Are The Beatles Actually Any Good?
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- Опубліковано 7 лют 2025
- The Beatles are great, right? I think virtually everyone agrees with that statement. But what makes them so great? Is it their melodies? Their chord progressions? Their lyrics? Production? Singing? Was it John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison.... RINGO?
All of the above, and more? Well, yes. There are a lot of ways to talk about how great they were - and this is my little attempt at it.
#beatles #music
This is quite an impressive and well substantiated take, thank you! With the Beatles, even besides their music, as artists in their time, it is hard to see anyone else come close to feeling, articulating and expanding the(ir) zeitgeist while never becoming too far removed from popular culture (Revolution #9 excepted and noted of course).
Plus, only Dylan really was there already when they started recording, all their main peers came up after and necessarily had to find ways to distinguish themselves uniquely in this glorious new decade of the sixties (now in colour). And the Beatles obviously very much paved the way for global acceptance of English bands.
Also, it is quite hard to think of any other band where each individual member is such a unique and essential part of an fascinating and somewhat enigmagic whole, that only four people really ever experienced. Although, it probably was a mundane slug for them a lot of the time (esp. touring), the way they seemed to be able to tune in to each other is just something else.
Eventually, when even your third most talented member has contributed several classic songs to the band, it naturally had grown too constricting.
XTC might be considered a band approaching a Beatles level of scope and quality in a lot of ways but, like Ween, probably a bit too idiosyncratic for mainstream taste.
They passed the audition.
You've summed it up really well! I would say, with the Beatles just EVERYTHING wonderful came together, besides the ability for catchy melodies, joy of experimentation, musical talent, good voices, etc., they were also as people special characters. The Beatles were just more than a music band, maybe it was just the story of 4 friends who went out to conquer the world (peacefully). People love such stories - and besides, admittedly, they simply made great music.
I think minutes 3 to 7, for the very first time helps me understand their popularity. Your thesis that their "jack of all trades but master of none" make them the greatest pop band, I can get behind. As someone who doesn't enjoy most pop/chart music, I've never understood the fuss. I listen to rock, blues and jazz; and have always found pop music bland, and unless the lyrics have some major political statement, I don't pay attention to them; I'm all about the music. Thank you for this video explanation and analysis, that gave me so many points to consider.
Excellent! I love your analysis of the unparalleled emotional breadth of their music.
This quote (sorry I can’t attribute it to the author) really summed it up when Sgt Pepper was released in 1967 and stunned the world:
“In 1967 the Beatles were holding up an aquarium with live fish. Everyone else was holding up blue construction paper and four Crayola crayons.” The Beatles always led the way. In a word - they were ORIGINAL. cheers!
Thanks for the very kind comment. Glad you liked my video :)
Although, I guess if I were going to be a bit picky, I might say that my point is more that every other band had an aquarium with just one or two fish in, whereas the Beatles had a full blown ecosystem in theirs!
I read once that The Beatles were the last music hall act. A song, a dance and a few jokes. They learned to win and hold audiences by putting the hours in with potentially hostile audiences. And they never forgot that. I know you aren't digging deep into the music per se but there are hundreds of little moments in so many of their songs that still catch the ear 60 years on.
An excellent interpretation and summary of a very complex subject, and so well articulated.
Thanks! Glad you liked the video :)
This was a great watch
Great analysis. You nailed it.
Thanks so much - glad you liked it :D
Very well done! Thank you :-)
I agree about genre's, the Beatles and Radiohead are two bands that remind me of one another and both bands are like a genre unto themselves.
A great opinion.
3 things that you seem unaware of.
1) The Beatles not only preceded the British groups you compared them with, but their antics at Abbey Rd studios opened the previously locked doors to allow other artists the freedom to grow their own genres most of which The Beatles had already been there done that first.
2) The Beatles' entire music repertoire is a journey. It needs to be listened in its entirety to be able appreciate it.
3) The Beatles were touring so much in their early years that they had no time to develop their music. So they stopped touring and they were able to allow their creativity to continue to flourish
What makes you think I'm unaware of those things?
You seem unaware that he is not unaware.
I agree
"The Beatles" made all the rest of it possible.
All those were British bands with the Beatles being the first established one. Those bands were prominent AFTER the Beatles became famous, not before.
What point are you making?
By the way, the first Mothers of Invention record Freak Out inspired Sgt. Pepper's and Paul McCartney has stated that fact...
So too has many other groups inpired them as well as all bands are inspired by others, thank Got.
@@kevincharlesmcmahon Specific techniques from Freak Out were used on Sgt. Peppers...
@@DWHarper62 Right on.
I pretty much agree but I would say the Beatles are the best at psychedelic music.
I would argue Help doesn't really fit into the early Beatle's catalog.
I guess you're going to say Leonardo da Vinci...
Im guessing your gonna say Shakespeare
Great points but they developed something while everyone did nothing. And when they did, everybody begun hmmm that's great, let us copy it but with a billion notes and beats and loud. And Frank Zappa's wacky music is only that... just for the sake of being wacky.
A limpid and apologetic view. Mediocrity broadly said wins the day? artistry is more than the summing up of the parts.
If you think that was my point then you've completely misunderstood me. Which is remarkable, because no one else has
They were pre zeppelin.