Ozzy was right - the Beatles allowed the world to break free from what then was the locked in status quo and allow the world to be themselves as individuals and experiment and create. It continues and we have the Beatles to thank.
Back in the 60s & 70s, we didn’t pay much attention to genres. We just listened to all kinds of music. When the Beatles stopped touring, they got serious in the studio. They experimented. They tried different things. Tried doing things that others didn’t think could be done. We are eternally grateful
Watch that "we" part. Remember the Disco Demolition Night of 1979? That happened b/c many people got sick & tired of a particular genre. Never try to speak for an entire generation.
Dude there is a reason that they are considered the most influential band ever. They had all sorts of sounds and they pioneered many different types of music.
Dude, you have only begun to discover the Beatles.... "Get Back", "The Long and Winding Road", "Helter Skelter", "Come Together", "Blackbird", "Eleanor Rigby"..... list goes on and on.
One thing I might add! The Monkeys out sold the Beatles and the Rolling Stones in 1967. I can't remember the name of the song right now but it will come to me and I'll give you an update.
@donaldromesburg1902 Sales? I didn't mention sales. Artist originality was a specialty of those four blokes from Liverpool. They captured and represented the changes taking place in society. There's been many excellent bands since, but none quite as profound. For reference, I remember their first time on Ed Sullivan, and my first concert was the Allman Brothers.
My favorite band of all time. I was about 15 when I heard them for the first time. I have loved them since that day. You are listening to their past, imagine how we felt hearing them in real time. It was such a change from what we were used to. You hear the past, for us it was like peeking into the future.
The Beatles covered every genre of music you can imagine. They were the beginning and every successful band after them have them to thank for breaking that door open.
IMHO the genius of the Beatles was their ability to completely and continuously change their sound...Brilliant musicians. Deep dive, BP, you will not be sorry.
The Beatles will ALWAYS be my favorite band. They just have music for every vibe, every mood you may be in. It frustrates me to no end when people try to pigeonhole them as just one thing. They did SO MUCH in such a short amount of time. We're so lucky to live in a world with their music. 💙
This is what makes The Beatles so unique. They transformed with the times. They started as a teeny bopper band and transformed into a band with extreme depth of sound and lyrics.
@@murrayspiffy2815 so you're saying their music influenced Vietnam, not Vietnam influencing them? You make no sense. Music doesn't create reality, it reflects it. And their changing music definitely reflects the changing times.
THey transformed AHEAD of the times. No one else could even approach them ... they just scrambled to make things in the new spaces that the Beatles opened up.
@@decolonizeEverywhere Music had a strong influence on public opinion about Vietnam. Music isn't just an interesting soundtrack. It gives people a means to express themselves.
I had a single also as a little kid. It was the B-side to hey Jude. I remember reading the title the song and thinking that it was just a record, “revolving” around and no music on it. I was like 5. 🤓
The guitar distortion was made by plugging the guitar into a microphone input then into the sound board. The output of the guitar is a lot higher then a microphone. It over powered the microphone electronics so you get distortion. The Beatles were always experimenting.
The Beatles writing is sublime which is why I think they still resonate today. It's only now 60 years down the line I can really appreciate their writing ability
Very true, yes they did and definitely would have been influenced by all of them. Creators of good music do appreciate those that have gone before and then endeavour to write their own story. I am a Brit and I love the Beatles and I also listen to Ray Charles and a lot of Motown.
They didn't write it, but my vote for greatest rock performance is on their "Live at the BBC, volume two." It's their performance of "Kansas City." The groove is lethal. Lennon's rhythm guitar makes it for me.
I'm assuming you've never heard "I'm Down", "Yer Blues", "I Want You (She's So Heavy)", or "Helter Skelter" yet. They've inspired more people to get into music than any other band in the history of recording for a reason.
This song takes the Beatles back to their early days, when they sang in rough, working class clubs. with simple amplifiers and basic rock & roll cadences. They were capable of such sophisticated songs, but could return to their roots - it was all gold.
The turmoil in the US in 1968 was seriously intense. Vietnam, assassinations, marches... This music was pretty revolutionary all around and we were all there for it. This was released on a 45, with Hey Jude on the other side. It was phenomenal.
"Back in the USSR" was also in there, too Some people thought the Beatles supported communism. The Russian citizens hadn't even heard it because all western (including Beatles) music was banned in the USSR.
This is another example of The Beatles constantly re-inventing themselves. I think this was the first recorded instance of direct guitar interface to the board. They had plugged Pauls bass into the board directly a few years before.
Paul McCartney has one of the best Rock Screams. Helter Skelter, Kansas City, Long Tall Sally, so many others. Hes sings with two voices. (vocal versatility) He can sound light , and deep and rich.
Rocky Raccoon is a mind bender, along with so many others. Being a impressionable young man when they hit the scene, listening to my parents, grandparents, friends, comments and reactions as well as listening to the first releases on the radio . . . . the 60's, California . . . . would not change my history for anything !!!
If you think this is a loud, gritty Beatles track, you need to check out "Helter Skelter" from the White Album (1968).... Paul McCartney wanted to write the "loudest, nastiest, sweatiest rock number we could" after reading a Pete Townshend interview describing a Who track (possibly "I Can See For Miles") as "The most raucous rock 'n' roll, the dirtiest thing they'd ever done." Helter Skelter was the result. Some historians of popular music now believe that this song was a key influence on the development of heavy metal!!!
@@lindakingsley-gx2td NO it wasn’t, it was recorded before the murders, Paul states “I was using the symbol of a helter skelter (a playground slide) as a ride from the top to the bottom-the rise and fall of the Roman Empire,”. Manson took sick inspiration and said this about the song and said, “These kids listen to this music and pick up the message. It’s subliminal … It is not my music. I hear what it relates. It says ‘Rise.’ It says ‘Kill.’ Why blame it on me? I didn’t write the music.”
