5 Beatles Songs That Feature Vocalists Not in the Band

The Beatles were blessed with four outstanding vocalists to deliver their wonderful songs. They really didn’t have any need to go looking outside the band for somebody else to bring something to the mic they couldn’t.

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But there were a few occasions when someone who wasn’t a member of the group can be heard singing on a Beatles track. Some of them might be obvious to you, while others you might have either forgotten or not even realized.

“All You Need Is Love” from Magical Mystery Tour (1967)

You might not realize it when you hear it on the radio, but “All You Need Is Love,” aside from a prerecorded backing track, was mostly a live take. The Beatles performed the song in front of a worldwide audience for the first-ever international satellite broadcast. In honor of the occasion, the group invited a bunch of friends to come and sit in during the show. These luminaries sang along with the chorus as the song faded out. Among the famous folks included: Mick Jagger, Marianne Faithfull, Eric Clapton, Keith Moon, and Graham Nash.

“I Am the Walrus” from Magical Mystery Tour (1967)

They were known as The Mike Sammes Singers, a chorus that usually sang on beautiful music versions of famous songs. But John Lennon, ever the subversive, decided to put them to anarchic use on “I Am the Walrus,” a song whose lyrics deliberately defied any comprehension. He wanted the recording to be typically irreverent. That’s why Sammes’ collection of vocalists was asked to sing bizarre asides like Oompah, oompah, stick it up your jumper and Everybody’s got one as the song faded to its maniacal conclusion.

“The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill” from The White Album (1968)

Even though they had met each other by that point, Yoko Ono didn’t accompany John Lennon to India in 1968 for The Beatles’ sessions with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. It was on that retreat Lennon got a bit perturbed by one of the fellow attendees who went out on a hunting expedition, seemingly at odds with the peaceful vibes of the trip. Ono did contribute to Lennon’s retelling of the saga, “The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill.” That’s her playing the part of Bill’s mother, chiming in the line, Not when he looked so fierce.

“Across the Universe” from No One’s Gonna Change Our World (1969)

If you don’t recognize the title of the album above, that’s because it’s not a Beatles record. It was a charitable album to benefit the World Wildlife Fund. The fact the Fab Four gave “Across the Universe” away in this fashion should tell you what they thought of the first recording. It included “Apple Scruffs” (the nickname for fans who hung out near the group’s headquarters) Lizzie Bravo and Gayleen Pease, neither of whom were professional singers, wailing backing vocals on John Lennon’s haunting song.

“The Long and Winding Road” from Let It Be (1970)

The Beatles intended “The Long and Winding Road” to be one of the centerpieces of their 1969 Get Back project. When that crumbled in acrimony, the tapes sat around mostly untouched until the start of 1970, by which time John Lennon had announced his departure from the band. Producer Phil Spector was given control of the tapes, and he made the decision to add heavy orchestration and a female choir to the track. That proved so frustrating to Paul McCartney he tried to stop the release. It was to no avail, meaning that angelic chorus remains on the version found on Let it Be.

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