Fab Four Blog

Studio Two, EMI Studios, London

The day began with a 10:30-11:30 morning session - probably without the Beatles in attendance - during which George Martin filled the hole in the middle of the otherwise complete "In My Life" with a beautiful baroque-style piano solo. To achieve the desired texture he played the piece at half-speed for playback at double-speed.

The Beatles were certainly around for one continous 2:30-11:30 pm session which saw them start fresh with a remake of "Nowhere Man" and conclude the recording in only three more takes.

Studio Two, EMI Studios, London

"This Bird Has Flown", now "Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown), was re-made from start to finish during the afternoon, 2:30-7:00 pm, in just three more takes. Without breaking for dinner, the Beatles then began to tackle John's "Nowhere Man". Two takes were attempted but the recording was incomplete when the session concluded at midnight, a re-make commenced the following evening.

Source: The Complete Beatles Chronicle - Mark Lewisohn

Studio Two, EMI Studios, London

The song which shared with "Day Tripper" the A-Side of the first single, "We Can Work It Out", was begun and virtually completed (but for a little overdubbing on October 29th) during two Abbey Road sessions this day, 2:30-6:30 and 7:00-11:45 pm. Once again, it displayed Lennon-McCartney's absolute mastery of the two-minute pop song and is another example of typically 1965 Beatles fare, excellent musicship allied with a new lyrical direction.

The basic track was captured in just two takes, onto which innumerable overdubs were applied, including the song's distinctive harmonium part played by John.

Source: The Complete Beatles Chronicle - Mark Lewisohn

The Beatles had recorded messages for their fan club in 1963 and 1964, however, it took them two attempts to complete the 1965 recording, the first of which was made on this day.

The recording took place at Marquee Studio in London. Situated at 10 Richmond Mews, the studio was affiliated to the Marquee Club; the building had originally been a warehouse, but was eventually converted to apartments.

The Beatles' press officer Tony Barrow led the recording, as he had done in previous years. The group worked from his script, though with various ad-libbed exchanges thrown in. Towards the end of the session they gathered around a piano to sing various improvised lines.

The session was not a success, with The Beatles evidently struggling to find humour in Barrow's script. George Harrison was not present, so the other Beatles attempted to impersonate him while reciting his lines.

John Lennon was openly disdainful of the prepared material, but none of the group was able, despite Paul McCartney's best efforts, to come together and produce anything suitably amusing. Ringo Starr was largely silent, aside from the closing singalong.

At least 26 minutes of material was recorded, although none was judged suitable for release. However, Barrow gave part of the transcript to The Beatles Book Monthly, which reproduced it in their December 1965 issue. He also included a short section of the recording in Sound Of The Stars, a promotional flexi-disc for Disc And Music Echo he produced in spring 1966.

Studio Two, EMI Studios, London

"If I Needed Someone" was the first priorty of this afternoon session, from 2:30 to 5:45, George's lead vocal, John and Paul's backing vocal and Ringo's tambourine being overdubbed onto the previous night's take one rhythm track.

The remainder of the afternoon was spent taping another marvellous new John Lennon song, the autobiographical "In My Life". The "best" was take three, completed but for a gap left in the middle-eight section which was plugged with an imaginative overdub on October 22nd.

Source: The Complete Beatles Chronicle - Mark Lewisohn

Studio Two, EMI Studios, London

Interveiwed in 1966, John and Paul admitted that "Day Tripper" was a "Forced" composition, written under the pressure of having to come up with a single. Well, other composers would have been proud to have come up with a song like this. It formed one of the two A-sides of the Beatles next single, issued on the same day as Rubber Soul, Friday, December 3rd, yet independently of that album.

The group worked from 2:30 to 7:00 pm rehearsing and recording the rhythm track, with only the final take, the third, making it through to the end. They began the 7:00-12:00 pm session overdubbing the vocals onto this, John and Paul sharing lead and backing roles. Once again, the Beatles started and completed a classy, influential recording within a matter of hours.

With the clock heading towards midnight, the group then recorded one take of a basic rhythm track for George's new composition "If I Needed Someone", leaving vocals and additional instruments to be overdubbed the next day.

Source: The Complete Beatles Chronicle - Mark Lewisohn

Studio Two, EMI Studios, London

This session was to prove a landmark in the Beatle's recording career, extending past midnight for the first time. The May 10 1965 session had also run into the following morning, but that was only for the mixing. There would soon come a time when a session not running into the next day would prove the exception.

The song which took the Beatles past midnight, to 12:15 am to be exact, was "Drive My Car", eventually chosen to open Rubber Soul. Work began at 7:00 pm and in the following 315 minutes the group taped four takes, the last of which was marked "best" and seen through to completion.

