The cover of the Beatles' famous Abbey Road album (Stephanie / flickr.com) The famous Abbey Road pedestrian crossing (Gary Denham / flickr.com) The entrance to Abbey Road Studios (Peter Bruening / flickr.com) The Abbey Road Studio building (james / flickr.com) Passers-by impersonate the Beatles on the Abbey Road pedestrian crossing (Bruno / flickr.com) Engyles / flickr.com Engyles / flickr.com Engyles / flickr.com
In the capital of Great Britain - London, in the St. John's Wood area there is a popular and important building in world music. We are talking about the Abbey Road recording studio, located on the street of the same name.
The name of the street in the Borough of Westminster translates as “Road to the Abbey”. Here in the 19th century the headquarters of the British Horse Artillery stationed its soldiers. The street at that time was the road to the Kilburn monastery, which in its days belonged to a monastic order and had the status of an abbey.
Abbey Road Studio Building (james/flickr.com)
The building was founded in 1830, and a few years later it became an exquisite decoration of the district and received its serial number - No. 3.
For a hundred years, the house was owned by four owners, replacing each other. In 1914, the building was converted into a hotel complex. Its residents were not ordinary people and were very significant figures in history. One of them was John Arthur Mondy Gregory, a connoisseur of music and everything connected with it. He brought musical instruments into the apartment and, enjoying listening to his favorite gramophone records, loved to accompany the compositions he was listening to on a drum set. His life did not turn out in the best way - because of illegal trade, he was sent to prison.
In 1929, the building was bought by developer Francis Mayer. He was involved in construction and real estate transactions. However, he did not have time to leave his mark on the history of this house, since shortly after the successful purchase, he also very successfully sold it to Electric And Musical Industries Ltd. EMI, anticipating the dawn of the recording field, built the world's first highly specialized studio where music was recorded to a high standard using modern technology.
The famous Abbey Road pedestrian crossing (Gary Denham / flickr.com)
The building was reconstructed into a studio in 1930. The owners paid 100 thousand pounds sterling to implement their idea.
The London administration did not allow changing the appearance of the building and its appearance remained the same, an elegant decoration of the city. The interior work did not greatly affect the ancient decoration. Minor renovations were required to 16 rooms of the old building, and ventilation systems and studio recording equipment were installed.
By November 12, 1931, three studios, several offices and quiet rooms where musicians could relax opened their doors to beginners and experienced musicians. At the same time, the opening of a recording studio took place. The process itself was filmed and presented to the general public as a documentary.
Successful studio work
The studio's successful work began with the recording of classical and orchestral compositions. Masterpieces of the London Symphony Orchestra and great masters were born here.
During the Second World War, British propaganda and the BBC gathered at Abbey Road. But music always sounded within these walls: the Glenn Miller Orchestra, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong were recorded.
Victory in the Great Patriotic War opened the doors for sound engineers to Berlin, where they studied in detail the technical innovations of the Third Reich in recording using a tape recorder. New technical discoveries in this area have helped improve studio equipment.
In 1953, specialists worked on broadcasting a recording of the coronation of Elizabeth II herself.
The Beatles and Abbey Road
The golden time is associated with the appearance of young producer George Martin in the life of the studio. In 1950, simultaneously with his arrival, the popularity of rock and roll grew, the first hit parades appeared, and, of course, the already famous studio was directly involved in the birth of compositions that were loved by the general public.
Entrance to Abbey Road Studios (Peter Bruening / flickr.com)
We can say that the results of Abbey Road have always become hits for all time. 1962 became a key year in the history of the studio. At this time, George Martin met the Fab Four, later the world famous Beatles.
The meeting of these people greatly changed both their lives and the music community around the world. Martin, having become the producer of this group, records all of its work within the walls of Abbey Road. Their very first and at the same time popular album, recorded at this studio within 24 hours, called “Please Please Me,” did not lose its position in the national chart for 6 months.
According to the Beatles, the studio atmosphere helped them a lot when creating music.
The Beatles album "Abbey Road"
The most important event in the life of the studio and the Beatles was the release of an album in 1969 called Abbey Road. This is how the leaders of the group and the producer himself decided to pay tribute to the place where their very fruitful and world-famous life flowed. On the cover of the album is a photograph of the band members crossing the road at a pedestrian crossing near the studio.
