NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Blackbird (song)

"Blackbird" is a Beatles song from double-disc album The Beatles (also known as The White Album). Blackbird was written by Paul McCartney, who was inspired to write this while in India after a bird woke him up at six in the morning. McCartney said in 2002: "It was written when there were a lot of troubles in the southern states, over civil rights. I don't know if any of you know, but in England we sometimes call girls 'birds'… and I kind of wrote this song with that in mind." For other uses, see Song (disambiguation). ... The White Album, see The Beatles (album). ... The White Album redirects here. ... is the 326th day of the year (327th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 162nd day of the year (163rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Folk music can have a number of different meanings, including: Traditional music: The original meaning of the term folk music was synonymous with the term Traditional music, also often including World Music and Roots music; the term Traditional music was given its more specific meaning to distinguish it from the... In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. ... Apple Records logo, featuring a Granny Smith apple. ... A songwriter is someone who writes the lyrics to songs, the musical composition or melody to songs, or both. ... The songwriting credit Lennon/McCartney appears on all Beatles songs that were written by John Lennon and/or Paul McCartney. ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the musicians, organizing and scheduling production budget and resources, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes. ... For other uses, see George Martin (disambiguation). ... The White Album redirects here. ... Im So Tired is a Beatles song from the double-disc album The Beatles (also known as The White Album). ... For the animal, see pig. ... Image File history File links Beatles_blackbird. ... The Beatles appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1964 as part of their first tour of the United States, promoting their first hit single there, I Want To Hold Your Hand. ... The White Album redirects here. ... Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who first gained worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles. ... For other uses, see Bird (disambiguation). ... Also see: 2002 (number). ...

The first night Linda Eastman, who would later become his wife, slept over, McCartney played it to the fans camped outside his house.^[1] Charles Manson took the song, along with "Helter Skelter" and "Piggies," as a metaphor for black and white race relations in the United States, which helped inspire his murders.^[1] Linda McCartney and Denny Laine in the 1970s as members of Wings Linda McCartney (September 24, 1941 - April 17, 1998), born Linda Eastman in Scarsdale, New York, was an American photographer. ... Charles Milles Manson (born November 12, 1934) is a career criminal who led the Manson Family, a commune or cult that began to form around him in the U.S. city of San Francisco in 1967. ... This article is about the Beatles song. ... For the animal, see pig. ...

The song was recorded 11 June 1968 in Abbey Road studios, with George Martin as the producer and Geoff Emerick as the audio engineer.^[2] McCartney played a Martin D 28 acoustic guitar. The track includes recordings of a blackbird singing in the background.^[2] is the 162nd day of the year (163rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... For other uses, see George Martin (disambiguation). ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the musicians, organizing and scheduling production budget and resources, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes. ... Engineer Geoff Emerick. ... An Audio Engineer is a person recording, editing, manipulating, mixing and mastering sound by technical means. ... The Martin logo. ... For other uses, see Blackbird (disambiguation). ...

McCartney revealed on PBS's Great Performances (Paul McCartney: Chaos and Creation at Abbey Road), aired in 2006, that the guitar accompaniment for Blackbird was inspired by Bach's Bouree in E minor, a well known classical guitar piece. As kids, he and George Harrison tried to learn Bouree as a "show off" piece. Bouree is distinguished by melody and bass notes played simultaneously on the upper and lower strings. McCartney adapted a segment of Bouree as the opening of "Blackbird," and carried the musical idea throughout the song. In music, the BACH motif is the sequence of notes B flat, A, C, B natural. ... BourrÃ©e in E minor is a popular lute piece, the fifth movement from Suite in E minor for Lute, BWV 996 (BC L166) written by Johann Sebastian Bach. ... For other persons named George Harrison, see George Harrison (disambiguation). ...

According to Mark Lewisohn, the clicking sound on the track (left channel) which sounds like McCartney's foot tapping is a mechanical metronome.^[2]^[3] Mark Lewisohn (born 1958) is one of the worlds foremost experts on The Beatles. ...