Source: The Complete Beatles Chronicle - Mark Lewisohn

The Beatles had released two albums in 1963 and 1964, and now in 1965 they did the same again. The problem was, they had little material to work with and time was passing by. John and Paul had to force themselves to come with more than a dozen new songs and then, with George and Ringo, zip through a crash series of recording sessions in order to have the LP in the stores by early December. These did not even begin until today, October 12th.

Rubber Soul was a major truning point in the Beatles career, in terms of musical composition and recording technique. Rubber Soul has proven a durable and very necessary platform between the class pop music of HELP! and the experimental ideas of Revolver.

John later admitted that in having to write and record quickly he would sometimes rely on other records for his ideas. Certainly he did so for "Run For Your Life", the first song taped in these new sessions, lifting two lines from "Baby Let's Play House" (Elvis Presley, 1955). The recording was begun and completed in five takes, 2:30 to 7:00 pm.

Rather than break for dinner, the Beatles immediately began to tape another new John Lennon song, and one of which he was, justifiably, more than a little proud. At this stage it was called "This Bird Has Flown", when it was re-made nine days after this first attempt. The term re-make can often imply that the initial recording has imperfections - not so for "This Bird Has Flown", however, for while it may not have been an exact realization of what John wanted, it was still a suberb recording, quite different but arguably as dazzling as the version which ended up on the L.P. Just one take of this, with a number of overdubs, was recorded between 7:00 and 11:30 pm, with George's sitar contribution marking the first appearance of this Indian instrument on a pop record.

The #1 song in the US on October 11, 1965

Yesterday - The Beatles

Top #5 songs in the USA

• The Beatles – Yesterday
• The McCoys – Hang On Sloopy
• Barry McGuire – Eve of Destruction
• Roy Head – Treat Her Right
• We Five – You Were On My Mind

Top #5 songs in the UK

• Ken Dodd – Tears
• Andy Williams – Almost there
• Manfred Mann – If You Gotta Go Go Now
• Barry McGuire – Eve of Destruction
• The Walker Brothers – Make It Easy On Yourself

The Beatles all attended a party to celebrate the imminent opening of Lionel Bart's musical Twang!, which ran briefly at the Shaftesbury Theatre in London in December 1965.

The party was held at Bart's home, The Priory, at 3a Seymour Walk, London. 9 October 1965 was also John Lennon's 25th birthday, and afterwards The Beatles held a separate celebration.

Found this photo of George....50 years ago today

Nothing much happening today....

The Beatles enjoying a break.....

The Beatles taking a day off.......

Peter Best, former drummer with the band, files an $8 million lawsuit against Playboy magazine, the Beatles en masse and Beatle drummer Ringo Starr in particular. Best charges that in an interview with the Beatles, published in Playboy last February, a statement attributed to Starr served to hinder Best from gaining employment and immeasurably damaged his career. In a separate action, Best’s New York attorney, Barry Goldberg, said a $50 million breach-of-contract suit against the Beatles and their manger Brian Epstein, has been instituted in England. Best is touring the U.S. in news conferences pertaining to the suits. He was heard explaining to one reporter, that he was fired from the Beatles because he “made out best with the girls.” He has a new band in England - “Mr. Maestro.”

The Beatles had a day of rest this first day of October.

The month of September ends in 1965 with the Beatles enjoying their break.

The Beatles - Enjoying their long break after the US Tour.

The Beatles - Still enjoying their six week break........

UK 1965 UK Beatles Get MBE's 26th Sept. 1965 : Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II appoints the four members of The Beatles Pop Group John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, George Harrison " Members of the Order of the British Empire".

A cartoon series featuring The Beatles began on this day in the United States. Simply titled The Beatles, it ran until 1969 on the ABC network, with 39 episodes produced over three seasons.

The series was shown on Saturday mornings at 10.30am until 1968, when it was moved to Sunday mornings. Each episode was named after a Beatles song, with stories based on the lyrics.

The Beatles themselves were not directly involved in the production, which was created by Al Brodax and Sylban Buck, and produced by King Features Syndicate. American actor Paul Frees provided the voices for John Lennon and George Harrison, while British actor Lance Percival did the same for Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr.

Al Brodax, who produced the series, was later the producer and co-writer of the 1968 animated film Yellow Submarine. The film's director, George Dunning, also worked on the cartoon series.

The Beatles’ series was re-broadcast in 1980 and again in 1987 by MTV, and later by the Disney Channel. Apple Corps, Ltd. purchased the rights to the show in the ’90s, and McFarlane Toys released a line of Beatles figures based on the animated series.

Help! was Number One on Billboard today, September 24, 1965.

The Beatles "Help!" is still the number ONE song!