Passers-by imitate the Beatles at a pedestrian crossing on Abbey Road (Bruno / flickr.com)
This crossing subsequently became a gathering place for all Beatlemaniacs, each of whom so wanted to take a similar photo as a souvenir.
Even today, a webcam installed on the Abbey Road studio building captures people crossing the road over the famous pedestrian, just as the Fab Four did.
There are a huge number of different film and paper sources dedicated to the world famous Abbey Road Studios. They will be of interest to those who are eager to get to know her better.
Those wishing to visit this historical place can get to the studio from the St. metro station. John's Wood Jubilee Line in just 6 minutes.
13 February 2016, 18:44
American tourist from Florida Paul Cole came to London with his wife. On August 8, 1969, he left the hotel to get some air. He was damn tired of hanging around museums and wanted to just stand and see what was happening. Paul started talking to a policeman who was sitting in a parked police van. While they were talking, Paul noticed several people gathered at the pedestrian crossing and four of them began to walk back and forth along the zebra crossing, and another was taking pictures of them.
“Some eccentrics,” Paul laughed, “who walks barefoot in London.”
The Beatles' twelfth album was originally going to be called Everest, after the name of the cigarettes smoked by one of the EMI studio engineers Geoff Emerick:
The pack had a picture of a mountain on it, which the group really liked. But they decided to abandon the name because no one wanted to go to Nepal for a photo shoot. We decided to get out of the situation in the simplest way — take a photo right next to the studio.
Before this, Paul drew and showed the photographer how he imagined the shot for the cover of the new album:
On the appointed day, at about half past twelve, photographer Ian MacMillan arrived at the EMI recording studio building at 3 Abbey Road. He was friends with Yoko Ono and she invited him to shoot. The Beatles were waiting for him on the steps outside the studio.
At first Paul was wearing beach flip-flops, then he took off his shoes and remained barefoot.
MacMillan took six photographs over ten minutes:
The fifth photograph was chosen for the case. Alan Flanagan, Steve Millwood and Derek Seagrove were there - they were decorating the EMI studio and returning from lunch. They are standing in the distance to the left of the frame.
The photo, taken at a pedestrian crossing near the studio on Abbey Road, has become another reason for fans of the conspiracy theory about Paul's death in a car accident to find new “evidence” to support this theory. The license plate on the Volkswagen LMW281F, which was in the photo, was read as “Paul would be 28 years old if he were alive.” And the crossing of the street itself was considered a funeral procession — in front was John in white like a priest, at the end George in jeans like an undertaker, and Paul himself with his eyes closed, barefoot, a cigarette in his hand, and even not walking in step with the others. A real dead man, yes.
That Beetle, which sold at auction for £2,530 in 2001, now sits in the Volkswagen Museum in Wolfsburg.
This girl in blue on the back of the record sleeve also fit into the conspiracy theory about Paul’s death and his replacement with a double. They thought that this was the same Rita who was driving the car. In fact, after finishing shooting at the crossing, McMillan began looking for a suitable location for a photo with the name of the street. And I found it at the intersection with Alexandra Road. The photo with a woman who happened to be in the frame seemed to him the best.
Remember the famous cover of The Beatles album, where all 4 musicians cross the road at a pedestrian crossing? So, the photo was taken in London:
From February to August 1969, the musicians worked on their last album, Abbey Road, in a recording studio on Abbey Road. Having chosen the working title of the new record - “Everest” - the musicians even planned to fly to the Himalayas to make the cover there, but everything turned out differently. By that time, the group members were already in strained relations, so the long trip did not arouse much enthusiasm among anyone.
Paul McCartney suggested taking a photo on the street and even sketched out a rough draft.
John Lennon and Yoko Ono found a photographer - Ian MacMillan.
The photo shoot took place on August 8, 1969 at approximately 11:30 am right next to the recording studio. Already in those years, Abbey Road was one of the busiest streets in the city - the police agreed to block traffic for only 10 minutes.
Ian MacMillan filmed the musicians from the stairs. As the photographer recalls, after taking several photographs, he let the accumulated cars pass, and then quickly took photographs again. The photo that appeared on the cover was the 5th of six taken. Only on it the musicians, as the photographer had planned, kept pace.
There is even a webcam installed here. Despite the fact that this is one of the busiest streets in London, you may be able to get your photo taken “like the Beatles” - especially if you come with a group.
