Recording: The Inner Light, Wonderwall Music

EMI Recording Studio, Bombay, India
Producer: George Harrison
Engineers: JP Sen, SN Gupta

George Harrison had flown to India on 7 January 1968 to record the soundtrack for the film Wonderwall. The sessions took place from 9-13 January in Bombay (Mumbai). Work was mostly complete by 12 January.

Keen to maximise the use of his studio time, Harrison recorded a number of additional ragas, which he thought might be suitable for future Beatles recordings. One of these, recorded on this day, became ‘The Inner Light’.

The instrumental track was taped in five takes, and was completed back in London on 6 and 8 February 1968. The Bombay musicians included Ashish Khan (sarod), ahapurush Misra (tabla and pakavaj), Sharad Jadev and Hanuman Jadev (shanhais), Shambu-Das, Indril Bhattacharya and Shankar Ghosh (sitar), Chandra Shakher (sur-bahar), Shiv Kumar Sharmar (santorr), SR Kenkare (flute), Vinayak Vohra (taar shehnai) and Rijram Desad (dholak, harmonium and tabla-tarang).

The Bombay sessions took place at EMI Recording Studios, based at the Universal Insurance Building, Sir Pherozeshah Mehta Rd, Fort, Bombay 400001.