THE BEATLES(ish) ON SPOTIFY!

 

Of course none of the music of The Beatles is available on Spotify, but here's the next best thing--a collection of amazing Beatles' covers done by a variety of artists! 

Beatles on Ready Steady Go, November 23, 1964.

So I'm watching this Beatles vid from this day in 1964, and I'm trying to draw parallels to my own career. Which is stupid, because I'm not a Beatle. But I figure THIS is still their infancy. THIS is the band before the alternate personas and transcendental meditation.

I know, I know... These are The Beatles and you're just writing books about a guitar player and a woman who may or may not be the devil. But I love the idea of a young band, playing just to play. Smiling at the camera like nobody's watching. And that's how I write on a good day. Like nobody's reading. And that's why I'm going to continue to look at The Beatles as role models in 2014. And the haters can just keep hating.

Preview of 'The Beatles Live at The BBC: Volume 2' album streams online – listen

Thought the idea of an embed was a great way to promote the new release.

(Non-winning) Beatles Grammy nominations (Winners in parentheses)

 

(Sad Beatles are sad.)

 

Because sometimes it's all about perspective. 

 

From http://abbeyrd.best.vwh.net/grammy.htm See more of the list, and other lists there.

 

(Non-winning) Beatles Grammy nominations (Winners in parentheses.)

1964, Record of the Year -- The Beatles, "I Want To Hold Your Hand" (Getz and Gilberto, "The Girl From Ipanema")

1964, Songwriter's Award -- John Lennon, Paul McCartney --"A Hard Day's Night" ("Hello, Dolly!")

1964, Best Rock and Roll Recording -- The Beatles, "A Hard Day's Night" (Petula Clark, "Downtown")

1964, Best Original Score Written For a Motion Picture or TV Show -- The Beatles, "A Hard Day's Night" ("Mary Poppins")

1965, Album of the Year -- The Beatles, "Help!" (Frank Sinatra, "September of My Years")

1965, Record of the Year -- The Beatles, "Yesterday" (Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass, "A Taste of Honey")

1965, Song of the Year -- John Lennon, Paul McCartney, "Yesterday" ("The Shadow of Your Smile")

1965, Best Vocal Performance, Male -- Paul McCartney, "Yesterday" (Frank Sinatra, "It Was a Very Good Year")

1965, Best Performance By a Vocal Group -- The Beatles, "Help!" (Anita Kerr Quartet, "We Dig Mancini")

1965, Best Contemporary (R&R) Single -- Paul McCartney, "Yesterday" (Roger Miller, "King of the Road")

1965, Best Contemporary (R&R) Vocal Performance, Male -- Paul McCartney, "Yesterday" (Roger Miller, "King of the Road")

1965, Best Contemporary (R&R) Performance By a Group, Vocal Or Instrumental -- The Beatles, "Help!" (Statler Brothers, "Flowers on the Wall")

1965, Best Arrangement Accompanying a Vocalist or Instrumentalist -- George Martin, "Yesterday" (Gordon Jenkins, "It Was a Very Good Year")

1965, Best Original Score, Motion Picture Or TV Show -- John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ken Thorne, "Help!" (Robert Arnbruster Orchestra, "The Sandpiper")

1966, Album of the Year -- The Beatles, "Revolver" (Frank Sinatra, "A Man and His Music")

1966, Best Vocal Performance, Male -- Paul McCartney, "Eleanor Rigby" (Frank Sinatra, "Strangers in the Night")

1966, Best Contemporary (R&R) Recording -- Paul McCartney, "Eleanor Rigby" (New Vaudeville Band, "Winchester Cathedral") (Also nominated in this category, but not winning: The Beach Boys, "Good Vibrations")

1966, Best Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist Or Instrumental -- George Martin, "Eleanor Rigby" (Ernie Freeman, "Strangers in the Night")

1967, Best Performance By a Vocal Group -- The Beatles, "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" (The Fifth Dimension, "Up Up and Away")

1967, Best Contemporary Group Performance, Vocal Or Instrumental -- The Beatles, "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" (The Fifth Dimension, "Up Up and Away")

1967, Best Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s) Or Instrumentalist(s) -- The Beatles, George Martin, "A Day in the Life" (The Fifth Dimension, Jimmie Haskell, "Up Up and Away")

1968, Album of the Year -- The Beatles, "Magical Mystery Tour" (Glenn Campbell, "By the Time I Get to Phoenix")

