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- Album This song officially appears on the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Mono) LP.
Related sessions
This song has been recorded during the following studio sessions
Feb 24, 1967
Mar 07, 1967
Get Back sessions - January 24, 1969 - Day 13
Jan 24, 1969
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Song facts
From Wikipedia:
“Lovely Rita” is a song by the Beatles performed on the album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, written and sung by Paul McCartney, although as with all McCartney or Lennon-written Beatles’ songs, it is credited to Lennon–McCartney. It is about a female traffic warden and the narrator’s affection for her.
Inspiration
The term “meter-maid“, largely unknown in the UK prior to the song’s release, is American slang for a female traffic warden. According to some sources, the song originates from when a female traffic warden named Meta Davies issued a parking citation to McCartney outside Abbey Road Studios. Instead of becoming angry, he accepted it with good grace and expressed his feelings in song. When asked why he had called her “Rita,” McCartney replied, “Well, she looked like a Rita to me“.
Recording
Recording began on 23 February 1967. Using a four-track recorder, this first performance featured Harrison’s guitar on track 1, Lennon’s guitar on track 2, Ringo’s drums on track 3, and McCartney’s piano set on track 4. Once those tracks were “bounced,” the band later added lead vocal, bass, and a three-part backing vocal section featuring George, John, and American session musician Shawn Phillips. Engineer Geoff Emerick noted McCartney’s vocal arrangements were directly inspired by Brian Wilson’s work for the Beach Boys. A second piano, played by George Martin and processed electromechanically to wobble in and out of tune was added for the distinctive solo. By 21 March, the final mono mix was completed and a month later, the stereo mix was done.
The unusual noises during the song after the lines “and the bag across her shoulder/ made her look a little like a military man” were John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison playing comb and paper.
Pink Floyd watched the Beatles recording “Lovely Rita“. Later, Pink Floyd took the effects of “Lovely Rita” for recording their instrumental compostition, “Pow R. Toc H.” from their debut album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn.
Personnel
According to some sources George Harrison played slide guitar on the recording. However, this has not been confirmed by either MacDonald nor Lewisohn.
Live performances
Paul McCartney performed the song live for the first time by any Beatle on 4 May 2013 at the Estádio Mineirão, Belo Horizonte, Brazil and throughout his 2013–2015 Out There! Tour. […]
There was a story in the paper about ‘Lovely Rita’, the meter maid. She’s just retired as a traffic warden. The phrase ‘meter maid’ was so American that it appealed, and to me a ‘maid’ was always a little sexy thing: ‘Meter maid. Hey, come and check my meter, baby.’ I saw a bit of that, and then I saw that she looked like a ‘military man’.
Paul McCartney in "Many Years From Now", by Barry Miles:
I remember one night just going for a walk and working on the words as I walked… It wasn’t based on a real person but, as often happened, it was claimed by a girl called Rita [sic] who was a traffic warden who apparently did give me a ticket, so that made the newspapers. I think it was more a question of coincidence: anyone called Rita who gave me a ticket would naturally think, ‘It’s me!’ I didn’t think, Wow, that woman gave me a ticket, I’ll write a song about her – never happened like that.
Geoff Emerick, from ABC News, May 25, 2017:
They were stuck for the solo. And in fact I suggested the piano solo, believe it or not, because they were really in a tizwaz about what solo to put on it. So then Paul shouted up because I was at the top of the stairs and Paul said, ‘oh, you play it’. So I’m so nervous, you know, in those days. So I said no I can’t do it. I wanted a shimmer behind the piano, because to get a sound of a piano that no one had heard again. So what I did, I used an echo, the echo chamber on it which was at the back of (studio) number two, and we could send the signal of the piano via a tape machine into the echo chamber, which would give some sort of delay. I stuck sticky tape on all the guide rollers of the tape machine. So when the tape went through it was wobbling all over the place, right? Again if the manager had come in, I probably would have got fired or got into terrible trouble. So I wobbled the tape going through the heads right, of the tape machine, and wobbled the echo, or the piano into the sound into the chamber. And that was like the sound behind the piano, but now you can actually get that sound as a plug in, cos most plug-ins now are based on the things we used to do.
Geoff Emerick
From The Usenet Guide to Beatles Recording Variations:
[a] mono 21 Mar 1967.
UK: Parlophone PMC 7026 Sgt Pepper 1967.
US: Capitol MAS 2653 Sgt Pepper 1967.[b] stereo 17 Apr 1967.
UK: Parlophone PCS 7026 Sgt Pepper 1967.
US: Capitol SMAS 2653 Sgt Pepper 1967.
