Recording, mixing: Piggies, Glass Onion, Rocky Raccoon, Long Long Long, Why Don’t We Do It In The Road

Studios Two and Three, EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Producer: George Martin
Engineers: Ken Scott, Ken Townsend

The Beatles added overdubs to three The Beatles (White Album) songs, and mixes of two others were made, during two separate sessions on this date.

George Harrison’s ‘Piggies’ was the first to receive an overdub. A string arrangement by George Martin was added to take 12, featuring eight players: Henry Datyner, Eric Bowie, Norman Lederman, Ronald Thomas on violin; John Underwood and Keith Cummings on viola; and Eldon Fox and Reginald Kilbey on cello.

The same session musicians then added a string part to ‘Glass Onion’. Stereo mixes of Glass Onion, ‘Rocky Raccoon’ and Long, Long, Long were then made, along with a mono mix of Glass Onion.

The session took place from 7pm-7.15am in Abbey Road’s Studio Two. In Studio Three, meanwhile, Paul McCartney completed the recording of ‘Why Don’t We Do It In The Road?’ with engineer Ken Townsend.

The basic track for Why Don’t We Do It In The Road had been taped on the previous day, with McCartney working alone. This time, however, he enlisted the help of Ringo Starr.

Recording on four-track tape, the pair added bass guitar and drums onto track tree. McCartney then re-recorded his lead vocals onto track one, erasing his original acoustic guitar part in the process, although percussion slaps on the instrument were retained.

Handclaps were then added to track two in the introduction, and track four was filled with a second vocal part. A reduction mix, numbered take six, was then made, onto which McCartney finally overdubbed an electric guitar part.