Baby's In Black
Written by: John Lennon (50%), Paul McCartney (50%)(credited as Lennon-McCartney)
Recorded: August 11, 1964 (Studio 2, Abbey Road Studios, London, England)
Mixed: August 14, October 26 and November 4, 1964
Length: 2:02
Takes: 14
Musicians:
John Lennon: lead harmony vocal, acoustic rhythm guitar (1964 Gibson J160E)
Paul McCartney: lead harmony vocal, bass guitar (1961 Hofner 500/1)
George Harrison: lead guitar (1962 Gretsch 6119 "Tennessean")
Ringo Starr: drums (Ludwig), tambourine
Available on: (CDs in bold)
- Beatles For Sale, (UK: Parlophone PMC 1240, PCS 3062; Parlophone CDP 7 46438 2)
- Beatles For Sale (EP), (UK: Parlophone GEP 8931)
- Beatles '65, (US: Capitol (S)T 2228, Capitol CDP 7243 8 66874 2 5)
- Written by John and Paul together in some unknown hotel room while on tour in Australia or New Zealand in the summer of 1964, this dark ballad was largely John's creation, though Paul is thought to have contributed the harmony melody at the same time, so authorship in many Beatles' fans minds goes equally to both. It's likely that both created the bridge together, and that Paul crafted the tricky guitar solo, which would have been (and was) a little difficult for the young George to pull off.
- Some have speculated that the unusually dark lyrical theme of "Baby's In Black" -- about a girl the singer loves, who's unfortunately still in mourning for her dead ex -- was inspired by the death of former band member and close John friend Stu Sutcliffe. This would make the true subject of the song photographer Astrid Kircherr, friend of the band in the Hamburg days, who dated Stu just before his untimely death.
- This song was the very first track recorded for the Beatles' fourth album, Beatles For Sale, finished in fourteen takes before work began on "I'm A Loser." Most of these takes consisted of George trying to master the solo, most notably the first note. Several edit pieces of a stray note were assembled to splice in, but never used.
December 24-26, 28-31, 1964; January 1-2, 4-9, 11-16, 1965 (Odeon Cinema, London, for Another Beatles Christmas Show)
June 20, 1965 (Palais Des Sports, Paris, France)
June 22, 1965 (Palais d'Hiver, Lyon, France)
June 24, 1965 (Velodromo, Milan, Italy)
June 25, 1969 (Palazzo Dello Sport, Genoa, Italy)
June 27-28, 1965 (Teatro Adriano, Rome, Italy)
June 30, 1965 (Palais Des Fetes, Nice, France)
July 2, 1965 (Plaza De Toros De Madrid, Madrid, Spain)
July 3, 1965 (Plaza de Toros Monumental, Barcelona, Spain)
December 8, 1965 (City Hall, Sheffield, England)
December 9, 1965 (Odeon, Birmingham, England)
December 10, 1965 (Odeon, Hammersmith, England)
December 11, 1965 (Astoria, Finsbury Park, England)
December 12, 1965 (Capitol, Cardiff, England)
June 24, 1966 (Circus-Krone-Bau, Munich, Germany)
June 25, 1966 (Grugahalle, Essen, Germany)
June 26, 1966 (Ernst Merck Halle, Hamburg, Germany)
June 30 - July 2, 1966 (Budokan Hall, Tokyo, Japan)
July 4, 1965 (Rizal Memorial Football Stadium, Manila, Philippines)
August 12, 1966 (International Amphitheatre, Chicago, IL)
August 13, 1966 (Olympia Stadium, Detroit, MI)
August 14, 1966 (Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, OH)
August 15, 1966 (Washington Stadium, Washington, DC)
August 16, 1966 (Philadelphia Stadium, Philadelphia, PA)
August 17, 1966 (Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto, Canada)
August 18, 1966 (Suffolk Downs Racecourse, Boston, MA)
August 19, 1966 (Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, TN)
August 20, 1966 (Crosley Field, Cincinnati, OH)
August 21, 1966 (Busch Stadium, St Louis, MO)
August 23, 1966 (Shea Stadium, New York, NY)
August 25, 1966 (Seattle Coliseum, Seattle, WA)
August 28, 1966 (Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA)
August 29, 1966 (Candlestick Park, San Francisco, CA)
Trivia:
- This is the first Beatles song in a 6/8 time signature, a rhythm the band rarely indulged in afterwards. John introduced it at the Paris show of June 20th, 1965 as "a slow number, it's a waltz."
- At Paul's insistence, the twin lead vocals for this song were recorded into the same microphone at the same time, making the main melody line almost impossible to pick out. Paul was later asked by a representative of the group's music publishing company, Dick James Music, which of the two melody lines was the dominant one, so that it could be indicated on the sheet music. Paul found it impossible to pick one out; most sheet music displays both. When singing the song solo, many singers use John's melody for the verse and Paul's for the bridge.
- The stereo version that originally appeared on Beatles '65 contains more echo and reverb than the original stereo mix.
Covered by: Ruben Blades, Charles River Valley Boys, Elvis Costello, Flynnville Train
