YDB302 Studio Sessions, 1964

Disc 2 from "The Ultimate Colleciont Vol. 3

Total Playing Time:                 51:44

 1 A Hard Day's Night, take 2        2:34
 2 A Hard Day's Night, take 3        2:37
 3 A Hard Day's Night, take 4        2:42
 4 A Hard Day's Night, takes 6/7     4:36
 5 A Hard Day's Night, takes 8/9     2:34
 6 I'm A Loser, takes 1/2            2:38
 7 I'm A Loser, take 3               2:55
 8 I'm A Loser, takes 4/5/6          4:43
 9 I'm A Loser, takes 7/8            1:16
10 She's A Woman, take 2             3:22
11 She's A Woman, takes 3/4/5        3:46
12 She's A Woman, take 7             6:32
13 I Feel Fine, takes 1/2            3:17
14 I Feel Fine, take 5               2:27
15 I Feel Fine, take 6               2:49
16 I Feel Fine, take 7               2:47

Track 1-5: Recording sessions March 16, 1964.
Track 6-9: Recording sessions August 14, 1964.
Track 10-12: Recording session October 8, 1964.
Track 13-16: Recording session October 18, 1964.

Studio Sessions, 1964

Straight back from their first tour of North America in February 1964, it's into Abbey Road studios again, recording songs for a new movie, a new LP and a new single: `A Hard Day's Night', `Beatles For Sale' and I Feel Fine. Highlights from three different recording sessions are collected here on this special compact disc.

The first of the three sessions is dated Thursday April 16, 1964. Following another tiring day of filming for their first full-length movie on location in West London's Notting Hill Gate, the lads gathered together at Abbey Road to record the hastily-penned title song for the film `A Hard Day's Night'. The session started at seven o'clock and finished at ten that same evening. It was all ready in just three hours and nine completed takes. The commercially-released version is a mono-stereo mixed overdub to this final take #9. Yellow Dog is now pleased to present most of these nine takes saved here. For some obscure reason, the first and fifth recorded takes seem not to have been saved. So our tape starts with take #2.

Track 1 A lively rehearsal performance in the studio, featuring a guitar solo performed in place of the familiar keyboard part decided on later. Lots of lyric-improvisations from Paul, and shouts of recording joy by John. Completely different outro, the four of them breaking up in laughter and Paul recalling: "my middle-eight". All previously unheard.

Track 2 This is A Hard Day's Night, take #3. It's basically the same as the previous recorded take #2. It still lacks the piano part and most of the acoustic guitars, making the instrumental intervals sound quite different, though certainly not less amusing. Again the outro leads into a collective laugh, with John shouting "What's that?"

Track 3 This starts with George Martin shouting "Take four" from the upper control room, followed by a clean count-in and intro from lead vocalist John. It has slightly different instrumental bits, though still no piano/keyboard brought in. A new find.

Track 4, takes #6 and #7 Six is an incomplete rehearsal, in a remarkable and somewhat slowed-down tempo compared to the previous five takes. Also note that the one extra line of "All through the night", which Paul used to follow on form the words "Feeling you holding me tight" has now been scrapped. John: "I heard a funny chord, it was him. Taptoo."

Seven is a full-length try, with a strong intro from John. There's a lot more orchestration in this version already, making it sound more like the finished thing. Still no piano in the solo though. But the laughs on the outro are there.

Track 5, takes #8 and #9 "I wish we would have the words written out properly", says John. Leading into a one, two, three, four, false start. Take eight. The following take nine is the first where John and Paul share vocals, the previous takes having featured John as the main vocalist with Paul just getting in on the middle parts. Also brought in, though still in the far background, is the keyboard. It was this take nine from which George Martin produced the commercial release - a new find in this format, although it's a pity this take isn't complete.

The second Abbey Road Studios recording session saved here on Yellow Dog's Ultimate Collection is that dated August 14, 1964. Taping new and old songs for their fourth LP `Beatles For Sale', a sort of rush-release to be in the shops in time for Christmas. Songwriters Lennon and McCartney had eight tunes this time, the other four on the new album were to be cover versions of legendary rock writers. One of their own compositions was I'm A Loser, really an autobiographical John song, influenced by the talents of the young Bob Dylan. I'm A Loser, with John on vocals and harmonica, was recorded that evening at Abbey Road in eight different takes. The session lasted from 7.00 p.m. to 10.00 p.m. Yellow Dog is now pleased to present all eight versions here, saved on CD.

