Writer: John Lennon & Paul McCartney
Producers: George Martin & Phil Spector
Recorded: January 28, 1969 at Apple Studios, London
Released: Spring 1969
| Players: | Paul McCartney — vocals, bass John Lennon — vocals, guitar George Harrison — vocals, guitar Ringo Starr — drums Billy Preston — piano |
| Album: | Let It Be (Apple, 1970) |
Paul McCartney originally conceived the song as a political commentary speaking out against anti-immigration forces in Great Britain.
The song's reference to Tucson comes from time Linda McCartney spent there.
“Get Back” was supposed to be the title track for a film and album project that was to document the Beatles' creative process. Burdened by intra-band tensions, the project was put on the shelf and eventually came out–after the Abbey Road album–as Let It Be.
The group recorded the song three times during its famous 42-minute rooftop performance. The Let It Be film features an edited combination of the first two versions.
The actual “Get Back” track used for the Let It Be album was recorded two days earlier at Apple Studios. John Lennon's song-closing comment–“I'd like to say thank you…''–was grafted on to that recording of the song.
The song's title was used in promotional materials to refer to the relatively unadorned recording–a sign that the Beatles had gotten back to their rock-and-roll roots. “The Beatles as nature intended” was the advertising slogan.
The “Get Back” single sold nearly two million copies and hit Number One in six countries, including Britain and the U.S.