After extremely unsuccessful recording sessions for the planned album Get Back(later renamed to Let It Be- 1970) Paul McCartney suggested that producer George Martin get together and record an album “like in the old days,” without the quarrels and omissions that began with the work on the record The Beatles(aka White Album). Martin agreed on the condition that everything would be "as it was before", and the end result was Abbey Road. Work on it took place from February to August 1969.
The Beatles' twelfth album was originally titled Everest: one of the studio engineers, Geoff Emerick, smoked these cigarettes. The group really liked the mountains depicted on the pack.
But the name had to be changed: none of the team members wanted to go to Nepal for a photo shoot. We got out of this situation extremely simply and, as it turned out later, very successfully.
The cover was designed by Apple Records creative director John Kosh. Abbey Road is the only British Beatles album that does not include either the performer or the title on the cover. The record company EMI warned that the record would not be sold without this information. Kosh explained that they "didn't have to put the band's name on the cover... They were the biggest band in the world."
A couple of days before the shoot, Ian was given a sketch by Paul McCartney showing how everything should look.
On a hot August 8th, around half past eleven, Ian MacMillan, a freelance photographer and friend of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, arrived at the studio building on Abbey Road. The Beatles were waiting for him on the porch.
McMillan had only 10 minutes to take the desired photograph. Especially for this purpose, the police blocked off the area of the already busy Abbey Road. Using a Hasselblad camera with a 50mm wide angle lens at f22 at 1/500th of a second, Ian took the first 3 photos while standing on a stepladder.
Afterwards we had to stop and let some of the cars pass and only then finish filming the remaining 3.
Paul holds the flip-flops when they return, but leaves them on the sidewalk for the rest of the photo shoot.
McCartney examined all the photographs with a magnifying glass before deciding which one would go on the cover. The choice settled on the fifth photo, in which the group crosses the street from left to right, Lennon leading the procession, followed by Starr, McCartney and Harrison. McCartney walks barefoot and out of step with others. Alan Flanagan, Steve Millwood and Derek Seagrove were also there: they were decorating the studio and returning from lunch. They can be found in the distance to the left of the frame.
The white Volkswagen Beetle parked on the left belonged to one of the residents of the apartment building opposite the studio. After the album's release, the license plate (LMW 281F) was stolen several times. In 1986, the car was sold at a Sotheby's auction to an American billionaire for £2,530; in 2001, it was exhibited in a German museum.
The man standing on the sidewalk to the right of the crossing is believed to be Paul Cole, an American tourist. He was tired of going to museums: he simply decided to stand and see what was happening around him while his wife examined the museum exhibits. Paul started talking to the policeman sitting in the car. While they were talking, the tourist noticed that several people had gathered at the pedestrian crossing and four of them began to walk back and forth along the zebra crossing: “Some eccentrics!” Who walks around London barefoot?” Paul Cole noticed himself on the album cover only a few years later.
Shortly before the album's release Abbey Road The American newspaper Rat Subterranean News published an article which claimed that Paul McCartney died in a car accident in 1966 and that the current "Paul" was actually William Campbell. And the picture became new “proof” of the conspiracy theory. The license plate on the Volkswagen LMW 281F that was in the photo was read as “Paul would be 28 years old if he were alive” (no matter that Paul turned 27 in 1969). And the whole composition personifies a funeral procession — in front is John in white as a priest, at the end George in all denim as an undertaker, and Paul himself with his eyes closed, barefoot, a cigarette in his hand (the expression “a cigarette is the nail from the coffin”), and even walking out of step with the others.
McCartney always denied these hints, saying that it was nonsense: “We wore ordinary clothes. I was barefoot because it was hot. And Volkswagen just happened to be there.” In 1993, Paul released a live album Paul Is Live, the cover of which parodied and Abbey Road, and the “evidence” of her own death “found” on it.
The image of the Beatles crossing Abbey Road has become one of the most famous and copied in history. For example, Red Hot Chili Peppers used it as a cover image Abbey Road EP.
In 2010, the crossing was given category II status for its "cultural and historical significance"; Abbey Road Studios had received similar status a few months earlier. There is a special website on which the famous transition has been broadcast in real time since 2011.
Forty years ago at 11.35 the Beatles crossed a quiet street along a zebra crossing in north London.
The photo shoot for their new album “Abbey Road” took place a few meters from the recording studio of the same name and took about ten minutes - photographer Ian MacMillan took only six photos, for which he had to climb on a stepladder.
Since then, the cover of the new album has become a legend for two reasons - no cover has been the subject of so many imitations like this one, and no cover has spawned so many conspiracy legends like this one.