The Beatles were genius but what has been so underestimated is that they used their huge 'platform' so so well. There are so many things to say about the Beatles, for example they refused to play where the blacks and whites were segregated. Paul's song Blackbird (please google before listening) might give you even bigger goosebumps
This was the single released to get radio airplay, on a 45 RPM record. It was a HUGE hit! Now listen to the version of this song on the white album. Completely different sound! And notice that after he says "you can count me out" he says "in" right after that. So, what was he really saying? One of my favorite edgier guitar riffs of the Beatles was the one on "Ticket to Ride" from their early sound. They added overdubs with a Rickenbacker and a Fender Stratocaster that made it sound quite different from most of their other early songs. And oh, there is so much more music for you to react to!
The Beatles were the bridge that ran through the evolution of rock music. They started as a skiffle band, became a pop group, then as the 60s progressed the combination of war protests, LSD and Transcendental Meditation created what ultimately became Acid Rock and Metal. 12:59 You could listen to their catalogue and hear the music stretch and grow. I apologize if I've said this before, but a Harvard musicologist once said that their album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band was the point where rock and roll stopped being just tribal dance music and became a legitimate art form. When you listen to the Beatles, remember that song might be the first time anyone ever heard anything like it. People hear these songs now and they seem familiar because there's lots of stuff inspired by it, but at that time, it was the first.
The Beatles are the one of the most influential bands of all time, because of the way their sound progressed, and advanced ahead of thier time. The timeline of their songs needs to be considered when listing to their music
The Beatles were a black leather, rough rocking band when then spent months in Germany working the clubs on visas. They still had the leather and rough edges when Brian Epstein took an interest in them and became their manager. He molded and modeled the band into a more polished, refined style; knocking off most of the rough edged in dress and in sound for marketing. The Beatles could certainly rock hard when they wanted to.
I could write a long-ass comment about these guys, but I will stick a couple of bullet points. Before they were famous, they were a cover band that learned hundreds (maybe thousands) of songs in nearly every genre. Rock, R&B, Blues, Music Hall and more. By the time they started their recording career, they had played around 8000 hours of shows in Hamburg (Germany) alone. When they started writing, they wrote in those Genres mentioned above. Their early recordings were a straight continuation of the rock of their late 50s and very early 60s influences that included Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Buddy Holly, Elvis, and The Everly Brothers. Once they started recording, they evolved QUICK. The path from Love Me Do and She Loves You to Revolution, Come Together, and Let It Be was only 6 years (or so). Think about what you were doing six years ago and that will give you the proper context of how amazing their run was
they’re singing live over the song’s instrumental track. BTW, the electric piano solo was played by Nicky Hopkins, who has played on countless records of that era.
My favorite part of this song is the keyboards (not shown in the video). Most people believe it was Billy Preston adding the keyboards as he famously did in the "Let It Be" sessions. It was not. In fact, it was Nicky Hopkins who added the keyboards and it truly rounds out the sing IMHO.
I've shared Revolution on Facebook because it's exactly what is happening in America right now. We are in the fight of our lives to save the Constitution and our democracy. I've been listening to the Beatles since late 60's and is always my go to musicians.
We are NOT a democracy but a constitutional republic! I learned that in high school civics class and if you look up what kind of government we have that is what it says!
@@DebraHarter call it what you want, it's our DEMOCRACY we are fighting for. It's a common name for what you said. Big deal, obviously you knew what I was saying.
@@DebraHarter Well, if you learnt that in high school, you really should go back and check again with your teachers! Perhaps you misunderstood, or perhaps they didn't teach it right. Of course the US is both a democracy and a republic - they refer to slightly different things. You can look it up on the internet if you're interested; it's not that hard to understand. The idea that America's democratic system of selecting leaders that's enshrined in its Constitution somehow suddenly doesn't exist and is somehow anti-American or some kind of threat, rather than being perhaps America's greatest contribution to the world, is a complete misunderstanding, and likely deliberate political propaganda that's been put out there to serve someone's self-interested political agenda.
John Lennon was actually saying don't mess with the constitution. the lyrics: "you say you want to change the constitution ... but we'd all like to change your head. You tell me it's the institution ... you better free your mind instead" and then he goes to warn against communism with the Chairman Mao reference.
Lennon was NOT opposed to left wing politics. There were people going around carrying Chairman Mao’s Little Red Book. John made the correct observation that in America, that just wasn’t going to fly there.
@@MsAppassionata Lennon was left wing - for the 1960s. He would’ve opposed what’s going on today with the Left. In fact he explicitly condemns what most of the Left now wants. The Left of the 1960s was much further the Right than to the Left of today.
John was a master of messages in his lyrics. Whether it was spiritual and psychedelic explorations like in Lucy in the Sky and Day In The Life, or political statements like this, Imagine and Working Class Hero. He was the voice of his generation
BTW… I agree with you Jesus is the most freeing option out there. He doesn’t change every situation but he will change your perspective… in every one of them.☮️🎶✝️
REVOLUTION!! My FAVORITE Beatles song!! The "studio" version, I think it's "Revolution 1", the B side of Hey Jude, is my favorite version. So glad you dug this, BP!!
I saw Paul McCarthy in concert last year. He did a real good version of Helter skelter with the flames and everything. Just wanted to prove that he was in hard rock too!
The thing I really love about the Beatles is that they never changed their accents. They never used an American accent - and Paul and Ringo still don't. Legends!🤩
The Beatles for the most part were a easy to listen to group. But then they had their moments! Which made them one of the best groups in music history.