1968, Record of the Year -- The Beatles, "Hey Jude" (Simon & Garfunkel, "Mrs. Robinson")

1968, Song of the Year -- John Lennon and Paul McCartney, "Hey Jude" (Bobby Russell, "Little Green Apples")

1968, Best Contemporary Pop Vocal Performance, Duo or Group -- The Beatles, "Hey Jude" (Simon & Garfunkel, "Mrs. Robinson")(Also nominated, but not winning: Sergio Mendes & Brazil '66, "Fool on the Hill")

1969, Album of the Year -- The Beatles, "Abbey Road" (Blood, Sweat & Tears, "Blood, Sweat & Tears")

1969, Best Contemporary Vocal Performance, Group -- The Beatles, "Abbey Road" (The 5th Dimension, "Aquarius"/"Let the Sunshine In")

1969, Best Original Score Written For a Motion Picture Or TV Special -- The Beatles, "Yellow Submarine" (Burt Bacharach, "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid")

1970, Record of the Year -- The Beatles, "Let It Be" (Simon & Garfunkel, "Bridge Over Troubled Waters")

1970, Song of the Year -- The Beatles, "Let It Be" (Simon & Garfunkel, "Bridge Over Troubled Waters")

1970, Best Contemporary Vocal Performance By a Duo Or Group -- The Beatles, "Let It Be" (The Carpenters, "Close To You")

1970, Best Contemporary Song -- John Lennon and Paul McCartney, "Let It Be" (Paul Simon, "Bridge Over Troubled Waters")

Happy birthday, Paul! And my PAUL McCARTNEY TOP 9

Happy birthday, Sir Paul!

To note the occasion, here's my PAUL McCARTNEY TOP NINE:

 #9 Lady Madonna

Really got into this one during my voice lessons with Elton Martin. Fun to sing as loud as possible.

#8 Paperback Writer

This one's obvious, isn't it?

#7 Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band

Heavy enough for Hendrix to cover it just after it was released.

#6 I've Just Seen A Face

The lyrics pull you right through. I don't know where he gets the breath to sing it, because I've tried.

#5 Here, There and Everywhere

An achingly beautiful song that shows Paul maturing as a songwriter.

#4 Band on the Run

Part of the allure of this song to me is all of the backstory. How Paul had the bright idea that
recording in Lagos would be loads of fun. The three distinctive parts are a more mature version of the kinds of things he was capable of with The Beatles.

#3 All My Loving

The song that helped me see what the fuss was about. So fun to sing while just banging away on the guitar.

#2 Mother Nature's Son 

I think everybody felt John had cornered the market on simple, thoughtful tunes like this. Totally underrated, in my opinion, because  "Blackbird" usually tops this category.


And a bonus Jack White cover version.

#1 ABBEY ROAD Medley

If anybody ever asked what a dream was supposed to sound like, I'd play them this.

Honorable Mention:

Hello, Goodbye, Martha My Dear, Two of Us, We Can Work It Out, For No One, I Will.

Top 9: Yellow Submarine Clips

In honor of YELLOW SUBMARINE'S 1968 New York City premier.

YELLOW SUBMARINE'S Trailer.


9. YELLOW SUBMARINE


8. NOWHERE MAN


7. ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE


6. LUCY IN THE SKY WITH DIAMONDS


5. ONLY A NORTHERN SONG


4. ELEANOR RIGBY


3. SGT. PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND


2. IT'S ALL TOO MUCH


1. HEY BULLDOG

Download The Beatles, Shea Stadium, New York, New York, August 15, 1965

     “And at least once a day I ask myself what if I hadn’t given up. You know, what if I’d have kept at it for another year more.” Mick waved me aside. Once his line of sight cleared he relaxed.
      “So you think I should keep going?”
      “Is failing something you can live with?”
      “Why would I have to fail?”
      “You’re going to fail a lot before you ever get it right, son. Your skin’s thick enough and your head’s hard enough that in ten or fifteen years you’ll know.”
      “Know what?”
      “Whether or not it’s time to give it up. Giving up too early leaves a pretty sour feeling. Might be the only thing worse than hanging on too long.”

From THE DEVIL AND PRESTON BLACK

When I was a kid I didn't have many heroes. I can't remember if it was some sort of discontentment, or just plain ignorance. I mean, I liked Han Solo and all, but I knew I'd never pilot my very own Millennium Falcon. So I think, in retrospect, this was why I wasn't very ambitious.

