year.month.day start time - end time = # of hours
1966.04.06 8:00pm-1:15am = 5.25 hours 1966.04.07 2:30pm-7:15pm, 8:15pm-1:30am = 10 hours 1966.04.08 2:30pm-9:00pm = 6.5 hours 1966.04.11 2:30pm-7:00pm, 8:00pm-1:00am = 9.5 hours 1966.04.13 2:30pm-6:30pm, 8:00pm-2:30am = 10.5 hours 1966.04.17 2:30pm-10:30pm = 8 hours 1966.04.19 2:30pm-midnight = 9.5 hours 1966.04.20 2:30pm-2:30am = 12 hours 1966.04.21 2:30pm-12:50am = 10.33 hours 1966.04.22 2:30pm-11:30pm = 9 hours 1966.04.25 10:00am-11:00am = 1 hour 1966.04.26 2:30pm-2:45am = 12.25 hours 1966.04.27 6:00pm-3:00am = 9 hours 1966.04.28 5:00pm-7:50pm = 2.83 hours 1966.04.29 5:00pm-1:00am = 8 hours 1966.05.05 9:30pm-3:00am = 5.5 hours 1966.05.06 2:30pm-2:15am = 11.75 hours 1966.05.09 7:00pm-11:00pm = 4 hours 1966.05.12 1:45pm-3:30pm = 1.75 hours 1966.05.16 2:30pm-1:30am = 11 hours 1966.05.18 2:30pm-2:30am = 12 hours 1966.05.19 7:00pm-11:00pm = 4 hours 1966.05.20 11:00am-12:30pm = 1.5 hours 1966.05.26 7:00pm-1:00am = 6 hours 1966.06.01 2:30pm-2:30am = 12 hours 1966.06.02 7:00pm-3:30am = 8.5 hours 1966.06.03 7:00pm-2:30am = 7.5 hours 1966.06.06 7:00pm-1:30am = 6.5 hours 1966.06.08 1:00pm-2:00pm, 2:30pm-2:30am = 13 hours 1966.06.09 2:30pm-8:00pm = 5.5 hours 1966.06.10 7:00pm-2:00am = 7 hours 1966.06.16 7:00pm-3:30am = 8.5 hours 1966.06.17 7:00pm-1:30am = 6.5 hours 1966.06.20 6:00pm-8:30pm = 2.5 hours 1966.06.21 10:00am-1:00pm, 2:30pm-6:30pm, 7:00pm-3:45am = 15.75 hours 1966.06.22 7:00pm-1:30am = 6.5 hours Total: 280.91 hours SOURCE Lewisohn, Mark. The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions: The Official Story of the Abbey Road Years 1962-1970. Harmony Books, a division of Crown Publishers, New York, NY, 1988.
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The tonal design of [48] "Another Girl" juxtaposes choruses and verses that are in A major against the middle 8s that are in C major.
Tonal structure of [48] "Another Girl": Chorus A Major Verse 1 A Major Chorus A Major Verse 2 A Major Chorus A Major Middle 8 C Major Verse 3 A Major Chorus A Major Middle 8 C Major Verse 4 A Major Chorus A Major Coda A Major Paul McCartney reprised this particular tonal structure in [146] "Birthday". Tonal Structure of "Birthday": Verse (instrumental) A major Verse (sung) A major Break (drums) n/a Transition E major Middle 8 C major Verse (instrumental) A major Break (guitar) transitional Middle 8 C Major Verse (sung) A major "Birthday", however, adds a significant component to the tonal design first used in "Another Girl" - an E major transition between the drum break and first middle 8. Since the one common tone between an A major chord and a C major chord is E, this transition serves as a pivot between the two tonalities - figuratively straddling both, with one foot in each key. It thus makes a perfect transition from one to the other. Similarly, at the start and end of the "The Abbey Road Medley", “You Never Give Me Your Money”, "She Came In Through The Bathroom Window”, "Golden Slumbers”, “Carry That Weight” , and "The End” all employ both A (major and/or minor) and C. In the middle, however, “Sun King”, “Mean Mr Mustard”, and “Polythene Pam" all employ E major. Tonal Structure of "The Abbey Road Medley": “You Never Give Me Your Money” - A minor, C major, A major “Sun King” - E major, C major “Mean Mr Mustard” - E major “Polythene Pam” - E