There are two very different versions of this song: a slow version that appears on The White Album, and the fast, loud version that was released as a single (the one performed in the promo video you just watched). The fast version was released as the B-side of "Hey Jude" in August 1968, three months before the slow version appeared on The White Album. John Lennon wanted it to be the first A-side released on Apple Records, the label The Beatles started, but Paul McCartney's "Hey Jude" got the honor. There are so many versions of this song basically because Paul McCartney didn't like it. Lennon really wanted this song to be the "A" side of the single instead of "Hey Jude," and kept changing it around to come up with something that would make Paul see it his way. John basically wrote the song because he felt like he was being pulled in so many directions by different people, all of whom wanted his backing, politically. It was also him questioning his own belief in the revolution that was going on... whether he was "out" or "in." In truth, he was writing about a revolution of the mind rather than a physical "in the streets" revolution. He truly believed that revolution comes from inner change rather than social violence.
@@stephenstrudwick8095 Actually, the version performed in the video is a hybrid. The backing track is pre-recorded and taken directly from the single version. The vocals are live, which is why Paul does the scream at the start of the song (instead of John on the released single). Also the shoo-be-do-wop backing vocals was something paul and george did on the slow version. So like I said, a hybrid version
This has always been my favorite Beatles. It was a testament to the times, 1968, when the Vietnam War was raging, political "endings" were going on, and protests against the war were abundant. Not to mention the convention chaos in Chicago.
I was 10 years old when THE BEATLES came to America. I saw them with my older sister on the variety show Ed Sullivan. THE BEATLES changed the music industry in so many ways. By the time my sister was 17 years old she had every inch of her bedroom walls covered in Beatles posters and pictures. By the time she was 50 she owned every Beatles album there ever was. When I was a teenager Ringo Starr inspired me to become a drummer. R I P JOHN AND GEORGE. ❤❤❤
Most versatile band of all time. From the beginning John insisted that all members write and sing. On the other end of the spectrum "Dear Prudence" is a real guitar and vocal Masterpiece by John. Look up the back story first to get a better understanding.
If you like live music you should check out their roof top concert in Let it Be, it's their last live performance, the song 'Don't Let Me Down' is fantastic.
The Beatkes catalog is huge, their music changed and evolved iver the years. They pioneered all genres if music...that is why they are the quintessential vabd id all time!!
Oh my young friend, your opening words on what you thought the Beatles were just opened up the rabbit hole. Hold onto your hat, it's gonna be a thrill ride. Love 'em or hate 'em, no one can deny they changed the face of Rock and Roll. Popular consensus is the Sgt. Pepper album was the most important, but personally I love the Revolver album. "Tomorrow Never Knows" gives us just a peak of what was to come and to me is a masterpiece. Grab some popcorn and enjoy the ride!!!! 😀😁🤩😍🤪🥰
This was even more on point at its time. The Beatles broke so much ground in music. For something different, have you done any early Beatles, when it was all just 4 guys on stage, recording what they took on tour, before all the orchestral backing, etc.?
I was 9 years old when I talked my mother into buying the 45 with this on it. The only reason she did was wax because hey Jude was in the flip side. So I'd play revolution and she would flip it over and listen to hey Jude! I have always loved johns lyrics!!
Not a HUGE Beatles fan but I do love this track, i dig the gritty/distorted sound of it. My fave is "Come Together", which was covered by Aerosmith (my fave version) in the 70s and Gary Clark Jr. in like 2015/16 for one of the Guardians of the Galaxy movies.40!
Yes, the LYRICS!!! The GRIT! (Not to mention the rock and roll riff.) SO glad you got to hear this and you can tie it to your wonderful rap and hip hop. Btw he is sticking up for the constitution.
I have seen many young people tune into 70's and 80's music in particular which always makes me smile. My local coffee shop, where they are all less than 25 often play old rolling stones tracks, brilliant, when you consider Mick Jagger is 81! Why? because it is GOOD.
Whilst on a long exuent from school in London in 1959, my roomie's big brother took the two of us up to Liverpool by train for the weekend. While there, he took us to the coffee club called The Casbah. The band that night was The Quarrymen (Lennon, McCartney, Harrison, & Ken Brown, but no drummer). My roomie got sick, as the place was as hot at hell, so we left early. Little did we suspect what the band, with a change or two, was to become. 😅
The Beatles, over time, blossomed into great songwriters. But at their core, they were a great Rock band. To listen to their great Rock songs, I highly recommend that you react to the following songs: “I Saw Her Standing There”, “Boys”, “Twist And Shout”, “Roll Over Beethoven”, “Don’t Bother Me”, “You’ve Really Got A Hold On Me”, “Money (That’s What I Want)”, “Taxman”, “Drive My Car”, “Bad Boy”, “I’m Down”, “Helter Skelter”, “Birthday”, and “Come Together”.
This song was a reaction to the Rolling Stone's song, "Street Fighting Man", which was a really big hit in it's own right. The time that this was made was a time of political unrest, violence, upheaval. Vietnam, Civil Rights, "Hey, Hey, LBJ, How many kids did you kill today?", the Chicago 1968 Democrat Convention, Bobby Kennedy, MLK Jr., Weather Underground, the Tet Offensive. It was a terrible time in American history. 1968 was a horrible year when nothing went right. The Stones released "Street Fighting Man" and echoed the anger and angst of the day. Many people in the "New Left" movement of counterculture and Marxism, viewed this song as the Stone's call to violence, and those same people tried to shame the Beatles into falling in line. This was Lennon's response to the criticism. What's interesting is that Lennon was a Marxist, but he was a pacifist, too. He was stung by the criticism he received about this song, Songs like "Imagine" and "Power to the People" affirm his Marxism, but in one of his final interviews, he affirmed that he has always been a political pacifist first.
