Here, There, and Everywhere
"Will we still have an impact on our fans in 2011? Bugger off."
My dear reader(s). Forgive me for my blatant irresponsibility and shoddy blogsmanship over the past six weeks. I have no excuses.
Such exciting news of Paul’s upcoming Yankee Stadium concert on July 15. Circumstances beyond my control will prevent me from attending the show. But, as Macca is turning 69 this weekend, I’d like to share a little of his Beatle magic with you.
This clip comes from Paul’s show in Las Vegas on this past Saturday. His band is incredibly tight. Kudos to Abe, Brian, Rusty, and Wix. You are the best musicians to play with Paul since you- know-who.
As you watch the clip, look out for several important audience members. As Paul pays a tribute to long-departed John, we can see Yoko Ono and Sean Lennon in the audience, flanked by Olivia Harrison and George Martin. It’s simultaneously a chilling and heartwarming moment. Their emotions are palpable.
Your humble moderator,
Pablo F.
Not Guilty
She may have contributed to the problem, but she is not the culprit.
I’d been having a tough time thinking of a subject for my next post. I thought I wanted to write more about George, to try to further explore his impact on the band, and on music in general. But, every time I started to write down my ideas on the subject, I’d involuntarily turn down the same well-trodden path. Time and time again, I ended up asking the same question: What really drove apart the Beatles?
Was it really Yoko? That certainly seems to be the prevailing opinion among the general public, judging from the harshly worded indictments that can be found in YouTube comments and on other blogs and websites. In the court of public opinion, it seems that Yoko Ono has been almost unanimously convicted of the crime of breaking up the Beatles. But looking at the facts, I feel that the general public is giving Yoko a lot more credit than she deserves.
The Beatles’ demise is the story of an epic battle for control. As compatible as they were musically, John and Paul’s plans and goals were vastly different from one another. What they both shared, however, was a burning desire to be the Man.
Since the days of the Quarry Men, John and Paul struggled to outwrite, outsing, outplay, and outrank each other as leader of the group. If it weren’t for their mind-boggling success, they probably wouldn’t have stayed together as long as they did. Furthermore, had John lived to see the Anthology project in 1994-5, I doubt he and Paul would have participated in the reunion together. Their breakup was really that acrimonious.
So, to summarize, the Beatles broke up because neither John nor Paul would relinquish total control of the band. John formed the group initially, and in the earlier years he unquestionably led it. But he wanted to write books. Then he wanted to act in movies. Then he discovered hard drugs and Yoko Ono. This gave Paul the opportunity to become the leader, which he undertook with great zeal. But as John was brilliant but unstable, Paul was an exacting taskmaster. He ruthlessly micromanaged the recording sessions, causing horrific tension between the four Beatles. George and Ringo both left the group at different times in 1968 and 1969, but reluctantly returned. In the ending days, John acted like a rebellious teenager in the face of Paul’s authority. The situation got progressively worse, as documented in the film Let It Be. Somehow, they were able to recapture their cohesiveness to create their farewell album Abbey Road. And despite the record’s utter brilliance, after its release the Beatles went their separate ways. And then Paul tried to sue the pants off of everybody.
So, there are my two cents. Yoko didn’t do it. It was a John/Paul thing.
Your thoughts?
Your humble moderator,
Pablo F.
Essential George
George and Ravi Shankar
I want to talk a little bit more about George, and how he isn’t the artist I thought he was for many years.
See, I thought I knew who he was and where he fit within the legacy of the group. I saw George Harrison as the rock-solid lead guitarist of the world’s greatest band, who began to hit his stride as a songwriter around 1968 or so. His greatest contributions to the Beatles were the classics “Something”, “Here Comes the Sun”, and “While My Guitar Gently Weeps”. End of story.
But little did I know that his some of his greatest contributions to the Beatles weren’t even used by the band.
I don’t know why I’d never made the effort to completely discover George’s music. Perhaps it’s because he was overshadowed, and possibly even held back, by John and Paul…an amazing concept in and of itself. It would have to take the combined chops of a Lennon and McCartney to overshadow the talents of a George Harrison. If George were in any other band, and I mean any other band, he’d have most likely led it. But a couple of years ago, I began to realize that there was a lot of George’s music that I didn’t really know. I began to educate myself.
