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Glass Onion
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Wikipedia article
{{Infobox song
| name = Glass Onion
| cover = Glass Onion sheet music cover.jpg
| cover_size = 160
| caption = Sheet music cover
| type = song
| artist = the Beatles
| album = The Beatles
| released =
| recorded = 1113 September & 10 October 1968
| studio = EMI, London
| genre = Psychedelic rock
| length = 2:17
| label = Apple
| writer = LennonMcCartney
| producer = George Martin
| misc =
}}
"'Glass Onion'" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1968 double album 'The Beatles' (also known as the "White Album"). The song was written by John Lennon and credited to LennonMcCartney.
Lyrics
Lennon wrote the song to confuse people who read too much into the lyrical meanings of Beatles songs, which annoyed him. With this in mind, the lyrics are intended to confuse the listener. Many lines refer to earlier Beatles songs, including "Strawberry Fields Forever", "I Am the Walrus", "Lady Madonna", "The Fool on the Hill", and "Fixing a Hole". The song also refers to the "Cast Iron Shore", a coastal area of south Liverpool known to local people as "The Cazzy". Lennon dismissed any deep meaning to the mysterious lyrics:
"Glass Onion" was a name suggested by Lennon for the Iveys, a group who signed to Apple in 1968 and later became Badfinger.
Recording
The song was one of several recorded as a demo at George Harrison's Esher home in 1968 before the recording sessions for the "White Album". The Esher demo was first released on 'Anthology 3' (1996) and the 2018 deluxe edition of the "White Album". 'Anthology 3' also included an alternate version which contained various sound effects rather than the string arrangement.
This is the first track on the album to feature Ringo Starr on drums. Starr briefly left the group during recording sessions for the album, and drums on both "Back in the U.S.S.R." and "Dear Prudence" were played by the other band members.
Legacy
Coinciding with the 50th anniversary of its release, Jacob Stolworthy of 'The Independent' listed "Glass Onion" at number 10 in his ranking of the White Album's 30 tracks. He wrote of the song: "Lennon embraced his cheeky side with 'Glass Onion', a self-referential track which parades as symbolic. Instead, it was designed to trick fans into thinking their songs meant more than they actually do." For the 50th-anniversary editions of the White Album, a music video for the song, created by Alasdair Brotherston and Jock Mooney, was released.
The song served as a namesake for the 2022 film 'Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery' and is featured in the film's end-credits.
Personnel
* John Lennon double-tracked vocals, acoustic guitar
* Paul McCartney bass guitar, piano, recorder
* George Harrison lead guitar
* Ringo Starr drums, tambourine
* Chris Thomas recorder(?)
* George Martin string arrangement including:
** Henry Datyner violin
** Eric Bowie violin
** Norman Lederman violin
** Ronald Thomas violin
** John Underwood viola
** Keith Cummings viola
** Eldon Fox cello
** Reginald Kilby cello
: Personnel per Ian MacDonald
References
Bibliography
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