The Beatles
Abbey Road

THE REVIEW

On April 26, 1969, sessions officially began for the Beatles' new work, replacing the now-abandoned "Get Back" project. In reality, none of the group is very eager to return to the studio; only McCartney and George Martin show the intention to work together again to give a worthy follow-up to "The Beatles." In particular, the producer agrees to work again with his protégés on the condition that the quarrels marking the previous sessions of early '69 are set aside.

The new LP is put into production amid great difficulties, the recordings will stretch throughout the summer and will see the four of them in the studio together only a few times. In particular, Lennon will always try to slip away, provoking McCartney's ire. Side A of "Everest," the first title assigned to the new LP, is composed during this period. However, given the lack of commitment from Lennon and partly from Harrison, the group finds itself with a handful of sketched and disconnected songs. As autumn '69 approaches, none of the Beatles are inclined to complete the songs, but there is an entire Side B to piece together by September, and EMI is pressing for the "Get Back" material to be used as an alternative to the incomplete song fragments. McCartney and Lennon object; Paul comes up with the idea of uniting the remaining songs into one great piece. George Martin is pleasantly impressed by the idea and convinces Harrison and Starr, while Lennon is now disinterested and detaches himself from it.

The famous "The Long One" is the last great testament to the four's artistry, or perhaps it is yet another proof of the absolute talent of McCartney and Martin, who, starting from bits of ideas, construct the group's final masterpiece. "You Never Give Me Your Money/Sun King/Mean Mr Mustard/Polythene Pam/She Came In Through The Bathroom Window/Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight/The End", the sequence of tracks, only the central part is recorded in a single session. In the middle of this medley, a world inhabited by the "girl hidden behind a silver spoon" of Paul, Mr. Mustard, stingy, and his sister Pam, dressed in polythene, by the odious Alan Klein, who will force McCartney to "carry that weight" for a long time. An incredible sonic experience, with a blend never heard before, an absolute pinnacle put together out of necessity that will lead to Ringo Starr's only drum solo, perfect, clean, which will open up the finale of "The End" with that bouncing note serving as an incipit to cosmic equality, "and in the end the love you take is equal to the love you make."