Abbey Road (album)

The famous photograph

"At some point the album was going to be titled Everest, after the brand of cigarettes I used to smoke," recalls Geoff Emerick. The idea included a cover photo of The Beatles in the Himalaya, but by the time the group had to take the photo, they decided to call it Abbey Road and take the photo outside the studio on August 8, 1969. That cover photograph has since become one of the most famous and most imitated album covers in recording history. The cover also supposedly contains clues adding to the "Paul Is Dead" phenomenon: Paul is barefoot, out of step with the others, and holds a cigarette in his right hand, though he is left handed, and the car license plate "281F" supposedly referred to the fact that McCartney would be 28 years old if he was still alive. (While the "I" in "28IF" is actually a "1," it is hard to tell on the cover. As an aside, Paul was only 27 at the time of Abbey Roads release, though some take this to mean he would have been 28 "if" he had lived despite the fact that McCartney has supposedly been dead for years at this point.) The four Beatles on the album cover, according to the "Paul is Dead" myth, represent Jesus (John, long-haired and bearded, dressed in white), the Undertaker (Ringo in a black suit), the Corpse (Paul, in a suit but barefoot--like a body in a casket), and the Gravedigger (George, in jeans and a denim work shirt). The man standing on the pavement in the background is Paul Cole, an American tourist who was unaware that he was being photographed until he saw the album cover months later.

Related Topics:
Himalaya - Studio - August 8 - 1969 - Paul Is Dead

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One imitation cover came with a unique tribute. Booker T. & the M.G.'s, famed soul combo, covered most of the songs on the Abbey Road in their 1969 album McLemore Avenue, named after the street address of the Stax records studio. The Red Hot Chili Peppers have also imitated the album cover, on their The Abbey Road E.P., with the band appearing nude, apart from tactfully placed socks. McCartney himself revisited the famous album cover for his live album Paul Is Live.

Related Topics:
Booker T. & the M.G.'s - Covered - Stax - Red Hot Chili Peppers - The Abbey Road E.P. - Paul Is Live

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The photo has also made the particular zebra crossing at Abbey Road a popular tourist site, and each day visitors can be seen posing in the popular position, in spite of the fact that the road is still in normal use.

Related Topics:
Zebra crossing - Abbey Road

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