Another Mad Men moment

I just finished up disc 4 of the 4-disc set of the fourth (and latest) season of Mad Men. Season 4 takes place between late November 1964 and October 12, 1965. Main character Don Draper has a young daughter and lives in New York City. So it only goes to follow that a scene such as this would occur:

"Your Mother Should Know"

I think about two things (mainly) whenever I see the finale to The Beatles' Magical Mystery Tour:

1963 Beatles fan club Christmas recording

Perhaps a little early Christmas cheer??

Information and picture from the Wikipedia entry for The Beatles' Christmas Album

"Each year from 1963 to 1969, The Beatles had recorded a short Christmas message for their fans, comprised of carols, skits, jokes, and thanks to the loyal "Beatle People". Each recording was pressed onto a 17.5 inch flexi disc and mailed free to the British members of the Fan Club.".

Beatles '89

What if?I've posted before about imaginary Beatles-reunion music mixes, but I'd never come up with one of my own. John Lennon's recent seventieth (wow) birthday had me thinking a bit more seriously about it. What if.....John Lennon hadn't been assassinated until 1989 (or not at all)? What if The Beatles had been able to reconcile their contractual/money and personal issues to reconvene (in earnest) to record at least one more album?

Obviously, all four Beatles never again recorded anything together after the Abbey Road sessions in 1969. So for the purposes of this mix, the limitations for choosing songs are for things recorded from Lennon's last creative output (for the Double Fantasy sessions in 1980) up to the year 1989, which was when Paul McCartney's above average (for him) Flowers in the Dirt was released. That album contains a couple of songs I can definitely imagine The Beatles recording, as I will explain.

So between 1980 and 1989, this would include, from John, Double Fantasy and the posthumously released Milk and Honey (recorded late August 1980, released in 1983). From Paul, McCartney II (released in mid-1980), Tug of War (1982), Pipes of Peace (1983), Press to Play (1986), and Flowers in the Dirt (1989). For material from which to possibly select songs, I'd exclude McCartney's movie soundtrack, Give My Regards to Broad Street (1984), which except for a favorite of mine, "No More Lonely Nights," was simply re-recordings of Beatles compositions, and СНОВА Б СССР (1988), essentially McCartney's version of Lennon's Rock 'n' Roll. From George, Somewhere in England (1981), Gone Troppo (1982), Cloud Nine (1987), and Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1 (1988). From Ringo.......well, er, I'll pretend the Fabs politely considered putting "Stop and Smell the Roses" (from his 1981 release Stop and Smell the Roses) on this imaginary album as the perfunctory one-per-album Ringo song, and then wisely decided against it.

This then, perhaps, might have been the album they'd have released in 1989, which I'd call Everest (or maybe A Doll's House?):

Side 1

"My Brave Face"
People compared McCartney's collaborations with Elvis Costello on Flowers in the Dirt to those he did with John Lennon. Costello provided the sourness sorely lacking from McCartney's overly sweet work of the years leading up to Flowers in the Dirt, just as Lennon could do. McCartney and Costello's harmonies on "My Brave Face" were, I think, purposely contrived to be similar to those he and Lennon did on "Here, There, and Everywhere," "Baby's in Black," "We Can Work it Out," etc., etc., etc. Listen to the line in the chorus "take me to that place" where the harmony vocal goes down on the word "place" -- that's Lennon and McCartney!

Also, I like to believe the lyric "Now I don't have to tell anybody when I'm gonna get back" is a reference to "Get Back." I think McCartney's expression at 1:16 in the video confirms my belief. "My Brave Face" sounds like a deliberate attempt by McCartney (and Costello) to be Beatlesque, right down to the first reappearance (the video for "Coming Up," notwithstanding) since the Beatle days of his Hofner bass (complete with Candlestick Park play list, still taped to it). Anyway, it could have been a pretty decent opening song to the first "real" Beatles album in twenty years...

"(Just Like) Starting Over"
Perhaps an obvious song to begin any "new" Beatles album, and it was difficult to decide whether I'd start it off with this or "My Brave Face," but I like how The Beatles ("The White Album) began with Paul's "Back in the U.S.S.R." and lead (bled) into John's "Dear Prudence." They even could have mixed it so as "My Brave Face" is fading out, the chimes at the start of "(Just Like) Starting Over" begin.

