Recording: Hey Jude

Trident Studios, St Anne’s Court, London
Producer: George Martin
Engineer: Barry Sheffield

Having recorded the basic rhythm track for ‘Hey Jude’ the previous day, The Beatles finished the recording during this 5pm-3am session.

The session took place at Trident Studios in London’s Soho, which had been chosen for its eight-track recording facilities. Overdubs added to take one included lead and backing vocals, bass guitar, tambourine, handclaps, and a 36-piece orchestra.

Hey Jude promo film, 4 September 1968

The orchestra featured 10 violins, three violas, three cellos, two flutes, contrabassoon, bassoon, two clarinets, contrabass clarinet, four trumpets, four trombones, two horns, two string basses and percussion.

The session musicians were also asked, for a double fee, to clap their hands and contribute backing vocals; one musician reportedly refused, saying: “I’m not going to clap my hands and sing Paul McCartney’s bloody song!”

Paul McCartney's handwritten lyrics for Hey Jude

Page last updated: 22 June 2023

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2 thoughts on “Recording: Hey Jude”

    1. Sorry, but according to https://www.the-paulmccartney-project.com/session/recording-hey-jude/, Ringo was the one playing the tambourine plus photographs show him at Trident.
      You are correct that Paul used his Fender Jazz Bass, presumably for the first time, and I don’t get all this nonsense about him banning George from playing any guitar on the song at all, because George’s guitar was still included in the final mix.
      It has often been erroneously stated that George played Fender Bass VI on the studio recording, because he did so on the David Frost Show performance, but in reality, it was Paul with his left-handed Fender Jazz Bass, which George obviously couldn’t have played.

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