I have to post this here, but do you all understand that the Beatles might be considered THE inventor of modern alternative music? The fact that they were almost always #1 on the charts should tell you something about music history and the current state of POPULAR music.

This is similar to my Wilco and Radiohead threads. All the bands have made innumerable great albums, but the Beatles made the most innumerable.
I'm going to go with this silly personal story. I bought my own Christmas present from my mom in 1968: "The Beatles" aka "The White Album." I bought it from the Compton Sears around Thanksgiving. Remember, I was 12. I wrapped it, very securely, yet delicately. I put it up in the closet of my music room and didn't open it until Christmas. Of course, both sides of my family showed up Christmas Day, and they had to periodically poke their heads in while I played "the greatest album ever made" all day. It was about 94 minutes long, so I guess I only played it six times the first day. The End. (Oh wait a minute; that was on "Abbey Road.")

What's your fave Beatles album/song and why? Come on, don't be embarrassed; we really want to know!

This message has been edited. Last edited by: mark f,

"tomorrow never knows" is my favorite beatles song. honestly, I don't listen to the beatles, but my brother was all "at least listen to this song, it sounds like manitoba". he was right, and it's quite the awesome song.

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but do you all understand that the Beatles might be considered THE inventor of modern alternative music?

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Mark, I see no "might" about it. Anyone who dismisses The Beatles is, in my opinion, just trying to act cool (or hasn't actually listened to their albums). It's quite hard for me to pick a favorite song or album as my opinions of them are constantly changing. However, I will say that, over the course of my Beatle-loving life, "For No One" has most consistently held the top spot. I heard that when Paul composed the coronet solo, he accidentally wrote it using notes outside the natural range of the instrument. Fortunately, the coronet player gave 110% and hit them anyway (I guess if The Beatles say "jump"...). Anyway, Rubber Soul, Revolver, White Album, and Abbey Road are my favorite albums of theirs, and I really hope that no one ever manages to convince me that The Bealtes are/were not the greatest thing ever.

[QUOTE} There are many impressive Beatles albums, and I seem to be the only one who thinks their best album was "Magical Mystery Tour." [QUOTE]

To tell you the truth, when I LISTENED TO THAT album, I probably thought it was the best too. The problem was, that if you were from the U.S., you only got five new songs! I'd already bought the singles, so the most popular songs were on the A and B-sides of the 45s. The album was therefore a fait accompli,although perhaps the best one I'd ever been exposed to.

Oh God asc85, I tried to respond to your comments, not edit them. This new-fangled power that I have can really suck. As far as I know, I can't restore your comments (maybe you can!)
Please except my apologies. I will try to remember what you posted and fix it. You can always private message me with all your quotes and I can fix those.

asc back again...
OH MY LORD!!! WHAT IS GOING ON HERE!! EDITING OTHER PEOPLE'S MESSAGES!!! THAT'S NOT RIGHT! I DON'T NECESSARILY BLAME YOU, BUT HOW DOES A MESSAGE BOARD HAVE THE CAPABILITY FOR THAT TO HAPPEN!!!

Heck if I remember all the pearls of wisdom that I wrote. I think I also listed my five favorite Beatles songs, which...have probably changed since my last post! But to try again...

1. Hello, Goodbye
2. A Hard Day's Night
3. Revolution (the cut from Hey Jude, not the White Album)
4. Birthday
5. Eleanor Rigby

This message has been edited. Last edited by: asc85,

As I said in another thread, The Beatles are my favorite rock band and, in my opinion, the single greatest and most influential rock band in the history of the music. Simply not liking The Beatles is certainly possible. An overwhelming number of people like the taste of chocolate, but not everybody. I can also understand being burned out on anything good, but to question their importance or influence if foolish.

Just for the sake of idle chatter and to take mark's initial remarks one step further, virtually everything that is happening in popular music today can be traced back the the short span of The Beatles career. With that sweeping statement in place. What if there were no Beatles? If those particular people had not come together at that particular place and time, would there have been another seminal band that would have changed the way we make and absorb popular music and even popular culture?

While you mull that over or, alternately, roll your eyes and sigh heavily, I will say that I cannot point to a favorite song, album, or Beatle. I went through a phase of fandom so extreme that I was attending the annual BeatleFest fan convention in Chicago for serveral years. I honestly treasure every note and every word on every album. I won't argue that anybody else should or that there aren't flaws and missteps, but I sincerely wouldn't care to be without any of their catalog.