In the 2006 album Love, "Blackbird" was used as an introduction to the song "Yesterday." Love is a soundtrack compilation album by The Beatles released in November 2006. ... Music sample Yesterday Problems? See media help. ...

Covers and cultural references

Many bands and performers have made cover versions, including Billy Preston, Carly Simon, Bonnie Pink, Jesse McCartney, Dionne Farriss, Phish,Crosby, Stills & Nash, Doves, Brad Mehldau, Sarah McLachlan, Harpers Bizarre, Bobby McFerrin, Jaco Pastorius, Dan Fogelberg, Dave Grohl, Dave Matthews Band, Elliott Smith and Maria João & Mário Laginha. In popular music, a cover version, or simply cover, is a new rendition (performance or recording) of a previously recorded song. ... William Everett Preston (September 2, 1946 â€“ June 6, 2006) was an American soul musician from Houston, Texas, raised mostly in Los Angeles, California. ... Carly Elisabeth Simon (born June 25, 1945 in New York City) is an Academy Award, Golden Globe and two-time Grammy Award winning American musician who emerged as one of the leading lights of the early 1970s singer-songwriter movement. ... Bonnie Pink, real name Kaori Asada , born April 16, 1973 in Kyoto, Japan), is a Japanese singer. ... Jesse McCartney (born April 9, 1987) is an American pop singer songwriter and Daytime Emmy-nominated actor. ... This article is about the band. ... Crosby, Stills & Nash, also Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young when including occasional fourth member Neil Young, are a folk rock/rock supergroup. ... For the type of bird, see dove. ... Brad Mehldau (born August 23, 1970) is an American jazz pianist. ... Sarah Ann McLachlan, OC,[2] OBC[2] (born January 28, 1968) is a Grammy-winning Canadian musician, singer and songwriter. ... Harpers Bizarre was an American pop-rock band of the 1960s, best known for their Broadway/choirboy sound and their remake of Simon & Garfunkels The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin Groovy). ... Bobby McFerrin Robert Bobby McFerrin Jr. ... John Francis Anthony Jaco Pastorius III (December 1, 1951 â€“ September 21, 1987) was an American jazz musician and composer widely acknowledged for his virtuosity of the fretless bass,[1][2] as well as his command of varied musical styles. ... The cover of the album The Essential Dan Fogelberg Daniel Grayling Fogelberg (b. ... David Eric Grohl (born January 14, 1969, in Warren, Ohio) is an American rock musician and songwriter. ... Dave Matthews Band (also known by the acronym DMB) is a United States-based band, originally formed in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 1991 by singer, songwriter, and guitarist Dave Matthews. ... For the self-titled album, see Elliott Smith (album). ... Maria JoÃ£o (born July 27, 1956, Lisboa, Portugal) is a Jazz singer. ... MÃ¡rio Laginha MÃ¡rio JoÃ£o Laginha, OIH (Lisbon, April 25, 1960-), piano player and composer, is one of the most creative contemporary Portuguese jazz musicians. ...

Elements of the lyrics ("take these broken wings and learn to fly") have re-appeared in other pop songs over the years, notably the number one hit "Broken Wings" by Mr. Mister and the Savage Garden song, "You Can Still Be Free" from the Affirmation album. Sections of "Blackbird" were incorporated into The Waterboys' cover of the Van Morrison song "Sweet Thing" on their album Fisherman's Blues, and into the end of U2's "Beautiful Day" during their set at the Live 8 concert in Hyde Park, London on July 2, 2005, as well as some of the shows on the Vertigo Tour. Dynamite Hack references it at the end of their cover of "Boyz-N-The-Hood." For other uses, see Pop music (disambiguation). ... Broken Wings is a #1 hit song released as a 1985 single by the band Mr. ... Mr. ... For the eponymous debut album, see Savage Garden (album). ... Affirmation is the second album by Australian pop duo Savage Garden released on November 9, 1999 (see 1999 in music). ... The Waterboys are a band formed in 1983 by Mike Scott. ... George Ivan Morrison OBE (generally known as Van Morrison) (born August 31, 1945) is a singer-songwriter from Belfast, Northern Ireland. ... Sweet Thing is one of the songs included on Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrisons 1968 acclaimed second album Astral Weeks. ... The album Fishermans Blues marked a change in the sound of The Waterboys, abandoning their earlier grandiose rock sound for a mixture of traditional Irish music, country music and rock and roll. ... This article is about the Irish rock band. ... Beautiful Day is the lead single from U2s 2000 album, All That You Cant Leave Behind. ... Official Live8 DVD, released in November 2005 Live 8 was a series of concurrent benefit concerts that took place on 2 July 2005, in the G8 states and in South Africa. ... â€œHyde Parkâ€ redirects here. ... is the 183rd day of the year (184th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Vertigo Tour was a concert tour by the Irish rock band U2, which took place in 2005 and 2006 in support of the groups 2004 album How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb. ... Dynamite Hack is a post-grunge band, formed in 1997. ... Boyz-N-The-Hood is the most well known song performed by late rapper Eazy-E. The song was written by former N.W.A. member Ice Cube. ...

