It was 54 years ago today (May 30th, 1968) that the Beatles began recording their 30-song self-titled double album, which is commonly known as “The White Album.”
On May 30th, 1968, the “White Album's” first session was held for John Lennon's “Revolution 1,” which was recorded in London at EMI's Studio Two, with the session stretching from 2:30 p.m. to 2:40 a.m. the next day. It was the group's first studio work since returning from Rishikesh, India after an extended stay to study transcendental meditation under the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. In 2009, a near-10-minute version of “Revolution 1” made the rounds of underground collectors — the majority of which stems from the May 30th session.
Most of the songs from “The White Album” were written while the group was in India, including “Back In The U.S.S.R.,” “Yer Blues,” “I Will,” “The Continuing Story Of Bungalow Bill,” “Rocky Raccoon,” “I'm So Tired,” “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da,” “Dear Prudence,” “Mother Nature's Son,” and Lennon's thinly-veiled attack on the Maharishi, titled “Sexy Sadie.” Other highlights on the album included “While My Guitar Gently Weeps,” “Julia,” “Helter Skelter,” “Glass Onion,” “Martha My Dear,” “Birthday,” and Ringo Starr's first composition, the country-flavored “Don't Pass Me By.”