Fender Rhodes

The Fender Rhodes is much more than a simple electric piano: it's one of the key voices of the Beatles’ final recordings. Its sweet yet percussive tone, with a bell-like chime, became a defining feature of tracks like Get Back, Don’t Let Me Down, I’ve Got a Feeling, and many others — including those played during the historic Rooftop Concert on 30 January 1969. At the keys was Billy Preston, whose natural gospel energy shines through. He remains the only musician ever officially credited on a Beatles record.

Invented by Harold Rhodes in the 1940s and later acquired by Fender in the early 1960s, the Rhodes is built around a unique principle: instead of strings, hammers strike tines — metal rods shaped like tuning forks — which vibrate in front of electromagnetic pickups. The result is a warm, velvety, and percussive sound, distinct from both acoustic pianos and other electric keyboards.

The version used by Billy Preston in the studio and on the Apple rooftop was a 1968 Fender Rhodes Suitcase Piano 73 Mark I Sparkle Top, complete with its 50-watt built-in amp and speaker base. At the band’s urgent request, Mal Evans arranged to have two of them air-shipped from Fender USA. Paul was keen to try it, but after playing a few chords, he reportedly said, disappointed: “No, that’s not the sound I meant” — probably looking for the rougher tone of a Wurlitzer. Still, the Rhodes found its place in the Get Back/Let It Be sessions, thanks to Preston’s musical instinct, as he switched between Hammond and Lowrey organs, acoustic pianos, and a Hohner electric piano, always choosing the right instrument for the song.

More than just a new sonic colour, the Fender Rhodes also embodied the more open and inclusive spirit of the Beatles’ final chapter — a time marked by collective jams and the return of old friends like Billy Preston.

In the photo: a vintage Fender Rhodes Seventy Three Mark II. You can spot it — and another one — in our Get Back video.