The Beatles - Thirty Days: Disc 7/8

Label: Vigotone, VT-224/225

The Best Of The Apple Studio Sessions Part Three
DISC 7 (68:28)
I -"There You Are, Eddie"
2 - Diggin' My Potatoes
3 - Hey Liley, Liley-Lo
4 - Rock Island Line
5 - Michael Row the Boat
6 - Rock-A-Bye Baby
7 - Singing The Blues
8 - Dig It
9 - Dig It
10 - Get Back
II - Get Back/Little Demon/Maybellene/You Can't Catch Me/
Brown-Eyed Handsome Man
12 - Short Fat Fannie
13 - Get Back
14 - Bad Boy
15 - Sweet Little Sixteen
16 - Around and Around
17 - Almost Grown
18 - School Day
19 - Stand By Me/Where Have You Been
20 - Get Back
21 - I Lost My Little Girl
22 - Two of Us - NEW
23 - Two of Us - NEW
24 - Bye Bye Love
25 - Two of Us
26 - For You Blue - NEW
27 -For You Blue - NEW
28 -For You Blue -NEW

The Best Of The Apple Studio Sessions Part Four
DISC 8 (65:53)
1 - For You Blue
2 - For You Blue - NEW
3 - For You Blue
4 - Let It Be - NEW
5 - Let It Be - NEW
6 - I'm Talking About You
7 - Let It Be - NEW
8 - Let It Be - NEW
9 - Isn't It a Pity
10 - Window, Window
11 - Octopus's Garden
12 - High School Confidential
13 - Great Balls of Fire
14 - Great Balls of Fire
15 - Let It Be - NEW
16 - Let It Be - NEW
17 - Let It Be - NEW
18 - Let It Be - NEW
19 - Let It Be - NEW
20 - Dig It
21 - Rip It Up (2:36) - 26.28
22 - Shake. Rattle and Roll

DISC SEVEN – 68.28
The Best Of The Apple Studio Sessions Part Three
This disc shows what The Beatles did in between takes and during equipment changeovers to enjoy themselves – namely playing songs by Lonnie Donnigan and Chuck Berry. We also finally get to hear the complete version of John and Paul harmonizing to the Everly Brother’s classic "Bye Bye Love" (up to now we only had a tantalizing two second clip!), as well as the beginning of a very comprehensive look at the recording of George’s "For You Blue". And what could be more fun than John singing a version of the very first song Paul ever wrote (track 21)?


Friday, January 24 (continued)
01 – "There You Are, Eddie" (2.28) – 24.49
Roll 446A? – Paul offers up another of his own compositions for acoustic guitar, this time a gentle folk tune.

02 – Diggin' My Potatoes (0.52) – 24.61
03 – Hey Liley, Liley–Lo (0.07) – 24.62
04 – Rock Island Line (0.59) – 24.63
Roll 448A – Paul and John share lead vocals as they gleefully rip through a trilogy of skiffle classics.

05 – Michael Row the Boat (0.59) – 24.65
06 – Rock–A–Bye Baby (0.15) – 24.66
07 – Singing The Blues (1.54) – 24.67
edit of Rolls 448A / 449A – Paul begins singing, but he can only remember one line, and mumbles his way though the forgotten verses. This performance runs right into "Rock–a–Bye Baby". Spurred on by some guitar licks from John, Paul vocalizes a few bars of this lullaby. Paul takes the lead vocal for "Singing the Blues", obviously knowing this song by heart.

08 – Dig It (4.10) – 24.72
Roll 449A

09 – Dig It (5.07) – 24.73
Roll 449A – Slightly less cohesive than the last performance, this one is distinguished by Billy’s participation. It is more of an instrumental than the earlier takes.

10 – Get Back (3.02) – 24.79
Roll 450A – A complete run–through of the song. John continues to have problems with his guitar and neglects to play most of his first solo. Billy seems to be struggling a bit with the song.

11 – Get Back / Little Demon / Maybellene / You Can't Catch Me / Brown–Eyed Handsome Man (2.24) – 24.80
Roll 450A – This medley starts out as "Get Back" which continues for the rest of the performance, as lyrics from various other songs are grafted on.

12 – Short Fat Fannie (1.29) – 24.81
Roll 450A – John takes the lead vocal on this performance. After completing one verse he gives way to Paul and George, who whistle the rest of the song.

13 – Get Back (4.13) – 24.83
edit of Rolls 1051B / 451A – A strong performance as Billy is playing better. John manages fine solos during his instrumental breaks.

14 – Bad Boy (2.38) – 24.87
Roll 451A – John begins playing this song and actually remembers most of the words. Along with Ringo’s drumming, this performance features some inspired accompaniment from Billy and occasional vocal contributions from Paul.

15 – Sweet Little Sixteen (1.47) – 24.88
Roll 451A – John begins to sing this cover version of Chuck Berry’s classic. Ringo and Billy join in at the second verse, and continue playing throughout the song.

16 – Around and Around (1.07) – 24.89
Roll 451A – The transition between the previous number and "Around and Around" is exceptionally smooth. Except for one verse John remembers most of the words.

17 – Almost Grown (1.07) – 24.90
edit of Rolls 451A / 452A – John’s trip through Chuck Berry’s catalogue continues. Paul and George offer spirited backing vocals supporting this fine performance.

18 – School Day (1.36) – 24.91
Roll 452A – John leads the band into another Chuck Berry song. He makes it through the first verse without a hitch, but begins to stumble on the words when he reaches the second.

19 – Stand By Me / Where Have You Been (2.39) – 24.92
Roll 452A – John starts singing this oldie, accompanied instrumentally by Ringo and Billy. Paul sings along during the first chorus.