The Beatles changed music. I started listening when I was 8 years old to I Want to Hold Your Hand and had every album through their break up (I cried for days). They got me ready for every change that came after - Led Zeppelin, Yes, Uriah Heep, Deep Purple, Pink Floyd, and the other masters of innovation.
I'd just gotten my drivers licence when this came out. I bought the 45 rpm for the song on the A side, Hey Jude. I flipped it to the B side and Revolution popped out. I wasn't the only one to discover this gem. Both ran to the top of the charts. Got a 45 rpm with 2 great songs for $0.97
Ah, The Beatles, I drove my country lovin' Dad crazy. My Mom, the greatest taught me piano at 3 and by the time I was in 6th grade I was in high school orchestra as 1st chair on violin. Today a few decades later, I have been a electric bassist in several bands. I'll love music on my deathbead!
I went to see a Beatles cover band last Saturday. I was talking with my friends about the evolution of the Beatles over time. We couldn't think of any other band that exhibited the same growth over the course of their career as a band. I always think of the Beatles in three time frames: The early years which was mostly the 4 chord poppy stuff; The psychedelic or Sargeant Pepper years; and the rock or Yoko Ono years. All very distinctive. Great music all along the way.
Ozzy Osbourne said "When the Beatles showed up, all of the sudden the world went from black and white to color. It changed everything."
That's what Keith Richards said about Elvis, but he used the word technicolor.
Ozzy was right - the Beatles allowed the world to break free from what then was the locked in status quo and allow the world to be themselves as individuals and experiment and create.
It continues and we have the Beatles to thank.
@@LittleLou-vk9fm "Too much Elvis makes you stupid " - Dave Letterman
@@bwana-ma-coo-bah425 Why? I don’t get that comment.
Ozzy wasn’t alone in that thinking ❤
Back in the 60s & 70s, we didn’t pay much attention to genres. We just listened to all kinds of music.
When the Beatles stopped touring, they got serious in the studio. They experimented. They tried different things. Tried doing things that others didn’t think could be done. We are eternally grateful
Well said.
By the 70s most genres, though not all, had been invented, and we knew which ones we liked and didn't like.
Watch that "we" part. Remember the Disco Demolition Night of 1979? That happened b/c many people got sick & tired of a particular genre. Never try to speak for an entire generation.
yes yes yes
For the sake of your sanity stop trying to figure The Beatles were or what genre they fall under,because they don’t. They are the genre!
Yep, no genre....if they wanted to rock out, they could do it with the best of them.
All these reactors think that every song is about the singer or try to figure out the story 🤣🤣🤣
They started off as rock n roll in the early days, and by 1965, they started getting more creative.
Exactly! All these “reacters” do that.
I agree they wanted to try something new all the time and killed it everytime that just shows you the thier greatness
The years go by and they are still the greatest. The Beatles forever.
Dude there is a reason that they are considered the most influential band ever. They had all sorts of sounds and they pioneered many different types of music.
As many influenced them as well and brought on those many transitions in their music.
Helter Skelter - The first heavy metal song! The boys were their own genre. Awesome reaction bro.
Kinks, You've Really Got Me 1964 and BTW I'm a big Beatles fan.
actually the first heavy metal song was the beatles : I m down , aerosmith did a version , around 20 years later , check it out.@@stephensmith1343
I was going to add this comment myself 😅
Beatles were unique for their time, that's why the world fell in love with the biggest band to ever grace planet earth...
Yes, they changed the face of Rock & Roll, totally unique and iconic!
There's the Beatles - and then there is everyone else. The more you delve into them, the more you'll come to appreciate that.
Dude, you have only begun to discover the Beatles.... "Get Back", "The Long and Winding Road", "Helter Skelter", "Come Together", "Blackbird", "Eleanor Rigby"..... list goes on and on.
Rocky raccoon
He should listen to Helter Skelter. That would blow his mind even more.
@@brucefrank5556 As a writer and lyricist, I think Eleanor Rigby will be his fav.
@@RobinT-treehugger I wasn't talking about his favorite. I said it would blow his mind.
He doesn't seem to like the McCartney songs. No accounting for taste, lol.
This is such a message for our times. The Beatles are timeless.
The Beatles were in a league of their own. No other band compares.
Not that The Beatles were "better", they were just that unique.
I think Queen give them strong competition on the wide range, uniqueness and creativity and musical talent.
One thing I might add! The Monkeys out sold the Beatles and the Rolling Stones in 1967. I can't remember the name of the song right now but it will come to me and I'll give you an update.
The Dave Clark five outsold the Beatles in 64 or 65 .
@@OddBall1958 The Monkees, right?
@donaldromesburg1902 Sales? I didn't mention sales. Artist originality was a specialty of those four blokes from Liverpool. They captured and represented the changes taking place in society.
There's been many excellent bands since, but none quite as profound.
For reference, I remember their first time on Ed Sullivan, and my first concert was the Allman Brothers.
My favorite band of all time. I was about 15 when I heard them for the first time. I have loved them since that day. You are listening to their past, imagine how we felt hearing them in real time. It was such a change from what we were used to. You hear the past, for us it was like peeking into the future.
The Beatles covered every genre of music you can imagine. They were the beginning and every successful band after them have them to thank for breaking that door open.
They didn't cover the genres, they created them.
@@decolonizeEverywhere No. Not really, but they developed many further, raised the level and set standards.
They Changed the World 🤗
The Beatles 💥💥💥
IMHO the genius of the Beatles was their ability to completely and continuously change their sound...Brilliant musicians. Deep dive, BP, you will not be sorry.
