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8.35am
Does anyone know how they got that killer acoustic guitar sound throughout the entire song? What is that?
5.34am
31 March 2008
Offline
Hey bigtwenty. Thanks for visiting the site.
Have a look at this: http://books.google.co.uk/book…..38;f=false
In short, Lennon played a Gibson Jumbo acoustic in e minor, slowed down a semitone.
I really need to get Walter Everett's Beatles books. Every time I delve into them on Google Books they look absolutely fantastic. They're supposed to be more reliable and accurate than Revolution In The Head too, although quite a bit more expensive.
Can buy me love! Please consider supporting the Beatles Bible on Amazon
Or buy my paperback/ebook! Riding So High – The Beatles and Drugs
Don't miss The Bowie Bible – now live!
5.59am
Woah, that is crazy. I understand what you are talking about. But that book is a bit over my head i think. Well I am going to try to mess with some of that in my studio. Much Obliged!
5.18pm
14 October 2009
Offline Joe said:
I really need to get Walter Everett's Beatles books. Every time I delve into them on Google Books they look absolutely fantastic. They're supposed to be more reliable and accurate than Revolution In The Head too, although quite a bit more expensive.
I've just been reading the link you supplied which had some really fantastic information (although a lot went over my head too) and have since done a bit of searching on Amazon. Both the books together would cost around £50, but I am VERY tempted.
I might start saving……
"If we feel our heads starting to swell.....we just look at Ringo!"
2.42pm
31 March 2008
Offline I got them both for Christmas (thanks Dad!). They are excellent books which I thoroughly recommend. Everett says upfront that readers should have degree-level musical knowledge to get the most out of them (I don't), and there's plenty of musical theory and technical analysis of the songwriting and performance, along with notation of certain passages.
However, from a relative layman's perspective, it's clear that Everett knows his stuff, and there's plenty to get out of the books. He's listened to the recordings more closely than Ian Macdonald, and I think his breakdowns of the recording (who plays what, and on which track) is more accurate. The only thing that I found a little irritating is that it's written from a US perspective, so he occasionally talks about songs appearing on albums that people in other countries may not recognise, eg I've Just Seen A Face on Rubber Soul .
Google Books has the first volume (Quarry Men to Rubber Soul ), but the second (Revolver to Anthology) seems to be displaying a different book, or at least it was the lasts time I looked. There's no substitute for having both volumes in paper form, though.
When I get the chance I'll add a review to the somewhat small books section.
Can buy me love! Please consider supporting the Beatles Bible on Amazon
Or buy my paperback/ebook! Riding So High – The Beatles and Drugs
Don't miss The Bowie Bible – now live!
5.41pm
bigtwenty said:
Does anyone know how they got that killer acoustic guitar sound throughout the entire song? What is that?
The guitar sounds of many Beatles songs can be attributed to the tubes in the Redd-51 recording console along with the Altec compressors and Fairchild Limiters. Remember, the sound went though the Microphone Amplifiers then to the mic faders (either passing or not passing through the limited EQ ) on each side of the desk. From there the signal for the guitar went through the Altec Compressors then back to the Multi-track faders (middle 4) of the recording desk. The signal then went either went direct to the tape machine or went to the patch-bay room and onto one the great Abbey Road sound chambers. From there the signal was routed back to the console for either mixing or placed , back to the on one of the tracks on the four track machine. Of course their was things like tape delay, ADT and STEED which altered the sound in some way, but point to this topic is that their where many things that changed the sound of their instruments not just though normal playing methods.
Damn the thought of the sound and magic that took place inside those vacuum tubes in each Amplifier module of the
REDD-51 console. Think the sound of Vaccum tubes people because all the euipment at Abbey Road Studios had them
up to the Abbey Road Album.
The beatles sound is the highly modfied tube compressors and limiters at Abbey Road Studios , always remember that !!!!!!!!
Wow, I went real off track on this one.
John Senchak
Beatleogist
Today is Sir George Martins Birthday !!!!!!!!
And still the Guitar gently weeps……..
4.28am
So what you are saying is that they didnt record the fender amps straight into the computer like today? ha ha just kidding, but seriously, did they only use the pre amp sections of the console, or did they record the amps, then into the sequence you have described? VERY good information!
