Happy Birthday John Lennon! (1 Viewer)
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mikemiller1955
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I watched for the first time the two part show..."Living in the Material World" last week...Martin Scorcese directed it...a good wathc for Beatle's fans...
jazzeum
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We watched it last night. I thought it was very good. I will buy the DVD, if one comes out. Of all the music made by the former Beatles after the breakup, his is the ones I really only listen to. All Things Must Pass is one of the best albums ever made, in my opinion of course.
mikemiller1955
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Brad...Harrison did have quite a few hit songs after the bands demise..."What Is Life"..."My Sweet Lord"..."Give Me Life"..."Wah Wah"...I also liked the Traveling Wilburys...but I like anythig Roy Orbison was involved in...apparently he was an accomplished composer that was content or willing to take 3rd seat ("The Quiet Beatle") in the band...
but of the four members...I think Lennon excelled the most in a solo career..."Stand By Me"..."Imagine"..."Instant Karma"..."Mind Games"...
and while not as commercially as popular...I especially loved the songs..."I'm Just A Jealous Guy"...and "Beautiful Boy"...
while McCartney may have had a more financial commercial success with Wings...their music didn't really appeal to me at all......
I was never aware of Harrison's movie endeavors with Monty Python or Madonna...I always loved the movie "Time Bandits" and MP's work...and I was also never aware that Eric Clapton stole his wife from him...
Brad...what was the song the Lennon/McCarthy refused to put on their album that he gave to Leon Russel to record...it was a huge hit...?
It would be hard to find a group that had as much success as the Beatles did when they performed together, but I think the real accomplishment was what the individuals achieved on their own, after they had gone their separate ways. They could have disappeared from sight but the talent they each possessed was too great to keep under wraps. For all the success they achieved together or on their own, George Harrison is my favorite. I agree with Brad that "All Things Must Pass" is a brilliant achievement. The Traveling Wilbury's was a super group that was one of my favorites, as well. But Harrison would have been my favorite even if he never did another thing after the break-up. His contributions to the Beatles were few in terms of overall numbers (he had to bow to the huge egos of certain other band members), but he wrote the classics "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" and "Here Comes the Sun". For those alone, he is my favorite. At any rate, Happy Birthday, John. -- Al
mikemiller1955
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Al...those are both 2 fantastic songs...
jazzeum
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Mike,
I want to say Beware of Darkness. However, that was released on All Thing Must Pass before Leon Russell did so not really sure. However, I do know that All Things Must Pass had been written when the Beatles were still a unit and they didn't want it on their albums. Obviously, a mistake but good ultimately for George.
I was never a huge fan of John's as a solo artist although artistically his stuff was better than McCartney's. I just thing All Things Must Pass is pure genius. However, the quality does drop off some after that although I thought his last album Brainwashed was very good.
Brad
damian
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I liked his Some Time in NYC.
As much as I love the Beatles, by far my favorite group, and as much as I like the Lennon-McCartney songwriting duo, IMO the real talent was Lennon's. Leaving aside their collaboration, on their own Lennon has done much the more impressive work. I have not cared for a single thing that McCartney has done post-Beatles. Lennon and Harrison are much the more talented solo artists. -- Al
mikemiller1955
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Al...
I would agree that Lennon carried the brunt of the Beatles success on his shoulders...
I watched the movie..."Nowhere Boy" a while back...
and got the impression that John bullied the group with his personality...which totally disagrees with the "peace" image he portrayed in his later life...it's a pretty good watch if you have not seen it...it deals with a 15 year old Lennon and the early roots of the band......
and I would agree that I cared little for any of McCartney's solo stuff after the bands demise...as it was way to commercial for my "rock" tastes..."Band On The Run"..."Live And Let Die"..."Helen Wheels"..."Let Em In"...
but I always loved..."Baby I'm Amazed"...that's a cool song...
but he was very talented and contributed his share with the Beatles......
"Yesterday"...for example...
which he composed without any collaboration...
this is from Wikipedia...
"Yesterday" is one of the most recorded songs in the history of popular music; its entry in Guinness World Records states that, by January 1986, 1,600 cover versions had been made, by an eclectic mix of artists.
"Yesterday" won the Ivor Novello Award for 'Outstanding Song of 1965', and came second for 'Most Performed Work of the Year', losing out to another McCartney composition, "Michelle". The song has received its fair share of acclaim in recent times as well, ranking 13th on Rolling Stone's 2004 list "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" and fourth on the magazine's list "The Beatles 100 Greatest Songs" (compiled in 2010). In 1999, Broadcast Music Incorporated (BMI) placed "Yesterday" third on their list of songs of the 20th century most performed on American radio and television, with approximately seven million performances. "Yesterday" was surpassed only by The Association's "Never My Love" and the Righteous Brothers' "You've Lost That Loving Feeling". "Yesterday" was voted Best Song of the 20th Century in a 1999 BBC Radio 2 poll.
on a side note...I remember reading somewhere that Lennon sharply criticized using Paul's voice on the recording...stating something like..."He was a fool not to let me sing it"...