major “She Came In Through The Bathroom Window” - A major “Golden Slumbers” - C major, A minor “Carry That Weight” - C major, A minor “The End” - A major and C major Thus, “Sun King”, “Mean Mr Mustard”, and “Polythene Pam"are all equally tonally related to the rest of this medley, just as the E major transition in "Another Girl" is equally tonally related to the rest of that song. In other words, the macro-scale tonal design of "The Abbey Road Medley" was first used (and on a much smaller scale) a year prior in "Birthday", which can in turn be traced back to "Another Girl". year.month.day start time - end time = # of hours
1965.10.12 2:30pm-7:00pm = 4.5 hours 1965.10.13 7:00pm-12:15am = 5.25 hours 1965.10.16 2:30pm-7:00pm = 4.5 hours 1965.10.18 2:30pm-5:45pm = 3.25 hours 1965.10.21 2:30pm-7:00pm = 4.5 hours 1965.10.22 10:30am-11:30am, 2:30pm-11:30pm = 10 hours 1965.10.24 2:30pm-7:00pm = 4.5 hours 1965.10.25 10:00am-1:00pm = 3 hours 1965.10.26 10:00am-12:30pm = 2.5 hours 1965.11.03 2:30pm-11:30pm = 9 hours 1965.11.04 1:00pm-3:30am = 4.5 hours 1965.11.06 7:00pm-1:00am = 6 hours 1965.11.08 9:00pm-3:00am = 6 hours 1965.11.09 2:30pm-5:30pm = 3 hours 1965.11.10 2:30pm-5:30pm, 9:00pm-4:00am = 10 hours 1965.11.11 4:00-5:30pm, 6:00-7:00am = 14.5 hours 1965.11.15 2:30pm-5:30pm = 3 hours Total: 98 hours SOURCE Lewisohn, Mark. The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions: The Official Story of the Abbey Road Years 1962-1970. Harmony Books, a division of Crown Publishers, New York, NY, 1988. year.month.day start time - end time = # of hours
1965.02.15 2:30pm-5:45pm, 7:00pm-10:30pm = 6.75 hours 1965.02.16 2:30pm-5:00pm = 2.5 hours 1965.02.17 2:00pm-11:00pm = 9 hours 1965.02.18 10:00am-1:00pm, 3:30pm-10:30pm = 9 hours 1965.02.19 3:30pm-6:20pm = 2.83 hours 1965.02.20 11:00am-6:00pm = 7 hours 1965.02.23 10:00am-1:00pm = 3 hours 1965.03.15 10:00am-11:00am = 1 hour 1965.04.02 10:00am-11:00am = 1 hour 1965.04.13 7:00pm-11:00pm = 4 hours 1965.04.18 10:00am-12:30pm = 2.5 hours 1965.05.10 8:00pm-11:30pm = 3.5 hours 1965.06.14 2:30pm-5:30pm, 7:00pm-10:00pm = 6 hours 1965.06.15 2:30pm-5:30pm = 3 hours 1965.06.17 2:30pm-5:30pm = 3 hours 1965.06.18 10:00am-12:30pm = 2.5 hours Total: 66.58 hours SOURCE Lewisohn, Mark. The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions: The Official Story of the Abbey Road Years 1962-1970. Harmony Books, a division of Crown Publishers, New York, NY, 1988. year.month.day start time - end time = # of hours
1964.08.11 7:00om-11:00pm = 4 hours 1964.08.14 7:00pm-9:00pm, 10:00-11:15pm = 3.25 hours 1964.09.29 2:30pm-6:30pm, 7:00pm-10:45pm = 7.75 hours 1964.09.30 2:30pm-5:30pm, 6:30pm-10:30pm = 7 hours 1964.10.06 3:00pm-6:45pm = 6.75 hours 1964.10.12 2:30pm-3:00pm = 0.5 hours 1964.10.16 2:30pm-5:30pm = 3 hours 1964.10.18 2:30pm-11:30pm = 7 hours 1964.10.21 2:30pm-5:45pm = 3.25 hours 1964.10.22 11:00am-noon = 1 hour 1964.10.26 10:00am-1:05pm, 4:30pm-6:30pm, 7:30pm-10:00pm = 7.58 hours 1964.10.27 10:00am-1:00pm = 3 hours 1964.11.01 10:00am-1:00pm = 3 hours Total: 57.08 hours SOURCE Lewisohn, Mark. The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions: The Official Story of the Abbey Road Years 1962-1970. Harmony Books, a division of Crown Publishers, New York, NY, 1988. year.month.day start time - end time = # of hours
