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[Moogmodule]

Off With the Beatles I was looking a bit askance at Little Child and Hold me Tight, but I decided that even they are good fun and not ones I’d say I’d dislike.

There’s also nothing off Hard Days Night. It’s such a solid album. The closest I came was Happy Just to Dance but even that I quite like when it comes up.

Off Beatles for Sale I wouldn’t say there’s anything I don’t like in the Lennon and McCartney tunes, covers would have been another matter.  Baby’s in Black came closest but it’s redeemed by its middle 8.

Off Help maybe I might say Another Girl, it’s an ok tune but the guitar drives me nuts. You Like Me too Much is a bit goofy but I don’t mind it.

 To be continued ….

[Normandie]

Baby’s in Black came closest but it’s redeemed by its middle 8.

Speaking of middle 8s, I stumbled across a list of what NME thinks are the top 10. The Beatles came in at No. 4. (This made me smile because it also references why I prefer John.)

Italics in original.

4. The Beatles – ‘We Can Work It Out’
Lennon vs McCartney. Past masters at the middle eight – and just think, we could’ve just about squeezed ‘A Day In The Life’ in here – the most satisfying Beatley example is John Lennon’s downer reply (“Life is very short…”) to Paul McCartney’s optimism. Always harshing poor Macca’s buzz, that Lennon. OK, it’s as much a bridge as a middle bit but is a stellar technical example.

[Loco Mo]

tkitna:  I was looking at your list and I remembered that I never liked Revolution 1.  Wasn't there a faster version of this?  I thought there was and I liked that one better.

[Hello Goodbye]

Wasn't there a faster version of this?  I thought there was and I liked that one better.

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGLGzRXY5Bw" target="_blank" class="aeva_link bbc_link new_win">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGLGzRXY5Bw</a>

[Moogmodule]

THis is an interesting exercise. I think a few years ago my list would have been longer. But now, going album by album there’s very few songs I actively dont like. I might be a bit ambivalent to quite a few and theres a narrower selection I’d put on a playlist, but its harder to say I dislike that many.

Anyway, to continue:

Rubber Soul - I’m afraid I’d have to put Michelle on this list. Just one that never appealed to me. I sometimes even skip it. Run for Your Life is the one everyone loves to hate, especially the lyrics, but I like the riff and it rollicks along.

Revolver - I’m saying nil here. Love You To and Tomorrow Never Knows are unconventional and harder to like compared to For No One or Eleanor Rigby, but I appreciate the thought that went into them so wouldn’t say I disliked them. Yellow Submarine is probably my least favourite on the album but to say you dislike it is like disliking a cute, if silly, child. Seems cruel.

Sgt Pepper - Nil again. While Sgt peppers has the least number of songs I’d put on a playlist, I dont dislike any of them. Within You Without You, like Love You To, took longest to warm to but, particularly with the remix version that really brings out the east vs west orchestration, I appreciate it more and more.

Magical Mystery Tour - Blue Jay Way. Nothing more needs to be said.

White Album - Never been to fussed with Rocky Racoon, Why Don’t We Do it in the Road or Birthday

Abbey Road - Nil - Maxwell comes close but I liked it as a kid (clearly not really understanding the lyrics) so I wont say I dislike it.

Let it Be - Dig it I can live without. There’s a few which are a bit borderline, One After 909, For You Blue, Dig a Pony but there’s enough in them to avoid the downvote button.

Singles and B Sides - The only one that jumps out is Ballad of John and Yoko. Not musically that interesting, self indulgent johnandyoko lyrics. And the rather bland instrumentation, done all by John and Paul, to me, shows what George and Ringo brought to the band and what happened when they weren’t there.

Oh and I dont really like Kom Gib Mir Deine Handor Sie Liebt Dich. No idea what theyre singing about

[nimrod]

Speaking of middle 8s, I stumbled across a list of what NME thinks are the top 10. The Beatles came in at No. 4. (This made me smile because it also references why I prefer John.)

