oddities in the Beatles's "Hello Goodbye" video

[I I mjrn]

A recent discussion here touched on the possibility that the Beatles overdubbed drums on some recordings, either replacing the basic track or adding to the percussion.

The recording for "Hello Goodbye" seems to demonstrate a case of the latter.

 

(1)The basic track seems to have a somewhat muffled sound with bass, snare & tambourine/hi-hat plugging away. Intermittently over this recurs a section with much brighter cymbals & almost erratic snare/tom rolls.

Additionally that section seems to be a single recording that was edited-in at more than one place rather than actually replayed.

Listen & check it out for yourself.

 

(2)BTW, the video for this tune has some odd business going on: there are two different drum kits used; one seems to be a standard kit (Ludwig logo on the bass, etc.) while the other looks almost toyish, with the "bass" drum not quite reaching Ringo's knee (& since he as only about 5 1/2' tall, that's only about one foot!). In fact, more than anything else, it looks like a turned over tom-tom----what's up with that, party people?!

[Tedster]

Oh, for sure they took liberties with the "video" (the term wasn't used in those days , they were sort of "music video pioneers"). I'm sure it wasn't done all at once.

 

Haven't seen the vid...er, film clip in some time, but as I recall, they're wearing the Sgt. Pepper outfits and "performing live". Which, of course, they were lip syncing. I'm surprised Harrison wasn't playing a ukulele in part of it.

[I I mjrn]

It can be seen in the Anthology series, during the section on 1967, of course.

The audio recording is on "Magical Misery Tour".

 

The thing about the tiny bass drum/tom-tom is that it's just so odd---why bother to set up two kits, etc., for such an obscure joke?

[shniggens]

Originally posted by Tedster:

Which, of course, they were lip syncing.

You mean Paul wasn't really singing those echoed "bye-bye-bye-bye-bye-bye"?

 

[member 30687]

I looked up some photos of that vid in a book; it does look like a very small kit.

Don't have access to the clip itself to compare the other set you refer to but I listened to the recording & I see what you mean about the different sound quality some parts of the percussion track(s).

I'd guess they were just "goosing up" the recording for "hit-a-bility"!

[Rik]

I think some of it might simply have to do with how Paul's bass interacts with Ringo's drums. Listening to the song just now, it seems to me that the drums sound "muffled" in the places where Paul is playing low notes in roughly the same rhythm that Ringo is drumming. But when Paul lets a bass note ring, the drums suddenly sound much brighter.

 

Now, I can definitely hear two snare drums with different sounds on "Lady Madonna". Two different hat parts, too. In the left channel, I can hear the hat playing straight 8ths with a snare hit on the upbeat of each beat. Meanwhile, in the right channel, there is a snare hitting only on 2 & 4. Actually, it's kind of like the drums in the left channel are playing a double-time beat, while the right channel drums are playing a half-time feel.

[I I mjrn]

That may be part of it, Rik, but what about the difference in the cymbal sounds?

Also I'm talking about a particular section of beats & rolls that occurs, as said, 2 or 3 times & seems to be exactly the same, as if dubbed in.

 

Still no comments/thoughts on the drum kit?

[Mudcat]

In the book "The Beatles Recording Sessions" there are numerous examples of overdubbing drum parts (I believe beginning in 1967 and going through Abbey Road).

 

In some instances they were actually double-tracking the same drum part twice for effect ("Magical Mystery Tour"), in others they were overdubbing different drum parts ("Lady Madonna" & "Something").

[D_dup3]

Reading The Beatles Gear by Andy Babiuk, we find this story:

For the filming of this short the band used three drum kits. One was one of their regular Ludwig kits (with a 22" bass). The others were solicited from Drum City, a London shop, who were asked to supply a small & a very large kit. They sent a child's kit (which must be the tiny one The Nose mentions) & another Ludwig four-piece kit with a 24" bass...I guess that was the largest they had.

Supposedly all three are seen in different shots.

 

So they must've had something in mind with the contrasting sizes but exactly what remains unclear.