The Daily Mail runs down the litany of "death" clues on the Abbey Road album cover.
Excerpt:
For Beatles obsessives with fevered imaginations, it was ultimate proof of the bizarre theory of the time - that Paul McCartney was, in fact, dead.
According to the legend, Paul had died in a car accident and been replaced by an impostor. The band, it was said, subsequently felt guilty about the deception, and so placed hidden clues on the album cover for their fans.
Thus, even today, despite the apparent rude health of McCartney, they insist that if you look closely at the images on the front and back of the album it is packed with deathly symbolism.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
"Miss him, miss him, miss him"
I just finished reading Turn Me On, Dead Man: The Complete Story of the Paul McCartney Death Hoax by Andru J. Reeve. It was terrific, and I plan to write some sort of review in the coming weeks. In the meantime, I want to highlight an insightful passage from Barbara Suczek's academic essay "The Curious Case of the 'Death' of Paul McCartney," the whole of which serves as the second appendix for Reeve's book. I found the essay itself to be tedious and overwrought, but the paragraph below expertly articulates one of the main conundrums that underlay the hoax.
It reads:
To account for the initial appearance of the rumor is, perhaps, the most perplexing aspect of the phenomenon. It seemed to emerge from out of nowhere, in response to nothing in particular and, as if at once to explain and justify its presence, the clues seemed similarly to emerge. But to realize the fact of the death depended upon recognizing the existence of the clues, and the clues were only recognizable if one were aware of the death. And so there is no external logic to guide a decision as to where the fundamental ambiguity lies- in the death or the clues- since it is impossible to establish a priority between them.
It reads:
To account for the initial appearance of the rumor is, perhaps, the most perplexing aspect of the phenomenon. It seemed to emerge from out of nowhere, in response to nothing in particular and, as if at once to explain and justify its presence, the clues seemed similarly to emerge. But to realize the fact of the death depended upon recognizing the existence of the clues, and the clues were only recognizable if one were aware of the death. And so there is no external logic to guide a decision as to where the fundamental ambiguity lies- in the death or the clues- since it is impossible to establish a priority between them.
The "Abbey Road" cover 40 years later
It's been much discussed this week that today marks the 40th anniversary of the brief photo shoot in north London that produced the Abbey Road album cover. Here are two articles on the subject.
I'm not sure what more there is to say about the image: it's simple, it's legendary, it's poignant, it's symbolic, it's triumphant. It gave added significance to zebra street crossings. It helped fuel the "Paul is dead" rumor-mongering. It showed John, Paul, George, and Ringo still as a band, still as The Beatles, though the end of their union was close at hand. And it's the cover of friggin Abbey Road, one of the greatest albums of all-time. This richness of history and meaning has as its genesis August 8, 1969, and it's the reason why that date is so worthy of note.
P.S. Last November, I did a post on a Wired article that explored the origins of zebra crossings. Here's the link.
I'm not sure what more there is to say about the image: it's simple, it's legendary, it's poignant, it's symbolic, it's triumphant. It gave added significance to zebra street crossings. It helped fuel the "Paul is dead" rumor-mongering. It showed John, Paul, George, and Ringo still as a band, still as The Beatles, though the end of their union was close at hand. And it's the cover of friggin Abbey Road, one of the greatest albums of all-time. This richness of history and meaning has as its genesis August 8, 1969, and it's the reason why that date is so worthy of note.
P.S. Last November, I did a post on a Wired article that explored the origins of zebra crossings. Here's the link.
Friday, August 7, 2009
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Two more reviews...
... of last night's show at Fenway. The first one comes from Blast Magazine out of Boston, and it was penned by Jill Vallecorsa, a blogger and writer whom I follow on Twitter.
Excerpt:
Not once during the two and a half hour set (plus two encores) did McCartney ever appear tired, not even for a second. The ever dapper musician is 67-years-old, although if you ignored the giant screens, from where I sat one would think he was still that young cherub-cheeked lad from Liverpool.
