The British Invasion

Man, this has been some winter (Polar Vortex be damned!). Thankfully, February is also the month of love, and there has been plenty of that to spare... as four wise men once sang, "love is all you need."

This month also marked the 50th anniversary of the Beatles' arrival on North American shores. Of course there were plenty of tributes and media attention, as there seem to be with every Fab Four milestone. I was thinking I would resist the temptation, but recent reports have actually taught me a thing or two about the four lads that I didn't know, and made me appreciate their influence all the more.

"The Fabs" were the first band I ever loved. Any music I have listened to (since becoming hooked at age ten) has been judged by that melodic template. I always find myself gravitating towards British pop/rock, but was surprised to learn that prior to the winter of 1964, acts from the UK were seen as some kind of novelty.

We attended a great lecture recently, given by Skidmore College Music Professor/Chair Gordon R. Thompson. An ethnomusicologist, Thompson is also a Beatles' scholar--teaching courses on the subject, and authoring such books as Please Please Me: British Pop, Inside Out. His illustrated/musical talk was conducted in various locations around the Capital Region, and we caught it at Schenectady's great public library on February 8 (the weekend that the Beatles made history on The Ed Sullivan Show). 

It was interesting to learn about how the band tried to release successful records here in the States before 1964, but they all flopped (Please Please Me and She Loves You included). It wasn't until American media learned of the phenomenon occurring across Europe-- in particular, 1963's Roayl Command Performance-- and began reporting about "Beatlemania." 

At the same time, as Thompson pointed out, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. A high-profile story on the band was bumped from Walter Cronkite's nightly news, and the nation went into mourning. The lecture theorized that the Beatles music and energy acted as a welcome relief after the devastating news. I did not know that the band refused to visit America until they had a top hit, and that is exactly what they did-- they didn't tour here until "I Want To Hold Your Hand" reversed their fortunes.

Another thing I did not realize was that host Ed Sullivan had to wait on the tarmac of London's Heathrow Airport, while fans reacted to the Beatles' incoming flight arrival. That is what clued him into the band, and booked them on the show. Last summer Sarah and I caught a "Live at Letterman" taping at the former Ed Sullivan Theater, and I remember being amazed at how small the studio seemed-- this is where John, Paul, George, and Ringo were introduced to the U.S. on February 9, 1964.

On the night of this anniversary, they aired a Grammy tribute to the Beatles on CBS-TV. It was alright-- fun to see Paul and Ringo playing together again, but pretty obvious that, for the most part, the modern acts trying to cover their songs really lacked what made the band and their songs so special. Stevie Wonder was there, and did a pretty funky version of "We Can Work It Out"-- I expected as much, as he released a cool cover of that song back in 1970. Sadly, the recent tribute show might serve as a telling example of how much spontaneity, craft, and soul is lost in modern pop/rock. Paul and Ringo just blew everyone else away when they took the stage. 

Looking back, I just discovered another fantastic 1970s cover version of the Beatles: "I Want To Hold Your Hand", recorded by the Reverend Al Green-- I had never heard it before, but it has kept me smiling ever since:

Another idea that I hadn't really thought about was that the Beatles, when they were first starting, were basically giving back their own covers of popular American rock music-- Elvis, Chuck Berry, early Motown-- which they loved. Obviously they put their own Liverpudlian spin on it (I always get a kick out of hearing George Harrison's heavily accented singing in those days). 

Anyway, I thought I wasn't going to get sucked in, but so it goes... once again, eagerly devouring information about the Beatles and their lasting legacy. Beyond their music, it's interesting to learn about the cultural aspects-- a new generation defining their own times. "Mad Men" learning to coexist with the hippies. 1964 was an important year-- my parents got married-- so I can't help but find myself intrigued by the changes that were occurring at the time.

There have been countdowns in the last month, so here's one more: my attempt at a list of my all-time, favorite Beatles songs (with help from the excellent The Beatles: A Hard Day's Write to remember them all):

-"Please Please Me" / "From Me to You"

-"Twist and Shout" / "Misery"

-"I Want To Hold Your Hand"

-"Ticket To Ride"

-"You Can't Do That" 
"Nowhere Man"

-"We Can Work It Out"

-"I'm Looking Through You"

-"Eleanor Rigby"

-"I'm Only Sleeping"

-"A Day in the Life"

-"Lovely Rita" / "Good Morning Good Morning"

"All You Need Is Love"

"Hey Jude"
"All Together Now"

"Happiness Is a Warm Gun" / "I'm So Tired" / "Bungalow Bill"

"While My Guitar Gently Weeps"

"Across The Universe" rarities version

"Something"

"Here Comes The Sun"

"I Want You" 

It's all good, really. I'm not such a fan of the Let It Be album, but this past month I FINALLY watched the film. It gave me a new appreciation for the band's skill, even as they were disintegrating. The scenes of the four working out songs in the studio confirmed how skilled they were. I have been reading Malcolm Gladwell's book Outliers, and he mentions the Beatles as having one of the key elements of "genius"-- the idea that it takes about 10,000 hours of practicing to achieve mastery in a field. What I hadn't thought about was the Beatles were already experts by the time they hit our shores-- having played endless hours in the rough pubs of Hamburg, Germany.

It's hard to imagine another band coming along and achieving their lasting impact, but my early love of the Beatles (a generation removed) would manifest itself in a love for 80s and 90s Britpop, and plenty of exciting bands in the time since. 

Ten years ago I had my own "Ed Sullivan" moment, as I managed to land the first televised interview with the UK band, Keane here in the U.S. The band has just released a retrospective of their career (according to Q magazine they are taking a "hiatus," and singer Tom Chaplin is looking at a solo album). To commemorate, I recently posted my original, "uncut" Berkshire Soundstage interview with the lads. I plan to post similar interviews from my "really big shew" (as Sullivan would put it).

"In the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make..." The Beatles will no doubt continue to impress generations of fans and musicians to come, so... alright, keep those anniversary tributes coming.