The Beatles - Soul Sessions

Label: Silent Sea Productions, ss032-33.v2

DISC ONE

Complete recording dates and information for each track on the "Rubber Soul" LP, and other "Rubber Soul" era tracks, can be found in the notes for Disc Two.

"Rubber Soul" era demos
1. We Can Work It Out - home demo (partial) (0:41)
2. Michelle - home tape, instrumental (0:56)
Both of these McCartney productions were probably recorded at Paul's home in St. John's Wood. The first track, most likely taped in September or October of 1965, was given to John, who recorded over the last half of the song. Though home tapes of the second song go back as far as 1963, this particular pass at the tune is usually dated around this time.

"Rubber Soul" era sessions
3. Day Tripper - take 1, RS'82 (2:08)
4. Day Tripper - take 2, RS'82 (1:06)
5. Day Tripper - take 3, RS'82 (3:09)
The complete session tape (see Disc Two, Track 16), with two breakdown attempts at the rhythm tracks and the final, overdubbed take 3 - all mixed to stereo in 1982 by Abbey Road engineer John Barrett for his own enjoyment.

6. We Can Work It Out - take 1, RS'82 (2:02)
7. We Can Work It Out - take 2, rough mix (2:18)
8. We Can Work It Out - SI onto take 2, RS'82 (2:29)
Another complete session tape (see Disc Two, Track 15). Sandwiched between two John Barrett stereo mixes is a rough mix of the track as it stood at the end of the October 20th session, before further overdubs.

9. 12-Bar Original - rehearsal take, RS'82 (1:52)
10. 12-Bar Original - take 1, RS'82 (0:33)
11. 12-Bar Original - take 2, RS'82 (6:50)
The only unreleased song from these sessions was this instrumental, recorded on November 4th in just two takes (following a rehearsal, part of which was captured on tape), with George on tone pedal lead guitar, John on the other lead guitar, George Martin on the harmonium, Paul on bass and Ringo on drums. At the time, the only remix the track received was on November 30th, when they produced mono remix RM1 (Track 39). Abbey Road engineer John Barrett made the stereo mixes heard here in 1982 for his own enjoyment. In 1995 the track received a new stereo remix and was severely edited for the "Anthology 2" CD release (Track 40).

12. Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) - take 1, RS'82(a) (2:08)
13. Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) - take 2, RS'82 (2:35)
14. Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) - take 4, RS'82 (2:27)
Presented here are John Barrett remixes (made for his own personal enjoyment) of three of the four takes of John's classic song (see Disc Two, Track 2).

15. Girl - take 2, backing tracks, partial monitor mix (2:03)
From John's personal tape collection comes this monitor mix of the instrumental tracks for his ballad.

16. I'm Looking Through You - take 1, RS'82(a) (3:10)
17. I'm Looking Through You - take 4, RS'82 (2:48)
Two more mixes made in 1982 by engineer John Barrett, to take home and enjoy at his leisure (see Disc Two, Track 10).

18. In My Life - take 3, rough mix (partial) (1:04)
This undocumented rough mix (see Disc Two, Track 11), features a piano part that was later replaced.

19. Run For Your Life - take 1, chat only (0:17)
20. Run For Your Life - take 5, rough mix (partial) (2:14)
The first item is just the engineer calling out the take number, while the second features John's original guide vocal, predates the addition of backup vocals (see Disc Two, Track 14), and has been artificially lengthened a bit at the end (by a previous bootlegger).

The "Think For Yourself" vocal overdub session excerpts
21. fragment 1 (1:26)
22. fragment 2 (1:45)
23. fragment 3 (0:58)
24. fragment 4 (2:04)
25. fragment 5 (1:03)
26. fragment 6 (1:25)
27. fragment 7 (0:55)
28. fragment 8 (0:54)
29. fragment 9 (1:15)
30. fragment 10 (0:23)
31. fragment 11 (0:31)
32. fragment 12 (1:45)
33. fragment 13 (1:08)
34. fragment 14 (0:10)
35. fragment 15 (0:32)
36. fragment 16 (0:23)
37. fragment 17 (0:22)
38. fragment 18 (2:19)
As explained in the "Think For Yourself" session notes (see Disc Two, Track 5), George Martin left the tapes running between takes when recording the track's backup vocal overdubs on November 8th, hoping to capture something he could use on the '65 Christmas EP. Presented here is the tape copy made for that purpose, editing out the actual overdubs and leaving only the between-take chat. For your convenience, we've divided the 20-minute tape up into its component fragments. One six-second bit from "fragment 9" was eventually used in the Yellow Submarine film soundtrack in 1968.