For crazy fans with fevered imaginations, this was exceptional proof of the delusional legend of the time - that Paul McCartney was really dead.
According to this legend, Paul died in a car accident and was replaced by a double. The band, legend has it, felt guilty of this deception and placed hidden symbols on the album cover for their fans.
So even today, despite Sir Paul's apparent health, they continue to insist that if you look closely at the images on the front and back covers, you will find symbols of death hidden there.
There is no doubt that this album meant only one death. The public of that time did not yet know that the Beatles were in the final stages of collapse, and this was their last album.
Relations between the band members deteriorated so much that they abandoned the original album title Everest and the Himalayan photography shoot, and instead filmed outside the studio - the only thing they mutually agreed to do.
Hardcore fans, however, could read much more from the photos.
1.FUNERAL
The Beatles' procession crossing the zebra crossing signifies Paul's funeral. John Lennon walks ahead in a white suit and symbolizes the priest. Ringo Star is a mourner dressed in black. George Harrison, in a scruffy shirt and jeans, represents the gravedigger. Paul is wearing an old suit and is the only one walking barefoot. He later explained that he started filming wearing sandals, but later took them off because it was a very hot day. Followers of the legend say that if this is true, then walking on hot asphalt is uncomfortable, and this once again confirms that Pol is a corpse.
2. CIGARETTE
Paul is left-handed, but here he is holding a cigarette in his right hand. They usually say about cigarettes that they are “nails in the coffin.” Thus, this is a sign that Paul's "coffin lid" is nailed shut, and the man in the photo is his double.
Paul is also out of step with the rest of the group. Everyone has their left foot in front, but Paul has his right, which again confirms that he is different from the others.
3.REGISTRATION NUMBER
The white Volkswagen Beetle in the background has registration number LMW 28IF. Conspiracy theorists say this means Paul would have been 28 years old IF he hadn't died.
Paul was actually 27 years old when Abbey Road was released, but fortunately for conspiracy theorists, Indian mystics calculate a person's age from conception, not birth, so in this case Paul would actually be 28 years old.
This is supported by the fact that the musicians were famous followers of the Indian guru Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. LMW is also believed to stand for "Linda McCartney Weeps" - referring to Paul's wife, whom he married earlier this year.
4. SPECTATORS
In the background, a small group of people dressed in white stands on one side of the street, while a lone man stands on the other side.
Does this mean that Paul is alone and separate from the others?
5. POLICE MINIBUS
There is a black police van on the right side of the street, and this is a reference to the police remaining silent about "Paul's death".
According to legend, the band's manager Brian Epstein bought this silence, and the presence of the police "Bobby" in the photo is another "thank you."
6. MACHINE LINE
You can draw a line from the Volkswagen Beetle to the three cars in front of it. If it were passed through their right tires, it would just touch Paul's head, which theorists say would mean Paul suffered a head injury in a car accident.
7.BLOODSTAIN
You can see a stain on the Australian version of the album. It can be seen as a bloody stain on the road, it is located between Ringo and John, indirectly confirming the version of a car accident.
8. CLOSED LETTER S
On the back cover there is a photo of the Abbey Road sign, and above it is the inscription BEATLES. A crack running through the letter S is clearly visible - it is believed that this indicates problems within the group.
To the left of the Beatles lettering is a group of eight dots. If you put them together, you get the number 3.
Does this mean there are only three Beatles left?
10. IMAGE OF DEATH
If the cover is held with the back facing you and rotated 45 degrees counterclockwise, the image of the Demon of Death can be clearly seen. Some people are sure that this means that someone in the group has died.
11. GIRL
Nobody knows who the blue-clad girl on the back cover is. On the night of the “car accident,” according to followers of the legend, it was raining heavily, and Paul was giving a lift to a fan named Rita. It must be the same girl and she is either running away from the scene of the accident or running to get help.
12. GLOBAL RESTING PLACE
If the inscription on the wall is divided into separate sections, you can get an encrypted message - “Be At Les Abbey”. In numerology, the next two letters - R and O are the 18th and 15th letters of the alphabet. Adding them together (33) and multiplying by the number of letters (2), we get the number 66 - the year in which Paul presumably died.
The number 3 also corresponds to the letter C, so 33 corresponds to CC. CC means a shortened name for Cecilia, and followers of the legend believe that Paul was buried at St Cecilia's Abbey in Ryde on the Isle of Wight.
