just wondering who played the lead guitar on i want you/shes so heavy i had an idea it was john, but there is onyl one guitar by the sounds of it playing which would mean george then wouldnt have been involved in the song as all that was left is bass (paul) drums (ringo) and keyboard (preston) ?

I think John and George both worked on the guitar part(s) of that one, but I stand to be corrected.

I understood that Lennon played lead, and George rhythm. None of the lead sounds like George.

yeah i thought john played lead and that was why it was so close to what he was singing ?

I want to know this answer, as well. Does one of you scholarly people have the mega-super-documented book o' "who played what"?

Quoted from fendertele

i thought john played lead and that was why it was so close to what he was singing ?

George was very Indian at that point, and a common technique is to double the voices with the instruments. He used this technique a lot. Of course, John could have borrowed the idea from him (actually, from the Indian musicians).

My Revolution In The head book is in the shed somewhere but I am sure there will be clues in there. Judging by the fact there was 2 mixes used, it could have been any of them.
Wickipedia -
"I Want You (She's So Heavy)"
Main article: I Want You (She's So Heavy)
"I Want You (She's So Heavy)", is a combination of two somewhat different recording attempts. The first attempt occurred almost immediately after the "Get Back/Let It Be" sessions in February 1969 and featuring Billy Preston on keyboards. This was subsequently combined with a second version made during the "Abbey Road" sessions proper, and when edited together ran nearly 8 minutes long, making it The Beatles's second-longest released song ("Revolution 9" being the longest). Perhaps more than any other Beatles song, "I Want You (She's So Heavy)" reveals a pronounced progressive rock influence, with its unusual length and structure, repeating guitar riff, and "white noise" effects; the "I Want You" section has a straightforward blues structure. It also features one of the earliest uses of a Moog synthesizer to create the white-noise or "wind" effect heard near the end of the track. During the final edit, as the guitar riff continues on and on, Lennon told engineer Geoff Emerick to "cut it right there" at the 7:44 mark, creating a sudden, jarring silence which concluded side one of "Abbey Road". The final overdub session for "I Want You (She's So Heavy)" would be the last time all four Beatles worked in the studio together.

For the really good at researching, I know there is some relevant links on the All links Beatle thread somewhere...will have a nosey round.

Could not find related in the All Links section but did find this from Wickipedia which did not come uo first time around...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Want_You_(She's_So_Heavy)

"I Want You (She's So Heavy)" is a song by The Beatles, from their album Abbey Road. It was written by John Lennon, although it is credited as a Lennon/McCartney collaboration.
The song is an unusual Beatles composition for a variety of reasons, namely its length (nearly eight minutes), its disproportionately small number of lyrics (there are only fourteen different words in the song), its three-minute descension through the same repeated guitar chords (a similar arpeggiated figure appears in another of Lennon's contributions to the album, "Because"), its hard rock sound, and for its instantaneous and unanticipated end. It is also one of the last songs that the Beatles mixed as a group, on August 20, 1969.
David Gates writes of the song, "The hypnotically repeated guitar figure in 'I Want You (She's So Heavy)' is suddenly, arbitrarily cut off, jolting us into embarrassed awareness that we've let a mere recording carry us away."
The sudden end of the song was intentional and orchestrated by Lennon. In the spirit of the band, it was pushing the boundaries of what was 'allowed' on a record; full volume slashes were certainly not the norm.

The recording

The song was rehearsed several times during the Get Back/Let It Be sessions; the basic track and John's guide vocal (which is used in the master) was recorded at Trident Studios on 22 February 1969, shortly after filming for the film project ended. John and George overdubbed multi-tracked heavy guitar overdubs on 18 April 1969, and Billy Preston overdubbed keyboards, and conga drums were also added on 20 April 1969. "I Want You", then received the "she's so heavy" vocals on 11 August 1969 and thus, the title was changed into "I Want You (She's So Heavy)".
Three takes from February 22 were edited into a master (2nd generation), which was overdubbed, mixed down on April 18 (3rd generation), and overdubbed on April 18 and 20 and August 11. Different overdubs were made to the 2nd generation tape August 8. The mix is the 3rd generation for 4:37 (up to "she's so") and then the 2nd generation tape, which has a white noise and additional drums added August 8.

Thanks, Rick! I won't make you go to the shed just yet.