1964.01.29 unknown 1964.02.25 10:00am-1:00pm = 3 hours 1964.02.26 10:00am-1:00pm, 2:30pm-5:30pm, 7:00pm-10:00pm = 9 hours 1964.02.27 10:00am-1:00pm, 2:30pm-5:30pm = 6 hours 1964.03.01 10:00am-1:30pm = 3.5 hours 1964.03.03 10:00am-1:45pm = 3.75 hours 1964.03.10 10:00am-1:00pm = 3 hours 1964.04.16 10:00am-1:00pm = 3 hours 1964.04.20 2:00pm-3:15pm = 1.25 hours 1964.04.23 4:30pm-5:45pm = 1.25 hours 1964.05.22 10:00am-11:00am = 1 hour 1964.06.01 2:30pm-5:30pm, 7:00pm-10:00pm = 6 hours 1964.06.02 2:30pm-5:30pm, 7:00pm-10:00pm = 6 hours 1964.06.04 2:30pm-7:00pm = 4.5 hours 1964.06.09 2:00pm-5:45pm = 3.75 hours 1964.06.10 10:00am-11:00am = 1 hour 1964.06.22 10:00am-1:00pm, 2:30pm-5:30pm, 5:45pm-9:00pm = 9.25 hours Total: 65.25 hours SOURCE Lewisohn, Mark. The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions: The Official Story of the Abbey Road Years 1962-1970. Harmony Books, a division of Crown Publishers, New York, NY, 1988. year.month.day start time - end time = # of hours
1963.07.18 7:00pm-10:45pm = 3.75 hours 1963.07.30 10:00am-1:30pm, 5:00pm-11:00pm = 9.5 hours 1963.08.21 10:00am-1:00pm, 2:00-5:30pm = 6.5 hours 1963.09.11 2:30pm-6:00pm, 7:00pm-10:15pm = 6.75 hours 1963.09.12 2:30pm-6:30pm, 7:00pm-11:30pm = 8.5 hours 1963.09.30 10:00am-1:15pm, = 3.25 hours 1963.10.03 7:00pm-10:00pm = 3 hours 1963.10.17 7:00pm-10:00pm = 3 hours 1963.10.23 10:00am-1:00pm = 3 hours 1963.10.29 10:00am-1:00pm = 3 hours 1963.10.30 2:30pm-5:30pm = 3 hours Total: 53.25 hours SOURCE Lewisohn, Mark. The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions: The Official Story of the Abbey Road Years 1962-1970. Harmony Books, a division of Crown Publishers, New York, NY, 1988. Following my catalogs of studio time required to create Sgt. Pepper and The White Album, now I'm wondering how long it took to create their other albums. This blog, then, will examine the documentation (according to Mark Lewisohn's The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions) for the band's first album, Please Please Me, including sessions dedicated to songs that were first released as singles, but also included on the album ("Love Me Do, "P. S. I Love You", "Please Please Me", and "Ask Me Why").
year.month.day start time - end time = # of hours that day 1962.06.06 6:00pm-8:00pm = 2 hours 0962.09.04 7:00pm-10:00pm = 3 hours 1962.09.11 10:00am-1:00pm = 3 hours 1962.11.26 7:00pm-10:00pm = 3 hours 1962.11.30 unknown 1963.02.11 10:am-1:00pm, 2:30-6:00pm, 7:30pm-10:45pm = 9.75 hours 1963.02.20 10:30am-1:00pm = 2.5 hours 1963.02.25 10:00am-1:00pm = 3 hours TOTAL: 26.25 hours CITATIONS Lewisohn, Mark. The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions: The Official Story of the Abbey Road Years 1962-1970. Harmony Books, a division of Crown Publishers, New York, NY, 1988. If Pepper required 334 studio hours, how long did The White Album take? Below is a chart documenting the known recording studio times for The White Album, as dictated in Mark Lewisohn's The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions. This list does not include the recordings of "Hey Jude" that took place on 07.29-08.06 (which was released as a single, but not on The White Album); but it does include the recordings for songs that were originally considered for inclusion but ultimately left off the album for reasons other than it was released as a single (most notably "Not Guilty").
