@@alexandrebenois7962 the final version is one octave higher. Back then, when they sped up the tape it also raised the pitch (kind of like some of those voice effects that make you sound like Alvin and the chip munks. Lol) He said in an interview that he was having trouble playing it at full speed so he played it at half speed one octave lower, then when sped up we get the final version. Very clever
@@HeyBullfrogLOL! The Beatles broke up way before George Martin died. They broke up in the 70's, GM died in 2016. You might be thinking of their manager, Brian Epstein.
I've always thought the solo should've been longer, because that's how freaking beautiful it was...Then again, when something is truly beautiful, it's often short and sweet...RIP GM..
The only thing I can think of is that this was 1965 and most pop records were in the two minute and 30 second category in length, this coming in at 2:28, and definitely did not go over three minutes.
There is something truly magical about these "ancient" black&white photographs depicting musicians, producers, engineers and instruments at work. They instantly bring some sort of golden era aura when talent and hard work were all that mattered and were the driving force behind so many great songs. Ordinary day-to-day clothes, guitars leaning over more than ordinary chairs, amps all around and lots of cables...Magic !!!
Whole-heartedly agree. Their studio photos in the Anthology albums are seared into my brain. I always try to imagine what was being discussed or could be heard when each was snapped.
Learned this solo when I was 15 way back when it came out. The hardest part was the simple major scale rundown at the end. So fast! I learned years later it was performed slowly as it is here but sped up to fit the tempo of the rest of the tune. I forgive the cheat.
Actually, they slowed the tape speed down so Martin could play the part in the same key, but an octave lower. Once he got the perfect take, they sped the tape machine back up to normal speed, which made the harpsichord an octave higher, like you hear it on the record. This is the same technique they used to record the voices of Alvin and the Chipmunks.
Not really a cheat, just a creative method used to achieve the desired end result - The Beatles, - and thousands of other recording artists that followed - "cheated" on almost every recording from '64 onwards - double tracking, vari-speed, multiple takes spliced together, dozens and dozens of takes until the perfect backing track is nailed - all normal procedure in popular music of course. I do feel inspired now to try and learn that solo myself though!
I mean, I can play it full speed and martin was definitely a better pianist than me so I'd imagine it was to get a baroque sound, especially since the Abbey Road Studios probably did not have a harpsichord at the time
@@sshadetree It was recorded at the released tempo for every other track. Just George Martin as legendary as he was couldn't quite move his hands fast enough. Thus, he used a tool called Varispeed iirc to bring this octave lower part up double speed into the right tempo.
George Martin (RIP) was a classically trained musician and an accomplished pianist. He recorded this bridge at half-speed so that when it was speeded up it took on a harpsichord-like tone, a "baroque pastiche" as Ian Macdonald writes in his 'Revolution in the Head'. It was a clever trick!
Not just him. Maca is an amazing musician and composer. Lennon a gifted poet and musician too. No slacks in George and Richard. Put them all together and put them in CA and you get Brian Wilson.
@@rman52 I love the beach boys but they are definitely overrated in terms of talent , especially considering they had to straight rip off a Chuck berry song and pass it off as there own.
@@rman52 I love the beach boys but they are definitely overrated in terms of talent , especially considering they had to straight rip off a Chuck berry song and pass it off as there own.
@@dfpguitar You're right. I love the beach boys too. Way overrated. Tell maca too. He said they wrote the greatest songs ever. Especially God only knows. And your right about taking Chuck Berry songs like roll over Beethoven. And the beach boys thought the Beatles were so insignificant they wrote back in the ussr to copy them. Watch those RU-vids on George Martin and Brian Wilson. He thought Brian was awful too. So you are right. The beach boys were not talented.
@@rman52 The guys who made Shut Down Vol. 2, Summer Days and Summer Nights, Pet Sounds, Wild Honey, Sunflower, Surf's Up, and SMiLE not genius? Really?
