"The Satanic Sessions Revealed" - Vol. 1: CD3
The Lantern is the track of focus on disc three of volume one of the "Satanic Sessions". Twelve takes of the song are featured with a continuation of the acoustic version of Child of the Moon opening the disc and closing with On With the Show. The session chatter reveals that Keith is very much involved in the musical direction of these instrumental tracks. The development of these takes also shows quite a bit of production and layering of various instruments.
"Satanic Sessions: Volume One"
Box Set Midnight Beat Records
Volume One - Disc 3 (MBCD 123)
"Here we go, eleven"
1. Child of the Moon: Takes 11-12 (5:27) - Acoustic guitar in the left with Mellotron, drums come into the right channel and the take abruptly stops at 54 seconds.
"Twelve"
The restart begins in exactly the same way as take 11 except this one is a go with piano sending the track into full swing at 2:25. There are very distinct pauses that form instrumental bridges that are quite different from the commercially released version of the song. This take also retains the long melodic piano outro heard in take 10.
"Ahh, seven"
2. Sing This All Together: Take 7 (14:52) - Dour piano lines open this run through with the creaky sound effects interspersed. You also hear the Jagger count-in 1..2..3..4.. just before the opening guitar part as on track 1 of "Their Satanic Majesties Request". It is this particular take is the basis for the released track that opens the commercial release. There are very interesting psychedelic guitar breaks that have been edited out of the song as we know it. If you eliminate these forays into the nether world of psychedelica you have what sounds much like the opening version of Sing This All Together. At 1:38 we hear the first "departure" from the body of the track. Very heavy psych guitar probably state of the art as far as these things go. At 2:31 Keith plays a short melody that is similar to Goin' Home when Jagger starts singing the sha la la's. At 3:27 things shift back into the main melody of the song. There is a second instrumental break at 4:40 which is the one used on the released version of the song. It replaces the guitar break at 1:38. A third and new instrumental piece starts at 6:48. This is a very distorted guitar being flutter picked. From here it goes into a rhythm is closer to that played in Sing This All Together (See What Happens). The free form jam goes on until 11:15 when a slow chord sequence passage begins and the mood of the song shifts to high REM dream stage.
3. Sing This All Together: Intro (1:32) - This is the keyboard work out for the introduction to Sing This All Together (See What Happens). There are multiple short takes. It's a little frustrating because he never quite gets it, and you are just left without ever hearing the notes as we know them. Probably Nicky Hopkins on the quirky Mellotron.
"Fly My Kite take one"
Charlie: "Ahh oh woo, wait a minute, do I, should I play on the intro? Not at all."
4. The Lantern: Take 1 (4:13) - The working title of this song is "Fly My Kite"! A short start and the first take is history. Acoustic and electric guitar in the left channel. Drums, bass, and piano in the right channel. There is a very slow and deliberate guitar arpeggio heard in the left channel with the main melody defined by the piano. No sound effects present. A sour note is hit at 4:02 and that's it for this one.
"Two"
5. The Lantern: Takes 2-3 (2:36) - Take two lasts around 25 seconds. A short tune-up and it time to roll take 3. Take 3 misses with one too many bridge sections and is put to an end. Musically in the same direction as the first take.
6. The Lantern: Takes 4-5 (4:49) - Take 4 lasts only a matter of seconds. The song begins to gel by the fifth take with more interaction between guitar and piano sections. Still no horns or sound effects at this stage as these takes look to be intended as the fundamental backing track. A complete take.
Sound effects...
"Ahh, well ahh, take ten"
Keith: "One, two, a one, two, three, four..."
7. The Lantern: Take 10 (1:32) - An organ sound is added to this take, but its role in the musical arrangement is yet to be determined, and things are put to end quickly as Charlie misses a beat.
"Eleven"
Keith:"Your one late Charlie"
Charlie: "Yeah"
Keith: "Also ahh, Nicky"
Nicky: "Yeah"
Keith: "Can you ba...?"
Keith: "Okay, one, two, one, two, three, four..."
8. The Lantern: Take 11 (1:57) - Just past the opening musical introduction and it's curtains for take 11. "No that's dodgy" "one, two, '(take) Twelve', one, two, three, four..."
Restart: The organ is making it through these later takes but now level setting seems to be a bit of an issue added to dissonant notes at around 1:57.
"Fourteen"
Keith: "One, two, one, two, three, four..."
9. The Lantern: Take 14 (5:02) - Technically, this take should have ended at 1:22 based on a musical error, but for some reason things are allowed to proceed with other musical errors in the organ playing to follow. Maybe the idea is just to see where this thing is going and how it's going to get there. The music ends at 4:19, and then restarts to complete an ending.
"Whistling"
"Fifteen"
"Right"
Keith: "One, two, one, two, three, four..."
10. The Lantern: Takes 15-17 (3:10) - Take 15 lasts 5 seconds. "Sixteen", "One, two, one, two, three, four..." Take 16 is off and running until a sour note sneaks out of the Mellotron at 54 seconds. "Seventeen" ", "One, two, one, two, three, four..." There is clapping in the right channel. This take lasts until 2:15. "Seventeen" (Actually Eighteen) ", "One, two, one, two, three, four..." This take only lasts a matter of seconds. Backward playback sounds close CD track 10.
"One"
11. The Lantern: Retakes 1-3 (2:40) - Short acoustic guitar overdub attempts with an early take playback.
"Surprise Me take one"
12. On With The Show: Take 1-3 (3:26) - The working title of this song is "Surprise Me". Short false starts on the first two takes and then into the third try which develops into a instrumental take. The arrangement is quite complete with the Spanish style piano bridge and samba bass beat breaks.
"Four"
13. On With The Show: Take 4-6 (2:15) - Take four is a piano roll and that's it. Take 5 is a go until 1:05 when a Mellotron note goes awry.
"Six"
Take 6 goes for a minute and then a quick guitar tune-up to the keyboard takes place.
"Seven"
14. On With The Show: Takes 7-10 (5:46) - The keyboard track is prominent in the left channel and then before you know it take seven comes to an end at 36 seconds. Take 8 is the most developed of this section of takes ending at 4:20 and lasting for nearly four minutes. Takes 9 and 10 never get off the ground.
These stripped down tracks reveal a level of instrumental musicianship that is much more difficult to detect in the overproduced versions found on the commercial release. They are minus sound effects and vocal signal processing that tend to detract from the musical effort that is taking place.
Sing along time...
Opening bell sound effects (right channel)
Acoustic guitar and piano (left channel)
Ensuing sound effects and distorted guitar (left channel)
We, in our present life
Knew that the stars were right
That if you are the first to go
You'll leave a sign to let me know
Tell me so...
Please, carry the lantern light
You cross the sea of night
Free from the spell of fright
Your cloak it is a spirit shroud
You wake me in my sleepin' hours
Like a cloud so...
Please, carry the lantern high
Instrumental bridge with horn section
Me, in my sorry plight
You, waiting ev-ery night
My face it turns a deathly pale
You're talking to me through your veil
I hear you wail so...
Please, carry the lantern light
Instrumental bridge with horn section (Center right)
The servants sleep
The door is barred
You hear the stopping of my heart
We never part so...
Please, carry the lantern high!