Jump to content
Objectivism Online Forum

Beatles

Rate this topic


Whoisjohngalt

Recommended Posts

Picture this: it's the Summer Concert. It's the head of Music, Jude's, last concert at the school and she only has a few days left before she's retiring. The concert goes great, and the Chamber Choir sings the last song. Or so it seems. Suddenly, a new riff is playing from the band. Man Choir stand up, and do a beautiful rendition of 'Hey Jude'.

That's how great The Beatles are. :D

The Beatles have the kind of originality and flair to their music that makes even their long list of covers (which I have on the BBC Sessions 2 CD album) even better than the originals (such as 'I gotta woman').

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I love their music as well, though I enjoy the later years more than the early stuff. Even after 40 years, "Let it Be," "A little help from my friends," and "While my guitar gently weeps," stand out as some of the greatest rock songs written by any group of any era.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'd be willing to bet that the vast majority of people on this forum at least like the Beatles, if not love. Me--I love the Beatles. Especially their later work. I would have to say that my favorite "song" is the second half of the album Abbey Road. The songs are all woven around three musical themes, which in a way makes them each a part of one large song. And it's truly the most beautiful pop/rock song I've ever heard.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

Just to make the thread a bit ... well, "fair and balanced" (so if you're a fan, don't read on!) I don't particularly like them. They have a few songs that have a little merit to them (such as Let It Be, although I cannot really figure out what they want to let be--or Yesterday, whose meaning is pretty clear, but not a part of its merit), but I wouldn't go as far as to call even those "good," let alone "great." Not to mention the fact that John Lennon was a damn Communist! I'd rather listen to Abba than the Beatles if I had to choose, and I'm not a fan of those guys either...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

but I wouldn't go as far as to call even those "good," let alone "great."

The Beatles had two periods (counting from their first released single). Their first period is mostly made up of optimistic lyrics mostly about love and romance, with upbeat music. Their second is immersed in the late 60s culture (or lack thereof) and it shows, but it featured music of greater complexity and innovation.

Some of what they produced in the second era is awful. Things (I won't call them songs) like Revolution No. 9, and songs devoid of rational content like Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds (supposedly about visions on an acid trip) and I Am The Walrus. But it also includes songs like Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, A Little Help From My Friends and so on.

Not to mention the fact that John Lennon was a damn Communist! I'd rather listen to Abba than the Beatles if I had to choose, and I'm not a fan of those guys either...

Lennon was a devoted anti-intellectual up to the mid 70s when his career fizzled. His last work, Double Fantasy, intended as a comeback shortly before he was assasinated, wasn't bad at all.

McCartney, on the other hand, remained a mildly serious pop-rocker throughout, with a good song every now and then. Between a longer career and the fantastic era he enjoyed with The Beatles, he's the most financially successful musician ever.

Harrison and Starr never much mattered and they were distinctly below the other two in talent and ability. Harrison bought into Oriental philosophies, too. Starr, though, managed a couple of nice songs in his solo life, notably The No No Song and You're Sixteen, which are the most early-Beatle type songs any of the quartet ever did after they split up.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I agree with what D'kian wrote, with the exception that I think Harrison's relative lack of talent/ability was only with respect to songwriting - the man was a _master_ guitarist, especially rhythm guitar.

Although I'm just an amateur, to this day after years of practice playing guitar, I still cannot imagine how he squeezed all that amazing subtlety out of his rhythm guitar on songs like "I'm Happy Just to Dance With You", "The Night Before" and many others.

Mark Peters

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'd rather listen to Abba than the Beatles if I had to choose,

After this comment all opinions you have on music are henceforth REJECTED !!!!!!

I love the Beatles, I've seen seen their childhood homes and been to the museum (Liverpool is 20 minutes away.)

Personality also is a big part of their popularity too. Musically they were good, in fact the best rock n' roll ever but in pure music terms they are all light years behind the likes of J.S Bach or Chopin.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Beatles are my favorite Rock n' Roll band. I don't like some of their trippy stuff (Revolution No. 9 comes to mind), but they've made some truly great albums (Revolver, Abbey Road, Rubber Soul, Help!, etc.) Paul's love ballads are especially precious to me. I think they deserve all the praise.

--Dan Edge

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I like em. More their earlier stuff. It's Benevolent Pop. Beats a lot of negatively themed music these days. I've only got Rubber Soul on CD, but "Drive My Car" is my fav off that album.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just to make the thread a bit ... well, "fair and balanced" (so if you're a fan, don't read on!) I don't particularly like them. They have a few songs that have a little merit to them (such as Let It Be, although I cannot really figure out what they want to let be--or Yesterday, whose meaning is pretty clear, but not a part of its merit), but I wouldn't go as far as to call even those "good," let alone "great." Not to mention the fact that John Lennon was a damn Communist! I'd rather listen to Abba than the Beatles if I had to choose, and I'm not a fan of those guys either...

I was starting to think that I was the only one on here who didn't really like the Beatles.

I've never really liked the Beatles but I really don't see how they're "the best rock band ever". I'll have to listen to some of their older stuff. From the sounds of things, the few songs of their's I like are probably from their "second phase".

The few songs I listen to (rarely) are:

Drive my Car

Elenor Rigby

I am the Walrus

Taxman

I guess I just don't get why they're so great. The music just seems weird. Maybe it's because their bristish. Lots of people LOVE british humor and I don't really get that either...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...

What do you guys think of the song Imagine?

Lennon said it was "virtually the Communist Manifesto", even though he never claimed to be a communist per say.

Imagine no possessions

I wonder if you can

No need for greed or hunger

A brotherhood of man

Imagine all the people

Sharing all the world

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What do you guys think of the song Imagine?

Lennon said it was "virtually the Communist Manifesto", even though he never claimed to be a communist per say.

Imagine no possessions

I wonder if you can

No need for greed or hunger

A brotherhood of man

Imagine all the people

Sharing all the world

A lot of people in the humanist movement are fond of this song (surprise! a bunch of lefties) especially since there is a line in it about no religion.

Never cared for it much myself.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The music is so simple and so a poet can add any words he wants, and it will give the music a different meaning. However, it is a very enjoyable song to sing for someone who has a nice voice but may not have the opportunity to sing a lot. Voice-wise, it is an achievement, but I guess we all know that Lennon has a nice voice.

Jose.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Back in my sophomore year of high school, Imagine was one of my absolute favorite songs; now, however, I would say it's one of my least favorite Beatles songs (for obvious reasons).

I don't think the Beatles were very musically accomplished - although they tended to be good poets, sometimes.

As for my favorite Beatles songs, I love Here Comes the Sun, Hey Jude, Back in the USSR, ah... I can't list all of them.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't dislike them, but I never particulary thought much of them. Their music, though nice, tends to have a kind of bohemian feeling that says nothing to me.

I'd also rather listen to Abba. :(

The song Imagine, on the other hand, I've always hated.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...