Flight (1977)
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Flight - Side 1 (condensed)
Flight - Side 2 (condensed)
Comments
Posted by Frank West on September 4, 2020
In the book, the text on page 408 mentions using "Waterspout" to complete the lineup, but the charts show you actually chose to use "Don't Let It Bring You Down." Please confirm which selection you really meant and explain the rationale if it is "Don't Let It Bring You Down."
Posted by Rick Prescott on September 5, 2020
Frank,
Great catch! That's obviously an editing error. Thanks for bringing it to my attention. I've fixed it in the master file.
In truth, that was a late change to the running order, based on a happy accident of listening. I like "Waterspout," and thought for sure it would end up on this album, but it's hard to resist Paul trying to console John. It's a classic case of a connection that I never would have imagined when listening to the tracks separately, but really shows how these voices still could intertwine so beautifully if you give them a little nudge. In the final running order, "Don't Let It Bring You Down" makes a surprising capstone for side two, and yields a much more emotional and satisfying sequence.
The rewrite somehow got left out of the finished manuscript. Here it is, beginning about midway through page 407, and ending with the track listing on 408:
At that point, however, the Assembler would have to tell Paul that he needed to provide another track if he really wanted both of the slots currently reserved for him. "Waterspout" looks versatile enough to find a spot, but nothing else on the list has anywhere near as much versatility. The question then would be whether to shoehorn something in, or instead ask Paul to come up with another alternative.
Since we cannot work with the idea of Paul writing something specifically for an open spot, we take a look into his archive and find a song languishing that does indeed fill the spot on side one nicely. "Mama's Little Girl" goes all the way back to Red Rose Speedway, and would have been released on that album had it been a double as planned. In this context, the song provides contrast to the dual openers by Ringo and John, and completes the quadrifecta of Beatle voices to open the album.
Side one is thus finally complete, albeit with numbering that clearly indicates its patchwork nature.
To complete side two, the first question is whether John's "I Don't Wanna Face It" fits better coming out of "Girls' School," or leading into "I'll Still Love You." With just a little listening, it becomes quite obvious that the first option prevails.
Though "Waterspout" could easily fill the last slot, a quick listen yields a surprise. "Don't Let It Bring You Down" feels somewhat slight on its own, but takes on a surprising gravitas when paired with John's ode to escapism. In that context, it feels like a direct answer, even an act of consolation. Simultaneously, it creates the perfect room in which Ringo can sing George's love song. Again, Beatles elevate Beatles.
Great catch! That's obviously an editing error. Thanks for bringing it to my attention. I've fixed it in the master file.
In truth, that was a late change to the running order, based on a happy accident of listening. I like "Waterspout," and thought for sure it would end up on this album, but it's hard to resist Paul trying to console John. It's a classic case of a connection that I never would have imagined when listening to the tracks separately, but really shows how these voices still could intertwine so beautifully if you give them a little nudge. In the final running order, "Don't Let It Bring You Down" makes a surprising capstone for side two, and yields a much more emotional and satisfying sequence.
The rewrite somehow got left out of the finished manuscript. Here it is, beginning about midway through page 407, and ending with the track listing on 408:
At that point, however, the Assembler would have to tell Paul that he needed to provide another track if he really wanted both of the slots currently reserved for him. "Waterspout" looks versatile enough to find a spot, but nothing else on the list has anywhere near as much versatility. The question then would be whether to shoehorn something in, or instead ask Paul to come up with another alternative.
Since we cannot work with the idea of Paul writing something specifically for an open spot, we take a look into his archive and find a song languishing that does indeed fill the spot on side one nicely. "Mama's Little Girl" goes all the way back to Red Rose Speedway, and would have been released on that album had it been a double as planned. In this context, the song provides contrast to the dual openers by Ringo and John, and completes the quadrifecta of Beatle voices to open the album.
Side one is thus finally complete, albeit with numbering that clearly indicates its patchwork nature.
To complete side two, the first question is whether John's "I Don't Wanna Face It" fits better coming out of "Girls' School," or leading into "I'll Still Love You." With just a little listening, it becomes quite obvious that the first option prevails.
Though "Waterspout" could easily fill the last slot, a quick listen yields a surprise. "Don't Let It Bring You Down" feels somewhat slight on its own, but takes on a surprising gravitas when paired with John's ode to escapism. In that context, it feels like a direct answer, even an act of consolation. Simultaneously, it creates the perfect room in which Ringo can sing George's love song. Again, Beatles elevate Beatles.
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