Well it's finally here folks: the complete, un-Yoko-ized take of REVOLUTION, courtesy of the new HMC set TAKE YOUR KNICKERS OFF! And it's a keeper, all 10+ minutes of it. Is it a masterpiece? Of course not. What it is, however, is a spectacular peek into a Beatles session. The basics had already been laid down (piano, guitar and drums) and somewhere along the line Paul added bass and the rest contibuted sound effects, percussion and for lack of a better term...noise.
For those who don't know, the framework of REVOLUTION #9 is actually from this take; it was lopped off after the initial 4+ minutes and then subjected to hours of work. Which is a good thing, I assure you, because had this take been released as is it would have been a huge mistake. If you ask me, the Beatles knew releasing #9 was a mistake but they did so to (1) fill out a double LP and (2) keep John happy. [For quite a while my thinking was that it should have been released as UNFINISHED MUSIC NO. 3 but I have since rethought that, seeing as the other three Beatles do participate. They should have called it CARNIVAL OF DARK though (cheeky!).]
Getting back to the main course though, it's great to hear REVOLUTION without the electric guitars that were later overdubbed. It's odd at first because the listener is so used to hearing them in the first place, but repeated listenings to the new track help diminish that familiarity (as do other sounds which were later edited our of the mix).
I could go on and on, but do what you can to track it down and listen yourself. It's a keeper!
Jeremy Boob
For those who don't know, the framework of REVOLUTION #9 is actually from this take; it was lopped off after the initial 4+ minutes and then subjected to hours of work. Which is a good thing, I assure you, because had this take been released as is it would have been a huge mistake. If you ask me, the Beatles knew releasing #9 was a mistake but they did so to (1) fill out a double LP and (2) keep John happy. [For quite a while my thinking was that it should have been released as UNFINISHED MUSIC NO. 3 but I have since rethought that, seeing as the other three Beatles do participate. They should have called it CARNIVAL OF DARK though (cheeky!).]
Getting back to the main course though, it's great to hear REVOLUTION without the electric guitars that were later overdubbed. It's odd at first because the listener is so used to hearing them in the first place, but repeated listenings to the new track help diminish that familiarity (as do other sounds which were later edited our of the mix).
I could go on and on, but do what you can to track it down and listen yourself. It's a keeper!
Jeremy Boob
