On this day (August 8), The Beatles assembled outside EMI Studios and embarked on a photo shoot that yielded one of the most iconic shots in music history: the cover of their 1969 album, Abbey Road. The photo of the Fab Four walking across Abbey Road via the zebra crossing might be one of the most recognizable and recreated images in the world.
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The Abbey Road cover proved how famous The Beatles were at the time. The cover features the legendary photo and nothing more. It was nearly unheard of for an album sleeve not to list the title and artist name. Record executives worried that the album wouldn’t sell without the information emblazoned on its cover. However, Apple Records’ creative director, Kosh, knew better. After all, they were one of the biggest bands in the world and, as a result, were four of the most recognizable artists at the time.
How The Beatles Captured the Iconic Shot
According to The Beatles Bible, the band enlisted freelance photographer and friend of John Lennon, Iain Macmillan, to shoot the cover photo for Abbey Road. That summer morning, he stood on a stepladder while a police officer stopped traffic so he could get the shot.
They had to work fast to get the right shot because the officer could only stop traffic on Abbey Road for ten minutes. In that time, the Fab Four crossed the street six times, giving Macmillan six chances to get the perfect shot. The photo that became the album cover was the fifth shot.
Much like the bulk of The Beatles’ songs, John Lennon and Paul McCartney helped make the Abbey Road cover what it is. Lennon sketched a concept for the cover and discussed it with his photographer friend. Then, after the photoshoot, McCartney studied the transparencies and chose the photo.
The fifth photo from the shoot was the only one that captured the band roughly in step with one another. At the same time, it depicted them walking away from the studio where they had spent so much of their time.
Featured Image by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
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