Any Beatles fans here?

Despite their often alleged greatness, I never listen to them or buy their albums, and can't think of anyone else I know who does either. There are lots of other great bands of their era who I think have stood the test of time far better, and who seem to be much more widely played in my experience - not least their bad-boy rivals, the Rolling Stones.

" Wings?  They're only the band The Beatles could have been ".  Alan Partridge.

The Beatles were the greatest band of a generation, changing the way music was written and recorded. 

1967 with the release of the St Pepper album was pivotal, it changed the face of popular music.

Their was an excellent documentary on the BBC, on this very subject, made because it is the fiftieth anniversary of the album

They sound very dated now

Bananahead posted:

They sound very dated now

I agree - compared with the mindless, tuneless, banal tripe of the last couple of decades, The Beatles sound very dated. Thanks be!!

I am lucky enough to have seen them a few times,  First time was in '63 when they were a support act on a tour headed up by Roy Orbison (the then girlfriends heart throb) .  Then again (new girlfriend in tow) 6 months later when they had swapped with RO to be top of the bill.     After that I saw them a few more times, Leeds & Glasgow & my last was NME at Wembley in '66,  it was mayhem with the audience noise & after that I gave up;  and as it happens, so did the Beatles, no more touring.   Sgt. Pepper is one of my regular go to albums, (still waiting for a 24-bit release)   after that my favourite albums are, the 'White' album & Abbey Road.

Agree with the above, The White album and Abbey Road are both superb albums.

Yes, but I haven't played their stuff much in recent years due to over exposure during the 60's and 70's. 

Oddly enough, I picked up the 1 compilation in a charity shop at the weekend for £1, and listened to the rip earlier inthe week. It's interesting to hear the catchy pure pop of the earlier hits turn into more sophisticated and complex music, I really enjoyed it, thought the songs still held up well, and Macca couldn't half write a tune. I still listen  to the albums, Abbey Road is a regular go-to, I'd class myself as a fan. (And I'm very jealous of Mike-B.)

Dozey posted:

Yes, but I haven't played their stuff much in recent years due to over exposure during the 60's and 70's. 

After their heyday I stopped playing them, after all I could probably scat (very badly I'd add) every note since Hard Days Night. But from the 90s I've regularly come back to them (Help! and onwards, skipping Let It Be) and appreciate the music even more, especially with the inherent nostalgia factor of being reduced to my teens again.

The 24/96 Sgt. Pepper remix is awesome, and I play the orchestral side of Yellow Submarine as much as any of them (perhaps I shouldn't have admitted that...)

white alum should have been reduced to one  then it would be their number one .the pepper album gets more praise now than it did when released,.still a fine album, at that time I preferred pet sounds.  I have the mono box set that is first class too

Gary - 24/96 Sgt. Pepper remix ???  where can you get that,  all the usual sites on have 16 bit.  Did you get it from the DVD/BR 5.1.      I 'borrowed' a 16-bit copy of the 2017 release & agree its a step up from the 2009 remaster.  I'll live with that,  but will be still be  waiting for a 24-bit to become available - methinks the record co have missed a trick with this.  

Eoink - re (And I'm very jealous of Mike-B.),  you would for sure be jealous if you knew the other bands I watched during the '60's   The list is endless - favourite venues (mostly London & HC's)  were The Marquee, Eel Pie Island, Klooks Kleek, Troubadour & Middle Earth ...............  at least one gig a week,  some weeks it was a gig a nite.  (thats not the latest ethernet stnd)  

Mike-B posted:

Gary - 24/96 Sgt. Pepper remix ???  where can you get that,  all the usual sites on have 16 bit.  Did you get it from the DVD/BR 5.1.      I 'borrowed' a 16-bit copy of the 2017 release & agree its a step up from the 2009 remaster.  I'll live with that,  but will be still be  waiting for a 24-bit to become available - methinks the record co have missed a trick with this.  

Eoink - re (And I'm very jealous of Mike-B.),  you would for sure be jealous if you knew the other bands I watched during the '60's   The list is endless - favourite venues (mostly London & HC's)  were The Marquee, Eel Pie Island, Klooks Kleek, Troubadour & Middle Earth ...............  at least one gig a week,  some weeks it was a gig a nite.  (thats not the latest ethernet stnd)  

IIRC, the 24 bit albums were issued on the Apple-shaped USB stick.

I was a regular at Eel Pie, mostly on Sunday night for some reason. All sorts of folk got over there, it was a veritable who's who of sixties pop & rock stars. A penny to the little old lady to get across the bridge, stamp on your arm to show you'd paid. Happy days!

Ok, here's the thing. The Beatles are the beginning, middle and end of the top division of music - everyone (even The mighty Fall) comes somewhere lower down and I'll let you argue amongst yourselves about your priorities there. This is irrefutable. As the late great John Peel said (though in a slightly different context) - you may dispute this, but I'm right and you're wrong.