Quoted from Geoff

I think John and George both worked on the guitar part(s) of that one, but I stand to be corrected.

Based on my Simon Leng book, Geoff is probably closest. In the EMI recordings section, Leng writes:

Quoted Text

Abbey Road may be the Beatles album that most heavily features Harrison's melodic signature, played on guitar or moog synthesizer (another Harrison innovation). Aside from "Oh! Darling", his is the most prominent musical voice on side one of the album. ... critically, he worked tirelessly on the guitar parts for "I Want You" to help realize Lennon's vision. Harrison contributed the climactic opening lead salvo, and the main counterpoint riff that defines the lengthy coda.

Since Leng calls out these two accomplishments in particular, I expect the other guitar contributions were Lennon's.

Edit: I composed this while you were writing the post above. It seems both accounts agree: there were 2 guitarists, with George composing the main riff sound.

Don't bother going to your shed; Macdonald doesn't have much to add:

[George] worked closely with Lennon on the track, spending hours overdubbing the unison guitar riff and lending him the Moog synthesizer he'd brought back from California at the end of 1968. (p.300)

Quoted from Geoff

Don't bother going to your shed; Macdonald doesn't have much to add:

[George] worked closely with Lennon on the track, spending hours overdubbing the unison guitar riff and lending him the Moog synthesizer he'd brought back from California at the end of 1968. (p.300)

Cheers Geoff thats good you said...i did not fancy a big rummage...Especially as i was still in me dressing gown at the time. lol

More evidence that John did the musical echoes of his words. I just found this:

The Beatles - I Want You(shes so heavy) rehearsal - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOMlITKEZ1o
Billy Preston Ringo Starr Play a Run thru of "I want you"(shes so heavy)Feb 22 1969

No mention in this note of George or Paul being on the session.

Quoted from An Apple Beatle

Cheers Geoff thats good you said...i did not fancy a big rummage...Especially as i was still in me dressing gown at the time. lol

                      


I suspect harihead's onto what happened, though: the basic style of the guitar part is very Lennon-ish, but the technical approach (Indian doubling) may well have come from George. If so, it's all rather reminiscent of what happened on Come Together, a Lennon song in which Paul had a great deal to do with the arrangement. The Beatles really were a great unit.

Quoted from harihead

More evidence that John did the musical echoes of his words. I just found this:

The Beatles - I Want You(shes so heavy) rehearsal - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOMlITKEZ1o
Billy Preston Ringo Starr Play a Run thru of "I want you"(shes so heavy)Feb 22 1969

No mention in this note of George or Paul being on the session.

Ah... well, that would would mean I'm out to lunch, then.

In fact, I will go out for lunch; food being one of the great consolations. Cheers.

Quoted from Geoff

I suspect harihead's onto what happened, though: the basic style of the guitar part is very Lennon-ish, but the technical approach (Indian doubling) may well have come from George.  

LOL! No, you're not out to lunch (except technically). I think we've got it. Since George had been doubling voices on instrument since Sgt Pepper, John may very well have remembered the technique without George being in the room.

And I agree, The Beatles were a great unit.

Quoted from harihead

Since George had been doubling voices on instrument since Sgt Pepper, John may very well have remembered the technique without George being in the room.

You know, I never thought of that as an Indian technique until you mentioned it this morning. It seems blindingly obvious now, but it never occurred to me.  

We must also consider the movements of Ringo, Macca & Preston as a lot of those licks and the main line may have become repetitive. This is a great unit song with everyone playing their parts to the best of their ability imo.

Well said. I could eat this song with a spoon.

It's not so much an Indian technique as a blues technique, which goes back many years into the Beatles' early influences. I'm not discrediting anyone's perspective; it's just a reminder that playing and singing the same notes is a major blues thing.

Anyway, to answer the question, John played lead guitar throughout the song. This was done live, along with his singing. (Timing an overdub would've been incredibly difficult, considering his varying inflections.)

During the coda (the ominous, musical equivalent of torturous male lust -- cut off "instantly" in the only way it can be; I needn't go into detail), John and George are playing the repeating arpeggio, on several overdubbed tracks. George didn't play any "soloing" parts.

Quoted from Chris

I'm not discrediting anyone's perspective; it's just a reminder that playing and singing the same notes is a major blues thing.

