The Beatles, Donovan and India

Numerous Beatles fans are unaware from the terrific influence British folk-singer and guitarist Donovan (Donovan Philips Leitch) had on the Beatles and their music in 1968.

Donovan was a buddy of the Beatles, and when the group traveled to Rishikesh in India to study Transcendental Meditation in February 1968, Donovan came along. There had been many other westerners present in the Rishikesh camp as well, such as Mike Love on the Beach Boys.

Quite a few with the songs that would later feature on the Beatles' 1968 album entitled The Beatles - also referred to as The White Album as a result of its white cover - emerged throughout the group's remain in India.

1 cause for this was the reality that Donovan was there. Between the meditation classes, he taught John, Paul and George a specific finger-picking guitar style which is usually traced on numerous of the songs on The White Album.

Take Paul McCartney's Blackbird, as an example. It was written in India, and it's a prime example of how Donovan's guitar-technique was applied by the Beatles. Listen how elegantly Paul picks the strings and how the guitar pattern supports the lead vocal brilliantly.

Acoustic guitars had arguably not sounded rather as sophisticated as that on prior Beatles recordings, probably using a few exceptions, such as Paul's I've Just Observed [http://www.legalsoundz.com A Face from 1965]  and Lennon's Girl from 1966. The Beatles had typically used the acoustic to play rhythm guitar - which obviously worked brilliantly - however the Donovan finger-picking style added but an additional dimension their music.

A different of Paul's songs, Mother Nature's Son, also took shape in India. Also here Donovan's influence is apparent. The lyrics, meanwhile, are mentioned to have already been influenced by a lecture provided by meditation guru Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, a central figure in the camp.

Paul was naturally not the only Beatle who was inspired by Donovan's guitar approach. Just listen for the songs Julia and Dear Prudence, each penned by John Lennon. [http://www.legalsoundz.com  Dear Prudence]  is basically about a specific incident that occurred at the Rishikesh meditation camp. The song is actually about Prudence Farrow, sister of actress Mia Farrow, who also stayed at Rishikesh. Prudence, however, preferred to meditate in solitude in her chalet. In the end Lennon and George Harrison had to convince her to come out and join the other people: Dear Prudence, won't you come out and play?

Other songs written or inspired by the stay in India had been Lennon's The Continuing Story Of Bungalow Bill and Sexy Sadie, plus McCartney's Why Don't We Do It In The Road and Wild Honey Pie.

Sexy Sadie was originally called Maharishi just after Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, the meditation guru. Right after having stayed in India for a even though, Lennon lost trust in Maharishi, apparently due to a rumor that the guru had made sexual advances to a female member of your course. The Continuing Story Of Bungalow Bill was about college graduate named Richard Cooke III who visited the Rishikesh community for the reason that his mother Nancy was staying there. They did indeed go tiger hunting, just like the song suggests.

Paul McCartney later stated he got the idea to Why Don't We Do It In The Road? in India, exactly where he had seen two monkeys copulating within the road. Wild Honey Pie was a sing along that also emerged in Rishikesh.

The initial Beatle to leave India was  [http://www.legalsoundz.com Ringo] , who returned to London in early March. McCartney soon followed, when Lennon and Harrison left in April.

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