Timeline This song was written, or began to be written, in 1967, when Paul McCartney was 25 years old)
Master album
Related session
This song was recorded during the following studio sessions:
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Mixing "It's All Too Much", "Blue Jay Way"
Oct 12, 1967
On October 12, 1967, The Beatles recorded some incidental music known as “Shirley’s Wild Accordion,” which remained unreleased until its inclusion on the 2012 reissue of the “Magical Mystery Tour” TV special.
“Shirley’s Wild Accordion” was written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. The track featured Shirley Evans on accordion, accompanied by her musical partner and then-husband Reg Wale on percussion. Paul played maracas and cheered on Evans with shouts of “Go on, Shirl!” while Ringo Starr played drums.
The recording of the track, which was initially named “Accordion (Wild),” was made in eight basic takes with Shirley Evans playing from a score created by Mike Leander from ideas by John and Paul. Two reduction mixes were then made, numbered 9 and 10, followed by overdubs. The recording was completed with five additional takes, numbered 11-15.
Three mono mixes of “Shirley’s Wild Accordion” were created, numbered RM1 to RM3, and taken from takes 10, 7, and 14, respectively. The second mix was subtitled “Waltz,” and the third was known as “Freaky Rock.” The session ended at 2 am on the morning of October 13, 1967.
Although the drums and maracas were excluded, the mix of “Shirley’s Wild Accordion” included in the bonus material of the 2012 reissue of the “Magical Mystery Tour” film kept various other percussive sounds. The track was initially cut from the final edit of the film and remained unreleased until the reissue.
Live performances
Paul McCartney has never played this song in concert.
