Revolution 9
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| "Revolution 9" | ||
|---|---|---|
| ||
| Song by The Beatles | ||
| from the album The Beatles | ||
| Released | 22 November, 1968 | |
| Recorded | May 30, 31; June 4, 6, 10, 11, 21; September 16, 1968 | |
| Genre | Musique concrète/Avant-garde | |
| Length | 8:13 | |
| Label | Apple Records | |
| Writer(s) | Lennon-McCartney | |
| Producer(s) | George Martin | |
| The Beatles track listing | ||
| Cry Baby Cry (11 of disc 2) | "Revolution 9" (12 of disc 2) | Good Night (13 of disc 2) |
"Revolution 9" is an experimental recording which appeared on The Beatles' 1968 self-titled LP release (known as the White Album).
The track marked the peak of the band's studio experimentation; the inclusion of such a sound collage or musique concrète on a pop music release was virtually unprecedented. The recording is a bizarre combination of vocal and music sound clips, tape loops, and sound effects manipulated with editing and sound modification techniques (stereo panning and fading). Meant to capture the violence of a revolution in progress, the track was influenced by the musique concrete styles of Karlheinz Stockhausen and John Cage. At over eight minutes, it was the longest track on the album, as well as the longest Beatles track ever officially released.
The work is officially credited to Lennon/McCartney (as were all Beatles songs written by either composer), though it was primarily the effort of John Lennon, and in fact George Harrison, Ringo Starr, and Yoko Ono made small contributions, while Paul McCartney did not actively participate in the track's creation. Ono's avant garde influence on Lennon's songwriting and composition is clear throughout "Revolution 9." McCartney and producer George Martin fought hard to keep the track off the White Album, but Lennon and Ono won out, and the track was included as the second from last song at the end of the album's second disc.
Contents |
[edit] Structure and content
After a brief piano introduction taken from an unreleased Paul McCartney song, a loop of a male repeating the words "number nine" (taken from an EMI examination tape) begins to be heard. This phrase fades in and out throughout the recording as a motif. Then there is chaos: feedback, impromptu screaming, rehearsed overdubs, and more tape loops.
As some portions of "Revolution 9" are recordings of other music (bits of Sibelius and Beethoven, for example), the piece can be seen as an early example of sampling. Other audio elements include various bits of apparently nonsensical dialogue, various found sounds, reversed sounds and recordings of American football chants.
[edit] "Paul is Dead" Significance
Revolution 9 played an important part in the infamous "Paul is Dead" controversy. If one listens carefully, the "babble", many believe, includes hints left by the band about Paul's alleged death. As the "Paul Is Dead" rumours were quickly debunked, these "clues" are creative misinterpretation of "Revolution 9", and are an interesting footnote to the Beatles' history.
Hints and clues cited include:
- "...Yoko, you better go to see he's dead..." (referring to Paul) (could also be "So the wife called, and we better go to see a surgeon...")
- "So anyroad, he went to see the dentist instead, who gave him a pair of teeth, which wasn't any good at all.." (referring to Paul losing his teeth in the car accident that killed him)
- A crackling noise (representing fire) followed by "ooh, death..."; the phrase played backwards seems to say "Paul is doomed".
- "My fingers are broken and so is my hair", a reference to the car crash which supposedly killed Paul. (It really says "My wings are broken...")
- "...Who could tell what he was saying?
- "His legs were drawn, his hands were tied, his feet were bent and his head was on fire and his glasses were insane. This was the end of his audience."
- "...Paul died.." (Actually says "all right".)
- "I'm not in the mood for words..."
- "...only to find...the night watchman..."
- "...maybe even dead..."
- "...you become naked..." — becomes "satan look at me" when played backwards
- A car crash can be heard when played backwards with Paul yelling "Get me out! Get me out!", as well as flames and sirens. (Though it's John shouting, not Paul)
- "Number nine... number nine" — becomes "Turn me on, dead man...turn me on, dead man..." when played backwards (also sounds like "Lemme on there, man.")
[edit] Charles Manson
LA District Attorney Vincent Bugliosi and Manson Family member Susan Atkins came up with theory that Charles Manson believed that "Revolution 9" was a reference to Revelation 9, a book in the Bible that speaks of apocalypse and prophecy. He believed The Beatles were speaking to him through this song, and he drew many odd interpretations from the lyrics.
[edit] Number Nine Visual Technology
A now-defunct manufacturer of video cards and related computer hardware, Number Nine Visual Technology, derived their name in homage to the "number nine" phrase recited repeatedly in Revolution 9. When a Number Nine video card is installed in a computer system, the initial splash screen displayed during the BIOS boot sequence includes one of various excerpts from Beatles lyrics.
[edit] Popular culture references
Revolution 9 is parodied in Homer's Barbershop Quartet, an episode of the Simpsons in which a number of characters form a Beatles-esque music group. At one point Barney Gumble (accompanied by a woman bearing strong resemblance to Yoko Ono) plays a tape consisting of a loop of a female voice saying "Number Eight" followed by a belch.
[edit] External links
- A minute-by-minute summary of the piece
- A detailed analysis of Revolution 9
- Certain clips of the song can be played and looped here
- A Recording of Revolution 9 played backwards
- Manson and The Beatles