The Beatles will ALWAYS be my favorite band. They just have music for every vibe, every mood you may be in. It frustrates me to no end when people try to pigeonhole them as just one thing. They did SO MUCH in such a short amount of time. We're so lucky to live in a world with their music. 💙
This is what makes The Beatles so unique. They transformed with the times. They started as a teeny bopper band and transformed into a band with extreme depth of sound and lyrics.
They changed with the world
They didn't transform with the time - they made time transform to them. And I don't think that's an overstatement.
@@murrayspiffy2815 so you're saying their music influenced Vietnam, not Vietnam influencing them? You make no sense. Music doesn't create reality, it reflects it. And their changing music definitely reflects the changing times.
THey transformed AHEAD of the times. No one else could even approach them ... they just scrambled to make things in the new spaces that the Beatles opened up.
@@decolonizeEverywhere Music had a strong influence on public opinion about Vietnam. Music isn't just an interesting soundtrack. It gives people a means to express themselves.
The Beatles didn't have a genre. They ARE a genre! This was one of my favorite 45's!
I had a single also as a little kid. It was the B-side to hey Jude.
I remember reading the title the song and thinking that it was just a record, “revolving” around and no music on it. I was like 5. 🤓
The guitar distortion was made by plugging the guitar into a microphone input then into the sound board.
The output of the guitar is a lot higher then a microphone. It over powered the microphone electronics so you get distortion.
The Beatles were always experimenting.
The Beatles writing is sublime which is why I think they still resonate today. It's only now 60 years down the line I can really appreciate their writing ability
Remember they loved Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Ray Charles, Elvis and Motown.
Very true, yes they did and definitely would have been influenced by all of them. Creators of good music do appreciate those that have gone before and then endeavour to write their own story. I am a Brit and I love the Beatles and I also listen to Ray Charles and a lot of Motown.
The Beatles gave you a little bit of everything and all of everything was top of the chart!‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️👏👍👏👏
For the most part, The Beatles just did it first... on a POPular level. They set the stage for what came next.
welcome to the Beatles, never know what you will get!! Exactly why they are GOAT!!
Actually the WALRUS
Yeah, they rocked too !!
That's why they are the GOAT
For many, many reasons I feel this is the greatest rock song of all time.
They didn't write it, but my vote for greatest rock performance is on their "Live at the BBC, volume two." It's their performance of "Kansas City." The groove is lethal. Lennon's rhythm guitar makes it for me.
I'm assuming you've never heard "I'm Down", "Yer Blues", "I Want You (She's So Heavy)", or "Helter Skelter" yet. They've inspired more people to get into music than any other band in the history of recording for a reason.
You forgot "Why Don't We Do It in the Road."
LOL I'm not sure how he would react to that one, especially since he's so into lyrics.
Aerosmith did a cover of I'm down it kicks some butt.😊
New Grass Revival, a progressive bluegrass band, also did a cover.
"I Want You (She's So Heavy)
This song takes the Beatles back to their early days, when they sang in rough, working class clubs. with simple amplifiers and basic rock & roll cadences. They were capable of such sophisticated songs, but could return to their roots - it was all gold.
They did every type of music out there. They were their own genre! They broke ground open for everyone that followed them.
The turmoil in the US in 1968 was seriously intense. Vietnam, assassinations, marches... This music was pretty revolutionary all around and we were all there for it. This was released on a 45, with Hey Jude on the other side. It was phenomenal.
"Back in the USSR" was also in there, too Some people thought the Beatles supported communism. The Russian citizens hadn't even heard it because all western (including Beatles) music was banned in the USSR.
This is another example of The Beatles constantly re-inventing themselves. I think this was the first recorded instance of direct guitar interface to the board. They had plugged Pauls bass into the board directly a few years before.
Those lyrics are powerful and still resonating!
Please keep talking about the lyrics! Your observations and interpretations are the best part of your reactions, IMO. You be you!
John Lennon doesn't say he wants to change the constitution. He says "YOU say you'll change the constitution... We'd all love to change your head".
Timeless and for our times today.
Paul McCartney has one of the best Rock Screams. Helter Skelter, Kansas City, Long Tall Sally, so many others. Hes sings with two voices. (vocal versatility) He can sound light , and deep and rich.
He started by trying to scream like Little Richard.😊
"Oh Darling."
I love Paul.
This song is so current. ❤
The Beatles - the love of my life - they just really hit the most positive vibes of my youth - and I will always love this music.
Rocky Raccoon is a mind bender, along with so many others. Being a impressionable young man when they hit the scene, listening to my parents, grandparents, friends, comments and reactions as well as listening to the first releases on the radio . . . . the 60's, California . . . . would not change my history for anything !!!
If you think this is a loud, gritty Beatles track, you need to check out "Helter Skelter" from the White Album (1968)....
Paul McCartney wanted to write the "loudest, nastiest, sweatiest rock number we could" after reading a Pete Townshend interview describing a Who track (possibly "I Can See For Miles") as "The most raucous rock 'n' roll, the dirtiest thing they'd ever done." Helter Skelter was the result. Some historians of popular music now believe that this song was a key influence on the development of heavy metal!!!
Helter Skelter was based on the Sharon Tate murder. It was a rough time in music.
I suggested this time as well but I didn't know the story. Thanks for sharing!
@@lindakingsley-gx2td Helter Skelter was released the year before the Tate-LaBianca murders.
@@lindakingsley-gx2td NO it wasn’t, it was recorded before the murders, Paul states “I was using the symbol of a helter skelter (a playground slide) as a ride from the top to the bottom-the rise and fall of the Roman Empire,”. Manson took sick inspiration and said this about the song and said, “These kids listen to this music and pick up the message. It’s subliminal … It is not my music. I hear what it relates. It says ‘Rise.’ It says ‘Kill.’ Why blame it on me? I didn’t write the music.”
