Listen To A Beatles Song Today

[The Poet]

On this date, thirty-five years ago, I was working in Midtown Manhattan. I spent a good part of the morning mourning, looking out the windows from the 46th floor of 9 West 57th across Central Park towards The Dakota. At lunchtime I walked up Central Park West to that famed apartment building and joined the swelling crowd outside. I was in a thousand-dollar Italian suit, and some others were dressed as nattily, but most were clothed in jeans and Ts or flannel, parkas and ponchos. A few were singing softly, but most were standing silently (as was I), not knowing what to say or do, not knowing exactly why we were even there, staring blankly at the building towering over us in shock and grief, hoping perhaps to show our sympathy, and a connection both to the man, his survivors, and each other. After fifteen quiet minutes or so, I turned and left, to return to my mundane job and existence. Ob-la-di, ob-la-da, life goes on . . . at least for us.

Those of you who weren't alive, or weren't old enough in 1964, to truly know what Beatlemania actually was will never understand. It was a phenomenon unlike anything seen since, and perhaps never before. True, there reportedly was a Lisztmania in the 1840s, but this was mainly an upper-class European event. Yes, Frank Sinatra drew large raucous crowds outside hotels, as did (somewhat oddly) the duo of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. And it is also certain that the 1956 appearance of Elvis on The Ed Sullivan Show marked an immediate sea-change in popular music, transitioning it in one culture-shifting night from the era of Tin Pan Alley to the age of rock-and-roll. But The Beatles rocked, figuratively and literally, Western civilization in a way unprecedented in history by anything short of revolution or war. It WAS a revolution of sorts, and within months it all-but dominated social, cultural, and even economic trends and thoughts across the nation, and around the world. Don't talk to me about Michael Jackson, Taylor Swift and Katy Perry, or Justin Bieber or One Direction. These were just pimples on the butt of Beatlemania.

I was at The Dakota that day for myself, because I felt a need impossible to resist. I was there for my friends, near and far in space and time, who could not be there for themselves. I was there for my sister, who had perforce had to divert a bit of her devotion from The King from Tupelo to The Lads from Liverpool. And, if you wish, I was also there for you too, paying respects forward from the past for those I'd yet to meet.

I put this under General Discussion instead of Entertainment for what I think good reason. The Beatles were more, much more, than just a band of musicians. They were earth-shakers and time-shifters, and were impactful far beyond their songs. Still, it is their songs we have today, and thus I urge to pick one, or several, to listen to today. Which? I dare not say, and hesitate to even recommend. You might choose from Rubber Soul or Revolver, albums that marked their transition from a band of musicians to a confederation of artists. You might go with selections from Sgt. Pepper, arguably the single most influential album ever released, by anyone. You could pick the eponymous The Beatles, aka The White Album, touted by many as their magnum opus. Or perhaps you can choose my personal favorite one, Abbey Road, much of which is composed of seeming fragments of songs stitched together with genius to produce an operatic masterpiece. But whatever you decide, from Love Me Do to Let It Be, you'd be hard-pressed to go wrong.

I hope you still rest in blissful peace, John Lennon. You were taken from us . . . from ME! . . . far too soon. Imagine what more he might have given us, had he not been so cruelly and so senselessly snatched away.

[14holestogie]

I, too, was touched more than a little when I heard the news. Thank you for being there for me, Thomas.

[shilala]

I was sick about John Lennon getting shot. It was senseless.

I never did like the Beatles, but that was because my Mom loved them and it seemed every time she dropped a Beatles album in the big old console stereo, something bad happened. Very bad, like brain scarring, cops visiting bad.
So I kind of blame the Beatles, indirectly.
Of course it makes no sense, but I make no sense. :D

[icehog3]

Too young to remember the initial Beatlemania, but do remember the first song I have conscious memory of was "I Wanna Hold Your Hand". Still listen to them often.

[The Poet]

How can you laugh, when you know I'm down? Get back to where you once belonged. ;)

[icehog3]

Isn't it good, Norwegian wood?

[The Poet]

Baby, you can drive my car. Gideon checked out and he left in no doubt to help with good Rocky's revival.

[icehog3]

You say stop, and I say, go go go.

[The Poet]

Sont les mots qui vont tres bien ensemble.

Tres bien ensemble.

[Dave128]

Although I have listened to many Beatles songs over the years, I was born in 1974 and missed all of the hype.

[The Poet]

No offense intended, Dave, but it wasn't hype. You surely used the word with innocence, but you diminish what was a spontaneous and genuine cultural explosion with the implication it was some PR stunt.

As I said, I don't mean to offend, but the distinction is meaningful, and accurate. No matter how one felt, or what one's station was, Beatlemania was universal and unavoidable. The Fab Four was EVERYWHERE!!

