The Fest for Beatles Fans continues today, including my Fest debut at 8:30pm.

The highlight of yesterday's Fest initiation was "Kit and Kaboodle", a friendly debate between Kit O'Toole and Jude Kessler over whose songs on Revolver were better: John's or Paul's?

Jude offered fascinating and original insight into John's songs 'I'm Only Sleeping' and 'And Your Bird Can Sing', both of which I found particularly enlightening. She cited behavioral traits (in particular his late sleeping and perpetual fatigue) which would, in the early 21st Century, classify him as clinically depressed, though no such diagnosis existed at the time. She also illustrated how sleep was not a passive endeavor for John, but an active one - and how his beds served as a safe environment, conducive to creative production and artistic expression. As supportive evidence, she played the first take of the song (as found on Anthology 2, Disc 1, track 23), which is harsher in character than the more dreamy finished product, arguing that this was more realistic portrayal of how John thought of sleeping than the released version of the song.

While Paul has cited sleep as inspiration for songs like 'Yesterday' (which famously came to him immediately after waking up) and 'Yellow Submarine' (which came to him while drifting off to sleep one night), I had never before thought of John's songs in the same way. Of course he wrote 'I'm Only Sleeping' in 1966 and 'I'm So Tired' two years later, but before yesterday I had always thought of these tracks as representing John's withdrawal from life and music. Jude, however, changed my mind - they show John engaging with life, not resigning from it.

My question for her afterwards was about any sexual connotations to "sleeping" and "beds". In 2016, both of those words have strong erotic components. Was that also the case 50 years ago? And if so, does it fit into her theories about John's depressive state of mind? She answered both inquiries affirmatively, even though by 1966 John and Cynthia's marriage had deteriorated to the point where they were probably rarely physically intimate. Fidelity mattered little to Lennon, and other women were common. After all, in the Playboy interviews just before his death, John himself cited the song 'Norwegian Wood' (which, according to George Martin, "he composed in the hotel bedroom") as "about an affair I was having. I was very careful and paranoid because I didn't want my wife, Cyn, to know something was going on."

He also admitted in Maureen Cleave's 4 March 1966 article "How Does a Beatle Live?" (yes, the same one with the infamous "bigger than Jesus" comment), "I don't mind writing or reading or watching or speaking, but sex is the only physical thing I can be bothered with any more." And indeed this does fit with Jude's observations of John because sexual expression is fundamentally a creative act - or, more accurately, a PROcreative act!

Jude also explored the lyrics of 'And Your Bird Can Sing', attempting to discern who the "you" is in the song. Some have speculated that the song was about Frank Sinatra, who was apparently serious competition for the Beatles in the charts at the time despite their substantial stylistic differences. But she hypothesized that the subject was instead Brian Epstein, whose importance to the band was diminishing as they grew progressively and inexorably closer to quitting touring.

Kit, on the other hand, argued that although John is often thought of as the more experimental and innovative of the pair, Paul's tracks 'Eleanor Rigby' and 'Got To Get You Into My Life' were just as risky as any of John's.

Recorded between 7 April and 17 June 1965, 'Got To Get You Into My Life' was the first of Paul's drug songs. In the June 2004 issue of Uncut, McCartney confessed, "'Day Tripper', that's one about acid." But the band wouldn't record that song until 16 October 1965. Similarly, Paul admitted the song 'For No One' was "an ode to pot" (Miles, Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now, p. 314), but that was recorded later still (9 and 21 February 1967). Thus, 'Got To Get You Into My Life' breaks ground for Paul in that he is becoming more experimental with mind-altering substances.

Similarly, 'Eleanor Rigby' breaks ground in terms of structure and narrative. She cited the somewhat operatic three-verse story in which verse 1 pertains to the Eleanor Rigby herself, verse 2 refers to Father McKenzie, and verse 3 brings the two together. But, of course, it's too late - these two lonely people, who could have been friends, only meet through the title character's death.

         Section                                                              Timing             Lyrics
        (B) Introductory Chorus 1                         0:00-0:14
        (A) Verse 1 + Refrain                                    0:14-0:46       Eleanor Rigby
        (A) Verse 2 + Refrain                                    0:46-1:17        Father McKenzie
        (B) Chorus 2                                                     1:17-1:31
        (A&B) Verse 3 + Refrain & Chorus 3     1:31-2:05         Rigby & McKenzie

If I may contribute to Kit's analysis, 'Rigby' is also one of only two quodlibets in the Beatles' catalog. A quodlibet is an archaic term for a musical composition which combines multiple melodies simultaneously. Kit's recent book Songs We Were Singing:  guided Tours Through the Beatles' Lesser-Known Tracks (which she generously gave to me when I went to purchase it) describes the other: "'I've Got a Feeling' consists of two separate songs combined; McCartney penned the section referring to the title, while Lennon contributed a song initially dubbed 'Everyone Had A Hard Year'" (p. 173).

