Five Years of Listening to The Beatles

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On the ninth of September 2009 after four years of arduous work using the latest technology available, The Beatles’ discography from “Please, Please Me” from ’63 to 1970’s “Let It Be” were released, remastered in both mono and stereo mixes. For what must have been a long wait for those who owned the last remasters from 1987, every snare hit, string pluck and glorious melody were now able to be heard in a revitalised condition. “The Beatles: Rock Band” game was also released on the same date, allowing the young and old to play along with the four guys through their journey from the Cavern Club to Abbey Road studios. It was a good day for Beatles fans…. though it wasn’t really for me.

It isn’t that something bad happened to me on that day. It was another day in the opening week of a new year at school as far as I was concerned. I didn’t have a clue as to what was going on. I had never given the band a look before that month, but it was then that everything changed. Whilst casually browsing the Internet as you do, I noticed on the television that the now-defunct channel VH1 Classic was dedicating one half an hour slots everyday to The Beatles suitably titled “Beatlemania”. This was because of 09/09/09, but I didn’t know this so I assumed it was just a random move on their part to show The Beatles videos on music television.

Any of you who read my posts in the Blogger may remember a statement in my “Across the Universe” entry, where I controversially stated that when I was younger I didn’t actually think The Beatles existed. I say controversial – not a lot of people cared or probably even read the post in the first place – but I said that and then just moved on as if I hadn’t. I feel as if I should address this. To cut it short, the “Paul Is Dead” theories played a massive part, the supposed backward messages as well as the general consensus that The Beatles were ‘the greatest band of all time’ and Sgt. Pepper is the best album ever all threw me off a bit. They couldn’t be as good as everyone said they were. I bet I wouldn’t like them if I listened to their stuff. I listened to “Sgt. Pepper” to try and understand, and it still underwhelmed me. Maybe The Beatles just weren’t the band for me.

But I had to admit the sight of them together, laughing, joking and generally having a good time in videos such as “The Night Before“, “Penny Lane“, “Hey Bulldog“, “One After 909” on “Beatlemania” was honestly the first time I had watched the four men perform/mime their songs whilst being within the vicinity of each others’ personal space, which essentially nullified all prior thoughts I had about the group. The band actually had been on Earth for a period of time in the past. And the few of their songs that were shown on the programme I really got to like, especially “Penny Lane” I must have hummed that tune to myself as I was walking to school every day. Those were good days.

I felt as if I had missed out by listening to The Beatles at the age of fourteen. For some reason I thought that I should have known their songs for years by that time. But on the contrary there was so much to discover. I am just lucky that I started before it was too late. By the end of the year I had downloaded most of their albums and my obsession continued well into 2010, as I received “The Beatles: Rock Band” as a late Christmas present. Had a good time with that game, even if my interest in it faded as weeks went on. But its official forum was pretty cool. I was a member on there, and along with its community pulled off something of epic proportions. I’ll talk about that tomorrow.

The group were undeniably unique – the charisma and chemistry between all four members are qualities that arguably haven’t been matched – and their music was of such great quality that it continues to stand the test of time. From Key Stage 4 to the second year of university, The Beatles have been in my head. Here is to many more years.

Update.

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It is September. The sky gets more grey day after day, the temperature decreases, the leaves turn from a bright, tropical green to a rusty brown. The end of another year looms upon us. Change is coming, yet everything around us is changing as the clock ticks.

What am I talking about? I am not really sure myself. Some stream of consciousness for you right there.

Seriously though, how are you all doing? Hope you’ve all had a good summer. You followers may be wondering what I was doing in the month that I’ve been away from here. I can honestly say that I did not get up to anything much. Am I disappointed? Yeah. I saw my friends occasionally which was cool, but didn’t partake in anything that made me feel useful. Spent a lot of the holiday in my house listening to music, generally. But overall, I am well. That is really all that matters.

Blogs will start again soon, I promise you. Been thinking of doing one one the fifth year anniversary of The Beatles 09/09/09 remasters. Though I haven’t prepared for it, or started a draft. But that should be a good one. “My iPod” should follow soon after. How soon? I can’t answer that. But the F’s will come.

Cheers.

Jamie

My iPod #347: Green Day – Extraordinary Girl

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Well, well, well. It has come to this. After a month and a few weeks, I have reached the end of the ‘E’ section of My iPod. It has been good fun. I hope I have encouraged you to listen to some of the songs I hear on a regular basis, even if I don’t use any technical language or various adjectives in any of my posts. I write with feeling, you know, so who needs those things?