[Gabe215]

Everybody seems to think I'm lazy. I don't mind, I think they're crazy

Was born in 86 but who doesn't love the Beatles? Rubber Soul, Revolver and Magical Mystery Tour are my favorites, not a bad song on them

[Dave128]

No offense taken or meant by my comment. Not growing up in that era or having the "mania" talked about at home (my dad didn't seem to give a crap about the Beatles and my mom was obsessed with Elvis - even well after his untimely death), I stick to my original post of classifying the group as hype. They are/were good, but life changing? Not to me.

That being said, my opinion is just that, an opinion and is equally as justified as yours is regarding every musician or group that you profess to dislike and think are the dog crap one finds on the bottom of their shoe. To each their own.

[The Poet]

You are free to like any music you choose. You are wrong to denigrate an historical fact you were not witness to. Though your parents may have cared little, or none, for The Beatles, they definitely were witness to the mania and would not deny it happened, be it justified or not in their opinions.

As none of my contemporaries have yet to support my reportage of what occurred, I offer below just one of numerous articles one could google, if one bothered.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/08/beatlemania-culture_n_4751677.html

Now back to our regularly scheduled program.

Komm gib mir deine Hand.

[mahtofire14]

Nice! Our local classic rock station is playing a Beatles A-Z marathon today.:banger

[Dave128]

Thank you very much for your opinion and letting me know that my opinion doesn't matter, Thomas.

Let it go, big fella.

[The Poet]

PM pending, Dave.

All you need is love.

[Porch Dweller]

Listening to the closing medley from Abbey Road. I could never get tired of it.

[The Poet]

Ohhhhhhh, LOOK OUT!!!

[icehog3]

Time after time
You refuse to even listen
I wouldn't mind
If I knew what I was missing

[The Poet]

Right or wrong, here is a cogent and informed "criticism" of the Fab Four I have found. If nothing else, it is an interesting opinion.

http://observer.com/2015/12/why-the-brilliance-of-the-beatles-should-piss-you-off/

[shark]

https://youtu.be/BGLGzRXY5Bw

[shark]

https://youtu.be/A_MjCqQoLLA

[shark]

https://youtu.be/O4_ghOG9JQM

[The Poet]

#9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 . . .

[jjirons69]

I hit the planet in '69. My parents had a large assortment of albums and that was my only source of music outside of an AM/FM/Shortwave radio (which was awesome in its own rite). There was one Beatles album in the pile, which I still own, "A Hard Day's Night". It is full of 2 minute songs and was a favorite of mine. There are tons of Beatle songs we all know and many we never hear on my iPod at work. At least twice a week one pops up. Always a smile.

Thanks for sharing, Thomas.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/e/e4/AHardDaysNightUSalbumcover.jpg

[The Poet]

It's been a hard day's night, and I've been working like a dog.

Thanks for "listening", Jamie.

[pnoon]

Huge Beatles fan here.
Too many great albums to pick a favorite - Please Please Me, Abbey Road, Revolver, Rubber Soul, The White Album, Sgt. Pepper. The list goes on and on.

[The Poet]

No love for Yellow Submarine or Magical Mystery Tour? Even these non-album albums had gems superior to much other stuff. :D

Corporation tee-shirt, stupid bloody Tuesday,
Man, you been a naughty boy, you let your face grow long.

[8zeros]

I'm fixing a hole where the rain gets in,
it keeps my mind from wandering where it will go.

I was not a great fan back in the day but I liked them. Now I have a hard time listening to an album.

[Ye Olde Phart]

I heard the news today, Oh boy, about a lucky man who made the grade.....

[The Poet]

Now we know how many holes it takes to fill the Albert Hall.

If it's Kanye, only one. I'd love to turn him off.

[icehog3]

Your mother's waiting for you
Wearing her high-heel shoes
And her low-neck sweater

[The Poet]

You should see Polythene Pam!

[shark]

Mean Mister Mustard sleeps in the park
Shaves in the dark trying to save paper
Sleeps in a hole in the road
Saving up to buy some clothes
Keeps a ten-bob note up his nose
Such a mean old man
Such a mean old man

[The Poet]

Hey, bulldog. I dig a pony.

[14holestogie]

Here I stand, head in hand
Turn my face to the wall
If she's gone, I can't go on
Feeling two foot small

[The Poet]

Cry baby cry. Sexy Sadie, ohhhhh, you'll get yours yet.

[icehog3]

I need a job, and I want to be a paperback writer.

Paperback writer.

[The Poet]

Christ, you know it ain't easy
You know how hard it can be
The way things are going
They're going to crucify me

[14holestogie]

Words are flowing out like endless rain into a paper cup

[The Poet]

The Walrus was Paul

[shark]

Words are flowing out like endless rain into a paper cup

Jai guru deva ohhhhmmmm....Or something like that

[shark]

cry baby cry. Sexy sadie, ohhhhh, you'll get yours yet.

i got blisters on my fingers!

