In Spite of All the Danger

In Spite of All the Danger was the first original song sung by the Quarrymen, the Liverpudlian group that preceded the Beatles. It was written in 1957 by Lennon, and Harrison put together the guitar solo. It is the only song in the Beatles catalogue credited to Lennon-Harrison. Paul McCartney has claimed a role in the composition as well. At that time, the group consisted of Paul, John, George, John Lowe on piano and Colin Hanton on drums. In Spite of All the Danger is a rock and roll number, not a skiffle, which the Quarrymen had mainly performed up to that time. Paul said the song was inspired and influenced by Elvis Presley. The recording was made in the home studio of Percy Phillips in Liverpool in 1958, together with a cover of Buddy Holly's That'll Be the Day. It was the group's second recording. One 78 rpm single was made. (The first recording was on reel-to-reel tape on July 6, 1957). This acetate disc was pronounced the most valuable record in existence by Record Collector magazine (2004), valued at 100,000 pounds. The song itself became available to the public only in 1995 on Anthology 1.