I remember borrowing some George Harrison CD’s from my town library, and the librarian looked at me and said I was going to love them. I told her that it was time for me to find out more about George, and her reply to me was one word: “Underrated.”
I couldn’t agree more.
I’ve put together a list of some of my favorite George songs. Some of them showcase his talents as a songwriter, and some just capture his soul. If you haven’t heard them, give them a listen. If you have, then you know what I mean.
“If I Needed Someone” (Rubber Soul): An early success for George. A great live version of this song appears on George’s Live In Japan album, with Eric Clapton on lead guitar. This song was also recorded by the band The Hollies.
“Badge” (Goodbye- Cream): George wrote this song with Eric Clapton and played guitar on the track, credited on the album as “L’Angelo Mysterioso”. Ringo helped them write the lyrics.
‘Taxman” (Revolver): The biting sarcasm in the lyrics and the amazing guitar solo (by Paul) make this one of my all-time favorite Beatles songs.
“Piggies” (The Beatles) More pointed sarcasm, this time about the wealthy and corrupt upper class. I love the harpsichord. The line “In their eyes there’s something lacking/What they need’s a damn good whacking” reportedly was provided by George’s mother.
“Savoy Truffle” (The Beatles): Written about a box of chocolates, this is a rocking tune that’s full of clever sexual innuendo. Great guitar work by George and rich backing vocals by Paul.
“For You Blue” (Let It Be): You can hear the fun the Beatles are having as they rip through this blues tune. George’s vocal is on point, and John solos on the lap-steel guitar using a shotgun shell casing as a slide.
“The Inner Light” (Past Masters-vol.2): The B-side to “Lady Madonna”. A beautiful Indian-inspired gem.
“All Things Must Pass” (All Things Must Pass): What I can’t believe is that the other Beatles passed on this song when George brought it to them. This one may be my favorite George song of them all. Tough not to cry when I hear it.
“Beware of Darkness” (All Things Must Pass): George was kind enough to include two versions of this song on the album; a fully produced one and an acoustic demo. I love them both.
“Isn’t It a Pity” (All Things Must Pass): George wonders aloud why people can be so cruel to each other. The lyrics make incredible sense.
“Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)” (Living in the Material World): Is it a song? Is it a prayer? It certainly blurs the line between the two. This song made it to #1 of the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in 1973, overtaking Paul’s beautiful ode to Linda “My Love”.
“It Don’t Come Easy” (Single release by Ringo Starr): George wrote this song and gave it to Ringo (just as he did with “Photograph”). I found a demo of George singing it, I love his vocal as much as I love Ringo’s. I especially like the “Hare Krishna!” shouted during the guitar solo. Kudos to “vertigobates” for putting together the video to this.
“All Those Years Ago” (Somewhere in England): George originally wrote it as another vehicle for his buddy Ringo. After John was murdered, Ringo gave the song back to George. He reworked the lyrics and turned it into a tribute to John. The surviving Beatles reunited to record the song. It was produced by George Martin and had George on guitar and vocals, Paul on bass, Ringo on drums, and Linda McCartney on keyboards.
“When We Was Fab” (Cloud Nine): George reminisces on his Beatle days. I love the video for this song…
Your humble moderator,
Pablo F.
Underrated
The most intriguing Beatle?
I had a very revealing conversation with a friend of mine this week. We were talking about music.
He’s about 30 and likes many different types of music, primarily hip-hop. However, he is very knowledgeable about rock and roll. We discussed many different bands and musicians. With no provocation, he told me that his favorite rock band is the Beatles.
He went on to say that his favorite Beatle is John, because John was the best songwriter in the group. To support his point, he cited “Across the Universe”, “In My Life”, and “I Am the Walrus” as examples of John’s superior composing skills. Then, my friend shared with me that his favorite Beatles song is “Something”. Another favorite of his, he said, is “While My Guitar Gently Weeps”. Rounding out his top three: “Here Comes The Sun”.
I have to make the assumption, appreciated reader of this blog, that if you have found your way here, you must be a pretty hardcore Beatle fan, and would therefore immediately recognize that my friend’s top three favorite Beatle songs are all George Harrison compositions. But I’ll point it out just in case.
I asked my friend if he knew that his three favorite Beatle songs were written and sung by George. He said that he never really realized it until then, because the music of John and Paul takes such a front seat, and George just kind of sneaks up on you.
