"Dylan, Brian Wilson, The Kinks, David Bowie, Lou Reed, Jaga Jazzist, Madrugada, Suede, Faithless, Wilco, James Taylor, Sting, Linkin Park, Audioslave, The Dandy Warhols and Counting Crows. The number of tickets sold for the festival numbered 8,000 in 2009. Source: Norwegian Wood (music festival) Norwegian Wood is an annual music festival in Oslo, Norway held in Frognerbadet. The name of the festival refers to the famous Beatles song ""Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)"". Norwegian Wood was initiated in 1992 by Jørgen Roll, Sten Fredriksen and Haakon Hartvedt, of which the first two are still on board the ship. The"
"north to the pristine forests of Scandinavia"". Kennack Womack praises how the song ""reinterprets a familiar theme, in this case the loss of 'love' (well represented in earlier songs such as 'Don't Bother Me' and 'Misery'), providing listeners with security yet challenging those inclined to acknowledge the standard treatment"". Stephen J. Spignesi rates ""Norwegian Wood"" at number 42 in his book ""100 Best Beatles Songs: A Passionate Fan's Guide"", reasoning it was ""the most clear-cut evidence that the Beatles as artists had grown restless, and were no longer content with what had been considered up until then to be traditional"
"Beatles' song ""Norwegian Wood"" – written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney for the 1965 album ""Rubber Soul"" – as the two tracks share a reasonably similar melody, lyrical premise, and 3/4 time signature. ""4th Time Around"" has been seen as either a playful homage, or a satirical warning to Lennon about co-opting Dylan's well-known songwriting devices. Lennon expressed a range of opinions on this topic in interviews between 1970 and 1980. He initially felt it to be a somewhat pointed parody of ""Norwegian Wood"", but later he considered Dylan's effort to be more a playful homage. Still, the last"
"and serves as a ""parody of the Beatles' celebrity status and the status-seekers they meet"". Author and critic Kenneth Womack describes the lyrics as being ""loaded with sexual innuendo"", and he says that the female protagonist challenged the gendered expectations of a mid-1960s pop audience, as an ""everywoman"" with ego and a clear agenda. Lennon said he wrote ""Norwegian Wood"" about an extramarital affair and that he worded the narrative to hide the truth from his wife, Cynthia. The lyrics sketch a failed meeting between the singer and a mysterious girl, where she goes to bed and he sleeps in"
"world music. The song's lyrics are about an extramarital affair that John Lennon was involved in, as hinted in the opening couplet: ""I once had a girl, or should I say, she once had me"". Though Lennon never revealed whom he had an affair with, writer Philip Norman speculates that it was either close friend and journalist Maureen Cleave, or Sonny Freeman. Paul McCartney explained that the term ""Norwegian Wood"" was a sarcastic reference to the cheap pine wall panelling then in vogue (e.g. in guitarist Peter Asher's bedroom). McCartney commented on the final verse of the song: ""In our"
"the AllMusic website, music historian Richie Unterberger described ""Norwegian Wood"" as possessing ""more than enough ambiguity and ingenious innuendo to satisfy even a Dylan fan"". He also noted, with reference to the Beatles' progression as songwriters: ""For listeners who were more Beatles fans than Dylan ones, the group had sure come a long way since 'She Loves You' just two years back."" Unterberger concludes his review by commenting, ""The power of the track is greatly enhanced by McCartney's sympathetic high harmonies on the bridge, and its exoticism confirmed by George Harrison's twanging sitar riffs"". A reviewer for ""Rolling Stone"" magazine"
"the most oft-repeated of Dylan's life lessons"", the thought that ""to live outside the law you must be honest"", which was later invoked in many bohemian and counter-cultural contexts. When The Beatles released their sixth studio album, ""Rubber Soul"", in December 1965, John Lennon's song ""Norwegian Wood"" attracted attention for the way in which Lennon disguised his account of an illicit affair in cryptic, Dylanesque language. Dylan sketched out a response to the song, also in 3/4 time, copying the tune and circular structure, but taking Lennon's tale in a darker direction. Wilentz describes the result as sounding ""like Bob"
"a limiter, which would have fixed the technical problem with distortion, but would have affected the sound. Lennon overdubbed a lead vocal, which he double tracked at the end of each line in the verses. Designed as a comedy number, this version exhibited a less folk-orientated sound, relative to the recording issued on ""Rubber Soul"", instead highlighting laboured vocals and an unusual sitar conclusion. The band were unsatisfied with the song, however, and decided to return to it nine days later. This original take of ""Norwegian Wood"" was first released on the 1996 compilation album ""Anthology 2"". The Beatles reconvened"
