in case fans threw tomatoes at him should he ever sing it live. Another line, "What do you see when you turn out the light? / I can't tell you, but I know it's mine" is apparently a reference to masturbation.
- Interestingly, the lyrics are written in a way to reflect a conversation between the rest of the band and the singer. Lines are sung by the others as a question, and then Ringo answers it.
- The song follows directly on from the song Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Arguably, not including the reprise at the end, these are the only two songs on the album that are part of the 'concept' of the album. As McCartney's alter-ego was Sgt. Pepper, Ringo's alter-ego was Billy Shears.
- The only instrument Lennon plays on the recording is the cowbell. McCartney plays the bass and piano tracks, and Harrison provides two guitar tracks. Ringo also overdubbed some tambourine in addition his drumming, and George Martin plays the organ.
- The cheering at the beginning was taken from one of the band's live sets (in this case from their show at the Hollywood Bowl).
- Three different covers of the song have reach #1 in the British charts (the most famous being by Joe Cocker, also used as the theme song for the TV show The Wonder Years).
- Runs for two minutes and 45 seconds, and took ten takes to record.
- Written by McCartney and Lennon.
- As was becoming standard, a song was written for each album for Ringo to sing. Lennon later stated that he only contributed a little bit to this song, but popular wisdom says that he actually wrote the melody on a piano (without using the index finger on his good hand, due to it being hurt at the time - leading to the song provisionally being titled Bad Finger Boogie [this is also where the band Badfinger draw their name from, apparently]).
- This is one of the last songs, if not the last song, that McCartney and Lennon wrote together.
- Ringo sings the lead vocals, with McCartney, Lennon and Harrison all singing harmonies.
- McCartney wrote the lyric notes to be within a small range (as Ringo's range wasn't as good as the others). McCartney worked with Ringo to help him achieve the relatively-more difficult final note.
- One of the original lines was "What would you do if I sang out of tune? Would you throw ripe tomatoes at me?" but Ringo insisted on changing it in case fans threw tomatoes at him should he ever sing it live. Another line, "What do you see when you turn out the light? / I can't tell you, but I know it's mine" is apparently a reference to masturbation.
- Interestingly, the lyrics are written in a way to reflect a conversation between the rest of the band and the singer. Lines are sung by the others as a question, and then Ringo answers it.
- The song follows directly on from the song Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Arguably, not including the reprise at the end, these are the only two songs on the album that are part of the 'concept' of the album. As McCartney's alter-ego was Sgt. Pepper, Ringo's alter-ego was Billy Shears.
- The only instrument Lennon plays on the recording is the cowbell. McCartney plays the bass and piano tracks, and Harrison provides two guitar tracks. Ringo also overdubbed some tambourine in addition his drumming, and George Martin plays the organ.
- The cheering at the beginning was taken from one of the band's live sets (in this case from their show at the Hollywood Bowl).
- Three different covers of the song have reach #1 in the British charts (the most famous being by Joe Cocker, also used as the theme song for the TV show The Wonder Years).
- Runs for two minutes and 45 seconds, and took ten takes to record.
3. Lucy in the Sky
with Diamonds
- Written primarily by Lennon, but McCartney helped piece it together and do the lyrics.
- The title comes from Julian, Lennon's young son, who drew a picture at the time and told his dad it was a picture of 'Lucy in the sky with the diamonds'. It's disputed who this Lucy actually is as at the time Julian Lennon knew more than one little girl called Lucy.
- Lennon's lyrics were also influenced by Lewis Carrol's Through the Looking Glass, a book that Lennon would draw on for other songs around this time. The way the lyrics are sung also bring to mind a nursery rhyme, and McCartney also contributed a few key phrases.
- The verses are in 6/8 timing. You don't even notice it unless you count along with it, but it's quite a strange timing for a pop song. The choruses switch to standard 4/4.
- The song also shifts key between each segment, meaning it is in a different key for the verses, choruses and bridge section.
- Lennon's vocals are double-tracked and slightly sped up.
- Harrison plays the tamboura (an Indian lute-like instrument) in addition to lead and rhythm guitar. He used a slide for the lead bits.
- Lennon plays the main piano track, and Ringo contributes some maracas in addition to the drums.
- McCartney plays a Lowrey organ (an electronic organ similar to the Hammond organ) and used a special organ 'bell stop' that would give it a celesta-like sound (the celesta is a small upright piano-like instrument that sounds a bit like a glockenspiel).
- The abbreviation of the title to LSD wasn't intentional and the band didn't notice it until someone later pointed it out to them.
- In later years, Lennon was quite unhappy with the way he sang the song, and he actually preferred the Elton John version (on which he played 'reggae guitars' under the pseudonym Dr Winston O'Boogie)
- Runs for three and a half minutes, and took 8 takes to complete.
