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"I Want You (She's So Heavy)" is a song by the English rock band
the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
, written by
John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...
and credited to
Lennon–McCartney Lennon–McCartney is the songwriting partnership between the English musicians John Lennon (1940–1980) and Paul McCartney (born 1942) of the Beatles. It is widely considered one of the greatest, best known and most successful musical collabo ...
. The song closes side one of their 1969 album ''
Abbey Road ''Abbey Road'' is the eleventh studio album by the English rock band the Beatles, released on 26 September 1969, by Apple Records. It is the last album the group recorded, although '' Let It Be'' (1970) was the last album completed before th ...
'' and features Billy Preston playing the organ. It was the first song recorded for the ''Abbey Road'' album but one of the last songs to be finished; the band gathered in the studio to mix the song on 20 August 1969, marking the final time that all four Beatles were together in the studio.


Composition

Lennon wrote the song about his love for
Yoko Ono Yoko Ono (, usually spelled in katakana as ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking. Ono grew up in Tokyo and moved to New York ...
. It begins in time, with an
arpeggio An arpeggio () is a type of Chord (music), chord in which the Musical note, notes that compose a chord are individually sounded in a progressive rising or descending order. Arpeggios on keyboard instruments may be called rolled chords. Arpe ...
guitar theme in
D minor D minor is a minor scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. Its key signature has one flat. Its relative major is F major and its parallel major is D major. The D natural minor scale is: Changes needed ...
, progressing through E7(9) and B7 before cadencing on an A
augmented chord An augmented triad is a chord (music), chord, made up of two major thirds (an augmented fifth). The term ''augmented triad'' arises from an augmented triad being considered a major chord whose top note (fifth) is raised. When using Chord names ...
. In this chord sequence, the F note is a drone. The bass and lead guitar ascend and descend with a
riff A riff is a short, repeated motif or figure in the melody or accompaniment of a musical composition. Riffs are most often found in rock music, punk, heavy metal music, Latin, funk, and jazz, although classical music is also sometimes based ...
derived from the D
minor scale In Classical_music, Western classical music theory, the minor scale refers to three Scale (music), scale patterns – the natural minor scale (or Aeolian mode), the harmonic minor scale, and the melodic minor scale (ascending or descending). ...
. As the last chord fades, a verse begins in time, based on the A and D blues scales, with Lennon singing ''"I want you / I want you so bad ..."'' The two blues verses alternate, before the reappearance of the E7(9) chord, and McCartney playing a notably aggressive bass riff. That functions as a transition to the main theme throughout the song. The main theme repeats with Lennon singing ''"She's so heavy"'', with a long sustain on the last word. The second set of verses are rendered instrumentally with lead guitar. Another repeat of the "She's So Heavy" theme (this time featuring harmonies) is followed by Lennon singing a livelier repeat of the "I Want You" verse. During the next E7(9) transition, Lennon screams ''"Yeah"'', until his voice breaks. The song's coda consists of a three-minute repetition of the "She's So Heavy" theme, with the arpeggios double-tracked, intensifying with "
white noise In signal processing, white noise is a random signal having equal intensity at different frequencies, giving it a constant power spectral density. The term is used with this or similar meanings in many scientific and technical disciplines, i ...
" fading in as the theme continues, which consists of multi-tracked guitars from Lennon and George Harrison, white noise on a Moog synthesizer from Lennon, and drums and bass from
Ringo Starr Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the group, us ...
and McCartney respectively. In the middle of the 15th repetition of the theme, the song abruptly ends.


