Monday reads

- On the cultural etymology of "gear".

- "10 musicians who saw the Beatles standing there."

Fantastic line from Billy Joel: "And when I saw four guys who didn't look like they'd come out of the Hollywood star mill, who played their own songs and instruments, and especially because you could see this look in John Lennon's face -- and he looked like he was always saying: 'F--- you!' -- I said: 'I know these guys, I can relate to these guys, I am these guys.' This is what I'm going to do -- play in a rock band'."

- USA Today ranks the top 12 Beatles songs. Quality effort overall. Rearrange the order a bit, swap out "The Fool on the Hill" and the Abbey Road medley for "In My Life" and "I Am the Walrus", and you're in the same ballpark as what my list would look like.

Also from USA Today: "The Great Album Debate: Is 'Pepper' The Beatles' best?" The sooner we reach the end of Pepper's reign (we're getting there, it seems), the better. Revolver belongs on top.

- Finally, here's an amusing rundown of The Beatles' "decidedly mixed" reception in America. In this case, "decidedly mixed" = hostile, scathing, impossibly condescending, savage, unsparing, and so forth.

Obvious fact: The Beatles had great voices

If you haven't listened to the vocals-only Beatles tracks that have been floating around the Internet of late, you really should. They cast in sharp, crystal-clear relief some truths we've long known: the Fabs' harmonized voices interlocked with beautiful precision; John often sang as if everything was on the line; and Paul could really wail. The place to start is the Side Two song cycle of Abbey Road (below). There's no need for me to rhapsodize about what a dazzling display of pop craftsmanship it is; that's self-evident. But I will say this: even with just the isolated vocal, "Golden Slumbers" is still as spirited and reviving as ever. Again, Paul could wail.

(If the video is removed, go here.)

"Pop & Hiss," the L.A. Times' music blog, has more.

Weekend reading (and watching)

- "The Beatles Come to Town - 1963 British Pathé video"

- "How the Beatles' Yellow Submarine gave rise to modern animation"

- "The Beatles: For 15 Minutes, Tremendous" - The New York Times' original review of Abbey Road.

- "Why The Beatles are bigger than ever"

- "John Lennon and George McGovern: Another Side of the 1972 Campaign"

- Lastly, Lennon videos galore and more.

The lost guitar solo from "Here Comes the Sun"

We didn't know that it was lost until it was recently found by George's son Dhani, Sir George Martin, and his son Giles at Abbey Road Studios. (More here.)

Though I think the solo - which sounds like it was lifted from "The End" - clashes somewhat with the soothing, warm-breeze feel of "Here Comes the Sun," it's still cool to hear.

Watch and listen:


(If the video is removed, go here.)

Today in Beatles history

This day in 1969 witnessed a brief photo-shoot that would turn out to produce one of the most legendary album covers in music history. In my opinion, it doesn't get any better than the Abbey Road zebra crossing.

Excerpt from the Gibson article:
The album’s iconic cover, with all four Beatles walking across a zebra crossing on Abbey Road outside of the EMI Studios, was based on sketch ideas from McCartney. At 11:30 a.m. on this day in 1969, photographer Iain Macmillan was given 10 minutes to get the shot he wanted while a policeman held up traffic. Macmillan climbed a stepladder in the middle of Abbey Road and photographed the band as they walked, single file, from left to right. With Lennon in front, followed by Ringo Starr, McCartney and George Harrison, all members except for Harrison were dressed in suits, while Harrison wore blue jeans and a blue denim shirt.

When rumors of McCartney’s death began to surface, the imagery from Abbey Road’s cover helped fuel the nonsense, with many seeing each band member’s attire symbolizing some role in a funeral sequence. Lennon, dressed in a white suit, was seen as a sort of evangelical preacher, while Ringo, dressed in black, was a mourner. Harrison, with his denim pants and shirt, represented a gravedigger, while Paul, dressed in a nice suit and barefoot, was the decedent (though many believed it wasn’t actually McCartney in the photo but a look-alike). The fact that Paul is out of step with the other three further fanned the flames of his untimely demise.

Best three songs in a row - Pt. 12

Parts one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, and eleven.

Album: Abbey Road
Three songs: "I Want You (She's So Heavy)," "Here Comes the Sun," and "Because"
Comments: The last album that The Beatles recorded but their penultimate release, Abbey Road stands as one of the group's best and most distinct offerings. A majority of the time, it's also my personal favorite. Allow me to quote myself:

Abbey Road is just so rewarding on multiple levels. It boasts outstanding individual tracks: "Something," "Here Comes the Sun," "Because," "You Never Give Me Your Money," etc. And the Side Two song cycle? Stunningly inventive, richly whimsical, and tastefully indulgent, it's one of pop music's singular creations. Together, all of this music results in an album of impeccable tone and feel, even as it's full of striking contrasts as well. It has a unity and completeness that its free-flowing, capricious sounds would seem to belie. It's an album of technical artistry and thick pop pleasure. It feels both casually and meticulously crafted. And it's a classic, but one that rarely comes off like it's trying to attain that status.