"This Is Love"



"Nobody Told Me"

Strange days, indeed.

"Coming Up"
Annoying in its way, perhaps, but The Beatles could have made it work (damnit)! John Lennon supposedly liked the song, and it is credited with having partly driven him out of retirement to return to "riding on the merry-go-round."

"Borrowed Time"
Ah yes, John Lennon - the voice of a generation, or should it be the voice of humanity?

"Heading for the Light"
A beautiful Harrison composition, recorded, of course, with the Traveling Wilburys. I've always imagined it was John and Paul (and George) doing background vocals.


"Beautiful Boy"
We know how Paul felt about this one. Don't you know he could hear himself doing harmonies with John? A nice way to end side one.


Side 2

"Tug of War"
As it was speculated to be a commentary of sorts on the post-Beatles break-up bitterness and quarreling between John and Paul back when McCartney released the album Tug of War (his first to come out after John Lennon's death), this song could have been a nice way of dealing with it on a "reunited Beatles" album. Bonus points for having been produced by Beatles producer George Martin. A lovely tune.


"When We Was Fab"
Favorite line: "Arrived like strangers in the night." Not as moving as "All Those Years Ago," but still a nice homage by George.


"This One"

"What opportunities did we allow to flow by
Feeling like the timing wasn't quite right?
What kind of magic might have worked if we had stayed calm..."

"Woman"
Yes, I'm afraid even in my little fantasy, make-believe Beatles album world, Yoko Ono is inextricably present...Just imagine Paul and George doing the backup vocals and Ringo reliably keeping the beat.


"Take It Away"
I've heard somewhere the video depicts the formation and career (in a way) of The Beatles. Ringo plays drums (for real!).


"Watching the Wheels"

No longer riding on the merry-go-round-hound!
I can clearly remember hearing this on the radio in those days after Lennon's death, back in December 1980.


"All Those Years Ago"

So beautiful...sigh.
The recording of the song featured all three remaining Beatles (Harrison, Starr and Paul McCartney), though this was expressly a Harrison single. It is one of only a few non-Beatles songs to feature three members of the group. Harrison and Starr recorded the song at Harrison's Friar Park studios between 19 November 1980 and 25 November 1980. After Lennon's death the following month, Harrison removed Starr's vocals (but left Starr's drumming track) and recorded his own vocals with rewritten lyrics honouring Lennon. McCartney, his wife Linda and their Wings bandmate Denny Laine visited Friar Park to record backing vocals. (source)

Imagine Gaga

Wonder who put that towel (door mat? carpet?) on the bench.
I realize planet Earth is bound to have Lady Gaga fatigue at this point. I mean, for heaven sake, if Exquisitely Bored in Nacogdoches is posting about her, you know things have reached epic saturation points. But maybe this'll be her last publicity stunt for a while, she'll disappear for a few months, reinvent herself and then receive a world reception friendlier than Christina Aguilera's. Sean Lennon Tweeted recently: "With gaga at mom's house, she's belting on the white piano..."

People are saying things like "John Lennon is spinning in his grave," etc., but I think he would be thrilled. She is the kind of recording artist (experimental, irreverent, original, talented, a little different, etc.) he'd have probably liked and even collaborated with if he were still around. Remember, he did things such as this (with Elton John) and this (with David Bowie).

And, of course, Yoko has always been out there, Gaga-style:

Beatles play theme to The Third Man

"The Harry Lime Theme" from The Third Man, 1969:

"The Long and Winding Road"

Some days you just want to grow out your beard and sing really sad songs, like "The Long and Winding Road," for example. The version the Fabs do in the video below is the live, in studio version from the film Let It Be and the way Paul intended for it to be done. Yet I, having heard if for the first time the way it was done after Phil Spector got his hands on it, will always prefer the lushly orchestrated version with the angelic choir (which Paul hated in particular). McCartney cited Spector's production on "The Long and Winding Road" as one of six reasons for the legal dissolution of The Beatles. He originally wrote the song at his farm in Scotland and was inspired by the growing tension among the group. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeeaaahhh.....