I am beyond insanely jealous of anyone who saw them, being a relative youngster myself, but happily the albums largely stand the test of time. Hear Revolver and you might as well not bother to listen to indie guitar bands of the 90s again (although, of course, I do). Abbey Road is a regular go-to, almost always to be heard in one go. I've Got A Feeling on Let It Be is worth coming back to. Why Apple don't make a mint from releasing the complete rooftop concert is beyond me.

Current Desert Island Discs track - "Baby You're A Rich Man".

nickpeacock posted:

Ok, here's the thing. The Beatles are the beginning, middle and end of the top division of music - everyone (even The mighty Fall) comes somewhere lower down and I'll let you argue amongst yourselves about your priorities there. This is irrefutable. As the late great John Peel said (though in a slightly different context) - you may dispute this, but I'm right and you're wrong.

<snip>

Without JSB. the Beatles could never have been.

Your statement is refuted.

Mike-B posted:

Gary - 24/96 Sgt. Pepper remix ???  where can you get that,  all the usual sites on have 16 bit.  Did you get it from the DVD/BR 5.1.      I 'borrowed' a 16-bit copy of the 2017 release & agree its a step up from the 2009 remaster.  I'll live with that,  but will be still be  waiting for a 24-bit to become available - methinks the record co have missed a trick with this.  

 

Yes, I ripped the Blu-Ray audio from the 50th set.

OK band AFAIC, they didn't make a huge impact on my life. We were listening to blues and other import and then  Ska and Who.  Beatles made some good albums, bat there was a massive amount of hype surrounding their achievements. Any one interested can find many of the so called firsts were available in studio work of others. It may be that SPLHCB might be the first commercial album to use many of these techniques.

Even John Lennon stole the idea of his hat from someone else. 

Beatle suits were original but who would want to look like that? 

The Beatles music, changed the way pop music was written and played. 

It's transcended all other music genres, despite virtually no media hype, limited TV, no smart phones, no YouTube ect ect ect

What they achieved is truly remarkable regardless if you like their music or not.

The cavern club in Liverpool  is famous to this day, with people still visiting every day. How many venues do tourists visit based on the fact a pop band played their in the sixties? 

it's the Beatles that put Liverpool on the map....

Their achievements are truly remarkable 

In 2011 I was outside Penn Station/Madison Square Garden, and all over NYC were seen the likes of this:

Name another band that would get such treatment a full 41 years after they last ever recorded together.

Like them or not, they changed pop/rock music in a way no one else has...that's why every pretender is dubbed "the next Beatles".

I have to take issue with whoever it was said that the White Album should have been reduced to a single album. IMHO it is probably their finest work - and by that I mean when taken as a whole. Even Revolution 9 is an essential part. Difficult to listen to, maybe, but still part of the whole experience.

I don't play them much now, but each album has special memories for me even though I didn't really get into them until the late '70s. 

We are all in a better place thanks to the Beatles.

(IMHO)

The Beatles were creative, progressive, artistic, and techno-savvy in the studio, but beyond all that had an ability to generate basic pop hooks, run with them, and efficiently smith a multitude of songs in various genres that people want to hear over and over. In their time, through succeeding generations, and still today there is a genuine, fresh energy to appreciate in their sound.

If you don't get that, fine. The Beatles didn't reach you. I'm simply happy I "get it". They work for me. Based on record sales, millions and by some accounts billions of others "get it" and The Beatles' music will presist and remians valuable today in every sense of the word. Peace out.

This is my personal tribute to John Lennon,...

The Beatles were more popular then Jesus..... 

Go burn you records, I don't care......

I believe that it is traditional in The Beatles threads for someone to ask the following.

Would The Beatles be as successful or popular if they arrived now or were they simply a product of their time?

For me, fwiw, growing up in the '60s, their earlier pop records (please please me, help, etc.) were good, but by no means the be-all and end-all.  There were so many good bands producing great records (and rubbish bands producing rubbish), so many different genres that I wouldn't have said at the time that they were the best or outstanding (though there were those that did - and those that said the Stones , Kinks, Beach Boys... were the best).  There were many outstanding records at the time - Wheels of Fire, I Bring You Fire and others.  And of course Pink Floyd...  Then came Sgt Pepper's - that was a game changer.  There were still plenty of other great records and groups, but Sgt Pepper really was a significant shift.  And they kept producing great records (and some not-so-great).  But there were plenty of other hugely innovative and influential groups.  So for me, yes, the Beatles were one of the most influential groups, but not the most, or the only.

Bananahead posted:

Would The Beatles be as successful or popular if they arrived now or were they simply a product of their time?

I don't think anyone doubts The Beatles were a magical aligning of the planets in their time and space. To their credit, they seized the moment and worked incredibly hard at their craft, never resting on their laurels. What can get lost in the collective talents of McCartney, Lennon and Harrison residing in the same group is just how industrious the band was, especially during the first five years of their success which included limited time in the studio due to extensive touring. Have any other pop bands put out 12 successful studio albums in an eight-year period?

Of course The Beatles' popularity would differ if they arrived now. Same can be said for Chuck Berry, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, the mainstream Fleetwood Mac, Nirvana or whoever, so it seems a rather moot point of discussion.