@@camperoh I was reading about it in a magazine years ago. I guess misinformation was back then too Thank you for clearing this up for me.
The Beatles changed Rock 'n Roll in so many ways. Hard Rock baby.
The Beatles were genius but what has been so underestimated is that they used their huge 'platform' so so well. There are so many things to say about the Beatles, for example they refused to play where the blacks and whites were segregated. Paul's song Blackbird (please google before listening) might give you even bigger goosebumps
and john
This was the single released to get radio airplay, on a 45 RPM record. It was a HUGE hit! Now listen to the version of this song on the white album. Completely different sound! And notice that after he says "you can count me out" he says "in" right after that. So, what was he really saying? One of my favorite edgier guitar riffs of the Beatles was the one on "Ticket to Ride" from their early sound. They added overdubs with a Rickenbacker and a Fender Stratocaster that made it sound quite different from most of their other early songs. And oh, there is so much more music for you to react to!
They created a musical revolution!
There's a saying out there: "If you’re happy, you listen to the music, if you're sad, you listen to the lyrics."
The Beatles were the bridge that ran through the evolution of rock music. They started as a skiffle band, became a pop group, then as the 60s progressed the combination of war protests, LSD and Transcendental Meditation created what ultimately became Acid Rock and Metal. 12:59 You could listen to their catalogue and hear the music stretch and grow. I apologize if I've said this before, but a Harvard musicologist once said that their album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band was the point where rock and roll stopped being just tribal dance music and became a legitimate art form. When you listen to the Beatles, remember that song might be the first time anyone ever heard anything like it. People hear these songs now and they seem familiar because there's lots of stuff inspired by it, but at that time, it was the first.
Well said!
The Beatles are the one of the most influential bands of all time, because of the way their sound progressed, and advanced ahead of thier time. The timeline of their songs needs to be considered when listing to their music
They're not ONE of the most influential bands of all time. THEY ARE INDISPUTABLY THE MOST INFLUENTIAL BAND OF ALL TIME!! No one comes close.
The Beatles were a black leather, rough rocking band when then spent months in Germany working the clubs on visas. They still had the leather and rough edges when Brian Epstein took an interest in them and became their manager. He molded and modeled the band into a more polished, refined style; knocking off most of the rough edged in dress and in sound for marketing. The Beatles could certainly rock hard when they wanted to.
George doesnt get enough love for his vocals
I could write a long-ass comment about these guys, but I will stick a couple of bullet points.
Before they were famous, they were a cover band that learned hundreds (maybe thousands) of songs in nearly every genre. Rock, R&B, Blues, Music Hall and more.
By the time they started their recording career, they had played around 8000 hours of shows in Hamburg (Germany) alone.
When they started writing, they wrote in those Genres mentioned above. Their early recordings were a straight continuation of the rock of their late 50s and very early 60s influences that included Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Buddy Holly, Elvis, and The Everly Brothers.
Once they started recording, they evolved QUICK. The path from Love Me Do and She Loves You to Revolution, Come Together, and Let It Be was only 6 years (or so). Think about what you were doing six years ago and that will give you the proper context of how amazing their run was
Great explanation of The Beatles career!👍 For me, there's The Beatles...and everybody else.👍
Well done.
Well said and explained.
@@rubyslippers8215 They are their own genre.
Great post!
they’re singing live over the song’s instrumental track. BTW, the electric piano solo was played by Nicky Hopkins, who has played on countless records of that era.
My favorite part of this song is the keyboards (not shown in the video). Most people believe it was Billy Preston adding the keyboards as he famously did in the "Let It Be" sessions. It was not. In fact, it was Nicky Hopkins who added the keyboards and it truly rounds out the sing IMHO.
Interesting people would think it was Billy. That timeline wouldn’t even work. They hadn’t met Billy when this song was made.
@@heatherqualy9143- They actually knew Billy Preston from their Hamburg days. He had been the organist with Little Richard's touring band.
I've shared Revolution on Facebook because it's exactly what is happening in America right now. We are in the fight of our lives to save the Constitution and our democracy. I've been listening to the Beatles since late 60's and is always my go to musicians.
We are NOT a democracy but a constitutional republic! I learned that in high school civics class and if you look up what kind of government we have that is what it says!
@@DebraHarter The United States is a federal constitutional republic .
@@DebraHarterthen you shouldn’t vote.
@@DebraHarter call it what you want, it's our DEMOCRACY we are fighting for. It's a common name for what you said. Big deal, obviously you knew what I was saying.
@@DebraHarter Well, if you learnt that in high school, you really should go back and check again with your teachers! Perhaps you misunderstood, or perhaps they didn't teach it right.
Of course the US is both a democracy and a republic - they refer to slightly different things. You can look it up on the internet if you're interested; it's not that hard to understand.
The idea that America's democratic system of selecting leaders that's enshrined in its Constitution somehow suddenly doesn't exist and is somehow anti-American or some kind of threat, rather than being perhaps America's greatest contribution to the world, is a complete misunderstanding, and likely deliberate political propaganda that's been put out there to serve someone's self-interested political agenda.
Another rock song worth hearing is "Back in the USSR"
It was a parody of The Beach Boys’ “Surfin’ USA”.
@@LaptopLarry330 And “Surfin’ USA” was a rip off of “Sweet Little Sixteen” by Chuck Berry.
And thanks to Macca in Moscow doing this little vlad gor inspired about re-empiring
Glad you enjoyed this so much - its an awesome song and still stands up :)
John Lennon was actually saying don't mess with the constitution. the lyrics: "you say you want to change the constitution ... but we'd all like to change your head. You tell me it's the institution ... you better free your mind instead" and then he goes to warn against communism with the Chairman Mao reference.