- Written primarily by Lennon, but McCartney helped piece it together and do the lyrics.
- The title comes from Julian, Lennon's young son, who drew a picture at the time and told his dad it was a picture of 'Lucy in the sky with the diamonds'. It's disputed who this Lucy actually is as at the time Julian Lennon knew more than one little girl called Lucy.
- Lennon's lyrics were also influenced by Lewis Carrol's Through the Looking Glass, a book that Lennon would draw on for other songs around this time. The way the lyrics are sung also bring to mind a nursery rhyme, and McCartney also contributed a few key phrases.
- The verses are in 6/8 timing. You don't even notice it unless you count along with it, but it's quite a strange timing for a pop song. The choruses switch to standard 4/4.
- The song also shifts key between each segment, meaning it is in a different key for the verses, choruses and bridge section.
- Lennon's vocals are double-tracked and slightly sped up.
- Harrison plays the tamboura (an Indian lute-like instrument) in addition to lead and rhythm guitar. He used a slide for the lead bits.
- Lennon plays the main piano track, and Ringo contributes some maracas in addition to the drums.
- McCartney plays a Lowrey organ (an electronic organ similar to the Hammond organ) and used a special organ 'bell stop' that would give it a celesta-like sound (the celesta is a small upright piano-like instrument that sounds a bit like a glockenspiel).
- The abbreviation of the title to LSD wasn't intentional and the band didn't notice it until someone later pointed it out to them.
- In later years, Lennon was quite unhappy with the way he sang the song, and he actually preferred the Elton John version (on which he played 'reggae guitars' under the pseudonym Dr Winston O'Boogie)
- Runs for three and a half minutes, and took 8 takes to complete.
4. Getting Better
- One of the last songs that Lennon and McCartney wrote together from scratch, with the idea starting for the lyrics starting with McCartney.
- The lyrics are interesting in the way that they contrast the two personas of Lennon and McCartney. Throughout the song McCartney's optimism is tempered by Lennon's pessimism (in particular the lines "I used to be cruel to my woman..." and "it can't get no worse").
- The title comes from a phrase often said by Jimmy Nicol, the band's stand-in drummer from when they toured Australia.
- McCartney sings the lead vocals and plays bass for the track.
- Lennon contributes harmony vocals and rhythm guitar.
- George Martin struck the strings of a pianette with a mallet to get the accented sound that drives the song along.
- Harrison played the tamboura for the end section and also did some backing vocals.
- Ringo laid down a conga track in addition to his drums.
- During recording, Lennon accidentally took LSD (he allegedly meant to take an 'upper' instead) and complained to George Martin that he wasn't feeling well. Martin took Lennon up to the roof to get some air, but when Harrison amd McCartney realised that Lennon had taken LSD and was currently on the roof they quickly rushed up get him before he could jump off.
- The song was first played live by McCartney in 2002.
- The song should be pretty well known to contemporary Australians as it was used as the theme song to the TV show Better Homes and Gardens.
- Runs for 2 minutes and 47 seconds, and took 7 takes to record.
- One of the last songs that Lennon and McCartney wrote together from scratch, with the idea starting for the lyrics starting with McCartney.
- The lyrics are interesting in the way that they contrast the two personas of Lennon and McCartney. Throughout the song McCartney's optimism is tempered by Lennon's pessimism (in particular the lines "I used to be cruel to my woman..." and "it can't get no worse").
- The title comes from a phrase often said by Jimmy Nicol, the band's stand-in drummer from when they toured Australia.
- McCartney sings the lead vocals and plays bass for the track.
- Lennon contributes harmony vocals and rhythm guitar.
- George Martin struck the strings of a pianette with a mallet to get the accented sound that drives the song along.
- Harrison played the tamboura for the end section and also did some backing vocals.
- Ringo laid down a conga track in addition to his drums.
- During recording, Lennon accidentally took LSD (he allegedly meant to take an 'upper' instead) and complained to George Martin that he wasn't feeling well. Martin took Lennon up to the roof to get some air, but when Harrison amd McCartney realised that Lennon had taken LSD and was currently on the roof they quickly rushed up get him before he could jump off.
- The song was first played live by McCartney in 2002.
- The song should be pretty well known to contemporary Australians as it was used as the theme song to the TV show Better Homes and Gardens.
- Runs for 2 minutes and 47 seconds, and took 7 takes to record.
5. Fixing a Hole
- Written by McCartney
- Recorded at Regent Studios rather than Abbey Road (as Abbey Road wasn't available that night). It was the first time in a long time that the band had recorded outside of Abbey Road.
- The lead vocal was recorded at the same time as the rhythm track (assumedly guitar/bass/drums). This was the first time the band recorded vocals straight in rather than overdubbing them.