Blame grunge and Eddie Vedder, but my musical heroes were not, to my teen-aged mind, hard workers. Pink Floyd, Pearl Jam, Nirvana and Soundgarden gave the appearance of rolling out of bed and playing shows in what ever they happened to be wearing. Magazine articles focused on lifestyle and 'shredding' which was why I focused on weed and 'shredding.' Not sure how I missed all the stuff about hard work.

And that's what I like about Lennon and The Beatles. Enough has been written about the band to provide a blueprint for guys like me who otherwise would have no idea how to pursue success. They were perfectionists, tenacious and they weren't afraid to have a laugh. Reading Lennon's bio by Philip Norman right now, and in some ways, the book is magic. I mean, IT'S ALL THERE. Laid out. Everything a boy needs to dominate the world.

But I'm not a boy. And I'm not John Lennon. Doesn't matter though. World domination... It's coming.

"To the toppermost of the poppermost!"

Download the show at Sugarmegs.

Artist: The Beatles

Album: The Beatles And The Great Concert at Shea!

Label: Yellow Dog Masters Choice

Source: Silver CD > EAC > Flac Frontend > You

CD 1

Line Recording (part 1)

1. Introduction
2. Twist And Shout
3. She's A Woman
4. I Feel Fine
5. Dizzy Miss Lizzy
6. Ticket To Ride
7. Everybody's Trying To Be My Baby
8. Can't Buy Me Love
9. Baby's In Black
10. Act Naturally
11. A Hard Day's Night
12. Help!
13. I'm Down

--A few other acts round out the first disc, but I've edited them out of the track list for the sake of space.

CD 2

Original 1966 BBC Soundtrack

6. Introduction
7. Twist And Shout
8. I Feel Fine
9. Dizzy Miss Lizzy
10. Ticket To Ride
11. Act Naturally
12. Can't Buy Me Love
13. Baby's In Black
14. A Hard Day's Night
15. Help!
16. I'm Down

The entire Shea Stadium Concert 1965 plus the BBC TV special and a reproduction
of the vinyl album THE BEATLES LIVE AT SHEA as described by Erupting fans [???].
For the first time ever the complete unedited version of the famous Shea Stadium concert.

A HARD DAY'S NIGHT The Film

Required viewing for anybody who's ever heard a note of music. Thanks to Hulu.com for the free stream.

THE MUSIC AND PRESTON BLACK, THE BEATLES, Empire Stadium, Vancouver, August 22, 1964

From THE DEVIL AND PRESTON BLACK:

     Katy got a cheeseburger and a strawberry milkshake. I got a double with extra pickles and a Coke. We split an order of fries. They were cut real big and came in a red plastic basket lined with paper, like French fries used to be when you were little. Drenched in Heinz, the taste reminded me of when there used to be lunch counters at the drug stores on High. I ate like I'd never eaten before.
     A couple of old guys kept playing Willie Nelson and Patsy Cline songs. Katy sang in a really deep voice, "Crazy..." I laughed. The lights came on in the parking lot, and Katy asked if I was ready to head back. I wasn't, but I knew she had things to do and felt guilty for keeping her all day.
     When she went to the bathroom to freshen up my phone buzzed. I read Lennon's text and smiled.

Download the book on Amazon.com.

Download the show on Sugarmegs.

From SUGARMEGS:

I didn't see this show on Dimeadozen, either in active or dead torrents, so I thought I'd share.

This is the Beatles playing at the Empire Stadium in Vancouver, BC, Canada, on August 22, 1964, during their first full-length North American tour.

The recording comes from a radio broadcast at the time. The tape eventually found its way into collectors' circles, and now it comes to you.

This is from the Purple Chick release of "Seattle Down Now". I didn't share that full disc because there's some officially-released stuff on it, and the rest (particularly the Seattle show) is of unlistenable sound quality.

The presumed lineage would be:
FM broadcast >> 1st Gen tape >> Silver Disc >> FLAC.

But I don't know Purple Chick's lineage--there may be more generations between the tape and their disc (and I don't know if the tape was reel-to-reel or cassette or what). Either way, it sounds as good as it ever will. I'd give it about an 8.5 out of 10 on sound quality.

The show itself is probably my favorite Beatles concert from 1964. The crowd gets really rowdy, and the emcee has to come on stage to scold them to stand back, otherwise, "kids are gonna get crushed". The Beatles' press officer Derek Taylor joins in at one point as well, pleading with the crowd to stand back. And then the Beatles have to go right back to their set! (And even encourage them to "clap your hands and stomp your feet"!)

