The 1966 chart-topper that is entirely out of tune
There are plenty of mistakes that make it to tape in music. Paul McCartney shouting “fucking hell” after playing the wrong chord in ‘Hey Jude’ is just one of them.
But even by The Beatles’ standards, releasing a song that was completely out of tune was a whole different ball game. Sure, there were other examples of its kind, like a note in ‘Every Little Thing She Does is Magic’ by The Police being noticeably out of tune, but being left in the final recording.
Yet by the same token, that was only a single bum note. Having an entire song be out of tune, and still go on to reach number one, is not only bizarre but also outrageous, considering the volume of sonic masteries that never see the light of day in the charts. However, Percy Sledge wasn’t complaining. He was the one laughing all the way to the bank.
In total fairness to him, it wasn’t exactly his fault. He had recorded the 1966 song ‘When A Man Loves A Woman’ in good faith, having perfected his vocal performance and having that secret, tingling feeling that he could be onto something good. In this sense, he wasn’t wrong, given the success the song would go on to endure.
However, the issue arose when you listened closely to the song’s horn section at its crescendo. It starts out not so bad, and you think, ‘What’s all the fuss about?’, then the trumpet comes on full blast, and you realise the glaring problem is staring you right in the face. It’s out of tune, and not just a little bit. Horrendously so.
It was a beggar’s belief to think that this ever got past the label executives, but as it transpired, it actually didn’t. One of those diligent workers, Jerry Wexler, had taken note of the nails against the chalkboard horns and had asked for them to be re-recorded, thus prompting a different set of musicians to be brought in and rectify it into the right key.
Unfortunately for him, though, someone with less of an eagle eye, or ear, didn’t pick up on the discrepancy and got the tapes confused, leading to the out-of-tune version being released and the proper one being left to the archives. It could have been a disaster of epic proportions, but thankfully, the public wasn’t so musically inclined as to notice.
At the very least, it should make you feel better if you ever think you’ve messed up at work. In the grand scheme of things, these mistakes are never going to matter in the long run, even if you think they might be world-shattering at the time. Sledge and his out-of-tune horns managed to make it to number one, so why shouldn’t anyone?
OK, admittedly, that may not be the soundest piece of career advice you’ve ever heard in your life. But even still, there’s a lesson to be found somewhere in there about learning not to sweat the small stuff and your errors sometimes leading to a greater product. However, it still has to be said: if you’re recording a song that’s destined for number one, just make sure your trumpet’s in tune.