Early takes of "Hey Jude"

From the video description:

...from a documentary entitled 'Music!', made by Britain's National Music Council to examine the country's burgeoning music scene. The filmmakers were undoubtedly thrilled to be allowed access to a Beatles session in Abbey Road's Studio 2, as the group ran through early takes of "Hey Jude." The date is 30 July 1968 and we find Paul, John and Ringo on piano, acoustic guitar and drums respectively. George spends most of the session in the control room with producer George Martin and engineer Ken Scott.

The Beatles' Mad Day Out

Turns out the Fifth Beatle was a parrot!

The Beatles' Mad Day Out

"Hey Bulldog"

"Hey Bulldog" is a song by The Beatles which first appeared on the Yellow Submarine soundtrack album in 1969. Written by John Lennon (credited to Lennon/McCartney), the song was recorded during the filming of the "Lady Madonna" promotional video, and is one of the few Beatles songs to revolve around a piano riff. (source)

During the recording, Paul McCartney started to bark without warning. The next lines, initially written as "Hey Bullfrog", were changed mid-song to "Hey Bulldog". This became the song's title. (source) Geoff Emerick, the Beatles' engineer, would subsequently claim this was the last song the band recorded that featured a team dynamic with enthusiasm from every member. When the group reconvened in the studio in May 1968 for the The Beatles sessions, their group cohesion had already been undermined by the business, artistic, and personal differences that would culminate in their eventual breakup. (source) During these sessions, a film crew photographed the four Beatles recording the song. It was one of the few times they allowed themselves to be extensively filmed recording in the Abbey Road studios, for a promotional film to be released during their scheduled four-month retreat to India (which was later edited together as a promotional film for the single "Lady Madonna"). (source) The song was used in an animated segment of the Yellow Submarine film which initially appeared only in European theatrical prints. It was restored and seen for the first time in 30 years for the film's 1999 re-release. To promote the reissue, Apple went back to the original footage shot for the "Lady Madonna" promo film and restructured it for use as a promotional clip for "Hey Bulldog" (as it is possible to identify what they were playing, and therefore possible to synchronize the music with the original footage). (source)

"Ask Me Why"

Information from the Wikipedia entry:

"Ask Me Why" is a song by The Beatles originally released in the United Kingdom as the B-side of their hit single "Please Please Me." It was also included on their first UK album, Please Please Me.

Written in early 1962, "Ask Me Why" is principally a John Lennon composition, but was credited to Paul McCartney and John Lennon, as were all other Lennon/McCartney originals on the first pressings of Please Please Me album. It was part of their live act prior to their recording contract, and was one of the songs performed at their Parlophone audition in Abbey Road's studio three on 6 June 1962. The song emulates in style that of Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, by whom Lennon was influenced, and draws its opening guitar phrase from the Miracles’ "What’s So Good About Goodbye" (1961).

I should have known better

So, I finally got The Beatles Rock Band. Having never played one of these Rock Band/Guitar Hero games before, I see that what I've heard about actual musicians having a hard time with them is true. So far, I'm either really bored or completely overwhelmed by it, depending on the difficulty level. It's a very weird experience to play songs I've played on actual guitars for twenty-something years on that sucker you see pictured above. With the little I've played of it, I currently am feeling like Randy Marsh. I hope it's getting better (it can't get no worse). I guess if I'd never actually played music in the real world, I might like games like this more. And I'm still hopeful I'll end up liking it, but as far as playing video games is concerned, I'd rather be shooting things and blowing stuff up.

"We'll Meet Again"

In honor of 92-year-old Dame Vera Lynn getting back to the top of the British charts, I repost the follwing. According to the linked article in the previous sentence, she has even beaten out Britain's own Beatles for the top spot. Coincidentally, "We'll Meet Again" is used very effectively and poignantly near the beginning of episode one of The Beatles Anthology (04:04).

Wikipedia entry:

"We'll Meet Again" is a 1939 song made famous by British singer Vera Lynn with music written by Ross Parker and words by Hughie Charles.

The song is one of the most famous songs of the Second World War era, and resonated with soldiers going off to fight and their families and sweethearts. The assertion that "we'll meet again" is optimistic, as many soldiers did not survive to see their loved ones again. Indeed, the meeting place at some unspecified time in the future would have been seen by many who lost loved ones to be heaven.


