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ON THIS DAY: Bob Dylan turns The Beatles on to cannabis (1964)
On 28 August 1964 the future of rock ānā roll changed forever, when Bob Dylan introduced The Beatles to cannabis.
The Beatles were staying at the Delmonico Hotel on Park Avenue, near Manhattanās Central Park. According to Derek Taylor, 200,000 incoming calls were received by the hotel switchboard during their two-day stay. Fans stood eight-deep outside, held back by barricades, and the lobby and corridors were patrolled by police officers. Nobody was able to visit the Beatlesā sixth floor suite without full authorisation.
The band were relaxing after the first of two dates at the Forest Hills Stadium in Queens, and were enjoying room service dinner with Brian Epstein and Neil Aspinall. In the hospitality suite next door, Taylor entertained reporters, photographers and celebrities including Peter, Paul and Mary, the Kingston Trio and radio DJ Murray the K, all of whom were hoping to meet and maybe party with the Beatles.
The two parties were introduced by a mutual friend, the writer Al Aronowitz, at New Yorkās Delmonico Hotel. Dylan was driven from Woodstock by his road manager Victor Maymudes, picking up Aronowitz on the way.
Police officers prevented the trio from entering the hotel elevators until Mal Evans arrived to usher them upstairs. The Beatles warmly greeted the American guests, and drinks were offered.
Dylan expressed a preference for cheap wine. āIām afraid we only have champagne,ā Epstein apologised, although there were other expensive French wines and Scotch and Coke. The Beatles began asking Evans to get some cheap wine, but Dylan got stuck in to what was available. They also offered him purple hearts, but Dylan and Aronowitz declined and suggested they smoke grass instead.
Read full article here: www.beatlesbible.com/1964/08/28/bob-dylan-turns-thā¦
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ON THIS DAY: Brian Epstein dies (1967)
Late on the night of Sunday 27 August 1967, The Beatlesā manager Brian Epstein was found dead at his home in Chapel Street, London.
Epstein had invited his assistant Peter Brown and the chief executive of NEMS, Geoffrey Ellis, to spend the bank holiday weekend at Kingsley Hill, his house in Warbleton, East Sussex. At the time The Beatles were in Bangor, north Wales, with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.
Read full article here: www.beatlesbible.com/1967/08/27/brian-epstein-diesā¦
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ON THIS DAY: Ringo Starr quits The Beatles (1968)
Tensions had been building within The Beatles for some time during the recording of the White Album. On this day matters came to a head, and Ringo Starr left the group.
"While we were recording the āWhiteā album we ended up being more of a band again, and thatās what I always love. I love being in a band. Of course, it must have had moments of turmoil, because I left the group for a while that summer. I left because I felt two things: I felt I wasnāt playing great, and I also felt that the other three were really happy and I was an outsider. I went to see John, who had been living in my apartment in Montagu Square with Yoko since he moved out of Kenwood. I said, āIām leaving the group because Iām not playing well and I feel unloved and out of it, and you three are really close.ā And John said, āI thought it was you three!ā So then I went over to Paulās and knocked on his door. I said the same thing: āIām leaving the band. I feel you three guys are really close and Iām out of it.ā And Paul said, āI thought it was you three!ā I didnāt even bother going to George then. I said, āIām going on holiday.ā I took the kids and we went to Sardinia." ā Ringo Starr
That day The Beatles were booked to record in Abbey Roadās studio two; the session began at 7pm, and ended at 4.45 the following morning. The argument occurred during rehearsals for Paul McCartneyās āBack In The USSRā, which the three remaining Beatles went on to record without Starr.
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Tomorrow ā A one-hour documentary exploring John Lennonās life after the Beatles!
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ON THIS DAY: The Beatlesā first performance in Hamburg (1960)
The Beatles arrived in Hamburg, Germany in the early evening of 17 August 1960, for the first of 48 nights at the Indra Club on the Grosse Freiheit street.
The group performed at the venue for 48 nights, ending on 3 October 1960. The venue was owned by Bruno Koschmider, a local club owner who also owned the Kaiserkeller.
The groupās contract was to run for two months, from 17 August to 16 October. The Beatles were to receive 30DM (Ā£2.50) per person each day, paid every Thursday. Koschmider also paid their manager Allan Williams a commission of Ā£10 each week.
Read full article here: www.beatlesbible.com/1960/08/17/live-indra-club-haā¦
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ON THIS DAY: Pete Best is fired from The Beatles (1962)
George Martin was impressed enough by The Beatlesā debut session for EMI on 6 June to offer them a recording contract. However, he was less pleased with the bandās drummer, Pete Best.
Getting rid of Best was not an easy decision. The Beatlesā manager Brian Epstein had asked Cavern DJ Bob Wooler if it was a good idea, but Wooler told him that the handsome Best was too popular with the fans.