This album, not Let It Be, is The Beatles' swan song, and I don't think they could've made a better one. For whatever reason, it's such a pleasure in ways that other Beatles albums just aren't.

As far as its best three songs in a row are concerned, you've already seen what I decided on: "I Want You (She's So Heavy)," "Here Comes the Sun," and "Because." My thinking followed these lines: The Side Two medley is what first comes to mind when I reflect on Abbey Road. But because it's largely made up of either very short songs or song snippets, it didn't factor much into my consideration of the best three in a row. With the exception of the medley opener, "You Never Give Me Your Money," those songs need each other to flourish. Yes, "Mean Mr. Mustard" makes for a fine time on its own, but how much more do we value it because of the way "Sun King" snugly gives birth to it? Or because of how effectively it pairs with "Polythene Pam?" The same could be said for "She Came in Through the Bathroom Window," "Golden Slumbers," "The End," etc. This, then, shifted my focus to Abbey Road's first nine tracks, from "Come Together" through "You Never Give Me Your Money."

Next thought: If any song in that stretch but "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" had followed "Come Together" and "Something," then those three would've come out on top. Both "Come Together" and "Something" are classics, the former so playfully hip and the latter so delicately emotive (and compellingly vague). As it is, "Hammer" - a fun but exceptionally lightweight number - was too much of a burden on the other two. From there, after dismissing "Oh! Darling" and "Octopus's Garden," I narrowed it down to a four-song set: "I Want You (She's So Heavy)," "Here Comes the Sun," "Because," and "You Never Give Me Your Money."

Now all four of these range from very good to great. 1) Long and full of obsessive repetition, "I Want You (She's So Heavy)" is suffused with John's burning desire for Yoko, and both George's thickly overdubbed guitar part and Paul's work on the bass are top-notch; 2) I've never heard or read anyone venture an ill-word about "Here Comes the Sun," George's balmy daydream of a song. 3) The treated harmonies on "Because" make for the most hypnotic moments in The Beatles' catalogue; and 4) The variety of tones and emotions that Paul brings to bear on "Money" really elevates the song, and that romping piano part is irresistible.

Having to decide between "I Want You" and "Money" to complete the trio, I went with the former. What an absorbingly weird song it is. As noted on Wikipedia:

The song is an unusual Beatles composition for a variety of reasons, namely its length (nearly eight minutes), small number of lyrics (only fourteen different words are sung), three-minute descent through the same repeated guitar chords (a similar arpeggiated figure appears in another Lennon contribution to the album, "Because" as well as McCartney's "Oh! Darling"), and abrupt ending.

Thus the matter was settled.

"Abbey Road"...

... in haiku form.

1) "Come Together"
2) "Something"
3) "Maxwell's Silver Hammer"
4) "Oh! Darling"
5) "Octopus's Garden"
6) "I Want You (She's So Heavy)"
7) "Here Comes the Sun"
8) "Because"
9) "You Never Give Me Your Money"
10) "Sun King"
11) "Mean Mr. Mustard"
12) "Polythene Pam"
13) "She Came in Through the Bathroom Window"
14) "Golden Slumbers"
15) "Carry That Weight"
16) "The End"
17) "Her Majesty"

Wednesday haiku - "Her Majesty"

The Fabs' shortest track,
"Her" playfully mocks the Queen
while toasting her too.

Tuesday haiku - "The End"

A jamming send-off,
"The End" closes as it should:
with warm thoughts of love.

Monday haiku - "Carry That Weight"

With the phrase "that weight",
Paul meant The Beatles' problems,
which, then, were many.

Friday haiku - "Golden Slumbers"

With its lustrous strings
and Paul's expressive vocal,
"Golden" stirs the heart.

Tuesday haiku - "She Came in Through the Bathroom Window"

"She" was a Fabs fan,
a mischievous "Apple Scruff"
who dabbled in theft.

Monday haiku: "Polythene Pam"

She's "killer diller",
and she's "attractively built" -
she's "Polythene Pam".

Saturday haiku - "Mean Mr. Mustard"

Spawned in India,
"Mean" is about a miser
with cash "up his nose".

Tuesday haiku - "Sun King"

A wispy pleasure,
"Sun King" is easygoing
and multilingual.

Friday haiku - "You Never Give Me Your Money"

"Give" starts the medley,
and shifts from calm to rowdy
to nursery-sweet.

Thursday haiku - "Because"

Lush and hypnotic,
"Because" has classical roots,
namely Beethoven.

Monday haiku - "I Want You (She's So Heavy)"

Written for Yoko,
"Want" is long, repetitious,
and lit by John's zeal.

Friday haiku - "Here Comes the Sun"

A classic from George,
"Sun" is full of sweet relief,
like a balmy breeze.

Thursday haiku - "Octopus's Garden"

It's escapist fun;
an ocean-floor fantasy;
a vision of ease.