Italics in original.

4. The Beatles – ‘We Can Work It Out’
Lennon vs McCartney. Past masters at the middle eight – and just think, we could’ve just about squeezed ‘A Day In The Life’ in here – the most satisfying Beatley example is John Lennon’s downer reply (“Life is very short…”) to Paul McCartney’s optimism. Always harshing poor Macca’s buzz, that Lennon. OK, it’s as much a bridge as a middle bit but is a stellar technical example.

Tbh I think thats nonsense.
In Pauls verses, hes obviously had a falling out with his lover, but hes saying "We can work it out" especially if you try to see things my way. Because if you refuse theres a chance that we might fall apart before too long.
John is merely solidifying Pauls POV by saying that life is very short, and theres no time for fussing and fighting....its a crime to waste time so...WE Can Work It Out.... He's agreeing with Paul.
They also didnt mention that the time signature changes during this bridge, also the tempo, a typical Lennonism.

I disagree with ADITL as well, Pauls part is like a completely different song,(not really a bridge) but connected to Johns by a contrived orchestral minute, both ends (The Ahh's)

[Moogmodule]

Tbh I think thats nonsense.
In Pauls verses, hes obviously had a falling out with his lover, but hes saying "We can work it out" especially if you try to see things my way. Because if you refuse theres a chance that we might fall apart before too long.
John is merely solidifying Pauls POV by saying that life is very short, and theres no time for fussing and fighting....its a crime to waste time so...WE Can Work It Out.... He's agreeing with Paul.
They also didnt mention that the time signature changes during this bridge, also the tempo, a typical Lennonism.

I disagree with ADITL as well, Pauls part is like a completely different song,(not really a bridge) but connected to Johns by a contrived orchestral minute, both ends (The Ahh's)

Although, to be fair, Paul’s way of working it out seems to be, “just agree with me and no need to fight”. John, recognising that Paul is contributing as much to the continuation of the argument (“Do I have to keep on talking til I cant go on?”) as his lover, calls for calm.

I do disagree its a downer reply by John. Quite the contrary.

[nimrod]

THis is an interesting exercise. I think a few years ago my list would have been longer. But now, going album by album there’s very few songs I actively dont like. I might be a bit ambivalent to quite a few and theres a narrower selection I’d put on a playlist, but its harder to say I dislike that many.

Anyway, to continue:

Rubber Soul - I’m afraid I’d have to put Michelle on this list. Just one that never appealed to me. I sometimes even skip it. Run for Your Life is the one everyone loves to hate, especially the lyrics, but I like the riff and it rollicks along.

Revolver - I’m saying nil here. Love You To and Tomorrow Never Knows are unconventional and harder to like compared to For No One or Eleanor Rigby, but I appreciate the thought that went into them so wouldn’t say I disliked them. Yellow Submarine is probably my least favourite on the album but to say you dislike it is like disliking a cute, if silly, child. Seems cruel.

Sgt Pepper - Nil again. While Sgt peppers has the least number of songs I’d put on a playlist, I dont dislike any of them. Within You Without You, like Love You To, took longest to warm to but, particularly with the remix version that really brings out the east vs west orchestration, I appreciate it more and more.

Magical Mystery Tour - Blue Jay Way. Nothing more needs to be said.

White Album - Never been to fussed with Rocky Racoon, Why Don’t We Do it in the Road or Birthday

Abbey Road - Nil - Maxwell comes close but I liked it as a kid (clearly not really understanding the lyrics) so I wont say I dislike it.

Let it Be - Dig it I can live without. There’s a few which are a bit borderline, One After 909, For You Blue, Dig a Pony but there’s enough in them to avoid the downvote button.

Singles and B Sides - The only one that jumps out is Ballad of John and Yoko. Not musically that interesting, self indulgent johnandyoko lyrics. And the rather bland instrumentation, done all by John and Paul, to me, shows what George and Ringo brought to the band and what happened when they weren’t there.

