What is the true story behind "Peace Of Mind"? Is it The Beatles?

I remember hearing this on a bootleg in the mid-80's. Surrounded by other Beatle outtakes, I had no doubt it was them. I guess it was proven to be somebody else. Anybody know who the artist might be? Wikipedia has a long article about the song...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peace_Of_Mind_(song)

 

I asked the same question once. It's not them. Supposedly it's one of the many tapes sent to Apple.

 

My thread:

http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?t=18127&highlight=peace+mind

 

I thought of a way years ago to solve this mystery. Someone should release "Peace Of Mind" on a legitimate record--re-recorded or maybe just as it is. Then stand back and wait for the lawsuit for copyright infringement. Save the money made from the sale, hand it over as a settlement once it is proved to be a legit claim, and presto! The mystery is solved.

But no one with a record label has taken me up on it!

JcS

 

What would you put on the b-side? 'LS Bumble Bee', 'Spiritual Regeneration', 'King Of Fuh' or 'Pink Limus Shirt'?

 

There was another more recent thread on this song. I'll repeat what I said in it.

On the old AOL Beatles board sometime in the mid-90s, a well-respected poster said he had met and talked with the person responsible for recording "Peace of Mind." As I recall, he said this person was from New York City, and said he was going more for a Syd-era Pink Floyd feel than a Beatles one when he made the recording.

I don't recall who this poster is/was, but I do know that he was a regular, and someone not given to any kind of wild claims. He was well-thought-of, so I took what he said to be genuine.

 

Nah, I'd just use a dance mix.

JcS

 

Doesn't the Beatles Recording Session basically cover every session by the band? So, except for jams during the Get Back sessions, every song that they worked on as a group is documented, putting to rest many of the unreleased treasure rumors, confirming that every unreleased song (not including different versions of released tracks) was on the first two Ultra Rare Trax. As I recall, by the time they got to the Anthology, the only studio recording that was completely new was the first Harrison track, the title of which escapes me right now. You know what to do? or something like that.

 

Plus see this as well.... http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?t=91570&highlight=Peace+Mind

 

A Beatles collector played the tape to John Lennon in New York in 1974. He said it wasn't them, and he had never heard it.

 

I remember reading somewhere it was Grapefruit?

 

I haven't heard that, but all variations are possible in Beatle rumors. Grapefruit did record "Lullabye For A Lazy Day", which had often been circulated as a Beatle out-take.

 

I think I followed every link to these threads, and I don't see this info anywhere, so I'll add it here. Doug Sulpy's zine, The 910, discussed "Piece of Mind" in the Winter 2005 issue. I'll try to summarize it here.

Mr Sulpy says this first appeared on the 1973 CBM bootleg called Peace of Mind, which started the trash can story. However, the earliest documentation appears to be a tape held by one John Roberts.

Mr Roberts writes in this issue:
WUSF-FM (University of S. Florida) aired it Oct/Nov 1969.
Mr Roberts recorded the broadcast and still has the recording.
The DJ told Mr Roberts that he was given the tape around 1967. The DJ's tape was labeled "Piece of Mind", not "Peace of Mind" or "The Candle Burns." The source of the tape told the DJ it was recorded by Lennon & McCartney while tripping.

Mr Roberts thinks it is Lennon and one or more other Beatles, recording in an experimental vein. He says the DJ's tape is of horrible sound quality. However, Mr Roberts believes that there is Lennonesque backwards mellotron in the intro and outro, and Lennon's voice. Regards that bad audio, he says, "Most of the problem lies in the way they were... (experimenting)... someone has their fingers all over the capstan and pinch roller... books refer to this as 'vari-speeding'."

Well, there's some grist for the mill. I have adopted the philosophy of marking this sort of thing as "maybe Beatles" whether I think it sounds like Beatles or not. My ears say not, but I'd love to hear Mr Roberts' clearer tape source someday.

Cheers,
Doug Piero Carey

 

Here is a lengthy article about "Peace Of Mind" with a link to a video of the song on youtube.

http://www.earcandymag.com/beatles-peaceofmind.htm

 

I think it appeared first on a bootleg called "Supertracks" in 1973, but it could be the other way around. It hadly matters, the sound quality is horrible, but it is longer than the later release on an early-80s bootleg "Nothing Is Real", which was of much better sound quality without the wow & flutter, but one hell of a lot of hiss, fading out instead of the cold end.

 

I have the Nothing Is Real bootleg, and I love the song.

The book 'You Can't Do That' stated that the tape was found in an Apple trash can
in April 1970, which definitely explains it sounding a bit wonky.

If you really study the song, it has the same round-picking style as
"Dear Prudence", a technique that JL learned from Donovan on their trip to India.

I am convinced to this day that at least George and John are on the song,
but perhaps no other persons . . . which really stinks because they are both dead
and cannot vouch for the authenticity of the track.

I have heard before today that this track was played for Macca and that HE denied
that it was the Beatles; but then if my theory is correct, and that John & George
never played the tape for Paul, then he would not have known of it's existence.

The stories that
1) the tape was played for JL and he disavowed it and
2) appeared in 1967, NOT 1970 are unfamiliar to me until today.

 

Guys.
It's NOT The Beatles.
Any of them.

 

Are you the creator of "Peace Of Mind"? Do tell what insider info that you have!

 

I don't know who is or isn't on that song, but I just heard it for the first time and found it incredibly creepy. Anyone else?

 

Doesn't sound like John or George.

 

There are many home recordings made by one or more Beatles, not cataloged in Recording Sessions. I think Winn's books, especially the Dakota Archives section in Lifting Latches seem to have the best list so far, but we don't know it all yet. Doug Sulpy's home recordings sections are also very very good for this.

Anyway, good thought but you can't rely on Lewisohn for this.

Cheers,
Doug Piero Carey

 

So this is the ONLY proof that will convince you it's not The Beatles? When the creator himself steps forward? Otherwise, it must be them?

You must want to believe very badly.

It's not The Beatles, nor any individual Beatles.

See post #7...though I'm sure this won't convince you either.

What year would you peg this song's creation to? From the sound of it, I would certainly say 1967. If so, then it's not The Beatles, because John didn't learn the "Dear Prudence"/"Julia" fingerpicking style featured on this track until mid-1968, when Donovan taught it to him in India.

 

No, just bad. And it's NOT The Beatles . . . anyone that perpetuates this hogwash probably thinks that Paul is dead, too . . .

 

It's not the Beatles....or John, Paul, George, Ringo, Stu or Pete solo. It sounds NOTHING like them vocally or instrumentally. It does sound vaguely like someone on a bad acid trip trying to emulate early Pink Floyd, but it most definitely isn't them, or Syd either. Why people think songs like this... or Have You Heard The Word, Penny O'Dell, I Love You Too, and others, are unknown Beatles tracks is beyond me. Trust your ears. Ron