- A strange and unknown man calling himself 'Jesus Christ' was present throughout the session. He had a cup of tea and promised to be quiet and disappeared again after the recording was finished. McCartney later said that he found himself hanging around his front gate and brought him along to the studio. Lennon later also claimed to have found him and brought him in.
- It's usually assumed that the song is a metaphor for heroin injection, but McCartney actually wrote it as an 'ode to pot'.
- Beatles roadie and all-round self-made superstar Mal Evans claimed to have helped write this song (amongst others). He was paid a one-off fee for lyric contributions but (understandably) not given a songwriting credit. Evans ended up dying in an altercation with the police in 1976.
- McCartney performs the lead vocals as well as two guitar tracks. Lennon plays the bass and Harrison did some lead guitar. McCartney, Lennon and Harrison all also provided backing vocals. Ringo provided some maracas in addition to his drums.
- The song also features a harpsicord, which was probably played by McCartney (it was recorded at the same time as the bass, which may explain why Lennon played the bass track in this song). Some accounts have suggested that George Martin might have payed the harpsicord track.
- Runs for two and a half minutes and took 4 takes to complete.
- Written by McCartney
- Recorded at Regent Studios rather than Abbey Road (as Abbey Road wasn't available that night). It was the first time in a long time that the band had recorded outside of Abbey Road.
- The lead vocal was recorded at the same time as the rhythm track (assumedly guitar/bass/drums). This was the first time the band recorded vocals straight in rather than overdubbing them.
- A strange and unknown man calling himself 'Jesus Christ' was present throughout the session. He had a cup of tea and promised to be quiet and disappeared again after the recording was finished. McCartney later said that he found himself hanging around his front gate and brought him along to the studio. Lennon later also claimed to have found him and brought him in.
- It's usually assumed that the song is a metaphor for heroin injection, but McCartney actually wrote it as an 'ode to pot'.
- Beatles roadie and all-round self-made superstar Mal Evans claimed to have helped write this song (amongst others). He was paid a one-off fee for lyric contributions but (understandably) not given a songwriting credit. Evans ended up dying in an altercation with the police in 1976.
- McCartney performs the lead vocals as well as two guitar tracks. Lennon plays the bass and Harrison did some lead guitar. McCartney, Lennon and Harrison all also provided backing vocals. Ringo provided some maracas in addition to his drums.
- The song also features a harpsicord, which was probably played by McCartney (it was recorded at the same time as the bass, which may explain why Lennon played the bass track in this song). Some accounts have suggested that George Martin might have payed the harpsicord track.
- Runs for two and a half minutes and took 4 takes to complete.
6. She's Leaving Home
- McCartney started writing this after reading a newspaper story about a girl who'd left home and didn't return. He wrote the verses and Lennon wrote the chorus. It was also Lennon's idea to sustain the notes and hold them for such a long time.
- The girl who inspired the song was Melanie Coe, and she later said that the lyrics got most of her story right.
- McCartney sings most of the vocals but Lennon comes in for the chorus part, singing the bits from the parents' point-of-view.
- One of only four Beatles songs to not feature any of the band playing an instrument.
- Interestingly, the change from the verse to the chorus doesn't really change notes, it stays on the C chord.
- George Martin wasn't available to work on the song at the time of writing so McCartney took the song to Mike Leander (another producer and arranger, who worked mainly for Decca records). Leander wrote the orchestration based around the song. When George Martin found out he was a bit hurt that the song had been taken to someone else, but he duly conducted the piece for recording anyway. This marks the only time someone other than Martin wrote orchestration for a Beatles track with the band's permission (Phil Spector would later write orchestration for parts of the Let It Be album, but he did it without the band knowing).
- The harp was played by Sheila Bromberg, the first female musician to appear on a Beatles recording.
- George Harrison and Ringo don't feature at all in this song.
- The stereo mix of the song is slowed down significantly, putting the song in the key of E rather than its normal key of F.
- Runs for almost 3 minutes and took 9 takes to record (although it was the first take that was judged the best and this is the one that ended up on the album).
- McCartney started writing this after reading a newspaper story about a girl who'd left home and didn't return. He wrote the verses and Lennon wrote the chorus. It was also Lennon's idea to sustain the notes and hold them for such a long time.
- The girl who inspired the song was Melanie Coe, and she later said that the lyrics got most of her story right.
- McCartney sings most of the vocals but Lennon comes in for the chorus part, singing the bits from the parents' point-of-view.
- One of only four Beatles songs to not feature any of the band playing an instrument.
- Interestingly, the change from the verse to the chorus doesn't really change notes, it stays on the C chord.
- George Martin wasn't available to work on the song at the time of writing so McCartney took the song to Mike Leander (another producer and arranger, who worked mainly for Decca records). Leander wrote the orchestration based around the song. When George Martin found out he was a bit hurt that the song had been taken to someone else, but he duly conducted the piece for recording anyway. This marks the only time someone other than Martin wrote orchestration for a Beatles track with the band's permission (Phil Spector would later write orchestration for parts of the Let It Be album, but he did it without the band knowing).