Oh and I dont really like Kom Gib Mir Deine Handor Sie Liebt Dich. No idea what theyre singing about

I agree with a lot of your post Moog, except Rubber Soul, I love Michelle, I find it beautiful. The only track I dont like is What Goes On....I forgot to put that on my worst off album.

Re Singles and B sides, what are your thoughts on You Know My Name ?

[Moogmodule]

I agree with a lot of your post Moog, except Rubber Soul, I love Michelle, I find it beautiful. The only track I dont like is What Goes On....I forgot to put that on my worst off album.

Re Singles and B sides, what are your thoughts on You Know My Name ?

I pondered What Goes On. It was close. I let it off because it motors along ok, some neat guitar and has nice backing vocals.

Forgot about You Know My Name. Hard to evaluate that one. It’s just a silly Goon type thing rather than a song. Funny to listen to occasionally but hardly one I’ll listen to a lot. Like Revolution 9 and What’s the New Mary JAne it’s just so out there that its hard to say I even like or dislike it.

[Normandie]

Rubber Soul - I’m afraid I’d have to put Michelle on this list. Just one that never appealed to me. I sometimes even skip it.

Agreed, although my opinion is even stronger: I actively dislike this song. It's much too syrupy, in my opinion. I almost always skip it.

[blmeanie]

I think I easily would create a playlist with some of your listed songs Moog

Michelle
 Rocky Racoon
 Why Don’t We Do it in the Road
 Birthday
 Ballad of John and Yoko

these have hit playlists/mix tapes for me over the years, Rocky is an all timer for me despite most people's opinion of it 

[Normandie]

. . . Rocky is an all timer for me despite most people's opinion of it 

You're not alone, blmeanie; I like it, too.

[Loco Mo]

Hello Goodbye:  Thanks for posting the "raunchy" version of Revolution One.  I consider it raunchy because of Paul's scream at the opening.  I like it better than the album version.  I'm not crazy about it but I can't stop listening to it when I start to.  These Beatles songs seem to engage me even if I'm not fond of them.  Why is that?

I agree that Herb Alpert's version of a Taste of Honey is much preferable to the Beatles version.

I'm not a fan of covers generally.  "Mr. Moonlight" is one I don't want to listen to.   I really like "Chains" and "Misery" though.  I love John's version of "Rock and Roll Music" from Beatles for Sale.

[Loco Mo]

Talking about Michelle:

Moogmodule:  This seemed (to me) to be a nice song to listen to on a breezy warm summer evening back in the 1960s.  (I think the weather was overall pleasant and nicer back then.)  I remember when trying to learn to play the guitar part that I liked it a lot.  I always wondered how Paul put all those guitar notes together.  Hard to believe he did this just by randomly strumming on the guitar until he found a melody he liked.

Normandie:  You said it was too syrupy.  Well, it is but that's Paul.  Paul loved to compose "Silly Love Songs."  It's not a song I choose to lay the needle on but if I hear it playing, I will listen to it.  I wonder if Paul actually knew a lady named Michelle whom he may have favored for a while.  I don't think he was with Linda yet, was he?  If so, what did she think about that song?

[Hello Goodbye]

Talking about Michelle:

I always wondered how Paul put all those guitar notes together.  Hard to believe he did this just by randomly strumming on the guitar until he found a melody he liked.

Like this, Loco:

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LGpfgOM0U-M" target="_blank" class="aeva_link bbc_link new_win">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LGpfgOM0U-M</a>

...capo at the 5th fret


It's one of my favorite Beatles songs and is so much fun to play.

[Normandie]

Normandie:  You said it was too syrupy.  Well, it is but that's Paul. 

Very true. And that's why I prefer John's compositions. I'll take, for example, "I'm a Loser" over "Michelle" in a heartbeat.  Again, I mean no disrespect to Paul.

I wonder if Paul actually knew a lady named Michelle whom he may have favored for a while.  I don't think he was with Linda yet, was he?  If so, what did she think about that song?