Track 6, takes #1 and #2 The first recorded take starts with Paul doing a few intros, explaining to John he'll stop at One Two "cause that's where you come in with the mouth-organ". Another count-in from Paul obviously distracts his mind from playing as it runs into a false start. "Sorry, I forgot."

Take two starts vocally, with an instrumental intro and John singing the first line just once, where in later recordings the song starts without the instrumental intro and has John repeating that first line once. This early version also features a notably different solo in the instrumental break and an alternative, yet to be finished, outro.

Track 7, take #3 of I'm A Loser. John sings the right lyrics just once more. Then, together with Paul joining him on the first line, opening by singing the first line twice, also skipping the instrumental intro. Slightly different backing vocals from Paul and George, and still that different solo during the instrumental break. Near the end of the song, John decides to break up this run-through, "cause it didn't work out the same 'cause...".

Track 8, takes #4, #5 and #6 Take #4 has John testing his newly introduced mouth-organ. Again it's him and Paul sharing the intro, then messing up the lyrics and breaking up things to go straight into take five. To Paul: "Can I put it there, 'cause you only gotta come in now and then, I'm just all uncomfort." Testing his mouth-organ again. Another false start. Ready for take six. A full-length version at last, including some slight changes in the lyrics: "I should have know I would lose in the end", where it should be: "She would win". John's mouth-organ part premiering on the instrumental break. But still, there's lots left to be desired....

Track 9, takes #7 and #8 "George are you ready?" Yet another false start, with George Martin calling from the control room: "We'll put a split-screen on your..." and putting up Paul's bass-level. Take eight is announced here, though unfortunately not fully included. It was this take eight which George Martin used to produce the final commercial version. Previously unreleased.

The third 1964 Beatles recording session saved here is dated Thursday October 8. It's the lads recording Paul's newly composed tune of She's A Woman, to be released on November 27 as the B-side to their new single I Feel Fine. Two sessions this day at Abbey Road, one in the afternoon and one in the evening. A total of five hours were spent recording seven basic tracks and several over-dubs. Five of these early takes are saved here, not counting take six, the one that was finally released as the commercial version.

Track 10 A very primitive sounding take #2. No lead guitar, piano or additional over-dubbed vocals. Paul's raw vocals are single-tracked with only partly completed lyncs. No fade out at the end.

Track 11 She's A Woman takes #3 and #4 Try three is simply a false start. Four begins with another wrong start, then goes into a full-length live studio performance (take #5). Including a long instrumental part, it all sounds quite embryonic. Getting near the end, Paul still doesn't know how to close this tune, just repeating the "She's A Woman" line. An unheard piece.

Track 12, take #7 This begins with yet another false start before Paul launches into a wild and energetic six-minute version in the blues-vocal style of Ray Charles' What I'd Say. An extended jam, including lots of screaming joy, though still without any lead guitar, piano or vocal over-dubs. The track ends with Ringo remarking: "You've got a song and an instrumental there." Truly one of the most remarkable alternatives from EMI's unopened vaults.

The fourth Abbey Road recording session saved here is dated Sunday October 18, 1964. Whoever said The Beatles didn't work eight days a week? In-between touring dates with Mary Wells, The Remo Four and Tommy Quickly, they taped the A side of their new soon-to-be-released single. A nine-hour-session, recording songs for `Beatles For Sale' and a total of nine takes of I Feel Fine, composed by John. Saved here are five of the nine different versions.

Track 13, takes #1 and #2 This starts with amplifier feedback, which was described to the press at the time as "an electric accident". Clearly it was no such thing. It lacks all the echo-effects added later, with John's vocals not yet double-tracked. It also includes slight differences in the lyncs: "Her baby buys her gives, buys her diamond rings..." Breaking it up during the instrumental bit, straight into take two, as numbered by George Martin up from the control room. Previously unheard.

Track 14 I Feel Fine take #5 Another one previously unreleased. Basically the same as the previous recorded takes and still lacking the double-tracked vocals and echo-effects. The song also lacks a finished fade-out at the end.

Track 15 An all-instrumental rhythm track take #6. Most probably used as an overdub onto the commercially released take #9, this has a different outro to all the vocal versions.

Track 16 Let's give it another try. A finished take #7. Already sounding very much like the finished article, but still no fade-out at the end. This appears to be a first rough-mix version.

The new single I Feel Fine b/w She's A Woman was released on November 27, 1964. George Martin chose to use take nine from which to produce, edit, mix and overdub the commercial version.

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