"the genre's mystical qualities, although he possessed a disdain for any formal method or training. Lennon was simply intrigued with the sound of the sitar and was open to the possibilities that the instrument had to offer. Harrison introduced drummer Ringo Starr to the tabla, an Indian hand drum. Starr was completely mystified and refused to learn how to play it; Harrison recalled it was ""so far out to him"". The Beatles recorded an early version of ""Norwegian Wood"" during the first day of sessions for their album ""Rubber Soul"", on 12 October 1965. The session took place at EMI"
"noted ""Norwegian Wood"" and ""Think for Yourself"" as documents of the Beatles' increasing awareness and creativity in the studio. Scott Plagenhoef of ""Pitchfork Media"" considers the song to be one of the most self-evident Lennon pieces on ""Rubber Soul"" to exemplify his maturity as a songwriter, and praises the composition as ""an economical and ambiguous story-song highlighted by Harrison's first dabbling with the Indian sitar"". In his book on the ""Rubber Soul"" era, subtitled ""The Enduring Beauty of Rubber Soul"", John Kruth refers to ""Norwegian Wood"" as a ""striking from the first listen"" kind of tune that ""transported Beatles fans"
"Stevens describes ""Norwegian Wood"" as a turning point in folk-style ballads, writing ""Lennon moves quickly from one lyrical image to another, leaving it up to the listener's imagination to complete the picture"". He also said the song marked a pivotal moment in Lennon's use of surreal lyrics, following on from the earlier songs ""Ask Me Why"" and ""There's a Place"". Between 5 April and 6 April 1965, while filming the second Beatles movie, ""Help!"", at Twickenham Film Studios, George Harrison first encountered the sitar, a prominent feature in ""Norwegian Wood"". A group of Indian session musicians sparked Harrison's interest when"
"at EMI Studios on 21 October to conduct three additional takes, including the master. The group experimented with the arrangements, with the second take introducing a double-tracked sitar opening that complemented Lennon's acoustic melody. Though the group completely reshaped ""Norwegian Wood"", it was far from the album version. Harrison's sitar playing is still at the forefront, alongside heavy drumbeats. The take was not considered suitable for overdubbing, so the band scrapped it, and re-evaluated the arrangement. By the third take, the song was called ""Norwegian Wood"", and the group changed the key from D major, to E major. The Beatles"
"Conversely, Jon Friedman of ""Esquire"" finds the work vastly overrated, with only the Lennon-dominated songs ""Norwegian Wood"", ""Nowhere Man"", ""In My Life"" and ""Girl"" worthy of praise, and he dismisses it as ""dull"" and ""the Beatles' most inconsequential album"". Although he considers that McCartney ""comes off third-string"" to Lennon and Harrison, Plagenhoef defends the album's subtle mood; highlighting the influence of cannabis on the Beatles throughout 1965, he writes: ""With its patient pace and languid tones, ""Rubber Soul"" is an altogether much more mellow record than anything the Beatles had done before, or would do again. It's a fitting product"
"""Norwegian Wood"" was influential in the development in raga rock and psychedelic rock, even though it was not the first song to feature an Eastern-inspired sound in a rock composition, and not even the first Beatles song to do so. Not long afterwards, Indian classical music became popularised in mainstream Western society, and several Western musical artists such as the Byrds, the Rolling Stones, and Donovan integrated elements of the genre into their musical approach. Accordingly, ""Norwegian Wood"" is recognised as a bona fide raga-rock song, as well as fundamental in the early evolution of the genre later regarded as"
"Wood"" recorded by The Beatles in 1965. Born Sonnhild Spielhagen in Berlin, Germany in 1939, Drane grew up in Great Britain during post-World War II years. Her father was the Mayor Wolfgang Spielhagen (1891–1945) of the City of Breslau (now part of Poland and named Wrocław). He was firmly anti-Hitler, resulting in Nazi Party Gauleiter Karl Hanke having him executed in January 1945. Norman says that though she was German-born, in the 1960s she used to tell people that she was Norwegian. Drane's mother was Eva Spielhagen, née Thiel (1901–1989). She is described by writer Philip Norman as having been"
"on the eve of a 14-city US tour, an American magazine reproduced that remark, which led to a wave of anti-Beatle sentiment in many parts of the US, especially the South and Midwest. According to the Bob Spitz biography of the Beatles, Lennon claimed a liaison with Cleave, inspiring the band's song ""Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)"". Pete Shotton, a friend of Lennon's, also suggested Cleave, though Cleave has said that in all her encounters with Lennon that he made ""no pass"" at her, and Lennon claimed he could not remember whom the song was about. It has also"