- The harp was played by Sheila Bromberg, the first female musician to appear on a Beatles recording.
- George Harrison and Ringo don't feature at all in this song.
- The stereo mix of the song is slowed down significantly, putting the song in the key of E rather than its normal key of F.
- Runs for almost 3 minutes and took 9 takes to record (although it was the first take that was judged the best and this is the one that ended up on the album).
7. Being for the
Benefit of Mr. Kite!
- Written mainly by Lennon, though McCartney helped out a little bit. Lennon wrote the song after seeing a 19th century circus poster he bought in an antique shop. The lyrics are lifted almost verbatim from the poster.
- The bridge was originally ihtended to feature Lennon scatting (and this was recorded) but it was ditched in favour of McCartney's distorted guitar track.
- One of the more layered songs to appear on the album, Lennon wanted to get a 'carnival' atmosphere with the song and many overdubs followed...
- One track features multiple recordings of fairground organs and calliopes (a pipe-like instrument used at old-style carnivals), which George Martin had trouble splicing together to good effect. Eventually they chopped up the tape and rearranged the pieces at random.
- Lennon later said that he didn't really put much effort into the song and that he didn't think much of it. Much later, in 1980, he would change his view and describe the song as a 'pure watercolour'.
- Banned by the BBC due to the phrase 'henry the horse', which they thought alluded to heroin.
- Lennon sings the lead vocals, which were recorded at a slower speed to make it easier for him sing all the words.
- Lennon plasy the hammon organ, piano and harmonica in this track. He also contributed some tape loops.
- McCartney plays an acoustic guitar track.
- Harrison contributes harmonica and tambourine tracks.
- Ringo also plays harmonica on this song!
- George Martin plays the harmonium (a kind of pipe-organ), lowry organ and glockenspiel. He also contributed some tape loops.
- Roadies Mal Evans and Neil Aspinall also contribute some harmonica playing!
- Runs for two and a half minutes and took 9 takes to complete.
- Written mainly by Lennon, though McCartney helped out a little bit. Lennon wrote the song after seeing a 19th century circus poster he bought in an antique shop. The lyrics are lifted almost verbatim from the poster.
- The bridge was originally ihtended to feature Lennon scatting (and this was recorded) but it was ditched in favour of McCartney's distorted guitar track.
- One of the more layered songs to appear on the album, Lennon wanted to get a 'carnival' atmosphere with the song and many overdubs followed...
- One track features multiple recordings of fairground organs and calliopes (a pipe-like instrument used at old-style carnivals), which George Martin had trouble splicing together to good effect. Eventually they chopped up the tape and rearranged the pieces at random.
- Lennon later said that he didn't really put much effort into the song and that he didn't think much of it. Much later, in 1980, he would change his view and describe the song as a 'pure watercolour'.
- Banned by the BBC due to the phrase 'henry the horse', which they thought alluded to heroin.
- Lennon sings the lead vocals, which were recorded at a slower speed to make it easier for him sing all the words.
- Lennon plasy the hammon organ, piano and harmonica in this track. He also contributed some tape loops.
- McCartney plays an acoustic guitar track.
- Harrison contributes harmonica and tambourine tracks.
- Ringo also plays harmonica on this song!
- George Martin plays the harmonium (a kind of pipe-organ), lowry organ and glockenspiel. He also contributed some tape loops.
- Roadies Mal Evans and Neil Aspinall also contribute some harmonica playing!
- Runs for two and a half minutes and took 9 takes to complete.
8. Within You Without
You
- Witten by Harrison. His only track on this album.
- Harrison originally recorded [i]Only a Northern Song[/i] for the album but George Martin rejected it.
- Originally written as a 30-minute song, it makes use of a mixolydian-styled scale (which I don't understand fully, but it's like a major scale that starts on a semi-tone). Harrison wrote it on Klaus Voorman's harmonium while smoking a lot of pot. It was trimmed down to size for the album.
- A very Indian-sounding song, Harrison is the only Beatle to feature on it and it was partially based on a piece of music by Ravi Shankar. Neil Aspinall plays the tamboura, and the rest is provided by an Indian group called the Asian Music Circle (instruments featured: dilrubas, svarmandel, tabla, tamboura). About 11 English musicians also contributed violins and cellos to the mix.
- Harrison provides lead vocals, guitar, sitar and tamboura.
- George Martin arranged the string section that features.
- The song was also sped up a little bit (which changed its key). The original tempo-version can be heard on the Anthology albums.
- Harrison added some laughter near the end to 'lighten' the song up a bit, in keeping with the overall feel of the Sgt. Pepper's album.