'Rigby' is less obvious in its melodic blending than 'I've Got a Feeling'.

First, the track opens with the chorus, the melody of which is supplemented by harmony a third below.

Second, each verse concludes with a refrain.

The annual New York Fest for Beatles Fans begins this evening and continues through Sunday. The full schedule of events may be found here: http://us12.campaign-archive1.com/?u=5b42ed71e7c5d78b988822a79&id=2cf584c376&e=a69dfcec2b

And tomorrow I make my Fest debut:

Saturday, 16 April 2016, 8:30-9:15 p.m.
The Fest for Beatles Fans, Hilton Westchester, 699 Westchester Ave, Rye Brook, NY
The Influence of American Rock 'n' Roll on the Beatles
Before the Beatles ever wrote their own songs or performed on stage, they were inspired to do so by American rock 'n' roll records. This 45-minute multimedia program will illustrate the influence of Carl Perkins, Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, and other American recording artists from the 1950's on the Beatles through side-by-side comparisons and musical analysis of Beatles covers and original recordings.

In the meantime, I have a live phone interview with Lanea Stagg, author of Recipee Records, this morning at 10:30 EST (9:30 CST). Details here: http://rockblocks3.blogspot.com/2016/04/the-long-winding-road-with-aaron.html

Last week I presented From the Shadow of JFK: The Rise of Beatlemania in America at the Wernersville library in Pennsylvania. A woman asked about Dave Dexter (1915-1990), the Capitol Records executive who declined the opportunity to release Beatles music in the United States on four separate occasions. "Was he fired?" she asked. I couldn't recall what happened, so I researched it a bit.

Dexter grew up in Kansas City, and now the University of Kansas City houses a collection of his files, much of which is available online for free. One section of this collection is dedicated solely to the relationship between Dexter and the Beatles. One such document is a 21 September 1964 memo from Capitol president Alan Livingston to Dexter. Though diplomatically worded, Livingston's frustration is unmistakable.

Should anybody ask me the same question tomorrow, I'll be ready!
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Thursday, 14 April 2016, 6:30-7:30 p.m.
Highland Park Public Library, 31 N 5th Ave, Highland Park, NJ
From the Shadow of JFK: The Rise of Beatlemania in America
Many Beatles authors and scholars have cited John F. Kennedy's assassination on 22 November 1963 as a cause of the Beatles' sudden popularity in the United States in early 1964. Their logic: Kennedy's assassination made America sad, then the Beatles made America happy again. But this commonly accepted answer is overly simplistic. America has suffered numerous tragedies and rebounded each time, but the popularity and staying power of the Beatles remains unmatched in American history. The real answer is that Kennedy's life and death inadvertently primed the nation for the Beatles' arrival and success. This 60-minute multimedia program will explain how and why.

Round 3.

On 5 April, I blogged of how George Martin supplemented George Harrison's guitar solo on the song 'Baby It's You' (1963) by playing the same notes on a celeste. Then on 7 April, I blogged of how the two Georges used the same "duet instead of literal solo" technique on 'A Hard Day's Night' (1964), and of how they used varispeed to perform the music an octave lower and half as fast as it's heard on the final product, then played the tape back at double speed. Today I consider the same varispeed technique on 'In My Life' (1965).

The song was recorded on 18 October 1965, with a space left open for a solo to be subsequently overdubbed. Four days later, George Martin wrote and recorded a two-part invention in the style of Baroque composer Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750). But if you've ever played Bach's inventions, you know they're not terribly easy. The contrapuntal texture makes the physical choreography between the hands challenging. Though a competent pianist, Martin was no virtuoso and so (much like he did on 'A Hard Day's Night' a year earlier) he used varispeed to create the impossibly fast and clean playing heard on the finished product.