"– 100 percent it was George on sitar throughout."" Final mixing for the song took place on 21 June as the Beatles rushed to complete ""Revolver"" before beginning the first leg of their 1966 world tour. Harrison discussed ""Love You To"" with Shankar when the two musicians met that month, at a social event hosted by the Angadi family. Although he was unaware of the band's popularity and had yet to hear ""Norwegian Wood"", Shankar was impressed with Harrison's humility as the guitarist downplayed his sitar recordings with the Beatles as merely ""experiments"". Soon after this meeting, Shankar gave Harrison"
"Jones: The Making of the Rolling Stones"", Paul Trynka has noted that the influence of Harrison's sitar playing, and, in particular, The Beatles' song ""Norwegian Wood"" on the ""Rubber Soul"" album, draws parallels in ""Paint It Black"" - most noticeably in Jones' droning sitar melody. In response to claims that he was merely imitating the Beatles, however, Jones said: ""What utter rubbish!"" His sitar part on the track immediately became influential in developing a whole subgenre of minor-key psychedelic music. Coupled with this striking instrumental motif, it is complemented by Jagger's droning, and slight nasal vocalization. In addition, ""Paint It"
"this realization led him to concentrate his efforts on trying to outdo them in the recording studio. Brian identified the main difference between his music approach to the Beatles' is that they simplify songs to their ""skeletal form,"" whereas he would be ""impelled to make [them] more complex,"" and that if he had arranged ""Norwegian Wood"", he would have ""orchestrated it, put in background voices, [and] done a thousand things."" On the subject of the Beatles' ""Revolver"" (1966), Love responded: ""No, I don't think he was influenced by ""Revolver"". Brian was in his own world, believe me. If he were"
"on the album, Leahcar revealed she had also recorded other Beatles songs including, ""The Fool on the Hill"", ""If I Fell"", and ""Dear Prudence"", but they were ultimately cut. ""Norwegian Wood"" was also cut from the album due to the lyrical content. Leahcar explained, ""I didn't think it was really 'me' to sing it""! Leahcar's version of ""Across the Universe"" also appears on ""Then & Now: Australia Salutes The Beatles"", a compilation album celebrating 50 years since The Beatles first came to Australia. Here Comes the Sun (Rachael Leahcar album) Here Comes the Sun is the third studio album by"
"With Smith behind the boards, Gregg Allman was still the focus. The younger Allman, who had seen only one of his compositions on the previous album, contributed seven of the twelve tracks. The remainder were two from Marlon Greene and Eddie Hinton and one each from the teams of Spooner Oldham and Dan Penn, John Berry and Don Covay, and John Lennon and Paul McCartney. The group performed all of the instrumentation, with Duane Allman adding electric sitar to their cover of The Beatles' ""Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)"", a staple of their live act. Neil Young of Buffalo"
"Only a Northern Song ""Only a Northern Song"" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1969 soundtrack album ""Yellow Submarine"". Written by George Harrison, it was recorded mainly in February 1967 during the sessions for ""Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band"" but the Beatles chose not to include it on that album. Instead, it was the first of the four new songs that the band provided for the 1968 animated film ""Yellow Submarine"", to meet their contractual obligations to United Artists. Harrison wrote ""Only a Northern Song"" out of dissatisfaction with his status as a"
"Northern Song"" was the only music clip from ""How It Is"" circulating among collectors. On 13 January 1969, ""Only a Northern Song"" was issued as the second track on side one of the ""Yellow Submarine"" LP, with George Martin's orchestral score for the film occupying the whole of side two. The soundtrack was viewed as a secondary release by the Beatles, who delayed its release to allow for their 1968 self-titled double album, also known as ""the White Album"". Although Harrison's contract with James had expired in March 1968, the copyright for ""Only a Northern Song"" and his second contribution"
"wood ended up in the possession of Maureen Starkey and was ultimately sold to a Beatles collector. According to Mark Lewisohn's ""The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions"", an early outtake of ""Sexy Sadie"" features Lennon demonstrating the song's original working lyrics to the rest of the band: ""Maharishi, you little twat/Who the fuck do you think you are?/Who the fuck do you think you are?/Oh, you cunt."" The song's instrumental fade-out was originally longer and featured a breakdown based around the middle eight. This was edited out prior to mixing. In a 1968 ""Rolling Stone"" interview, Lennon complimented the song ""I've"
"three songs were statements that ensured that ""Rubber Soul"" would remain ""fresh"" for another 50 years. Also writing in December 2015, Emily Mackay of the ""NME"" described the song as ""acerbic"" and empathetic with the confused sexual politics of ""Norwegian Wood"". She recognised Harrison's ""assertion of independent-mindedness"" as a forerunner to Lennon's 1968 song ""Revolution"". In his 2015 book ""1965: The Most Revolutionary Year in Music"", Andrew Grant Jackson identifies it as the Beatles' contribution to a ""subgenre"" of protest songs that emerged in 1965, in which artists railed against ""oppressive conformity itself"" rather than political issues. He views it"