Vera Lynn performance from 1942
The song gave its name to the 1943 musical film We'll Meet Again in which Vera Lynn played the lead role. Lynn's recording is featured in Stanley Kubrick's 1964 movie Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb.



Pink Floyd makes reference to this song and the performer in "Vera," a song from the Pink Floyd album The Wall: "Does anybody here remember Vera Lynn?/Remember how she said that we would meet again some sunny day?". A short clip of "We'll Meet Again" can be heard at the beginning of the first track on the Pink Floyd album Is There Anybody Out There? The Wall Live 1980-81.

Open letter to Harmonix

Dear Harmonix:

Well, well, well, the vaunted, Lennon-friendly 9/9/09 has come and passed. Despite being a Beatles fanatic since 1981 (learning to play the guitar at 14 in order to "be" a Beatle, buying all the albums and then later the CDs), I don't believe I'll be purchasing the remastered box sets just so I can hear "crisper cymbals" and "warmer bass lines." I guess I'm just not that much of an audiophile. And what's this I hear about no "I've got blisters on my fingers!!" on the mono version of The Beatles?? Sacrilege, I say. A pox on your house, whoever made that decision. May you rot in Hell, sir or madam. The thought of a generation of kids not experiencing "the White Album" for the first time without that on it? For shame....FOR SHAME!!!! Don't get me started on how the pitch is shifted up intentionally on the mono mix of "She's Leaving Home."

But I digress, Harmonix. As one who loves The Beatles and videogames, I've been anticipating for months your "Beatles Rock Band," which you released yesterday. Having never purchased any of your previous "Rock Band" games, I have no controller/guitar with which to play the game. SO, despite the tepid reviews, I spent about an hour yesterday in Naconowhere searching, earnestly, for one. And by "one," I mean one of these, damnit:

Now, maybe I'm just being picky, but the stores (Hastings and GameStop) which had them at all (our "super" Wal-Mart had not a one of them...wtf?), offered only this "model":



Understand, I love George Harrison and I admire Chet Atkins and all, but the guitar I dreamed about as a kid and drew during math classes, over and over and over again, was this one:


This one:

This one:

This one:

This one:

Yes, this one:
So, Harmonix, until I can walk into a store, locally, and purchase one of those, I'm not buying or playing your freaking game!

Sincerely yours,

Exquisitely Bored in Nacogdoches

P.S. I love you.

Moon songs

I couldn't choose just one moon song for this special anniversary, so here's a whole bunch. No good version of "Under the Cherry Moon" or "Moondance" were to be found, and it's still too soon (in proximity to the release of the movie) to listen to R.E.M.'s "Man on the Moon." I don't like The Stones' "Moonlight Mile" or The Doors' "Moonlight Drive." Never have. I felt "Claire de Lune" and "Moonlight Sonata" were waaay too slow. Besides, this isn't meant to be a complete list.

"Moon Love"


"Blue Moon of Kentucky"


"Moonlight Becomes You"


"Old Devil Moon"


"Moonlight Serenade"


"It's Only a Paper Moon"


"How High the Moon"


"Moon River"


"The Moon Was Yellow (And the Night Was Young)"


"Walking on the Moon"


"Moonlight in Vermont"


pic source
"Blue Moon"

Hilarious

"Bike Ride to the Moon"


"Moonlight on the Ganges"


"Mr. Moonlight"


"Polka Dots and Moonbeams"


"Bad Moon Rising"


"Fly Me to the Moon (In Other Words)"


And last, but not least,
"Bark at the Moon"

The Apple Boutique

Info from:

The Apple Boutique started life in the 19th century as a four-story house. Over the years it evolved into an office and shops in the busy part of London at the corner of Baker Street and Paddington Street. During the 60's three Dutch designers had an initially successful fashion boutique called the Trend in Amsterdam. It was closed due to financial problems.

Apple Boutique designs. From left: Pattie (Boyd) Harrison, Cynthia Lennon (John's wife), and Maureen Starr (Ringo's wife); kneeling in front: Jennie Boyd (George's sister-in-law). I guess Jane Asher was busy? - pic source

The designers later met Simon Hayes and Barry Finch. Hayes became the business manager while Finch joined the three Dutch designers who became known as the "The Fool." Pattie Harrison was familiar with them and even wore some of their designs. How it all started is not clear, but in September 1967, The Beatles gave "the Fool" 100,000 pounds to design and stock the new Apple Boutique.