year.month.day start time - end time = # of hours that day 1968.05.30 2:30pm-2:40am = 12.17 hours 1968.05.31 2:30pm-midnight = 9.5 hours 1968.06.04 2:30pm-1:00am = 10.5 hours 1968.06.05 2:30pm-1:30am = 11 hours 1968.06.06 2:30pm-2:45am = 12.25 hours 1968.06.10 2:30pm-5:45pm = 3.25 hours 1968.06.11 6:30pm-12:15am, 7:00pm-10:15pm = 9 hours 1968.06.20 7:00pm-3:30am = 8.5 hours 1968.06.21 2:30pm-9:00pm, 10:00pm-3:30am = 12 hours 1968.06.25 2:00pm-8:00pm = 6 hours 1968.06.26 7:00pm-3:30am = 8.5 hours 1968.06.27 5:00pm-3:45am = 10.75 hours 1968.06.28 7:00pm-4:30am = 9.5 hours 1968.07.01 5:00pm-3:00am = 10 hours 1968.07.02 6:00pm-12:15am = 6.25 hours 1968.07.03 8:00pm-3:15am = 7.25 hours 1968.07.04 7:00pm-2:15am = 7.25 hours 1968.07.05 5:00pm-1:30am = 8.5 hours 1968.07.08 5:00pm-3:00am = 10 hours 1968.07.09 4:00pm-9:00pm, 10:00pm-3:30am = 10.5 hours 1968.07.10 7:00pm-1:30am = 6.5 hours 1968.07.11 4:00pm-7:00pm, 7:00pm-3:45am = 11.75 hours 1968.07.12 3:00pm-11:00pm, 12:00am-4:00am = 12 hours 1968.07.15 3:30pm-8:00pm, 9:00pm-3:00am = 10.5 hours 1968.07.16 4:00pm-9:00pm, 10:00pm-2:00am = 9 hours 1968.07.18 2:30pm-9:30pm = 7 hours 1968.07.19 7:30pm-4:00am = 8.5 hours 1968.07.22 7:00pm-1:40am = 6.67 hours 1968.07.23 7:00pm-2:30am = 7.5 hours 1968.07.24 7:00pm-2:30am = 7.5 hours 1968.07.25 7:00pm-3:15am = 8.25 hours 1968.08.07 8:45pm-5:30am = 8.75 hours 1968.08.08 6:40pm-6:30am = 11.83 hours 1968.08.09 7:30pm-2:00am = 6.5 hours 1968.08.12 7:00pm-4:15am = 9.25 hours 1968.08.13 7:00pm-5:30am = 10.5 hours 1968.08.14 7:00-4:30am = 9.5 hours 1968.08.15 7:00pm-3:00am = 8 hours 1968.08.16 7:00pm-5:00am = 10 hours 1968.08.20 5:00pm-5:30pm, 8:00pm-4:00am = 8.5 hours 1968.08.21 7:30pm-7:15am = 11.75 hours 1968.08.22 7:00pm-4:45am = 9.75 hours 1968.08.23 7:00pm-3:00am = 7 hours 1968.08.26 4:00pm-5:00pm = 1 hour 1968.08.27 4:30pm-5:00pm = 0.5 hours 1968.08.28 5:00pm-7:00am = 14 hours 1968.08.29 7:00pm-6:00am = 11 hours 1968.08.30 5:00pm-11:00pm = 6 hours 1968.09.03 7:00pm-3:30am = 7.5 hours 1968.09.05 7:00pm-3:45am = 7.75 hours 1968.09.06 7:00pm-2:00am = 7 hours 1968.09.09 7:00pm-2:30am = 7.5 hours 1968.09.10 7:00pm-3:00am = 8 hours 1968.09.11 7:00pm-3:30am = 8.5 hours 1968.09.12 8:30pm-1:30am = 5 hours 1968.09.13 8:00pm-1:45am = 5.75 hours 1968.09.16 7:00pm-3:00am = 8 hours 1968.09.17 7:00pm-5:00am = 10 hours 1968.09.18 5:00pm-4:30am = 11.5 hours 1968.09.19 7:15pm-5:30am = 10.25 hours 1968.09.20 7:00pm-11:00pm = 4 hours 1968.09.23 7:00pm-3:00am = 7 hours 1968.09.24 7:00pm-2:00am = 6 hours 1968.09.25 7:30pm-5:00am, 5:00am-6:15am = 10.75 hours 1968.09.26 7:00pm-1:30am = 6.5 hours 1968.10.01 unknown 1968.10.02 4:00pm-3:30am = 11.5 hours 1968.10.03 unknown 1968.10.04 4:00pm-4:30am = 12.5 hours 1968.10.05 6:00pm-1:00am = 7 hours 1968.10.07 2:30pm-7:00am = 16.5 hours 1968.10.08 4:00pm-8:00am = 16 hours 1968.10.09 