When trumpet players think of the most famous trumpet solos, we most often mention Maynard Ferguson’s early recording of “MacArthur Park” (February, 1970). Others mention Bix Beiderbecke’s recording of Sweet Sue (1928) and still others will mention the wealth of great solos performed by the master of trumpet Raphael Mendez (b. March 26, 1906 – d. September 15, 1981). But everyone in the world will remember the solo recorded by David Mason, even though most have never heard of this gifted trumpet player.
The trumpet solo on the Beetles recording, “Penny Lane” will arguably go down in history as the most recognizable trumpet solo in history. “Penny Lane” will last through eternity not only because it was well written and performed well, but also due to the fact that it was connected to the most famous British invasion group and featured on their most important album, “St. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band”.
I thought you should know something about the player as well as the circumstances surrounding this monumental trumpet solo.
David Mason
David Mason, who died on April 29 aged 85, was principal trumpet, at various times, at Covent Garden and the Royal Philharmonic and Philharmonia Orchestras, but he became better known as the piccolo trumpet soloist on the Beatles’ 1967 hit Penny Lane.
According to the group’s producer Sir George Martin, it was Paul McCartney who had the idea of adding a trumpet solo to the song after watching Mason play in a performance of Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos. “There’s a guy in them playing this fantastic high trumpet,” Martin recalled the Beatle saying. Mason arrived at the recording session with nine trumpets and, “by a process of elimination”, it was agreed that the B-flat piccolo trumpet, an octave above the normal, was best suited to the task.
“It was a difficult session, for two reasons,” Martin recalled. “First, that little trumpet is a devil to play in tune, because it isn’t really in tune with itself, so that in order to achieve pure notes the player has to ‘lip’ each one. Secondly, we had no music prepared.” Many professionals bridled at such disorganisation. Happily, Martin recorded, “David Mason wasn’t like that at all. Paul would think up the notes he wanted, and I would write them down for David. The result was unique, something which had never been done in rock music before, and it gave Penny Lane a very distinct character.”
Some Beatles historians have claimed that his solo was speeded up on the final recording, but Mason always denied this. “They were jolly high notes, quite taxing, but with the tapes rolling we did two takes as overdubs on top of the existing song.” Once finished, Mason was told that Penny Lane was to form the B-side to Strawberry Fields. He protested: “I much prefer this to Strawberry Fields.” (“Oh, thanks mate,” replied that song’s composer, John Lennon). In the end the songs were released back-to-back as a double A-side.
David Mason was born in London in 1926 and educated at Christ’s Hospital and the Royal College of Music, where he studied with Ernest Hall. For most of the Second World War he was too young for military service and therefore picked up work in orchestras whose trumpeters had been called up. By the time he was called up to serve in the Scots Guards, he was the youngest member of the then National Symphony Orchestra.
After leaving the RCM, Mason became a member, then principal trumpet, of the orchestra of the Royal Opera House, moving on later to the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, then the Philharmonia, where he remained for most of the rest of his career. As a much-loved professor for 30 years at the RCM he taught many of today’s leading trumpet players.
Among other performances, Mason was the flugelhorn soloist for the world premiere of Ralph Vaughan Williams’s Symphony No 9 in 1958. He also contributed to several other Beatles’ songs, including A Day in the Life; Magical Mystery Tour and All You Need Is Love.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxO4nODCGD0
He is survived by his wife, Rachel, and by their son and daughter.
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Nice article. Thanks.