RAMBLIN: Who gets the last word among The Beatles' guitarists?

Dec. 4—During those early days of when waves of American and British rock bands were arriving on the airwaves in a seemingly inexhaustible supply of musicians, it seemed there must have been an unwritten law in effect.

Every band had a different guy assigned to play lead guitar, rhythm guitar, bass guitar and drums — and they seemed to never waver from their assigned duties.

Just about every rock band from the era followed the prescribed lineup, with few exceptions. Some bands added a keyboard player or made do with one guitarist, such as the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Cream and the Who, who all went for the single guitarist lineup — but few bands had guitarists as proficient as Hendrix, Eric Clapton or Pete Townsend to cover the one guitarist duties.

What got me to thinking about all of this was watching the so-called rooftop session of The Beatles' last public performance together when they played that brief set on the top of their Apples Corps headquarters at Saville Row, as recently shown again in the Peter Jackson film, "The Beatles: Get Back."

While a highlight of the film for me was watching Paul McCartney write the beginnings of his song "Get Back" live in the studio, it's still hard to beat the band's last public performance on that London rooftop. For years, whenever I heard the sort of country-blues guitar solo during the instrumental break of "Get Back," I envisioned George Harrison playing it — especially since it had that slide guitar sound Harrison so often utilized in the later parts of his career.

In fact, in all of its simplicity, I considered it one of my favorite George Harrison guitar solos ever — until I recently viewed The Beatles the rooftop performance again in Jackson's movie. I anticipated watching George play the vaunted guitar solo live, but did a double take, when the solo began — with John Lennon, not Harrison, playing the lead guitar part.

Oh my! So the lead guitar solo on "Get Back" I'd always envisioned Harrison playing had actually been played by the band's usual lead guitarist John Lennon. Hey, that's cool. It just took awhile to get used to the idea.

I've since heard some theories that Lennon started playing lead guitar on the song when Harrison temporarily left The Beatles during the recording of the "Let It Be" album, when Harrison supposedly said to the other three Beatles, "I'll see you 'round the clubs." Lennon didn't seem too concerned, suggesting if Harrison didn't return soon, they should ask Eric Clapton to join The Beatles.

Which reminds me of another Beatles recording on which Harrison didn't play lead guitar— and this one he wrote himself. Although Beatles fans didn't know it upon the record's initial release, that's Clapton, not Harrison, playing lead guitar on Harrison's classic song "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" from The Beatles' so-called "White Album." When Harrison couldn't get the sound he wanted himself, he invited his buddy Clapton to play the lead guitar part, which gave the recording a unique sound.

Those buying the "White Album" upon its initial release didn't know it at the time, though, because The Beatles sidemen weren't credited until the "Let It Be" album and the "Get Back"/"Don't Let Me Down" single, when they credited their old buddy Billy Preston for his keyboard work.

OK, so Harrison wasn't locked into his lead guitar role with the Beatles, but more surprises were forthcoming.

Though Harrison was famously slighted by Lennon and Paul McCartney when it came to the number of album tracks he was allocated, things picked up when The Beatles issued "Revolver" — their groundbreaking 1966 album that's currently getting the big multi-disc, remastered box set treatment.

This time Harrison not only got three songs he written placed on the album — including "Love You Too" and "I Want to Tell You" — he got the album's lead-off track, "Taxman," long considered among the best work Harrison did with The Beatles. Clocking in at 2:39, it's filled with all sorts of cool elements, including its short, but riveting, guitar solo.

Tacked in at the middle and again at the fade-out of the recording, it even bears an audible nod to Ravi Shanker and the sitar music with which Harrison was so enamored at the time. When I first heard the recording, I thought that's another of Harrison's best guitar solos! Except, I learned later, it wasn't. Instead, it was one of Paul McCartney's best lead solos.

What? A song written and sang by Harrison, the band's lead guitarist, with the lead guitar played by McCartney in a musical style long associated with Harrison? Yep, that's right. When Harrison couldn't come up with a solo he liked, McCartney picked up an electric guitar and ripped out one so electrifying that producer George Martin decided to tack it on again at the end as the song faded out.

Even though that might have been a little humbling to Harrison, he didn't seem to mind, noting proudly that McCartney's lead guitar solo referenced his (Harrison's) love for East Indian music.

OK, I'm starting to think I'm onto something here. Some of my favorite "George Harrison" guitar solos on Beatles recordings weren't by Harrison at all.

While recently watching a video of the band performing Lennon's song "Revolution," I felt surprised again when I saw the song's intro with those Chuck Berry-like riffs that ring out when the recording begins, before Lennon starts singing "You say you want a revolution, well you know, we all want to change the world."

Because it wasn't Harrison playing those double-stringed lead guitar riffs — it was Lennon again! Looks like he's playing that white Epiphone again, too. Wait a minute, I thought Harrison was the band's lead guitarist and once again, here's Lennon playing the lead while George handled the rhythm guitar duties.

That started me on a search and I found more instances of musical chairs (ha-ha) on those enduring Beatles recordings.

That jazzy guitar solo in the midst of McCartney's nod to 1920s-style music on McCartney's "Honey Pie" on the "White Album" is played by Lennon again.

Speaking of the "White Album," that's McCartney ripping out lead guitar on "Back in the U.S.S.R." as well as on the rattle the rafters heavy metal precursor, "Helter Skelter."

Lennon strikes again by tearing out the lead riffs on his song "Yer Blues," which he made sound even more down and dirty by recording it on a four-track recorder instead of in the main studio at Abbey Road.

Even the in-your-face solo on Lennon's "Good Morning, Good Morning" from "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" is another instance of McCartney ripping out the lead solo.

Lennon continues to strike, playing the slide lead guitar solo on on another of Harrison's songs, "For You Blue," on the "Let It Be" album. I guess I should have taken the clue when Harrison says "Go Johnny, go," while Lennon slides away on another solo.

Still, the most striking Lennon solo to me came on one of The Beatles' early recordings, on the flip side of the hit single from their movie, "A Hard Day's Night." On one of The Beatles most soulful songs, "You Can't Do That," Lennon summons forth one of his best vocals ever in his early gritty, take on his jealous guy theme.

"I've got something to say that might cause you pain, if I catch you talking to that boy again, I'm going to let you down, and leave you flat," Lennon intones as Ringo Starr does a rhythmic kick-drum and snare interlude. "Because I told you before, you can't do that." In the song's midst comes one of The Beatles' funkiest, grittiest guitar solos ever — one which I recently learned is Lennon again!

Most fans little suspected it was Lennon when the song was first released and even today, it's not easy to find visual proof — because although there are several video clips of The Beatles performing the song onstage, in most of them the camera pans to head shots of Paul, George or even Ringo when the guitar solo rolls around. However, by persevering I finally found a couple of video clips of The Beatles performing "You Can't Do That" where Lennon can be seen picking out the song's funky lead guitar riffs.

Here's something else, recording-wise, on The Beatles three guitarists. On "The End," the track that comes toward the end — where else? — of their "Abbey Road" album, Ringo plays the briefest of drum solos before all three of The Beatles play an electric lead guitar solo, one after the other.

That's McCartney first, Harrison second and Lennon third. Isn't it interesting that Lennon gets the last word.

Contact James Beaty at jbeaty@mcalesternews.com.