Posted on 12/22/2004 11:56:06 AM PST by qam1
Greg Hassall and Charles Purcell do battle over the fab four.
FOR
OK, Ob-la-di Ob-la-da is the most annoying song ever written. And you won't find Revolution No 9 on too many iPods. But how many bands' dud tracks can you count on one hand? The Beatles deserve their place in the pop pantheon. They revolutionised the way pop music was written, recorded and talked about. They were funny, charismatic, hungry to learn and unafraid of controversy. They matured spectacularly over seven tumultuous years, then quit on a high note with the peerless Abbey Road.
They were a genuine band, in that the whole was greater than the sum of its parts. The three writers spurred each other on and checked each other's excesses (McCartney's sentimentality, Lennon's bile and Harrison's cod mysticism). In one throwaway B-side, Rain, they created the template for psychedelic Britpop, a genre lesser bands spend an entire career mining. Their refusal to write the same song twice resulted in a catalogue of breathtaking diversity, while producer George Martin gave the recordings a unique, uncluttered sound that refuses to date. And, as the age of the drum solo dawned, Ringo kept it real, underpinning the Beatles' sound with undemonstrative precision.
Greg Hassall
AGAINST
Pretty much everyone in the '60s must have been on drugs - that's the only reason I can imagine why the Beatles were so popular. They had about three decent songs: Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, Eleanor Rigby - and that other one, the one that doesn't suck. It's a riddle greater than the pyramids as to why a group of English fops with ridiculous hairstyles could make entire crowds of grown adults faint in awe. John Lennon? A prancing popinjay. Paul McCartney? A ponce. George Harrison? Vanity in the shape of a man. Ringo Starr?
A cool dude - the only one.
OK, so the Beatles recorded on top of a building. Big deal. OK, so they hung out with the Maharishi. Is that supposed to give their dire tunes spiritual worth?
"But they were a major influence in the history of rock'n'roll," some might bleat. Sure they were - but does that mean the baby boomers have to force their boring Beatlemania down our craws year after year, decade after decade?
I'm glad Yoko Ono helped split them up. She's the true heroine of this story. Too bad she's also a lousy artist.
And Wings. Don't get me started on McCartney's sad side project. That's another story.
- Charles Purcell
Brian Wilson and Paul McCartney were big fans of each other's music. I believe Paul's on record as saying "Pet Sounds" blew him away when he first heard it.
I was talking to an Eskimo . . .
Oh, c'mon! At this time of year, much more annoying songs abound! "Jingle Bell Rock", "Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer", "I saw Mama Kissing Santa Claus"....
You are the right age to have been a result of it. ;~))
BTW. I was there, and for the most part, the Beatles sucked but they became like Cabbage Patch Dolls -- massive hype for an ugly toy. Mass marketing works.
If I remember correctly, wasn't most/all of that recorded and on the shelf before Abbey Road? Then Spector came in and slapped L.i.B. together with his "wall of sound" approach?
Imagine there's no Heaven
it's easy if you try
no Hell below us
above us only sky...
FMCDH(BITS)
Except for the fact that Norwegian Wood was released in 1965 (on Rubber Soul) and Blonde on Blonde was released in 1966.
Forgot about that. On one album there's "Dear Prudence," "Back in the USSR," "While My Guitar Gently Weeps," "Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except for me and my Monkey," "Birthday," "Helter Skelter," "Julia," and "Rocky Racoon." Amazing.
To this very day I love to play Revolution #9 in bars to see the reaction that it gets. People usually get annoyed to the point of demanding that the owner skip over the song. It's quite hilarious actually.
We disagree. I never made any personal attacks, why are you?
How do you claim I am ignorant because I don't like something you do? Would I be ignorant if I didn't like lettuce and you do? It's a matter of personal taste
I didn't say I think they suck, that is until now. I think they suck!
BTW, the recipe for the smoked shoulder was excellent, thank you! I smoked it for the whole duration, no oven.
I agree, I was just commenting on something I read to the efffect that Brian's obsession was rooted in trying to keep up with the Beatles, especially after hearing Sgt. Pepper's.
That, and the fact that his father was a nutjob.
I said that "late 70s - early 80s rock" was one of my preferred genres. I think that the Beatles are way overrated, and don't care for much of what was popular rock music between 1964 and 1975 or so. And I will throw in the fact that Ringo Starr was one of the luckiest people in history; what did he ever do creative on the skins? I know I am in the minority here, but so what. I was pinged to this thread and that is what I think.
No, they just pioneered about a thousand studio techniques and introduced a bunch of non-traditional instruments (sitar) and arrangements into popular music, that's all. Before "I Feel Fine," feedback even rarely made its way into finished products.
Ever hear the tune "Tommorrow Never Knows"? That came out in '66, and it still sounds current.
I wouldn't either.
The cost of a 12v turntable adapter alone would make the whole endeavor ridiculous.
; )
"And anything that can drive Brian Wilson insane can't be all bad...."
I knew that sooner or later, someone would put this into the proper perspective!
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