​So here's what Martin actually played:

And here's what that same performance sounds like on the recording, at double speed:

But in this use of varispeed (unlike the same technique used on 'Hard Day's Night'), an artistic component supplements the practical facilitation. As I wrote in The Beatles & The Avant-Garde: "In this extended, melodically intricate setting, the distortion effects of tape manipulation emerged more noticeably than in the earlier, brief interludes. As Martin discovered to his delight, double-speed playback has side effects. Just as the note durations are halved, so too the note decays – the length of time it takes for the sound to fade – are also halved. This abbreviated decay is reminiscent of another keyboard instrument, one that was in use during Bach's lifetime: the harpsichord. Just as the use of a classical string quartet gave the ultra-nostalgic 'Yesterday' a depth that a traditional rock band arrangement could not achieve, so too the addition of a [varispeeded] piano solo on the ultra-nostalgic 'In My Life' provided a depth that a standard electric guitar solo could not achieve. The practical studio technique of 'wound up piano' [Martin's casual term for varispeed] took on new and expressive artistic meaning."

This is one of many analyses of songs I'll present tomorrow evening at the Heggan Free Public Library:

Wednesday, 13 April 2016, 7:00-8:30 p.m.
Margaret E. Heggan Free Public Library, 606 Delsea Drive, Sewell, NJ
Reinventing Rock 'n' Roll: The Beatles' Rubber Soul and Revolver
The sophisticated songwriting and experimental recording techniques on the Beatles' sixth studio album Rubber Soul and seventh studio album Revolver helped establish the rock album as a legitimate art form and anticipated the “concept album” Sgt. Pepper. This 90-minute multimedia presentation will discuss and analyze highlights from both albums with the intent of explaining and illustrating how these groundbreaking practices helped shape the Beatles' music specifically and rock music in general.

'Mr. Kite' is one of several Beatles songs in which the recording is better than the song. In other words, the same song recorded by other artists probably wouldn't have the same depth or impact as George Martin and the Beatles' recording. (Sorry Eddie Izzard!)

John Lennon was the primary author of the song, although in a 2013 interview with Rolling Stones, Paul claimed it was co-written: "I have great memories of writing it with John. I read, occasionally, people say, "Oh, John wrote that one." I say, "Wait a minute, what was that afternoon I spent with him, then, looking at this poster?" He happened to have a poster in his living room at home. I was out at his house, and we just got this idea..." (Source: http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/q-a-paul-mccartney-looks-back-on-his-latest-magical-mystery-tour-20130725) This is probably true, although it's safe to say 'Mr. Kite' is more of a John song than a Paul song - rather similar to 'In My Life' (which I'll blog about tomorrow).

Regardless, Lennon expressed contradictory opinions regarding 'Mr. Kite'. In 1967 (the year it was released on Sgt. Pepper) he admitted to Hunter Davies, "I wasn't proud of that. There was no real work. I was just going though the motions because we needed a new song for Sgt Pepper at that moment" (Davies 275). But in an interview with David Sheff of Playboy in 1980, he reversed himself, concluding, "It's so cosmically beautiful ... The song is pure, like a painting, a pure watercolor" (Turner 128). How could the same man - the guy who wrote the song in the first place - offer such opposite perspectives on the same music? It's because in the earlier quote, Lennon was critiquing the song, while in the later quote he was critiquing the recording of the song. For while the song itself is somewhat bland, how it was recorded and developed in the studio - how mediocre music evolved into an exceptional recording - is the real story behind 'Being For the Benefit of Mr. Kite!'.

In the Beatles' early years, John was the unofficial leader of the band. He founded the Quarrymen (the band that eventually became the Beatles) in the first place, and consistently took charge. His leadership peaked on A Hard Day's Night, on which he was the primary author of 10 of the album's 13 tracks. By the time of Sgt. Pepper, however, Lennon had ceded that unofficial leadership to Paul. On Pepper, Paul was the primary author of 8.5 of the album's 13 tracks ('A Day in the Life' being truly co-written, accounting for the half), and Paul would be the impetus behind Magical Mystery Tour (late 1967) and Get Back/Let it Be (1969-70). 

Thus, by 1967, John was relinquishing his authority to Paul and slowing in his songwriting. In an effort to keep up with Paul's prolific pace, John turned to "found lyrics" (words that come from a preexisting source) rather than writing anything original.

But Lennon's use of found lyrics was not new on Pepper. He admitted the first such example of on a Beatles recording borrowed from the Disney film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937). The movie features the song 'I'm Wishing', which opens with the title character singing the words, "Want to know a secret? Promise not to tell?", heard in the clip below from 0:16-0:20.

John's mother sang that song to him as a child, and in 1963 Lennon would recycle those words in the song 'Do You Want to Know a Secret', heard below from ​0:17-0:23.

