The broadcast was basically live with a little help. According to Mark Lewisohn's The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions, "...George Martin greatly decreased the chance of an on-air foul-up by having the Beatles play to their own pre-recorded rhythm track of take 10. Only the vocals, bass guitar, the lead guitar solo in the middle eight, drums and the orchestra were actually live." Hence the headphones.

Equally impressive was how fast they got the song done. The Beatles had agreed to perform a new song for an BBC international broadcast on May 22 and the actual performance took place about a month later on June 25; the Beatles didn't start working the song up as a group in the studio until June 14. The program was to be the first live broadcast across five continents and, to keep it accessible to all audiences, the BBC had requested that the Beatles keep the song simple. The international "snippets" were added for the occasion.

Lennon was apparently very nervous beforehand; the gum chewing was probably just a front to hide his anxiety. There was a whole slew of friends sitting around also: "Mick Jagger, Marianne Faithfull, Keith Richard, Keith Moon, Eric Clapton, Pattie Harrison, Jane Asher, Mike McCartney, Graham Nash and his wife, Gary Leeds and Hunter Davies" (Again, from Lewisohn). After the broadcast was over, the Beatles did a little bit of overdubbing (including some of Lennon's vocals) and the final mix was finished the next day. The single was out in stores on July 7, less than two weeks later.

awesome... I didn't realize this was here before.. I used to transpose this on the bass guitar.. amazing piece to play. *upvote for *quality post

I've always imagined Darth Vader more suitable for bass guitar.

How do you look through those big trooper helmets anyway?

Funny, this is actually the very first song I was required to learn for a garage band when I picked up the bass guitar when I was 16 y/o. We knew this was a Canadian band. Music transcends borders.. nationality never really meant anything to us regarding music.

Now, that is a bass guitar. It's an Ernie Ball Stingray 4 and it's been the rage for two decades. You can always tell them by the toilet seat shaped pick guard and the awesome midrange. I've owned two of them and they are amazing instruments. Check out the bass players today and you'll see a bunch of em around.

Sc

Tony Levin is amazing on the bass guitar and sitar. Check out some of his stuff in Liquid Tension Experiment.

Hey gang, can I get an invite? I play bass guitar and piano and am into various styles of music.

When Frank Zappa Produced an Album....he did it the only way possible, the Frank way...
Musicians

* Frank Zappa – guitar, keyboards, vocals, arranger, producer, main performer, assistant
* Tommy Mars – keyboards, vocals, soloist
* Patrick O'Hearn – wind, bass guitar
* Scott Thunes – vocals, Minimoog, synthesizer, bass guitar
* Johnny "Guitar" Watson – vocals, guitar
* Ray White – guitar, vocals, backing vocals, choir, chorus, harmony vocals, harmony
* Moon Unit Zappa – vocals
* Ed Mann – percussion
* Chad Wackerman – drums, vocals
* Ike Willis – vocals, backing vocals, choir, chorus, harmony vocals, harmony
* Arthur Barrow – bass guitar
* Napoleon Murphy Brock – saxophone, vocals, harmony vocals, harmony
* Brad Cole – piano
* Roy Estrada – vocals, backing vocals, choir, chorus, harmony, bass guitar
* Bob Harris – keyboards, vocals, harmony vocals
* Thana Harris – vocals, harmony
* Steve Vai – guitar, soloist, fills
* Dweezil Zappa – soloist, guitar
* George Duke – keyboards, vocals, piano
* Bobby Martin – keyboards, saxophone, vocals, falssetist, harmony vocals, harmonica

I know raven already published this one but my post is a live version and is longer so I thought I'll give it a try.

From wikipedia:
Tank! is the opening song for the anime show Cowboy Bebop. The song, composed by Yoko Kanno and performed by The Seatbelts, has an extensive Alto Saxophone solo, as well as a fil part at the end. The song is a Big Band Style Jazz piece with a rhythm part that combines a bass guitar and conga drums. The beginning of the song features a voice over from the show's main character, Spike Spiegel, which alludes to a heist taking place over the duration of the song.

Info about The Seatbelts: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Seatbelts

Anekdoten is a Swedish progressive rock band, comprised of guitarist/vocalist Nicklas Barker, cellist Anna Sofi Dahlberg, bassist/vocalist Jan Erik Liljeström and drummer Peter Nordins. They are notable for the use of the mellotron and the heavy and trippy sound, dominated by a pounding bass guitar. Their music is associated with the tradition of 1970s progressive rock music, especially the one of King Crimson, but they have also covered songs by Van Der Graaf Generator and Magma on their live performances.

One of my favorite songs evar!

- More @ Wikipedia