CD: EMI CDP 7 46442 2 Sgt Pepper 1987.Talk just before the end is audible, the last syllables “leave it” (or “believe it”?) being quite distinct in mono [a].
Last updated on May 1, 2021
The book "The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present", published in 2021, covers Paul McCartney's early Liverpool days, the Beatles, Wings, and solo careers, by pairing the lyrics of 154 of his songs with first-person commentaries of the circumstances in which they were written, the people and places that inspired them, and what he thinks of them now.
"Lovely Rita" is one of the 154 songs covered.
Lyrics
Lovely Rita meter maid
Lovely Rita meter maid
Lovely Rita meter maid
Nothing can come between us
When it gets dark I tow your heart away
Standing by a parking meter
When I caught a glimpse of Rita
Filling in the ticket in her little white book
In a cap she looked much older
And the bag across her shoulder
Made her look a little like a military man
Lovely Rita meter maid
May I inquire discreetly
When are you free to take some tea with me?
(Rita)
Took her out and tried to win her
Had a laugh and over dinner
Told her I would really like to see her again
Got the bill and Rita paid it
Took her home and nearly made it
Sitting on a sofa with a sister or two
Oh, lovely Rita meter maid
Where would I be without you?
Give us a wink and make me think of you
(Lovely Rita meter maid)
Lovely meter maid
(Lovely Rita meter maid)
Rita meter maid
(Lovely Rita meter maid)
Oh, lovely Rita meter, meter maid
Lovely Rita meter maid
Officially appears on
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Mono)
LP • Released in 1967
2:42 • Studio version • A • Mono
- Paul McCartney :
- Bass, Comb and paper, Piano, Vocals
- Ringo Starr :
- Comb and paper, Drums
- John Lennon :
- Acoustic rhythm guitar, Backing vocals, Comb and paper
- George Harrison :
- Acoustic rhythm guitar, Backing vocals, Comb and paper
- George Martin :
- Piano, Producer
- Geoff Emerick :
- Recording engineer
- Session Recording:
- Feb 23, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- Feb 24, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- Mar 07, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- Mar 21, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Stereo)
LP • Released in 1967
2:42 • Studio version • B • Stereo
- Paul McCartney :
- Bass, Comb and paper, Piano, Vocals
- Ringo Starr :
- Comb and paper, Drums
- John Lennon :
- Acoustic rhythm guitar, Backing vocals, Comb and paper
- George Harrison :
- Acoustic rhythm guitar, Backing vocals, Comb and paper
- George Martin :
- Piano, Producer
- Geoff Emerick :
- Recording engineer
- Session Recording:
- Feb 23, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- Feb 24, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- Mar 07, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- Apr 17, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Mono - 2009 remaster)
Official album • Released in 2009
2:42 • Studio version • A2009 • Mono • 2009 mono remaster
- Paul McCartney :
- Bass, Comb and paper, Piano, Vocals
- Ringo Starr :
- Comb and paper, Drums
- John Lennon :
- Acoustic rhythm guitar, Backing vocals, Comb and paper
- George Harrison :
- Acoustic rhythm guitar, Backing vocals, Comb and paper
- George Martin :
- Piano, Producer
- Geoff Emerick :
- Recording engineer
- Paul Hicks :
- Remastering
- Guy Massey :
- Remastering
- Sean Magee :
- Remastering
- Allan Rouse :
- Project co-ordinator
- Session Recording:
- Feb 23, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- Feb 24, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- Mar 07, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- Mar 21, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Stereo - 2009 remaster)
Official album • Released in 2009
2:42 • Studio version • B2009 • Stereo • 2009 stereo remaster
- Paul McCartney :
- Bass, Comb and paper, Piano, Vocals
- Ringo Starr :
- Comb and paper, Drums
- John Lennon :
- Acoustic rhythm guitar, Backing vocals, Comb and paper
- George Harrison :
- Acoustic rhythm guitar, Backing vocals, Comb and paper
- George Martin :
- Piano, Producer
- Geoff Emerick :
- Recording engineer
- Guy Massey :
- Remastering
- Steve Rooke :
- Remastering
- Allan Rouse :
- Project co-ordinator
- Session Recording:
- Feb 23, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- Feb 24, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- Mar 07, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- Apr 17, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Mono - 2014 vinyl)
LP • Released in 2014
2:42 • Studio version • A2014 • Mono • 2014 remaster
- Paul McCartney :
- Bass, Comb and paper, Piano, Vocals
- Ringo Starr :
- Comb and paper, Drums
- John Lennon :
- Acoustic rhythm guitar, Backing vocals, Comb and paper
- George Harrison :