But it wasn't just the lyrics which were appropriated - the music was, too. The melody John wrote for 'Mr. Kite' bear strong resemblance to the song 'It's Only Love', which he had written two years earlier for the album Help! (1965) - the subject of another BEATLES MINUTE:

Try singing the words "Zanthus the horse" and you'll know why John decided to change the name (rather similar to Paul McCartney changing the original "Hey Jules" to "Hey Jude"). But there are any number of two syllable names that Lennon could have chosen that would have worked just fine. So why "Henry"? Two reasons: (1) "Henry the horse" features alliteration as both nouns start with the letter "h"; and more significantly (2) to avoid confusion between George Harrison and George Martin, the latter was sometimes referred to as Henry - Martin's middle name (Emerick, page 6). And since much of 'Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!' was Martin's doing - NOT Lennon's - it seems likely that John's selection of the name "Henry" to replace "Zanthus" seems like Lennon's way of acknowledging his producer's substantial contributions to his song. 
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​CITATIONS
Davies, Hunter. The Beatles. W W Norton & Company, New York, NY, 1996.

Emerick, Geoff and Howard Massey. Here, There and Everywhere: My Life Recording the Music of the Beatles. Gotham Books, published by Penguin Group (USA) Inc., New York, NY, 2006.

Everett, Walter. The Beatles as Musicians: Revolver through Anthology. Oxford University Press, New York, NY, 1999.

Martin, George. With a Little Help from My Friends: The Making of Sgt. Pepper. Little, Brown and Company, New York, NY, 1994.

Turner, Steve. A Hard Day's Write: The Stories Behind Every Beatles Song. itbooks, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, New York, NY, 2005.

These aspects, complete with audio excerpts, are exactly what I will discuss tomorrow evening during "The Beatles' Alter Ego, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" at the Woodbury Public Library:

Tuesday, 12 April 2016, 2:30-3:30 p.m.
Salem Community College, 460 Hollywood Avenue, Carneys Point, NJ
The Beatles: Band of the Sixties
Explore the music of The Beatles in this 60-minute multimedia presentation (part history and part musical analysis) spanning the full 1960s: beginning with the band's seminal visits to Hamburg, continuing through Beatlemania, and concluding with Abbey Road. The program will be supplemented with audio clips of music and excerpts from interviews with the band members.

Tuesday, 12 April 2016, 7:00-8:30 p.m.
Woodbury Public Library, 33 Delaware St, Woodbury, NJ
The Beatles' Alter Ego, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Since its release in 1967, the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band has often been regarded as the greatest rock album ever made, and one of the first rock concept albums. This 90-minute multimedia presentation will observe and discuss the landmark album track by track, citing musical and historical precedents, and illustrating the development of the songs through excerpts from interviews with the band members and clips of discarded takes.

Ringo Starr, in an interview with CNN, declined comment, saying, "You can't pick your favorite song. ... The question is too far out." (Source: http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1004/12/ctw.01.html)

And George Harrison apparently made a great many (and sometimes self-contradictory) comments about his favorites, or at least Beatles songs he likes. Understandably, his opinions changed greatly over time, so there appears to be no definitive answer from him.

If you count the Abbey Road Medley as a single piece of music, I'd have to cite that as my personal favorite. I've heard that medley described as "the best 20 minutes of recorded music in history." And although it's closer to 16 minutes (counting 'You Never Give Me Your Money' through 'Her Majesty'), I'm inclined to agree with that assessment. If that doesn't count, then I'd go with John and say 'I Am the Walrus' because it's pure Lennon fantasy - nobody other than John Lennon could have composed that song.

What's your favorite Beatles track(s)?

Tomorrow is a two-program day:
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Monday, 11 April 2016, 2:30-3:30 p.m.
Salem Community College, 460 Hollywood Avenue, Carneys Point, NJ
The Beatles: Band of the Sixties
Explore the music of The Beatles in this 60-minute multimedia presentation (part history and part musical analysis) spanning the full 1960s: beginning with the band's seminal visits to Hamburg, continuing through Beatlemania, and concluding with Abbey Road. The program will be supplemented with audio clips of music and excerpts from interviews with the band members.

Monday, 11 April 2016, 6:00-7:00 p.m.
Deptford Free Public Library, 670 Ward Dr, Deptford, NJ
The History of Rock 'n' Roll
This 60-minute multimedia presentations will trace the development of Rock 'n' Roll (as distinct from Rock of the 1960's) from its roots in the blues and country music, through its pinnacle in the mid 1950's, its abrupt decline in the late 50's, and conclude with its legacy and influence on musicians of subsequent decades. Artists discussed will include Buddy Holly, Little Richard, Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley, and others.