[The Poet]

When you get to the bottom you go back to the top of the slide.

[icehog3]

I'm just a jealous guy.

[The Poet]

Honey pie you are making me crazy
I'm in love but I'm lazy

[icehog3]

Whatever gets you to the light
It's all right, it's all right

[The Poet]

Help!

[icehog3]

You need somebody?

[The Poet]

Not just anybody.

[icehog3]

I know you need someone.

[The Poet]

Help me if you can, I'm feeling down
And I do appreciate you being 'round.

[shark]

I'm just sitting here watching the wheels go round and round


I really love to watch them roll.

[The Poet]

I'd like to be under the sea
In an octopus' garden, in the shade.

[hotreds]

She was just seventeen- you KNOW what I mean!

My sister has every Beatles album ever issued, most original issues. Too bad we don't have that "dead babies" Yesterday and Today cover!

[icehog3]

Take a sad song, and make it better.

[The Poet]

Speaking words of wisdom

[icehog3]

Why she had to go, I don't know, she wouldn't say.

[The Poet]

No one will be watching us
Why don't we do it in the road?

[icehog3]

Well, now shake it up Baby....

[The Poet]

Cry baby cry
Make your mother sigh

[icehog3]

Little darlin' its been
A long cold lonely winter
Little darlin' it feels like
Years since you've been here

[The Poet]

Oh! Darling, please believe me
I'll never make it alone.
Believe me when I beg you
Don't ever leave me alone.

[icehog3]

I really want to see you
Really want to be with you

[The Poet]

Well the Ukraine girls really knock me out,
They leave the West behind.
And Moscow girls make me sing and shout
That Georgia's always on my-my-my-my-my-my-my-my-my-my mind.

[icehog3]

Let me hear your balalaika's ringing out

[The Poet]

While my guitar gently weeps

[icehog3]

Give me love
Give me love
Give me peace on earth
Give me light
Give me life
Keep me free from birth
Give me hope
Help me cope, with this heavy load

[The Poet]

Cool cherry cream and a nice apple tart,
I feel your taste all the time we're apart.
Coconut fudge really blows down those blues,
But you'll have to have them all pulled out after the savoy truffle.

[icehog3]

But it's gonna take money
A whole lot of spending money
It's gonna take plenty of money
To do it right child

[The Poet]

On the corner is a banker with a motorcar,
The little children laugh at him behind his back.
And the banker never wears a mac in the pouring rain.
Very strange.

[icehog3]

Hold you in his armchair, you can feel his disease

[The Poet]

Friday night arrives without a suitcase

[14holestogie]

When I wake up early in the morning
Lift my head, I'm still yawning
When I'm in the middle of a dream
Stay in bed, float upstream

[The Poet]

Woke up, fell out of bed,
Dragged a comb across my head.
Found my way downstairs and drank a cup,
And looking up I noticed I was late.

huh-huh-huh-huh

[icehog3]

Boy, you're going to carry that weight,
Carry that weight a long time

[The Poet]

When I hold you in my arms
And I feel my finger on your trigger
I know nobody can do me no harm
Because happiness is a warm gun, mama.

[icehog3]

Got to pay your dues if you wanna sing the blues

[The Poet]

All through the day, I me mine, I me mine, I me mine
All through the night, I me mine, I me mine, I me mine

[The Poet]

All through the day, I me mine, I me mine, I me mine
All through the night, I me mine, I me mine, I me mine

[14holestogie]

I ain't got no matches but I sure got a long way to go

[The Poet]

Do you want to know a secret?
Do you promise not to tell?

[icehog3]

How could she say to me
Love will find a way
Gather round all you clowns
Let me hear you say

Hey you've got to hide your love away

[Bruins Fan]

Expert textpert choking smokers
Don't you think the joker laughs at you?

[The Poet]

Hoo-hoo-hoo, hee-hee-hee, haa-haa-haa!

[Dave128]

Hey, Thomas......

http://www.cnn.com/2016/02/20/entertainment/john-lennons-hair-sells-at-auction-irpt/index.html

[The Poet]

Hey, Thomas......

http://www.cnn.com/2016/02/20/entertainment/john-lennons-hair-sells-at-auction-irpt/index.html

I don't care too much for money, money can't buy me love.

[icehog3]

I don't care too much for money, money can't buy me love.

It can on the West side of Chicago, Thomas. ;)

[The Poet]

Don't confuse rental with purchase, brother. :r

[icehog3]

Don't confuse rental with purchase, brother. :r

Just like beer.

[The Poet]

George Martin, the first and the last of the Fifth Beatles, is dead at age 90.

Ob-la-di, ob-la-da, rest in peace.

[Porch Dweller]

RIP, Mr. Martin. The world of music would not be the same without your contributions.

[shark]

George sounded like one heluva guy. RIP.

[Dave128]

R. I.P., Mr. Martin