4 Beatles Songs That Made Individual Band Members Walk Out of the Studio

The Beatles had a tumultuous time toward the end of their career. Their in-fighting rose to insurmountable heights, forcing them to call one of the greatest bands of all time quits. Before they made that decision though, there were several moments that foreshadowed their breakup. Learn more about which songs caused the Beatles members to walk out of the studio, below.

[RELATED: The Beatles Lyric That Preached Patience (and Had to Practice as Well)]

4 Beatles Songs That Made Individual Band Members Walk Out of the Studio

1. John Lennon – “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da”

There was a subset of Paul McCartney penned tunes that John Lennon chalked up as “granny” music. McCartney has long had an affinity for playful, often referential tracks. Lennon–and largely the rest of his bandmates–weren’t too keen on that divisive, albeit unique sound. One “granny” song in particular sent Lennon flying out of the studio: “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da.”

According to those closest to the band, Lennon found the recording process of “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da” to be grueling. Ultimately, he decided to remove himself from the equation.

“John went ballistic,” Geoff Emerick, the Beatles’ engineer, once wrote. “Ranting and raving, he headed out the door, with Yoko trailing closely behind. We thought we’d seen the last of him.”

“Ob-la-di, ob-la-da, life goes on, brah
La-la, how their life goes on
Ob-la-di, ob-la-da, life goes on, brah
La-la, how their life goes on”

2. Ringo Starr – “Polythene Pam”

Out of all the Beatles members, Ringo Starr was the least likely to be labeled as hot tempered. He seemed to be the glue of the band, getting along fairly evenly with all his bandmates. But, the high tension of the Beatles’ recording process got to him from time to time. According to Emerick, Starr walked out of the studio while recording “Polythene Pam.”

“John wasn’t happy with the drumming on ‘Polythene Pam,’” Emerick once commented. “He had some problems with Ringo’s performance and Ringo got pissed off and split for a couple of days. But he came back and redid the track and John was pleased.”

Get a dose of her in jackboots and kilt
She’s killer-diller when she’s dressed to the hilt
She’s the kind of a girl that makes the “News of the World”
Yes, you could say she was attractively built
Yeah, yeah, yeah

3. Paul McCartney – “Come Together” and “She Said She Said”

McCartney walked out of a couple of Beatles recording sessions. The first time was in the midst of creating a Beatles staple, “Come Together.” Lennon apparently had an iron grasp on the song, knowing exactly what he wanted to record. This left little room for McCartney to play around with his share of the instruments.

“Finally, in some frustration, he blurted out, ‘What do you want me to do on this track, John,’” Emerick recalled. “John’s reply was a diffident ‘Don’t worry, I’ll do the overdubs on this.’ Paul looked a bit hurt, then angry. For a moment I thought there was going to be an explosion. Instead, he contained himself, shrugged his shoulders, and simply walked out of the studio—one of the few times he ever left a session early.”

The second came during “She Said She Said.” Lennon had nearly finished the song when he brought it in for the band to record. McCartney, again didn’t like the lack of creative freedom afforded to him.

“John brought it in pretty much finished, I think,” McCartney once said. “I’m not sure but I think it was one of the only Beatle records I never played on. I think we’d had a barney or something and I said, ‘Oh, f**k you!’ and they said, ‘Well, we’ll do it.’ I think George played bass.”

Here come old flat-top, he come groovin’ up slowly
He got ju-ju eyeball, he one holy roller
He got hair down to his knee
Got to be a joker, he just do what he please

I said
“Who put all that draft in your head?”
“I know what it is to be mad
And it’s making me feel like my trousers are torn”

4. George Harrison – “Two of Us”

Beatles fans will know “Two of Us” to be the song that pushed George Harrison into leaving the band. Though he eventually came back for a stint, it was this collaboration between McCartney and Lennon that was the beginning of the end for the Fab Four.

As the story goes, McCartney couldn’t make up his mind on the guitar part, leaving Harrison frustrated and ultimately pushing him into giving up any creative input.

“OK, well I don’t mind,” Harrison once said. “I’ll play, you know, whatever you want me to play, or I won’t play at all if you don’t want me to play. Whatever it is that will please you, I’ll do it.”

Two of us riding nowhere
Spending someone’s hard-earned pay
You and me Sunday driving
Not arriving on our way back home

We’re on our way home
We’re on our way home
We’re going home

(Photo by Keystone Features/Getty Images)