Thanks for the input, and feel free to correct anything I say about the technical aspects of music; my ignorance of the whole subject is nearly complete. I must have been the only kid in 1977 who couldn't work out the two chords you needed in order to call yourself a guitar player and start your own band.

Cheers, Chris. I didn't know blues used the same technique. I suppose John could have been influenced by either blues or Indian music, as both influences were floating about. Do you know anything specific about it regarding this song?

In any case, I expect Fendertele got his question answered. The winner is: John!

Man, this was fun. Somebody ask something else!

I don't know anything specific about the inception of the song, if that's what you mean (well, I don't know anything, of course, not being a Beatle; I've just read all this stuff ); lyrically, it was about Yoko, and was recorded at both Trident and Abbey Road. Beyond that, I could type out the more intriguing bits of the section in Recording the Beatles that deals with the song, if you like. (It includes the overdub-by-overdub studio board plan...pretty fascinating, for an obsessive recording-stuff nerd like me.)

An exception to what we've ascertained so far is that great, super-strong lick that opens the song (just before the vocals). Just that bit might be both John and George; it sounds like the same notes on two guitars, doesn't it?

Quoted from Chris

An exception to what we've ascertained so far is that great, super-strong lick that opens the song (just before the vocals). Just that bit might be both John and George; it sounds like the same notes on two guitars, doesn't it?

I can hear two guitars, but playing different notes. Unless my old ears are deceiving me!

Don't the recording records indicate that John and George played together on this song (per Geoff and Rick's notes from page 1)? It makes sense that George would play the opening lick (and long coda) if he devised it. They were probably playing together, but who knows how many overdubs and permutations went into the final product?

Quoted from BlueMeanie

I can hear two guitars, but playing different notes. Unless my old ears are deceiving me!

Sorry; I wasn't very clear. There's the arpeggio thing going on in the background (the same repeating notes heard in the "she's so heavy" sections and the long ending), but on top of this, there's a much louder "solo" line, unique to the intro, which doesn't come in until a few seconds have passed.

Quoted from harihead

Don't the recording records indicate that John and George played together on this song (per Geoff and Rick's notes from page 1)? It makes sense that George would play the opening lick (and long coda) if he devised it. They were probably playing together, but who knows how many overdubs and permutations went into the final product?

George didn't devise it; John wrote the song. (Which book are you talking about? Just curious.)

Again, yes, John and George are playing the repeating notes that continue throughout the entire last section. They're also multi-tracked several times.

By "lead" guitar, I meant the notes being played along with John's vocals (and in the similar instrumental verses). That's all John.

This is an exception on the album; George plays most of the other guitars on Abbey Road.

Quoted from Chris

George didn't devise it; John wrote the song. (Which book are you talking about? Just curious.)

Chris, hop back and read page 1 of this thread. Several of us looked up various published sources about who might have played what. I was quoting Simon Leng, who listened to the Abbey Road tapes to figure out what Harrison contributed. Yes, John wrote the song and played the lead guitar (along with the voice), but George apparently did the lick. Repeating part of it here:

Quoted Text

Critically, he [Harrison] worked tirelessly on the guitar parts for "I Want You" to help realize Lennon's vision. Harrison contributed the climactic opening lead salvo, and the main counterpoint riff that defines the lengthy coda.

Okay; I misinterpreted "devised" as "wrote."

What I'm really wondering is this: Can anyone decipher the lyrics in the song??



(Just kidding.)

i'm quite sure i've read in lewisholm's recording sessons that the repeating guitar riff is certainly george and john.  what's much more interesting to me are the very  jazzy, distinctive, leads in this song.  i've asked on several boards who the owner was, and most agree on lennon, who rarely showed such tasteful work.

Quoted from sregis

i'm quite sure i've read in lewisholm's recording sessons that the repeating guitar riff is certainly george and john.  what's much more interesting to me are the very  jazzy, distinctive, leads in this song.  i've asked on several boards who the owner was, and most agree on lennon, who rarely showed such tasteful work.

Oh, really? Would you like to step outside and discuss that? Huh?

Oh, sorry about that   . What I meant to say is, what do you think about those little riffs in "Honey Pie"? I was amazed to hear (via general consensus) that was John doing that.

Not quite as tasteful, but his solo in "Get Back" is smooth too. Who knows about any others?

I can very rarely get all the way thought Honey Pie, I don't really like it.