Now Playing: "Boxcutter emporium pt. 3" Sixtoo Chewing On Glass & Other Miracle Cures (Ninja Tune) <-- nice recommendation, Imprezu21, thanks for the tip!

I'm not the world's biggest Beatles fan, but I like them plenty. I've always claimed that the Byrds were my Beatles, because I fell in love with the guitar sound listening to my dad's Byrds records, and never spent that much time listening to his Beatles records.

That being said, they were a musical and cultural pheonomenon without equal, and they wrote some of the best pop songs in musical history.

My favorite song, a sentimental fave, is "In My Life", which was the first dance at my wedding. A gorgeous, simple little tune.

LinnTate,

I read your post, and as you said in an earlier post to me, one thing usually stands out, and perhaps the one thing that stands out was not what was intended.

Well, for me it was your reference to BeatleFest! I went to that twice (in Manhattan, as I grew up in Northern NJ) when I was in High School, because I had a very good friend who was a huge Beatles fan. Obviously, since I went more than once, I enjoyed the experience, but I must admit that parts of it were too much for me. I just remember in the theater when they would show movies and film clips, that people would start going crazy when they would flash different SLIDES of Beatles on the screen! It was ridiculous (IHMO, but then again, I'm not a huge Beatles fan like you). To me, it was kind of like each person was trying to prove to others (and probably themselves) that THEY were the biggest Beatles fan around, so they were going to try to scream the loudest for the Beatles about EVERY SINGLE THING!!

Also, what do you or Mark think about Utopia's "Deface the Music", the album that's an homage to the Beatles? Actually, I have a song on that album that I really like..."Take It Home", the song that's an homage to "Day Tripper."

Which makes me remember that I probably should have put "Day Tripper" in my Top Ten above, and eliminate "Paperback Writer." Classic guitar riff.

"In my life" is one of the most beautiful songs ever. its a rainy day type of song.

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Originally posted by asc85:
...BeatleFest! I went to that twice (in Manhattan, as I grew up in Northern NJ) when I was in High School, because I had a very good friend who was a huge Beatles fan. Obviously, since I went more than once, I enjoyed the experience, but I must admit that parts of it were too much for me. I just remember in the theater when they would show movies and film clips, that people would start going crazy when they would flash different SLIDES of Beatles on the screen! It was ridiculous (IHMO, but then again, I'm not a huge Beatles fan like you). To me, it was kind of like each person was trying to prove to others (and probably themselves) that THEY were the biggest Beatles fan around, so they were going to try to scream the loudest for the Beatles about EVERY SINGLE THING!!

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Wow, a fellow BeatleFest vet!

I started going to the Chicago Fest for the same reason you did, asc85. Two friends were enormous fans and another three or four of us, depending on the year, were kind of hangers-on.

My experiences with BeatleFest evolved over the years. The first year I was very much the fanboy, attending all of the films and such, prowling the merchandise room for all manner of crap that's still gathering dust somewhere in my house, etc. while my two, more expert, friends looked on indulgently. Subsequent years (I think I went three or four times in all) were actually a lot more interesting. My aforementioned friends are both known within the serious collectors community for their knowledge, collections, and scholarship, so we spent considerable time hanging out with some of the events guests, like Mark Lewisohn the year that his landmark The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions was published.

I saw and expected the same kind of crazy fan moments you describe, but I have to say my favorite over-the-top moment was the year that we were checking in to our room right next to Liverpool, the Beatles cover band that played every year. Something had gone wrong with their arrangements and one of the members was throwing a first-class hissy fit while his bandmate tried to calm him with assurances that, "It's okay, man. Don't let it affect your performance."

A very Spinal Tap kind of moment.

An interesting side note. I dropped by the Web site out of curiosity and see that it is now called "The Fest for Beatle Fans" now rather than BeatleFest. Ongoing evidence, I would expect, that where go The Beatles, a lawsuit cannot be far behind.

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Originally posted by asc85:
Also, what do you or Mark think about Utopia's "Deface the Music", the album that's an homage to the Beatles?

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I'm a big fan of Deface The Music. It takes no small amount of skill and attention to detail to recreate a taste of every significant moment in The Beatles career. Rundgren and Neil Innes' The Rutles may have have been created with their tongues planted firmly in their cheeks, but there is no small amount of love there, too. Just like you like "Take It Home" from DTM, I've been known to find myself humming "I Must Be In Love" without irony on more than one occasion.

