The Last Beatles Photo Shoot

You could have cut the tension with a knife (0r with George Harrison’s giant hat) 

They had just finished recording the last album they would ever make together, and relations between the four band members of the Beatles were at an all-time low. George Harrison had walked out for five days during the recording of Abbey Road and threatened to leave the band all together. Lennon called the experience of recording the album “hell … the most miserable … on Earth”. Soon after the last track was laid down, they had their last photo shoot. Despite the bright and beautiful backdrop, there was no hiding the dark mood that day.

In August of 1969, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and George Harrison joined John Lennon at his newly purchased 72-acre estate with Yoko Ono in Sunninghill, Berkshire. They were photographed by Ethan Russell and Monte Fresco in the run up to the release of the last two albums the group would ever release, Abbey Road(September 1969) and Let it Be (May 1970).

Linda McCartney was also present at the shoot, heavily pregnant at the time. She even shot some of her own 16mm footage with Paul’s camera that turned out to be the last film ever taken of the band.

Throughout the pictures, including some ‘behind the scenes’ ones taken by the Beatles assistant Mal Evans, you can see George Harrison looking particularly withdrawn from the rest of the group. He was not a happy Beatle.

Of the moment Harrison walked out on the band’s recording session at Twickenham studios, director of the Beatles Anthology documentary, Michael Lindsay Hogg recalls the tension:

“See you ’round the clubs,” he said.

That was his good-bye. He left.

John, a person who reacted aggressively to provocation, immediately said, “Let’s get in Eric. He’s just as good and not such a headache.”

–Luck and Circumstance, Michael Lindsay Hogg