Recording "Sour Milk Sea"

From Wikipedia:

With Harrison as his producer, Lomax recorded “Sour Milk Sea” for release as a single. The sessions for the song began at EMI Studios (now Abbey Road Studios) in London on 24 June 1968, before moving to Trident Studios, to use that facility’s superior, eight-track recording equipment. Speaking to Melody Maker in September, Harrison described the recording as a “glorified jam session”. The line-up consisted of Lomax on vocals, Harrison and Eric Clapton on guitars, Nicky Hopkins on piano, Paul McCartney on bass, and Ringo Starr on drums. McCartney was absent from the initial session, however, only returning on 25 June from an Apple-related business trip to California. While Apple projects typically featured one member of the Beatles, “Sour Milk Sea” is the only track where more than two members of the band appeared on another artist’s recording.

Clapton’s electric guitar playing gave the song a riff-based quality that was absent from the Beatles’ version. Lomax later said that he thought the track “worked as an instrumental”, and he recalled his nervousness when it came to overdubbing the vocal part, with “three Beatles in the control room watching me”. In addition to supplying acoustic rhythm guitar on the song, Harrison played an electric guitar solo, which appears shortly after the two-minute mark on the recording, following Clapton’s lead guitar break. Hammond organ was also added over this instrumental passage, although the part is uncredited. Recording was completed on 26 June. Like Clapton and Hopkins, Lomax went on to contribute to the sessions for The Beatles, singing backing vocals on “Dear Prudence“.

Session activities

1. Sour Milk Sea

   Written by George Harrison

   Recording

Staff

Musicians on "Sour Milk Sea"

Production staff

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