Recording, mixing: Penny Lane

Studio Three, EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Producer: George Martin
Engineer: Geoff Emerick

This session, which began at 2.30pm and ended at 11pm, saw the second set of session musicians record contributions to ‘Penny Lane’, following the 9 January 1967 addition of flutes of trumpets.

On this day seven instruments were recorded: two trumpets, played by Bert Courtley and Duncan Campbell; two oboes, played by Dick Morgan and Mike Winfield, who also both added cor anglais parts; and a double bass played by Frank Clarke.

The cors anglais were used during the instrumental passage, but went unused in the final mix. They can be heard on Anthology 2. The double bass, meanwhile, was played for just a three-second passage of descending notes as the banker sits waiting for a trim.

The Beatles considered ‘Penny Lane’ to be complete at this stage, and two mono mixes were created at the end of the session. However, on 17 January the piccolo trumpet solo was added, rendering the mixes unnecessary.