- the lyrics allude to the Hindu concept of Maya, where the human world is in fact a false reality (OMGZ, The Matrix!), and LSD.
- I put this song on a mix CD at work and nearly all my co-workers hated it with a passion.
- Runs for 5 minutes and took 2 takes to finish.
- Witten by Harrison. His only track on this album.
- Harrison originally recorded [i]Only a Northern Song[/i] for the album but George Martin rejected it.
- Originally written as a 30-minute song, it makes use of a mixolydian-styled scale (which I don't understand fully, but it's like a major scale that starts on a semi-tone). Harrison wrote it on Klaus Voorman's harmonium while smoking a lot of pot. It was trimmed down to size for the album.
- A very Indian-sounding song, Harrison is the only Beatle to feature on it and it was partially based on a piece of music by Ravi Shankar. Neil Aspinall plays the tamboura, and the rest is provided by an Indian group called the Asian Music Circle (instruments featured: dilrubas, svarmandel, tabla, tamboura). About 11 English musicians also contributed violins and cellos to the mix.
- Harrison provides lead vocals, guitar, sitar and tamboura.
- George Martin arranged the string section that features.
- The song was also sped up a little bit (which changed its key). The original tempo-version can be heard on the Anthology albums.
- Harrison added some laughter near the end to 'lighten' the song up a bit, in keeping with the overall feel of the Sgt. Pepper's album.
- the lyrics allude to the Hindu concept of Maya, where the human world is in fact a false reality (OMGZ, The Matrix!), and LSD.
- I put this song on a mix CD at work and nearly all my co-workers hated it with a passion.
- Runs for 5 minutes and took 2 takes to finish.
9. When I'm Sixty-Four
- Written by McCartney.
- McCartney wrote this song when he was 16, and the band used to play it live in the early days whenever their equipment broke down. A few more lyrics were added in for the [I]Sgt. Pepper[/I]'s version and the arrangement no doubt became more sophisticated. The song was written as, and intended to be, a tribute to McCartney's father - an obscure jazz musician who had played around London in the 1920s. In 1966, when McCartney re-polished the song, his father was 64 years of age (hence the title).
- The song garnered some backlash from Beatles fans due to the parent-friendly nature of the song. It's pretty clear by this stage that McCartney wanted to appeal to everyone and not just the younger generation. Lennon later paid out this song in particular in 1980, saying that he would 'never dream of writing a song like that'.
- This song was almost made the B-Side to either Strawberry Fields or Penny Lane. Instead it was decided to make those songs a double A-Side. If When I'm Sixty-Four had been made the B-Side it would not have featured on the album.
- The song was in the key of C, but the recording was sped up to get the song into the key of D. This was to give the effect of McCartney's voice being younger and to aid the song's overall honky-tonky vaudeville feel.
- Also aiding this feel was a trio of clarinets, which also (unusually for the time) harmonize with the vocals at one point. Some well-respected clarinet players did the clarinets - there are two regular clarinets and one bass clarinet.
- McCartney sings the lead vocals, with Lennon and Harrison providing backups. McCartney also whistles during the outro on the original vinyl version of the song, but subsequent edits don't feature this.
- Harrison doesn't play any instrument on the track. Ringo plays tubular bells in addition to his drum track.
- McCartney plays the honky-tonk styled piano, and Lennon does the sole guitar track.
- The song later also appeared in the Yellow Submarine movie and soundtrack.
- Run for two and a half minutes, and took 4 takes to complete.
- Written by McCartney.
- McCartney wrote this song when he was 16, and the band used to play it live in the early days whenever their equipment broke down. A few more lyrics were added in for the [I]Sgt. Pepper[/I]'s version and the arrangement no doubt became more sophisticated. The song was written as, and intended to be, a tribute to McCartney's father - an obscure jazz musician who had played around London in the 1920s. In 1966, when McCartney re-polished the song, his father was 64 years of age (hence the title).
- The song garnered some backlash from Beatles fans due to the parent-friendly nature of the song. It's pretty clear by this stage that McCartney wanted to appeal to everyone and not just the younger generation. Lennon later paid out this song in particular in 1980, saying that he would 'never dream of writing a song like that'.
- This song was almost made the B-Side to either Strawberry Fields or Penny Lane. Instead it was decided to make those songs a double A-Side. If When I'm Sixty-Four had been made the B-Side it would not have featured on the album.
- The song was in the key of C, but the recording was sped up to get the song into the key of D. This was to give the effect of McCartney's voice being younger and to aid the song's overall honky-tonky vaudeville feel.
- Also aiding this feel was a trio of clarinets, which also (unusually for the time) harmonize with the vocals at one point. Some well-respected clarinet players did the clarinets - there are two regular clarinets and one bass clarinet.
- McCartney sings the lead vocals, with Lennon and Harrison providing backups. McCartney also whistles during the outro on the original vinyl version of the song, but subsequent edits don't feature this.