20 – Get Back (6.12) – 24.95
Roll 452A – This is really two performances rolled into one. In general, the first pass is relaxed, assured, and fun. The musicianship is fine. Then, without missing a beat, Paul begins to sing from the top which heads into a brief instrumental improvisation, concluding with various improvised exhortations from Paul.


Saturday, January 25
21 – I Lost My Little Girl (5.09) – 24.55
Roll 459A – John takes the lead vocal, with Paul occasionally prompting him on the lyrics or singing backup.

22 – Two of Us (3.40) – 25.NEW
Roll 459A – Run–through.

23 – Two of Us (3.24) – 25.NEW
Roll 1061B – The middle–eight is repeated in this version.

24 – Bye Bye Love (1.00) – 25.8
Roll 1061B – John and Paul harmonize in this Everly Brothers’ song while George is practicing his "Two Of Us" bass part.

25 – Two of Us (3.25) – 25.9
Roll 461A – A complete run–through.

26 – For You Blue (2.05) – 25.NEW
Roll 463A – Run–through with a nice solo from John.

27 – For You Blue (2.05) – 25.NEW
Roll 464A – George asks John to "just make it one on each solo".

28 – For You Blue (2.28) – 25.NEW
Roll 466A – And another run–through. Ringo’s drumming is heard more clearly and Billy joins in on the piano after John’s solo.



DISC EIGHT – 65.53
The Best Of The Apple Studio Sessions Part Four
Multiple takes of "Let It Be", all never heard before, are the focal point of Disc 8. An even longer take than anyone ever knew existed of "Dig It" is here as well, clocking in at over 15 minutes! George plays nice acoustic versions of "Isn’t It a Pity" and "Window, Window" and for the very first time "Rip It Up" can be heard in it’s complete form.


Saturday, January 25 (continued)
01 – For You Blue (3.02) – 25.25
Roll 467A – This take is prefaced by the sound of someone rattling the ice cubes in his glass, and a brief false start. This take was used for the unreleased Get Back LP, and for the Let It Be album with a re–recorded vocal.

02 – For You Blue (2.29) – 25.NEW
Roll 468A – A fine performance.

03 – For You Blue (2.37) – 25.22
Roll 468A – Another run–through. George comments that it "felt nice" at the end of the take.

04 – Let It Be (2.22) – 25.NEW
Roll 470A – Billy Preston is not present. George and John are unsure about what to play.

05 – Let It Be (2.15) – 25.NEW
Roll 471A – "Psalm 22 Chapter 3" John comments just before the guitar solo which prompts Paul into "sermonizing" the rest of his vocal.

06 – I'm Talking About You (1.19) – 26.18
Roll 474A – George sings a bit of this song in the background and John takes over the vocal. The backing is quite loose.

07 – Let It Be (3.15) – 25.NEW
Roll 474A – Third verse lyrics partially copied from the first one.

08 – Let It Be (3.48) – 25.NEW
Roll 474A – Another run–through, this time at a slower tempo.


Sunday, January 26
09 – Isn't It a Pity (1.50) – 26.1
Roll 477A – A lovely acoustic performance from George. He sings both of the song’s verses and is vocalizing through a third when he stops to engage in conversation.

10 – Window, Window (0.57) – 26.2
Roll 477A – George performs two verses and the chorus of this pleasant original.

11 – Octopus's Garden (1.04) – 26.11
Roll 478A – Ringo and George attempt a run–through.

12 – High School Confidential (1.39) – 26.22
Roll 481A – Paul plays piano and takes lead vocal on this oldie, basically accompanied only by Ringo’s drumming. He remembers little more than the chorus, which he repeats a few times.

13 – Great Balls of Fire (1.28) – 26.23
Roll 481A – The band comes together for a lively performance. Paul begins to sing with Jerry Lee in mind, but remembers the recently released Tiny Tim cover version and modifies his vocal accordingly.

14 – Great Balls of Fire (0.33) – 26.23
Roll 481A – A short reprise of the previous number.

15 – Let It Be (2.44) – 26.NEW
Roll 483A – After Paul’s introductory lyrics, John comments "that’s right". Paul asks John and George to sing the background vocals quieter.

16 – Let It Be (3.47) – 26.NEW
Roll 484A – The final arrangement of the song has been decided upon with Billy playing a little solo before the guitar solo. Paul comments that the instruments shouldn’t "drop out" for the last verse.

17 – Let It Be (3.46) – 26.NEW
Roll 484A – A very good take of the song with nice background vocals, a nice organ solo from Billy and a pretty good solo from George.

18 – Let It Be (3.56) – 26.NEW
Roll 485A – A looser performance than the previous with Paul throwing some "Yeah"s over George’s guitar solo. Paul makes a mistake going into the last verse.

19 – Let It Be (3.40) – 26.NEW
Roll 486A – Paul and John count in. A fairly strong version with a funny last verse about a "cat" living in Weybridge and a lavatory?

20 – Dig It (15.05) – 26.27
Edit of rolls 1074B / 487A – John leads the band through this rollicking improvisation, extemporizing lyrics around the title phrase. Heather bleats along as John and George engage in some call and response vocals. This improvisation was used, with different edits for each, on the Get Back album and the Let It Be album and film.

21 – Rip It Up (2.36) – 26.28
Roll 487A – A complete rendition of the Little Richard song.

22 – Shake, Rattle and Roll (1.39) – 26.29
Roll 487A – Paul and John share lead vocal on this exciting performance and everyone has a wonderful time with it.