Now Playing: Whatever's on WOXY right now, they don't have their "Now Playing" window functioning again yet, but who cares. They're back to streaming. WOO HOO!!!

LinnTate,

Ummmm...which song do you mean from the "Deface the Music" album? I was curious about the song you named (because I wanted to hear it again), and I can't find it on the album!

Are you thinking of "I Just Want To Touch You"? That's another song that I think is very well done on that album.

But you're right, I like "Take It Home" because I think it's good, not because it's a "parody."

Whoops! That was a sloppy piece of writing on my part, asc85. "I Must Be In Love" appears on The Rutles.

Have you seen the film or heard the soundtrack to The Rutles?

Now Playing: "One Moment More" Mindy Smith One Moment More (Vanguard)

Y'know, a few minutes after I sent that message, I thought that's what it probably was!

I remember seeing that Rutles movie on TV when it came out, but I only saw it once. Wasn't there that song, "Please, Please, Hold My Hand"? And interviews with Mick Jagger?

I thought it was good, but since I only saw it once, I didn't think it was THAT good!

But again, I'm not a huge Beatles fan.

Yes. "Hold My Hand." And Mick Jagger was in it as well.

It's a funny movie, but I think much funnier if you're a big enough fan of The Beatles to have seen most of the classic film clips several times. The real genius of the film makers was slavishly reproducing not only the music, but the original film clips to the extent that they actually shot in the same locations as the originals.

Like Deface The Music, The Rutles is more a loving parody than a broader comedy like This Is Spinal Tap.

Now Playing: NPR's Morning Edition

A few years ago at a mere 15 years old, I used to swallow all the VH1 list hype around The Beatles (Sgt. Pepper v. Revlover v. Abbey Road kind of deal). I was also starting to love the idea of a popular band experimenting because it can, so I leaned heavily on Sgt. Pepper. Listening to it now, it's got some rouch edges and some unnecessary exercises ("Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite" comes to mind). Now I reach for my family heirloom, my mom's vinyl copy of Rubber Soul. All killer, no filler.

I believe that one of the greatest guitar riffs EVER is on "Dear Prudence," That is my all-time favorite Beatles song.

My favorite Beatles album is Abbey Road. If I am feeling blue, I reach for that album. It's like a warm, fuzzy security blanket for me because I grew up with it, and I played it more times than any other record.

The only record that has a similar place in my heart is Radiohead's The Bends.

For me, most of my favorite Beatles songs are on either Revolver or Magical Mystery Tour. However, as MattChesnut stated above, Rubber Soul is all killer and no filler, and so makes it my favorite album of theirs. Favorite Beatles song is a near impossibility for me. Some of my favorites include...Eleanor Rigby, Love You To, For No One, The Fool On The Hill, I Am The Walrus, Within You Without You, Across The Universe, It Won't Be Long, You've Got To Hide Your Love Away, and Blackbird. If I took more time, this list would keep growing too! Hands down, the greatest band in modern music history!

Great choices, S, especially "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away", which not only has some of Lennon's most personal lyrics, but one of his best, most-resigned-to-his-loss vocals. Then, the ending of the song is incredibly-killer musically.

My favourite is "Strawberry fields (forever), but only just. There's also "I am the walrus", "Tomorrow never knows",and one from right outta left field, "Within you, with out you". I'm glad to see no-ones invaded this thread with an anti Beatle rant, although I'm probably tempting fate somewhat.

Pretty much every song from Help! to Let It Be...Naked is my fave. I don't think you're really a Beatles fan if you can actually pick a clearcut fave. I've been more attracted to the White Album lately but Rubber Soul is always up there. I've compiled a best of George Harrison with the Beatles which has really helped define his role for me. All Things Must Pass is definitely the best Beatles solo debut of the 4.

Its Good to see that there is people that still likes the good old and great bands like the beatles, but sadly there is people that doesnt even know about great bands like these.
The other day i wrote as my nick-name at the MSN messenger : " You say good bye, i say hello " ( obviously a Beatles song ) and i got replys from about like 5 persons asking me why did i have the MAROON FIVE song has my nickname!... LOL!
i Have to say that the # 1 Album is my favorite one ( hehehe ) it has almot all of the best beatles songs ever , and i have the Vinyl record too ( it only has 20 songs , the CD has 27 , lol ) .