Here comes the sun

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Here comes the sun
The Beatles
publication 26th September 1969
length 3 min 5 s
Genre (s) Folk rock , pop rock
Author (s) Harrison
album Abbey Road

Here Comes the Sun is a song by the British band The Beatles , composed by George Harrison . It was released on September 26, 1969 on the Beatles album Abbey Road . Along with Something and My Sweet Lord, the piece is one of Harrison's most famous works.

Emergence

George Harrison wrote the piece at a difficult time for him. In January 1969, during the sessions for the Get-Back project, he had quarreled with the Beatles for several days. On February 8, 1969, his tonsils had to be removed; on March 12, 1969, he was arrested for possession of marijuana . He also found the business quarrels in the environment of the Beatles company Apple stressful . So he had decided to get away from it all for a while and he went to visit his friend Eric Clapton . He then composed the song in his garden.

In his autobiography I, Me, Mine , Harrison commented on the genesis of the song:

Here Comes The Sun was written at the time when Apple was getting like school, where we had to go and be businessmen, all this signing accounts, and 'sign this' and 'sign that'. Anyway, it seems as if winter in England goes on forever; by the time spring comes you really deserve it. So one day I decided - I'm going to 'sag off' Apple, and I went over to Eric’s house: […] The relief of not having to go see all those dopey accountants was wonderful, and I was walking around the garden with one of Eric's acoustic guitars and wrote Here Comes The Sun .

“ Here Comes The Sun was written around the time that working at Apple was becoming like going back to school and being business people; Sign, 'sign this' and 'sign that' all of these accounts. Somehow it seems like winter never ends in England, when spring comes you really deserve it. One day I decided to just 'skip' my work at Apple and I went to Eric's house: […] The relief of not seeing all those stupid accountants was wonderful and I walked through the garden with one of Eric's acoustic guitars and wrote Here Comes The Sun. "

- George Harrison, 1980

admission

Recording for Here Comes the Sun began on July 7, 1969 at Abbey Road Studios in London . As a producer was George Martin responsible. Of the Beatles, only George Harrison, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr were present. John Lennon was absent from a traffic accident in Scotland on July 1, 1969 .

George Harrison sang and played acoustic guitar , which also doubled the singing voice, Paul McCartney played bass and Ringo Starr played drums . By the late evening 13 takes were recorded before one was satisfied. The last hour of this session was used to perfect the guitar track. The following day, work continued overdubbing on Take 13. Harrison recorded a new vocal track, and he and Paul McCartney then added backing vocals . On July 16, 1969, more overdubs followed, including hand clapping and a harmonium track . On August 6 and 11, 1969, Harrison took up more guitar tracks.

On August 15, 1969, the piece received an orchestral arrangement by George Martin. Four violas , four cellos , a double bass , two clarinets , two transverse flutes , two flutes and two piccolo flutes were used .

On August 19, 1969, the song received its last addition. Harrison added a passage played on a Moog synthesizer . On the same day the piece was mixed completely. On the Abbey Road record , Here Comes the Sun was placed as the first track on the B-side .

Cover versions

George Harrison played the piece live on August 1, 1971 in an acoustic version as part of the concert he organized for Bangladesh . It appeared on the accompanying soundtrack .

The song has been covered by numerous artists. The most successful cover versions include that of the American folk singer Richie Havens , who reached number 16 in the US charts with his interpretation in 1971, and the recording by Steve Harley , who reached tenth place on the British charts in 1976. Other cover versions:

literature

  • Mark Lewisohn: The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions. Hamlyn, London 1988, ISBN 0-600-61207-4 .
  • George Harrison: I, Me, Mine. Phoenix, London 2004, ISBN 0-7538-1734-9 .
  • The Beatles: The Beatles Anthology. Ullstein, Munich 2000, ISBN 3-550-07132-9 .
  • Wieland Harms: The Unplugged Guitar Book. 20 of the most beautiful songs for acoustic guitar. Gerig Music, ISBN 3-87252-249-3 , pp. 69-73 ( Here Comes The Sun ).

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ George Harrison: I, Me, Mine , p. 144