5.09pm
No the recording technology at Abbey Road was very archaic by today's standards in the sixties. Remember the first three albums where done live in Studio two with a minimal amount of overdubbing. What people don't know is that many of their songs (listen to “She loves you” through a pair of headphones real loud ) are edited from many takes. Editing of songs happened way before ” Strawberry Fields Forever ” with the famous edit happening at 1 minute. You see the Redd-51 console had between 60 to 80 vacuum tubes and each input or output of the signal path went through a amplifier module. If the signal came in to the console, it went though a amp module, if it went to echo chamber or to the tape machine the signal passed through one of those amp module. The Redd-51 console was basically a routing of signal, amplification at the line level, and level control by way of faders, or pots. Of the four tracks , 2 instruments tracks where sent to the Altec Compressors, and two vocals tracks where sent to the Fairchild limiters more or less in this configuration . The console had ten microphone inputs, four tape outputs with 2 paths going out to the echo chamber, and two inputs coming back from the chamber. From a standpoint of recording the the Redd-51 console was very limited in what they could do This was the reason why Revolver and Sgt Pepper pushed the sheer limits of what it could do when it came to recording music.
Abbey Road Studios didn't have recording equipment with semiconductors in it , until the Abbey Road album which used the 8 track TG desk. A interesting fact is that Abbey Road did have a highly experimental transistor console around 1967 which The Zombies used on their Odyssey and Oracle album. I strongly believe that this console was also used on Pink Floyds ” Pipers at the Gates of dawn” album
John Senchak Beatlogist John@antihotmail.com
5.21pm
Wow, this is great info. I am currently involved in a project that has music that is a very subtle combination of modern music and 60's/70's rock music. Our concentration being the vocals and harmonies and I would be lying to you if I said we weren't studying the Beatles vocal methods. Do you have a blog or something? I was also wondering if you could point me in the direction of something that might be of some use to me in getting closer to the Beatles vocal tones and sounds. Maybe harmony techniques or vocal recording techniques.
Much obliged either way. And either way i Might want your blog or email address for further questions.
Thanks for the fascinating input!
5.34pm
Read the book “recording the Beatles” which has a section on how they stood around a figure 8 microphone and did their vocal parts. Remember, that many of the vocals that you are hearing are overdubs to the instrument tracks. Some of the songs are done completely live , like in the case of “Twist And Shout ” But because they wanted to fix mistakes that happened, overdubs, editing of takes and punch in's where part of the process. What you are trying to recreate is part of the recording process, not something was done completely live on the studio floor.
http://www.recordingthebeatles.com
John Senchak Beatlogist john@antihotmail.com
6.19pm
I have been more or less studying vocal harmonies in general and have been finding some very interesting things, but I have listened to the zombies, the turtles and the Beatles and for whatever reason, no one sounds like the Beatles as far as vocal harmonies goes. The only people close are the Beach boys. But I have always been intrigued of how they got the “sound”. I mean I would like to get as much recorded at the same time as possible, But i think vocals are one of those things that really depend on the feel of the song. Sometimes you would really want the vocals recorded live in the live room with all the other stuff and sometimes not. The real talent comes in when you are able to know when to do so or not to do so. Was this song (only sleeping) overdubbed? The background harmonies have such a different feel than JL's vocals.
10.39pm
14 October 2009
Offline Joe said:
I got them both for Christmas (thanks Dad!).
Had some cash for Christmas so I've just ordered both from Amazon.co.uk! Just under £47 for the pair. Sorted 
"If we feel our heads starting to swell.....we just look at Ringo!"
5.52pm
bigtwenty said:I have been more or less studying vocal harmonies in general and have been finding some very interesting things, but I have listened to the zombies, the turtles and the Beatles and for whatever reason, no one sounds like the Beatles as far as vocal harmonies goes. The only people close are the Beach boys. But I have always been intrigued of how they got the “sound”. I mean I would like to get as much recorded at the same time as possible, But i think vocals are one of those things that really depend on the feel of the song. Sometimes you would really want the vocals recorded live in the live room with all the other stuff and sometimes not. The real talent comes in when you are able to know when to do so or not to do so. Was this song (only sleeping) overdubbed? The background harmonies have such a different feel than JL's vocals.