- Harrison doesn't play any instrument on the track. Ringo plays tubular bells in addition to his drum track.
- McCartney plays the honky-tonk styled piano, and Lennon does the sole guitar track.
- The song later also appeared in the Yellow Submarine movie and soundtrack.
- Run for two and a half minutes, and took 4 takes to complete.
10. Lovely Rita
- Written by McCartney.
- McCartney took inspiration for the lyrics after he was issued with a parking ticket. This song is a sarcastic jibe at the traffic warden, apparently a woman named Meta Davis.
- This song is unusual amongst Sergeant Pepper tracks in that the band recorded it as a band (IE. All playing the song together at the same time). The densely layered vocals were influenced by the Beach Boys.
- Both McCartney and George Martin recorded piano tracks. Martin's piano track was twisted electronically to get the strange warbling effect for the solo. It was also recorded at a lower key and then sped up to fit with the song.
- McCartney sang the lead vocals, which were also recorded in a lower key before being sped up.
- Lennon provided some backing vocals and played an acoustic guitar for the recording. Harrison also did the same.
- The kazoo sound is Lennon, McCartney, Ringo and Harrison all playing paper over combs. Mal Evans may have also hummed along on one of his own.
- Pink Floyd were present during recording of this song and watched for the duration.
- Runs for nearly 3 minutes and took 11 takes to finish.
- Written by McCartney.
- McCartney took inspiration for the lyrics after he was issued with a parking ticket. This song is a sarcastic jibe at the traffic warden, apparently a woman named Meta Davis.
- This song is unusual amongst Sergeant Pepper tracks in that the band recorded it as a band (IE. All playing the song together at the same time). The densely layered vocals were influenced by the Beach Boys.
- Both McCartney and George Martin recorded piano tracks. Martin's piano track was twisted electronically to get the strange warbling effect for the solo. It was also recorded at a lower key and then sped up to fit with the song.
- McCartney sang the lead vocals, which were also recorded in a lower key before being sped up.
- Lennon provided some backing vocals and played an acoustic guitar for the recording. Harrison also did the same.
- The kazoo sound is Lennon, McCartney, Ringo and Harrison all playing paper over combs. Mal Evans may have also hummed along on one of his own.
- Pink Floyd were present during recording of this song and watched for the duration.
- Runs for nearly 3 minutes and took 11 takes to finish.
11. Good Morning, Good
Morning
- Written by Lennon.
- Lennon got the idea from a catchy jingle from a cereal commercial. Other lyrics allude to a sitcom at the time called 'Meet the Wife'.
- The song is written in a strange mix of metres... 5/4, 3/4 and 4/4.
- Guest musicians were brought in, in this case the brass section from Sounds Incorporated. They were recorded at very close proximity to get a different tone and more compressed sound (EG. One mic was put right into the opening of the sax).
- Lennon provided a series of animal sounds and had them arranged so that each animal was followed by another that could eat it (lolwut?). The final animal sound, that of a chicken, segues into the beginning of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise), which is the following track on the album.
- Lennon doesn't actually play any instruments on this track, he only does vocals.
- McCartney and Harrison provide backing vocals.
- McCartney plays the guitar solo and a bass track. Harrison provides guitar, and Ringo recorded drums and tambourine.
- George Martin arranged and conducted the brass bits.
- Lennon didn't think much of the song, thinking that the recording was rushed just to fill up the album.
- Runs for two and a half minutes and took 8 takes to record.
- Written by Lennon.
- Lennon got the idea from a catchy jingle from a cereal commercial. Other lyrics allude to a sitcom at the time called 'Meet the Wife'.
- The song is written in a strange mix of metres... 5/4, 3/4 and 4/4.
- Guest musicians were brought in, in this case the brass section from Sounds Incorporated. They were recorded at very close proximity to get a different tone and more compressed sound (EG. One mic was put right into the opening of the sax).
- Lennon provided a series of animal sounds and had them arranged so that each animal was followed by another that could eat it (lolwut?). The final animal sound, that of a chicken, segues into the beginning of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise), which is the following track on the album.
- Lennon doesn't actually play any instruments on this track, he only does vocals.
- McCartney and Harrison provide backing vocals.
- McCartney plays the guitar solo and a bass track. Harrison provides guitar, and Ringo recorded drums and tambourine.
- George Martin arranged and conducted the brass bits.
- Lennon didn't think much of the song, thinking that the recording was rushed just to fill up the album.
- Runs for two and a half minutes and took 8 takes to record.
12. Sgt. Pepper's
Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise)
- Obviously, like the proper version of the song, this is written primarily by McCartney.
- The idea for a reprise came from roadie Neil Aspinall, who said, as Sgt Pepper's was a 'welcoming' song, something else should bookend the other end of the album - giving the effect of a band playing a show with a set opener and a set ender.
