Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!
"Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!" is a song from the 1967 album by The Beatles, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. It was composed mainly by John Lennon with input from Paul McCartney[1] and credited to Lennon/McCartney.
| "Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!" | |
|---|---|
| Song by The Beatles | |
| from Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" | |
| Length | 2:37 |
| Songwriter(s) | Lennon/McCartney |
| Producer(s) | George Martin |
Inspiration
Lennon wrote the song taking inspiration from a nineteenth century circus poster for Pablo Fanque's circus which he purchased in an antique shop on 31 January 1967 while filming the promotional video for the song "Strawberry Fields Forever" in Kent.[2] Lennon said that "Everything from the song is from that poster, except the horse wasn't called Henry."[3] (The poster idenitifies the horse as "Zanthus".) Mr. Kite is believed to be William Kite, who worked for Pablo Fanque from 1843 to 1845.
Personnel
- John Lennon: double-tracked lead vocals and harmony vocals; Hammond organ; tape loops and harmonica.
- Paul McCartney: lead guitar and bass.
- George Harrison: piano and tambourine.
- Ringo Starr: drums; tambourine; and harmonica.
- George Martin: harmonium, Lowrey organ, glockenspiel and tape loops.
- Mal Evans: harmonica.
- Neil Aspinall: harmonica.
- Geoff Emerick: tape loops.
Notes
- ↑ Miles 1997, pp. 318.
- ↑ Lewisohn 1988, pp. 98.
- ↑ Sheff 2000, p. 183.
Other websites
- The Beatles (2000). The Beatles Anthology. San Francisco: Chronicle Books. ISBN 0-8118-2684-8.
- Lewisohn, Mark (1988). The Beatles Recording Sessions. New York: Harmony Books. ISBN 0-517-57066-1.
- Miles, Barry (1997). Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now. New York: Henry Holt and Company. ISBN 0-8050-5249-6.
- Sheff, David (2000). All We Are Saying: The Last Major Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono. New York: St. Martin's Press. ISBN 0-312-25464-4.