TheBeatlesOnline

Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite!

John Lennon: Vocals,organ
Paul McCartney: Bass guitar, electric guitar
George Harrison: Tambourine, harmoncia
Ringo Starr: Drums, Harmonica

George Martin: Organ, harmonica, glockenspiel, tape loops
Mal Evans: Harmonica
Neil Aspinall: Harmonica

Recorded Febrary 17, 20 and March 28, 29, 30 1967.

Available on:
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band

John Lennon got the idea to this song in January 1967 when he went to Sevenoaks in Kent, England, with the other Beatles to film promotional material for the Strawberry Fields Forever single.

In the town he spotted an old circus poster in an antiques shop.

The poster was printed in 1843, and it announced that Pablo Fanque's Circus Royal would be presenting the "grandest night of the season" and that the production was to be "for the benefit of Mr Kite" and would feature "Mr J Henderson the celebrated somerset (sic) thrower" who would "introduce his extra ordinary trampoline leaps and somersets over men and horses, through hoops, over garters and lastly through a hogshead of real fire. In this branch of the profession Mr H challenges the world."

Lennon found the circus poster amusing and bought it. He brough it back to London and hung it up on the wall in his home recording studio. Inspired by the words on the poster, he started to put together a song entitled Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite. He changed some of the words though, such as the name of the horse, from Zanthus to Henry, he changed Rochdale to Bishopsgate and he changed the line "one of the most splendid ever produced" to the now infamous line "a splendid time is guaranteed for all."

Back at Abbey Road he told producer George Martin that he wanted to "smell the sawdust on the floor" when he heard the record.

One of the instruments used to create a circus-like atmosphere was the harmonium. Engineer Geoff Emerick later said he recalled George Martin pumping the harmonium for four hours until he collapsed.

George Martin also wanted to use calliope, the sound of steam whistles played by a keyboard.

He looked around for an authentic steam organ, but he couldn't get hold of one. Instead he got hold of calliope tapes playing Stars And Stripes Forever and other Sousa marches. He then chopped the tapes into small sections, an Geoff Emerick re-assembled them at random.

John Lennon later dismissed the song, saying it was written under pressure. However, in 1980 he had changed his mind about it. He then told Playboy:

"It's so cosmically beautiful... The song is pure, like a painting, a pure watercolour."

Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite!

For the benefit of Mr. Kite
there will be a show tonight on trampoline
The Hendersons will all be there
late of Pablo Fanques'fair, what a scene
Over men and horses hoops and garters
and lastly through a hogshead of real fire
In this way Mr. K will challenge the world

The celebrated Mr. K
performs his feats on Saturday at Bishopsgate
The Hendersons will dance and sing
as Mr. Kite flies through the ring, don't be late
Messers K. and H. assure the public
their production will be second to none
And of course Henry the Horse dances the waltz

The band begins at ten to six
when Mr. K performs his tricks without a sound
And Mr. H will demonstrate
ten somersets he'll undertake on solid ground
Having been some days in preparation
a splendid time is guaranteed for all
And tonight Mr. Kite is topping the bill