- This is the second shortest Beatles song, running just over a minute.
- It's pretty much the same as the first track on the album, though played at a slightly faster tempo and with different lyrics. Also, the key is the reverse of the proper version of the song (Sgt Peppers is in a G Major key with a bit of a shift to F, whereas the reprise is in F with a bit of a shift to G). The key shifts in this unusual way at the very end in order to segue into A Day in the Life.
- The applause at the end carries over into the final song on the album.
- Obviously, like the proper version of the song, this is written primarily by McCartney.
- The idea for a reprise came from roadie Neil Aspinall, who said, as Sgt Pepper's was a 'welcoming' song, something else should bookend the other end of the album - giving the effect of a band playing a show with a set opener and a set ender.
- This is the second shortest Beatles song, running just over a minute.
- It's pretty much the same as the first track on the album, though played at a slightly faster tempo and with different lyrics. Also, the key is the reverse of the proper version of the song (Sgt Peppers is in a G Major key with a bit of a shift to F, whereas the reprise is in F with a bit of a shift to G). The key shifts in this unusual way at the very end in order to segue into A Day in the Life.
- The applause at the end carries over into the final song on the album.
13. A Day in the Life
- This is actually two songs joined together, the main portion being a song written by Lennon and the middle section being an unfinished song by McCartney.
- The lyrics are fairly disparate but are actually in keeping with the album's overall theme of everyday life. Lennon took inspiration from a couple of newspaper articles (in particular the death of Tara Browne - a friend of the band's and heir to the Guinness fortune) and McCartney's section is more of his usual twee youth-orientated nostalgia. Bridging the whole thing is a sly reference to drug-using, being the McCartney line 'I'd love to turn you on', which resulted in the song being banned by the BBC. Lennon also took some inspiration from his serious acting debut in the film How I Won the War (an early form of cross-promotion?) and several references came into the song courtesy of the newspaper The Daily Mail. George Martin maintained afterwards that the whole song was primarily about drugs.
- The working title of the song was In The Life of....
- The two sections of the song were seperated by a long part featuring one piano chord and Mal Evans counting as the band was unsure how to musically link the two together. A ringing alarm clock was recorded for the end of this section as a marker for where McCartney's part would start, it was intended to edit this out once the gap had been filled. McCartney decided to keep the clock though as it fitted with his lyrics. This is all of course rather elementary as George Martin later said that it would've been nearly impossible to edit the sound out anyway.
- McCartney had an idea that an orchestra could improvise something to fill the gap (something neccessitated by the different keys that his and Lennon's sections were in). Martin didn't want to leave it to chance though so he composed a crescendo-like piece they could loosely ad-lib around. This piece actually consisted of the lowest note the orchestra could play and then a squiggly line over 24 bars that led to the highest note they could play, with a nominated note for each bar so the orchestra would know roughly where they should be at each point. McCartney and Martin conducted the orchestra together, and this ended up being the most expensive part of the whole album in terms of recording costs. McCartney originally wanted a full 90-piece orchestra, but ended up getting around 40 instead. The piece was recorded 4 seperate times to compensate, through the use of 'ambisonics' - an early form of surround sound recording. Each orchestra member was also given a piece of a party costume to wear during the recording - EG. A gorilla mask, a balloon, etc.
- The recording of this song was filmed for an intended television special. It never came to fruition, although some footage could later be seen in the promotional video for the song .
- Ringo goes to double-time for McCartney's more brisk section of the song. Interestingly, he retains this speed when the song reverts back to Lennon's section.
- Originally the song was to end with the band all humming a note together. It lacked impact though so they instead opted for a more instrumental version - the final chord is the sound of Lennon, McCartney, Ringo and Mal Evans all playing an E major on pianos, and George Martin playing it on a harmonium. The chord rings out for an astonishing 40-odd seconds, which was achieved by turning up the recording equipment to a ridiculously attuned level - so that each nuance of vibration was captured. This is why you can hear all sorts of unintentional and intentional background sounds at the end, like paper rustling and recordings of the band talking (some of which are run backwards, like 'Will Paul return as Superman?') These last sounds were featured in the final 2 seconds of the track and were placed on the last groove of the record so that they would play endlessly if the listener had a manual record player.
- After this 'final' chord is another sound, a very high tone that most human ears are unable to hear. This was Lennon's idea and he claimed that it was put there mainly to irritate people's dogs.
- The song took 34 hours to record, which is probably the longest amount of time the band ever spent on one single song - about 3 and a half times longer than most of their tracks on previous albums. The final track runs for 5 minutes.
- A few south asian countries excluded this track from their locally-released versions of the album, owing to the alleged drug references.
- Lennon does the vocals for his section of the song and also played an acoustic guitar track, as well as the piano.
