The Beatles Release Early 'Norwegian Wood' Take With George Harrison on Sitar
A previously unreleased early version of 'Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)' offers a rare window into how George Harrison's sitar transformed a Lennon-McCartney composition during the 'Rubber Soul' sessions.
The Beatles have released a previously unheard early version of «Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)», the track that introduced George Harrison's sitar to a global audience and helped steer the band toward the experimental sound of «Rubber Soul».
Dubbed «Second Version – Take 2», the recording arrives as the third preview of the forthcoming expanded Special Edition of «Rubber Soul», which is set for release on October 2. The reissue revisits the classic 1965 album with a newly shared double A-side single, «Day Tripper / We Can Work It Out», alongside a selection of previously unreleased session recordings and home demos.
The newly available take captures the song at an early stage of its evolution. The first original version was recorded on the opening day of the «Rubber Soul» sessions, with Harrison playing the sitar he had recently discovered. The band was unhappy with the result, so they returned nine days later to record three more takes. On Take 2, the arrangement features John Lennon on acoustic guitar, Paul McCartney on bass, Ringo Starr on drums and Harrison playing drone notes on sitar. Harrison added further sitar on tracks two and three, while Lennon and McCartney's vocals were also recorded on track three.
The structural differences are audible. While the final version opens with an instrumental rendering of the verse melody, this early arrangement begins with a double-tracked sitar playing the bridge section — a small but telling shift in how the song took shape.
Harrison later described the sitar's arrival as a happy accident. «It felt very familiar to me to listen to that music,» he said. «Around that time I'd bought a cheap sitar in a shop called Indiacraft in London. When we were working on 'Norwegian Wood', it just needed something and it was quite spontaneous. I picked the sitar up and kind of found the notes. We put it on and it seemed to hit the spot and that was it.»
The recording has been newly mixed by producer Giles Martin and engineer Sam Okell. It follows two earlier previews from the reissue: «Michelle (Take 1)» and an early songwriting work tape showing how «Day Tripper» came together.
The Special Edition will be available in several configurations. The Standard edition carries 14 songs, the Deluxe edition 30 tracks, and a Blu-ray edition includes 16 tracks and four videos. The most expansive version, the Super Deluxe, comes as either a 5-LP or 4-CD box set with 68 tracks. Those include the new stereo mix of «Rubber Soul», two discs of sessions and demos, the original mono master, the original Capitol US version and the 7-inch A-side single. Among the special features is a demo song, «Little Girl», written and recorded by Lennon and unreleased since it was first developed, along with an 88-page hardbound book featuring a new introduction by McCartney and a foreword compiled from Lennon's own words.
The release adds another chapter to the band's enduring cultural presence. McCartney released his new album «The Boys of Dungeon Lane» earlier this year, his first solo record since 2020's «McCartney III» and his first duet with former bandmate Starr. The first ever Official Global Beatles Day was held earlier this summer, and Sam Mendes is preparing a four-film series about the band, slated for simultaneous release in April 2028, with each film telling the story from a different member's point of view. The London landmark 3 Savile Row, long associated with the group, will open to the public for the first time next year for an official Beatles fan experience.
