Where did they get that amazing talent of songwriting and performing ?

As witnessed in that excellent ITV show last
night.... 2 hours long !

1967 perhaps being the Beatles at their peak with Sgt Pepper... Magical Mystery Tour...
the single Hello Goodbye.... pure genius
It was an embaressment of riches

For guys and gals born in the 90s it must seem like ancient history... but at least the music and the vids are still there for them to enjoy !

Nice to see Bjorn from Abba making a few comments... of course he was a big Beatles fan back in the 60s . Sandie Shaw was on too.

I missed the Beatles no 1 show last night. However, as it is being repeated on Sunday afternoon I shall watch it then. But yes, they were geniuses at song creation. I am confident that Macca is my favourite long-term musician of all-time.

the 60's was a different age, people were creating music and experimenting on a blank canvass. they created music because they wanted to create new music - not to become famous, but for the love of music.

so in many ways, they were in the right place at the right time and took full advantage of it.

im not particularly a fan of sgt peppers lonely hearts club band - i prefer revolver!

From their teeny bopper, mop top start, through their introduction of art to pop music, their innovatory use of recording techniques and a diverse and quality portfolio of great songs, The Beatles shaped so much of what came after.

George Martin? Well, I bet some of it anyway.

george martin didnt compose any songs though (did he?) ... which is what the op asked!

true george martins production had a lot to do with their success though.

Looks like George Martins son is taking over from his dear old dad !

We'll never know how much input George Martin had, I can imagine the occasional, "Yes that sounds good but that bit might sound a little bit better like this."

They'd have been daft not to take advantage of some of his wealth of musical expertise.

I think alot of it came from them really working as a unit. The songs were initially created by the writer but they gradually developed in the studio with various ideas and influences being thrown about.
They were great songwriters on their own but perhaps the group environment, although it gradually proved suffocating, it also pushed them to their best and removed alot of the not so great things that they may have written/recorded without having eachother to offer a different perspective. Things that we perhaps saw more frequently in their solo careers.

There are a number of reasons why the Beatles were so good.
in songwriting terms it helped that they went through a number of periods.
John and Paul wrote together in the earliest period. Then they worked separately. George wrote on his own but added to The Beatles sound. And then they worked with other musicians and producers and even wrote for other artists. In the later period of breakdown of The Beatles and the emergence of the solo artists you get changes in their music.

At the same time they gigged for years in Hamburg and Liverpool before they even reached the masses. And then they didn't play live for three years but concentrated on pushing the envelope in the recording studio. They also took a drug or two at times and immersed themselves in some Eastern culture. Plus they were all from Liverpool.

Cant help thinking that John was the dynamic force behind Beatlemania
in the early years ( or should that be demonic ?)

but by the mid decade there was a power shift and Paul became the driving force
.... Sgt Pepper was his idea its his songs that make it so great
.... Magical Mystery tour.... his idea again

Paul was well in control throughout that golden year of 67

I think the two most popular songs on Sgt Pepper are A Day In The Life (John & Paul) and Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds (John). Though also up there is When I'm 64 (Paul) and With A Little Help From My Friends (John/Paul wrote it but Ringo sings it).
Plus, I Am The Walrus (John) is generally agreed to be the best thing about Magical Mystery Tour. So John was still bringing it, but Paul was very much the ideas man around this point. Whether it was drugs or other distractions, John's focus was slightly off.

IMO it's a case of the whole being greater than a sum of the parts - both John & Paul were great songwiters, but John on his own is angry & abrasive; Paul on his own is nauseatingly sentimental. Together they balanced each other out and were able to create Fabness.

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.............Paul

With A Little Help From My Friends................Paul

Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds...........................John

Getting Better.....................................................Paul

Fixing A Hole...........................................................Paul

She's Leaving Home..................................................Paul



Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite..........................John

Within You Without You............................................George

When I'm Sixty-Four...................................................Paul

Lovely Rita...................................................................Paul

Good Morning Good Morning........................................John

A Day in the Life............................................................John


Sorry but Within you Without you just is nt up to standard
Good Morning is a second grade song from John

Lucy in the Sky and Day in the life are brilliant from John
All the other brilliant songs are from Paul it's more his album than
anyone else's.

George had two other songs that would have fitted Sgt Pepper better than WYWY. Only A Northern Song and It's All Too Much. Both of which ended up on the Yellow Submarine soundtrack and have been kind of forgotten.

George Martin himself said it best in regards to Lennon/Mccartney...


Both are brilliant songwriters and they complement each other perfectly, chuck in George who is brilliant in his own right and you have all the ingredients of brilliance.

Only A Northern Song is one of my favourite Beatles tunes although I'm kind of glad that it was on Yellow Submarine if only for the visuals that accompany it in the film.

As much as I like Paul, I think John's input to SPLHCB comprises the standout tracks on the album.

For anyone who's really interested, I can wholeheartedly recommend that you buy the book, Revolution In The Head by Ian MacDonald. It details the recording sessions of every song The Beatles ever recorded and is full of fascinating revelations.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Revolution-H.../dp/0099526794
A great Christmas present, either for yourself or any other Beatles fanatic. Guaranteed to settle any arguments you may have had regarding any Beatles recordings.

Digressing a bit,

I read and contribute to a couple of USA music message boards. It amazes me that so many contributors over there are so obsessed with the Beatles, far more than most people in this country.

Links ?

Only A Northern Song is a brilliant track......

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVyNRzUNy88

Another one of George's from around the same time which often gets forgotten is 'Blue Jay Way' which was on the 'Magical Mystery Tour' double EP

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-HNgIqKDC4Q

Is George double tracking his voice in Northern Song ?

Agreed Blue Jay Way is a fab song, lets whiz that
into Sgt Pepper and get rid of Within you without you

Looking back , Mag Myst Tour was brilliant... cant help thinking that its a pity they did nt get a few more songs together
and turn it into a... Magical Mystery Tour LP ... plus all the art work
it could have topped Sgt Pepper !

I always though 'Hello, Goodbye' would fit on Sgt Peppers being a similar type of song to Lovely Rita, For the Benefit of Mr Kite........a bit Oomp Pah........

Not an huge surprise this. Every now and again mainly in brit Forums there'll be a "Beatles are over-rated" thread, normally they'll state a cretinous column written about how it's just a Brit journo thing that keeps the hype going.

Yet it couldn't be further from the truth, we ridicule our own constantly, it's the British nature, which BTW I'm not against (even though unfortunately we don't stretch it to royalty). Yet it should always be mentioned the Beatles are revered abroad. In fact didn't they have the biggest selling album of the noughties, or one of the biggest? Mind you they had a record called Revolver, so I guess that means they'll be automatically loved over there.

This thread needs more Ringo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJTjjAXDZSY