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You are here: Home » Beatles diary » 1969 » January » 30 » The Beatles' rooftop concert (Apple building)

The Beatles' rooftop concert (Apple building)

12.00pm, Thursday 30 January 1969 (43 years ago)

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The Beatles began with a rehearsal of Get Back while the film cameras were being set up. At the end it was applauded by the spectators on the roof. In response, McCartney mumbled something about cricketer Ted Dexter, and Lennon announced: "We've had a request from Martin Luther."



Another version of Get Back followed. An edit of these two versions was included in the Let It Be film. Afterwards Lennon said: "We've had a request for Daisy, Morris and Tommy."

The third song was Don't Let Me Down, as featured in the Let It Be film. At the end The Beatles went straight into I've Got A Feeling, which was used in both the film and the album.

George Harrison sang a few lines on I've Got A Feeling, his only vocals throughout the performance. At the end of the song Lennon can be heard saying: "Oh my soul, so hard."

One After 909 was also used in the Let It Be film and album. At the end of it John Lennon broke out into a brief impromptu rendition of Conway Twitty's 1959 hit Danny Boy.

The sixth song The Beatles played was Dig A Pony. A short rehearsal was played first, with Lennon asking for the lyrics. They then performed the song properly, with a production runner on the film, Kevin Harrington, kneeling in front of Lennon holding a clipboard with the words on. George Harrison, too, briefly knelt next to Harrington.

Dig A Pony began with a false start. In the film, Ringo Starr can be seen putting his cigarette down and crying out 'Hold it!' This, and the full version that followed, were both included in the album and film, although on the LP the 'All I want is..." refrain which opened and closed the song were later cut by Phil Spector.

As Alan Parsons changed the recording tapes in Apple's basement studio, The Beatles and Billy Preston performed an off-the-cuff version of God Save The Queen. This was never used; nor were second versions of I've Got A Feeling and Don't Let Me Down.

The final full song was Get Back, although The Beatles nearly stopped performing when the police arrived on the roof. The officers demanded that Mal Evans turn off the group's Fender Twin amplifiers. He complied, but George Harrison immediately turned his back on.

Evans realised his mistake and turned John Lennon's back on too. The amplifiers took several seconds to start again, but The Beatles managed to continue long enough to see the song through to the end.

In the end it started to filter up from Mal that the police were complaining. We said, 'We're not stopping.' He said, The police are going to arrest you.' 'Good end to the film. Let them do it. Great! That's an end: "Beatles Busted on Rooftop Gig".'

We kept going to the bitter end and, as I say, it was quite enjoyable. I had my little Hofner bass - very light, very enjoyable to play. In the end the policeman, Number 503 of the Greater Westminster Council, made his way round the back: 'You have to stop!' We said, 'Make him pull us off. This is a demo, man!'

I think they pulled the plug, and that was the end of the film.

Paul McCartney
Anthology

As a climax it could scarcely be bettered, with McCartney brilliantly ad-libbing, "You've been playing on the roofs again, and that's no good, and you know your Mummy doesn't like that... she gets angry... she's gonna have you arrested! Get back!"

The police presence ensured that The Beatles would play no more on the roof. The concert over, McCartney thanked Ringo Starr's wife Maureen for her enthusiastic cheering with a simple "Thanks Mo".

I always feel let down about the police. Someone in the neighbourhood called the police, and when they came up I was playing away and I thought, 'Oh great! I hope they drag me off.' I wanted the cops to drag me off - 'Get off those drums!' - because we were being filmed and it would have looked really great, kicking the cymbals and everything. Well, they didn't, of course; they just came bumbling in: 'You've got to turn that sound down.' It could have been fabulous.
Ringo Starr
Anthology

Then, of course, there was John Lennon's immortal closing quote: "I'd like to say thank you on behalf of the group and ourselves, and I hope we passed the audition." Both these comments were used at the end of Get Back on the Let It Be album, although the version of the song was not from the rooftop performance.

Around half of the performance was used in the Let It Be film. Furthermore, edits of I've Got A Feeling, One After 909 and Dig A Pony all featured on the Let It Be album.

The final Get Back take was included in the Let It Be film, and appeared on Anthology 3 in 1996.

An edit of the two Don't Let Me Down takes was included on 2003's Let It Be... Naked, due to John Lennon getting the vocals wrong at different points in both. That album also contained an edit of the rooftop performance of I've Got A Feeling and another version, recorded on another date.

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« Previous post: Get Back/Let It Be sessions: day 18
Next post: Get Back/Let It Be sessions: day 20 »
Also on this day...

  • 2009: Stella McCartney creates Beatles t-shirt for Red Nose Day
  • 1967: Mixing: A Day In The Life
  • 1967: Filming: Strawberry Fields Forever
  • 1964: Live: Olympia Theatre, Paris
  • 1964: US single release: Please Please Me
  • 1963: Live: Cavern Club, Liverpool

Want more? Visit the Beatles history section.

Related articles:

  • I've Got A Feeling
  • Get Back/Let It Be sessions: day 18
  • Mixing: I've Got A Feeling, Don't Let Me Down, Get Back, One After 909, Dig A Pony
  • The Beatles' former Apple HQ goes on sale
  • Don't Let Me Down

Filed under: Live

14 responses to “The Beatles' rooftop concert (Apple building)”

  1. Keith Starr says:
    Sunday 13 December 2009 at 10.49am

    Didn't John play a few bars of I Want You (She's So Heavy) while they were changing he tapes?

    Not the whole band, just him.

    Did you not include it, because it wasn't the whole band, or didn't you know?

    Anyway, you've got a great website, really useful resource.

    Thanks!

    Reply to this comment
    • Joe says:
      Monday 14 December 2009 at 8.19pm

      It was an omission - I also left out A Pretty Girl Is Like A Melody and God Save The Queen, but I probably should have been more complete. I've added a paragraph about the off-the-cuff songs below the main song list, though it should be stressed that these weren't proper performances.

      Reply to this comment
  2. TheOneBeatle (From Youtube) says:
    Wednesday 30 December 2009 at 12.31am

    I have a question.
    There's a bootleg with a stereo versions of the Rooftop Concert?

    Reply to this comment
  3. McLerristarr says:
    Friday 7 May 2010 at 2.28pm

    In response, McCartney mumbled something about cricketer Ted Dexter, and Lennon announced: "We've had a request from Martin Luther."

    John shouts something while Paul says in a posh voice "Well, thank you very much. It looks Ted Dexter has scored another." Then John says "We've had a request from Martin and Luther." There's definitely an "and" in between "Martin" and "Luther". I downloaded the bootleg off the internet.

    Reply to this comment
    • McLerristarr says:
      Friday 7 May 2010 at 2.29pm

      From listening to the bootleg, there is a loud American voice, one of the crew. Who is it?

      Reply to this comment
      • Gainsbarre says:
        Saturday 30 April 2011 at 9.17pm

        That probably would've been the director Michael Lindsay-Hogg who was an American.

        Reply to this comment
  4. Edvado says:
    Sunday 30 January 2011 at 4.48pm

    While Conway Twitty may have made ONE recoding of "Danny Boy" the song is much older, having been written by Frederic Weatherly in 1910, and first recorded by someone named Ernestine Schumann-Heink in 1915.

    Reply to this comment
  5. Gainsbarre says:
    Saturday 30 April 2011 at 9.23pm

    It says that George sings a few lines on I've Got A Feeling and they were his only vocals during the concert, which was stated in Mark Lewisohn's Beatles Sessions book, but it's not quite true, because George can clearly be heard singing on Don't Let Me Down as well, so much so that at one point he almost drowns John's vocal out. He only sings in the choruses of Don't Let Me Down though.

    Reply to this comment
    • Joseph Brush says:
      Monday 2 May 2011 at 10.12pm

      I would like to hear George drown out a Lennon vocal.
      Are you sure it wasn't Paul?

      Reply to this comment
      • Paul Cole says:
        Thursday 12 January 2012 at 4.48pm

        John Paul and George sing a great gospel-like 3 part harmony on the choruses of Don't Let Me Down.

        Reply to this comment
  6. Bo says:
    Monday 30 January 2012 at 8.37pm

    7 December, 1968. Jefferson Airplane Rooftop Concert filmed by Godard ;)

    Reply to this comment
  7. Imagination Troubador says:
    Friday 24 February 2012 at 8.29am

    At the end, John says "I hope we passed the audition!"
    What does he say right before that?

    Reply to this comment
    • Joe - Beatles Bible says:
      Friday 24 February 2012 at 9.21am

       @Imagination Troubador "I'd like to say thank you on behalf of the group and ourselves, and..." It's on page two of this article.

      Reply to this comment
      • Joe Mancini says:
        Thursday 10 May 2012 at 3.15pm

        Just prior, we hear a female yell,"Yay". That's Maureen Starkey, then we hear Paul say," Thanks MO, to her...into John's "I'd like to say...

        Reply to this comment

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