The Beatles Song John Lennon ‘Was Always Bitterly Ashamed Of’
John Lennon has little to be embarrassed about in his music career. However, the British artist reflected on a song with The Beatles that he was “bitterly ashamed of.” His shame didn’t come from the song itself but from his own performance, which he believes could have been better.
The Beatles recorded ‘Twist and Shout’ after a long day of recording
One day in Abbey Road Studios, The Beatles had been recording for over 12 hours. According to Slate.com, producer George Martin wanted one more track to send the album, Please Please Me, out with a bang. The Beatles decided to do a cover of 1962’s “Twist and Shout” by the Isley Brothers, a song that requires a lot of screaming. The group was already exhausted after a long day of recording but elected to go for it.
The band summoned the strength they had left and delivered a recording that reportedly “stunned the listening technicians” and brought energy to the band. The Beatles tried to do a second take, but John Lennon discovered he had nothing left in him, and the session stopped there. Still, the group ended up being satisfied with the results of the first take.
John Lennon is ‘ashamed’ of his performance during ‘Twist and Shout’
In The Beatles Anthology, the group discussed recording in Abbey Road, and John Lennon recalled singing “Twist and Shout.” Martin confirmed that he knew the song was a “larynx-tearer” and wanted to ensure Lennon still had a voice, which is why they saved it for the end. Lennon said he was “bitterly ashamed” of his performance during that session because he knows he could do better, but he was still proud of the final result.
“My voice wasn’t the same for a long time after, every time I swallowed it was like sandpaper. I was always bitterly ashamed of it, because I could sing it better than that, but now it doesn’t bother me. You can hear that I’m just a frantic guy doing his best. We sange for 12 hours almost non-stop. We had colds, and were concerned how it would affect the record. At the end of the day, all we wanted to do was drink pints of milk.”
John Lennon almost got in trouble with the royal family while performing with The Beatles
“Twist and Shout” was a massive hit for The Beatles. It peaked at two on the US Billboard Hot 100 and remained on the charts for 26 weeks. It’s a frantic and energetic dance song that is easy to listen to. Lennon even tried to get the royal family in on the action.
During a performance at the Royal Variety Show of 1963, the Fab Four was getting ready to play “Twist and Shout” in front of Queen Elizabeth and other members of the royal family. Before the song began, Lennon said to the crowd, “Would the people in the cheapest seats clap your hands? And the rest of you, if you’d just rattle your jewelry.”
The monarchy appeared to take kindly to the joke, but it took guts for Lennon to say it. According to longtime Beatles engineer Geoff Emerick, Lennon made the joke after Paul McCartney dared him to do it. Still, props to the queen for having a sense of humor.