One of the reasons I bought Carole King's autobiography and have been listening to it in the car on this tour was because I knew so little about her. I knew her name, of course, and that the Beatles covered her song "Boys" on their debut album, Please Please Me in 1963. But beyond that, I couldn't name a single song. I knew she co-composed quite a few big hits with her husband Gerry Goffin, and I knew that I knew the music - just not the songwriting credits. In any case, here's a crash course of highlights from the impressive Goffin/King catalog:
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• The Shirelles: "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow" (1961)

Back in Beatle-land, the tour continues tomorrow with a matinee at the Ridely Township Public Library:

Sunday, 10 April 2016, 2:00-3:00 p.m.
Ridley Township Public Library, 100 E. MacDade Blvd, Folsom, PA
The Beatles: Band of the Sixties
Explore the music of The Beatles in this 60-minute multimedia presentation (part history and part musical analysis) spanning the full 1960's: beginning with the band's seminal visits to Hamburg, continuing through Beatlemania, and concluding with Abbey Road. The program will be supplemented with audio clips of music and excerpts from interviews with the band members.

The Beatles (and Ringo especially) were frequently criticized for their mop-top hair styles, which made them look like girls. I recall finding a 1965 article in the New York Times while researching for From the Shadow of JFK: The Rise of Beatlemania in America complaining about the androgynous appearance of many young people, though I'm afraid my memory cannot cite a specific date for that article. But I had never before thought of the band's shoes as accentuating their feminine qualities.

Then, a few nights ago in Carlisle, PA I presented "Band of the Sixties" again. This time somebody asked where that photo was taken. I had to admit I didn't know off the top of my head, so I emailed Mark Lewisohn with the question. Here is his erudite answer:

"It’s best known as the cover of the extraordinarily successful EP Twist And Shout. (Also the Canadian LP.) Taken at a demolition site in Euston Road, London, April 25 1963, by Fiona Adams for the weekly paper Boyfriend. Personally selected for the EP cover by JL."

There is a reason why Lewisohn is the world's authority on the Beatles!

That picture will be on display tomorrow afternoon at the Kennett Public Library, when I deliver another "Band of the Sixties" at the Kennett Public Library:

Saturday, 9 April 2016, 2:00-3:00 p.m.
Kennett Public Library, 216 East State Street, Kennett Square, PA
The Beatles: Band of the Sixties
Explore the music of The Beatles in this 60-minute multimedia presentation (part history and part musical analysis) spanning the full 1960's: beginning with the band's seminal visits to Hamburg, continuing through Beatlemania, and concluding with Abbey Road. The program will be supplemented with audio clips of music and excerpts from interviews with the band members.

The other day I blogged on how George Martin and George Harrison combined to create the solo (technically a duet) on the Beatles' 1963 recording of "Baby It's You". I concluded by stating that the two Georges would do the same thing a year later on a song that would reach #1 in the charts on both sides of the Atlantic. 

That #1 hit was the title song to the band's 1964 debut film, A Hard Day's Night. And indeed the solo on that song is once again actually a duet: Harrison plays his guitar while Martin plays the same notes on piano an octave lower. This can be heard from 1:19-1:32 in the following clip:

In the meantime, however, is another round of "Band of the Sixties" tomorrow at the Avon Grove library:

Friday, 8 April 2016, 7:00-8:00 p.m.
Avon Grove Library, 117 Rosehill Ave, West Grove, PA
The Beatles: Band of the Sixties
Explore the music of The Beatles in this 60-minute multimedia presentation (part history and part musical analysis) spanning the full 1960's: beginning with the band's seminal visits to Hamburg, continuing through Beatlemania, and concluding with Abbey Road. The program will be supplemented with audio clips of music and excerpts from interviews with the band members.

In the meantime, I drive to Wernersville, PA for a program this evening at the Wernersville Public Library. And be listening to A Natural Woman on the way.

Wednesday, 6 April 2016, 6:30-7:30 p.m.
Wernersville Public Library, 100 N Reber St, Wernersville, PA
From the Shadow of JFK: The Rise of Beatlemania in America
Many Beatles authors and scholars have cited John F. Kennedy's assassination on 22 November 1963 as a cause of the Beatles' sudden popularity in the United States in early 1964. Their logic: Kennedy's assassination made America sad, then the Beatles made America happy again. But this commonly accepted answer is overly simplistic. America has suffered numerous tragedies and rebounded each time, but the popularity and staying power of the Beatles remains unmatched in American history. The real answer is that Kennedy's life and death inadvertently primed the nation for the Beatles' arrival and success. This 60-minute multimedia program will explain how and why.
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