Beatles News
Paul McCartney said he liked writing surrealist lyrics. He gave an example of a song with no meaning behind it.
Even decades after releasing some songs, Paul McCartney sees fans poring over the lyrics, searching for meaning. John Lennon once said this was fruitless on some Beatles songs, as he wrote lines to purposely confuse fans. According to McCartney, fans might find themselves in a similar situation with his solo work. He said that some of the lyrics in one song had no meaning behind them.
In 1971, McCartney released Ram, his second post-Beatles album. Though the album initially received a poor critical reception, many have reviewed it significantly more favorably in retrospect. As fans continue to listen to the album, they’ve wondered what some of the whimsical, seemingly meaningless lyrics mean.
Source: Emma McKee/cheatsheet.com
The Beatles delivered some of the finest ballads in the history of music during their time together. But it took them a little while to get comfortable with the slow stuff. “If I Fell,” released in 1964 on their third album (and first movie) A Hard Day’s Night, was one of the first great ballads of their career.
What is the song about? What did John Lennon, the song’s main writer, have to say about its inspiration? And what did Paul McCartney contribute to the proceedings? Let’s find out about this somewhat unheralded but utterly lovely song from the Fab Four.
Slowing Things Down
When The Beatles came charging out of the gate with their first recordings in late 1962 and throughout 1963, they generally kept the pedal to the metal in terms of the pace. Songs like “I Saw Her Standing There,” “Please Please Me,” and “She Loves You” rushed by in a whir of adrenaline.
They did sneak in a few slower ones in that first year or so of recordings, including the charming doo-wop style “This Boy” (relegated to B-side status in ’63). But A Hard Day’s Night found John Lennon and Paul McCartney growing more confident and prolific (they wrote every track on the album), which meant that ballads were sure to come.
Source: Jim Beviglia/americansongwriter.com
Heather Mills has slammed her ex-husband Sir Paul McCartney in a new interview, claiming that he has to do songs with younger people so that people remember him. Erm, considering he was part of the biggest band in the world (The Beatles anyone?) AND has become just a little successful in his own, solo right (understatement of the year), we *think* he's doing just fine, actually.
Alright, so some people may not know all about the Beatles' legend (let's take a moment to remember THAT moment Kanye West fans thought Paul was a 'newcomer') , and we can definitely get how irritating it must be to continually be asked about an ex.
Appearing on The Late Late Show in Ireland, the 47-year-old who recently competed on The Jump blasted Sir Paul as 'irrevelant', adding that kids on the street recognise her more than they do him.
From the first Paul-related question, Heather insisted that she didn't "really want this interview" to be all about her former husband, adding that the "umbilical cold" between the two of them had long been broken.
Host Ryan Tubridy continued to press her on the topic she considered "boring," saying: "I think people are more interested than you allow for."
However, Heather responded with some serious shade-throwing, saying: "No, they’re not. That's the thing.
Source: Rachel Pilcher/uk.news.yahoo.com
Let It Be director Michael Lindsay-Hogg said a famous spat between Paul McCartney and George Harrison captured in the 1970 film about the making of the Beatles' final album was no big deal.
"Nothing was going to be in the picture that they didn't want," Lindsay-Hogg told Grammy.com. "They never commented on that. They took that exchange as like many other exchanges they'd had over the years … but, of course, since they'd broken up a month before [the film's release], everyone was looking for little bits of sharp metal on the sand to think why they'd broken up."
During the often tumultuous recording sessions for the 1970 album that became Let It Be, Harrison, growing irritated by McCartney, told the bassist, "I'll play, you know, whatever you want me to play, or I won't play at all if you don't want me to play. Whatever it is that will please you … I'll do it."
Source: Michael Gallucci/ultimateclassicrock.com
I love ’em. You love ’em, we all love ’em. It’s almost un-American not to love them despite the obviousness that they are not.
