I just wanted to
take a moment to shine a light on this lesser-known track from The Beatles
(A.K.A. the White Album) that has no right to be a lesser-known when it comes to it.
I think part of the reason it’s largely unknown is due to its original mix, which was so quiet as to almost be inaudible for at least the first half of the song, particularly when listened to on vinyl. Now if you take a look at the comments on the YouTube link I posted you’ll find as many people complaining that the newly lifted level diminishes the dynamics as those who are delighted they can finally hear it; while I can see a little of both (particularly when it comes to the rattling wine-bottled howling-over-an-organ finish, which sounds far more atmospheric on the original version) when push comes to shove, I fall more in the latter camp: lifting the level has elevated the song, given it a chance to shine it never had previously.
It’s no wonder it
got lost really, being tucked away toward the end of an epic album; in many
ways it's testament to the band’s extraordinary back catalogue that a song so
beautiful could be forgotten. Like much of the White Album, it displays the
group’s exceptional musicality, with special mention to RIngo this time whose
perfect call and response fills stand as yet another example of why the cliché that
he wasn’t a good drummer is just nonsense; yet again, he’s the expert of
playing the song by following the vocal; his musical instinct back then - much like the rest of the band - was
something else.