Mixing the "Rubber Soul" outtake
39. 12-Bar Original - take 2, RM1 (6:41)
40. 12-Bar Original - take 2, RS'95 (2:54)
The first remix of this instrumental was produced soon after the track was recorded (see Tracks 9-11). It then sat untouched (except by John Barrett, see Tracks 9-11) until it was remixed to stereo and given a surprisingly clumsy edit in 1995 for release on the "Anthology 2" CD collection.

DISC TWO

The mono "Rubber Soul" album
Unless otherwise noted, the lineup is George Harrison: lead guitar, John Lennon: rhythm guitar, Paul McCartney: bass guitar and Ringo Starr: drums; and all tracks were produced by George Martin and recorded at EMI's Abbey Road Studio #2.

1. Drive My Car - take 4, RM1 (2:32)
The album opener was taped in one session on October 13th, 1965, the first Beatle session to run past midnight. They started with four takes of the rhythm tracks (with John on tambourine instead of guitar), the fourth being the only complete one. Onto it were layered lead vocals by Paul and John and backup vocal by George, plus piano by Paul and Ringo on cowbell. The mono remix, RM1, was produced on October 25th, with RS1 being produced the next day (while the Beatles were receiving their MBEs from the Queen). The original stereo mix featured a louder cowbell than the mono mix, while the 1987 stereo remix done for CD moved the vocals to the center and added some reverb.

2. Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) - take 4, RM1 (2:03)
Recording began on October 12th when they produced the finished take 1, with a double-tracked Lennon vocal, acoustic guitar by John, a double-tracked Harrison sitar, backup vocals by Paul, and Ringo forsaking drums for finger cymbals, tambourine and maracas (see Disc One, Track 12). Nine days later, on the 21st, they remade the song, taping takes 2-4. Take two (see Disc One, Track 13) had a sitar intro and no drums or bass, take 3 had two acoustic guitars and bass, and take four, the keeper (see Disc One, Track 14), used the acoustic guitar opening introduced in take 3 and brought back the sitar, along with Ringo on tambourine. They produced the mono remix, RM1, on October 25th, and on the following day came the stereo remix, RS1. In the mono mix, you can hear a cough after the line, "she told me to sit anywhere." In 1977 a new stereo remix was produced for the "Love Songs" LP (see Track 27).

3. You Won't See Me - take 2, RM1 (3:28)
Paul's song was recorded in one session on November 11th. It took only two takes to get a best rhythm track (with John on tambourine instead of guitar), to which they added Paul's lead vocal and piano and backup vocals from John and George. On November 15th they produced the mono and stereo remixes, RM1 and RS1, with the mono mix slightly longer than the stereo. The 1987 stereo CD remix moved the vocal to the center.

4. Nowhere Man - take 4, RM1 (2:45)
Recording began on October 21st with the taping of takes 1-2 (the first a false start). These were rhythm track takes, but with a three-part high register harmony intro from John, Paul and George. A remake was begun the next day, when they taped takes 3-5 of the rhythm tracks, with John on acoustic guitar. Calling take four the "best," onto it were overdubbed vocals, with a lead by John and backups by Paul and George. The mono remix, RM1, was produced on October 25th, and the next day they put together the stereo remix, RS1. In that original stereo remix, all the vocals are in one channel, while the 1987 stereo CD remix spreads them across the stereo space, adds some reverb, and moves the drums more toward the center.

5. Think For Yourself - take 1, RM1 (2:12)
George's song was recorded on November 8th in just one take, with overdubs. The final master included the usual lineup plus a fuzz bass, tambourine (John, who didn't play guitar), maracas (Ringo) and electric piano. George provided the lead vocal, while he, John and Paul sang backup. George Martin, knowing that this night's work also had to produce the material for the 1965 Christmas EP, left the tape running all through the overdubbing of the backup vocals, when all but Ringo were on mike (see Disc One, Tracks 21-38), but in the end none of the material was usable, and after finishing this song they taped "The Beatles Christmas Record," takes 1-3. The next day they produced mono and stereo remixes RM1 and RS1. The 1987 stereo CD remix moved the fuzz bass a little more towards the center.

6. The Word - take 3, RM1 (2:48)
John's song was recorded in three takes on November 10th, with Paul adding a piano track, George Martin contributing harmonium and Ringo shaking maracas onto take 3, which was also treated to a Lennon lead vocal and backup vocals from Paul and George. The next day they produced mono and stereo remixes, RM1 and RS1, then on November 15th they improved on the stereo remix, producing RS2. But in the meantime, RS1 had gone off to Capitol Records to be released on their version of "Rubber Soul." The U.S. mix, RS1, is a couple of seconds shorter and has all the vocals in one channel, while RS2 splits them between the two stereo channels. The 1987 stereo CD remix moves the maracas to the center of the stereo "window."

