It’s beautiful to see how admiration and love are still maintained among fans of this talented, humble, and genius band-yes, The Beatles.
It’s fascinating to see Ringo Starr and Paul Mccartney recently were on TV doing interview after they attended the premiere of 2016 Beatles film “Eight Days a Week”. I haven’t seen it but from the trailer, I bet it’s very sixties-ish and bring a very nostalgic feel to those who lived it and for younger fans to imagine how great it was in that time.
I’ve been listening to Nowhere Man lately and this heartwarming feeling flooded me with happiness and sadness at the same time-always do feel this feeling when I listen to any Beatles songs. Because maybe we miss John, it was his birthday again this year on last October, he shouldn’t have died so young. And we miss George Harrison’s smile.
For those who live after The Beatles Era might wonder why The Beatles were and are so popular, apart from the fact that they had a great musical sense, creativity, clever lyrics, and beautiful harmony in every song they performed and made-which could make girls screaming uncontrollably at their concerts back in the time. According to (Rudolf Hecl, 2006), The Beatles came just in the right time. It was the end of the World War II, economic was getting better, technology in production, also advertising, was being in rapid development. It was babyboomer’s era who was in their youth and looking something to get into. There was a gap between babyboomers and their parents regarding idea of most everything and Beatles could represent them.
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Indeed, after the forties marked by World War II and the fifties still very much affected by the economic consequences of this biggest armed conflict in history, the sixties were the first decade in which people appeared to be settled with the war, at least economically if not mentally. Wages and salaries were increasing and people startedto want more than to survive – they wanted to have fun. The demand for entertainment rose, because people could afford it. Popular music began to be oriented on the youth; there were TV and radio shows for the young etc.”(Rudolf Hecl, 2006)
Maybe the highlight is also that TV only had few channels compared to nowadays so it’s obvious that people watched the similar programs and they were exposed with very similar kind of trend. Lucky for The Beatles.
Okay, one is the timing. Next, The Beatles had a genius, loyal manager-Brian Epstein and also clever and creative producer-George Martin.
Epstein underwent dozens of interviews and negotiations to secure them a recording contract, he arranged everything for them, he was the man who ran an advertising campaign to promote them, and he was the force that held the band together. It was Brian Epstein’s hard work that got their first single “Love Me Do” on air (he told all his and the Beatles’ friends to write to radio Luxembourg and ask them if they could play the song). George Martin produced the Beatles’ records for their entire career. He not only supervised the recordings, he also arranged songs for brass and string sections and other musicians (orchestras) (Rudolf Hecl, 2006).
Yes, The Beatles was changing too and they survived. Not many of musician that changes styles both in music and appearance long lasted. But The Beatles was experimenting, from 1960’s rock and roll, easy listening harmonic sing along-able songs with formal suits and those haircut (I’m sorry I don’t know what to call the haircut :p) --to tie-dyed ‘hippie’ shirts, love beads, long hair, and moustaches/beards following the hippies era in early 1970’s along with more complex songs like Norwegian Wood and Eleanor Rigby. And they were still adorable and lovable.
So, these are The Beatles,
John Lennon
John Lennon was born 9 October 1940 in Liverpool, England. He sang almost in every Beatles song. Also, composed and wrote the lyrics. He’s a good lyricist. Even though every Beatles could play many instruments, he mostly played rhythm guitar and piano. He was married with Cynthia Powell. Their child is Julian Lennon which was born in 1963. After divorce with Cynthia, John married Yoko Ono in 1969. Paul McCartney once said about John: He was older and he was very much the leader; he was the quickest wit and the smartest.
Despite he had a beautiful voice, surprisingly he was annoyed by hearing his own voice in Beatles record and he’d like to ask everyone if it was possible to cover his voice with tomato ketchup or anything.
George Harrison
George Harrison was born in Liverpool, England on 25 February 1943. He sang and played guitar. He also could play Sitar, we can hear it in Beatles song “ Norwegian Wood”. He was interested in eastern culture, yoga, meditation, and Hinduism. That explains the Sitar.
He loved very much guitar and very happy to play it. John Lennon stated that his relationship with Harrison was one of young follower and older guy..”he was like a disciple of mine when we started”.
Ringo Starr
Let’s meet Ringo Starr.
About the drumming, he is special. Steve Smith once commented: Before Ringo, drum stars were measured by their soloing ability and virtuosity, but Ringo made us see the drummer as an equal participant in the compositional aspect”.
As the only child, Ringo loves other Beatles as his brothers. He stated that (we) really looked for each other and we had so many laughs together. In the old days we’d have the biggest hotel suites, the whole floors of the hotel, and the four of us would end in the bathroom just to be with each other.
Ringo wrote a children book titled “Octopus's Garden” and he can be reached at his personal twitter account: twitter.com/ringostarrmusic
Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney was the bass player. And he’s good at it. The bass line in Beatles song “ Nowhere Man” is very great and beautiful. He was also the main singer and composer, together with John Lennon. His voice is different from John Lennon’s voice but they are mixed together. But, if you want to hear only Paul voice, you can hear Yesterday. It is a beautiful song and Paul still can sing it perfectly even now.
Paul was born 18 June 1942 in Liverpool, England. Paul ever said about the Liverpool people: The type of people that I came from, I never saw better! In the whole of the worlds! I mean, the presidents, the prime minister, I never met anyone as half as nice as some of the people I know from Liverpool who are nothing, who do nothing. They’re not important or famous. But they are smart. People who can just cut through problems like a hot knife through butter. The kind of people you need in life. Salt of the earth.
Paul met George Harrison on the school bus and shared interest in music. The two were believed as the first Beatles to meet each other.
In the end, let me cited one passage from paper by Daniel Nathan Charness (2010)
“The Beatles were a unique band, distinguished from their peers not only by their music, which was honed by several years of constant performing but also by their refreshingly new and unique identity, that could be packaged, marketed, and embraced by the generation that had been brought up to define themselves by what they watched, listened to and owned.
The Beatles were a musical product that could be distinctly their own and their arrival could not have been better timed.”
Happy weekend to everyone and shall we meet sometimes soon.
Also, greetings to all of you and if any Beatles fans who read my write, thank you.
I guess we miss John, don’t we?
* John Lennon died in 1980. He was cremated and his ashes were scattered at Central Park, New York
*George Harrison died in 2001. He was cremated and his ashes were scattered at Ganges River, India
References:
Daniel Nathan Charrness. 2010. Beatle Boomers: The Beatles in their Generation. Wesleyan University, Connecticut.
Kimberley Cura. 2009. She Loves You: The Beatles and Female Fanaticism. Nota Bene: Canadian Undergraduate Journal of Musicology: Vol.2 ISS 1. Article 8.
Rudolf Hecl. 2006. The Beatles and Their Influence on Culture. Masaryk University, Brno.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fFyZzqPDws
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xKvtivhK3A
Image Source: https://id.pinterest.com/crismiramontes
P.S. This writing can also be read at my personal blog https://hapsaririana.wordpress.com/2016/10/22/its-time-for-the-beatles-again/
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