None of this has ever been released officially in any form--PM me if you have questions. Enjoy! Here's the tracklist:

01 - Intro
02 - Twist and Shout
03 - You Can't Do That
04 - All My Loving
05 - She Loves You
06 - Things We Said Today
07 - Roll Over Beethoven
08 - Can't Buy Me Love
09 - If I Fell
10 - Boys
11 - A Hard Day's Night
12 - Long Tall Sally

THE MUSIC AND PRESTON BLACK The Beatles, River Rhine Tapes 1969

From THE DEVIL AND PRESTON BLACK:

    To his credit, he let it go. Maybe he was right, and maybe I knew it, but now wasn't the time. So we did my third song, which I called "Twickenham." The mediocre mid-tempo riff sounded too much like Social D. I wrote it about George Harrison after seeing the abuse he put up with while recording Get Back.
    I considered doing the Preston Black song as a fourth cut, but by the time I changed my mind Jamie started transferring files and fiddling with levels and all that, so I figured we were done. He burned me a disc, then said we'd leave in a bit, and that Katy would meet us later.

"Nobody ever loved me like she does..." Don't Let Me Down, John Lennon.

For some reason I'm very partial to LET IT BE. I think it was because everybody else went for ABBEY ROAD or SGT. PEPPER. Little did I know when I picked the disc up I was catching a glimpse of a band in free fall. Yoko attached herself to John's hip and George had quit the band a few times. Paul's attempts to rebuild the band through live performances had the exact opposite effect--the others began to resent him for his pursuit of perfection.

The RIVER RHINE TAPES are a very clean set of outtakes from the LET IT BE rehearsals. If you're somebody who has overlooked this album because it's not ABBEY ROAD or the WHITE ALBUM, this is your chance to see what you've been missing. Highlights for me include Dig a Pony, Don't Let Me Down, the I, Me, Mine Waltz, and Across the Universe. It's a nice look at what could've been.


Download the show at Sugarmegs.com

The Beatles, River Rhine Tapes 1969

SOURCE- SILVER CD - FLAC (level4)
Quality - EX+

01.Two of Us [03:39]
02.I Dig A Pony [03:55]
03.I Got A Feeling [03:53]
04.Dont Let Me Down [03:36]
05.I Me Mine Waltz [01:26]
06.Let it Be [03:37]
07.For You Blue [02:52]
08.One After 909 [03:19]
09.Long and Winding Road [03:47]
10.Get Back [03:48]
11.Oh Darling [02:42]
12.Across the Universe [03:22]
13.Dig it [02:17]
14.(Track Deletet) [01:51]
15.Good Rockin Tonite [01:43]
16.20 Flight Rock [02:09]
17.Her Majesty [01:43]
18.Maxwells Silver Hammer by John [01:10]
19.Maxwells Silver Hammer by Paul [03:39]
20.Suzy Parker [02:00]
21.Bad Finger Boogie [01:17]
22.Mean Mr Mustard [01:21]
23.All Things Must Pass [03:09]
24.The Walk [03:54]
25.River Rhine [04:20]
26.Billybeatle Boogie [05:18]

SHARE FREELY, AND ENJOY. 75:47 min

THE MUSIC AND PRESTON BLACK The Beatles, Acoustic Submarine

Some people think the idea of a soul in literature is a bit passé. A critique partner told me that. Thankfully, I disregarded her advice and wrote a novel about a guy who has to fight for control of his own soul. Don't we all have to fight for control of our soul from time-to-time?

I think soul is what moves Earth's 4.5 billion tiny little sparks through the universe. Soul gave us "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day..." and "If there's a bustle in your hedgerow....' Soul is why we distillers wait seven years for good bourbon.

Maybe soul, or a soul, is one of those things you don't notice until it's gone. That's kind of what happens to Preston Black in my novel. One day he wakes up, and life as he knows it is gone forever. His means of making music are taken from him by external forces. Without his old routine he's forced to make a change to pursue his passion or lose it.

Who better to guide Preston toward his grail than John Lennon, a man who seemed to spend the last ten years of his life searching for his own soul. Only recently have I started to see early John Lennon and late John Lennon as two totally separate entities. India is probably where the split began. John hooked up with Yoko just after returning to England. She was in the studio with him for most of The White Album sessions. Prior to Yoko he'd never had to choose. The Beatles were his soul.