Pattie Harrison and pals model Apple Boutique goods (pic source)
"The Fool" engaged several dozen art students to paint a huge psychedelic mural across the entire front and side of the store. Instant complaints from local merchants soon had them erasing the mural. "The Fool" also created the psychedelic designs for John's Rolls-Royce and a fireplace for George.

Tuning in, turning on, and checking out at the register
Pete Shotton managed the store with Pattie Harrison's sister Jennie. Invitations to the grand opening, on 5 December 1967, read "Come at 7.46. Fashion Show at 8.16." John and George were the only Beatles that attended. The only drink available that night was apple juice. The Apple Boutique turned out to be a financial disaster and was closed just 8 months later. On Tuesday morning, 30 July 1968, the staff was told they could give everything away. Paul's "beautiful place" was no more.

A relatively obscure 1968 film called Hot Millions (yes, that is Bob Newhart) has a scene set in the Apple Boutique, providing a sense of what an average day might have been like:

"Baby's in Black"

Information from the Wikipedia entry:
"Baby's in Black" is a song by The Beatles, co-written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney and released in the United Kingdom on Beatles for Sale and in the United States on Beatles '65.

The lyrics may be about Astrid Kirchherr, a friend and photographer the Beatles met during their first trip to Hamburg. She was Stuart Sutcliffe's fiancée, and was distraught over his death.

The Beatles recorded "Baby's in Black" on 11 August 1964, the first song recorded for Beatles for Sale.


Lennon and McCartney sang their vocal parts simultaneously through the same microphone. This was done at their own insistence in order to achieve a closer feel to the performance. McCartney was subsequently contacted by their music publisher in 1964 inquiring as to which melody line was the main tune (i.e. Paul's higher or John's lower melody). McCartney later said that he told the publisher they were both the main melody.

The Beatles performed "Baby's in Black" live during their appearances from late 1964 until their last tour in 1966, and usually as the third song in their set after "Rock and Roll Music" and "Long Tall Sally." McCartney said they introduced the song by saying, "'And now for something different.' ... We used to put that in there, and think, 'Well, they won't know quite what to make of this, but it's cool.'"

In 1996, a live version of "Baby's in Black" was released as a B-side to the second (and last) Beatles "reunion" single, "Real Love."

"Baby's In Black" was also performed at The Beatles' 1965 concert at Shea Stadium.

Here is that August 15, 1965, Shea Stadium performance. I love how John is temporarily distracted while introducing the song by a young fan who has managed to reach the field and break through a line of police guards. One does have to wonder though how this would have sounded through those stadium speakers:

Greatest rock band, EVER

The Beatles--sitting in an English garden waiting for the sun
I must say, Yoko, Paul, Olivia, and Ringo made a brilliant move in lending the Beatles (their name, music and image) to the latest in the Rock Band series of videogames. It will no doubt gain them countless number of young fans they might otherwise not have attracted. I just hope some of those kids learn to actually play their music on real musical instruments! For older fans, such as myself, it will reinforce in their minds the idea that there will never, ever again be a group as wonderful as the Beatles.

And what group is more perfect for one of these games than the Fabs? I've never played any of the Rock Band or Guitar Hero games, but I assume the player has to master certain levels to get further into the game. So, the way in which the Beatles rose to higher and higher levels of success (Hamburg to the Cavern, to conquering the U.K., then Europe, America, etc.) must have made it really easy to design the game. Also, what other rock band in the history of popular music had the musical development of the Beatles?? This too will make for a really interesting game -- i.e., you can't play "Ticket to Ride" until you've mastered "Twist and Shout," etc. The Beatles: Rock Band comes out on 9/9/09...

One can watch actual gameplay here, or even better, the trailer. It is a thing of beauty, even if there wasn't a game to promote. Although they got the chronology of the music wrong in some places, it still has the same kind of coolness the mashups done for last year's Love had in some places. It's a neat, mini-history of the group, minus all the petty squabbling and growing-up-and-apart issues (let's leave all that for an awesome film someday):

Wouldn't it be neat to see a "reboot" or just a redo of the Beatles cartoon which aired from 1965-69 in this style? The correct answer is "yes."