Anatomy of an Album: "Abbey Road" Quiz

Answer: Something/Come Together

"Something" was written and sung by George Harrison. It was the first song written by him to be released as a Beatles A-side. "Come Together" was written by John Lennon but credited to Lennon/McCartney.

"Something/Come Together" was a number four hit on the UK singles chart in 1969. "Something" reached number three and "Come Together" was number one for one week on the Billboard Hot 100 the same year. "Something" was inspired not as many had thought by his wife at the time, Pattie Boyd, but by the singer Ray Charles. "Come Together" was inspired by Timothy (Turn on, tune in, drop out) Leary's 1969 campaign for governor of California called "Come together, join the party" against Ronald Reagan. Unfortunately for Leary his campaign came to nothing and he was sent to prison for possession of marijuana.

Answer: Rose and Valerie

"Maxwell's Silver Hammer" was written by Paul McCartney but credited to Lennon/McCartney.

Paul Sings:

"Rose and Valerie, screaming from the gallery
Say he must go free (Maxwell must go free)
The judge does not agree
And he tells them so, o, o, o"

John Lennon described "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" as more of Paul's granny music. After a car crash which caused him to be absent from the Abbey Road recording studio for eight days, John Lennon was back in the recording studio. Along with the other Beatles he was not very happy about how long Paul McCartney was taking on this track.

Answer: Octopus

"Octopus's Garden" was written and sung by Ringo Starr.

It was only the second song written by Ringo Starr and it was the last song written by him and singing lead vocal to be released by The Beatles. Ringo was inspired to write the song when on a boat in the Mediterranean Sea owned by actor/comedian Peter Sellers. The captain explained to Ringo how octopuses gather up shiny objects and stones to build their gardens with. There have been cover versions by Reparata and the Delrons and by The Punkles with the song being sung by their drummer Markey Starkey. Melissa Joan Hart did a cover version in her 1999 movie "Sabrina Down Under".

Answer: John, Ringo, Paul and George

The order The Beatles are crossing Abbey Road in is John Lennon in a white suit, Ringo Starr in a black suit, Paul McCartney in a blue suit with no shoes and George Harrison in jeans and a blue shirt.

The photograph for the "Abbey Road" album cover was one of six that were taken on Friday 8th August 1969. Photographer Iain Macmillan took the shots standing on a ladder in the middle of Abbey Road while a policeman held up the traffic.
In the photograph The Beatles are walking across the zebra crossing away from the Abbey Road studios. On the 22nd May 2012 one of the photographs from the photo shoot was sold for £16,000 ($25,000).

Answer: Here Comes The Sun

"Here Comes The Sun" was written and sung by George Harrison.

George Harrison may have written "Here Comes The Sun" as a response to the hard time he was having in 1969. He was arrested for possession of marijuana, had his tonsils removed and temporarily left The Beatles. John Lennon did not play on the song as he was still recovering from a car crash in Golspie, Scotland. He received 17 stitches in a facial wound when his Austin Maxi went off the road. The American astronomer Carl Sagan failed to get "Here Comes The Sun" included on the Voyager Golden Record that was attached to the Voyager probes launched in 1977. EMI would not release the rights so it was not included even though The Beatles were all in favour of the idea.

Answer: You Never Give Me Your Money

"You Never Give Me Your Money" was written by Paul McCartney but credited to Lennon/McCartney.

Paul Sings:

"You never give me your money
you only give me your funny paper
And in the middle of negotiations
You break down"

These lyrics are about Paul McCartney's mistrust of American Allen Klein who took over control of The Beatles' business affairs in 1969 after the death of their manager Brian Epstein. The "Abbey Road" album entered the UK album chart at number one and spent 17 non-consecutive weeks at the top. It spent 11 non-consecutive weeks at number one on the US album chart. "Abbey Road" was the best selling album of 1969 in the UK and the fourth best selling album of the '60s in the UK. It was the first Beatles album to reach ten million sales world wide, which it did in 1980. The RIAA certified "Abbey Road" as 12 x Platinum in 2001.

Answer: True

"Sun King" was written by John Lennon but credited to Lennon/McCartney.

The working title of "Here Comes The Sun King" was shortened to just "Sun King" to avoid confusion with "Here Comes The Sun" written by George Harrison. The inspiration for the song was the UK number one hit single "Albatross", an instrumental by the then all British group Fleetwood Mac. "Albatross" was number one for one week in 1969 and on re-release in 1973 reached number two on the UK singles chart.

Answer: Polythene

"Polythene Pam" was written by John Lennon but credited to Lennon/McCartney.

John sings:

"Get a dose of her in jackboots and kilt
She's killer-diller when she's dressed to the hilt
She's the kind of a girl that makes the News of the World
Yes you could say she was attractively built"

The "News of the World" was a UK national Sunday newspaper (scandal sheet) first published in 1843. It was closed down in 2011 by owner Rupert Murdoch because of the phone hacking scandal that engulfed it. John Lennon described this song as a bit of crap he wrote in India. It was inspired by a girl he met at someones flat/apartment who dressed in polythene. The title is named for a Beatles' fan from the Cavern club in Liverpool Pat Hodgett. Her nickname was Polythene Pat, because she used to eat polythene. She would eat it plain or cold after burning it. It is always nice to know the history of songs but this one must be one of the strangest. John Lennon sings the song with a very pronounced Liverpool (scouse) accent.

Answer: The End

"The End" was written by Paul McCartney but credited to Lennon/McCartney.

Each of The Beatles has a solo on this track. First, Ringo on drums then Paul McCartney, George Harrison and last but not least John Lennon have a repeating guitar solo. "The End" is not only the last song of a medley on the "Abbey Road" album, it is also the last song recorded by all four Beatles together. It was supposed to be the last track on the album but because of a mistake in the mastering, the track in the next question in this quiz is the last one. The "Abbey Road" album was the last album recorded by The Beatles but their "Let It Be" album was the twelfth and last Beatle album to be released in the UK.

Answer: A bellyful of wine

"Her Majesty" was written by Paul McCartney but credited to Lennon/McCartney.

Paul Sings:

"Her Majesty's a pretty nice girl
But she doesn't have a lot to say
Her Majesty's a pretty nice girl
But she changes from day to day
I wanna tell her that I love her a lot
But I gotta get a bellyful of wine
Her Majesty's a pretty nice girl
Someday I'm gonna make her mine, oh yeah
Someday I'm gonna make her mine"

"Her Majesty" was not listed on the original UK and US album cover or record label but is listed on the remastered 2009 CD. It was originally between "Mean Mr. Mustard" and "Polythene Pam". Paul McCartney changed his mind and told tape operator John Kurlander to edit it out and throw it away. As he had been instructed not to throw anything away he spliced it to some leader tape and spliced that back on to the "Abbey Road" master tape. When The Beatles heard the whole album including "Her Majesty" they decided to leave it on the album 14 seconds after the end of the song "The End".