And so to end it is “Extraordinary Girl”, a track from Green Day’s album “American Idiot” which will have existed on this planet for ten years this coming September. It’s not their best one, but I would say that it is definitely the band’s last great album. “21st Century Breakdown” was ehhhhh…. (some songs from it are cool, but as a whole it’s not brilliant) and the “Uno,Dos,Tre!” trilogy….. not a big fan, I’ll leave it at that.

So anyone who owns “American Idiot” will know that it’s a rock opera and there’s a whole story narrated throughout the tracks. Anyone who doesn’t can look it up for themselves because I can’t be bothered to go through it all now :D.

What I will tell you is that “Extraordinary Girl” comes at the point where the main character has found love in “Whatsername”, the female character in the story, and the track takes on an omniscient narration on how both characters are feeling at this point. It is not going too well, and (spoilers) by the next track the relationship is over. Very sad. I think you have to listen to the album to feel the emotion, ’cause I know I sound like I don’t care at all.

That’s the song story-wise. Musically, it’s very nice to listen to. It begins with some sort of Middle Eastern sounding tribal percussion which quietly gets the ball rolling for 40 seconds until Tré smacks the snare drum and the track properly starts. Billie Joe throws in some alveolar trills here and there, and that along with the high guitar riff that plays during the introduction and breaks makes the song sound a bit Spanish sometimes. With relaxing, simple chord progressions and a steady pace to it “Extraordinary Girl” is a track to chill out to after “She’s a Rebel” and also something to get you eased up before the roller-coaster “Letterbomb”. Real sweet one.

AND THAT’S IT. The E’s are finished. Probably won’t be hearing from me for a while. I will try and think of something to put on here. You know I hate to leave you, but I’ll be back again.

My iPod #346: They Might Be Giants – Exquisite Dead Guy

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“Exquisite Dead Guy” is a weird song. It’s weirdly mysterious and dramatic at the same time even though not a lot happens in it. The only overdubs present are those on Linnell’s voice, and apart from that there some cellos, a bass and drums for most of its duration. As a result the track sounds a bit empty, always feeling like something additional needs to be added. But I like it like that. Maybe that’s what attracted me to it.

There are some thories about the ‘exquisite dead guy’ in question being Jesus Christ, and the ascending ‘ba-da-ba’ vocal line is meant to represent Morse code. Those things go way over my head. The song is one ‘of admiration of a departed hero‘, so that’s what I’ll go ahead and see it as.

It’s quite the unconventional track. If the aforementioned ‘ba-da-ba’ scat vocals are the chorus, then those make up the majority of the two minutes the song lasts for. And when those stop Linnell, in a low register, sings about seeing this dead man wherever he goes. Things become surprisingly introspective during the middle part, but the song then returns to repeat the vocal line twice more before coming to an abrupt end.

On a side note, the ‘E’ section finishes tomorrow. Time has flown. What song is next? Wait and see.

My iPod #345: They Might Be Giants – Experimental Film

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During all the years you are at primary school, you are free to do whatever you want. No exams, or pressures of having to go and work bothered you. Nothing matters. You have all the time in the world. I used that time to watch the television, and go on the Internet. It was on the latter that I found Homestar Runner one day when I was nine. I visited that website for the next five years until production died and the creators went on a hiatus from it. But I was always entertained by its hilarious characters, Strong Bad ‘SBEmails’ and toooons. Good times. I hear activity on the website is gonna start again soon. Can’t wait. Bring it on.

At that point, I didn’t know who They Might Be Giants were. So I pretty much watched the “Experimental Film” without thinking too much about it. It was an alright track, but I thought ‘They’ were just a random band who were friends with The Brother Chaps who asked them to do a video. It wasn’t until later on when it really hit me that my favourite Internet cartoon had collaborated with one of my favourite bands. Pretty weird. But I’m glad it happened.

Away from all the back story, “Experimental Film” starts off They Might Be Giants album “The Spine“. Written by John Linnell, the track is about a guy who is working on an experimental film. Quite obvious. He’s got it all planned out, and nobody knows about it. But during the chorus he reveals that everyone (friends, family, listeners?) will be involved in the making of this film alongside celebratory “YEAH” backing vocals, and is very ambitious about it’s outcome even if the film is beyond his own understanding.

Great way to begin an album. A standard three minute track with a very welcoming and happy tone about it. Homestar Runner has good taste.