During their time in Rishikesh with the Maharishi, The Beatles worked on thirty songs. Some were completed in India, some, like "Mean Mr. Mustard" and "Something" remained unfinished until the sessions for Abbey Road in 1969. Some, like "What's the New Mary Jane?" never appeared on any official releases. "Child of Nature" was reworked by Lennon as "Jealous Guy" and included on the album Imagine.

Most of what remained showed up on The Beatles, a.k.a. The White Album. (A month from now a purist is going to leave the comment, 'Um, there's no such album as The White Album. Did you mean...') In order of appearance, the India songs on The White Album are: Back in the U.S.S.R., Dear Prudence, Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da, Wild Honey Pie, The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill, I'm So Tired, Blackbird, Rocky Raccoon, Why Don't We Do It in the Road?, I Will, Julia, Yer Blues, Mother Nature's Son, Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey, Sexy Sadie, Revolution, and Cry Baby Cry. Demos of these songs recorded at George Harrison's estate just after everybody returned from England, and show up on a bootleg called the Esher Demos or the Esher Tapes. The White Album songs on this bootleg come from those sessions.

To me, the songs from India represent the last drop of life The Beatles were able to squeeze out of their collective soul.

Download Acoustic Submarine.

Here's the recording info from Sugarmegs:

The Beatles - Acoustic Submarine
Teddy Bear Records

Liberated Bootleg

Original silver discs>EAC(secure)>SHN(mkw)

Disc 1:
Do You Want to Know a Secret
And I Love Her
I'm a Loser
Help
Yesterday
Yes It Is
Norwegian Wood
I'm Looking Through You
We Can Work It Out
I'm Only Sleeping
Yellow Submarine
A Day in the Life
The Fool on the Hill
Christmas Time is Here Again
The Happy Rishikesh Song
Jubilee
Child of Nature
Goodbye
Everyone Had a Hard Year
What's the New May Jane

Disc 2:
Heather
Back in the USSR
Dear Prudence
Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da
While My Guitar Gently Weeps
Blackbird
Rocky Raccoon
Julia
Mother Nature's Son
Hey Jude
Because
I Lost My Little Girl
Teddy Boy
Mama, You've Been on My Mind
For You Blue
Two of Us
Across the Universe
I Me Mine
Maggie Mae

McCartney @ Consol Centert

And the article... http://penguins.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=536204

And from the Detroit Free Press, with a few hilarious comments from Red Wings fans... http://www.freep.com/article/20100820/BLOG09/100820059/Paul-McCartney-draws-ire-of-Pens-prez-Pittsburgh-mayor-with-Wings-sticker

SETLIST:
1. Venus And Mars/Rock Show
2. Jet
3. All My Loving
4. Letting Go
5. Drive My Car
6. Highway (The Fireman cover)
7. Let Me Roll It / Foxy Lady (Hendrix cover)
8. The Long and Winding Road
9. Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five
10. Let 'Em In
11. My Love
12. I've Just Seen a Face
13. And I Love Her
14. Blackbird
15. Here Today
16. Dance Tonight
17. Mrs Vanderbilt
18. Eleanor Rigby
19. Ram On
20. Something
21. Sing the Changes (The Fireman cover)
22. Band on the Run
23. Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da
24. Back in the USSR
25. I've Got a Feeling
26. Paperback Writer
27. A Day in the Life / Give Peace A Chance
28. Let It Be
29. Live and Let Die
30. Hey Jude Play
31. Encore:
31. Day Tripper
32. Lady Madonna
33. Get Back
34. Encore 2:
34. Yesterday
35. Helter Skelter
36. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise)
37. The End

From setlist.fm

Here are a few videos from the show: SOMETHING DAY IN THE LIFE/GIVE PEACE A CHANCE I'VE JUST SEEN A FACE SGT. PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND (REPRISE) LIVE AND LET DIE

I'm not going to review the show. It was awesome. I got goosebumps too many times to remember and had tears in my eyes once. Any attempt by me to put it into words would only minimize the overall experience. I will say that it was a surreal event, like STAR WARS without Han and Chewie. Or like an Alfredo sauce without butter. I got the same feeling I get any time I read something about John or listen to the B side of ABBEY ROAD. I wonder what could've been and wish I had been there in '64.

Many, many thanks to the Regas for letting me tag along.