"construction, its timbre, or its use of instrumentation, such as the sitar and tabla. Raga and other forms of classical Indian music began to influence many rock groups during the 1960s; most famously the Beatles. The first traces of ""raga rock"" can be heard on songs such as ""See My Friends"" by the Kinks and the Yardbirds' ""Heart Full of Soul"", released the previous month, featured a sitar-like riff by guitarist Jeff Beck. The Beatles song ""Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)"", which first appeared on the band's 1965 album Rubber Soul, was the first western pop song to actually"
"""Norwegian Wood"" ""transformed"" Ravi Shankar's career, and the Indian sitarist later wrote of first being aware of a ""great sitar explosion"" in popular music during the spring of 1966, when he was performing a series of concerts in the UK. Harrison furthered his admiration for Indian culture and mysticism, introducing it to the other Beatles. In June 1966, Harrison met Shankar in London and became a student under the master sitarist. Having added the sitar accompaniment to ""Norwegian Wood"", Harrison expanded upon his initial effort by writing ""Love You To"", which showcased his immersion in Indian music, and presented an"
"all of which were achieved over a twelve-month period from January 1965. While British albums typically avoided including previously released songs, the lack of a hit single on the North American version of ""Rubber Soul"" added to the album's identity there as a self-contained artistic statement. Everett writes that in the US the album's ""hit"" was ""Michelle"", through its popularity on radio playlists. After their inclusion on the EMI-format LP, ""Norwegian Wood"", ""Nowhere Man"" and ""Michelle"" were each issued as singles in various markets outside Britain and America, with ""Norwegian Wood"" topping the Australian chart in May 1966. ""Nowhere Man""'s"
"had the title Skogsjungfruns frieri (""The Courting of the Wood-nymph"", a ""skogsjungfru"" or ""skogsnufva"" being a female wood-nymph or fairy). Other variants have been recorded in which the courted man is called ""Herr Magnus"" (""Herr Magnus och Hafstrollet"", ""Hertig Magnus och Hafsfrun"", a ""hafstroll"" or ""hafsfru"" being a water-nymph, neck or mermaid). Certain variants appear to identify the ballad's protagonist as Magnus, Duke of Östergötland, incorporating an alleged incident in which the duke, old and mentally impaired, threw himself into the water after seeing such a water spirit waving to him. ""Hertig Magnus och sjöjungfrun"" (""Duke Magnus and the Mermaid"")"
"While considering that Harrison appears to be ""playing his options, albeit gently"", author John Kruth deems the line ""Carve your number on my wall"" to be ""one of ""Rubber Soul""s most enigmatic lyrics"" and an evocation of the imagery in ""Norwegian Wood"". George Martin, the band's producer, described ""Rubber Soul"" as ""the first album to present a new, growing Beatles to the world"". Throughout the project, the Beatles increasingly experimented with sound textures. In the case of ""If I Needed Someone"", as with ""Girl"", a Lennon composition recorded at the end of the sessions, the use of a guitar capo"
"from Indian music, a genre that Harrison had introduced to the Beatles' sound late in 1965 with his sitar part on ""Norwegian Wood"", and is based on a high volume C drone played on a tambura. The song's musical key is C Mixolydian. The chord over the drone is generally C major, but some changes to B major result from vocal modulations, as well as orchestral and guitar tape loops. According to author Peter Lavezzoli, the composition is the first pop song to eschew formal chord changes altogether. Despite this limitation, musicologist Dominic Pedler sees the Beatles' harmonic ingenuity displayed"
"at the Budokan Hall in Tokyo, as an illustration of the growing division between the band as recording artists and live performers. In November 1995, ""If I Needed Someone"" was issued as the B-side of ""Norwegian Wood"" on a jukebox single, pressed on green vinyl. The release was part of a series of Beatles jukebox singles issued by Capitol's CEMA Special Markets division. The song was also one of the Beatles tracks that Capitol included on the compilation album ""The Best of George Harrison"", released in 1976 following the expiration of Harrison's contract with EMI. In late October 1965, the"
"The Kinks would also incorporate guitars to mimic the drones of Indian music on ""See My Friends"", another Top 10 hit just a few weeks later. The Beatles' ""Norwegian Wood"" from the December 1965 album ""Rubber Soul"" marked the first released recording on which a member of a Western rock group played the sitar. The song is generally credited for sparking the sitar craze of the mid-1960s – a trend which fueled the growth raga rock as the India exotic became part of the essence of psychedelic rock. Rock author George Case recognises ""Rubber Soul"" as one of two Beatles"