I just looked over the “Recording The Beatles” book on the song “I'm only Sleeping” and their is not a detail discussion on this song. The reason why amazes me because I think the song is one of the best on Revolver . Anyway, because the songs on Revolver where recorded in Studio 3 , the recording room gives the song a different feel then normally hear you from songs recorded in Studio 1 and 2 which where much bigger spaces. Whats real interested about Revolver and the song is the control room ifor Studio 3 was in one of the back rooms on the second floor of the existing house which normally you only see the front of the building. Well getting off topic, most of the songs on Revolver utilized overdubbing, tape to tape reduction, editing, ADT, Tape echo, Echo Chamber, tape speed reduction during recording, EQ'ing , and tape loops I strongly believe that the Lennons vocals used ADT so the it would come across as a more fuller sound
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A…..e_tracking
Do some research on Abbey Road Studio, it's some real amazing stuff.
If you start researching The Beach Boys , then you must study Pet Sounds, The Wrecking Crew, Western Studios and Gold Star Studios, Glen Campbell, Leon Russel Hal Blaine , Carol Kaye ,and Jim Gordon.
I also need to clarify what a overdub is because most people don't know exactly what is involved. The Process of of Overdubbing (superimposing sound over sound, during playback/recording) is like what you hear on radio, when a DJ talks over the beginning of a song. The process at Abbey Road was just running a four track through the REDD-51 desk in playback and having another four track recording on the output. During the process, they would have a person sing through a microphone, while the sound was going the recording console adding the vocals to the tape as it was recorded. The vocals could be EQ, limited, compressed , adjusted for level or even sent to the echo chambers but the idea was just to add vocals to one of the empty tracks on the multi-track machine usual the third or fourth track. Tracks one and two where normally instrument tracks (rhythm).
John Senchak Beatlogist John@antihotmail.com
5.15pm
3 September 2012
Offline
It is a well-known fact that George played some random notes and wrote a backwards solo for I’m Only Sleeping , but how many people have heard it backwards the way George played it? It could be done with audacity, but there are versions on YouTube for those who don’t have it. I looked it up but then I decided to listen in audacity and reverse it myself. I thought it would have fit very well originally, but the backwards does make an excellent addition to the song.
I’ll just leave it here in case anybody is curious.
Please don't wake me, no don't shake me, leave me where I am, I'm only sleeping~.
4.40am
1 May 2010
Offline Thanks for sharing this! It is really interesting to hear. So, what we know is that George recorded the guitar and then they played it backwards? Sorry for my ignorance. 
Here comes the sun….. Scoobie-doobie……
Something in the way she moves…..attracts me like a cauliflower…
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Beware of Darkness…
7.39am
20 December 2010
Offline mithveaen said
Thanks for sharing this! It is really interesting to hear. So, what we know is that George recorded the guitar and then they played it backwards? Sorry for my ignorance.
Yes and it was George who was innovative and came up with the idea for the backwards guitar solos and not Paul though some have thought it was him.
The further one travels, the less one knows
12.10pm
Reviewers
Moderators
1 May 2011
Offline Did it not take George something like 10 hours to work it out and record? If so thats nearly how long it took them to make their first album!!! Talk about determination and dedication. Was definately worth it tho, it sounds wonderful and so matches the song.
"I told you everything I could about me, Told you everything I could" ('Before Believing' - Emmylou Harris)
12.52pm
Reviewers
29 November 2012
Offline I’ve never read he wrote it “randomly,” rather that he wrote a solo, then re-wrote it in reverse, played it in reverse, and the played the tape backwards so that the music was being played forward (as he wrote it) but with the backwards effect on the guitar. It was very well thought out and executed, not just slapped together and played backwards.
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1.31pm
Reviewers
Moderators
1 May 2011
Offline DrBeatle said
I’ve never read he wrote it “randomly,” rather that he wrote a solo, then re-wrote it in reverse, played it in reverse, and the played the tape backwards so that the music was being played forward (as he wrote it) but with the backwards effect on the guitar. It was very well thought out and executed, not just slapped together and played backwards.
Thats what ive read numerous times, it being all worked out and planned by George. Where did you get it was random Holsety?
"I told you everything I could about me, Told you everything I could" ('Before Believing' - Emmylou Harris)
3.51pm
3 September 2012
Offline I was talking about the rest of the song, where you hear random notes. George said he and Paul played random notes for the rest of the guitar parts on Anthology, in that segment where they listen to Golden Slumbers and Tomorrow Never Knows . I know he spent 5 hours or so in a night session writing the solo.
Please don't wake me, no don't shake me, leave me where I am, I'm only sleeping~.
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