



The clip was directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg and first aired on David Frost’s UK television show. Ringo Starr later left the band only to return shortly before they filmed the promotional clip for the single. The sessions took place at Trident Studios in central London, midway through the recording of the group’s self-titled double album (also known as the “White Album”), and led to an argument between McCartney and George Harrison over the song’s guitar part. “Hey Jude” was the first Beatles song to be recorded on eight-track recording equipment. After the fourth verse, the song shifts to a coda featuring a “Na-na-na na” refrain that lasts for over four minutes. The lyrics espouse a positive outlook on a sad situation, while also encouraging “Jude” to pursue his opportunities to find love. The ballad evolved from “Hey Jules”, a song McCartney wrote to comfort John Lennon’s son, Julian, after Lennon had left his wife for the Japanese artist Yoko Ono.

The writing and recording of “Hey Jude” coincided with a period of upheaval in the Beatles. It has sold approximately eight million copies and is frequently included on music critics’ lists of the greatest songs of all time. Its nine-week run at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 tied the all-time record in 1968 for the longest run at the top of the US charts, a record it held for nine years. “Hey Jude” was a number-one hit in many countries around the world and became the year’s top-selling single in the UK, the US, Australia and Canada. The single was the Beatles’ first release on their Apple record label and one of the “First Four” singles by Apple’s roster of artists, marking the label’s public launch. It was written by Paul McCartney and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. “Hey Jude” is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released as a non-album single in August 1968. I always feel sorry for kids in divorces … Paul McCartney – from “ Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now” by Barry Miles, 1997 I knew it was not going to be easy for him. Hey, try and deal with this terrible thing. I started with the idea “Hey Jules,” which was Julian, don’t make it bad, take a sad song and make it better.