The Beatles then would be against the liberal stuff in the world today.
I was going to say the same thing. Thanks for pointing that out.
Between this song and cult of personality I can't think of any more appropriate music for the country today
Lennon was NOT opposed to left wing politics. There were people going around carrying Chairman Mao’s Little Red Book. John made the correct observation that in America, that just wasn’t going to fly there.
@@MsAppassionata Lennon was left wing - for the 1960s. He would’ve opposed what’s going on today with the Left. In fact he explicitly condemns what most of the Left now wants. The Left of the 1960s was much further the Right than to the Left of today.
One of my favs of The Beatles
John was a master of messages in his lyrics. Whether it was spiritual and psychedelic explorations like in Lucy in the Sky and Day In The Life, or political statements like this, Imagine and Working Class Hero. He was the voice of his generation
Another masterpiece: “Oh, Darlin’” from the Abbey Road album.
US Constitution? They're British, not American.
The Beatles bopped perfectly with each music movement. They knew exactly what they were doing. Pure Genius!
Keep on Rocking! ☮️🎶✝️
BTW… I agree with you Jesus is the most freeing option out there. He doesn’t change every situation but he will change your perspective… in every one of them.☮️🎶✝️
REVOLUTION!! My FAVORITE Beatles song!! The "studio" version, I think it's "Revolution 1", the B side of Hey Jude, is my favorite version. So glad you dug this, BP!!
I saw Paul McCarthy in concert last year. He did a real good version of Helter skelter with the flames and everything. Just wanted to prove that he was in hard rock too!
Always been my favorite Beatles song since the first time I heard it as a child
When you think you have The Beatles figured out, nope. They gonna hit you hard with something you could never imagine.
The thing I really love about the Beatles is that they never changed their accents. They never used an American accent - and Paul and Ringo still don't. Legends!🤩
If you want to hear different accents by the beatles , check out: you know my name .
The Beatles for the most part were a easy to listen to group. But then they had their moments! Which made them one of the best groups in music history.
They didn’t care about what genre they fit into, they just wanted to evolve their music.
There are two very different versions of this song: a slow version that appears on The White Album, and the fast, loud version that was released as a single (the one performed in the promo video you just watched).
The fast version was released as the B-side of "Hey Jude" in August 1968, three months before the slow version appeared on The White Album. John Lennon wanted it to be the first A-side released on Apple Records, the label The Beatles started, but Paul McCartney's "Hey Jude" got the honor. There are so many versions of this song basically because Paul McCartney didn't like it. Lennon really wanted this song to be the "A" side of the single instead of "Hey Jude," and kept changing it around to come up with something that would make Paul see it his way.
John basically wrote the song because he felt like he was being pulled in so many directions by different people, all of whom wanted his backing, politically. It was also him questioning his own belief in the revolution that was going on... whether he was "out" or "in." In truth, he was writing about a revolution of the mind rather than a physical "in the streets" revolution. He truly believed that revolution comes from inner change rather than social violence.
It wasn't a promo video, it was a live performance on the David Frost Show.
@@stephenstrudwick8095 Actually, the version performed in the video is a hybrid. The backing track is pre-recorded and taken directly from the single version. The vocals are live, which is why Paul does the scream at the start of the song (instead of John on the released single). Also the shoo-be-do-wop backing vocals was something paul and george did on the slow version. So like I said, a hybrid version
Revolution1 and 9. So much waste. When they had fex Hey Bulldog and It's All Too Much
I think the reverb of the guitar makes this my favorite Beatles song
This has always been my favorite Beatles. It was a testament to the times, 1968, when the Vietnam War was raging, political "endings" were going on, and protests against the war were abundant. Not to mention the convention chaos in Chicago.
I was 10 years old when THE BEATLES came to America. I saw them with my older sister on the variety show Ed Sullivan. THE BEATLES changed the music industry in so many ways. By the time my sister was 17 years old she had every inch of her bedroom walls covered in Beatles posters and pictures. By the time she was 50 she owned every Beatles album there ever was. When I was a teenager Ringo Starr inspired me to become a drummer. R I P JOHN AND GEORGE. ❤❤❤
Hi! This is my favourite Beatles song! I’m in my 50’s, and still get goosebumps hearing certain songs! This is one of them. Enjoy! ✌🏻🇨🇦✌🏻
Most versatile band of all time. From the beginning John insisted that all members write and sing. On the other end of the spectrum "Dear Prudence" is a real guitar and vocal Masterpiece by John. Look up the back story first to get a better understanding.
If you like live music you should check out their roof top concert in Let it Be, it's their last live performance, the song 'Don't Let Me Down' is fantastic.
The Beatkes catalog is huge, their music changed and evolved iver the years. They pioneered all genres if music...that is why they are the quintessential vabd id all time!!
I don't care what others say, always pay attention to the lyrics. If the artist didn't want lyrics, they'd have made it an instrumental.
I agree
Oh my young friend, your opening words on what you thought the Beatles were just opened up the rabbit hole. Hold onto your hat, it's gonna be a thrill ride. Love 'em or hate 'em, no one can deny they changed the face of Rock and Roll. Popular consensus is the Sgt. Pepper album was the most important, but personally I love the Revolver album. "Tomorrow Never Knows" gives us just a peak of what was to come and to me is a masterpiece. Grab some popcorn and enjoy the ride!!!! 😀😁🤩😍🤪🥰
Remember that before they were famous they were the tightest rock band you could find
OH, MAN!!! NOW you're TALKIN', BP!!! This is STILL one of my FAVORITE BEATLES TUNE!!! THANKS for MAKIN' MY DAY!!!