George has really been sneaking up on me lately. And I don’t know why, but for the past two or so years of my life, George’s music has claimed the front seat.
We’ll continue this discussion soon.
Your humble moderator,
Pablo F.
In Defense of the Wedding Band
No, their minds are not for rent
I’ve got to share something with you that really blew my mind. It happened over the weekend while I was at work.
One of the unexpected perks of having a job as a catering-hall bartender is that I get to see a lot of wedding bands. As the bride and groom’s guests take full advantage of my open bar, and I make drinks at a furious pace all night long, just a few steps away from my bar is the stage, where the evening’s hired entertainment goes through their set. We see a lot of different bands, and they each have different things about them that make them unique. But what impresses me about all of them is that they are required to have an incredibly diverse catalogue of songs. A wedding band can churn out Andrea Boccelli’s “Con Ti Partiro”, AC/DC’s “You Shook Me All Night Long”, and Katy Perry’s “Firework” all in the space of twenty minutes. I’ve also heard some pretty respectable renditions of “Something”, “In My Life”, and “Twist and Shout” by these musical chameleons. But…what I witnessed this weekend takes the wedding cake.
Our venue hosted an Italian-American wedding reception for 250 people on Friday night. Many of the guests had traveled from Italy for the event. The band, which I hadn’t seen before, was brought in from Staten Island. For most of the evening, they fluctuated back and forth between Italian folk songs and mainstream hits from Black Eyed Peas, Lady Gaga, and the like. On the whole, they were pretty unremarkable. Until the strangest thing happened.
As the dinner course was being cleared away, the band invited people out on the dance floor and they began a medley of hits from the 1980′s. The guests, mostly in their thirties and forties, danced to Bryan Adams, The Outfield, and The Romantics. Almost everyone was out on the floor shaking booty when the lead singer announced that they had a special surprise for the groom, who, we were told, was a huge Rush fan. With that, the band that fifteen minutes earlier had slogged through “That’s Amore” launched into a blistering medley of Rush songs. And they nailed each one, note perfect. Which, by the way, is not easy to do, even for Rush. Amazed, I furiously scribbled the set list on a cocktail napkin, which I submit to you now as evidence that this is the best wedding band ever.
Exhibit "A"
The set list:
- Free Will
- The Spirit of Radio
-Limelight
- YYZ
-Tom Sawyer
The entire party stopped. The waiters stared. Everyone just watched them play. And the place erupted in a frenzy of cheers for these great musicians. They followed the Rush mini-concert with “Relax” by Frankie Goes to Hollywood, and then they played three or four songs from Pink Floyd’s The Wall. The whole place sang along with them as they did “Comfortably Numb”, waitstaff included. At that moment, every person in the room had something in common with each other.
So, as you most likely now have noticed, I also enjoy the music of other bands, Rush being one. But no band or artist could ever wrestle the Beatles out of that most extra-special place in my heart.
By the way, does anyone out there know what the title of the song “YYZ” means? It’s pretty clever.
Your humble moderator,
Pablo F.
And the Beatle Goes To…
But mother you promised I could talk to Paul !!! PLEASE !!!
Well-deserved kudos to West Coast Neil for nailing the essence of this bizarre photo. There’s the uber-controlling ”mother” Yoko hogging the phone, with Paul on the line, while a demonic John channels his inner toddler. God knows what Yoko and Paul could possibly be discussing. I love her expression, though. It looks as if she’s trying to hypnotize Paul over the phone. And the helmets? Chalk it up to just another day at the Ono-Lennons. Five minutes later, they were probably traipsing around in leather kimonos. When John and Yoko felt like letting their freak flag fly, honey, they let it fly.
Way to go, Neil. The unknowable prestige of being the first-ever beatleobsessed.com photo caption contest winner is thine.
Your humble moderator,
Pablo F.
Our First-Ever Photo Caption Contest!
I couldn’t resist this one.
Send in your captions for this pic of John and Yoko at the pinnacle of their weirdness. I’ll post the 5 funniest ones on Friday, April 8. Can’t wait to read your submissions.
I have absolutely no idea what circumstances could have possibly led up to the moment depicted here. Could they be rehearsing for an ill-fated sequel to How I Won the War?
Your humble moderator,
Pablo F.