7:00pm-5:30am = 10.5 hours 1968.10.10 7:00pm-7:15am = 12.25 hours 1968.10.11 3:00pm-6:00pm, 6:00pm-12:00am = 9 hours 1968.10.12 7:00pm-5:45am = 10.75 hours 1968.10.13 7:00pm-6:00am = 11 hours 1968.10.14 7:00pm-7:30am = 12.5 hours 1968.10.15 6:00pm-8:00pm = 2 hours 1968.10.16-17 5:00pm-5:00pm = 24 hours 1968.10.18 noon-1:00pm = 1 hour Total: 709.17 hours (32,550 minutes) So how does this compare with Pepper? Well, it depends on how you look at it. In terms of total studio time, The White Album took almost more than twice as long to make (709.17 hours vs. 333.75 hours). But, given that The White Album is a double album where Pepper is not, that makes sense. In terms of number of days, The White Album took 81 days' work in the studio over 141 calendar days; Pepper took 50 days' work in the studio over 137 calendar days. And taking number of tracks into consideration, The White Album averages less time per track (23.64 hours) than Pepper (25.67 hours). CITATIONS Lewisohn, Mark. The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions: The Official Story of the Abbey Road Years 1962-1970. Harmony Books, a division of Crown Publishers, New York, NY, 1988. Many books purport that Sgt. Pepper took "700 hours of studio time to produce" (Simonelli page 107; see also Julien page 5, Sawyers page 81, Wald page 242, Ingham page uncertain, Sandford page 130, Tomson page 259, Emerick page 190). This figure likely originated with George Martin's book With a Little Help From My Friends: The Making of Sgt. Pepper in which he wrote, "According to Geoff Emerick's calculation, we spent no fewer than 700 hours, or twenty-nine complete days, of our lives working on it in the studio" (page 167). Mark Lewisohn's The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions, however, paints a very different picture. Not including the recordings of "Strawberry Fields Forever" or "Penny Lane", which were originally intended to be on the album but were ultimately left off, here's a catalog of exactly how many hours were spent in the studio creating Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
year.month.day start time - end time = # of hours that day 1966.12.06 6:45pm-1:50am = 7.08 hours 1966.12.08 2:30pm-5:30pm = 3 hours 1966.12.20 7:00pm-1:00am = 6 hours 1966.12.21 7:00pm-10:00pm = 3 hours 1967.01.19 7:30pm-2:30am = 7 hours 1967.01.20 7:00pm-1:10am = 6.17 hours 1967.01.30 7:00pm-8:30pm = 1.5 hours 1967.02.01 7:00pm-2:30am = 7 hours 1967.02.02 7:00pm-1:45am = 6.75 hours 1967.02.03 7:00pm-1:15am = 6.25 hours 1967.02.08 7:00pm-2:15am = 7.25 hours 1967.02.09 unknown 1967.02.10 8:00pm-1:00am = 5 hours 1967.02.13 7:00pm-3:30am = 8.5 hours 1967.02.14 7:00pm-12:30am = 5.5 hours 1967.02.16 7:00pm-1:45am = 6.75 hours 1967.02.17 7:00pm-3:00am = 8 hours 1967.02.20 7:00pm-2:15am = 7.25 hours 1967.02.21 