I would agree that Lennon carried the brunt of the Beatles success on his shoulders...
I watched the movie..."Nowhere Boy" a while back...
and got the impression that John bullied the group with his personality...which totally disagrees with the "peace" image he portrayed in his later life...it's a pretty good watch if you have not seen it...it deals with a 15 year old Lennon and the early roots of the band......
and I would agree that I cared little for any of McCartney's solo stuff after the bands demise...as it was way to commercial for my "rock" tastes..."Band On The Run"..."Live And Let Die"..."Helen Wheels"..."Let Em In"...
but I always loved..."Baby I'm Amazed"...that's a cool song...
but he was very talented and contributed his share with the Beatles......
"Yesterday"...for example...
which he composed without any collaboration...
this is from Wikipedia...
"Yesterday" is one of the most recorded songs in the history of popular music; its entry in Guinness World Records states that, by January 1986, 1,600 cover versions had been made, by an eclectic mix of artists.
"Yesterday" won the Ivor Novello Award for 'Outstanding Song of 1965', and came second for 'Most Performed Work of the Year', losing out to another McCartney composition, "Michelle". The song has received its fair share of acclaim in recent times as well, ranking 13th on Rolling Stone's 2004 list "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" and fourth on the magazine's list "The Beatles 100 Greatest Songs" (compiled in 2010). In 1999, Broadcast Music Incorporated (BMI) placed "Yesterday" third on their list of songs of the 20th century most performed on American radio and television, with approximately seven million performances. "Yesterday" was surpassed only by The Association's "Never My Love" and the Righteous Brothers' "You've Lost That Loving Feeling". "Yesterday" was voted Best Song of the 20th Century in a 1999 BBC Radio 2 poll.
on a side note...I remember reading somewhere that Lennon sharply criticized using Paul's voice on the recording...stating something like..."He was a fool not to let me sing it"...
mikemiller1955
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Brad...I think you're right...I think it's Beware Of Darkness...but I thought they said in the movie that Harrison gave it to Russell and he produced it before Harrison re-released it...???.......^&confuse......
No argument that McCartney is talented, just that Lennon was more so. The band did have some rather large egos involved.:rolleyes2: I just happen to think that The Beatles were McCartney's high point, creativity wise, and that Lennon and Harrison were better than McCartney with their solo work. As a combination, as a group, The Beatles were the best ever. -- Al
mikemiller1955
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Al...
I agree with that...
it's a shame Harrison's composing potential was not fully recognized until the band split up...he was obviously very creative...there was quite a bit of mention in the film that his rejected material for the Beatle's albums...gave him a stockpile of songs for his solo work...
I agree with that...
it's a shame Harrison's composing potential was not fully recognized until the band split up...he was obviously very creative...there was quite a bit of mention in the film that his rejected material for the Beatle's albums...gave him a stockpile of songs for his solo work...
jazzeum
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The situation was as follows: in the first couple of years, they were true collaborators so it really was Lennon and McCartney.
After that it did really cease to be one and they each wrote their own songs When you listen to Rubber Soul, for example, you can tell who has written what. However, McCartney was/is a very good songwriter and Lennon would often newed his help to finish ideas. The problem with Paul is he was prone to write silly verses. This is demonstrated in Maxwell's Silver Hammer on Abbey Road. Lennon would restrain this tendency but the problem in later years was Yoko. She was always around so it was hard for them to work together. The results were some interesting but incomplete ideas. The best example of this is the White Album, a mishmash of an album, where there was no collaboration whatsoever.
At any rate, Paul must be given credit for keeping them together, when it seemed as they split. He was also responsible for the Sgt. Peppers concept.
They were an example that they were more than the sum of their parts. Lennon without McCartney was a bit more shrill and McCartney without Lennon was too popish.
After that it did really cease to be one and they each wrote their own songs When you listen to Rubber Soul, for example, you can tell who has written what. However, McCartney was/is a very good songwriter and Lennon would often newed his help to finish ideas. The problem with Paul is he was prone to write silly verses. This is demonstrated in Maxwell's Silver Hammer on Abbey Road. Lennon would restrain this tendency but the problem in later years was Yoko. She was always around so it was hard for them to work together. The results were some interesting but incomplete ideas. The best example of this is the White Album, a mishmash of an album, where there was no collaboration whatsoever.
At any rate, Paul must be given credit for keeping them together, when it seemed as they split. He was also responsible for the Sgt. Peppers concept.
They were an example that they were more than the sum of their parts. Lennon without McCartney was a bit more shrill and McCartney without Lennon was too popish.
jazzeum
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A couple of books I really like are Jonathan Gould's Can't Buy Me Love, a history of the group, and Revolution in the Head: The Beatles Records' and the Sixties by Ian Macdonald. The latter is a song by song analysis of everything they made. He's a little overly critical at times but it's really indispensible stuff.
Thanks for those listings, Brad. As odd as it is, while having lived through the Beatles era and growing up on their music and reading hundreds of related articles, I have never read a history or biographical work on the group. Maybe it's time.:tongue: -- Al
Thanks Brad. Your advice is always welcome.:smile2: -- Al