Evan Rachel Wood performed it in the 2007 film Across the Universe. Evan Rachel Wood (born September 7, 1987[1]) is an American film, television and theater actress, and singer. ... Across the Universe is a 2007 musical film directed by Julie Taymor and written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais. ...

Composer Gustavo Santaolalla was inspired by "Blackbird" when he wrote "The Wings" for the movie Brokeback Mountain. Gustavo A. Santaolalla (b. ... This article is about the motion picture. ...

Personnel

Notes

Ian MacCormick (October 3, 1948 â€“ August 20, 2003), who wrote under the pseudonym Ian MacDonald, was a British music critic and author, best known for his detailed history of The Beatles. ... Mark Lewisohn (born 1958) is one of the worlds foremost experts on The Beatles. ...

External links

Categories: 1968 songs | The Beatles songs | Songs produced by George Martin The White Album, see The Beatles (album). ... John Winston Ono Lennon, MBE (October 9, 1940 â€“ December 8, 1980), (born John Winston Lennon, known as John Ono Lennon) was an iconic English 20th century rock and roll songwriter and singer, best known as the founding member of The Beatles. ... Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who first gained worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles. ... For other persons named George Harrison, see George Harrison (disambiguation). ... Richard Starkey Jr, MBE (born 7 July 1940), known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician, singer, songwriter and actor, best known as the drummer for The Beatles. ... Former Liverpool businessman and promoter; original manager of The Beatles, who sent the young band to Hamburg, Germany, where they gained vital show business experience. ... Brian Samuel Epstein (IPA: ) (born in Liverpool, England; 19 September 1934 â€“ 27 August 1967) was the manager of The Beatles. ... Allen Klein (born December 18, 1931) is an American businessman and record label executive. ... Lee Eastman (12 January 1910 - 30 July 1991) was a New York show business attorney, the son of Louis and Della (Freyer) Epstein. ... Neil Aspinall (born in Prestatyn, North Wales, October 13, 1942) was the road manager and personal assistant for the Beatles. ... Peter Brown is an American businessman, born and educated in England. ... Malcolm Mal Evans (27 May 1935 â€“ 5 January 1976) is best known as the road manager, assistant, and a friend of the Beatles. ... Alistair Taylor is the personal assistant of Brian Epstein. ... Apple Records logo, featuring a Granny Smith apple. ... For other uses, see George Martin (disambiguation). ... Engineer Geoff Emerick. ... Norman Smith is a musician and record producer. ... Ken Scott (born April 20, 1947 in London) is an influential English record producer and engineer. ... Harvey Philip Spector (born December 26, 1939) is an American musician, songwriter and record producer. ... Jeff Lynne (born December 30, 1947 in Shard End, Birmingham) is a Grammy Award-winning English rock songwriter, singer, guitarist and record producer. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... This article is about the album. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... A Hard Days Night by the Beatles (side one) - Parlophone yellow and black label A Hard Days Night is the third album by The Beatles, released in the UK on 10 July 1964 as the soundtrack to their first film of the same name. ... Alternate cover Cover of the original 1964 Australian LP, released during the 1964 Australian tour. ... Help!, is the fifth album by The Beatles, and the soundtrack album from their film of the same name, Help!. Produced by George Martin for EMI Records, the album (in its original British form) contains seven songs that appeared in the movie of the same name, and seven that did... The Beatles U.S. chronology Alternate cover Cover of the original 1965 U.S. LP, with a different colour saturation (see below) Back cover Back cover of the original 1965 UK LP Rubber Soul is the sixth album by The Beatles, first released in December 1965. ... The Beatles U.S. chronology Alternate cover Cover of the original 1966 U.S. LP Back