- McCartney did his usual bass stuff, as well as a piano track and the vocals on his section.
- Harrison only contributed some maracas to this song.
- Ringo did his drums and a congo track, as well some piano for the final chord.
- The orchestra consists of 12 violinists, 4 viola players, 2 bass violinists, 3 trombonists, 3 trumpeters, 2 french horn players, 2 clarinet players, 4 bassoon players, an oboe player, a tuba player, a harp player, and two percussionists.
- Several celebrities were present during the recording of the song, including Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Marianne Faithful, Donovan, David Crosby and Mike Nesmith.
- This is actually two songs joined together, the main portion being a song written by Lennon and the middle section being an unfinished song by McCartney.
- The lyrics are fairly disparate but are actually in keeping with the album's overall theme of everyday life. Lennon took inspiration from a couple of newspaper articles (in particular the death of Tara Browne - a friend of the band's and heir to the Guinness fortune) and McCartney's section is more of his usual twee youth-orientated nostalgia. Bridging the whole thing is a sly reference to drug-using, being the McCartney line 'I'd love to turn you on', which resulted in the song being banned by the BBC. Lennon also took some inspiration from his serious acting debut in the film How I Won the War (an early form of cross-promotion?) and several references came into the song courtesy of the newspaper The Daily Mail. George Martin maintained afterwards that the whole song was primarily about drugs.
- The working title of the song was In The Life of....
- The two sections of the song were seperated by a long part featuring one piano chord and Mal Evans counting as the band was unsure how to musically link the two together. A ringing alarm clock was recorded for the end of this section as a marker for where McCartney's part would start, it was intended to edit this out once the gap had been filled. McCartney decided to keep the clock though as it fitted with his lyrics. This is all of course rather elementary as George Martin later said that it would've been nearly impossible to edit the sound out anyway.
- McCartney had an idea that an orchestra could improvise something to fill the gap (something neccessitated by the different keys that his and Lennon's sections were in). Martin didn't want to leave it to chance though so he composed a crescendo-like piece they could loosely ad-lib around. This piece actually consisted of the lowest note the orchestra could play and then a squiggly line over 24 bars that led to the highest note they could play, with a nominated note for each bar so the orchestra would know roughly where they should be at each point. McCartney and Martin conducted the orchestra together, and this ended up being the most expensive part of the whole album in terms of recording costs. McCartney originally wanted a full 90-piece orchestra, but ended up getting around 40 instead. The piece was recorded 4 seperate times to compensate, through the use of 'ambisonics' - an early form of surround sound recording. Each orchestra member was also given a piece of a party costume to wear during the recording - EG. A gorilla mask, a balloon, etc.
- The recording of this song was filmed for an intended television special. It never came to fruition, although some footage could later be seen in the promotional video for the song .
- Ringo goes to double-time for McCartney's more brisk section of the song. Interestingly, he retains this speed when the song reverts back to Lennon's section.
- Originally the song was to end with the band all humming a note together. It lacked impact though so they instead opted for a more instrumental version - the final chord is the sound of Lennon, McCartney, Ringo and Mal Evans all playing an E major on pianos, and George Martin playing it on a harmonium. The chord rings out for an astonishing 40-odd seconds, which was achieved by turning up the recording equipment to a ridiculously attuned level - so that each nuance of vibration was captured. This is why you can hear all sorts of unintentional and intentional background sounds at the end, like paper rustling and recordings of the band talking (some of which are run backwards, like 'Will Paul return as Superman?') These last sounds were featured in the final 2 seconds of the track and were placed on the last groove of the record so that they would play endlessly if the listener had a manual record player.
- After this 'final' chord is another sound, a very high tone that most human ears are unable to hear. This was Lennon's idea and he claimed that it was put there mainly to irritate people's dogs.
- The song took 34 hours to record, which is probably the longest amount of time the band ever spent on one single song - about 3 and a half times longer than most of their tracks on previous albums. The final track runs for 5 minutes.
- A few south asian countries excluded this track from their locally-released versions of the album, owing to the alleged drug references.
- Lennon does the vocals for his section of the song and also played an acoustic guitar track, as well as the piano.
- McCartney did his usual bass stuff, as well as a piano track and the vocals on his section.
- Harrison only contributed some maracas to this song.
- Ringo did his drums and a congo track, as well some piano for the final chord.
- The orchestra consists of 12 violinists, 4 viola players, 2 bass violinists, 3 trombonists, 3 trumpeters, 2 french horn players, 2 clarinet players, 4 bassoon players, an oboe player, a tuba player, a harp player, and two percussionists.
- Several celebrities were present during the recording of the song, including Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Marianne Faithful, Donovan, David Crosby and Mike Nesmith.
- Riding high on the
success of Sgt. Pepper's, the band then released this single in July 1967.