From the instantly recognizable opening of “Drive My Car” to the final resounding notes of “The End” there were predictable, nostalgic and some surprising song choices. A multitude of Beatles’ hits went down including “Got to Get You into My Life,” “Back in the USSR” and “Let it Be.” Whatever McCartney’s doing to preserve his vocal chords is working — he can still belt out “I’m Down” and “Helter Skelter” with no trouble at all.
The second review is courtesy of The Boston Globe.
Excerpt:
McCartney is not an ostentatious performer, but he’s a lovable ham. A few songs in, he removed his buttoned-up jacket to reveal a white Oxford shirt with red suspenders. On two occasions, he rallied the ladies to scream by casually mentioning how the Beatles could never hear themselves in the old days because of the deafening shrieks. You have to hand it to him: This guy knows he’s beloved and loves his fans right back.
Excerpt:
Not once during the two and a half hour set (plus two encores) did McCartney ever appear tired, not even for a second. The ever dapper musician is 67-years-old, although if you ignored the giant screens, from where I sat one would think he was still that young cherub-cheeked lad from Liverpool.
From the instantly recognizable opening of “Drive My Car” to the final resounding notes of “The End” there were predictable, nostalgic and some surprising song choices. A multitude of Beatles’ hits went down including “Got to Get You into My Life,” “Back in the USSR” and “Let it Be.” Whatever McCartney’s doing to preserve his vocal chords is working — he can still belt out “I’m Down” and “Helter Skelter” with no trouble at all.
The second review is courtesy of The Boston Globe.
Excerpt:
McCartney is not an ostentatious performer, but he’s a lovable ham. A few songs in, he removed his buttoned-up jacket to reveal a white Oxford shirt with red suspenders. On two occasions, he rallied the ladies to scream by casually mentioning how the Beatles could never hear themselves in the old days because of the deafening shrieks. You have to hand it to him: This guy knows he’s beloved and loves his fans right back.
A review of Paul's show...
... by the Boston Herald.
Excerpt:
He rocked new songs: “Highway” boomed like Cream with electronica overtones, while “Sing the Changes,” complete with Edge guitar and Larry Mullen drums, came off like top-notch U2. And he rocked old songs: “I’m Down” had a Ramones vibe, and “Helter Skelter” became a wicked sonic mess.
Between rockers (“Band On The Run, “Back In The USSR” and literally a dozen more), Paul got gushy. He recounted the origin of “Blackbird” as a civil rights ballad, dedicated “Here Today” to John Lennon and saluted George Harrison with “Something,” played on a ukulele the Quiet One gave him. Hmm, where was the Ringo Starr love?
Excerpt:
He rocked new songs: “Highway” boomed like Cream with electronica overtones, while “Sing the Changes,” complete with Edge guitar and Larry Mullen drums, came off like top-notch U2. And he rocked old songs: “I’m Down” had a Ramones vibe, and “Helter Skelter” became a wicked sonic mess.
Between rockers (“Band On The Run, “Back In The USSR” and literally a dozen more), Paul got gushy. He recounted the origin of “Blackbird” as a civil rights ballad, dedicated “Here Today” to John Lennon and saluted George Harrison with “Something,” played on a ukulele the Quiet One gave him. Hmm, where was the Ringo Starr love?
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
"Please Please Me" track by track
Below are my takes on all of the songs off Please Please Me:
- "I Saw Her Standing There"
- "Misery"
- "Anna (Go to Him)"
- "Chains"
- "Boys"
- "Ask Me Why"
- "Please Please Me"
- "Love Me Do"
- "P.S. I Love You"
- "Baby It's You"
- "Do You Want to Know a Secret"
- "A Taste of Honey"
- "There's a Place"
- "Twist and Shout"
- "I Saw Her Standing There"
- "Misery"
- "Anna (Go to Him)"
- "Chains"
- "Boys"
- "Ask Me Why"
- "Please Please Me"
- "Love Me Do"
- "P.S. I Love You"
- "Baby It's You"
- "Do You Want to Know a Secret"
- "A Taste of Honey"
- "There's a Place"
- "Twist and Shout"
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