I'm not sure whether Paul actually knew someone named Michelle, but the song was released in 1965, so he hadn't met Linda yet.

As a side note, I've heard Paul's use of French in the song referred to by Beatles biographers as both "self-conscious" and "pretentious." (Pretty sure that latter one was from Philip Norman.)

And I can't believe "Girl" was the B side of "Michelle!"    "Girl" is far superior, in my (layperson's) opinion. I used to play it for the kids every so often (well, quite often), telling them how a song doesn't have to be Auto Tuned and synthesized, etc., to be good. This was mostly during my older daughter's One Direction phase.

[Hello Goodbye]

In regard to Michelle:

I took two-finger Delta blues guitar lessons from Ian Buchanan years ago.  A typical lesson song would go like this...

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmFSpOcSLNE" target="_blank" class="aeva_link bbc_link new_win">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmFSpOcSLNE</a>

Ian, himself, was taking jazz guitar lessons at the time.  One evening I asked him to teach me a song he was currently learning so he played September Song...

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HR9ZGTNMpBk" target="_blank" class="aeva_link bbc_link new_win">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HR9ZGTNMpBk</a>

Before I got going with the lesson, I warmed up by playing Michelle using Paul's two-finger and strum technique.  Ian quietly watched me play Michelle and then played it something like this on his Gibson L5 CES (the Epiphone L5 CES below is similar)...

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HcqCn56_wAk" target="_blank" class="aeva_link bbc_link new_win">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HcqCn56_wAk</a>

"That's a beautiful song," he said when he finished.  "Do you want me to teach you how to play it like that?" he asked.  "I sure do!" I replied.

He taught me September Song another evening.   

[Hello Goodbye]

In regard to Mr. Moonlight:

I've always loved this song, especially the organ instrumental break...

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZQ8nWZJrhA&amp;t=88s" target="_blank" class="aeva_link bbc_link new_win">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZQ8nWZJrhA&amp;t=88s</a>

So much so that whenever I took a girlfriend ice skating, I would ask the organist to play Mr. Moonlight:  Re: Identify The Song And Artist From The Posted Picture

What a romantic song, both musically and lyrically!   

[Loco Mo]

Normandie:  I googled "Michelle."  No, it wasn't written with someone in mind.  It was just a tune to start with and later Paul added lyrics with support from John.

Hello Goodbye:  Thanks for posting the additional videos.  I'll watch them later along with the one for Mr. Moonlight.  Maybe I'll like the song more on my next listen to it.  Tell me, did Ian Buchanan just pick it up after hearing you play it or did he study it beforehand before he played it for you?

[Hello Goodbye]

Tell me, did Ian Buchanan just pick it up after hearing you play it or did he study it beforehand before he played it for you?

I used a capo at the fifth fret to play Michelle when I warmed up that evening, Loco,  I played it similarly to the Michelle lesson video I posted.  He paid close attention to how I played the song.  Ian was not a Beatles fan and had none of their records.  He took Delta blues lessons from The Reverend Gary Davis and Brownie McGhee when he was a teenager and taught the style to Jorma Kaukonen when they were housemates at Antioch College in the early 1960s...

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZOI2he4p5k" target="_blank" class="aeva_link bbc_link new_win">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZOI2he4p5k</a>

Ian was a professional guitarist who enjoyed playing club dates.  He could play blues, jazz and popular songs and had a band (rhythm guitar, bass guitar, and drums) to back him up when he wasn't performing solo.  He was familiar with Michelle but I'm pretty sure he never played it before that evening.  He just expounded upon the basic picking and strumming pattern I played and didn't bother using a capo.

I was lucky to have studied with him for two years.  I was very far from being one of his better students.  He knew I was studying to be a doctor and couldn't devote a whole lot of time to my lessons.  He had some well-known musician friends who would often visit him, once during one of my lessons.  This is what happened when Al Kooper came over one evening: 

Re: How do musicians get paid?