Post by yerblues1968 on Jul 26, 2009 21:39:10 GMT -5
Brian Epstein with John Lennon and Paul McCartney during All You Need Is Love rehearsal.
ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE
All You Need Is Love is a song written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon/McCartney. It was first performed by The Beatles on Our World, the first live global television link. Broadcast to 26 countries and watched by 400 million, the programme was broadcast via satellite on June 25, 1967. The BBC had commissioned the Beatles to write a song for the UK's contribution. Rolling Stone magazine ranked it at #362 in their 500 greatest songs of all time.
Another photograph of Brian Epstein with John Lennon and Paul McCartney.
RELEASE
Asked to come up with a song containing a simple message to be understood by all nationalities, Lennon's All You Need Is Love extended the message he first tried in The Word, from The Beatles' 1965 album Rubber Soul.
"It was an inspired song and they really wanted to give the world a message," said Brian Epstein. "The nice thing about it is that it cannot be misinterpreted. It is a clear message saying that love is everything."
Lennon was fascinated by the power of slogans to unite people and never afraid to create art out of propaganda. When asked in 1971 whether songs like Give Peace a Chance and "Power to the People" were propaganda songs, he answered, "Sure. So was All You Need Is Love. I'm a revolutionary artist. My art is dedicated to change."
It was the last song both recorded and released by the band before the death of the band's manager Brian Epstein on
August 27, 1967, little more than a month after the song was released.
LIVE BROADCAST
Some of the last public photographs of Brian Epstein. He is on the set of the recording of All You Need Is Love.
Another photo of Brian looking at a mirror.
For the broadcast, the Beatles were (except for Ringo) seated on stools, accompanied by a small studio orchestra. They were surrounded by friends and acquaintances seated on the floor, who sang with the refrain during the fade-out, including Mick Jagger, Marianne Faithful, Keith Richards, Keith Moon, Eric Clapton, Pattie Harrison, Jane Asher, Mike McCartney, Graham Nash, Gary Leeds and Hunter Davies. Lennon, affecting indifference, was said to be nervous about the broadcast, given the potential size of the international TV audience. Dissatisfied with his singing, he re-recorded the solo verses for use on the single.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_You_Need_Is_Love
IN THE STUDIO
The Beatles began recording All You Need Is Love on 14 June 1967, at Olympic Sound Studios in Barnes, London. The group taped some vocals and played unconventional instruments: Lennon on harpsichord, McCartney on double bass, and Harrison playing a violin. Ringo Starr was the only member to stick to his usual instrument.
John Lennon rehearsing
on June 24, 1967.
"We just put a track down. Because I knew the chords I played it on whatever it was, harpsichord. George played a violin because we felt like doing it like that and Paul played a double bass. And they can't play them, so we got some nice little noises coming out. It sounded like an orchestra, but it's just them two playing the violin and that. So then we thought, 'Ah, well, we'll have some more orchestra around this little freaky orchestra that we've got.' But there was no perception of how it sounded at the end until they did it that day, until the rehearsal. It still sounded a bit strange then."
- John Lennon, 1980 Anthology
Five days later, back at Abbey Road, they overdubbed more drums, plus lead and backing vocals, piano played by George Martin and banjo by Lennon.
On 23 and 24 June they made last minute rehearsals and additional recording, including an orchestral overdub. There was also a press call on the morning of 24 June, which saw more than 100 journalists and photographers enter Abbey Road.
Brian Epstein and Paul McCartney during rehearsal of All You Need Is Love.
"The time got nearer and nearer and they still hadn't written anything. Then, about three weeks before the program, they sat down to write. The record was completed in 10 days.
This is an inspired song, because they wrote it for a worldwide program and they really wanted to give the world a message. It could hardly have been a better message. It is a wonderful, beautiful, spine-chilling record."
- Brian Epstein
The Beatles early recording of "All You Need Is Love." (6:19 minutes)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=QoqmCEWA0Zk
www.beatlesbible.com/songs/all-you-need-is-love/
