Beatleg Stories
Whatever time you're reading this, chances are I'm doing the same thing: furiously pedaling my bike en route to my local repertory movie theater, fifteen minutes late for some old movie, with no lights (I know I know) and some truly awful Beatles outtake blaring in my ears. Probably 25% of all the room on my iPhone is taken up by Artifacts [...]
Stephen Kroninger Draws John Lennon
Master illustrator Stephen Kroninger has contributed this portrait of John Lennon to Bystander #13. I thought you might like to see it. (Yes, it's illustrating a column of mine. Naturally.) John Lennon, by Stephen Kroninger, from The American Bystander #13. In addition to being a serious Beatles/Lennon fan, Stephen's a genius. He's done a couple of great illustrations of the Fabs, early [...]
Beatle interviews, 1969-70
With Mark Lewisohn lately touting the recording of a business meeting where an album after Abbey Road was being discussed, I was particularly interested in this YouTube edit of interviews with all four Beatles during the same period. (BTW, I've heard tell of Lennon's carve-up plan for decades—four songs for him, four songs for Paul, four for George, and two for Ringo—so [...]
Getting Better (Take 1)
A quick check-in with two goodies from the Pepper Super Deluxe Edition. Ooh, Take 1! I love how HEAVY the heavy part is, and how bright and optimistic the pianet is. Nobody did dynamic range like the Beatles. You can see how easily they could've done "heavy" rock, if the mood had struck. I've always felt that a lot of what sounds [...]
Sgt Pepper Versus Revolver
Friend Stephen Kroninger sent me this list of the Beatles best albums today; not surprisingly, Revolver edged out Sgt. Pepper (with Abbey Road at #2!). This led to some interesting thoughts regarding Sgt Pepper versus Revolver, which I wanted to share. I've written about my love for Pepper many times before (probably most lucidly here), and Nancy has written nicely here. It's [...]
A Few Words on Conspiracy Theory
Who is this man? Several Beatles-related conspiracy theories—the idea that John and Paul were lovers, and the granddaddy of them all, the Paul McCartney death hoax—have emerged in the comments of late, and so I wanted to take a moment to share some strategies on how to deal with this kind of thinking. The goal should be to address the material in [...]
A Secret History of The Beatles?
Is there, do you think, a secret history of The Beatles? In a private email, commenter Justin and I began talking about this Dullblog post—which, nearly ten years later, remains the best summary of my feelings on the breakup. (For those short on time: I think Lennon pulled away from Paul and the group impulsively, almost by mistake, driven by his pride, [...]
Who’s buying the Abbey Road Anniversary Edition?
https://youtu.be/GQCfZ4uAAuE I genuinely love Abbey Road—for what it is, and for the role it plays in the Beatles' story, too. I agree with Michael Bleicher's recent post: of all The Beatles' work it is the least sonically dated. More than that, it's always somewhat refreshing to listen to. To my ear, it mapped out a solid future for the group, should they [...]
But Paul Is My Favorite Beatle
As I've written, John Lennon was my favorite Beatle growing up—for all the reasons we love John: his intelligence and wit, his directness, his unique gifts with words and music, his sense of larger purpose in the world and ability to inspire. Plus, I felt that as a young creative person in the middle of nowhere trying to make a black-and-white life [...]