I speak of the (arguably) most popular rock group of all time, The Beatles. So, when I happened upon an article titled “The 10 Most Annoying Beatles Songs of All Time,” I had to check it out. Here’s how they shook out, according to msn.com.
10. “Love Me Do”
It is known for being The Beatles’ first charting song. However, there’s just something about it that grates on the nerves. It’s possibly the harmonica and the repetitive lyrics. The song doesn’t have much substance, but it has a catchy melody, which is likely the only thing that helped it get on the charts. It was a reasonable effort from the band, but I’d rather listen to other songs in The Beatles’ catalog.
9. “I Saw Her Standing There”
It has the same problem as “Love Me Do.” It just lacks intrigue. The lyrics are basic, and the background guitar riff is annoying. It’s a good old-fashioned rock tune, but I’d prefer to listen to “I Want to Hold Your Hand” or “All My Loving” instead.
8. “Yellow Submarine”
It is usually on lists of most-hated Beatles songs. And rightly so! Over the years, it gained a reputation as a children’s song. It’s played at every children’s party, and someone always tries to sing it at a karaoke bar just to be funny. Everyone knows “Yellow Submarine,” but does anyone actually like it? I have to admit that yours truly does not.
Source: tribtoday.com
Ringo Starr has been issuing EPs since 2021 but is now pledging to return with an album-length project. He'll follow up the April release of Crooked Boy by circling back to country music, a genre that helped define Starr's career with the Beatles and as a solo artist.
"I'm working on it with someone very special – T Bone Burnett," Starr tells USA Today. "He's doing stuff in Nashville and he comes to L.A. and it's all working out. He came to me with nine songs. It won't be out until October, at least."
Starr also recorded 1970's countrified Beaucoup of Blues in Nashville. His sophomore solo release consolidated an influence that played out in Beatles-era covers like Buck Owens' "Act Naturally" and Starr's own rootsy original "Don't Pass Me By."
Taking the concept seriously, Starr completed Beaucoup of Blues alongside a group of ace country pickers and producer Pete Drake, a steel guitar-playing Nashville legend. "I think some of my finest vocals are on that album," Starr has said, "because I was relaxed."
Starr had met Drake during the sessions for former bandmate George Harrison's All Things Must Pass, and they both appeared on the title track. So, he trusted Drake in selecting the material and the sidemen, which included Charlie Daniels, Ben Keith and D.J. Fontana.
Starr hasn't yet confirmed who might play on his as-yet-untitled country follow-up. In the meantime, he's going back on the road later this month with his All-Starr Band. The lineup again features long-time collaborator Steve Lukather, who's been Starr's longest-serving solo bandmate. The Toto stalwart has appeared on every All-Starr Band date since 2012.
Source: Nick DeRiso/i95rock.com
Although it’s hard to imagine anyone but Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr making up the Fab Four, for a brief moment in the early 1960s, the future Beatles adopted cheeky stage names while cutting their teeth in a cover band that was (unwillingly) playing for (mostly) free.
The three original members of the now iconic band, McCartney, Lennon, and Harrison, settled on several names before adopting the Beatles. The trio performed as the Quarrymen for a spell until an audition to be a backing band for a touring musician sent the artists back to the drawing board.
Lennon first floated the Crickets as a potential moniker, but McCartney shot it down, arguing that another band had already used that name. Eventually, the band settled on the Silver Beetles. But the Liverpool musicians didn’t stop there. The Musicians Used Their Professional Digs To Adopt New Stage Names.
The audition that prompted the band’s name change was for London-based music promoter Larry Parnes, who was looking for backing bands who could play with various touring singers around the U.K. In a fortunate preview of the success that was to come, the Silver Beetles landed the gig and began performing on the road with a singer and fellow Liverpudlian named Johnny Gentle.
The former Beatle recalled the moment the Silver Beetles (who were never billed as such but rather as “Johnny Gentle and his group”) decided it was time for yet another stage name change in Anthology. “Now we were truly professional. We could do something we had been toying with for a long time, which was to change our names to real showbiz names.” Unsurprisingly, each band member had a different idea for what classified as a “real showbiz name.”