They started out as black leather jacket rockers, playing in Hamburg
This was even more on point at its time.
The Beatles broke so much ground in music.
For something different, have you done any early Beatles, when it was all just 4 guys on stage, recording what they took on tour, before all the orchestral backing, etc.?
'Tomorrow never knows' sounds almost like a dance track. Its mind blowing
I was 9 years old when I talked my mother into buying the 45 with this on it. The only reason she did was wax because hey Jude was in the flip side. So I'd play revolution and she would flip it over and listen to hey Jude! I have always loved johns lyrics!!
Not a HUGE Beatles fan but I do love this track, i dig the gritty/distorted sound of it. My fave is "Come Together", which was covered by Aerosmith (my fave version) in the 70s and Gary Clark Jr. in like 2015/16 for one of the Guardians of the Galaxy movies.40!
Yes, the LYRICS!!! The GRIT!
(Not to mention the rock and roll riff.) SO glad you got to hear this and you can tie it to your wonderful rap and hip hop.
Btw he is sticking up for the constitution.
The line was "You say you'll change the Constitution" then it was followed by "We all want to change your head."
How could you not hear this before now? It was a HUGE hit!! This was the TV "live" version.
350 songs in 3 years. Geniuses.
8 years
Not that many songs. They wrote about 186 originals and did 25 covers.
I'm shocked I had no idea. I'm 61 female. Love from Indian
@@MsAppassionata Yet look at all the masterpieces they created in their 186 originals!! No one will top that.
Does this include the songs written for other artists?
I have seen many young people tune into 70's and 80's music in particular which always makes me smile. My local coffee shop, where they are all less than 25 often play old rolling stones tracks, brilliant, when you consider Mick Jagger is 81! Why? because it is GOOD.
John was always about love and peace
Except in his personal life. He was known to hit with his first wife and Yoko Ono.
They all are.
His first wife and oldest son probably would have disagreed
@@badplay156The latter is understandable.
This is the best performance of this song…love it 💖💖💖💖
Whilst on a long exuent from school in London in 1959, my roomie's big brother took the two of us up to Liverpool by train for the weekend. While there, he took us to the coffee club called The Casbah. The band that night was The Quarrymen (Lennon, McCartney, Harrison, & Ken Brown, but no drummer). My roomie got sick, as the place was as hot at hell, so we left early. Little did we suspect what the band, with a change or two, was to become. 😅
Everybody has heard their big heats. But they were so good, the deeper you go into their catalog, the more gold you will find.
The Beatles, over time, blossomed into great songwriters. But at their core, they were a great Rock band.
To listen to their great Rock songs, I highly recommend that you react to the following songs: “I Saw Her Standing There”, “Boys”, “Twist And Shout”, “Roll Over Beethoven”, “Don’t Bother Me”, “You’ve Really Got A Hold On Me”, “Money (That’s What I Want)”, “Taxman”, “Drive My Car”, “Bad Boy”, “I’m Down”, “Helter Skelter”, “Birthday”, and “Come Together”.
And Back in the USSR
That imperfection you noticed is what makes rock music so great. Raw, gritty, unpolished excitement is what real rock is all about.
This song was a reaction to the Rolling Stone's song, "Street Fighting Man", which was a really big hit in it's own right. The time that this was made was a time of political unrest, violence, upheaval. Vietnam, Civil Rights, "Hey, Hey, LBJ, How many kids did you kill today?", the Chicago 1968 Democrat Convention, Bobby Kennedy, MLK Jr., Weather Underground, the Tet Offensive. It was a terrible time in American history. 1968 was a horrible year when nothing went right.
The Stones released "Street Fighting Man" and echoed the anger and angst of the day. Many people in the "New Left" movement of counterculture and Marxism, viewed this song as the Stone's call to violence, and those same people tried to shame the Beatles into falling in line. This was Lennon's response to the criticism.
What's interesting is that Lennon was a Marxist, but he was a pacifist, too. He was stung by the criticism he received about this song, Songs like "Imagine" and "Power to the People" affirm his Marxism, but in one of his final interviews, he affirmed that he has always been a political pacifist first.
Revolution was banned in South Africa for decades despite being a critique of the concept. Pure genius for the ages, John Lennon at his finest.
The Beatles changed music. I started listening when I was 8 years old to I Want to Hold Your Hand and had every album through their break up (I cried for days). They got me ready for every change that came after - Led Zeppelin, Yes, Uriah Heep, Deep Purple, Pink Floyd, and the other masters of innovation.
For me, one of the best the group did.👍
I'd just gotten my drivers licence when this came out. I bought the 45 rpm for the song on the A side, Hey Jude. I flipped it to the B side and Revolution popped out. I wasn't the only one to discover this gem. Both ran to the top of the charts. Got a 45 rpm with 2 great songs for $0.97
Ah, The Beatles, I drove my country lovin' Dad crazy. My Mom, the greatest taught me piano at 3 and by the time I was in 6th grade I was in high school orchestra as 1st chair on violin. Today a few decades later, I have been a electric bassist in several bands. I'll love music on my deathbead!
Gee... That sounds like MY timeline! First chair, first violin from sixth grade until college when I discovered men! 😆💋. I'm 73 now!
I went to see a Beatles cover band last Saturday. I was talking with my friends about the evolution of the Beatles over time. We couldn't think of any other band that exhibited the same growth over the course of their career as a band. I always think of the Beatles in three time frames: The early years which was mostly the 4 chord poppy stuff; The psychedelic or Sargeant Pepper years; and the rock or Yoko Ono years. All very distinctive. Great music all along the way.