- Acoustic rhythm guitar, Backing vocals, Comb and paper
- George Martin :
- Piano, Producer
- Geoff Emerick :
- Recording engineer
- Sean Magee :
- Remastering
- Steve Berkowitz :
- Remastering
- Session Recording:
- Feb 23, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- Feb 24, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- Mar 07, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- Mar 21, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (50th anniversary boxset)
Official album • Released in 2017
2:42 • Studio version • C • Stereo • 2017 mix
- Paul McCartney :
- Bass, Comb and paper, Piano, Vocals
- Ringo Starr :
- Comb and paper, Drums
- John Lennon :
- Acoustic rhythm guitar, Backing vocals, Comb and paper
- George Harrison :
- Acoustic rhythm guitar, Backing vocals, Comb and paper
- George Martin :
- Piano, Producer
- Geoff Emerick :
- Recording engineer
- Giles Martin :
- Producer
- Sam Okell :
- Mix engineer
- Miles Showell :
- Mastering engineer
- Sean Magee :
- Mastering engineer
- Matt Mysko :
- Mix assistant
- Greg McAllister :
- Mix assistant
- Matthew Cocker :
- Transfer engineer
- James Clark :
- Audio restoration
- Adam Sharp :
- Mix coordination
- Session Recording:
- Feb 23, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- Feb 24, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- Mar 07, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- Mar 21, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (50th anniversary boxset)
Official album • Released in 2017
3:05 • Studio version • D • Speech and take 9. Partially new although according to Mark Lewisohn, take 9 was a reduction mix from take 8 and also a backing track and vocals were added a day after giving birth to take 10 and 11, so this could not be Take 9. The speech at the intro could be from an earlier take and it’s already available (edited here) at the Rockband intros, then we can hear Paul’s count in very far away (“One, Two, Three, Four” and by the way, this same count-in intro is also available on the Rockband mixes starting from “two, three, four” ) and once the song starts he is reciting with loud and clear voice, not the same as for the count-in, so this is a vocal overdub take, but it’s actually the released vocal take. Sadly, the only difference is the lack of overdubs and the harmonies from the intro, the best is that we can hear the full ending of the song and Paul and John singing at the end when the song already ended “Oh no no, I refuse to Go”.
- Giles Martin :
- Mixing engineer
- Session Recording:
- Feb 24, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (50th anniversary boxset)
Official album • Released in 2017
2:46 • Studio version • A • 1967 mix
- Paul McCartney :
- Bass, Comb and paper, Piano, Vocals
- Ringo Starr :
- Comb and paper, Drums
- John Lennon :
- Acoustic rhythm guitar, Backing vocals, Comb and paper
- George Harrison :
- Acoustic rhythm guitar, Backing vocals, Comb and paper
- George Martin :
- Piano, Producer
- Geoff Emerick :
- Recording engineer
- Session Recording:
- Feb 23, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- Feb 24, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- Mar 07, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- Mar 21, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Picture Disc - Limited Edition - 2017)
LP • Released in 2017
2:42 • Studio version • C • Stereo • 2017 mix
- Paul McCartney :
- Bass, Comb and paper, Piano, Vocals
- Ringo Starr :
- Comb and paper, Drums
- John Lennon :
- Acoustic rhythm guitar, Backing vocals, Comb and paper
- George Harrison :
- Acoustic rhythm guitar, Backing vocals, Comb and paper
- George Martin :
- Piano, Producer
- Geoff Emerick :
- Recording engineer
- Giles Martin :
- Producer
- Sam Okell :
- Mix engineer
- Miles Showell :
- Mastering engineer
- Sean Magee :
- Mastering engineer
- Matt Mysko :
- Mix assistant
- Greg McAllister :
- Mix assistant
- Matthew Cocker :
- Transfer engineer
- James Clark :
- Audio restoration
- Adam Sharp :
- Mix coordination
- Session Recording:
- Feb 23, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- Feb 24, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- Mar 07, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- Mar 21, 1967
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
Bootlegs
Live performances
“Lovely Rita” has been played in 89 concerts and 4 soundchecks.
Latest concerts where Lovely Rita has been played
Buffalo • First Niagara Center • USA
Oct 22, 2015 • Part of Out There Tour
Detroit • Joe Louis Arena • USA
Oct 21, 2015 • Part of Out There Tour
Toronto • Air Canada Centre • Canada
Oct 17, 2015 • Part of Out There Tour
University Park • Bryce Jordan Center • USA
Oct 15, 2015 • Part of Out There Tour
Columbus • Nationwide Arena • USA
Oct 13, 2015 • Part of Out There Tour
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