The Ballad Of John And Yoko photo session

John Lennon and Paul McCartney recorded The Beatles’ single ‘The Ballad Of John And Yoko’ on 14 April 1969. Its b-side, ‘Old Brown Shoe’, was recorded on 16 and 18 April.

The songs were selected as the band’s next single, and a photography session was convened for the sleeve art.

The shoot took place in the garden of McCartney’s London home, 7 Cavendish Avenue. The Beatles and Yoko Ono were all present. The principal photographer was Linda McCartney, although the band’s assistant Mal Evans also took some side-on images.

The precise date was unknown for many years, but on 30 April 2020 the Linda McCartney Instagram account uploaded a story post confirming that the shoot happened on that day 51 years previously.

When I did take pictures it was just for myself. I could have pushed to be the stills photographer on Let It Be, but I never thought about it. In fact, the only time I did an official Beatles photo was when Paul called me up at the last minute from the studio, and said that EMI needed a cover for the sleeve of ‘The Ballad Of John And Yoko’. I took a color portrait of the group with Yoko. I had really wanted The Beatles on their own, but Yoko just sat there, and being a timid newcomer I simply didn’t have the heart to tell her it was group members only.