Recording: Her Majesty, Golden Slumbers, Carry That Weight

Studio Two, EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Producer: George Martin
Engineer: Phil McDonald

Three new Abbey Road songs were recorded on this day, although two of those were taped as one.

Paul McCartney was the first of The Beatles to arrive at the studio, and on this day used the time to tape ‘Her Majesty’. The song had been written in October 1968, and was premiered during the Get Back/Let It Be sessions on 9 and 24 January.

On this day McCartney recorded three takes of the song, with just vocals and acoustic guitar. His acoustic guitar was recorded on track one of the eight-track tape, and his vocals on track eight.

At the end of the third attempt McCartney listened to a playback, and ‘Her Majesty’ became a contender for the Abbey Road medley.

John Lennon didn’t attend this session as he was recuperating from a car crash in Scotland. Once George Harrison and Ringo Starr arrived, however, they began work on ‘Golden Slumbers’/‘Carry That Weight’, which at this stage had the working title ‘Golden Slumbers’.

The Beatles recorded 15 takes of the backing track, the majority of which were incomplete. The eight-track tape had Starr’s drums on track one; Harrison’s bass guitar on two; McCartney’s piano on three; and a guide vocal on eight.

The session ended at 8.30pm, and the best of the takes were edited together the following day to create the final backing track.