cover Back cover of the original 1966 UK LP. The main photo was edited in separate parts for the booklet of the 1988 Compact Disc release. ... For other uses, see Sgt. ... â€œMagical Mystery Tourâ€ redirects here. ... The White Album redirects here. ... For the 1999 release, see Yellow Submarine Songtrack. ... Back cover The back cover of the original 1969 UK LP. Note that Her Majesty is not listed, unlike later reissues and the compact disc versionâ€”originally making it a hidden track. ... â€œLet It Beâ€ redirects here. ... For the Dire Straits album, see Live at the BBC (Dire Straits album). ... The Beatles Anthology 1 was released in late 1995, and includes rarites and alternatives tracks from their days as the Quarry Men, through the Decca auditions and the album Beatles for Sale. ... The Beatles Anthology 2 is a compilation album released in March 1996 by Apple Records as part of The Beatles Anthology series. ... The Beatles Anthology 3 was released in October 1996, and includes rarities and alternatives tracks from the final two years of their career as a band ranging from the initial sessions for the White Album through to the last sessions for Let It Be and Abbey Road in January 1970. ... Yellow Submarine Songtrack is a 1999 soundtrack album by The Beatles for the film of the same name. ... The negative of the cover Let It Beâ€¦ Naked is a remastered and remixed version of the original session tapes from the 1970 Let It Be album by The Beatles, first released in November 2003 (see 2003 in music). ... 1962â€“1966 (widely known as The Red Album) is a compilation of The Beatles greatest hits from 1962 to 1966. ... This article or section includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Alternate cover Double LP sleeve The Capitol label of the Past Masters, Volume One LP. Note the small Parlophone logo on the left Past Masters, Volume One is a compilation album by the The Beatles released in 1988. ... The Capitol label of the Past Masters, Volume Two LP. Note the small Parlophone logo on the left Past Masters, Volume Two is a compilation album by The Beatles released in 1988. ... For other uses, see 1 (album) (disambiguation). ... Love is a soundtrack compilation album by The Beatles released in November 2006. ... A Hard Days Night (1964) is a British comedy film originally released by United Artists, written by Alun Owen and starring The Beatles during the height of Beatlemania. ... Help! is a 1965 film starring the The Beatles and featuring Leo McKern, Eleanor Bron, Victor Spinetti, John Bluthal and Roy Kinnear. ... Magical Mystery Tour, starring The Beatles, is an hour-long television film that initially aired on BBC1 on Boxing Day in 1967. ... For the song, see Yellow Submarine (song). ... For the Taiwanese film whose foreign title translates to the same name, see ç„¡ç±³æ¨‚ Let It Be is a 1970 film about the Beatles rehearsing and recording songs for the album Let It Be in January 1969. ... The Compleat Beatles [sic] was a 1982 two-hour documentary, chronicling the career of the Fab Four. Though it has since been supplanted by the more extensive five-hour 1996 Beatles Anthology, The Compleat Beatles was for many years largely regarded as the definitive source of information on the Beatles. ... The Beatles Anthology (DVD) is the DVD version of the original eight episode 1995 TV serial titled The Beatles Anthology (which also came out on VHS) covered in four DVDs, plus an additional 81 minutes Special Features Disc. ... The cover of Kum Back; the first ever Beatles bootleg album to hit the market. ... The Beatles released twelve original albums, twelve EPs (featuring mostly otherwise available material), one double EP, and twenty-two singles (featuring mostly otherwise unavailable material) in eight years (1962-1970) in their native United Kingdom. ... The Beatles takes and early versions of songs that have been released are still collectables. ... â€œPeter Bestâ€ redirects here. ... Stuart Fergusson Victor Sutcliffe (23 June 1940 â€“ 10 April 1962) was a British musician and artist who, until his early death, worked in a style related to Abstract Expressionism. ... Klaus Voormann (born 29 April 1938) is a German artist, musician, and record producer who was associated with the early days of The Beatles in Hamburg and later designed the cover of their album Revolver. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Derek Taylor (1932-1997) is best known as the press agent for the hugely popular rock band, The Beatles. ... Yoko Ono Lennon (å°é‡Ž æ´‹å Ono YÅko), born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese-American artist and musician. ... Linda Louise Eastman McCartney (September 24, 1941 â€“ April 17, 1998) was an American photographer, musician, and animal rights activist. ... Cynthia Lillian Lennon nÃ©e Powell (born September 10, 1939) in Blackpool, Lancashire, England. ... William Everett Preston (September 2, 1946 â€“ June 6, 2006) was an American soul musician from Houston, Texas, raised mostly in Los Angeles, California. ... Tony Sheridan (born Andrew Esmond Sheridan McGinnity on May 21, 1940), is an English rock and roll singer-songwriter and guitarist. ... Chas Newby was temporarily the bassist for The Beatles in December of 1960, following the departure of Stuart Sutcliffe. ... Andy White (born 1930 in Scotland) is a drummer, best known for playing drums on some of the recordings of the Beatles first single, Love Me Do. White was a studio drummer in the 1950s and 1960sin London, recording with artists like Billy Fury, Marlene Dietrich, Hermans Hermits and... James George Nicol, known as Jimmie Nicol or Jimmy Nicol, is an English musician born August 3, 1939. ... Astrid Kirchherr (born 20 May 1938) is a German photographer and artist, and is well-known for her association with The Beatles (along with her friends Klaus Voorman and JÃ¼rgen Vollmer) and her photographs of The Beatles while they were in Hamburg. ... This is a list of the line-ups of The Beatles and the individual members bands. ... Love by Cirque du Soleil at Mirage Las Vegas Love is a 2006 theatrical production by Cirque du Soleil which combines the re-produced and re-imagined music of The Beatles with an interpretive, circus-based artistic and athletic stage performance. ... The songwriting partnership of John Lennon and Paul McCartney, usually referred to as Lennon/McCartney (sometimes McCartney/Lennon), is one of the best-known and most successful musical collaborations of all time. ... The Beatles influence on rock music and popular culture wasâ€”and remainsâ€”immense. ... Modern Beatle boot replica. ... The Quarry Men (sometimes Quarrymen) were a little-known skiffle group formed around Liverpool, England in March 1957 by John Lennon. ... The Beatles are one of the most popular and influential musical groups in history. ... The Beatles London This article looks at the history behind some of the London landmarks famously associated with the Beatles for example the Abbey Road Studios & crossing etc The famous Abbey Road Zebra crossing Abbey Road Studios The Beatles first came to the Abbey Road studios on June 6th... The Beatles arrival at Americas JFK Airport in 1964 has proved a particularly enduring image of Beatlemania. ... The Fifth Beatle is an informal title that various commentators in the press and entertainment industry have applied to persons who were at one point a member of The Beatles, or who had a strong association with the Fab Four other than John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo... Paul McCartney Dead: The Great Hoax, a magazine reporting on the rumours concerning McCartney. ... The Beatles is an American animated television series featuring the fanciful and musical misadventures of the extraordinarily popular British rock band. ... For other uses, see British Invasion (disambiguation). ... Apple Records logo, featuring a Granny Smith apple. ... Northern Songs Ltd. ... The Beatles Anthology is the name of a documentary series, a series of three albums and a book, all of which focus on the history of one of the worlds most popular rock band The Beatles. ... The Rutles are a parody of The Beatles, jointly created by Eric Idle and Neil Innes. ...

Contents

Covers and cultural references GA_googleFillSlot("encyclopedia_square");

Personnel

Notes

External links

Covers and cultural references