Beatles Over-Hype

Nice to hear you had a positive experience with your daughter, Fred. It's special to experience Macca live with your kids. So much of a live performance has to do with the energy exchange between the audience and the artist. I get the sense that Paul is still doing it for the rush of the energy he exchanges back and forth with his fans. And it's a huge amount of energy. And emotional.

The Beatles are so NOT over hyped. Now as for Bob Dylan.......................!!!!

Sorry, I just don't get him at all.

Your loss but the forum has just done that one very recently.

just curious,what is the music you listen to now that is so good by ''modern standards''?

The answer is blowing in the wind!

Rival Sons, King King, Temperance movement are some really good new bands around at the moment along with Chantel McGregor, Kyla Brox, Joanne Shaw Taylor, Eddie Martin, Ian Parker, Nimmo Brothers and many others who are all greatly talented but unfortunately in this sad age of X Factor and old timer's living on the past glories won't get the break they deserve.

One old timer that can still do the business though is Buddy Guy, now that's talent that's influenced everybody including the Beatles.

I grew up with Zeppelin, Eagles, Supertramp etc and only listened to the Beatles later expecting much. I haven't heard all their album's but Sgt Pepper is often voted one of the best so made sure I heard that, but no, not for me.  

Everyone entitled to their opinion and I still don't get their longevity but can understand to some extent why the 60's generation took them to their hearts but think if I had been into the 60's music scene I would have probably sided with the Stone's.

I did expect the response I got and am not at all surprised as the UK are especially defensive towards them.

Thank you all for your opinion's.       

Have you read the Beatles biography on the AllMusic website (and probably other US sources as well)? I seem to remember they were quite well received in the US at the time. Is that UK bias?

Malcom Mclaren is dead. Hire a Medium!

The Stones were so much better. 

See, the thing with the Beatles is they were just so cheesy.

Now, the Stones on the other hand, they were just so cool. 

Even the Who were better than the Beatles. Far better!

Blimey Led Zep was too. 

So in all honesty, yes the Beatles are massively overrated IMHO!

They did have their moments though, some songs were / are great...

You're gonna have to do a bit better than that I'm afraid.

Having read this topic I feel obliged to add my tuppence worth. Only those who were around in the 50's and 60's can appreciate the impact of the Beatles. In the UK we had been fed with american pop artists, and loved them, but we had no British heavyweight answer. Then along came the Beatles and this was something quite spectacularly different. Their style and music took everything by storm and then they made it in America. Suddenly British music ruled the world, which hitherto had been quite inconceivable. listening now to their records clearly reveals the simplicity of some of the arrangements and the songs, but those were the days when a live 'rock' band (they were groups inthose days!) would perform with nothing more than the basic amplifiers, no separate PA of any consequence. What I would love would be to hear how the Beatles performances would be like with modern sound systems; that would be quite something, and a feel for it can be gleaned from Paul McCartney's gigs.

To repeat, if you weren't there, you can't appreciate the impact. That's your sad loss, I'm afraid.

It's kind of hard to call a band that sold a billion records over-hyped, but here's the list of bands that have sold more records than The Beatles:

The cool kids at my school in 1969-70 who derided Abbey Road (Ringo's solo - 'not Ginger Baker') and Let It Be were the same kids who liked Mott the Hoople and Deep Purple. (I remember voices of dissent as early as Sgt Pepper, so it wasn't always easy being a Beatles fan even then).

I like to think that history has been kinder to my viewpoint.

PS I like the Who too but a lot of their output, if you actually listen to all the LPs, even including Tommy, was a bit below par. Same could be said of the Stones. The Beatles made consistently great records from 1962 to 1969. Led Zep aren't really from the same mould.

Musically I don't think they were any better than a lot of bands at the time, creatively, absolutely!

I don't feel it's any loss at all but understand your comments regarding being around at the time, A friend of mine was there at the cavern, had all the records she could find and the Beatles were and still are her favourite.  She's tried her best but has failed to change my opinion.

I remember the impact of hearing Hendrix and Zeppelin for the first time and that grabbed me by the scruff into their genre, something the Beatles have failed to do.

Don't think so.  Musically they all outstrip the Beatles by some way.  That's my point their's so many talented musicians now but if you don't get the breaks or the timing not right it won't happen however good you are. You can't seriously believe that Ringo for instance was a top  drummer, Lennon even said he wasn't the best drummer.  It was for the image that he fitted at the time.  

The management did a brilliant job for them along with as I said some decent tunes and I suppose it was a breath of fresh air to the kids at the time.

Some of the World's biggest star's have come along not necessary musically brilliant but saying something different at a time the musical world wants a change.  This happened for the Beatles, Bob Dylan, Sex Pistols and many others.  Most of us relate to whatever we grew up with.  

Welcome back...

I've interviewed him a couple of times and he certainly does!

Indeed, Kev. I saw him in one of those HARDtalk interviews on the BBC and came to the conclusion that the  guy is a complete pillock who thinks the sun shines up his Ar5e!

He's a, er, complicated chap for sure - but an absolute gift for journalists and interviewers. I rather liked him.

I do understand Kev and forgive you. That M9 was not going to pay for it iself after all.