7. Michelle - take 2, RM2 (2:41)
Paul's ballad was recorded on November 3rd. They only needed one take to perfect the rhythm tracks, with John and George switching to acoustic guitars. A reduction mix of take one produced take two, onto which they overdubbed Paul's lead vocal and more guitars. On November 9th they produced mono and stereo remixes, RM1 and RS1. Like the early stereo mix of "The Word" (see Track 6), this tape went off to Capitol and was released on the American "Rubber Soul" mono album. On November 15th they produced a second mono remix, RM2, with the percussion not quite as loud as it was on RM1. Both mono remixes are slightly longer than RS1. The 1987 stereo CD remix moves the vocals and guitar more toward the center.

8. What Goes On - take 1, RM1 (2:51)
The song that was Ringo's vocal contribution to the LP was actually first tried out more than two years earlier, when they'd considered recording it during the March 5th, 1963 sessions that yielded the unreleased "One After 909." Now the song was resurrected and the backing tracks recorded in just one take. Onto this they overdubbed Ringo's lead vocal, with backups from John and Paul. Mono and stereo remixes, RM1 and RS1, were produced on November 9th, with the stereo version including a final guitar fill not heard on RM1. The 1987 stereo CD remix combines the two guitars that open the song into one channel, while RS1 separates them.

9. Girl - take 2, RM1 (2:33)
John's ballad was recorded on the final day of "Rubber Soul" sessions, November 11th. They taped two takes of the rhythm tracks, with John on acoustic guitar (and no George), then onto take two they added George's sitar, John's lead vocal and Paul and George's backup "tit, tit, tit" vocals. Also added was George playing a fuzz guitar part, but it was mixed out of the releases. And that mixing process took place on November 15th, when they produced mono remix RM1 and stereo remix RS1. That original stereo remix had all the vocals in one channel; the 1977 "Love Songs" stereo remix (see Track 26) moved them all toward the center while on the 1987 stereo CD remix the vocals were spread across the stereo space.

10. I'm Looking Through You - take 4, RM1 (2:33)
Work began on October 24th, when they recorded and completed take one (see Disc One, Track 16). Lead vocals came from Paul, John played acoustic guitar, Ringo was on the Hammond organ and probably added the maracas. On November 6th, they took another stab at the song, taping takes 2-3. Still unsatisfied, on November 10th it was time for a re-make, and take 4 (with two false starts) was the keeper, with John again on acoustic guitar and George on tambourine. The next day, November 11th, they added Paul's lead and John's backup vocals. Mono and stereo remixes, RM1 and RS1, were produced on November 15th, with the mono remix running slightly longer. On the Capitol Records stereo version of "Rubber Soul," RS1 retains the two false starts edited out of other releases (see Track 25). While RS1 has all the vocals in one channel, the 1987 stereo CD remix spreads them out, and moves the handclaps to the center.

11. In My Life - take 3, RM1 (2:29)
Recording of John's song began on October 18th, when they taped takes 1-3, with a lead vocal by John (who didn't play guitar), backup vocals by Paul, and someone on tambourine. At this point, the song's middle eight contained a scratch piano part (see Disc One, Track 15) to be replaced later. This was done by George Martin on October 22nd. First he tried a Hammond organ part, then a piano. Finally, he decided to do the overdub with the tape playing at half speed, so that the piano part would be speeded up on playback. The mono remix, RM1, was produced on October 25th, and on the next day they did the stereo remix, RS1. The 1987 stereo CD remix splits the vocals between the channels, while RS1 has them all in one channel. Plus, on RS1 you can hear John inhale before he starts to sing, which was mixed out of the CD. In 1988 a new stereo remix was prepared for the soundtrack to the "Imagine: John Lennon" film (see Track 28).

12. Wait - take 4, RM2 (2:17)
The basic rhythm and vocal tracks for this number were actually recorded during the "Help!" album sessions, on June 17th, when they taped takes 1-4 with John and Paul sharing lead vocal. A first mono remix, RM1, was produced on June 18th. Five months later, on November 11th (the last day of "Rubber Soul" sessions) the number was pulled from the vaults and completed by adding tone pedal guitar, tambourine (John), maracas (Ringo) and more vocals (John and Paul). On November 15th, the final day of "Rubber Soul" mixing, they produced mono and stereo remixes, RM2 and RS1. Where RS1 has the vocals on one channel, the 1987 stereo CD remix moves them into the center.

13. If I Needed Someone - take 1, RM1 (2:25)
George's song was begun on October 16th, when they recorded the basic rhythm tracks in one take. Two days later they added George's lead vocal, backup vocals from John and Paul, and Ringo's tambourine. The mono remix, RM1, was produced on October 25th, while the next day saw production of the stereo remix, RS1. That original stereo remix had all the vocals in one channel, while the 1987 stereo CD remix moved the lead vocal to the center, leaving the background vocals in one channel.