I told you all he made incredible contributions to Beatles songs. They came to him with raw gems and he polished them into Diamonds. This classical piano piece lifted the song up and made it better and more sophisticated. It would still be a good song without it but the piece improves it. He was a great producer, editor and arranger of their songs. A sympathetic ear who made suggestions and improvements they never would have thought of on their own. Without Martin it would have been a very different outcome. All the Martin produced albums sound great. Except Let it Be. Not produced by Martin and probably their worst album. It has some gems on it but also some turds. Martin was definitely the fifth Beatle and for that I am forever grateful! His son Giles is doing a great job remastering their catalog and carrying on the tradition. Not that they really need remastering. The original albums still sound great to me. One of the funny early moments they had in the studio is when Martin told the Beatles to speak out if there was something they didn’t like. To which George replied “ I don’t like your Tie for a start! Funny and witty! I miss George and Martin was seduced by their charm and wit as well. He said so. He was charmed by them all. RIP Martin, John and George
@@JTD472 I know. Pearls before Swine! I always say. I try to share my wisdom but you prefer to remain ignorant. Ignorance is bliss so you must be very happy.
Cool stuff! It would have been neat to have this and then the same isolated track at double speed like it is in the finished song. Side note- I got the Beatles Complete Scores book ages ago when I was 17 and learned this part before I knew it was piano recorded at half speed. When I later learned how they did the part I felt proud that I'd learned it at full speed. It's quite difficult to play.
One of the great things about Martin and the Beatles is that in albums like Rubber Soul they managed to record tracks with a variety in the arrangements and yet they were still a guitar band. Use something like the speeded up piano for In My Life and never use it again. No more string quartets after Yesterday. Always fresh. There was never a "Beatles sound" except for the guitars strong in the mix, which everybody copied, still do.
> The letter s at the end of "quartets" denotes a number of quartets, One is a number... I just ate a doughnut. Can I now claim that I've haven't eaten doughnuts today? Anyway, there's also "She's leaving home".
Sorry, I don't see how "no more string quartets" should mean "not more than one" in this context. You're just making that up. Anyway, they have used a string quartet at least twice after "Yesterday". Or does "two" not count as a number, either? ;-)
It is a great piece of work, but it sounds distorted. I'm surprised that is the track they actually used! Is that something they would filter to make it sound less distorted?
i should've worded myself a bit better, this is the original track used in the song slowed down manually to portray what it may have sounded like, and slowing it down could've possibly made it sound a bit distorted; i have no idea if the original non-slowed down recording actually exists nowadays lol
Glad you noticed! it has to do with harmony more than actual distortion... but anyways what it sounds in the track is not a piano, or at least it sounds more like a harpsichord...
If you play this backwards and listen very carefully, you can hear George Martin humming along. Since I first heard it back in 1991 when the tapes were being digitised, I can never not hear it.
I can’t remember if it was this song, probably not since this sounds pretty clearly like it was played on an actual piano, but I remember reading a story about George Martin playing an organ part on one of their songs and him just being totally wiped out after playing from how much energy it took both playing and also pumping the organ.
I’ve always felt the contribution of George Martin to the Beatles success and the greatness of their music has been underrated, even though it is accepted by millions and millions of fans. I’ve never understood why some refuse to acknowledge him, and oftentimes get angry when he’s referred to, as the “fifth Beatle”. He composed the scores for some of their greatest songs and actually played Instruments on several of the tracks!!!
God damn it I can’t believe how stupid you are that’s not George Martin that’s George EE Martin you stupid idiot why are you such an idiot why does everyone like George Lucas anyway all he did was make a stupid movie about a man with a glow in the dark sword now that’s what I call stupid you should take a leaf out of my book people should be kind to each other more that’s always been my philosophy in life
Very interesting to hear this played at its original speed. Also, if there ever was the 'fifth' Beatle then, certainly in musical terms, it's G M for sure; all the other candidates pale in comparison. For kickstarting their career you could argue for Brian Epstein.
Martin was a classical musician who spent his life working in studios. He could knock this sort of stuff out all day long without breaking a sweat and probably often did. So what’s the fuss about?