McCartney adopted the name Paul Ramon, which he later said was “suitably exotic.” He particularly liked the French feel of the name Ra-mon—yet another example of McCartney using pseudo-French to impress girls, just like when he wrote the party song-turned-love song “Michelle.”
Source: Melanie Davis/americansongwriter.com
On September 9th, 1971, John Lennon released the iconic album, "Imagine."
John Lennon was a U.K singer-songwriter who rose to global fame as a co-founder of the Beatles, the most commercially successful band in the history of pop music. After forming a songwriting partnership with Paul McCartney, the two of them brought the band to fruition.
After the Beatles disbanded in 1970, Lennon embarked on a solo career producing several smash hit records including "John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band" and "Imagine."
"Imagine" is Lennon's second solo studio album and is more heavily produced in contrast to the more raw and rudimental sound on his first album "John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band." In 2012, "Imagine" was voted 80th on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time." The album is even considered Lennon's best work while producing his most critically-acclaimed song -- the title track "Imagine" -- which sold 1.6 million copies in the U.K. and was co-produced by himself and Yoko Ono.
Lennon and Yoko Ono had an affair during the late 1960s and 70s. The two met and protested against the Vietnam War which blossomed into a relationship unbeknownst of Lennon's current wife at the time. Rumors suggest Ono miscarried a male child of Lennon's during this time. The two of them shared a relationship through much of the remainder of his life though.
Source: Chris Rollins/aol.com
“Beatles” singer Paul McCartney, 81, is one of the most popular musicians in the modern era, and his storied career includes his love for his wife of 30 years, Linda Eastman, who passed away after bravely battling breast cancer. The “Beatles” star stood by her side until the very end, praising her courage and positive fighting attitude.
“She was fighting right up to the end,” McCartney told People Magazine of his resilient wife, who died in 1998.
McCartney, a member of the iconic 1960s band The Beatles, known for hits like “Come Together,” “Let It Be,” and “Strawberry Fields Forever,” has long made music that was deeply influenced by his personal life. His marriage to Linda Eastman in 1969 and their subsequent journey together, including the birth of their four children, left an indelible mark on his music and his life.
Decades later, Eastman was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1995, People Magazine reports.
According to the Washington Post, she underwent treatment from 1995 to 1997. Sadly, her cancer spread to her liver. However, she did not let her diagnosis stop her from doing what she loved. “She didn’t know she was dying,” McCartney said. “She is such a strong, forward-thinking lady and such a positive girl.”
The day before she passed away, she was riding horses. “She loved riding so much. Sometimes, she’d get up on her horse, and I’d say, ‘You don’t want to get down, do you?’ She preferred it up there than on the ground,” McCartney said.
Source: Kavontae Smalls/survivornet.com
The work of a producer isn’t always easy, but rarely does it result in physical exhaustion. However, John Lennon and one outlandish idea once brought George Martin to the brink of passing out.
While making Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, Lennon penned “Being for the Benefit of Mr Kite.” He got the inspiration for the song after seeing a poster in Kent, England. He used the words on the poster to compose the lyrics, resulting in a complex (if a little odd) Beatles track.
While the lyrics are certainly interesting enough on their own, the sound of a fairground adds even more atmosphere to this track. It was Lennon’s idea that the song have a certain chaos to it, but it was Martin who had to pull it off. As the story goes, it took quite the toll on the legendary producer.
Martin and the engineer on duty pieced together different fragments of the tape to give the song a frenzied feel. Moreover, Martin personally added harmonium elements–an instrument that is somewhere between a keyboard and an accordion. After playing the taxing instrument for hours, Martin reached the brink of exhaustion.
“You have to pump the harmonium with your feet,” Geoff Emerick, the engineer, once said. “He was pumping away for four hours. He collapsed onto the floor after that, spread-eagled and exhausted.”
Source: Alex Hopper/americansongwriter.com
