Recording a solid song in just one take is almost impossible. Ask any musician you know. Usually, at least a few takes are necessary to get the best possible sound. But for the following three classic rock bands, they managed to produce legendary hits with just one solitary take. That’s impressive, to say the least. Let’s take a look!
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“House Of The Rising Sun” by The Animals
This one’s honestly such a surprise, because the album version of “House Of The Rising Sound” sounds almost perfect. How could The Animals possibly capture the song so beautifully in just one take? In reality, it was more of an act of desperation, which makes this achievement all the more astounding.
The Animals had just come off an exhausting tour when they hit the studio to record this song, and they wanted to get it done quickly. They performed the song countless times while on tour. Clearly, they knew “House Of The Rising Sun” like the back of their hands. In less than 15 minutes, The Animals recorded their biggest hit and only No. 1 hit.
“Twist And Shout” by The Beatles
As the countless compilation albums that feature dozens of studio takes of famous Fab Four tunes indicate, The Beatles did not often record hit classic rock songs in just one take. “Twist And Shout” is a rare example of the beloved rock band managing such a feat.
According to lore, the whole of Please Please Me, sans a few overdubs, was recorded in just one day on February 11, 1963. That included “Twist And Shout”, one of the Fab Four’s most well-known songs today. “Twist And Shout” was apparently recorded toward the end of that session to spare John Lennon’s vocals, and he even had a cold when the song was recorded. You can tell the band poured every last bit of power they had into the recording, and the results speak for themselves.
“Losing My Religion” by R.E.M.
A much more recent but still very “classic rock” hit on this list of songs, R.E.M.’s Michael Stipe recorded his vocals on “Losing My Religion” in just one take. And let’s be real, his vocals are very hard to replicate. The rest of the song was recorded by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra in various takes, but Stipe’s booming vocals are just too good to have been mastered in just one short recording session. That’s certainly impressive, and the song went on to be R.E.M.’s signature hit.
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