Wednesday 29 July 1970 | Studio Three, EMI Studios, Abbey Road, London
Producers: George Harrison, Phil Spector
Engineers: Phil McDonald, Richard Lush
On 29 July 1970, George Harrison held the 24th recording session for his third solo album, All Things Must Pass, at Studio Three, EMI Studios, Abbey Road. The session was part of an intensive overdub phase: the album’s backing tracks had been completed on 25 July, and Harrison was now working through a programme of overdubs with arranger John Barham, running from 28 July to 12 August 1970. The precise recording details for each individual day in this period are not fully documented.
Harrison worked a four-day week throughout the album sessions, taking breaks from Saturday to Monday.
All Things Must Pass
All Things Must Pass was George Harrison’s third solo album and, by any measure, one of the most significant solo records to emerge from the dissolution of The Beatles. Released in November 1970 as a triple album, it drew on a backlog of songs that Harrison had written during the Beatles years but had been unable to place on Beatles records — songs that Lennon and McCartney’s dominance of the group’s output had repeatedly crowded out.
The album includes some of Harrison’s most celebrated compositions: ‘My Sweet Lord’, ‘What Is Life’, ‘Isn’t It a Pity’, ‘Beware of Darkness’, and the title track. It reached number one in both the UK and the US, and ‘My Sweet Lord’ became the first solo Beatles single to reach number one in the UK.
John Barham: Arranger
John Barham was a British composer and arranger who had worked with Harrison since the late 1960s, contributing orchestral and choral arrangements to several Harrison projects. His work on All Things Must Pass was central to the album’s lush, layered sound — the orchestral overdubs that Barham arranged gave the record its distinctive grandeur, complementing Phil Spector’s Wall of Sound production approach.
Barham’s involvement in the overdub sessions from 28 July to 12 August 1970 represented a sustained period of collaborative work, building the orchestral and choral textures that distinguish All Things Must Pass from Harrison’s earlier solo recordings.
Phil Spector as Co-Producer
Phil Spector co-produced All Things Must Pass alongside Harrison — a collaboration that had grown out of Spector’s involvement with The Beatles’ Let It Be album earlier in 1970. Spector’s Wall of Sound production technique — characterised by dense, layered instrumentation, heavy reverb, and a sense of overwhelming sonic scale — was well suited to Harrison’s vision for the album. The result was a record that sounded unlike anything else in the post-Beatles landscape: vast, devotional, and emotionally direct.
The sessions at Abbey Road involved an unusually large number of musicians, with Spector’s approach requiring multiple guitarists, keyboard players, and percussionists playing simultaneously to achieve the characteristic Wall of Sound density.
The Recording Timeline
The All Things Must Pass sessions had begun in May 1970, with demo recordings at Abbey Road. By late July, the album was in its final overdub phase:
- May 1970: Demo sessions at Abbey Road (see related articles below)
- May–July 1970: Backing track recording sessions
- 25 July 1970: Backing tracks completed
- 28 July – 12 August 1970: Overdub sessions with John Barham
- 29 July 1970: Session 24 — this date
- November 1970: Album released
Key Facts: 29 July 1970
| Date | Wednesday 29 July 1970 |
| Studio | Studio Three, EMI Studios, Abbey Road, London |
| Session number | 24th recording session for All Things Must Pass |
| Producers | George Harrison, Phil Spector |
| Engineers | Phil McDonald, Richard Lush |
| Phase | Overdubs with arranger John Barham (28 July – 12 August) |
| Backing tracks completed | 25 July 1970 |
| Album released | November 1970 (triple album; UK and US #1) |
Abbey Road Studios, St John’s Wood, London — where George Harrison recorded overdubs for All Things Must Pass on 29 July 1970.
George Harrison: All Things Must Pass
The album being recorded on this day. Officially licensed George Harrison merch.
George Harrison: All Things Must Pass Text Infill
Officially licensed George Harrison merch.
Frequently Asked Questions
When was All Things Must Pass recorded?
All Things Must Pass was recorded at Abbey Road Studios from May to August 1970. Demo sessions took place in May, backing tracks were completed on 25 July, and overdub sessions with arranger John Barham ran from 28 July to 12 August. The album was released in November 1970.
Who produced All Things Must Pass?
All Things Must Pass was co-produced by George Harrison and Phil Spector. Spector applied his Wall of Sound production technique — dense, layered instrumentation with heavy reverb — to Harrison’s songs, creating the album’s characteristic grandeur. Engineers were Phil McDonald and Richard Lush.
Who was John Barham?
John Barham was a British composer and arranger who worked with George Harrison from the late 1960s. He arranged the orchestral and choral overdubs on All Things Must Pass, contributing significantly to the album’s lush, layered sound. He worked with Harrison on overdub sessions from 28 July to 12 August 1970.
Did All Things Must Pass reach number one?
Yes. All Things Must Pass reached number one in both the UK and the United States. The lead single My Sweet Lord became the first solo Beatles single to reach number one in the UK.
→ Recording: All Things Must Pass demos – 27 May 1970
→ Recording: All Things Must Pass demos – 26 May 1970
→ 29 July in Beatles History
→ July in Beatles History
→ George Harrison: Beatles History, Solo Career, Songs & Legacy
→ The Beatles Knowledge Hub
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