"Brian Epstein told me that Pete Best was going to be sacked. I could imagine it with someone who was constantly late or giving him problems, but Pete Best was not awkward and he didnāt step out of line. I was most indignant and I said, āWhy are you doing this?ā but I didnāt get an answer." ā Bob Wooler
Best had been with the group since 12 August 1960. He was never given a reason for his dismissal, which took place at 10am on this day at Epsteinās NEMS record shop. Best was dropped off at 10am by the groupās driver, Neil Aspinall, who was in a relationship with Bestās mother Mona.
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Best song on the Help! album?
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ON THIS DAY: Recording: Hey Jude (1968)
Trident Studios, St Anneās Court, London
Producer: George Martin
Engineer: Barry Sheffield
Following two days of rehearsals and rough takes, The Beatles finally began recording āHey Judeā properly.
The session took place from 2pm-4am at Trident Studios at 17 St Anneās Court, London. Unlike Abbey Road, Trident had operational eight-track recording facilities, and The Beatles were keen to exploit the new technology.
The group recorded four takes of the rhythm track, with Paul McCartney on piano and guide vocals, John Lennon playing acoustic guitar, George Harrison on electric guitar and Ringo Starr on drums. Take one was considered the best, and further overdubs were added on this night and the next.
"There is an amusing story about recording it. We were at Trident Studios in Soho, and Ringo walked out to go to the toilet and I hadnāt noticed. The toilet was only a few yards from his drum booth, but heād gone past my back and I still thought he was in his drum booth. I started what was the actual take, and āHey Judeā goes on for hours before the drums come in and while I was doing it I suddenly felt Ringo tiptoeing past my back rather quickly, trying to get to his drums. And just as he got to his drums, boom boom boom, his timing was absolutely impeccable. So I think when those things happen, you have a little laugh and a light bulb goes off in your head and you think, This is the take! and you put a little more into it. You think, oh, f**k! This has got to be the take, what just happened was so magic! So we did that and we made a pretty good record." ā Paul McCartney
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ON THIS DAY: Recording: While My Guitar Gently Weeps (1968)
Studio Two, EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Producer: George Martin
Engineer: Ken Scott
Although George Harrison had written a number of songs prior to and during The Beatlesā 1968 trip to India, he was yet to record any for the White Album. That changed during this session, when he recorded the first version of āWhile My Guitar Gently Weepsā.
The Beatles first rehearsed a number of takes of the song, which were recorded and filled two tape reels. These were taken away by Harrison at the end of the session, and the instrumentation and arrangement is unknown.
Harrison did, however, record a solo acoustic version on this day, onto which a harmonium, possibly played by Paul McCartney, was overdubbed. This take was released on 1996ās Anthology 3 and, augmented with a string arrangement, on the Love album.
"When we actually started recording āWhile My Guitar Gently Weepsā it was just me playing the acoustic guitar and singing it and nobody was interested. Well, Ringo probably was, but John and Paul werenāt. When I went home that night, I was really disappointed, because I thought, Well, this is really quite a good song, itās not as if itās shitty!" ā George Harrison, 1992
The Anthology mix was prepared by Geoff Emerick in 1984 for the unreleased Sessions album, and featured a looped ending of the final guitar phrase. It also omitted Harrisonās final comment to the control room: āLetās hear that back!ā
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ON THIS DAY: Recording: Come Together (1969)
Studios Two and Three, EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Producer: George Martin
Engineers: Geoff Emerick, Phil McDonald
The recording of āCome Togetherā, one of John Lennonās main contributions to the Abbey Road album, commenced on this day.
The backing track was recorded in eight takes in Studio Three, in a session lasting from 2.30-9.30pm. Unusually for 1969, four-track tape was used.
Three of the takes ā four, five, and seven ā were incomplete, and take six was selected as the basis of the album version.
Take one, with slightly different lyrics and a raw vocal from Lennon, can be heard on the Anthology 3 album, and take five can be heard on some formats of the 50th anniversary reissue of Abbey Road.
The initial takes had Paul McCartneyās bass guitar on track one; George Harrisonās guitar on track two; Ringo Starrās drums on track three; and Lennonās guide vocals, handclaps and tambourine on track four.
"āCome Togetherā changed at a session. We said, āLetās slow it down. Letās do this to it, letās do that to it,ā and it ends up however it comes out. I just said, āLook, Iāve got no arrangement for you, but you know how I want it.ā I think thatās partly because weāve played together a long time. So I said, āGive me something funky,ā and set up a beat, maybe, and they all just join in." ā John Lennon, 1969
Lennonās voice was suffering for him not having sung anything significant since āGive Peace A Chanceā was recorded on 1 June 1969. At one stage in the session his vocals appeared to give out altogether, despite some spirited performances.
The lyrics also changed during the session. On take one he mentioned the singer Eartha Kitt, and on takes two, six, and eight he namechecked Let It Be director Michael Lindsay-Hogg. Several times he also sang āGot to get injections ācause heās so hard to seeā in the final verse.
Take six was chosen as the best of the attempts. From 9.30-10pm it was copied over to eight-track tape in the control room of Studio Two, and was renamed take nine.
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