14. Run For Your Life - take 5, RM1 (2:22)
The album's last track was actually the first one recorded, on October 12th. First taping takes 1-5 of the rhythm tracks and John's guide vocal (see Disc One, Tracks 19-20), to take five they added lead vocal and acoustic guitar (John), backing vocals (Paul and George) and tambourine (George Martin). The song was not mixed until almost a month later, when they produced mono remix RM1 on November 9th and stereo remix RS1 the next day. The 1987 stereo CD remix moved the lead vocal toward the center and mixed out the thump heard during the break on RS1.

The "Rubber Soul" era single
15. We Can Work It Out - take 2, RM2 (2:12)
Paul's contribution to their first double A-sided single was begun on October 20th, when they recorded two takes of the rhythm tracks, with John on acoustic guitar and George on tambourine. Onto take two they overdubbed Paul's lead vocal and backup vocals and harmonium by John. On October 28th they produced RM1, not for release but for the Beatles to mime to during filming of the "Music of Lennon and McCartney" TV special. Listening to that RM1 convinced them that the track needed more work, and on October 29th they added more vocals to take two, then produced mono remix RM2. The first stereo remix, RS1, was produced on November 10th and was sent to Capitol for use on the "Yesterday and Today" album (see Track 21). Exactly one year later, on November 10th, 1966, a new stereo remix, RS2, was produced for the "Collection of Beatles Oldies" album. RS2 has the harmonium on one channel throughout the song, while RS1 has it on one channel during the verses but centered during the chorus.

16. Day Tripper - take 3, RM2 (2:50)
On October 16th they recorded John's contribution to the single, starting with three takes of the rhythm tracks. Onto take three were added shared lead and backup vocals by John and Paul. The first mono remix, RM1, was produced on October 25th, and the next day they produced the first stereo remix, RS1, which went off to Capitol for the "Yesterday and Today" album (see Track 22). Like "We Can Work It Out," this track received a new stereo remix, RS2, on November 10th, 1966 for inclusion on the "Collection of Beatles Oldies" album. RS2 starts off with two guitars playing, while RS1 starts off with just one guitar then fades in the other. Where there is a tape dropout during the line "tried to please her," RS1 fades cleanly in out, while RS2 fades up on a guitar note. In addition, RS2 has more reverb than RS1, and a vocal mistake near the end, uncorrected in RS1, is corrected in RS2 by creating an annoying new dropout. In the mono remix, RM1, this mistake is mixed down, but not entirely out, the earlier dropout is corrected by grafting in a replacement segment, and the track runs just a tad longer than the stereo mixes.

Mixing the "Rubber Soul" alternate takes
17. I'm Looking Through You - take 1, RS'82(b) (2:52)
18. Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) - take 1, RS'82(b) (1:59)
19. I'm Looking Through You - take 1, RS'84 (2:57)
20. Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) - take 1, RS'95 (1:58)
The first two remixes were prepared in 1982 by John Barrett for the 1983 Abbey Road Studios Tour (as opposed to Disc One, Tracks 12 and 16, made for his own pleasure). The 1984 stereo remix of "I'm Looking Through You" was prepared by Geoff Emerick for the aborted "Sessions" LP, while the 1995 stereo remix of "Norwegian Wood" was made for the "Anthology 2" CD release.

Other "Rubber Soul" era mixes
21. We Can Work It Out - take 2, RS1 (2:13)
22. Day Tripper - take 3, RS1
These are the early stereo mixes provided to Capitol Records for release on their "Yesterday and Today" album (see Tracks 15-16).

23. The Word - take 3, RS1 (2:43)
Presented here is the early stereo mix released on the Capitol Records version of the "Rubber Soul" album (see Track 6).

24. Michelle - take 2, RM1 (2:44)
This is the early mono mix released on the Capitol Records version of the "Rubber Soul" album (see Track 7).

25. I'm Looking Through You - take 4, RS1, U.S. edit (2:27)
Included here is the American version of the stereo mix, retaining the two false starts, released on the Capitol Records version of the "Rubber Soul" album (see Track 10).

26. Girl - take 2, RS'77 (2:28)
27. Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) - take 4, RS'77 (2:02)
28. In My Life - take 3, RS'88 (2:25)
Gathered here are three "after-the-fact" stereo remixes, the first two prepared in 1977 for the "Love Songs" album, and the third in 1988 for the "Imagine: John Lennon" film soundtrack.

Monitor mix = microphone recording from control room speakers.

Reduction mix = mixing a four-track tape down to one or two tracks, thus freeing up room for more overdubbing.

RM2 = official mono remix #2.

RS'95 = 1995 stereo remix, official mix number unknown.

SI = Super Imposition, an overdub added to an existing take.

Tape reduction = see Reduction mix.

Liner notes: Miles Hai.