Recording

The song, initially titled "I Want You", was rehearsed several times during the '' Get Back/Let It Be'' sessions, the first occasion being on 29 January 1969 at Apple Records. The basic track, and Lennon's guide vocal (which is used in the master), were recorded at Trident Studios on 22 February, shortly after shooting for the '' Let It Be'' film ended. Lennon played the lead guitar, as Harrison stated: Lennon and Harrison overdubbed multi-tracked heavy guitars on 18 April 1969. Billy Preston's
Hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert, first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding #Drawbars, drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, sound was created ...
and
Ringo Starr Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the group, us ...
's congas were added on 20 April 1969. "I Want You" received the "She's So Heavy" vocals on 11 August, and thus the title became "I Want You (She's So Heavy)". "'She's So Heavy' was about Yoko," Lennon told ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
''. "When you're drowning, you don't say, 'I would be incredibly pleased if someone would have the foresight to notice me drowning and come and help me.' You just scream." Three takes from 22 February were edited into a master (second generation), which was overdubbed, mixed down on 18 April (third generation), and overdubbed on 18 April, 20 April, 8 August and 11 August. Different overdubs were made to the second generation tape on 8 August. The mix is the third generation for 4:37 and then the second generation tape, which has white noise produced by the Moog synthesiser played by Lennon, and additional drums added on 8 August. The final overdub session for "I Want You (She's So Heavy)", which included the final mixing and editing, was the last occasion when all four Beatles worked in the studio together. The final master lasted 8:04, but Lennon decided on a surprise ending. During the final edit with the guitars, drums and white noise climaxing endlessly, he told recording engineer Geoff Emerick, who had assumed that he "would be doing a fade out", to "cut it right there" at the 7:44 mark, bringing the song (and side one of ''Abbey Road'') to an abrupt end. On the Beatles' 2006 remix album '' Love'', the three-minute guitar coda from "I Want You (She's So Heavy)" is attached to " Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!", and snippets of that song and " Helter Skelter" are mixed in with the repeated guitar riff. The abrupt ending of the original is retained, but it cuts to wind-like white noise, not to silence as on the original. The mix also included the organ solo and the guitar solo from the Trident studio outtake.


Influence and legacy

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...
s Jillian Mapes describes "I Want You (She's So Heavy)" as a song in which Lennon "predates heavy-metal transcendence". In 2015, Josh Hart and Damian Fanelli, writing for '' Guitar World'', placed it 34th in their list of the "50 Heaviest Songs Before
Black Sabbath Black Sabbath are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler, and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. After adopting the Black Sabbath name in 1969 (the band ...
", and called the track a "bluesy rocker" that "might have inadvertently started doom metal". Jo Kendall of ''
Classic Rock Classic rock is a radio format that developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, it comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the early-1990s, primarily focusing on comm ...
'' magazine similarly states that "I Want You" predated "Black Sabbath's creation of doom rock by several months" and comments on its "
Santana Santana may refer to: Transportation * Volkswagen Santana, an automobile * Santana Cycles, manufacturer of tandem bicycles * Santana Motors, a former Spanish automobile manufacturer * Sailboat designs by W. D. Schock Corp ** Santana 20 ** Santan ...
-like Latin blues section". James Manning of '' Time Out London'' recognises the song as the foundation for
stoner rock Stoner rock, also known as stoner metal or stoner doom, is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of doom metal with psychedelic rock and acid rock. The genre emerged during the early 1990s and was pioneered foremost by Kyuss and Sl ...
. The song is featured in the film '' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' during the scene where Big Deal Records president B.D. Hoffler ( Donald Pleasence) negotiates the contract with the band over a sex-and-drug-induced dinner. It also features in the film '' Across the Universe'', with a recruitment poster of Uncle Sam singing the opening lyrics. The abrupt ending of Dream Theater's song " Pull Me Under" was inspired by the Beatles song.


Personnel

Personnel per Ian MacDonald. *
John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...
lead and harmony vocals, lead guitar, Moog synthesiser *
Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained global fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and the piano, and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John ...
harmony vocals, bass * George Harrisonharmony vocals, rhythm guitar *
Ringo Starr Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the group, us ...
drums, congas, wind machine * Billy Preston
Hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert, first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding #Drawbars, drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, sound was created ...


References

Other sources * *


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:I Want You (She's So Heavy) The Beatles songs British blues rock songs British hard rock songs British progressive rock songs Song recordings produced by George Martin Songs written by Lennon–McCartney Songs published by Northern Songs 1969 songs Songs about Yoko Ono