Friday, October 11, 1968
For The Beatles
Last updated on September 12, 2021
"The Beatles" (aka the White Album) sessions
May 30 - Oct 18, 1968 • Songs recorded during this session appear on The Beatles (Mono)
Recording studio: EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
Session Early October 1968 to early December 1968 • "Post Card" sessions
Session Oct 11, 1968 • Recording and mixing "Savoy Truffle", "Piggies", "Don't Pass Me By", "Good Night"
Some of the songs worked on during this session were first released on the "The Beatles (Mono)" LP.
The Beatles had recorded the basic track of George Harrison’s “Savoy Truffle” on October 3, and the first overdubs had been added on October 5. On this day, from 3 pm to 6 pm, the work on “Savoy Truffle” continued with the addition of some saxophone overdubs.
Chris Thomas had written a brass arrangement, that was played by six saxophonists (three baritone and three tenor), who were all veterans of the British jazz scene.
George Martin suggested that I score “Savoy Truffle” for saxophones. I must say that I found it a real chore.
Chris Thomas – From “The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions”, Mark Lewisohn
The session men were playing really well – there’s nothing like a good brass section letting rip – and it sounded fantastic. But having got this really nice sound George turned to Ken Scott and said ‘Right, I want to distort it’. So I had to plug-up two high-gain amplifiers which overloaded and deliberately introduced a lot of distortion, completely tearing the sound to pieces and making it dirty. The musicians came up to the control room to listen to a playback and George said to them ‘Before you listen I’ve got to apologise for what I’ve done to your beautiful sound. Please forgive me – but it’s the way I want it!’ I don’t think they particularly enjoyed hearing their magnificent sound screwed up quite so much but they realised that this was what George wanted, and that it was their job to provide it.
Brian Gibson, technical engineer – From “The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions”, Mark Lewisohn
“Savoy Truffle” would be completed on October 14.
The rest of the day, from 6 pm to midnight, was spent mixing “Piggies“, “Don’t Pass Me By” and “Good Night“. The three songs were mixed in mono and stereo, and all those mixes would be released on the White Album.
In terms of variations between mono and stereo versions:
Written by George Harrison
Recording • SI onto take 1
Written by George Harrison
Mixing • Mono mixing - Remix 1 from take 12
Written by George Harrison
Mixing • Mono mixing - Remix 2 from take 12
Written by George Harrison
Mixing • Mono mixing - Remix 3 from take 12
Written by George Harrison
Mixing • Mono mixing - Remix 4 from take 12
AlbumOfficially released on The Beatles (Mono)
Written by Ringo Starr
Mixing • Mono mixing - Remix 1 from take 7 and edit of edit piece 4
AlbumOfficially released on The Beatles (Mono)
Mixing • Mono mixing - Remix 1 from take 34
Mixing • Mono mixing - Remix 2 from take 34
AlbumOfficially released on The Beatles (Mono)
Written by George Harrison
Mixing • Stereo mixing - Remix 1 from take 12
Written by George Harrison
Mixing • Stereo mixing - Remix 2 from take 12
Written by George Harrison
Mixing • Stereo mixing - Remix 3 from take 12
AlbumOfficially released on The Beatles (Stereo)
Written by Ringo Starr
Mixing • Stereo mixing - Remix 1 from take 7 and edit of edit piece 4
AlbumOfficially released on The Beatles (Stereo)
Mixing • Stereo mixing - Remix 1 from take 34
AlbumOfficially released on The Beatles (Stereo)
The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions • Mark Lewisohn
The definitive guide for every Beatles recording sessions from 1962 to 1970.
We owe a lot to Mark Lewisohn for the creation of those session pages, but you really have to buy this book to get all the details - the number of takes for each song, who contributed what, a description of the context and how each session went, various photographies... And an introductory interview with Paul McCartney!
The Beatles Recording Reference Manual: Volume 4: The Beatles through Yellow Submarine (1968 - early 1969)
The fourth book of this critically acclaimed series, "The Beatles Recording Reference Manual: Volume 4: The Beatles through Yellow Submarine (1968 - early 1969)" captures The Beatles as they take the lessons of Sgt. Pepper forward with an ambitious double-album that is equally innovative and progressive. From the first take to the final remix, discover the making of the greatest recordings of all time. Through extensive, fully-documented research, these books fill an important gap left by all other Beatles books published to date and provide a unique view into the recordings of the world's most successful pop music act.
If we modestly consider the Paul McCartney Project to be the premier online resource for all things Paul McCartney, it is undeniable that The Beatles Bible stands as the definitive online site dedicated to the Beatles. While there is some overlap in content between the two sites, they differ significantly in their approach.
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