Hear The Beatles' Acoustic Version of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps"

George Harrison's White Album masterpiece "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" was a career-defining moment for the Beatles guitarist.

But the band didn't always envision the song as an electric ballad, as evidenced by the acoustic version of it that's been released in advance of the Super Deluxe Edition of the White Album, coming November 9. 

In audio from the session, we can hear the late-Beatle tinkering with the song's arrangement, questioning the levels of the organ accompanying his acoustic guitar and singing an early draft of the lyrics. 

The White Album sessions were famously challenging for the band members. According to Rolling Stone, the Beatles left "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" alone for three weeks after the above demo was recorded. 

In the meantime, the band fussed over another Harrison-penned song, "Not Guilty," which even after 102 takes was cut from the final version of the album.

Part of what makes "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" such a touchstone in Beatles history was when the band re-electrified the song and Harrison called upon his friend, Eric Clapton, to perform the song's iconic guitar solo.

But Harrison didn't just want Clapton to visit for his solo; it was also to suspend the arguing amongst the band members for a few hours. Harrison knew his band mates would behave with Clapton around. 

"The other guys were as good as gold because he was there," Harrison once said of the session.


Photo: Getty Images

Hear The Beatles' Acoustic Version of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps"

Sponsored Content

Sponsored Content