7:00pm-12:45am = 5.75 hours 1967.02.22 7:00pm-3:45am = 8.75 hours 1967.02.23 7:00pm-3:45am = 8.75 hours 1967.02.24 7:00pm-1:15am = 6.25 hours 1967.02.28 7:00pm-3:00am = 8 hours 1967.03.01 7:00pm-2:15am = 7.25 hours 1967.03.02 7:00pm-3:30am = 8.5 hours 1967.03.03 7:00pm-1230am = 5.5 hours 1967.03.06 7:00pm-12:30am = 5.5 hours 1967.03.07 7:00pm-2:30am = 7.5 hours 1967.03.09 7:00pm-3:30am = 8.5 hours 1967.03.10 7:00pm-4:00am = 9 hours 1967.03.13 7:00pm-2:30am = 7.5 hours 1967.03.15 7:00pm-1:30am = 6.5 hours 1967.03.17 7:00pm-12:45am = 5.75 hours 1967.03.20 7:00pm-3:30am = 8.5 hours 1967.03.21 7:00pm-2:45am = 7.75 hours 1967.03.22 7:00pm-2:15am = 7.25 hours 1967.03.23 7:00pm-3:45am = 8.75 hours 1967.03.28 7:00pm-4:45am = 9.75 hours 1967.03.29 7:00pm-5:45am = 10.75 hours 1967.03.30 11:00pm-7:30am = 8.5 hours 1967.03.31 7:00pm-3:00am = 8 hours 1967.04.01 7:00pm-6:00am = 11 hours 1967.04.03 7:00pm-3:00am = 8 hours 1967.04.04 7:00pm-12:45am = 5.75 hours 1967.04.06 7:00pm-1:00am = 6 hours 1967.04.07 7:00pm-1:00am = 6 hours 1967.04.17 7:00pm-10:30pm = 3.5 hours 1967.04.19 7:00pm-12:30am = 5.5 hours 1967.04.20 5:00pm=-6:15pm = 1.25 hours 1967.04.21 7:00pm-1:30am = 6.5 hours This totals 333.75 hours (20,025 minutes). Even accounting for the lack of documentation on February 9, this number is well short of the mythical 700 hours. Even so, 333.75 hours divided by 13 tracks = 25.67 hours of studio time per track - no doubt a greater number than any previously recorded album, Beatles or otherwise. CITATIONS Emerick, Geoff and Howard Massey. Here, There and Everywhere: My Life Recording the Music of the Beatles. Gotham Books, published by Penguin Group (USA) Inc., New York, NY, 2006. Ingham, Chris. The Rough Guide to The Beatles. Penguin Books Ltd, New York, NY, 2006. Julien, Oliver, ed. Sgt. Pepper and the Beatles: It Was Forty Years Ago Today. Ashgate Publishing Limited. Hampshire, UK, 2008. Lewisohn, Mark. The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions: The Official Story of the Abbey Road Years 1962-1970. Harmony Books, a division of Crown Publishers, New York, NY, 1988. Sandford, Christopher. McCartney. Carroll & Graff Publishers, New York, NY, 2006. Sawyers, June Skinner, ed. Read the Beatles: Classic and New Writings on the Beatles, Their Legacy, and Why They Still Matter. Penguin Books, New York, NY, 2006. Simonelli, David. Working Class Heroes: Rock Music and British Society in the 1960s and 1970s. Lexington Books, 2012. Tomson, Elizabeth and David Gutman, ed. The Lennon Companion: Twenty-Five Years of Comment. Sidgwick & Jackson, an imprint of Pan Macmillan Ltd., London, 2002. Wald, Elijah. How the Beatles Destroyed Rock ‘n’ Roll: An Alternate History of American Popular Music. Oxford University Press, New York, NY, 2009. |
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