#127 – Not Guilty with guest Sam Whiles (host of “Paul or Nothing”)

“We made a mistake,” said John. “We thought there was more to him than there was, you know?” said Paul. After their stay in Rishikesh ended, the Beatles’ overall disillusionment with the Maharishi lead to John and Paul publicly distancing themselves from the Eastern philosophy and path to enlightenment that George had lead them all to pursue. And while the unit a whole distanced themselves, marking the end of that phase for the group, George continued his practice and involvement for the rest of life. He felt the group viewed him at fault for they saw as public embarrassment, but in his mind, they were free to make any choices they wanted, and to follow any path they chose. It wasn’t his fault. And thus was born “Not Guilty,” a song recorded during the summer of ’68 for the White Album.

The band spent more time on “Not Guilty” than any other song in their recorded catalog, and after all that work, it was left in the archives until the Anthology project in the 1990s. George re-recorded it in the late 70s for his self-titled solo album, albeit in a much mellower version. The Beatles version though seethes in a moody, angry way. George’s fully self-referential lyrical style is on display, singing a song about something obviously very personal, maybe almost too much so though. It’s a much darker, heavier song than The Beatles typically are known for, with some interesting instrumental and arrangement choices, leading them to spend over 100 takes trying to get the track right. But everyone comes to play here. John’s harpsichord track moves things into a kind of demented carnival territory, with George adding a sublime, almost detached lead vocal, and a stabbing electric guitar part. Ringo gives a dynamic, grooving part, while Paul provides one of the coolest bass parts he ever laid down. Maybe John and Paul weren’t comfortable with letting George be the one to air the dirty laundry at this point, but to me, leaving this song off the White Album was a rare mistake in their catalogue. It makes the album a bit more of a rocking album, and shows another side of the band musically.

We’re always pleased to catch up with this week’s guest, our old pal Sam Whiles. Sam hosts the brilliant podcast “Paul Or Nothing,” the place to get all Paul, all the time. We chat about George’s knack for pointing the finger at others, whether this should’ve been on the White album, George solo albums, and we talk a good bit of smack about other Beatle podcasts (all joking of course!). Check out Paul or Nothing anywhere you get your podcasts!

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